Xue Ping teased her, "Look at you, still acting mysterious."
She quickly untied the cloth covering the food, thinking that Xu Nuo must have bought a lot of food again. But when she saw what was inside, she was stunned.
"Nuonuo, where did you buy all these things?"
Xu Nuo didn't know what to say.
It was completely filled with foreign goods.
Xu Nuo recognized several brands of canned beef, chocolate, biscuits, and candy.
The sheer number of exquisite and high-end packages dazzled Xu Jin'an, who was fanning himself with a fan, and he felt cold sweat pouring down his face.
His eyes widened: "This is imported, right? Can you still buy this now?"
I walked over and carefully picked up a box. It had gold-stamped English lettering on it, and the tin box was heavy and quite substantial.
How much does this box cost? How much does this whole pile cost?
Like Xue Ping, Xu Jin'an felt incredibly guilty, but because Xu Nuo was present, he didn't dare show any signs of distress.
He thought that Nuonuo was about to take the college entrance examination and must be under a lot of pressure. So he figured it was okay if it was expensive; he could just give her all of his salary for the month.
He carefully put them back, wiped the sweat from his brow, and smiled nonchalantly, "It's okay, I bought them, where did you buy them? Why are you carrying such a bunch?"
Xu Nuo made an "uh" sound. She had no idea where he bought it. Li Xian would always buy her meat, vegetables, and other novelties from the black market. She had just touched the hard thing inside and thought he had brought her two buckets of malted milk powder. She didn't expect Li Xian to bring her such a bunch of things.
Seeing that Xu Jinan and Xue Ping were waiting for a reply, she quickly came up with a solution and said, "Xiaofeng from the supply and marketing cooperative bought it for me."
Lin Xiaofeng?
Xu Jinan remembered this person and slapped his forehead: "Ah, that female comrade."
Xue Ping also remembered that although she usually let Xu Nuo spend money, these things didn't look cheap. She carefully asked, "Nuonuo, how much did these things cost?"
Xu Jinan also asked, "Yes, how much did it cost?"
Looking at the expressions on Xue Ping and Xu Jin'an's faces, Xu Nuo knew that they were definitely worried about the money, since imported goods were expensive and scarce in this era.
Afraid that Xu Nuo would be unhappy, Xu Jin'an added with a smile, "It's not that your parents are worried about the money. Your parents' money is for you to spend. You can spend as much as you want. We just wanted to know, haha."
Xu Jinan touched his forehead, feeling that the more he wiped his forehead, the more sweat he produced.
Xu Nuo still doesn't really understand the prices of goods in this era, so she made up a story: "It cost seven or eight yuan in total."
"Seven or eight yuan," Xu Jinan muttered, feeling relieved. Although eight yuan was not a small amount, it was still within his acceptable range.
Xu Jin'an guessed that Xu Nuo must have spent all his money after buying so many things, so he said, "It's okay, Dad was just asking. Dad will get his salary in a few days, and I'll give you some pocket money after that."
"No need, Dad. I'm earning money with Lin Xiaofeng now, and it's enough for us."
Xu Jin'an knew that Xu Nuo and Lin Xiaofeng were selling herbal tea, but he didn't know that the herbal tea was produced by Xu Nuo herself. His mind was filled with the scene of his precious daughter working herself to the bone as a middleman, earning only a penny or two. He said with heartache, "No, no, you have to study hard and don't work so hard. Dad has money to support you."
Xu Nuo smiled and opened a box of Ferrero Rocher, peeling off the wrapper and trying to stuff it into Xu Jin'an's mouth. Xu Jin'an was reluctant to eat such an expensive thing, so he jumped back and covered his mouth, saying, "You eat it, you eat it. Dad doesn't like this stuff."
Xu Nuo could tell that he wanted to keep all of these for himself, and her heart warmed slightly. She went over and gently tugged at Xu Jin'an's hand: "You've never eaten any of these before. Try them, and if you don't like them, then don't eat them."
"No, no, no, Dad is full and can't eat anymore."
The three of them haven't even had dinner yet while waiting for Xu Nuo.
Xu Nuo persisted, chasing after Xu Jin'an to feed him candy. In the end, Xu Jin'an and Xue Ping each took a bite of half and were amazed by the taste they had never experienced before.
Xue Ping smacked her lips, savoring the silky smooth texture that melted in her mouth: "It's sweet, and it tastes a little bitter too. What's this called again?"
Xu Nuo peeled a new chocolate for Xu Yan and said with a smile, "Call it chocolate."
Xue Ping nodded: "Chocolate, that's a rather strange name."
But it tastes surprisingly good.
Xu Nuo ate some herself, and the Ferrero Rocher chocolate still tasted the same, which made her eyes well up with tears.
The familiar taste always reminds her of familiar people.
The home where she lived for more than ten years.
