The county town has been very lively these past two days, due to a notice broadcast by the county radio station early yesterday morning.
Following the decision of the county party committee leaders, the county will hold a material exchange conference on the 15th and 16th day of the lunar calendar next month.
At that time, people from all over the county can participate. This material exchange conference adheres to the purpose of benefiting and serving the people, and is hosted by the county government.
If the first conference is successful, a second one will be held in the fall.
People all over the county are looking forward to the arrival of next month. Some families who are short of things would rather save them and not use them for the time being, and wait until next month's exchange meeting to buy them.
Song Jin didn't know what was going on at first, but he found out after hearing what Liu Ying said.
Isn’t this the temple fair of later generations?
It was only 1974 at that time. Could this situation be handled?
Although it is called a materials exchange conference, if someone is stubborn and finds fault, I'm afraid the leaders will be in a difficult position.
However, since the announcement has been made through the radio, it should be a done deal. Whether it is speculation or whether it is appropriate to hold the meeting is not her concern.
This was the first time the temple fair was held. The location was chosen to be two relatively spacious and remote streets in the county town and it lasted for two days.
Of course, it's not called a temple fair now. Due to the late Cultural Revolution, people's minds were not yet open enough, so the term "temple fair" was only passed down among the people. The official name is "Materials Exchange Conference".
Song Jin was also a little excited, as the last time she attended a temple fair was last time.
After waiting for a long time, the day finally came and I followed Chen Liang to the temple fair early in the morning.
The county town specially planned two streets to host this material exchange conference.
Temporary commercial sheds have been built along the street, displaying a wide variety of goods, which are quite eye-catching.
In addition, a snack street, a theater street, and a street for scattered small businesses have been planned.
It opens at around seven in the morning and closes at ten in the evening.
There were a lot of people around, and Song Jin strolled around each stall, touching and looking around. No one said anything to her, and everyone was very happy.
According to Song Jin's observation, the most popular items sold during the temple fair are wedding supplies, various colorful quilt covers made of silk threads, and they are in short supply.
Chen Liang was not spared either.
Table clocks and printed thermoses also sold very well.
The big-ticket items are bicycles and sewing machines.
There are basically three types of bicycles: Fei Ge, Forever, and Phoenix brands in Tianjin and Shanghai.
It seems that the only sewing machine is Butterfly brand.
There are people coming and going on the street, and there are people in front of every stall, walking in groups of three or four.
Although the temple fair is held in the county town, many people still come from far away to participate. This kind of temple fair has the most complete goods and the prices are negotiable.
Although the price is still clearly marked, some of the change can be waived.
In addition to the stalls of state-owned stores, there are also private stalls, which should be arranged by the government.
Song Jin saw many groups of children on the road.
What attracts children most at the temple fair are the snacks and the snack street.
The children took the money they had saved and the money their parents gave them for the temple fair, and went in groups of three or two.
Song Jin suddenly remembered the first time he attended a temple fair as a child.
She was still in elementary school at the time, and her mother was too busy to go to the temple fair. She wanted to go by herself, but her mother was worried that she was too young and unsafe, so she didn't let her go alone.
The next day, she kept pestering her mother, and finally her mother gave in after she called several friends together.
I still remember that her mother gave her fifty cents, and she saved a few cents for herself. She was very happy and went to the temple fair.
Song Jin's home is more than ten miles away from the county town, which takes about an hour to walk.
Children usually walk to the temple fair. If they are lucky, they may meet people driving tractors who are going to the temple fair from far away. The kind drivers will give them a ride.
We talked and laughed all the way, having a great time. Almost all of the children had received fifty cents from their families. Their parents told them to eat and not waste money recklessly.
One of the kids said they wanted to eat first when they got to the temple fair. Another said they wanted sesame seed buns and tofu pudding. Another said they wanted fried dough sticks and old tofu. It seemed like they all said three different things. None of them were the same.
Song Jin finally ate fried dough sticks and old tofu, because eating sesame seed buns and tofu pudding was expensive. If he ate the sesame seed buns without wrapping them with sausages, he would definitely be envious. If he wrapped them with sausages, he would have no money to buy anything else.
You can eat a full meal with fried dough sticks and old tofu for only 30 cents in total. The old tofu costs 10 cents, and the fried dough sticks costs 20 cents.
But you can’t spend all your money on food.
The circus cost 30 cents, and candied haws were 10 cents. There were also many games I wanted to play, but I could only watch; it was impossible to play them all.
Those who don't pay are those who practice qigong and do martial arts. Anyway, kids just want to join in the fun and will never buy their power pills.
I watched them fight with their fists and feet first, and then practice iron sand palm, either smashing bricks or pebbles.
Song Jin especially likes watching them boxing.
It's so vigorous and exciting to watch.
In fact, the most profound impression Song Jin had from the temple fair was the fried dough sticks and old tofu. In that era, there was no snack more heartwarming than fried dough sticks and old tofu.
Sitting at the small table in front of the stall, eating freshly fried dough sticks and drinking hot tofu pudding, it is so wonderful.
The more Song Jin recalled, the more she wanted to eat it, but she had walked halfway down the street and didn't see any fried dough stick or soy milk stall.
Instead, I saw dried persimmon cakes, pea yellow, yellow rice cakes, glutinous rice strips, etc.
Chen Liang went over and weighed a pound of each and held them in his hands. Song Jin picked up one and put it in his mouth as he walked. Hmm, it was really delicious.
There are also candied haws.
The red hawthorns are covered with a layer of shiny sugar coating, which not only looks festive but also tastes very satisfying.
After strolling around the temple fair and eating and drinking to one’s heart’s content, holding a piece of cold candied haws in one’s hand not only adds to the festive atmosphere.
It also relieves the pressure on an overloaded stomach and intestines, making it a must-have after a feast at a temple fair.
The two of them ate and drank and soon finished walking around two streets.
In addition to food, Song Jin also bought some other daily necessities.
After all, I’m afraid that there won’t be many times in the next few years when we go shopping like this.
Based on Song Jin's general understanding of history
After the reform and opening up, the material exchange conference is now simply called a temple fair.
Moreover, due to the impact of temple fairs and private individuals, state-owned restaurants, supply and marketing cooperatives, and cooperatives will go bankrupt or be contracted out.
It was not until the mid-to-late 1980s that the phenomenon of concentrated consumption at temple fairs began to gradually subside.
Merchants are no longer keen on selling goods at the temple fair. The ten-day temple fair basically cools down after three days, and people are starting to go to the fair one after another.
Song Jin was born in the 1990s. She saw more temple fairs when she was a child. After she grew up, she saw one at most once a year, and sometimes it was only held once every few years.
Later, she only went there to listen to opera and eat snacks.
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