Upon arriving at the coal yard, Qi Chang told Xu Keke to get off first.
The gate to the coal yard was already open, and all sorts of tricycles and handcarts, loaded with coal, were coming out. They were weighed at the gate and then hauled away.
There were several cars parked across the street, and people were squatting and smoking nearby.
Seeing Xu Keke staring at them, Qi Chang misunderstood and said to her, "We didn't buy that much, so we don't need them. We can take it all back in one go."
"Are they helping to haul coal here?" Xu Keke was somewhat surprised, because Meng Dong did not recall this scene.
When Chen Yurong was alive, she would always come with the Gao family father and son to buy coal. After Chen Yurong passed away, Meng Dong became somewhat introverted and a bit strong-willed. More often than not, she would lead her younger sister, pulling a small cart, to come. After buying the coal, her sister would watch over it while she carried it home, trip after trip.
"How come I've never seen them before?"
Seemingly surprised by her question, Qi Chang, who was looking around, turned to look at her and thought for a moment, "You used to come early, right? These people charge four yuan for a trip. Who would use them if they came early in the morning to grab coal? That's why these people come late."
Thinking back to Meng Dong's memory that there would be major upheavals in this society every two years, Xu Keke thought that this job would probably only happen in the next year or two.
There was a queue of about twenty or thirty people outside the coal yard where tickets were issued. The process was very slow, with only one person moving every few minutes. Qi Chang told her to go ahead and join the queue, while he pulled the cart towards the coal yard.
Xu Keke watched from afar, wondering what Qi Chang said to the gatekeeper, who then let him in. The people in line had been waiting for ages, and seeing Qi Chang go in without a ticket, they figured he must have used connections.
Everyone knew they were working together. Qi Chang was inside, and the staff here didn't dare offend him. Xu Keke looked quite young, and many people in line scrutinized her, as if trying to figure out her identity and why they had received special privileges.
Fortunately, Xu Keke was thick-skinned and pretended to be calm, looking at the window in front of her and pretending not to see it.
"What are you doing here?" A sudden shout from the side startled Xu Keke.
She turned her head and, without realizing it, found Meng Zikang standing next to her.
"What are you doing here?" Seeing that Xu Keke ignored him, Meng Zikang asked again. This time, his tone was not only stern but also a little impatient.
"What can we do? Queue up to buy coal." Xu Keke said irritably.
Meng Zikang looked around, waving his own coal ration book in his hand, making no attempt to hide the disdain in his eyes. "Perfect, my name is on your coal ration book, buy my coal along with it."
As expected of someone with an accounting background, Meng Zikang added, "Manager Lin deducted twenty from my salary and gave it to you. Use that money to buy it."
Without waiting for Xu Keke's agreement, he left those words and walked straight outside the shed, strolling across the street.
There was a woman talking to some men soliciting fares. She stopped when she saw Meng Zikang approach. As they talked, the woman kept glancing at Xu Keke in their direction.
The people in line didn't understand the relationship between the two. Their gazes towards Xu Keke now held a hint of curiosity and inquiry.
Xu Keke didn't even change her posture; she just stood obediently in the line, letting these people look her over.
For some reason, the invoice-issuing staff just wouldn't move quickly. Xu Keke stood there for ages before finally taking two steps forward. Looking at the sky, Xu Keke started to get anxious; it would probably be lunchtime soon.
The people queuing around her had obviously thought of the same thing. The father and son in front of her were discussing how they would take a break from the coal shop and go home for dinner.
"Big sister," Qi Chang said, walking empty-handed from the coal yard to Xu Keke, "you haven't been put in line yet!"
Xu Keke thought he was asking her why. She figured, of course she didn't get a spot; how would she know why?
Fortunately, Qi Chang didn't expect her to answer. He took the coal stub from her hand and said, "Alright, let's stop queuing and go."
Qi Chang was very casual, and Xu Keke didn't ask him anything. She followed him and was about to leave.
Seeing that they were about to leave, the father in front of Xu Keke called out to Qi Chang and asked politely, "Young man, do you know why the invoicing is taking so long today? Do we have to wait until the afternoon?"
He took out a cigarette from his pocket and was about to offer it to Qi Chang, but Qi Chang waved his hand to stop him.
"I just wanted to ask you something. If it's still early, we'll start preparing for dinner."
This man voiced the thoughts of the entire group, who all craned their necks to look at Qi Chang. They clearly regarded him as someone with inside information.
"The new coal just arrived, and they're busy unloading it. It'll be done in a bit. You'd better not leave; they're only working half a day today, and I think they'll be resting this afternoon."
Xu Keke was just worried that Qi Chang would incur public wrath, but she didn't expect that he actually knew.
Hearing this, the people in line perked up. Newly arrived coal—this was a steal! These people, already prepared for the worst coal they might buy, were now looking at Qi Chang with renewed enthusiasm.
Just then, Meng Zikang and the woman walked over.
"Where are you going? Aren't you going to buy anything?" Meng Zikang's words were still very impolite. The woman next to him, judging from her attire, seemed quite wealthy. There was a hint of disdain in her eyes as she looked at Xu Keke.
Qi Chang looked at Xu Keke with a puzzled expression, his meaning clear: what was he doing here?
Xu Keke didn't hold back and said directly to Meng Zikang, "I'm so unlucky to have run into him. He insisted that his name was on the coal certificate and asked me to buy coal for him."
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