Chapter 20

Chu Jiujiu took a few quick steps and ran in front of Chu Shao. "Wait a minute, I need to tell Brother Shengyi that I won't be playing with him at noon today."

Chu Shao objected, "The vegetable garden is far away from here, and we don't have enough time."

Chu Jiujiu looked around and happened to see the row of small houses. She immediately ran over, leaving only a few words floating in the air for Chu Shao.

"Then I'll go tell Brother Shengyi's grandparents, you wait here for me!"

Chu Shao was caught off guard and reached out to grab her, but ended up grabbing the edge of her clothes which was now extremely smooth.

Chu Shao: “…”

Not obedient!

Chu Jiujiu ran to the door of the small house on the right and asked the gray-haired man who was squinting in the sun, "Hello, are you Grandpa Han?"

The squinting old man opened his eyes and looked at the cute and polite little girl in front of him. He smiled and asked instead of answering, "Little girl, what do you want from Old Han?"

Chu Jiujiu blinked and said, "Something happened, but I will only tell Grandpa Han."

Song Chaoxin laughed heartily. He wanted to tease Chu Jiujiu, so he said, "I am Grandpa Han. If you have anything to say, just tell me."

Grandma Han walked out of the first room on the left, heard the conversation here, turned around, and said, "Old Song, what nonsense are you talking about again?"

The smile on Song Chaoxin's face did not fade at all. Chu Jiujiu looked at Grandma Han, and then at Song Chaoxin who was sitting at the door.

Suddenly, she said, "No, you are lying to me."

Then, she pointed to the room where a middle-aged man was lying behind Song Chaoxin, and her eyes became very sharp: "You don't even have a grandmother at home, you are definitely not Grandpa Han."

Song Chaoxin was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter even louder, which woke up the person in the room.

It turns out that the key for the little girl to identify whether it was Old Han was whether there was a grandmother in the house.

Song Chaoxin wanted to talk to Chu Jiujiu, but Chu Jiujiu had already run to Grandma Han. She tilted her head and winked at her, "Are you Grandma Han?"

Grandma Han looked at her silently. She had the urge to deny it, but when she thought about the fish, chicken, mushrooms, etc. before, she nodded.

Chu Jiujiu suddenly laughed. "Grandma Han, I'm going to town with Chu Shao today. I won't be playing with Brother Shengyi at noon. Please tell him. Also, Grandma, is there anything you need to buy? We can bring it back for you."

"No, that's not necessary." Grandma Han answered coldly.

Chu Jiujiu didn't feel she was being treated coldly. She said "oh" and turned around and ran away again. Before running away, she waved to Grandma Han and said, "Grandma Han, I'm leaving now. See you tonight."

You are not allowed to talk outside the cowshed. Chu Jiujiu originally wanted to say that she would bring you some delicious food in the evening, but when she remembered that Han Shengyi didn't even dare to bring extra pheasants, she changed her words. She came and went like the wind and ran away quickly. Grandma Han still kept calling her. After a moment of silence, Grandma Han put down her hand and turned back into the room.

Today, Grandpa Han was able to go out. He was buttoning his shirt when he heard someone talking outside. He looked out curiously and asked, "Who is it? I heard a little girl calling you grandma."

Grandma Han: "You're asking so many questions. Next time, go out and see for yourself."

Upon hearing this, Grandpa Han immediately looked up in surprise. He even buttoned his shirt incorrectly.

Yoho.

He had to go out and see if the sun rose from the west today.

…

Chu Jiujiu and Chu Shao stood at the village entrance and waited for a while before all the educated youth arrived.

There are four educated youth in Qingzhu Village, two men and two women. Initially, they knew nothing about the village, but after a few years, they've largely assimilated into rural life. They live in a designated educated youth camp and work together, rarely interacting with other villagers.

However, the village is so small that if someone breaks a bowl in the east, it can be heard immediately in the west. So they had heard of the names of Chu Jiujiu and Chu Shao a long time ago.

The leader of the educated youth was a man in his early twenties named Ding Boyun. He was the squad leader and also the one with the best personality among the four.

The team leader just announced today that we'll have a mobilization meeting tomorrow morning and then rush to harvest the rice. Yesterday's rain wiped out the rice, which was still green, overnight. Now we're racing against time to finish harvesting before the next rain comes.

