The day before the new semester started, Chen Chunhua delivered the eggs early in the morning and then came back to pick up Lin Shuying to go to the city.
On this day last year, Lin Guoqing rode a tricycle with Chen Chunhua and Lin Shuying sitting behind him, along with their belongings. The city high school was about a three-hour tricycle ride from Sihe Village, so a daily commute was impossible. Lin Shuying lived on campus.
Chen Chunhua first took her to the state-owned store in the city to buy her daughter the latest sanitary napkins. It was Lin Shuying's first time in a state-owned store, and it looked much more impressive than the supply and marketing cooperative.
The people shopping inside were all dressed neatly and looked very energetic. They all looked like city people.
In the past, Lin Shuying might have felt really inferior, but not anymore. Her children were always clean when they went out, and while their clothes weren't store-bought, they didn't have a single patch on them.
In addition, Chen Chunhua paid close attention to their nutrition, and each of them had shiny black hair and a rosy, cheerful complexion. Lin Shuying was especially fond of her. Apart from helping in the fields during the summer and autumn harvests, she usually just read a book and did no manual labor. Her skin was actually quite fair.
When she first started high school, some people looked down on her because she was from the countryside. But as time went by, everyone knew that although Lin Shuying's family was from the countryside, they were never late in paying their taxes and bills, and sometimes even had better food, clothing, and other necessities than people in the city.
Moreover, she had good grades and dressed neatly, which made her different from the rural students they had in mind and other rural students in the school.
This made 14-year-old Lin Shuying sometimes feel a little vain, thinking about her mother going to buy her sanitary napkins. Perhaps, if her roommates saw her doing this, they would envy her again, right?
Until she heard the price quoted by the salesperson at the counter - 11 yuan for a pack of 16 tablets.
She suddenly stretched out her arm and held down Chen Chunhua's hand which had already reached into her pocket.
"Mom, I think menstrual belts are great. Didn't you give me several boxes last time? Even if I wash two a day, they're enough if they don't dry out. These sanitary napkins are really unnecessary."
11 yuan? Why not just rob it?
Her monthly living expenses are only 10 yuan, which is considered high in the class. Sanitary napkins are disposable items. According to her mother, they need to be changed every few hours and thrown away.
Is she some kind of princess? She lost 70 cents in just a few hours? Even if she was a wealthy woman, hiring a nanny to wash her menstrual pads wouldn't cost her 70 cents per wash!
Chen Chunhua's hands were stuck in her trouser pockets and she couldn't pull them out, so she smiled awkwardly at the salesperson at the counter.
"I'm sorry, sister, I, I'll come back to buy it later..." As she said this, she pulled her daughter aside under the salesperson's roll of eyes.
"What are you doing? Didn't we agree to buy a few bags so that it would be convenient for you to go to class? You seemed quite happy before, so why don't you want it now?"
Lin Shuying decisively shook her head and refused. She was too young before and didn't understand the dangers of society.
"Oh, you didn't tell me before that this would be so expensive. I just heard you say it's the latest product, only available in the city, and not available at other supply and marketing cooperatives... Well, then I think it might be quite impressive..."
Compared to money, face means nothing.
For 11 yuan, you can eat so much eggs at home that you’ll vomit!
Chen Chunhua smiled and touched her eldest daughter's head.
"It's not that exaggerated. Didn't I tell you all about my family's income? Although we're not rich, we can still afford to spend a few dozen dollars a month. Health and hygiene in this regard are very important for girls."
Chen Chunhua thought of her first experience of using sanitary napkins in her previous life. Lin Shumei bought it for her when she grew up. She really felt that the experience was perfect because she could use this thing before she got old.
"Believe me, after using sanitary napkins, you definitely won't want to use a menstrual belt anymore. It's much more convenient!"
Lin Shuying blushed and groaned for a long time, "So you're not using a menstrual belt anymore, are you?"
Chen Chunhua: ...Well, she just thinks it's too expensive...
The mother and daughter looked at each other for a long time, and both burst out laughing. Lin Shuying insisted that she didn't want it. If she wanted it, Chen Chunhua would have to use it herself. Chen Chunhua groaned for a long time.
"Well, since we're here, I'll buy three packs. You take two to school, and I'll take one home. Is that okay? If you find it useful, I'll buy more next time."
Lin Shuying gritted her teeth and thought, okay, at worst she could just use it sparingly, using a menstrual belt at the beginning and the end, and only using sanitary napkins during the peak two days.
When Chen Chunhua paid the money, she didn't feel anything at all, but Lin Shuying was heartbroken.
33 yuan, how many eggs would that cost?
Chen Chunhua nodded her head and said, "Don't worry, this is a necessity. Study hard and you will be able to earn it back in the future!"
When Lin Shuying arrived at school, she carried her quilt and food bag directly to the dormitory. Several other classmates who lived nearby were already there, and when they saw her come in, they helped her carry her things.
"Oh, Shuying, what is this?"
Two packs of sanitary napkins fell out of the bag. Lin Shuying quickly picked them up and said with a blushing face that they were sanitary napkins. She had her period during the summer vacation.
The girls in the same dormitory all opened their eyes wide, "...Menstruation? Li Xia from the next dormitory got her period last semester... I was wondering who in our dormitory got her period first? Turns out it was you, Shuying!"
"Hey, but I remember my mom...didn't use a menstrual belt when she was on her period, and she had to change it and wash it every few hours. This...is the first time I've heard of this."
Lin Shuying nodded and whispered to her roommates, "I also wear a menstrual belt, but my mom said it's inconvenient to use it in the classroom during the day, so she took me to the state-owned store on the way here to buy this. You can just throw it away after use, no need to wash it, it's very convenient."
"Really? No need to wash?" The girls in the dormitory all came over. Although they hadn't had their periods yet, they still wanted to be on the safe side. Didn't they see Li Xia running to the dormitory several times a day every time she had her period? It was really troublesome!
"You bought it from a state-owned store? How much was it?"
"11 yuan a pack." Lin Shuying said softly.
"How much?!" The classmate widened his eyes and carefully put the pack of sanitary napkins back.
"Two packs are 22 yuan, and my mom only earns 60 yuan a month. If I tell her I want to buy this, she'll definitely cut me... I'll spend half of that every time I have my period."
"Shuying, your mother really dotes on you..."
"Shuying's family is well-off, and her uncle and aunt are willing to spend money. I'm so envious..."
Lin Shuying touched her nose, feeling a little guilty for some reason. She really didn't mean to show off...
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