...
Xu Nuo woke up late the next day as usual.
Xu Yan got up at six o'clock. Unlike Xu Nuo, although she had good grades when she was in school, she had forgotten a lot of knowledge after spending several years in the countryside. Moreover, her application to return home failed. Apart from getting into university, she had no other way to leave Luxian Village.
For Xu Yan, this college entrance examination is of paramount importance.
However, after she got up, she quickly washed the rice and cooked porridge, and also boiled a kettle of water. By the time Xu Jinan and Xue Ping got up, the porridge was already cooked.
Xu Yan brewed two cups of herbal tea and placed them on the dining table. Then she went into the kitchen to cook some dishes and heated up the leftover meat from last night before bringing it out.
Xue Ping and Xu Jin'an had already brushed their teeth and washed their faces. Seeing how diligent she was, they felt a warmth in their hearts and couldn't help but say, "Come and eat too, and go back to your studies after you're done."
Because Xu Nuo was still asleep, she spoke in a low voice.
"Yes." Xu Yan nodded.
After finishing their meal, Xue Ping and Xu Jin'an went to work. Before leaving, Xue Ping asked Xu Jin'an to wash the dishes.
No sooner had Xue Ping and Xu Jin'an left than a few minutes later, there was a knock on the door.
"Knock knock".
Xu Yan was reciting his lessons in his room when he listened carefully and realized that the knocking sounded like it was coming from his own door.
She quickly went to open the door and found that it was Lin Xiaofeng, who worked at the supply and marketing cooperative, who had come.
Lin Xiaofeng recognized Xu Yan and greeted her politely: "Hello, Comrade Xu Yan, I am Lin Xiaofeng from the supply and marketing cooperative."
Xu Yan quickly let her in: "Hello, Comrade Xiaofeng, come in quickly, are you here to see Nuonuo?"
Lin Xiaofeng nodded, took off her shoes and followed Xu Yan inside, replying, "Yes, I need to see Xu Nuo about something, so I came before work."
Xu Yan quickly poured water over, and Lin Xiaofeng looked around and asked, "Isn't Comrade Xu Nuo here?"
Xu Yan hesitated for a moment, then pointed to the closed door and whispered, "Nuonuo hasn't gotten up yet."
Although Lin Xiaofeng had come to Xu Nuo's house before, it was always after get off work in the afternoon, and she had never come in the morning. She didn't expect that Xu Nuo was still not up at this time, and she felt a little embarrassed.
Xu Yan asked, "Is there something urgent?"
It wasn't anything urgent. Lin Xiaofeng came because she had a friend in a performing arts troupe who wanted to sell the moisturizing oil like her. Xu Nuo had mentioned to her that she could recruit agents, so she thought she would bring the deposit over and discuss the agency matters with her.
After thinking for a moment, she took out an envelope from her bag, inside which was the deposit for the newly received moisturizing oil.
She stood up, handed the money to Xu Yan, and then borrowed paper and pen from Xu Yan to leave a note for Xu Nuo.
"Okay, please pass this on to Nuonuo for me. I have to go to work now."
Xu Yan nodded: "Okay, I'll see you off."
Before leaving, Lin Xiaofeng glanced at the things on the table and couldn't help but say, "These are foreign goods, right? Your family is really lucky to be able to buy even these."
Xu Yan paused for a moment: "This is Nuonuo, not..."
She's trying to say, "Didn't you buy it for her?"
"I've never seen anything like it before, how come you have so many?"
Lin Xiaofeng's tone was full of envy. Xu Yan didn't say anything, saw her out the door, and glanced at the things printed with foreign languages before returning to his room.
Xu Yan remembered the rainy day.
Never mind, she stopped investigating and turned back to her room to read.
...
Xu Nuo slept until 10:30 as usual.
The sunlight outside streamed through the window and fell into the room, casting a soft glow on her hazy eyes.
She stretched and slowly got up.
Xu Nuo didn't like plain porridge, so Xu Yan cooked noodles for her, topped with a plump, tender egg.
Seeing her come out still sleepy, Xu Yan smiled and said, "Go brush your teeth."
"Mmm." Xu Nuo rubbed her eyes, her voice still childish.
After brushing her teeth, she noticed a brown paper envelope next to the bowl and picked it up curiously: "What's this?"
"Comrade Xiaofeng from the supply and marketing cooperative came looking for you. She left her things here before you woke up."
Xu Nuo picked up a piece of white paper next to her, unfolded it, and sure enough, it contained Xiao Feng's notes. She glanced at it, raised her eyebrows triumphantly at Xu Yan, and said excitedly, "Xiao Feng said that her friend in the art troupe also wants to sell body oil, and told me to go see her when I wake up."
"That's great!" Xu Yan was genuinely happy for Xu Nuo. People in the art troupe are generally willing to spend money on themselves, so their need for moisturizing oil must be greater than that of others.
