Chapter 34 Happy Mid-Autumn Festival

He Hongyuan's sudden words really overwhelmed Lin Xiang. What did he mean? If I used his cloth coupons, I would have to become his wife?

Humph, wishful thinking!

She curled her lips and turned her head away, continuing to talk to Yuezhu and Aunt Feng as usual, but she kept feeling a burning gaze coming from the right, burning her cheeks.

It takes about 40 minutes for the boat to reach the North Shore Pier in Phnom Penh. The waves are rippling along the way and the boat is shaking slightly, which makes you feel a little dizzy.

Many military dependents came from inland areas to follow the army. Sometimes they would feel dizzy after taking a boat ride. They would lean against the side of the cabin with a listless look on their faces. They would sniff the dried mango peels in their hands, which would slightly relieve the discomfort.

Seasickness is something that is difficult to change. Some people are born without the reaction, while others may need to take more rides before they can get better. Lin Xiang is the former. However, she only found out later that Aunt Feng and Yuezhu also had a slight reaction, which was not a big problem, but she had to pay attention.

She had prepared some sour plum candies early on, which were employee benefits from the food factory. Working in a food factory always gave you some scraps, especially some defective products. She gave out one sour plum candy to each person, and finally gave one to Comrade He Hongyuan, a soldier who would never get seasick.

Lin Xiang tilted her head slightly and extended her hand over: "Captain He, even though you don't get seasick, you can still try one. It tastes sour and delicious."

He Hongyuan took the sour plum candy from Lin Xiang's palm without saying a word, peeled off the candy wrapper neatly and put it into his mouth. After taking a sip, he said, "Mm, sour and sweet."

Zhou Yuezhu was also sipping sour plum candy, poking her head out to look around, and said in a soft and surprised voice: "Hey, my cousin only eats candy given by his cousin's wife. He won't eat candy given by others!"

Lin Xiang blushed at Yuezhu's naughty trick, but she was also curious and asked, "Is it true?"

Zhou Yuezhu pointed in the direction of her cousin and said, "Really? My cousin has stopped eating candy since he was... ten years old. Now he only eats it if you give it to him."

When Lin Xiang heard this, she couldn't help but feel confused. Is there such a thing?

But He Hongyuan looked calm and composed, and didn't seem to want to explain.

Amidst the laughter, the boat docked at the North Shore Pier, the steps were connected to the shore, and passengers disembarked one after another...

Lin Xiang last came to Phnom Penh a month ago. In just one month, the situation has changed dramatically.

I have a formal job, and, well, I also have a partner!

He Hongyuan rarely went out for leisure. His life was simple and boring. Naturally, he had no right to speak at such times, so he just followed the three female comrades.

Feng Li planned to take some of her young people to the department store to do some shopping. Even though they left early on Sunday morning, the department store was already bustling with customers rushing to buy all kinds of goods.

Several people joined the crowded crowd. Lin Xiang looked at the building which was slightly larger than the department store in Xifeng City and was amazed.

The new fabrics that arrive every morning are the most popular, and people who have saved up cloth coupons for a long time are eager to grab the brightly colored fabrics.

Feng Li, Zhou Yuezhu and Lin Xiang, holding 15 feet of cloth coupons, squeezed into the crowd to grab the cloth. None of the three paid any attention to He Hongyuan, a grown man, and let him do as he pleased. He Hongyuan had already thought of buying something, so he immediately went to other counters.

Feng Li had also experienced many early morning snatching exercises, and was much more capable than the two youngsters. She held money and coupons in her hands and snatched and bought a five-foot-five-inch light yellow Dacron cloth and a five-foot white floral Dacron cloth. Dacron was more expensive than ordinary cotton cloth, and one foot of cloth coupons could not be used to buy one foot of cloth, so she could only exchange ten feet of cloth coupons for seven feet of Dacron cloth.

It's expensive, but the material is really good, the shape is crisp, and it doesn't wrinkle easily like other cotton fabrics. It would be nice to make two sets of shirts for Lin Xiang.

Zhou Yuezhu had just made new clothes a while ago, and she already had a lot of beautiful clothes in her closet, so this time she only bought some small items.

Lin Xiang held the ten feet of cloth coupons given by He Hongyuan, and squeezed into the crowd. After a while, she managed to grab eight feet of black Dacron cloth.

