Zhangye City, formerly known as Ganzhou, is a small city in Northwest China with a population of just over one million.
At seven o'clock in the morning, just as dawn was breaking, Zhuang Mingcheng and his group drove their Jiefang truck to the city center.
After driving for three or four hours from their group, they were cold and hungry, so they quickly found a state-run restaurant and had a good meal.
After finishing his meal, Zhuang Mingcheng withdrew the money from his savings account and then went to the department store in the city center.
This is arguably the most bustling area in the entire city of Zhangye.
Only in Lanzhou, the provincial capital, can a three-story department store offer a wider selection of goods.
However, Lanzhou is too far away; it takes most of the day to get there by train. People in the surrounding areas who want to do a lot of shopping still prefer this place.
After parking the car on the side of the road, Zhuang Mingcheng called two soldiers and went into the department store for a big shopping spree.
He first went to a furniture store and immediately took a liking to a large wardrobe.
This cabinet is beautiful; the double doors are symmetrical, and a large mirror is inlaid in the middle.
This is quite rare, not only in the family compound, but in the entire Zhangye City.
Zhuang Mingcheng liked it more and more as he looked at it, and quickly called the salesperson over.
Seeing that he was wearing a military uniform, the sales clerk was very friendly and said with a smile, "Comrade, you really have good taste. This wardrobe just arrived yesterday. There's only one of its kind. You just happened to come as soon as the door opened. Otherwise, you wouldn't have found it."
"How much?"
Ninety-seven.
"Hiss~"
Upon hearing the price, the two soldiers who came with Zhuang Mingcheng gasped in shock.
This wardrobe alone costs as much as their annual allowance; it's really expensive.
Zhuang Mingcheng also frowned. This large wardrobe was more than his monthly salary could afford; it was truly an exaggeration.
"Comrade, can you give me a discount?"
The salesperson was delighted.
However, looking at Zhuang Mingcheng, she suppressed the urge to complain, "Comrade, we don't bargain here. If you think it's too expensive, look at that one, that wardrobe is cheap, only fifty-one, but you need a wardrobe voucher."
In those days, resources were scarce, and everything required ration coupons.
However, sometimes they sell items that don't require tickets, but the prices are quite high; this large wardrobe is an example of that.
Zhuang Mingcheng turned his head to look.
The wardrobe the salesperson pointed to had no mirror in the middle, was much smaller, and had an outdated design.
He shook his head, pointed to the wardrobe worth ninety-seven yuan, and said, "I'll take this one."
In addition to the wardrobe, Zhuang Mingcheng also asked for a double bed worth forty-seven yuan.
He also bought a desk and a dining table, as well as two trendy folding chairs and two ordinary chairs.
These pieces of furniture alone cost him nearly three hundred yuan.
The two soldiers stared in astonishment.
After buying the furniture, the group carried it from the department store onto the military vehicle.
Everything else is fine, but the large wardrobe is the most troublesome. The journey back to the group is bumpy, so we have to take precautions, otherwise it would be a problem if the large mirror in the middle broke.
Zhuang Mingcheng tied it tightly with a rope and then had the soldiers find some soft things to put underneath.
After finishing his work, Zhuang Mingcheng asked the driver to watch the things in the car, and then led another soldier into the department store.
The things he needed to buy next were quite trivial, so he simply browsed around and bought them as he went.
Enameled basins, large water tanks, bowls, chopsticks, pots and pans, thermos flasks—basically anything usable at home that he saw in the department store, he bought it all.
When there were enough supplies, Zhuang Mingcheng had his soldiers load them onto the military vehicles.
He only went up to the third floor when he was running out of money.
Upon arriving at the watch counter, Zhuang Mingcheng carefully selected watches using the voucher given to him by the group leader, and finally settled on a Shanghai brand women's watch.
With the watch voucher included, the price is 118 yuan.
Zhuang Mingcheng took out the money and decisively bought it.
This small watch is probably the most expensive thing he bought.
After buying a pack of matches, Zhuang Mingcheng took a military vehicle to the grain store.
He didn't know how long it would take to get to the new province, so he needed to buy more food to make sure Fangfang ate well.
Compared to industrial products, grains are much cheaper. A pound of high-gluten flour costs only two cents, and coarse grains are even cheaper.
Of course, you need food coupons, otherwise you can't buy food.
Zhuang Mingcheng took out all the grain coupons he had, plus the ones he borrowed from the regimental commander and political commissar, and bought a total of 20 jin of high-gluten flour, 5 jin of rice, and 50 jin of coarse grains.
I also bought five kilograms of rapeseed oil.
Finally, he went to the market, bought two pounds of pork, and spent all his money and coupons, at which point he stopped his big shopping spree.
Zhuang Mingcheng smacked his lips, feeling refreshed all over. It was the first time he had ever felt that spending money could be so enjoyable.
That's absolutely insane.
He shook his head, called two people, loaded the car with all the stuff, and drove back to the regiment.
Inside the military vehicle, Zhuang Mingcheng raised his wrist to check the time. It was only a little past ten o'clock, and they should be back at the regiment by noon.
"I wonder what Fangfang's expression will be when she sees these things..."
Zhuang Mingcheng muttered to himself, a smile spreading across his face.
It's a pity he has to go on a mission tomorrow, and I don't know when he'll be back.
Beside him, two soldiers looked at each other, trying hard to suppress their laughter; it was the first time they had ever seen their battalion commander like this.
They glanced back at the contents of the car and were both speechless with astonishment.
They'll buy a whole truckload of stuff at once; when they get back, it'll definitely shock the whole group.
...
Regimental Headquarters.
After Lu Fangfang got up and washed up, she went to Zhuang Mingcheng's dormitory.
But after searching around, she couldn't find Zhuang Mingcheng anywhere.
Just as she was wondering, a soldier ran over from outside, claiming to be the battalion commander's communications officer. He brought her two mess kits, saying that the battalion commander had ordered them.
Lu Fangfang asked Zhuang Mingcheng where he had gone out of curiosity.
The soldier shook his head and said he didn't know either, but the battalion commander had said he would be back soon.
Lu Fangfang became even more curious.
I turned my head and looked outside. The entire battalion was bustling with activity, as if something big was about to happen.
Feeling a vague unease, Lu Fangfang pointed outside and asked, "Comrade Hao, is something wrong in the camp?"
"Our battalion has a mission."
After Hao Dazhuang finished speaking, he shut his mouth tightly.
"A mission?"
Lu Fangfang's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly asked, "Comrade Hao, does your battalion commander also have to go?"
"He should...he should go, after all, he's our battalion commander."
Hao Dazhuang was somewhat unsure.
"But the wound on his arm hasn't healed yet."
Lu Fangfang felt a surge of anxiety and became extremely worried.
After spending these past few days together, she had come to know what kind of person Zhuang Mingcheng was. Based on her understanding, Zhuang Mingcheng would definitely not abandon the camp and would definitely participate in the mission.
But his arm wasn't fully healed to begin with, what if something happened...?
Lu Fangfang bit her lip, not daring to think any further.
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