"Brother Jingui! Brother Jingui! Wait for me!"
After Xu Jingui went out, he rode off on his bicycle, leaving Chen Ermei dumbfounded. She hadn't expected Xu Jingui to leave without waiting for her. In their past life, Xu Jingui had always spoiled Huang Qinqin; why was it different with her in this life?
Although she felt a little uneasy, Chen Ermei comforted herself, thinking that perhaps it was because they weren't married yet, and things would be better after they got married. For now, she should focus on catching up with Xu Jingui.
So it turned into Xu Jingui riding his bicycle in front, and Chen Ermei running after him. Bicycles are faster than two legs anyway, and Chen Ermei was also thinking that Xu Jingui was going to take her to a state-run restaurant for a big meal today.
She hadn't even eaten breakfast, her mind focused on having a big lunch at the state-run restaurant, and now she was starving. She had no strength left and couldn't keep up with Xu Jingui on his bicycle. She could only watch as he rode further and further away.
She silently held Huang Qinqin responsible for this; if it weren't for Huang Qinqin, she'd probably be enjoying a lavish meal at a state-run restaurant right now. She'd initially felt a little guilty for stealing Huang Qinqin's marriage proposal, but now that feeling was gone!
Chen Ermei had no money or ration coupons, and now that Xu Jingui had left, she could only go home hungry to see if there was anything left to eat.
......
Huang Qinqin and Xu Junhui both breathed a sigh of relief as they watched Chen Ermei and the others leave. To be honest, they were really afraid that something would happen at the state-run restaurant; it was best that nothing had happened.
After leaving the state-run restaurant, Xu Junhui originally planned to take Huang Qinqin directly to the supply and marketing cooperative, but Huang Qinqin suggested, "Brother Junhui, if you don't have anything you want to buy, why don't we go to the scrap metal recycling station?"
"I want to go and see if I can find any useful books."
"Okay, I haven't been to a recycling station in a long time either. I heard that someone found small yellow croakers there."
There was only an old man guarding the scrap metal recycling station. Because Huang Qinqin came quite often, the old man knew her.
"Uncle Zhang, good afternoon! Have you had lunch yet?"
Grandpa Zhang, who was lying on the recliner, sat up when he saw Huang Qinqin coming over and greeted her: "I've already eaten. Qinqin, it's been a long time since you've come over. Is this your boyfriend?"
Huang Qinqin nodded: "Yes, I've been busy lately, so I haven't had time to come over. This is my boyfriend, his name is Xu Junhui."
"Brother Junhui, this is Grandpa Zhang."
Xu Junhui smiled politely at Grandpa Zhang and said, "Hello, Grandpa Zhang."
"Yes, you too."
"Qin girl, you know the rules. Go find what you want yourself." After saying that, Grandpa Zhang lay down again, holding a large palm leaf fan in his hand, and leisurely fanned himself.
"Okay, let's go in then, thank you, Uncle Zhang."
"Brother Junhui, let's go in."
Upon entering the recycling station, a musty smell hits you. Although Grandpa Zhang works here every day, he never comes in to clean; at most, he sorts and puts the recyclables away. So the smell inside isn't very pleasant.
Huang Qinqin walked confidently towards the place where the books were piled up, saying to Xu Junhui, "Brother Junhui, I'm going to see if there are any new books recently. Would you like to come with me or look at something else?"
"I'll go with you. I don't really have anything I'm looking for. What kind of books are you looking for?"
"Okay, magazines, newspapers, and anything about tractors and driving are all fine."
Xu Junhui and Huang Qinqin split up to look for the materials they needed. Newspapers were the easiest to find because they were all neatly stacked up, and many people would come here to buy newspapers to paste on the walls or cover the windows.
The other books need to be flipped through one by one, because the books that can be sold to recycling stations are basically damaged or sensitive books.
After flipping through the magazines for more than half an hour, the two of them had only found some magazines. As for books about driving or tractors, they had not yet found any.
Huang Qinqin was exhausted and sat down on the nearest pile of books. She said to Xu Junhui, who was also covered in sweat, "Brother Junhui, you should take a rest too. I don't think there might be any relevant books here."
Xu Junhui looked at the pile of books that hadn't been turned yet and sat down as well.
"Since we're already here, let's rest for a bit and look for the rest of the pile. Maybe we can find some."
"Qinqin, sit down and rest for a while. I'll ride my bike to get some popsicles and come back."
Although Huang Qinqin was a little thirsty, she didn't want Xu Junhui to run around so much and refused, saying, "No need, Brother Junhui, let's rest for a while and go after we've finished looking."
Seeing that Huang Qinqin was not only covered in sweat but also had dry lips, Xu Junhui said, "I'll buy one for Grandpa Zhang too. On such a hot day, eating an ice pop will make him feel much better."
Hearing that she also needed to give it to Grandpa Zhang, Huang Qinqin had no choice but to let him go: "Then ride slowly, don't ride too fast."
"Okay, I know. Don't look for it now. Let's look for it together when I get back."
"good."
Because he was worried about Huang Qinqin, Xu Junhui didn't go to the supply and marketing cooperative. On the way, he saw someone selling popsicles from a styrofoam box and bought three of them.
These are usually organized by the nearby commune or brigade. Nowadays, buying and selling have to be done through a collective. If you are doing business on your own, you can only sneak into the black market, which is much riskier.
However, in the countryside, most people don't earn much money or even cash throughout the year from farming. Young people who are in better health are a little better off; during the off-season, they can find temporary work such as moving goods.
However, most people can only grow some vegetables in the village or collect some eggs to sell to the supply and marketing cooperative at a low price.
Some skilled workers, like this popsicle vendor, would register with the production brigade, then contribute their own money and effort to sell popsicles, and in the end, they would split their income with the production brigade.
But it's better than nothing, because otherwise, we can't sell things openly and honestly. At least now we can earn some hard-earned money.
Xu Junhui, too lazy to get out of the car after braking, simply braced himself on the ground with his feet and asked, "Hello, what flavors of popsicles do you still have? How much are they?"
The stall owner skillfully quoted prices: "We have salted popsicles, mung bean, red bean, and watermelon flavors."
"Salted popsicles are two cents each, and the others are four cents each."
"I'd like three watermelon flavored ones, please."
"Okay!"
......
Xu Junhui returned to the recycling station with the popsicle and handed one to Grandpa Zhang: "Grandpa Zhang, it's a bit hot, have a popsicle to cool off."
When Grandpa Zhang saw that they had actually bought his share, a smile flashed in his eyes: "Okay, I'll get to eat an ice pop too, thanks."
"You're welcome. We're the ones who disturbed your nap. We should apologize to you."
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