He Hongyuan put the things he bought into the pocket of his military pants and returned to the fabric counter. He looked at the color of the fabric in Lin Xiang's hand and frowned slightly: "Why did you buy this color? You look better in those bright colors."

Young girls probably don't like black clothes. He heard Zhang Huafeng and Jiang Weijun mention their partners' ideas, and they all liked bright colors.

Lin Xiang shook her head and said with a smile: "I bought it for you. You wear a white military uniform all day long. You should change your look."

From white to black, it is also Lin Xiang’s interest. Tall and straight men look so handsome in black shirts!

He Hongyuan had no intention of buying clothes for himself with cloth. Just when he was about to persuade Lin Xiang to switch to her cloth, he saw her suddenly stop and look him up and down, which made He Hongyuan puzzled.

"What's wrong?"

Lin Xiang shook her head: "You are so tall, it will take so much fabric, tsk tsk."

He Hongyuan: "..."

After saying that, Lin Xiang smiled sweetly at the man again: "But tall people look good in clothes."

It was the first time that He Hongyuan heard someone praise himself so much. In the end, his attempt to dissuade him failed, and the cloth coupons he sent out became the fabric for making clothes for him. He Hongyuan watched Lin Xiang carefully gesturing at the fabric and thinking about how to make clothes for herself, and his heart was slightly hot.

After buying the most important cloth, the rest was to buy some miscellaneous items. Zhou Yuezhu and Lin Xiang picked out several hair ties and hairpins, and bought two bottles of Pechoin. These were goods that were only available in department stores in the city. Since they had finally come out for this trip, they naturally had to do some shopping.

Lin Xiang had plenty of money in his hands, so he spent lavishly. He bought two taels of brown sugar and two taels of white sugar, and picked out half a pound of chicken cake, filling two oil-paper bags.

Before leaving, Lin Xiang looked around and finally found what she was looking for among the dazzling array of goods.

Phnom Penh has a well-developed marine industry. Department stores sell a wide variety of seafood products, such as canned seafood from major food factories. Among them, canned shrimp paste from the 119 Food Factory stands out, occupying the largest area on the counter, along with other brands of canned shrimp paste, canned fish with black beans, canned luncheon meat, etc.

He Hongyuan saw her staring at the can of shrimp sauce and chuckled, "Haven't you seen enough in the factory? Want to buy some here?"

Lin Xiang turned around and smiled: "You don't understand, this is called scouting the enemy! See who our factory's competitors are and how they are selling."

He Hongyuan listened to Lin Xiang's confident words, his deep eyes lit up slightly, and he said with a smile: "You know a lot."

"That's right!" Lin Xiang said proudly, but then she was worried about exposing something, so she added, "It's actually okay. After all, once you enter a food factory, you are a food person! Naturally, you will take a closer look. Looking at those cans makes me hungry, let's go eat."

Lin Xiang quickly changed the subject.

All four of them walked into the state-owned hotel with full hands. He Hongyuan treated them to lunch, and they brought enough food coupons and money. They ordered the signature dishes on the blackboard that day: baked duck with ginger and scallions, stir-fried coconut strips with sugar, four-treasure tofu, and stewed sea bream with fish sauce.

Feng Li saw that Lin Xiang had a quick mind when she was at the state-owned tailor shop last time, especially when it came to making clothes. She smiled and said, "It's up to you to decide how to make this shirt. And you can give Hong Yuan some supervision."

Zhou Yuezhu joked with her cousin: "That's right, my cousin wears military uniform all day long. My cousin's wife should dress him up and change his look!"

He Hongyuan couldn't say much to his third aunt, and only glanced at his cousin with sharp eyes. However, Zhou Yuezhu was not afraid at all. She stuck out her tongue at him, made a face, turned her head and blinked at Lin Xiang: "Cousin, oh~?"

Lin Xiang didn't feel anything when Yuezhu called her cousin before. After all, she and He Hongyuan were only connected by a marriage certificate at that time, but they were not familiar with each other at all and had no emotional foundation.

But it is different now. The two of them are a serious couple. Hearing Yuezhu call her "cousin-in-law" now, he feels a little embarrassed.

But He Hongyuan was still "adding fuel to the flames" at this time: "You are so disrespectful to me, so don't bother your cousin's wife."

