Chapter 7 As soon as Yu Jiajia stepped outside, she saw Zhou…
As soon as Yu Jiajia stepped outside, she saw Old Lady Zhou, who was hunched over, airing out quilts in the yard. She was none other than the widowed mother of Chef Zhao Wendan.
There were a few small maps on the blanket.
It must be Grandma Zhou's great-grandson who wet the bed.
Yu Jiajia walked over in a few steps, "Grandma Zhou, let me give you a hand." Carefully avoiding the map, she helped Grandma Zhou hang the quilt on the line.
Grandma Zhou chuckled and said, "Oh, I can't deny getting old. I can't even air out a quilt anymore. If Maodan gets any fatter, I won't be able to carry him anymore." She then praised Yu Jiajia for her neatly combed hair, saying it looked very refreshing. She then inquired, "Did your older brother's girlfriend come over yesterday? Which company does she work for?"
There are no secrets in the family compound; any little thing will spread like wildfire throughout the compound.
Yu Jiajia didn't tell anyone, not for the good of the Yu family, but because she was afraid that Cheng Xiuying would beat her if she found out.
Just then, Yu Jiajia heard a commotion outside and said, "Why is it so noisy outside? Grandma Zhou, I'll go take a look."
Grandma Zhou was also intrigued, but she was worried about her great-grandson sleeping at home, so she went out to see him.
As Yu Jiajia walked out, she opened the panel: [Completely selfless and dedicated to helping others, now awarded the following rewards: Half a catty of meat ticket*1, Needlework skill*1 (1/3)]
Seeing the hostage filled her with energy—life seemed so hopeful! As for her needlework skills, she knew it was always good to have more skills.
Yesterday, I played with the children and learned to jump rope; today, I helped an old lady air out her quilts and learned to sew! It's clear that this skill wasn't random, but rather connected to good deeds.
Yu Jiajia walked out of the courtyard and squeezed into the crowd, where she saw the procession of people being criticized and paraded.
A man and a woman were being led forward.
The two had signs hanging around their necks; the man's sign had both of their names on it.
Both of them had been beaten; their hair and clothes were a mess, and their faces were covered in bloody marks.
The two of them hung their heads and hunched their shoulders, wishing they could hide themselves inside the sign, but unfortunately, they couldn't.
The roadside was full of onlookers, and some people were throwing tree bark and stones at the two men. The tree bark and stones hit their bodies and heads, and blood gushed out.
Yu Jiajia stood in the crowd, craning her neck to look out, but quickly looked away; it was too bloody.
People were talking about it, saying that the two men were workers at the meat processing plant and had now been publicly criticized and dismissed by the plant.
Those who are unaware of the couple's deeds, just stand in the crowd for a while, and they'll know everything, even the details of their affair in the reeds, and the specific positions they used...
Yu Jiajia looked around to see if anyone needed help. When a pregnant woman was pushed to the ground, she reached out her helpful hands and helped her up.
[For serving the people, the following reward is hereby granted: Malted milk powder*1, needlework skill*1 (1/3)]
The pregnant woman was startled. After regaining her balance, she protected her belly and dared not move forward any further. She repeatedly thanked Yu Jiajia.
Yu Jiajia said modestly, "Anyone who sees this will reach out." She wandered around in the crowd for a while longer, but seeing that the marching crowd was about to go to People's Square for a violent confrontation, she stopped following them.
I wonder if the meat processing plant will hire anyone after the two of them are fired?
She decided to try her luck at the meat processing plant! Reluctantly, she offered the gatekeeper a sponge cake as a bribe, saying, "Sir, are you hungry? I'll treat you to a sponge cake."
The system remained completely unresponsive.
Is giving things away not considered a good deed? Is giving food to beggars the only way to do good deeds? Or is it because the sponge cake is a system-generated product and giving it away is useless?
The old man didn't even ask Yu Jiajia what she wanted to do; he just smiled and accepted the chicken cake, saying, "If I get any job news, I'll tell you first."
Yu Jiajia instantly felt that her chicken cake had gone to waste. She watched the old man eat the chicken cake and felt a little envious. She squatted down next to the old man and ate the last piece of chicken cake.
Time flew by, and before she knew it, it was noon. The meat processing plant had closed for the day, and she hadn't seen any job postings. Somewhat disappointed, she decided to leave.
The old man said, "Do you still have sponge cake? It smells amazing, even better than the ones sold in the commune. I won't eat it for free, tell me where you live, and I'll let you know as soon as there are any job openings."
Yu Jiajia looked regretful: "Grandpa Liu, if you had told me sooner, I wouldn't have eaten the last one. Next time I have chicken cake, I'll definitely give it to Grandpa Liu."
The old man took a few pieces of candy from his pocket, picked one out and handed it to Yu Jiajia: "Come talk to me again next time."
Yu Jiajia quickly took the candy: "Thank you, Grandpa Liu." She unwrapped the candy and stuffed it into her mouth: "It's so sweet! Where did you buy this candy, grandpa? It's the sweetest candy I've ever eaten."
The old man said, "If you like it, eat it slowly and remember the taste. If you miss it later, think about it often." He then hid the other candies in his pocket.
Yu Jiajia: Okay... "Thank you, Grandpa Liu."
Yu Jiajia left the meat processing plant with a smile and headed straight for the nearby reservoir, where she could fish and have lunch.
She first found a handy stick to use as a fishing rod, then tied the waxed cotton line securely, baited the hook with all-purpose bait, and cast the hook into the water.
Whether we have meat buns or grilled fish for lunch depends on this one catch.
She wasn't planning to eat the cornbread in her lunchbox!
She leaned comfortably against the tree trunk, took out a green apple-flavored fruit candy, unwrapped it, popped it into her mouth, and chewed it.
