The "stingy" Shi Hongmei sneezed, glanced at her three NPC sons and daughters working in the yard, and thought to herself, "I still need to go to the black market to find some cotton. I hope they don't catch a cold."

She thought to herself, "There are still three people left. Each person needs a set of cotton-padded clothes, which will cost a lot of money." She felt her heart bleeding. "Oh well," she thought, "if you want the horse to run, you have to feed it."

These aren't NPCs at all; they're her "money-making" NPCs. Buy them, buy some and make them yourself. Anyway, she has plenty of time now.

As for the second and fifth-ranking soldiers in the army, they should be issued cotton-padded clothes by the army, and they certainly don't lack clothes and hats, so let's just send them some scarves and gloves. We should save money where we can, since there is a whole family to feed every day.

Why did the communal cooking system stop? It's such a pity.

[It's truly unexpected that the black market was discovered so late, and that it was Shi Hongmei who found it.]

[It's really too secretive; only someone like Shi Hongmei, a contestant, could wander around the city without doing any work.]

Haha, I never thought having an older age on your identity information would be an advantage!

Aunt Liu was quite happy when she received the letter. She had been working in the park for so long, and this was the first time she had ever received a letter.

To be honest, she had never received a letter before. She had only seen others write and receive letters, but no one had ever sent her a letter specifically with her salary inside.

Aunt Liu read the letter several times, then wrapped it in layers of handkerchiefs and placed it in a camphor wood box in the house.

"Mom, I'm home."

Liu Wumei discovered that unless it was a public holiday, she had to go to work every day, unlike in the village where they said they could rest after the autumn harvest and even go hunting in the mountains.

She has gradually accepted being called "Mom," and seeing Aunt Liu in the room, she guessed what she was doing. "Reading Xiao Zhuang's letter again? How many times have you read it?"

"This isn't the first time I've received a letter; I'd like to read more of them."

Has no one ever sent you a letter before?

Aunt Liu sighed. She only went to elementary school. If her children hadn't grown up and taken her out of the village, she might have stayed there her whole life. Her friends were all from nearby towns and villages. They only had a little bit of money left after they became grandmothers. "No, back then stamps cost one cent each. None of my friends had any money either. Then we got telephones..."

Liu Wumei never expected it to be like this. It makes sense, though. In the past, many families didn't separate after marriage, and the money was managed by the parents. Many people only got their hands on the money later on.

Just like her, Shi Hongmei, another contestant who came in to be the mother of the NPCs, held all the NPCs' wages in her hands. Thinking about it this way, Aunt Liu was quite good; at least she didn't take all the wages or ask how much money they had earned.

Seeing that Aunt Liu was a little disappointed, Liu Wumei grinned and said, "I'll send you a letter back tomorrow when I get my salary."

Aunt Liu's disappointment vanished instantly. She rolled her eyes at Wu Mei and said, "You're wasting your money! You should have saved it to buy yourself a hair tie or a nice dress. Young women should keep some money for themselves. It's just a short walk, and you're sending money to the post office."

"That's why I wanted to write you a letter."

Aunt Liu said earnestly, "Paper is free, so stop trying to take advantage of public funds, or people will talk about it someday."

The three beauties appeared at just the right moment, announcing, "Dinner's ready!"

Liu Wumei and Sanmei exchanged a glance. Hehe, this NPC mom, you have to admit, her nagging is even worse than a biological mother's.

Sanmei is now a teacher at the village school, and occasionally Wumei also brings in banquet orders, which has made her pockets much fuller.

Today it was Erzhuang's turn to cook. Erzhuang carried his and Aunt Liu's meals to the table, put them down without saying a word, and started eating.

Sanmei and Wumei also started eating, and only then did Aunt Liu stop nagging and pick up her bowl to eat.

Erzhuang, of course, heard their conversation in the courtyard. Looking at the layered soles Liu Dama had made on his feet, his heart grew even heavier.

Shi Hongmei and Liu Wumei acted like underground party members making a rendezvous, avoiding eye contact and pretending nothing was wrong, staring elsewhere.

"Want to go to the black market or not?"

"Walk."

Liu Wumei never expected that Shi Hongmei, who seemed to be doing nothing all day and just hanging out with middle-aged and elderly people, would actually know the location of the black market. She really has some skills. This show really shows that there are always people more capable than you.

Unexpectedly, when the two of them arrived at the entrance of the black market, Liu Wumei was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth. Of course, Shi Hongmei was no less surprised than her.

What are you doing here?!

Liu Erzhuang didn't expect to run into an acquaintance on his shift today. "Let's talk about it when we get back."

Liu Wumei clicked her tongue inwardly, thinking, "No wonder you're always nowhere to be found. You're a PE teacher now; you can't even be found when you're not teaching."

So he actually ended up working as a thug in the black market. I never expected that Liu Erzhuang, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, would be such a bad person.

Now everything makes sense. No wonder after the communal dining system was discontinued, someone in the family would replenish the food every few days. She thought that besides her, only Liu Dazhuang had the ability to replenish the food, but she didn't expect it to be Liu Erzhuang. Goodness, he really is a hidden talent.

Shi Hongmei's eyes became much more blatant this time, her gaze clearly saying, "Can't we waive the entrance fee for acquaintances?"

Looking at Liu Erzhuang, who was blocking the alley entrance with his arms crossed, Liu Wumei didn't think he would give them free tickets; she didn't have that kind of influence.

"Surely you can get a discount?"

When Liu Erzhuang snatched the five cents from Shi Hongmei's hand, she felt like she could hardly breathe. It was the same price as usual, but this time she felt particularly heartbroken.

Shi Hongmei wiped away imaginary tears. Heaven knows how much money her whole family had spent since the communal dining system was abolished!

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