Lin Xiang: “…!”

Zhou Yuezhu smiled instantly, her round eyes narrowed, and she said to her mother: "Mom, look, my cousin has started to protect my cousin's wife!"

Lin Xiang was so exhausted from eating that she could hardly lift her head. She was simply embarrassed by Zhou Yuezhu, the naughty girl. She could only glare at He Hongyuan secretly, signaling him to restrain himself.

After lunch, Feng Li was going to take her daughter to visit old friends in the city, which also gave the two young lovers some time to be alone: ​​"Let's take the 5pm boat back and meet at the pier."

He Hongyuan should naturally be happy.

For the young couple's solo date, Lin Xiang deliberately chose the biggest entertainment activity in the 1970s - watching a movie.

Coincidentally, the last time they watched a movie together for the first time, they were both acting as shields for Yuezhu and her boyfriend. At that time, the only connection between the two was already shaky, but now when they walked into the cinema in the city again, they were already a couple, well, the kind of love that was open and free!

The last time Lin Xiang watched a movie, she didn't pay any attention to He Hongyuan and focused entirely on the movie, but this time it was difficult to do so.

The light in the theater was dim, and a movie was playing on the screen in front of her, but she could hardly ignore the strong presence of the man beside her.

People are sitting close to each other on the low stools, especially when new movies are released recently. As the queue increases, more people rush into the theater to squeeze in and sit more. In the past, three people can now sit on the benches that used to seat two.

Lin Xiang was pressed close to He Hongyuan, her shoulder brushing against his. When she raised her eyes slightly, she could almost smell his breathing. He Hongyuan's eyes were particularly bright in the darkness, and he whispered with great charm: "Are you okay? This movie is new, and everyone is too anxious to watch it."

"No." Lin Xiang seemed to be enveloped in a world filled with He Hongyuan's aura. Even her breathing became rapid. She tried to distance herself from He Hongyuan, but just as she moved back an inch, the lesbian next to her who was watching a movie excitedly with her two children in her arms moved her buttocks and pushed her closer.

The sudden force squeezed Lin Xiang half into He Hongyuan's arms, but he was quick to grab her arms and slender waist and stabilize her body.

The lesbian's apologetic voice rang out beside her, but Lin Xiang didn't say anything more. She could only continue to watch the movie with He Hong from a distance. Fortunately, the theater was pitch black and no one saw her blushing cheeks.

Naturally, she couldn't see He Hongyuan's red earlobes.

He Hongyuan sat upright the whole time, not relaxing his body at all, and his whole body was straight. In the second half of the movie, Lin Xiang gradually adapted to the "physical contact" between the two. Think about it, she is a woman from the future, and the two are still serious objects, what is there to be shy about!

It's just that this man is too restless. How can he be so serious while watching a movie? If you don't know him, you would think he is facing a critical moment in a war. His whole body is tense. Who can tell that he is just watching a movie?

The surroundings were quiet. Lin Xiang turned her head and glanced at the man beside her. He Hongyuan seemed to have no reaction. He just stared at the screen. She had some naughty thoughts in her mind. She moved her slender fingers flexibly and slowly from her legs, moving to the right little by little...

She lightly hooked He Hongyuan's thumb with her little finger, then quickly withdrew her hand, as if it were a naughty prank, pretending nothing had happened and just staring at the screen seriously.

The man still didn't respond. Lin Xiang was surprised. Comrade He Hongyuan is too hard to flirt with, isn't he? Is this movie really that good?

She was not convinced, and seemed to want to see He Hongyuan smile helplessly before she was satisfied, so she repeated this process, and then quietly moved her finger to the right, lightly hooked it and was ready to leave. But this time, He Hongyuan seemed to be waiting for her, and he quickly grasped her "mischievous" hand at a speed that Lin Xiang could not expect. Her five fingers were slender and tender, and he held them all in his palm, sending waves of warmth to her.

No one cared about the plot of the movie. Lin Xiang's heart was pounding, as if she had committed some taboo in such an innocent age. She felt like a guilty thief.

She tried to pull her hand back, but He Hong held it tighter, making it difficult for her to free.

Until the word "goodbye" appeared on the screen and people around her could be heard talking and getting up to leave, Lin Xiang was startled to feel the hand that was tightly holding her loosen. Her slightly hot fingers moved towards her palm, and her fingertips touched each other, as if retaining the remaining warmth of the man's palm.