The busy farming season is about to begin, and everyone is staying at home. Even the children are not going to school. Only those who are really anxious and the educated youth who don't care much about the crops will choose to go out at this time.

Four adults and two children walked out of the village together. Ding Boyun was a very friendly and talkative person. When he talked to the educated youth, he would also bring Chu Shao and Chu Jiujiu. The female educated youth who was about the same age as him was called Ma Wenjuan. She had a straightforward personality and her short hair bounced with her movements. She chatted with Ding Boyun the most and seemed to have a good relationship with him.

The oldest educated youth was Li Yan, who was twenty-three years old. She was pretty and charming in every way she moved. However, she didn't pay much attention to Chu Jiujiu and Chu Shao. Occasionally, when she looked at them, she looked a little disgusted.

Yu Jianqing is the youngest male educated youth, only nineteen years old this year, but he has been in the countryside for three years, even earlier than Li Yan. He was silent all the way at the end of the team, hardly speaking.

As mentioned before, Qingzhu Village is located in the upper reaches of Qingshi River, occupying the best terrain and the most fertile land. At the same time, it is also the village closest to the town. If you walk there, you can get there in an hour, and if you have a bicycle, it can be there in twenty minutes.

Don’t think one hour is far. It takes three hours to walk from Xiaxi Village downstream to the town.

For country folk, walking for an hour is nothing; it's just a stroll. It's a pity that there isn't a single genuine country folk in their group.

Halfway through the journey, Li Yan couldn't stand it anymore and kept asking, "How far is it? Why haven't we arrived yet?"

Ding Boyun, "It's almost there, we'll be there in half an hour."

After saying that, he glanced at the watch on his wrist.

Nowadays, owning a watch is a very prestigious thing. Chu Jiujiu saw his actions but showed no curiosity or envy. Ding Boyun found it interesting, so he lowered his head and smiled at her, "Jiujiu, do you know what this is?"

Chu Jiujiu took Chu Shao's hand and asked him, "Isn't it a watch?"

Ding Boyun nodded. "It's a watch. Jiujiu is really amazing. He even knows about watches. When I was your age, I didn't know there were such exquisite little things in the world."

Chu Jiujiu hummed, "Yes, the craftsmanship of watches is amazing. Swiss watchmakers are very famous internationally."

Ding Boyun looked at her and smiled: "Really? Jiujiu is so smart, she even knows about Switzerland."

Chu Jiujiu looked at him, feeling a strange sensation for some reason. She shrank back behind Chu Shao. Li Yan snorted when they mentioned Switzerland. "Watches made in China are still the best. My second uncle bought a Shanghai watch, which is of excellent quality. Switzerland is a foreign country, and foreign countries are all capitalist countries. The products made by their unscrupulous people are just for show and won't last for more than a few years."

After hearing this, Ma Wenjuan turned her back to Li Yan and rolled her eyes at Ding Boyun.

She didn't say anything, but Ding Boyun understood what she meant.

Here she comes again, listen, she comes again.

…

Li Yan's second uncle is a senior official in the city, so she often talks about her second uncle and keeps saying that her second uncle will help her return to the city. She has been saying this for two years, and she is still staying in Qingzhu Village.

"Yes, yes, Miss, your uncle has used all the good things he has, but unfortunately, his things belong to him and you don't get any."

As soon as Ma Wenjuan said this sarcastic remark, Li Yan immediately exploded, "What did you call me?!"

When the five black categories couldn't raise their heads, the eldest lady was full of abusive words. Ma Wenjuan couldn't stand Li Yan, and Li Yan was not convinced by Ma Wenjuan. The two soon started arguing. Ding Boyun hurriedly stepped in to mediate. In the end, the two women were silent. Ding Boyun looked at Chu Shao and Chu Jiujiu and gave them a helpless smile.

Chu Shao didn't care about their farce, his expression remained unchanged. Chu Jiujiu looked around at the four of them and felt that the educated youth were no pushovers. They felt superior to others, but in reality, they were no different from the noisy people in the village.

Chu Jiujiu lost interest in making friends with them. Holding Chu Shao's hand, she began to look forward to the prosperity of the town.