This is how you eat fruit candy to make it sweet.
The waxed cotton line taut and swayed, and Yu Jiajia exclaimed in surprise, "It's hooked?" She carefully reeled in the line.
Fishhooks made from sewing needles have no barbs and are easy to unhook.
A two-hand-long carp was pulled out of the water. Yu Jiajia happily grabbed the fish's mouth and took it off the hook. The carp slapped its tail, splashing water all over her face.
We'll have grilled carp for lunch!
For a while afterward, she didn't get to eat grilled fish. The fish were biting too fast; they were biting the hook like crazy. Less than a minute after the hook was put in, a fish would bite.
The fishhook was easy to get off; even though she was very careful, five fish escaped, leaving eleven fish behind.
Eight of them were carp and catfish weighing one or two pounds each, and three were crucian carp weighing almost one pound each.
Yu Jiajia was overjoyed to see this, and of course, she was also very hungry. She ate the last big meat bun, planning to have a grilled fish as a snack in the afternoon.
Most of the fish have been eaten, and I estimate I can fish for another ten or so times.
Just as she was about to reel in her line, another fish swam up! This time it was huge, and she struggled to pull it in! She was extremely careful, afraid of losing the hook, and after much effort, she finally managed to pull the fish ashore. A large carp weighing over three pounds—a truly delightful sight!
That's it for today.
Next time I want to eat fish, I'll come fishing again, but I'll sell these fish first.
I feel more at ease when I have money and cash in my pocket.
She stored the fish in her spatial backpack, which could store living things! This space is amazing! She loved it.
Yu Jiajia first went back to the courtyard house, found Cheng Xiuying's patched-up cloth jacket, and then picked up a piece of coal ash from the doorway. She would put on makeup later.
When they arrived at a secluded, open place, she put on a tattered blouse, let her bangs down to cover her eyebrows and eyes, wrapped her hair in a handkerchief, and smeared coal ash on her face. She looked so dirty and rustic that even Cheng Xiuying wouldn't recognize her if she stood right in front of her.
She took two fish out, put them in a net bag, and went to wait at the entrance of the meat processing plant's residential compound.
Meat processing plants offer better benefits than other factories, with more opportunities to eat meat, but it's not something you can just eat whenever you want.
Meat ration coupons were issued in fixed quantities; a family could only buy meat once a month, and that was considered a very happy life.
They were able to have braised pork at home yesterday because it was Yu Songqing's girlfriend's first time visiting.
Yu Jiajia spotted a kind-looking aunt carrying a vegetable basket walking into the yard. She deliberately hunched over and ran over, asking in a hoarse voice, "Sister, would you like some carp or catfish? They were just caught from the river, still lively and jumping around."
She showed the aunt the net bag she was carrying.
"Hey, you're still alive!"
Yu Jiajia: "That's right, we just caught them."
The aunt quickly pulled Yu Jiajia into a nearby alley, asking, "How do we change?"
Yu Jiajia: "Which one would you like to switch to?"
In this day and age, you can't openly buy things secretly, but exchanging things is possible.
A pound of fish meat costs three or four cents, and these two fish weigh about four pounds, so they are worth one dollar and fifty cents.
The aunt looked around, then quietly slipped Yu Jiajia a dollar and fifty cents, picked up her net bag and ran off. Yu Jiajia took the money and ran off with her back bent.
Then he went to a few more places and earned seven yuan and twenty cents. He also kept a carp and a crucian carp in his backpack.
With seven yuan and twenty cents in her pocket, Yu Jiajia felt her back straighten up a bit!
She's no longer that penniless pauper.
She found a secluded spot, took off her headscarf, wiped her face, and even combed her hair again before heading to the popsicle stand in front of the supply and marketing cooperative.
She wasn't penniless anymore; she had a huge sum of money in her pocket.
She used to pass by here and see popsicle stalls, and her mouth would water, but she could only look and admire them. She was too poor to afford them.
Today, she can afford a popsicle!
She spent eight cents to buy a cream popsicle. She took a big slurp, and the icy, sweet taste filled her mouth with a rich milky aroma. The food in this era was so delicious! On such a hot day, she took another slurp!
Unfortunately, there wasn't much ice cream, and it was all gone in no time. She wasn't satisfied! Without the slightest hesitation, she turned back and bought another one!
What is the point of her working so hard to earn money? How can she not even satisfy her basic needs?
I ate two in a row, it was so satisfying.
The children playing hopscotch under the tree were drooling with envy for this older sister who could eat two ice creams.
Yu Jiajia certainly wouldn't buy them popsicles, but she could show off her jump rope skills for them!
The original owner was already very good at skipping rope, and now that her skill points have been maxed out by the system, all sorts of skipping rope tricks have made a group of children excitedly shout. They look at Yu Jiajia with admiration and call her the most amazing older sister.
She originally just wanted to show off her skills, but a group of seven- or eight-year-old children surrounded her and looked at her with admiration, so she played with them for a long time.
[All revolutionary teams should care for each other. Rewards are hereby granted: Whitening +1*1, Needlework Skill*1 (3/3)]
Yu Jiajia: Ahhhhh, whitening, whitening, whitening!
She was complaining about the original owner's sallow complexion this morning, and now she's going to whiten it! I really want to look in the mirror right now!
Looking at these children, I feel they are a group of adorable little angels.
Yu Jiajia is very happy; she has become fairer and more beautiful.
The children were also very happy and learned new ways to jump rope!
[Should I synthesize the needlework skill?]
Yu Jiajia clicked "yes". She thought about doing needlework and felt that she had already mastered the skills and could skillfully cut fabric to make clothes. All she needed was a beautiful piece of fabric to make clothes!
Thank you, great god of time travel, thank you, great god of the system.
A note from the author:
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