Neither of them needed to laugh at the other, as they were both foodies, and they walked hand in hand toward the food counter.

Zhong Lingling, who always had snacks with her when she first went to the countryside, didn't come to buy food. Instead, she went straight to the daily necessities counter, accompanied by Wang Chunni and Xu Laidi.

Tian Mi and Zhang Tingting went to the textile counter. Judging from their thin cotton-padded coats, they must have gone to buy cotton.

The two of them didn't buy from the black market, so they must have had tickets.

The weather is cold now, so things can be stored for a while. Therefore, even if you buy a lot of snacks like sponge cakes, it won't arouse suspicion.

So Chen Shuning went all out this time, buying four pounds of steamed egg cakes, three pounds of rice balls, three pounds of peach shortbread, four pounds of glutinous rice strips, three pounds of biscuits, four pounds of hawthorn candy, and four pounds of dragon beard candy.

Besides these, Chen Shuning noticed that the supply and marketing cooperative even sold cream cakes, packaged in small pink boxes the size of a palm.

Cream like this, without any additives, tastes really good, so Chen Shuning asked Gu Xinyi if she wanted to buy some. After learning that Gu Xinyi didn't like cream, she bought all the dozen or so from the counter.

This kind of cream cake has a sandy texture when frozen, and the taste is even better than ice cream. Moreover, the supply and marketing cooperative rarely sells this, and they don't come to town often, so Chen Shuning bought more than he could.

The food alone filled a whole basket, so Chen Shuning didn't buy anything else.

After paying and loading the items, and learning that Gu Xinyi wanted to buy some more cotton, he thought about the charcoal he had bought and asked the waiter if they sold any mud stoves that could be placed on the kang (a heated brick bed) for heating.

After learning that they were available at the counter next door, I picked out the smallest size and bought it. I also bought a wire mesh that could be placed on the stove and a small iron kettle. Then I went to the entrance of the supply and marketing cooperative to wait for the others.

It was snowing lightly outside. Thinking about the oxcart that Gu Xinyi and the others hired when they came, the three old men who drove it were all quite old.

Traveling on such a day is a hardship, especially for Grandpa Yang. Ever since she came to Qingshan Brigade, Grandpa Yang and Grandma Yang have been taking good care of her.

In this kind of weather, I was afraid I wouldn't even be able to get a hot drink, so I went back to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought three gourd ladles.

Then, carrying three water ladles, he walked over to Wang Chunni, who was buying things at the same counter, and said, "Chunni, I'm going to the state-run restaurant. After you've finished shopping, go back to the town entrance first. I'll go straight back there after I've finished shopping too."

After receiving Wang Chunni's response, Chen Shuning ran straight towards the state-run restaurant.

Perhaps because of the bad weather, or perhaps because it wasn't lunchtime yet, there wasn't a single customer in the state-run restaurant. Only the chubby waiter was sitting behind the counter, eating sunflower seeds.

Upon seeing Chen Shuning enter, he only glanced up at her before continuing to eat sunflower seeds.

This era is not like later times, where the customer is king. Back then, waiters had secure jobs, and those who could get the job had connections.

Therefore, Chen Shuning didn't care about the waiter's attitude and went to the blackboard to look at today's menu with ease.

Since they happened to have her favorite sweet and sour pork, Chen Shuning packed three portions to go, and also bought three bowls of noodle soup.

Three carters came today. She knew Old Yang and Old Li well, but she had only seen Old Jiang a few times in the village. She couldn't just buy food for Old Yang and Old Li.

So this time I didn't buy steamed buns, but only three bowls of noodle soup for the three old men to warm up.

There weren't many convenient lunch boxes or plastic bags available back then, so Chen Shuning bought three water ladles. Almost every household in the village had one, and they weren't expensive; he bought three for just two cents.

The noodle soup was ready-made and could be served directly. The chubby salesperson probably found it novel to see Chen Shuning holding the water ladle.

He smiled and said, "You have quite the ideas. This thing is cheap and convenient to use."

"Yes, it's so cold today. Our village is far away, and the old men who drive the carts have a hard time. Buying them two bowls of hot noodle soup will help them warm up."

"Excuse me, ma'am, can I take these two bowls out first and then come back to get the rest of the things?"

"You're a kind-hearted girl. Okay, you can send it over first. I'll pack the rest of the things for you once they're ready."

The waitress looked to be in her thirties or forties. When Chen Shuning called her "big sister," she immediately smiled and agreed.

Upon hearing this, Chen Shuning deftly took out three aluminum lunch boxes from the bamboo basket behind him and handed them to the waitress. Then, carrying a ladle of hot noodle soup in each hand, he quickly walked towards the spot where the oxcart was parked under the big tree.

The snow was falling even heavier now, and the snowflakes melted instantly when they landed in the steaming noodle soup. Thinking that the air in this era was not yet polluted, Chen Shuning didn't pay any attention to those few snowflakes.

When Chen Shuning arrived at the oxcart, he immediately saw that it was Old Man Yang, who was huddled on the oxcart covered with an oilcloth.

It's not just snowing now; the wind has picked up and it's exceptionally cold.

Considering that they've been out buying coal for over an hour now, plus the three-hour journey they took to get here, the three old men must be freezing.

So he hurriedly handed the hot noodle soup in his hand to Old Jiang, who was parked furthest to the outside.

"Grandpa Jiang, Grandpa Li, Grandpa Yang, the weather changes so suddenly, you must be freezing. These girls went to buy some things and will be back soon. I bought some hot soup, you should drink some to warm up."

Old Jiang was much younger than Old Li and Old Yang. He usually went to work as usual and didn't need to rush to catch the bus.

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