When they arrived in town, Ding Boyun agreed to meet at the entrance of the state-owned restaurant at 1 p.m. and go back together. After he said this, everyone dispersed. Chu Jiujiu didn't recognize any of the places, but Chu Shao had been here twice before with Zhang Fengjuan and did remember the way.

His first stop was a crowded supply and marketing cooperative. A salesperson stood behind the shelves with all kinds of merchandise in front of her. She looked down at the people buying things with a very rude attitude.

"If you don't want to buy, leave. Don't touch it! If you break it, you have to pay for it!"

Chu Jiujiu's eyes widened. It was the first time she had seen such an arrogant salesperson.

Chu Shao was used to it. He squeezed to the front of the shelf and asked, "How much is the fruit candy?"

The salesperson saw that he was a teenager and simply ignored him. Chu Jiujiu saw this and angrily slammed the shelf, "Hey! Auntie, why are you ignoring me?"

Salesperson: “…”

She's only 21, how can she be called an aunt?!

When Chu Jiujiu was a child, she also made a joke about "sister or aunt". Later, she realized that women all like to be called sister. From then on, the people she likes are sisters, and the people she doesn't like are aunts. People like salespeople are directly upgraded to aunts.

Chu Jiujiu was still wearing her red school uniform. The salesperson had never seen such a style before and couldn't help but take a few more glances at it. On the other side, Chu Shao had already taken out a big unity banknote.

"Fruit candy, how much?"

Seeing the money, the salesman's hearing was cured, but he was still angry, "The small ones are one cent each, and the big ones are one dollar per pound."

Chu Jiujiu looked at it and saw that the small fruit candies looked very similar to the paper crane candies, also colorful. The large ones were the size of normal candies. The ones Qiuhua had eaten were the large ones. There was also a mixed bag of candies nearby, including soft candies, crisp candies, and mostly fruit candies.

Chu Shao pointed at it and asked, "How much is this?"

The salesperson was annoyed. "This one is the most expensive, one dollar and twenty cents per pound. It's for weddings. How old are you? And you're already looking for a wife?"

Chu Shao was too lazy to talk nonsense with her and handed the money over directly. "Just give me this, four pounds, one pound per bag."

The salesperson looked at him in surprise, but said nothing more and went to get the wrapping paper.

Some people around heard it and looked over.

It's not their fault. Many families can't afford candy these days. Even weddings only buy two pounds of candy as a token of appreciation, giving two or three pieces to guests. They won't give more than that. Chu Shao is still a child, and he's so generous. His family must be very well off.

Outsiders' gazes couldn't bother Chu Shao. He only looked at Chu Jiujiu, "Is there anything you want to eat?"

This is the grocery store, selling candies and snacks, things that can be given as gifts. Chu Jiujiu tiptoed and looked around the shelves, finally pointing to a pile of black, shiny things.

"I want that one."

The salesperson straightened up and said as he wrapped the candies, "You have good taste. These are the new products we added yesterday. They are Xinjiang candied dates. They are not from Iraq. They are all grown by our comrades in Xinjiang."

The salesperson emphasized it twice, and Chu Jiujiu didn't know about the Iraqi candied dates incident. Chu Shao did know about it, but when he thought about it, there were no Iraqi candied dates on the market since the report, and the supply and marketing cooperative probably didn't dare to sell them.

He asked, "How much is it? Do you want a ticket?"

"No, but this is expensive, one dollar and five cents per pound."

A few dates, surprisingly, cost $1.50. Yesterday, the salesperson explained the price countless times, but no one was willing to buy. City dwellers are intimidated by the reputation of Iraqi dates and think they're all flawed, while country folk can grow their own dates and won't pay for them. Now, my chance has finally arrived, and the salespeople are much nicer than before.

"This thing is delicious, sweet, and it can be stored for a long time. If you put it in a well-ventilated place and out of the sun, it will be able to keep for several months without any problem."

Chu Shao nodded, "Two pounds, please."

Chu Jiujiu smiled and took Chu Shao's hand from below, "The porridge is delicious."

They didn't have sugar coupons and couldn't buy sugar, so they bought some dates and put one in the porridge when cooking, and the whole pot would be sweet.