But before she could stand up, her hand was quickly grasped again. He Hongyuan's palm returned, and with it came a wave of cold touch rising at her wrist.

Lin Xiang lowered her eyebrows in surprise, only to see a delicate and small ladies' watch shining brightly on her wrist. The round dial shone with a silvery light, and the hands turned slowly and slenderly, recording the passage of time.

"This watch...?" Lin Xiang thought to herself, but she couldn't believe it.

He Hongyuan let go of her hand when the lights in the theater came back on and said calmly, "Don't you want to know the time? This is just right."

Yes, when He Hongyuan picked up Lin Xiang for work a while ago, she casually mentioned that she guessed the time every day, and after guessing over and over again, she could get a rough idea.

But Lin Xiang was just sighing casually. She is a modern person and has a mobile phone with her at all times to check the time, which was difficult to do in the 1970s.

He couldn't even afford a watch. Not only did a watch cost more than 100 yuan, but the key point was that it required industrial coupons. Lin Xiang had enough savings to buy it, but he didn't have industrial coupons.

Unexpectedly, He Hongyuan took my casual words to heart and went into town today to buy a watch.

Lin Xiang's soft fingertips gently stroked the cold dial. Just as she was about to speak, she heard He Hongyuan say, "This watch is for women. I can't wear it. You keep it for yourself."

Lin Xiang chuckled and raised the corners of her lips slightly. This man still remembered that she used the cloth coupons he gave her to buy black cloth for him to make clothes. The cloth could be bought for men, but the style of the watch could not be changed.

I tried to find a way to prevent myself from returning it to him.

Lin Xiang felt itchy in her heart. She didn't expect that the usually serious Captain He could be so cute.

.....

Sitting on the boat back to Langhua Island, Lin Xiang still felt her right hand was burning, but she didn't show it on her face. He Hongyuan was used to being expressionless and serious, so Aunt Feng and Yuezhu didn't notice any sign of annoyance.

Just when Aunt Feng asked them concernedly whether the movie they watched was good, Lin Xiang couldn't help but turn her head and look at the man next to her with a guilty conscience. She didn't pay close attention to the movie, especially the second half, which she had no memory of at all.

He Hongyuan smiled and replied, "It looks good."

While no one else was paying attention, Lin Xiang stole a glance at him, her eyes full of accusations against He Hongyuan - Have you seen it? You said it was good!

However, He Hongyuan's smile crept up his sword-like brows and he curled the corners of his lips silently.

——

Lin Xiang sent the two long-sleeved shirts that she wanted to make and He Hongyuan's black shirt to the state-owned tailor shop during the lunch break on Monday.

She followed the later popular shirt styles and asked the tailor to make some improvements. In the 1970s, women's shirts tended to be loose and bulky, so she mainly pursued a slightly nipped waist and added some patterns at the neckline.

As for He Hongyuan's black shirt, he focused on pursuing neatness and crispness; simplicity and elegance are the best.

After explaining the requirements, Lin Xiang paid a deposit of 90 cents for cutting three pieces of clothing, and then went back to the factory to work.

Since her lively acquaintance with Master Feng from the maintenance team of Factory 1 last week, Lin Xiang's working hours have been temporarily enriched. While the other three people in the office were slacking off, she was working hard alone, accompanied by the sound of Director Zhao commenting on slogans while reading newspapers, Ma Defa reciting poems from time to time, and Kong Zhenzhen chatting while taking off labor insurance gloves.

Director Zhao: "Oh, the higher-ups said they want to implement family planning and set up a leadership group. What did they say? Let's have children later, more infrequently, and less frequently. Don't give birth like a sow, one litter at a time."

Kong Zhenzhen angrily retorted: "Director Zhao, how can you talk like that? Who is the sow?"

Director Zhao rubbed the back of his hairy head and said, "Oh, I'm not sure what I mean. Anyway, that's what I meant."

Kong Zhenzhen has two children at home and is preparing to give birth to a third. She didn't buy into the family planning talk and just muttered, "I don't know what all this mess is for."

