Although the dirt road was difficult to walk on, the journey was not far. The mother and her two daughters arrived at the main street of the commune in about half an hour. The large supply and marketing cooperative with eight rooms in a row was much bigger than the one in their brigade.
This was the first time for the two little sisters from the Han family to come to the commune, and they were extremely envious of the shabby supply and marketing cooperative and the grain and oil station. The two of them worked together to carry the basket of eggs that their mother had conjured up through magic, and followed her into the gate of the supply and marketing cooperative.
"Comrade, how do we exchange eggs?"
A middle-aged man at the food counter looked up when he heard the voice and said, "One catty can be exchanged for three catties of salt or half a catty of lard. We have no meat today, so we can't exchange it."
In this small place, the supply of meat is scarce and basically out of stock. The most common thing people exchanged for eggs was salt. A family could only feed a few chickens, so they had to exchange the salt for daily necessities such as baskets, kang mats, and wooden barrels.
"Can I exchange it for industrial coupons and money?"
The man looked at her as if she were a fool. I thought to myself: To exchange industrial coupons and money, you don't go to the black market, or secretly go door to door to ask, but come to this supply and marketing cooperative. Are you stupid?
"……no."
This guy not only has a dark face, but also a harsh tone. Gu Yan was so angry that his liver ached. Damn it, all my stuff is time-honored and can’t be taken out, otherwise I would still be missing these little things of yours. If you don't want to change it, then don't change it. What's the big deal?
She got so angry that she ran out of the supply and marketing cooperative. The two children followed closely behind. The two girls had a lot of delicious food today, and their mouths were still filled with the sweet smell of eggs. They were not hungry or greedy, and just followed their mother to work.
Standing on this dusty street, she couldn't help feeling a little discouraged. What she remembered was that she tried to exchange eggs for other things, but the other party didn’t have what she wanted. What should she do now? Holding the bag in her hand, she was really worried.
The two children have developed the habit since childhood of judging people's expressions. At this moment, she had a stern face and seemed unhappy. The two of them stood behind her in silence, trying to reduce their presence as much as possible.
The sky was still gloomy, but the rain had stopped and there were more and more people on the road. A middle-aged woman came out of the supply and marketing cooperative, glanced at them secretly, walked several meters away and then turned back. He looked around and approached her quietly.
"Would you like to exchange the child's old clothes?" Seeing that she was stunned and silent, the woman looked at the two thinly dressed children behind her and muttered softly, "Forget it. In fact, they are all good things. Our eldest uncle is a leader in a big city, and my husband went to get them back last year. It's a pity that there is no such young child at home, otherwise I would not be willing to exchange them."
"Change." Quickly holding the woman's hand, she smiled and brought her mind back to her daydreaming state. "Replace all the old clothes and quilts."
There are always people selling second-hand clothes at every market, which are actually second-hand goods or even those whose number of shares have not been determined. She was calculating how long it would take for the next market trip, but unexpectedly, she got a pillow just because she felt sleepy.
"Then let's go."
Barter or rural fairs are not considered as speculation, so the men did not dodge and followed the woman into the alley.
I followed her into a courtyard with two entrances, carefully avoiding the puddles on the ground, and walked around the flower wall into the innermost house.
"Sit down, big sister, would you like some water? I'll pour you some." People nowadays are quite welcoming, and the public security is quite good without the floating population. People did not have the defenses and alienation of later generations.
"No, I don't drink water."
"Then wait here, I'll get you something." The woman said and walked out of the house. She had just secretly checked these eggs. Each one was quite fresh, unlike the last time she went to the market, when the eggs she brought back were all stale and some were rotten.
Gu Yan sat on the edge of the kang with her bulging belly, and the two children sat obediently on the small stools on the ground. The mother and her two children looked around but behaved very well and didn't move. In less than three minutes, the woman returned again, followed by another woman of the same age. Both of them were holding a bundle in their hands.
"This is our neighbor. She has some stuff for little dolls. Would you like to exchange it?"
Gu Yan nodded. The woman noticed the bag in her hand and pulled her closer to ask, "How many months have you been here? Are you going to give birth soon?"
"Yeah, almost there."
"Oh, your belly is quite big, are you having twins?"
Hearing this, the adults all turned their attention to the sisters lying on the ground. Gu Yan smiled and shook his head: "I don't know, maybe."
"It's not easy to raise two children at once, especially these days. The harvest was poor last year, and this year is worse than last year. We don't get much after paying the public grain. Which brigade are you from? Is the harvest similar to that of the commune?"
"The commune of Kono Brigade is only a few miles long, and the harvests are almost the same."
"Oh!" Everyone in the village knew about it, and women even sighed, "It's lost half of its weight. Life is so hard."
"Yes, that's why I thought of changing some clothes in preparation. The child was only wearing a single layer of clothing, and he turned blue from the cold at night."
Returning to the main topic, the two women put away the pity on their faces, opened the bags and took out the things. The first ones were two thin jackets, which were pale in color and felt a bit cottony when touched. Okay, just the cuffs are patched, everything else is fine, it’s not a bad dress.