Chu Shao thought she wanted to eat it as a snack. Hearing this, he touched Chu Jiujiu's head and said, "Don't always think about home. Don't you have something you want?"

Chu Jiujiu shook her head, "No, I don't like the things here."

She is not picky about food and can eat everything, but there are only a few things that she really likes.

Sea salt potato chips, vanilla puffs, cheesecake, and everyone’s favorite Wangzai steamed buns.

I guess she will be able to eat it in another forty years.

…

After buying the sugar and candied dates, Chu Shao walked to another counter, looked at the items on the counter, and reported the quantity he needed one by one.

Two pounds of salt, two pounds of soy sauce, two pounds of vinegar, two pounds of kelp, two pounds of dried shrimps, anything that didn't require a ticket, he bought them all by two pounds, even twenty boxes of matches at once.

Twenty boxes, how long will it take to order them?

Li Yan was buying cloth at the supply and marketing cooperative. Seeing Chu Shao like this, she couldn't close her mouth. She heard that Chu Shao had just received more than 180 yuan from his grandmother, and it looked like he was going to squander it all in one day.

Li Yan couldn't help but feel even more disgusted. A villain who succeeds and a poor man who becomes rich suddenly are both equally disgraceful.

With a light snort, she turned around and continued to choose fabrics. She took a fancy to a piece of fabric with a white background and yellow flowers. It would definitely suit her skin tone when she wore it. Li Yan counted the cloth coupons from the cloth bag. She wanted to buy three feet, but after counting, she only found two feet in total. Chu Shao came over at that time. She looked around and found that she knew Chu Shao, so she walked over and smiled gently.

"Brother Chu Shao, do you have any cloth coupons? I'm short of one foot. Give it to me first, and I'll return it to you later."

Chu Shao was also looking at the cloth. Hearing this, he raised his head. Li Yan felt that there was something interesting and quickly pointed at the cloth. "Look, it's so beautiful. If you can't buy it today, it will be gone next time. Can you help me?"

Chu Shao looked in the direction of her finger and nodded, "Not bad."

Li Yan was delighted and stretched out her hand to take the cloth coupons. Chu Shao did take out the cloth coupons, but he didn't hand them to her.

Handing it to the salesman, he said, "Excuse me, pull it three feet. By the way, do you have coarse cloth?"

Li Yan: “…”

Chu Jiujiu looked up at her and said pitifully, "I'm sorry, my family doesn't have much cloth coupons. You know, we even sleep on the bed boards. Auntie, you can understand."

Li Yan: “…”

She was so angry at these brother and sister that she was about to vomit blood.

Chu Jiujiu admired her expression for a moment before proudly looking away. Did she really think she and Chu Shao couldn't see it? The way she rolled her eyes just now was so big that even standing outside the supply and marketing cooperative, they could see it.

Chu Shao pulled out three feet of cotton cloth and six feet of coarse cloth. The former was used to make clothes for Chu Jiujiu, and the latter was used to make quilts. Now it was summer, so he could just use the coarse cloth to make two layers of sheets. When winter came, he could add cotton to them.

But the lack of cotton tickets is also a problem.

If that doesn't work, you can only buy it on the black market.

With this thought in mind, Chu Shao walked out of the supply and marketing cooperative carrying more than ten kilograms of things.

Chu Jiujiu followed him, holding the cloth.

In today's world, you can't move without a ticket. You need a ticket for everything you need in daily life, and things without a ticket are extremely expensive. Chu Shao spent less than twenty yuan in total to buy these things.

The grain station and the supply and marketing cooperative were only 500 meters apart. After entering the grain station, Chu Shao used up all his grain coupons, but he could only buy a dozen kilograms of grain, which was not enough to eat.

However, the grain will be distributed after the busy farming season, which means we need to be more intensive in these few days.

After coming out of the grain station, Chu Shao turned around and went to the lumber mill. Chu Jiujiu followed him and watched him take out Zhang Fengjuan's certificate and pick out three large round logs and five high-quality whole bamboos in the lumber mill's warehouse.

