As Han Chen and Xuemei pushed open the door of the Friendship Store, a male salesperson approached and asked, "Comrades, do you have any foreign exchange coupons?"

Xuemei took the foreign exchange coupons out of the envelope, held them in her hand and placed them where the male salesperson could see them, and said, "Yes!"

The male salesperson glanced at the foreign exchange coupons in Xuemei's hand. Knowing the amount was average, he showed no enthusiasm and said calmly, "Comrades, starting from the front of you, this row is divided into food, clothing, electrical appliances, etc. If you have any questions, you can ask the salesperson inside. After you have selected your items, come to the counter behind me to check out!"

Xuemei and Han Chen looked at the male salesperson's cold expression and said nothing. You know, some salespeople in the county are very arrogant, but at least the salesperson in front of them did not give people a condescending feeling. At least his performance was cold after all.

Xuemei replied, "Okay, thank you, comrade!"

The male salesperson nodded and went back to sit behind the counter.

Xuemei and Han Chen first looked through the entire exhibit. Xuemei saw many new things: refrigerators, washing machines, bicycles, telescopes, magnifying glasses, cameras, nightgowns, suits, cheongsams, silk fabrics...

It can be said that Han Chen and Xuemei were dazzled by the sight of the place. They felt that even if they spent all their savings, they still couldn't buy the few things here.

A foreign-made twin-tub washing machine alone costs 500 yuan, enough to buy two domestic bicycles, even though washing machines aren't widely produced in China. A domestic Seagull camera, while still a better choice, costs only 140 yuan, but the salesperson says it's in foreign exchange coupons (equivalent to 210 yuan) and must be paid for.

"The things here are too expensive. We can just use the foreign exchange coupons to buy some food!" Xuemei said to Han Chen after looking around.

"Okay, let's go to the department store and take a look later!" Han Chen saw that Xuemei liked the camera very much, so he planned to go to the department store later to see if there were any similar cameras.

Friendship imported chocolate had long since sold out, so Xuemei and Hanchen bought two types of domestic chocolate. One was Guangming brand wafer chocolate, made with four layers of wafers, a chocolate filling, and a thick coating of chocolate paste. It cost 0.25 yuan a piece, about 10 centimeters long, 4 centimeters wide, and 2.5 centimeters thick. Xuemei bought sixteen pieces, dividing them into three portions of 4, 4, and 8, and wrapping them in wax paper.

Han Chen and Xuemei also bought "Shenfeng" spherical chocolates, two for 10 cents, but each was only about the size of an adult's index finger. Xuemei bought twenty, which made one chocolate bar. Both chocolates required payment with foreign exchange coupons.

In addition, Xuemei and Han Chen also bought two bottles of Moutai. The foreign exchange price was six yuan per bottle, which is about nine yuan per bottle in RMB. It is more than one yuan more expensive than department stores and supply and marketing cooperatives, but no wine tickets are required.

As soon as Xuemei saw the wine, she knew it would be valuable in the future, as Father Liu often said the better the wine, the more valuable it would be the longer it was stored. So Xuemei and Han Chen decided to buy two bottles and take them back, one for Father Liu and one for themselves.

Xuemei and Han Chen used the remaining four yuan in foreign exchange coupons to buy a bottle of Coke and a sheepskin bag, which is best placed on the bed to warm hands in winter. It is the size of a military water bottle and does not require a foot of sheepskin, but costs three yuan in foreign exchange. A soda bottle-sized bottle of Coke costs one yuan in foreign exchange, which is equivalent to one yuan and fifty cents in RMB. This amount can buy two bottles of ordinary orange soda, which still come in bottles.

Han Chen and Xuemei came out of the Friendship Store after they had used up all the foreign exchange coupons they had.

Xuemei walked out of the Friendship Store, took a few steps, then looked back at the Friendship Store sign. She said, "The things here are too expensive. It's like we only bought this little stuff for 30 yuan—that's my monthly salary!"

"I feel a little sad too. Let's go to the department store first, and then go to the recycling station after lunch. I'll see if there's anything that can be repaired!" Han Chen comforted.

Xuemei nodded, and then Han Chen led the way. The two walked for half an hour and arrived at the department store.

As soon as he entered the department store, Han Chen asked the salesperson, "Comrade, do you have any cameras?"

When the salesperson heard that a big customer had arrived, he said happily, "Comrades, you've arrived just in time. We only have one Seagull camera left!"

Xuemei looked at Han Chen in surprise when she heard it. Han Chen quickly said, "Comrade, please take it out. We want it!"

The salesperson took a camera out of the cabinet and said, "Comrade, are you sure? If you don't want it, don't touch it. This is a 120 model from a few years ago. The price is ten industrial coupons or one camera ticket, which is 150 yuan!"

Han Chen knew about this type of camera from books. The biggest feature of the photos taken by the 120 camera is that one roll of film can take 12 6X6 square photos. There is no need to enlarge them, and you can take one photo at a time. It is very convenient and economical.

After listening to the salesperson's words, Xuemei tugged at Han Chen's clothes and asked in a low voice, "I think this camera is a little different from the one we just saw at the Friendship Store. Should we order it?"

"This kind of camera is easy for us to learn and convenient for taking pictures. Let's take it. We may not have the chance to see it again in the future, although the style is a bit old!" Han Chen explained.

"Then I'll listen to you!" Xuemei said.

Seeing Xuemei's agreement, Han Chen said to the salesperson, "Hey, we want this. But does anyone here know how to use this camera and could teach us?"

"We have a male colleague who also bought a camera. Please wait a moment, I will ask him to teach you!" said the salesperson.

Han Chen and Xuemei waited there for a few minutes, and the salesperson who had just come came with a male salesperson. The male salesperson taught Xuemei and Han Chen several times, and left only after both of them learned it.

Xuemei said gratefully, "Comrade, thank you and your colleagues."

Han Chen continued, "Comrade, does this camera only come with one roll of film?"

"Yes, comrade, do you still need to buy film? A roll of 120 film costs 1.80 yuan, and one roll of film can take twelve photos." The salesperson introduced.

Xuemei looked at Han Chen and said, "Let's buy a few more. We may not be able to buy them when we return to the county town." Xuemei had hardly seen any cameras for sale in Wencheng County.

Han Chen nodded, then said to the salesperson, "Comrade, can we have six more rolls of film?"

"Okay, I'll give you the price. The Seagull 120 camera is one hundred and fifty yuan plus ten industrial coupons, and six rolls of film are ten yuan and eighty cents, a total of one hundred and sixty yuan and eighty cents plus ten industrial coupons." said the salesperson.

Xuemei took out sixty yuan from her cotton coat with a distressed look on her face and handed it to Han Chen. Han Chen took it, added the money and ticket he had on him, and handed it to the salesperson.