"It's just right for one person, what do you think?"
"Okay." She had plenty of supplies, and exchanging them with others was considered a disguised form of help, so she didn't bargain at all. "How do you think we can change it?"
"I estimate that your eggs weigh 100 kilograms, which is less than three yuan. I will give you these two sets of old clothes, is that okay?"
After some calculation in my mind, I realized that this sister-in-law is a real person. She nodded. "Anything else? I have two pairs of pillowcases and a bed sheet."
As she spoke, she took out the things in the bag. The old-fashioned hat that was despised by later generations was collected together with the supplies by her. The delicate workmanship and exquisite materials used in it were definitely a fine item in that era.
"Oh, this pillowcase is really nice, the colors and patterns are so lively." The woman who came in later praised it, "My nephew is getting married, and he has a stable job. I was wondering what to buy as a gift. This is really a pillow that was sent to me when I was sleepy. I want both the pillowcase and the bed sheet."
Those who live in this courtyard all have stable jobs in the commune, otherwise they wouldn't have such great abilities. Gu Yan accidentally came across the right place.
"I have a little quilt for a child, and a piece of cotton cloth inside, and some little clothes. Look..."
Everything was old. The quilt was patched, but the neatly sewn part at the head was torn into pieces. When I touched it, I found the cotton was hardened. The wrapping cloth and clothes were also old and white, and the best cotton cloth nowadays was only 25 count. Plus, pure cotton is not wear-resistant, making it look even more sparse. She probably felt embarrassed to exchange such bright things for other people's things, and smiled awkwardly before she finished speaking.
"Or, I'll give you another one of my old clothes."
Upon hearing this, Gu Yan pretended to hesitate for a moment and then nodded. The other party didn't ask her where these things came from, so she saved herself the trouble of explaining. She had plenty of these things in her space, but she didn't dare to take them out in her current situation. I had no choice but to replace it with the old one.
After wrapping the old things into a big bag, she stood up and said with a smile: "Don't tell anyone about what happened today, especially the pillowcases and sheets."
Her bed sheets are made of 40-count long-staple cotton, which is beyond the reach of today's craftsmanship. However, she is not a professional, she just thinks it is good, but she probably can't explain exactly what is good about it.
The two women had experience and nodded when they heard it. "Don't worry, I promise I won't tell. If anyone asks, just say that the eggs were exchanged."
The two little girls each grabbed a corner and left the house carrying the big bag. When Gu Yan was about to go out, he suddenly remembered the newspaper and had to turn around again.
"By the way, sister-in-law, do you know where I can get some newspapers?"
"Paste the wall?"
"Um."
The woman hesitated for a moment, her eyes flashing with reluctance. "Big sister, can you get some wool?"
I'm talking about newspapers, what are you doing? After a moment, the female man Gu Yan understood and said, "Sure, how much do you want?"
"Can you really get it?"
"Really, what color do you want?"
"Red. If you can get me two pounds, I'll give you two stacks of newspapers for free."
Gu Yan nodded, indicating that it was okay. The woman asked nervously and expectantly: "When can we get it? And what do you want? Money, tickets, or..."
It would be best if you could exchange your old clothes. Her family has three relatives with stable jobs, and they are all well-off. I often give them some old clothes. There is no shortage of this stuff.
"Old clothes will do."
"Hey." The woman smiled happily, and did not bother to ask whether the promise was true or not. She happily handed her a large stack of old newspapers and gave each of the two children a piece of fruit candy.
Although the two little guys were very greedy, they didn't take it without her permission. Facing the children's eager gaze, she smiled and let them take it.
After the three of them left, the woman who bought the sheets whispered to the other party: "This stuff seems to be from the north. How can we get northern stuff here?"
"Who knows? We are a million miles away from the north. This woman is not simple."
"Yes. But why does she want old things instead of money or tickets?"
"Who knows... What a weird guy."
Ignore outsiders' speculation. As soon as Gu Yan and the others left the commune, raindrops began to fall from the sky again. The people who were getting their meals ran back holding their rice bowls. Smelling the hot rice, the two children swallowed subconsciously.
The taste of corn mixed with sorghum, the pure food actually tastes really like pig feed in later times. But for those who are starving every day, this thing is quite delicious.
"Hungry?"
"No. Mom, do we need to change to something else?"
"...Forget it, let's talk about it next time. ...Why did you two cover your straw hats on your bags?" After asking, he wished he could swallow his words back. Needless to say, it was raining a little and the child was afraid that the things in the bag would get wet.
"I'm afraid of getting wet."
"Hurry up and go. Don't wait for Mom. Go hide under that old elm tree."
The two children hesitated for a moment, and she took a step forward, "Mom is following."
The two girls nodded and ran away quickly with their short legs. The old elm tree has thick branches and dense leaves, so this little rain won't leak through at all. There are treasures in the bag, they can't get wet.
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