Chapter 58: Gathering Information in the County (Sending a Telegram to Li Zhan)
The old woman looked up at Xia Juanjuan in some surprise.
In fact, hospitals in the city have already introduced Western medicine and Western drugs, but in the vast rural areas, most people still rely on barefoot doctors and traditional Chinese medicine to treat diseases.
The old woman was also from a wealthy family of that era. Although she didn't really believe in these Western things, she had seen them before.
Xia Juanjuan didn't wait for the old woman to say anything. She just nodded at her and left.
She was not afraid that the old woman would report her. After all, all her things were in the space, and even if someone came to search, they would not find anything.
Moreover, after these two encounters with the old woman, she still believed in her own judgment. Even if she took a step back, she was afraid that the old woman and that Wan'er sister would be in a worse situation, and reporting her would only hurt herself more!
Xia Juanjuan didn't take this matter to heart anymore.
The next morning, Xia Juanjuan rushed to the town with the letter of introduction issued by the commune, and Director Zheng was indeed waiting for her.
In addition to the two of them, there were three other young men from other state-owned stores in the town, all of whom went to the county to transport goods.
The goods sold in the supply and marketing cooperative were all mixed, so if there were some heavy items, they would just ask these young men to help carry them. After all, they all belonged to the same state-owned department store, so the three young men had nothing to say.
Along the way, I saw Xia Juanjuan blushing and my heart was beating fast.
Director Zheng saw that they were attracted by Xia Juanjuan's beauty, and couldn't help but warned them with a smile: "Hey! Don't blame me for not reminding you, you young boys are not allowed to have any bad thoughts! Juanjuan is a soldier, and she can knock down the three of you!"
The three boys blushed, and one of them said embarrassedly, "Oh, Mrs. Zheng! Don't be so blunt! Aren't we awake yet?!"
Apart from anything else, although Xia Juanjuan was from the countryside, she had red lips, white teeth, and skin as white as cream, more tender than a porcelain doll. They didn't even dare to think about it!
However, because of the companionship of the attractive beauty Xia Juanjuan, the three young men worked much harder than usual when helping the supply and marketing cooperative move goods!
This made Director Zheng smile happily, and he found another reason to recommend Xia Juanjuan as a salesperson!
Xia Juanjuan had no intention of being a salesperson in town. However, she agreed to do the accounting for Director Zheng, so she did her best.
The items in the supply and marketing cooperative were all kinds of things, ranging from needles and thread, grain, candy to coal stoves, enamel washbasins, bicycles, etc. Every time Director Zheng had to sort out the accounts, he would spend a long time and always made mistakes.
This time, Xia Juanjuan followed along, and the calculations were very clear and beautiful. The task that was supposed to be completed in the second half of the afternoon was finished before noon!
Director Zheng was delighted and smiled warmly, "Juanjuan, come on! I'll treat you to a bowl of noodles!"
Xia Juanjuan didn't come to the county town just to eat noodles, so she smiled and said, "Director, I'm in a hurry to go to the military contact point to inquire about the situation. You guys go eat! I'll come over to meet you at three or four in the afternoon. Is that okay with you?"
Director Zheng and the three young men finished their work so early, and they all wanted to take the opportunity to wander around the county town. Although they felt sorry that Xia Juanjuan couldn't join them, she was anxious to know that her man's affairs were serious matters, so they could only agree and separate.
Xia Juanjuan actually went to the army to contact them, mainly because she was afraid that if she was found to have lied, it would be difficult for her to get a letter of introduction in the future.
The affairs of the army are confidential, and naturally the army's contact points are unknown. Xia Juanjuan had guessed this in advance.
A look of disappointment appeared on her face, and she was about to leave.
The contact person probably couldn't bear it any longer, so he suddenly stopped her and said, "Hey! Wait a minute."
Xia Juanjuan turned around and looked at the clerk in astonishment. The clerk was a little afraid to look at Xia Juanjuan's bright and beautiful face. He coughed twice and looked away and said, "We provide telegraph services to military families here. It's half the price of outside. Do you want to send a telegram to your man?"
Xia Juanjuan was about to refuse, but when she thought that it didn't fit with the image she had created of herself as someone anxiously waiting for her man to come home for the New Year, she had no choice but to agree.
But what should she post? Strictly speaking, she and Li Zhan had only been together for a little over half a day, and they were not familiar with each other at all...
After racking my brains for a long time, I could only write dryly, "The three little guys are all good, don't worry about them."
Even punctuation marks are omitted, not because of cost, but mainly to fit in with the situation of the time.
In the 1970s, the normal price for sending a telegram was four cents per word, and the contact point had a discount to two cents, so eleven words cost twenty-two cents.
Xia Juanjuan paid the money, and as soon as she walked out the door, her disappointed and sad expression changed to a very happy mood.
The county town is not big, but there are two state-owned factories, a lumber mill and a textile mill. Many workers who have moved from other places live in rows of family buildings, forming a living area that is much more prosperous than the town.
However, to say it is prosperous means that there are a few more state-owned stores and a wider variety of things, but the quantity of supplies is still insufficient, and you still need various tickets to buy them.
Moreover, this place is different from the villages in the town. People live off the mountains. If food and firewood are not enough, they can go to the mountains to dig up wild vegetables and pick up firewood. But here, people can only buy them in stores.
Therefore, there are long queues outside every store. Many people queue for a whole day, but end up going home empty-handed.
After observing for a long time, Xia Juanjuan found a secluded place to put on makeup. Then she wrapped a green scarf on her head, dressed like a village girl, and carried a bamboo basket in her hand. She went to the remote alleys to look for it. Sure enough, she found a place similar to the black market in a short while.
Many housewives were wandering around with baskets on their shoulders. When they saw Xia Juanjuan wearing a dress with floral buttons and a headscarf, dressed like a farmer, they immediately gathered around her.
The black market in the county town is different from that in the town, as it is mainly populated by middlemen.
People dressed like Xia Juanjuan usually happened to have something to do and came to the county town with a letter of introduction, and secretly sold some things. Their prices were much more affordable than those of second-hand vendors, so they were very popular among these housewives.
"Hey, big sister, do you have eggs, duck eggs, old hens, wild mushrooms, etc. for sale?"
Xia Juanjuan was not reserved. She nodded and lifted the cloth on the bamboo basket to show them that the fifty eggs, five pounds of wild mushrooms, and the bamboo shoots that were not sold in the town yesterday were all sold out in a short while.
The prices are also a few cents more expensive than in town.
However, Xia Juanjuan came to the county town specifically not to do these small business!
The more people you come into contact with, the greater the risk, and the money you earn is just a small amount, and you may not even be able to earn back your hard work!
She did this mainly to get close to him and get information.
Seeing that her prices were fair and her products were fresh and of good quality, people were eager to chat with her.
"Sister, I heard that the families of workers in the county town all eat in the factory cafeteria. Why do you have to go out and buy things by yourselves?"