This autumn seems to have been particularly kind to the old farmers, with consistently sunny days. Good weather means the corn ripens quickly and is easy to harvest.

Early in the morning, the loudspeakers were broadcasting that today was the last day to husk corn, and once it was finished, the autumn harvest would officially be over.

The workers were all enthusiastic, as if the work was not hard at all, and they were only satisfied.

All the farmers hope for all year round is good weather and a bountiful harvest.

On her way home from work, An Moxue was thinking that she should go to the county tomorrow. The month was almost over, and she hadn't received her subsidy yet.

Thinking about it, I turned around and went to Old Ma's house. I knew there was a mule cart going to the county tomorrow, so I made an appointment. Then I went out to find the village chief to get a letter of introduction. Unexpectedly, I received a letter from Wu Sicheng, which seemed quite thick.

That night, An Moxue took a bath in her spatial dimension. When she came out, she stood in front of the mirror, admiring her increasingly curvaceous figure, closer to her former self. She was extremely satisfied; a woman dresses up for her lover. She believed it wouldn't be long before she looked even better.

An Moxue sat in the study in the space and took out the letter that Wu Sicheng had sent her. She tore it up as she thought that if the money was less than expected, she would definitely ask him to make it up to her next time.

Open it up, pour out the contents, they're all military documents, okay, we can use them.

He opened his letter, which read—

Comrade An Moxue:

Greetings.

I have recovered and there is no need to worry.

Enclosed in the letter are sixty yuan, and the following receipts: twenty jin of grain coupons, five jin of meat coupons, twelve feet of cloth coupons, three jin of oil coupons, two bags of milk powder coupons, and two soap coupons. Please verify, as they may be lost.

Don't overwork yourself at work; just make sure you get enough work points. Take care of yourself and look forward to your reply.

Wu Sicheng

It seems the letter was sent after he returned to his workplace.

The next morning, the mule cart was packed with people. More than half of them were educated youth, and they walked a little slower, taking almost three hours to reach the county town.

Upon arriving in the county town, An Moxue parted ways with the others, first going to the post office to collect her subsidy and then mailing her first letter to Wu Sicheng.

After leaving the post office, An Moxue first went to the bookstore and bought two notebooks. She then wanted to go to the grain store, but unexpectedly saw Qu Bing walking side by side with that tall, square-faced man from Kyoto. They didn't seem to have just met.

An Moxue followed from a distance until they entered a very ordinary house.

About half an hour later, Qu Bing came out first, and then about ten minutes later, the square-faced man left. An Moxue stayed for a while longer, but no one came out, so she had to leave first.

Unbeknownst to her, less than five minutes after she left, a person emerged from the house—the same person who had sent the telegram in the forest that day.

An Moxue checked her watch, found a deserted alley, entered her space, and put on the makeup of a middle-aged woman. She then put on the clothes of the original owner's mother, took out her bicycle, and drove around the county. She didn't see a black market, nor did she see any houses that looked like black markets, or even any people who seemed to be going to black markets.

She had no choice but to ride her bicycle to the grain station and buy three jin of oil, ten jin of rice, and ten jin of flour. She then went to a grocery store and bought six jin of pork, found a secluded spot to change her clothes, and went to the supply and marketing cooperative. Finding nothing she wanted to buy, she headed straight for the state-run restaurant.

The restaurant was noisy and there were no empty seats. It was mostly filled with educated youth. An Moxue arrived late and could only order a bowl of braised pork noodles and four meat buns; there were no other meat or vegetable dishes left. The people from the educated youth compound who were sitting at one table moved around to make room for An Moxue.

An Moxue sat down next to Liu Jie with noodles and steamed buns in her hands. Qi Taohua sat on the other side. After An Moxue sat down, she leaned closer to her and whispered, "Moxue, you don't know, I only realized that our village was considered the best when I heard the educated youth from other villages talking about their living conditions. Many houses leaked when it rained, and some people stayed with villagers. They paid for food, but not only were they not full, they were also skimped on. They also had to help that family with chores. Sometimes their food would disappear for no reason, and sometimes their money and ration coupons would go missing." She finished speaking with a look of relief.

An Moxue smiled and said, "You're here so early!"

"I've finished looking around, and since I had nowhere else to go, I came here. Mo Xue, have you finished your business?" Liu Jie asked.

"It's all done."

“Then let’s eat slowly and listen to what the educated youth from other villages are saying.” An Moxue glanced at the empty rice in her bowl, then looked at the others, who all had the same problem. She stopped talking and lowered her head to concentrate on eating.

She finished her noodles and hadn't heard anything interesting. She picked up the remaining two buns and asked the group, "Are you leaving? I need to go to the parking lot."

The group looked at each other, nodded, and left the state-run restaurant together.

That night, An Moxue felt resentful, so she put on makeup, avoided people, and went into the back mountain. She rode her bicycle down the mountain after leaving the village for a while, carrying a flashlight on the handlebars. It took her four hours to reach the county.

When I got near the house I'd seen during the day, I put away my bicycle, shone my flashlight around, and found it was very quiet with hardly anyone around.

An Moxue put away her flashlight, climbed over the wall and jumped into the yard. She bent down under the eaves and listened carefully but heard no sound. She gently pushed the door, but it was locked from the inside.

He took out some incense from his spatial storage, put on a mask, lit the incense, and then inserted it into each room through the cracks in the windows.

Then they began to carefully inspect the yard, but found nothing unusual.

Half an hour later, he took out a dagger and started prying open the door lock, moving it little by little until the door was open.

Inside was the kitchen, the west room was a storage room, and a man was sleeping in the east room. An Moxue pushed open the door and saw that the man was sleeping on his side with his back to her. An Moxue carefully nudged the man, but he didn't move. It seemed that the first time she had used this sleeping potion, it was working well.

He carefully examined the house, then cautiously searched it. Finding no useful clues, only some money and wine, he stored it all in his spatial storage. Shining a flashlight on the man's face, he looked very ordinary; he'd be easily lost in a crowd. He then left the bedroom, storing all the food from the kitchen and storage room into his spatial storage before departing.

An Moxue rode her bicycle around to places where there might be a black market, and finally found someone in an alley near the train station. She found a secluded spot and stored her bicycle in her storage space.

There were two guards at the entrance of the alley. As soon as you approached, they would ask if you wanted to buy or sell. They would offer one cent for buying and two cents for selling. If you heard a whistle, you would quickly leave.

An Moxue paid a dime and went in with an empty basket.

In front of each vendor's stall was a kerosene lamp, and the items for sale were placed beside it.

An Moxue walked to the end and bought two chickens. She couldn't find anything else she wanted to buy. Disappointed, she asked the two guards, "Brothers, I want to buy some pork ribs or something. Do you have any? I also want to buy some fine grains. Do you have any? It would be even better if you had beef."

One of them asked, "How many do you want?"

An Moxue asked, "I'm asking for quite a lot. Twenty or thirty catties of refined grains, and as much meat as possible, but not fatty, only lean. Other food can be of good quality, but it has to be delicious."

He exchanged a glance with another guard, then said to her, "Come with me."