"Bei Nan, what do you want? Why do you never buy white rice or white flour?" Mao Tou asked curiously.
Bei Nan sighed deeply. Why didn't she want to buy it? She really wanted to buy it for Grandma and Nan Nan, and of course, for her mom too. But if she bought it, she would be found out, and her dad would definitely break her legs.
Ye Chenming knew about Bei Nan's family's circumstances. As long as Bei Nan wasn't married, she could live and eat at their home. Of course, she would still have to do farm work. Work points were equivalent to grain, and grain was the lifeblood of ordinary people.
"Hey kid, can you get me some malted milk powder? I'll give it to my milk." After weighing the options for a while, Bei Nan's filial piety prevailed.
"Alright, twenty catties of white rice, one catty of pork, and one can of malted milk powder." Maotou ran inside and came out with the things in a short while.
The two quickly left the black market, wanting to avoid such places as much as possible.
In summer, clothes are thin, so malted milk powder can't be hidden. If Dad sees it, I'm sure I'll get a beating.
Ye Chenming suggested that everyone eat together at school, and that Nan Nan bring the malted milk powder back with them.
Bei Nan nodded. There were many people and opinions at the educated youth settlement, so it was better to cook the rice and pork at the school. Any extras were stored in the school office. For this purpose, Bei Nan even asked Xin Nan to make a small box for the two siblings out of scrap wood.
Ye Chen'er was mending clothes when she heard Ye Chenming's voice and quickly ran out: "Brother, how is it?"
Ye Chenming nodded: "Go to the Yan family first and call Nannan out. We'll wait for you at school."
Ye Chen'er smiled and hurriedly ran towards the Yan family's direction: "Nan Nan, Nan Nan, come out quickly, it's urgent."
Hearing the voice, Yan Xiaonan came out. Whenever Ye Chen'er called her like that, it meant she wanted to come eat, so she brought a jar of pickled vegetables and a few steamed buns. The two smiled at each other and ran towards the school.
Bei Nan had already started a fire and cooked rice, and even cut the meat, just waiting for Ye Chen'er to cook it. Ye Chen'er's braised pork was delicious, with a mellow and sweet flavor, tender but not mushy, leaving a lingering fragrance in the mouth, making people want more.
The four of them finished a pound of braised pork, a pound of white rice, six steamed buns, and half a jar of pickled vegetables. Burping with satisfaction, they began to clean up the mess, only sitting down after all traces had been removed.
Ye Chenming and Bei Nan took out their money at the same time. Ye Chenming was a little faster and handed Bei Nan twenty yuan. Bei Nan was stunned. Where did he get the money?
"They're selling cotton." Ye Chenming recounted what happened, and Bei Nan gave him a thumbs up. It was truly impressive that they could even catch up with this kind of business.
At the same time, he divided the thirty-five yuan in his hand in two and handed it to Ye Chenming, and also took out the malted milk powder and handed it to Yan Xiaonan.
"Nan Nan, I've earned some money and I want to buy more things to take home, but you know Dad's temper, so I don't dare. You can give this to Grandma."
Yan Xiaonan nodded. It seemed that Bei Nan would choose to go into business in the future, which was a good sign. However, it was still too dangerous at the moment. She should talk to her grandmother when she got home. In these extraordinary times, the most important thing was to dissuade Bei Nan from this idea.
"Nan Nan, I really miss your beggar's chicken. When are we going to go again?" Ye Chen'er's little belly was still sticking out, and she was already thinking about the next meal.
Ye Chenming looked at Yan Xiaonan with bright, expectant eyes, making it impossible for anyone to refuse.
Bei Nan also wholeheartedly agreed: "Nan Nan, Ming Yuan has been nagging about this many times, and Ming Hua has also come to you, right?"
That's true. Whenever Ma Minghua sees her, she has to go up the mountain to eat beggar's chicken. Why don't we pick a day to go together?
Ye Chenming quickly stood up: "Bei Nan, let's go trap pheasants and rabbits, trap as many as we can, so we can eat our fill."
Watching the two figures hurrying away, Yan Xiaonan felt inexplicably excited. An autumn outing and picnic sounded so appealing.
Ye Chen'er was already counting the number of people on her fingers and figuring out how much rice and eggs to bring. Last time, they had eaten at Nan Nan's place, and this time it was time for her family to return the favor.
Yan Xiaonan admired Ye Chen'er's character of not being greedy for small gains. The poorer a person is, the more their true nature is revealed; the more difficult the situation, the more a person's perseverance and ability are shown. This brother and sister are undoubtedly outstanding.
The malted milk powder was placed in front of Grandma Yan, whose expression was very serious: "Baby, do you know that Bei Nan goes to the black market?"
Yan Xiaonan nodded: "Grandma, I sent Bei Nan to Master Pang's place."
"It's a little better here, Fatty. But Bao, the black market is dangerous. You should have tried to dissuade him," Grandma Yan said worriedly.
"Grandma, do you think Bei Nan will listen? But I told him to find a place to run away first, otherwise he'd rather not do it." Yan Xiaonan knew the stubbornness and self-centeredness of this kind of chuunibyou teenager. She could only guide him, not force him, otherwise the effect would be counterproductive.
"That's true, Bei Nan is the most disobedient child. Luckily you told him about Master Pang's state-run mealtimes, otherwise I would have been really worried." Grandma Yan's wrinkles appeared.
"Grandma, why don't you play the victim in front of Bei Nan and make him more careful in the future?" Yan Xiaonan suggested.
"Could that self-inflicted injury ruse deter Bei Nan from going to the black market?" Grandma Yan's hope was restored.
Yan Xiaonan shook her head. It's difficult! She's already tasted the sweetness of success; how could she give up so easily?
Bei Nan was anxious in the main room. Nan Nan and Grandma had been inside for half a day, but there was still no sound. However, she didn't dare to eavesdrop. Finally, when Yan Xiao Nan came out, she saw that her eyes were red and her heart sank.
"Grandma wants you to come in," Yan Xiaonan said briefly.
Bei Nan took three steps at a time and finally lifted the curtain to go inside. She saw her grandmother kneeling on the kang (a heated brick bed), her hands clasped together, muttering something. She listened carefully and realized that her grandmother was saying, "Old man, you must protect Bei Nan. You must not have any accidents, otherwise I will not be able to face my ancestors. If I cannot face them, I might as well die."
Bei Nan was deeply moved and quickly went to help Grandma Yan up: "Grandma, I won't go to the black market anymore. I'll just hunt some pheasants and rabbits and send them to Master Pang, okay?"
Grandma Yan was secretly delighted; her sweetheart's self-inflicted injury ploy had actually worked: "Bei Nan, are you short of money?"
"Grandma, I'm your youngest son. I've grown up now, and I'm going to take care of you, my parents, and Nan Nan when you're old." Bei Nan said what was on his mind.
Grandma Yan stroked Bei Nan's head and said, "Bei Nan, I know you are filial, but if something happens to you, the family will not be able to eat or sleep. Listen to me, study hard, and you will have your day to do business."
"Grandma, are you telling the truth? How much longer do you think we have to wait?" Grandma is the pillar of our family, and her word is law.
Grandma Yan started counting on her fingers. Nan Nan is nine years old this year. She said that she can leave here when she turns eighteen, which is nine years away.
"Bei Nan, I don't know how long it will take, but I'm getting old. Can you give me nine years to keep me company?"
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