Ma Defa turned a deaf ear to what was happening outside. In the gaps between Director Yu Zhao and Kong Zhenzhen's "friendly" exchange about the new birth policy, he whispered: "Struggle, this is life, this is the richest life......①"

Lin Xiang translated the general contents of the obscure manual of the mixing equipment onto a fresh page, and then recorded some professional terms separately. This was the area she did not understand, and she needed to discuss with Master Feng to guess the actual meaning.

The three voices in the office stopped talking at the same time. The three people stood up at the same time and called Lin Xiang: "Xiao Lin, stop writing and eat first."

One of the two factory's principles: The world is big, but eating is the most important thing.

Lin Xiang sat with three other people in the cafeteria of a factory. As usual, they arrived early and the employees of the factory had not yet finished their work. They were able to get large pieces of braised pork for dinner, and the food was very tasty. They ate comfortably and leisurely.

As workers from the factory went to the cafeteria to eat, the four were cleaning their lunch boxes when they heard whispers.

“Are our wages really going to be reduced?”

"Of course not. We haven't been able to sell shrimp paste in the past two months. All of it has been snatched up by Shiwei Food Factory. I think the people in the sales department are worried. If this continues, we will have to reduce our production tasks. Otherwise, where will we sell all that shrimp paste?"

Several people from Factory 2 walked out of the cafeteria carrying lunch boxes and turned on the tap at the sink at the door to wash the lunch boxes. Kong Zhenzhen's voice rang out along with the sound of running water: "What do you mean? Factory 1 is actually gone?"

In Kong Zhenzhen's opinion, the first factory is the backbone, and the canned shrimp sauce industry, the trump card, supports the livelihood of thousands of employees in the food factory.

If the first factory fails, how will the second factory survive?

Director Zhao shook his head and sighed, "Let's talk about it when we get back."

Director Zhao is usually cheerful, but he is very clear about things when he asks about them. He would bring the latest news near the end of the workday in the afternoon.

But he looked serious and closed the door as soon as he entered the room, which confused the other three people in the office.

Ma Defa was curious: "Director Zhao, is there really any accident?"

The people from the Second Factory were exiled to the border areas and were not informed of any news. When Lin Xiang saw Director Zhao's unprecedented serious expression, she knew something was wrong.

All of a sudden, she remembered the canned seafood she saw on the counter of the department store on Sunday. In addition to the rows of deep red cans of shrimp sauce from the 119 Food Factory, there were also rows of dark blue cans of shrimp sauce. Many people were buying them, and they seemed to be competing with the shrimp sauce cans from the 119 Food Factory.

She recalled that the brand of the dark blue can of shrimp sauce seemed to be called - Food Flavor.

Director Zhao rarely spoke in a casual and cheerful tone. Instead, he said in a serious tone, "This time it's really a bit tricky. It's said that the former Food Taste Food Factory in Phnom Penh applied for a grant and seemed to have obtained some good equipment. In addition, they improved the canned food recipe. The canned shrimp sauce they sold in the past two months has been selling very well. The canned shrimp sauce of our factory has been greatly affected."

In the first two months, the trend was not obvious, and all the major department stores that had cooperative relationships with 119 Food Factory continued to put the original quantities on the shelves. However, this month, the sales department received many orders from department stores requesting a reduction in quantity, with the quantity being cut by nearly one-fifth.

This is no small number. If sales are cut by one-fifth, the factory's efficiency will also be reduced, and the production tasks will also be reduced, and the workers' wages will also be affected.

More importantly, it has only been three months since Shiwei Food Factory launched its revised canned shrimp sauce, but it has already had such an impact on 119 Food Factory's canned shrimp sauce. If this continues, the production may have to be reduced next month, and the month after that...by then, at least half of the sales volume will be eaten up.

After these words were spoken, Kong Zhenzhen and Ma Defa, who were best at having fun and slacking off, also fell silent.

After all, Factory 2 is now dependent on Factory 1. If Factory 1 suffers, Factory 2 will be the first to be cut off.

Seeing that everyone in the office fell silent, Director Zhao, perhaps unable to bear such a strange atmosphere, immediately smiled and comforted everyone, "But it's not that serious. Our 119 is an old factory with many years of history. Residents of dozens of nearby cities are used to eating our canned shrimp sauce. How can we easily let the taste overshadow it? Now they just released an improved version, so that everyone can have a taste of it. Once the novelty wears off, it will be fine."

