Lu Fangfang tied the black horse to the gate of the courtyard, turned around and went into the house.

Early in the morning, Mrs. Zhuang stood in the courtyard, twisting and turning, exercising.

Lu Fangfang walked up to the old lady, stopped, and looked at her expressionlessly.

"Comrade Lu, is there something you need?"

When Zhuang's mother saw Lu Fangfang now, she felt somewhat indifferent, and she always felt a little sorry for her.

She thought to herself that when she left, she would leave behind the letter of introduction from Hongxing Textile Factory, so as to at least give her father some explanation.

As for their son's marriage, the two of them are really not a good match.

"Comrade Zhou, you've been here for over a week now, eating, drinking, and using the restroom here every day. Shouldn't you pay for your meals?"

"Food expenses? You're asking me for food expenses?"

Zhuang's mother pointed to herself, feeling somewhat ridiculous.

"Well, you only eat refined grains. You've eaten all the rice and flour in the house, so you definitely have to pay."

Lu Fangfang nodded solemnly and extended her hand to her.

There's only some coarse grain left at home. She can eat it herself, so she doesn't believe that Zhuang's mother can.

No! If we don't give her money for food, she won't even get coarse grains! Her mother's attitude last night must have hurt her.

"Comrade Zhou, if you don't pay for your meals, then you'll have to cook for yourself."

Lu Fangfang stared at Zhuang's mother.

Zhuang's mother also looked at her, and the two refused to give in to each other.

After a while, Mrs. Zhuang took a deep breath, turned around and went into the house, and Lu Fangfang quickly followed.

After opening the wicker trunk, Mrs. Zhuang searched for a while and pulled out a stack of banknotes. She turned around and asked in an annoyed tone, "How much do you need for food?"

"Give me thirty catties of grain coupons, I need national grain coupons, the ones from Beijing won't work. Forget about the money, I'll pay for it myself."

Mrs. Zhuang counted them, then turned and walked over.

Filled with anger, she slapped the thirty jin of grain coupons into Lu Fangfang's hand.

"I'm going to the county to buy grain. Comrade Zhou, could you take care of the chicks and quails for me at home? Consider it my errand fee."

Lu Fangfang counted them, took them, and turned to leave.

Thirty catties of national grain coupons would be a bit of a waste to buy grain directly, but considering that they came from Zhuang's mother, she wasn't so heartbroken.

Once outside, she untied the reins and led the horse away.

...

At home, Zhuang's mother glanced at the bamboo cage beside her and kicked it.

"This guy is really starting to disregard me more and more."

The slight sense of guilt that Zhuang's mother had just felt vanished immediately.

She had originally intended to leave Lu Fangfang the letter of introduction, but now she didn't want to. "Lu Fangfang is really from the countryside, so petty and stingy. She even asked me for money for food. What a joke."

"Meow~"

Little Flower walked up behind Zhuang's mother and let out a sharp, piercing scream.

"Ouch~"

Zhuang's mother was startled.

Clutching her chest, she turned around and was furious. She immediately wanted to kick Xiaohua.

"Meow~"

Little Flower bristled, revealing its sharp claws, and slowly circled around the village mother.

Thanks to Lu Fangfang's meticulous care, Xiao Hua is now bigger than most cats and looks rather frightening.

Mrs. Zhuang's eyelids twitched, and she quickly waved her hands, "Xiao Hua, Xiao Hua, I didn't say anything about your mother. Be good and stop making a fuss."

She slowly backed away, and when she reached the doorway, she hurriedly ran out.

Standing in the courtyard, she clutched her chest, still shaken.

"A madman, a complete madman! Who keeps such a thing as a pet?"

She looked back, spat fiercely, and then strode away.

She couldn't stay at home any longer; she was bored, so she decided to go out for a walk.

...

"Giddy up!"

Lu Fangfang rode her big black horse eastward.

The horse that Li Dajun chose for her was gentle and cooperative.

It was her first time riding a horse to such a far place, and she found it quite novel.

After riding along the dirt road for more than an hour, Lu Fangfang arrived at the county town. Following the route she had taken by car before, she went directly to the most bustling street in the county town.

Instead of rushing to buy grain, she tied her horse to the door and went to the department store first.

The store was bustling with people.

Lu Fangfang browsed the store curiously for a while.

She was somewhat surprised to see a long queue when she reached the fabric counter.

The people queuing were all young women in their twenties, each with long braids. Lu Fangfang went over and listened curiously. It turned out that the store had received a batch of Dacron, and they were queuing up to buy it.

"It's made of Dacron."

Summer is almost here, and Lu Fangfang wants to buy some fabric to make a cool and comfortable outfit.

Looking at the long queue, she shook her head and turned away.

She stopped wandering around and went to the sports equipment counter.

Various guns were displayed in the glass case, and she looked at them curiously.

Don't be surprised, guns were considered sporting goods in this day and age. Not to mention department stores, even Xinhua Bookstore sold air guns.

The sales clerk at the sporting goods counter was a man, and he was very enthusiastic when he saw Lu Fangfang wearing a military uniform.

"Comrade, what kind of gun do you want to buy?"

Do you have any more powerful air rifles?

The sales clerk thought for a moment and then took out a long air gun from the counter.

"This air gun, made in Shanghai, is well-made, has a front sight and calipers, and has a maximum range of 100 meters. Buy the gun now and get five boxes of lead bullets for free."

As he spoke, he gripped the lever below the muzzle and snapped it down. "This air gun is a lever-operated air gun. When you snap the lever down, the valve on top opens as you pressurize the air."

Lu Fangfang craned her neck forward and looked intently.

The air gun the salesperson introduced looked quite ingenious in its construction.

"This is where you load the bullets. Put the lead bullets in, then turn the lever back to its original position. The valve will close automatically. Just aim and fire. This air gun is quite accurate."

The sales clerk demonstrated the gun, then handed it to Lu Fangfang.

"Whoa!"

When Lu Fangfang got her hands on it, she found that the air gun was quite heavy.

She looked at it closely and found that the stock was made of wood and the barrel was made of steel; it looked just like a real gun.

"Click."

She took the lever and demonstrated it as the salesperson had instructed. She found it quite easy to operate and immediately felt a strong liking for it.

"Comrade, how much is this air rifle?"

"Forty-three yuan, plus five boxes of lead bullets."

Lu Fangfang was speechless upon hearing this.

The price of one air gun is equivalent to one or two months' wages for a worker; it's really not cheap.

Holding the air rifle, she examined it carefully for a while, then asked, "Comrade, are there any even more powerful ones?"

This air rifle has a maximum range of 100 meters and is loaded with lead bullets. Lu Fangfang estimated that it could only shoot down pikas, sparrows, and the like. It could even shoot down rabbits if you got close, but it probably wouldn't be able to hit wolves or anything like that.

She still wanted a gun with more power.

Forget wolves, being able to deal with thick-skinned groundhogs will suffice.