Three walls were neatly lined with wooden shelves, about two meters high. Merchandise was stacked layer by layer, coded by category, each layer labeled with a price tag. In front of the shelves was a transparent glass counter filled with samples. It was a busy time, and the salespeople were busy. The trio carefully inspected the goods, taking in their quality, price, and origin. They bought a hundred sheets of food wrapping paper (no receipts required) and left.
We went outside to discuss our feelings and plans, and then went to the First Non-staple Food Store next door to check out the market.
The grocery store wasn't big, with a small blackboard hanging at the door. Rows of grocery prices were written on it, most of them with a cross behind them to indicate they were out of stock, and those with a check mark behind them to indicate they were in stock. They simply didn't go in, since they weren't going to buy anything anyway, and they just wanted to check the prices.
Fatty pork is 0.65? Lean pork is 0.5?
70 cents for beef and mutton?
3 cents an egg?
1.6 cents for white flour?
70 cents for soybean oil?
Salt 0.14 cents?
Although Professor Dong has a good understanding of this period of history and can recite it by heart, it is not as deep as the feeling he has now as he is experiencing it directly here.
On the way here, they had planned to explore the county black market, but now it was almost three in the afternoon and time was limited, so they changed their route. The three of them decided to go to the factory staff compound first to "look around". We all know what they were going to do!
We took the No. 1 bus to Dachedian (4 cents per person), got off at the Machinery Factory stop, and found a deserted alley. Dad Guan stood guard while Professor Dong and Shuishui "took" the items to sell from the kitchen into the backpack.
The kitchen has a digital baking scale. I put the food wrappers on the scale and divided the flour into two-pound packages. The wrapping paper these days is really good, especially thick. It's the kind of thick straw paper used for wrapping snacks and mooncakes. There's no food available these days, so no tickets are needed.
Twenty packets of flour and twenty packets of rice were placed at the bottom, and ten packets of millet were placed on top. Then there was a layer of potatoes and radishes. Fresh vegetables were unavailable in this season, so this was the only option. On top of that were ten large apples, twenty salted duck eggs, ten handfuls of dried noodles, and twenty eggs each wrapped in two hand towels I'd taken from my fifth grandfather's house. These were placed on top.
The salted duck eggs were in a gift box I'd picked up at the supermarket before crossing over. After returning home, I unpacked them and stuffed them into the gaps between the rows of food and oil drums on the shelf. This was all designed by Guan's father.
Before going on a journey, I'll bring a basket of water to test the waters.
After Guan Dad carried them on his back, the three of them quickly walked to the textile factory’s staff quarters.
The family compound was large, and at this hour all the workers were at work. A straight road ran down the middle of the compound, flanked by tall trees, dividing the compound into the east and west yards.
I walked in a little further, picked a random courtyard, and walked in. I went to the second house and knocked on the door. After waiting for a while, no one was there. I walked in to another house and checked the door. There was someone there.
"Who is it?" an old lady's voice.
"It's me, Auntie," Professor Dong replied.
The old lady opened the door and looked at several people she didn't recognize.
"Who are you looking for?"
"Auntie, we are from Wudengkou in the south. We are here to look for my cousin. We have been looking for her for a long time and are now lost. We want to ask you for some water to drink."
The old lady looked at the three people. They were pale and thin, and their clothes were torn as hell. The children looked at her expectantly. The old lady couldn't bear to refuse the children, so she opened the door and let them in.
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