Five whole bamboos cut into two-meter lengths, which is more than forty pieces. After buying the wood and bamboo, he found an old carpenter outside the lumber factory. He told him what kind of furniture and utensils he wanted. The carpenter calculated how many days it would take and what tools he would need to bring. He tentatively quoted a labor fee of five dollars.

Chu Shao agreed immediately, but on the condition that the carpenter could only leave after all the materials were used up.

The carpenter was so happy that he almost lost his sight. He could finish the work in two days. He quoted five dollars, but he actually did it for three. Feeling that he had gotten a great deal, the carpenter happily offered to help them send all the materials and supplies back.

The wood Chu Shao wanted was all old and of good quality, as well as the five bamboos that were more than ten meters long. He spent eighty yuan just on these raw materials, and with the addition of paint, ropes, nails, miscellaneous items, and the carpenter's fee, he had spent ninety yuan.

Chu Shao always had his own considerations when buying things. Chu Jiujiu stayed aside, neither interrupting nor interfering, just acting as a little follower. After leaving the carpenter's house, Chu Jiujiu looked back at the carpenter who looked like he was sending away the God of Wealth. She asked Chu Shao, "Where are we going next?"

Chu Shao touched the remaining money in his pocket, which was one hundred and eighty-two. In a blink of an eye, he had spent one hundred and eleven, leaving more than seventy.

No, I have to buy some more.

Taking Chu Jiujiu with him, the two returned to Jiefang Street, the most prosperous street in the town, and walked to the innermost part of the supply and marketing cooperative. Chu Shao picked out two pottery jars and bought a few expensive bowls and plates that did not require tickets. Originally, these things were not given away for delivery, but seeing that the buyers were two children and they said they could be delivered to the lumber factory next door, the salesperson reluctantly agreed to help them deliver it.

After spending a few more dollars, it was already twelve o'clock in the afternoon. Chu Jiujiu was exhausted after walking around all morning. The two of them came to a state-owned restaurant. Chu Shao asked Chu Jiujiu to order whatever she wanted.

The state-owned restaurant looks like a large canteen. All the dishes in the restaurant are written on wooden strips. In addition, there is a blackboard hanging on the wall with the list of dishes that will be served only on that day.

Chu Jiujiu looked around and found that she had very few choices.

After all, they don’t have tickets.

After they had almost decided what to order, they lined up at the back of the queue and ten minutes passed before it was their turn.

The waiter at the state-owned restaurant was even more arrogant than the supply and marketing cooperative. When he saw two children coming to eat, he rolled his eyes and said, "Vegetarian noodles are seven cents a bowl, no ticket required."

Chu Jiujiu blinked and said, "We don't eat vegetarian noodles."

The words "get out if you don't want to eat" spilled out of the waiter's throat. Just as they reached the tip of his tongue, before he could spit them out, Chu Jiujiu pointed at the sign on the wall and said, "We want one fried potato with meat, two baskets of pan-fried dumplings, and two bowls of hot and sour soup."

The waiter quickly braked and choked himself to death.

A plate of fried potatoes with meat costs 65 cents, and the pan-fried buns are also filled with meat. They are usually sold individually, 30 cents each, and there are four in a basket, so two baskets are 2.40 yuan, plus a bowl of hot and sour soup is 5 cents. Wow, these two kids are not dressed very well, but they really have a lot of money!

When the waiter was surprised, Chu Jiujiu pulled Chu Shao's sleeve. Chu Shao lowered his head and put his ear close to her. After listening to Chu Jiujiu's words, he thought for a moment and nodded.

"Okay, you order."

Chu Jiujiu smiled brightly, then turned to the waiter and said, "By the way, two more baskets of pan-fried buns, I want them to go."

Waiter: "...The pan-fried dumplings are gone. Only two baskets left."

Chu Jiujiu was a little disappointed. She curled her lips and said, "Okay then, another serving of fried potatoes with meat, and take it away."

After ordering, Chu Jiujiu left the room. Chu Shao took out the money, another big unity bill. Under the gaze of other guests, Chu Shao took back the change, turned around with Chu Jiujiu, and looked for the remaining empty seats.

Li Yan turned her head back suddenly, not wanting to look at the two people over there, nor to be seen by them. Ding Boyun didn't know what she was thinking. He raised his arm and called out, "Chu Shao, Jiujiu, come here."