Xu Nuo was naturally happy to make money. In addition to the income from her own production today, after deducting the money that Li Xian insisted on keeping with her, her income was almost 700 yuan more.
In this day and age, seven hundred dollars is a huge sum of money.
...
Today, Luxian Village was bustling with activity. After finishing their work, everyone gathered in the large earthen house where the zookeeper lived.
The crowd gathered around the large stove in the middle where the livestock feed was cooked. Men and women were to sit on opposite sides, and usually whoever claimed a spot first would have that side reserved for their gender. But in the countryside, everyone knew each other, and it was inevitable that they would tease and joke around. Everyone was vying for the side furthest from the livestock feed. Wang Da Niang, with her loud voice, yelled, "Go to hell, you Wang Laizi! I claimed this spot first, so you men can go over there!"
Wang Laizi led the way: "We were clearly here first, but you always cheat on us, Aunt Wang."
Aunt Wang did come later, but she had a loud voice and spat out with a laugh: "You, Wang Laizi, can talk? Pigs can climb trees."
Laughter erupted from the crowd in unison.
The farce was still going on, with everyone talking back and forth, laughing and arguing incessantly. The young village girls sat knitting, occasionally laughing along, while the men, being bolder, chimed in, saying that Wang Laizi had come first, only to be yelled back by several loud-voiced women.
The older men sat there smoking their pipes as usual, occasionally exchanging a pipe with the person next to them.
The educated youth had their own territory, where men and women sat on one side, watching with great interest this grand spectacle that would take place every time a meeting was held.
Although it's a bit crude, in this era with little entertainment, holding a meeting means there's excitement.
Although Wang Ting was engaged to Chang Zichun, she would not be married to him for more than ten days. Therefore, she sat with the educated youth, laughing along with the villagers, and listening with great interest to what Lu Xueyun and the educated youth were talking about.
Li Hong, the leader of the educated youth group, sat in the middle and said with some disbelief, "Comrade Xueyun, is what you're saying true?"
All the educated youth's eyes were on her. Lu Xueyun sat up straight and said arrogantly, "Of course, my mother said that the central government's document has been issued, and the brigade leader will definitely talk about this matter at the meeting today."
Her certainty led the other educated youths to believe her to some extent.
After Wang Laizi's group finished talking, they stopped discussing the territory and remained quiet for a while. Then, the entire earthen house was filled with whispers again.
"It's been so long since we had a big meeting. What do you think is going on today?"
"They're not going to discuss production, are they? But we just planted the crops a few days ago, what are they going to talk about?"
"That educated youth Xu Yan left, and Yin Hua has been doing her work these past few days. Could it be that they're discussing who should replace her?"
"Isn't it a bit much? Didn't those educated youth come back?"
"Who knows? She...that's not it." The loudest voice came from Granny Wang. She frowned and pointed at the young man standing in the doorway: "Isn't that the bad element from the Li family?"
Upon closer inspection, everyone realized it was indeed Li Xian.
He has never attended any of the village meetings over the years.
Lu Xueyun also saw Li Xian, who had just returned from the city. Perhaps it was because he was tired from traveling all night, but he was shrouded in an indescribable aura of hostility.
He was a bit fierce, but he was indeed handsome.
When Chang Youxin saw Li Xian arrive, he shook his pipe, stood up, and called out, "Meeting is in session."
The crowd quieted down, but everyone's eyes were still glancing at the doorway, both openly and secretly.
"Li Xian, come in."
Everyone was surprised; Chang Youxin's tone sounded... somewhat strange.
Li Xian walked in, his eyes cold and silent.
Standing next to Chang Youxin, everyone's eyes could no longer be taken off him.
Chang Youxin coughed and cleared his throat: "Fellow villagers, the purpose of this meeting is to announce something."
Wang Laizi sat down casually. He was getting increasingly ruthless in fights, and Wang Laizi and the others dared not provoke him anymore. When they saw the captain call him over today, they thought it was to bring up old matters again, and they jeered, "Captain, why didn't you say so earlier?"
The crowd burst into laughter, and Chang Youxin, his face ashen, roared, "Silence!"
The crowd gradually quieted down. Lu Xueyun glanced at the villagers with disdain and said confidently, "I told you so, the brigade leader is definitely going to talk about that matter now."
Sure enough, Chang Youxin spoke, his expression serious and his tone slow, and the crowd below gradually fell silent.
Everyone's expression changed rapidly, except for Li Xian, who stood next to Chang Youxin.
His back remained straight, and his eyes conveyed a deep sense of detachment and indifference.
It seemed that the letters he received were about things that had nothing to do with him.
He was like a sturdy pine tree growing deep in the mountains, silent and dignified.
It's so bad it's hard to look directly at.
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