"Okay, Mom, I'll go buy things now, otherwise I'll have to wait until next week," Ma Hua agreed and hurriedly ran towards the supply and marketing cooperative.
On the way, Ma Hua happened to mention the furniture that the system had rewarded him with. He chuckled, "The system is really great; they've even arranged the source. It'll be delivered to my door soon."
When Ma Hua arrived at the Laodaokou Supply and Marketing Cooperative by bicycle, it was already afternoon. Brother Liu looked at Ma Hua with a surprised expression and said, "Hey kid, what brings you here again? Did you come here just to see me?"
"Hehe, buying things," Ma Hua chuckled. There was nothing to be embarrassed about; they were all his own brothers. He would invite Brother Liu over for a good meal after he finished moving.
"Alright, kid, tell me, what do you want to buy?" Brother Liu said with a laugh. He knew you were here for something. He never knew a good thing was coming from your smile.
Ma Hua didn't stand on ceremony and handed the note he had just written to Brother Liu, saying, "Brother Liu, do you think we have all of these?"
Brother Liu took the note from Ma Hua, glanced at it, and frowned: "You kid, why did you buy so much stuff? Oh, did you get a new apartment? Where did you get one? Tell me quickly."
"Hehe, it's No. 95 Nanluoguxiang, not far from here," Ma Hua said, scratching his head sheepishly.
"Hey, it's just in the next alley," Brother Liu said with some surprise, then pointed at Ma Hua and said with a laugh, "So that's what you're doing here, kid. Oh, it's the next alley."
"Hehe. It's not because we live close by, I just happened to miss Brother Liu," Ma Hua said, scratching his head a little embarrassedly.
"I have most of the stuff, but you'll have to buy these honeycomb briquettes at the coal station. I don't have any here. When you go, remember to bring your coal ration certificate. Do you still have a ration in your household register?" Brother Liu quickly reminded him, not wanting the kid to go there naively. In his mind, Ma Hua had always been a junior, someone he had to take care of in everything.
“I have it. There’s more in the book. It’s just enough for me.” Ma Hua retorted. “Brother Liu, I’m nineteen already, okay? You still treat me like a child. After I move, I’ll invite you over for dinner. I’m not bragging, but my cooking skills are really good now.”
"Alright, alright, you'd better hurry up and get to the coal station. Don't forget to offer them a cigarette before they leave work, or they might give you something bad and you'll be in trouble," Brother Liu quickly instructed, telling Ma Hua to go early.
“Okay,” Ma Hua paid Liu Ge, who said he would send someone to deliver the goods to Ma Hua shortly.
After saying goodbye to Brother Liu, Ma Hua rode straight to the coal station. After waiting for a while, it was Ma Hua's turn in line. "Hello comrade, I would like to buy some honeycomb briquettes. This is my coal purchase certificate."
"Okay, how much do you want to buy? Do you need it delivered?" the fat man at the coal station said impatiently. It was incredibly busy right now; everyone was buying coal to prepare for winter.
"80 jin of honeycomb briquettes, need to deliver," Ma Hua said, immediately offering the fat man a cigarette. He didn't offer too many, one was enough; giving too much would make people think he was foolish.
The fat man took Ma Hua's glasses, his tone becoming more amiable. "You're a sensible kid," he said. "Okay, pay here. Old Liu, someone needs coal delivered."
Following the fat man's words, a man who looked honest and simple, with slightly tanned hands and a handkerchief around his neck, walked up to Ma Hua and asked the fat man, "Comrade, where are you taking him?"
Ma Hua generously offered the man another cigarette: "Comrade, could you please deliver this to No. 95 Nanluoguxiang? My home is in the innermost courtyard."
“Okay, no problem, I’ll definitely pick the best for you, just watch,” the man said as he took the cigarette from Ma Hua, glanced at it, and immediately said, “Daqianmen cigarettes, I can’t bear to smoke these myself.”
After finishing everything, Ma Hua rode his bicycle towards the courtyard house. Just as he reached the gate, he saw several men with laborious work skills riding bicycles with carts loaded with tables and chairs. It turned out the furniture the system had delivered for him had arrived. {"Wobo" is an old Beijing expression meaning someone who does manual labor.}
"Why don't we move them inside?" Ma Hua asked, puzzled, and then walked towards the courtyard.
Just then, Yan Bugui saw Ma Hua chatting with a man in work clothes. Yan Bugui noticed a fleeting look of embarrassment on Ma Hua's face. Why was Ma Hua back so early? He was just about to ask where he bought the furniture and if it was cheap. Why did he buy so much?
The man in work clothes immediately ignored Yan Bugui upon seeing Ma Hua; the man was just too annoying. "Master Ma, our furniture has arrived. Where do you live? I'll have someone move it in for you."
"You're too kind. This way," Ma Hua ignored Yan Bugui. This system was really amazing. After checking, he realized that he had actually cooked for the furniture factory director a few times.
"Of course, of course." He then called over the porters outside to move the furniture into the MCA house.
Ma Hua had just seen the furniture delivery guy off and hadn't even had a chance to rest when the supply and marketing cooperative people arrived. After delivering to the supply and marketing cooperative, the coal station people came. Good heavens, what a hassle!
The older women in the courtyard also gathered in small groups, watching the young man come and go, and couldn't help but sigh, "What's this kid like? His family must be quite wealthy. I see all these things are new. And then I saw Ma Hua riding a new bike. This young man is quite handsome. Is he married? Where does he work? He even has a niece who isn't married yet."
Those in the know immediately started gossiping. This was the head chef of the sixth canteen at the steel rolling mill—yes, the same place where our colleague "Silly Zhu" used to work. Apparently, this guy was Silly Zhu's apprentice, and later… oh oh oh oh oh! After hearing this, the aunties looked at Ma Hua differently. Pah! They were mistaken; their niece had been dead for over ten years. That's why they were just standing there watching.
The reason I didn't come over is that, not only did you offend Sha Zhu in this courtyard, but you also offended the Jia family, the Yi family, and the old lady's family. Good heavens, you've offended everyone you shouldn't have. You're really something.
Who would dare go over and chat with you, or try to build a relationship? Everyone in the compound knows that Sha Zhu and his gang are petty and narrow-minded; they're all waiting to see what happens.
Ma Hua slumped into a chair, looking at the cramped room, and sighed. Finally, she had her own room. Now all she was missing was bedding and clothes.
Ma Hua tapped on the furniture the system had given him. It was alright, just ordinary poplar wood. If it had been made of rosewood, he wouldn't be able to survive. He was actually being a bit too extravagant right now.
There's no way around it. Unless you buy some old ones yourself, forget it. Don't be fooled by the fact that antiques are valuable. They're decades away. They're fine for collecting, but if you actually buy them and use them yourself, they'll get so dirty. They've been around for hundreds of years and have been used by so many people.
MCA, in particular, saw that some people had even filled a room with antiques for their own use. What's wrong with you? Do you think your room isn't yin enough?
Ma Hua sat at home for a while, glanced around, and then prepared to go home. She'd come back to stay tomorrow after her mother made her a comfortable bed.
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