Kong Zhenzhen listened to what Director Zhao said and felt that it made sense: "That's right. We can't just lose 119 easily. We can only suffer for a few months."

Ma Defa seemed to have found a reason to comfort himself: "That's right. When it comes to canned shrimp sauce, ours is the best and sells the best. Those government guesthouses buy ours and put them on the table."

Amidst their worries, several people quickly found comforting thoughts, and in a moment they regained their energy to get off work happily, and each packed up their things and left.

Only Lin Xiang sat at her desk, thinking about what she had seen in the department store that day, and always felt that things would not be that simple.

It is not easy to go to Phnom Penh by boat. Lin Xiang asked Aunt Feng to find a military wife in the family compound who was going to the city to buy things tomorrow, Wednesday, and paid her to buy a can of Shiwei shrimp sauce. After paying one dollar, Lin Xiang hesitated for a moment, added another dollar, and asked someone to buy back the best canned food sold by Shiwei Food Factory in other department stores.

After dinner, Lin Xiang was thinking about the sudden appearance of the Food Factory as she went to the tailor shop to get clothes. She didn't know whether the 119 Food Factory could survive the competition from the emerging competitors. Soon, when she arrived at the tailor shop, she was attracted by three beautifully and crisply cut shirts.

Lin Xiang's two shirts are made of light yellow and white floral fabrics. The light yellow shirt has a ruffled collar and a slightly curved waist design. The fresh and elegant light yellow color exudes youthful vigor. The white floral shirt is simpler, with a simple small square collar and red buttons as a highlight, giving it a fresh and pastoral aesthetic.

The men's shirt was neatly cut, the black dacron style was very crisp, the shoulders were broad and the shape was streamlined and narrow. When Lin Xiang looked at the shirt, she seemed to have seen the handsomeness and abstinence of He Hongyuan with his broad shoulders and narrow waist when he put it on.

Back at Zhou's house, Aunt Feng and Yuezhu were delighted to see the three new clothes. Yuezhu praised them in amazement: "The cut of these clothes is better than those sold in department stores."

Feng Li was also surprised: "From now on, when I need to make clothes at home, I will ask Xiangxiang for advice. It really makes a difference."

Lin Xiang was also satisfied with the clothes she had made this time. With these two shirts added to her wardrobe, she now had four new clothes! What a happy occasion!

One day, she will surely fill up her entire closet!

The sun was setting and the family compound was shrouded in darkness. Lin Xiang stroked the black shirt, struggling for a moment before finally unable to hold back and left in the dark for the army's single dormitory.

Female comrades were not allowed to go upstairs at night. She registered at the gate and asked a soldier to call He Hongyuan: "My name is Lin Xiang. Please tell Captain He Hongyuan that I am here to bring him some clothes."

The soldier on duty naturally also heard about what happened to Captain He, and immediately saluted Lin Xiang and ran upstairs to inform him.

Not long after, two people came down from the second floor. The soldier on duty returned to the gate without looking around. He Hongyuan strode out of the darkness. As the distance got closer, his face with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes gradually revealed.

There are many benefits to having a watch. Lin Xiang raised his hand to check the time. It was eight forty-two at night.

"Why are you here so late?" He Hongyuan said this, but his eyes were full of tenderness. He took Lin Xiang to a secluded place in the army, "I'll pick up the clothes tomorrow. Why are you coming here so late at night?"

Lin Xiang unfolded the black shirt and gestured in front of He Hongyuan. It was a perfect fit, as if it was made for him. The black shirt covered his unchanging white military uniform. In the dark night, he exuded a strong and cold aura, which was very attractive.

"You'll look handsome in it!"

He Hongyuan has strong eyebrows, deep facial features and sharp edges, which makes him very suitable for such a deep and abstinent black.

"You must have good taste." It was the first time for He Hongyuan to receive a gift from his partner. Thinking of the various small gifts that Zhang Huafeng and Jiang Weijun showed off every day, it turned out to be this kind of feeling. His eyebrows relaxed, without any resistance or opposition when he pulled the cloth that day.

"Well, I have a good eye!" She approached He Hongyuan, her entire outline hidden in the darkness. She stood on tiptoe and gently placed a kiss on He Hongyuan's cheek.

Lin Xiang was very satisfied with her own taste, whether it was people or clothes.