An Qingbai said worriedly, "What do you want to buy? I'll go buy it!"
"I'm just curious and want to check out the black market. I've never seen it before! Shall we go together?"
Zhuang Zhimeng stared at him with her big, watery eyes, and An Qingbai quickly gave in. Even if she wanted the moon, he would find a way to get it for her.
"Then you go back to the guesthouse first, I'll go and find out what's going on. There's usually a code to enter the black market."
"Okay, then be careful!"
Zhuang Zhimeng returned to the guesthouse by herself.
After a while, An Qingbai returned and knocked on her door.
Zhuang Zhimeng opened the door and let him in. The door was open, and it was obvious at a glance that she was receiving guests.
"So? Did you find out?"
"I found out that there's one near the county hospital. No password is needed; you can get in by giving the guard 20 cents per person."
"It's not far from here, is it?"
"Yes, let's go see if we need anything tomorrow!"
"I suddenly have a craving for seafood. I wish I could buy some!"
"Seafood isn't plentiful locally, but it might be transported from Lian City to the black market here. Let's try our luck; maybe you'll get lucky and find some seafood."
"The last time I ate seafood was at my aunt's place! I've told you before, my aunt is the director of the Jinshi Supply and Marketing Cooperative, right?"
An Qingbai shook his head decisively; he would remember everything she had said.
"Oh, I'll tell you now! The seafood counter at their supply and marketing cooperative had a kind of crab that was really delicious. I only got to eat it when my dad and I went to Jinshi to visit my aunt. I still crave it just thinking about it." She swallowed as she spoke.
Seeing her adorable expression, An Qingbai couldn't resist gently pinching her nose. "How about I take you out to eat sometime?"
"Well, you'd better keep your word!"
"I promise!"
"Shall we go to the black market in this county town tomorrow?"
"Well, let me show you. Actually, this black market is nothing special. Transactions are all done in hushed tones. If you see something you like, you pay with a ticket. Sometimes, you can trade without a ticket. It depends on what the seller needs. Money, goods, and tickets can all be traded."
"Should we cover our faces?"
"It's okay to cover it up if you have something, but it's also fine if you don't. Just keep your head down during the transaction and don't let the other party remember your face."
"Okay, I understand. Now you can go back to your room and rest. We'll go to the black market tomorrow."
An Qingbai... he really is a traitor who uses someone and then discards them!
Helpless, I could only ruffle her hair and go back to my room.
The next day, the two ate at a state-run restaurant. They had large fried dough sticks and soy milk, which cost a total of 20 cents.
After finishing their meal, the two headed towards the black market. As they walked, Zhuang Zhimeng noticed that there were few people around, so she suddenly pulled An Qingbai into a dead end.
“You…” An Qingbai was startled.
"Don't scream! I'll do your makeup!"
Zhuang Zhimeng won a set of cosmetics last night, a whole set with everything.
An Qingbai watched quietly as she applied the makeup to his face, and soon Zhuang Zhimeng was done.
She nodded to herself with great satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad! You look like a burly man! No one would dare to mess with you!"
She even took out a mirror for An Qingbai to look at himself, "How is it? Not bad, right?"
An Qingbai looked at himself in the mirror. Wow! He's even scarier than Hei Zi! Super fierce.
Zhuang Zhimeng also put on makeup, adding some freckles and painting her face a sallow yellow, the same skin tone as most women of that era. She also had a black tooth stuck on her teeth.
She smiled at An Qingbai with that face, "How about me? Don't you recognize me?"
An Qingbai almost doubled over laughing. It was just too funny, especially her black teeth that showed when she smiled, which made her look like an old lady from the village.
After they finished laughing, the two set off for the black market.
Upon reaching the entrance, they saw a guard. "What are you doing here? Buying or selling?"
The guards were startled when they saw An Qingbai's fierce expression.
"purchase!"
"Two cents per person."
An Qingbai handed over the money, and the guard waved them in.
Upon entering the black market, one sees its interconnected network, indicating that the person running it is quite shrewd, making it easy to escape from any direction.
People were talking very quietly, transactions were happening very quickly, and no one was making a loud noise.
Zhuang Zhimeng unconsciously lowered her voice as well: "Let's hurry up and look around, and buy whatever we find that's suitable!"
An Qingbai nodded.
After browsing for a while, Zhuang Zhimeng didn't see any dried seafood for sale, but she did see dried seaweed for sale. She bought two packs and paid her 50 cents.
She had just paid the seller and was about to continue browsing when someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Quick, someone's coming to arrest us!"
In an instant, people rushed out of the various exits at great speed and disappeared without a trace.
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