After packing up her food, Shen Mu Ning left the state-run restaurant and placed the food in her spatial kitchen in a secluded spot where few people passed by. Items placed in the kitchen and storage room remained stationary and warm, making it convenient for her to eat later.
Then she went straight to the supply and marketing cooperative. Although she was also quite interested in the department store, the most important thing at the moment was to buy supplies for the countryside. She would visit the department store when she had time.
Shen Mu Ning walked into the supply and marketing cooperative and could hardly believe her eyes. It was so simple, but thankfully it had everything she wanted to buy.
I'll be assigned to the Lingbei area. Once there, I'll need to find a room to myself and cook for myself. If all else fails, I can build my own. Building a mud-walled house won't cost too much, but then I'll need to consider bringing more things with me.
First, in the Lingbei area, people use heated brick beds (kang). You'll need to buy an iron pot to place on the stove. While the kang is heated, you can also boil water and cook rice. You'll also need a kettle to make full use of the stove space. However, in the summer, when the kang isn't heated, you'll need a coal stove. You can use charcoal or durable wood for cooking. You'll also need kitchen utensils such as a cutting board, knife, spatula, spoon, and bowls/chopsticks. You can buy the cutting board in the countryside, but everything else needs to be prepared now.
In Lingbei, the snow is very thick in winter. In addition to having someone make thick quilts, thick cotton-padded clothes, trousers, and shoes, you also need to buy a pair of cotton-padded rubber shoes to make it easier to walk outside after it snows. In addition, you need to prepare personal necessities such as a washbasin, towels, toothpaste, toothbrush, and soap.
After deciding what she wanted to buy, Shen Mu Ning said directly to the waiter, "Hello, comrade, I want to buy an iron pot, a kettle, cotton rubber shoes, a kitchen knife, a spatula, a spoon, and bowls and chopsticks."
Shen Mu Ning rattled off all the items she needed, only to see the counter clerk staring at her incredulously. Knowing she had bought too much, she quickly made up an excuse: "Comrade, these are all for my fellow villagers. Also, please pack two jin of fruit candy. My neighbor, Brother Zhu, is getting married, and my aunt asked me to bring these wedding candies."
Hearing this explanation, the waitress was no longer surprised, because many villages far from the city would hire someone to bring their goods back. She suppressed her curiosity and quickly calculated the amount Shen Mu Ning needed to pay: "Your things cost a total of sixty-nine yuan, plus nine industrial coupons and two sugar coupons."
After paying, Shen Mu Ning picked up her items one by one from the receipt. Seeing that she had almost everything she needed, she realized she had bought cotton but forgotten to buy fabric. She'd attracted too much attention at the supply and marketing cooperative; she might as well go to the department store to buy fabric and browse around while she was there.
The department store sounded impressive, but it didn't sell as many things as she had imagined. Shen Mu Ning glanced around and saw that the first floor sold various pastries, canned goods, candies, dried fruits, and other food items; the second floor sold items that could only be purchased with industrial ration coupons, including various iron products, alarm clocks, raincoats, yarn, batteries, sneakers, bicycles, watches, and so on; and the third floor sold various fabrics and ready-made clothing.
After browsing around, Shen Mu Ning realized she needed to buy some yarn to knit sweaters. She already had thermal underwear in her space, but most of her sweaters were brightly colored and too conspicuous. She decided to buy some yarn and knit sweaters for herself during the winter. Besides that, she needed fabric. She needed to make three cotton-padded coats and several spring/summer outfits. The clothes the original owner had worn for the past few years were either too small or patched-up hand-me-downs from Shen Lin. She also needed two sets of bed sheets and duvet covers, which required a considerable amount of fabric.
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