The next morning, just after four o'clock and at daybreak, Mr. Wang couldn't wait to take his son and Zhang Guoqing and his son to the mountain behind.
According to Lin Quan, the mountain wasn't dangerous at all. His uncle and his master often spent the night there in the early years, and even his family's children often went hunting there.
After hearing what he said, Zhou Jiao finally felt relieved.
Lin Quan went to work in the production team, and Aunt Lin also went to work in the village. What would happen if she was the only one left in the Lin family? The wild ginseng purchased by the two families had been hidden in a secret room by Lin Quan long ago.
Seeing this, Zhou Jiao picked up her backpack and set off behind Aunt Lin. She also planned to take a walk around the area to see where she could buy some local specialties.
The town wasn't far from the Lin family, and the two of them walked for half an hour. To Zhou Jiao's dismay, the entire town had only one main street, surrounded by mud and thatched houses. For such a large town, there was only a small post office, a supply and marketing cooperative, and not even a restaurant.
Aunt Lin pointed to the turning ahead and said, "I work at the sewing club on the street ahead. Remember to come find me at noon. We'll eat in the village cafeteria."
Zhou Jiao shook her head. "Auntie, don't wait for me. I'm going to take a walk around the area and eat wherever is convenient for me."
Aunt Lin laughed heartily, "Silly girl. There's nothing to buy these days. You need food coupons to buy cakes at the supply and marketing cooperative. Listen to me and come over later."
Zhou Jiao looked around speechlessly and asked in a low voice, "Why aren't there many people here?"
Aunt Lin suddenly realized, "Look at my brain. We are very close to the county town ahead. We usually go to the county town for shopping and other things. Do you want to go shopping in the county town? There will be horse-drawn carriages and ox-drawn carts passing by here every now and then. You can take a ride."
Zhou Jiao nodded quickly.
"I'll stay with you for a while. A car will pass by soon. When we get to the county town, there's a parking lot outside the city gate. There are many ox carts there. Ask if anyone is going back to our commune and take their car."
Zhou Jiao looked around the street suspiciously. "Auntie, how long is the walk from here to the county town?"
"A little over an hour. Don't walk, the road is all dirt. Our fellow villagers are warm-hearted. If you say you want to go back to the commune, they will take you back."
After hearing about it for an hour or so, Zhou Jiao stopped paying attention to the oxcart issue. She then asked, "Are there any villages along this road? Isn't it all wasteland?"
"No, they're all villages. Every few miles there's a village. My mother's home is not far ahead. It's a pity I have to go to work, otherwise I would accompany you to the county town."
Zhou Jiao understood what was going on and quickly refused: "You're going to be late. Go to work first. I won't wait for the oxcart. I can walk while I wait. An hour or so won't be long."
Aunt Lin thought about it and realized there were people living along the way. There was no danger at all. She smiled and nodded, "That's fine. Remember to call for help if you encounter any problems. Get on the ox cart if you see one."
After saying goodbye to her, Zhou Jiao hurried forward. She wondered if she really needed to call for help if something happened. But Aunt Lin really trusted herself.
She touched her face as she walked, wondering if she was ugly and didn't meet the other person's aesthetic standards. You know, every time she wandered around like this, people around her would try to dissuade her.
As the narcissistic Zhou Jiao walked along, she actually found this place quite nice. At least there weren't any scoundrels around, and people were working in the fields everywhere. The oxcarts passing by would subconsciously slow down, and the drivers would glance at her, only speeding up when she didn't shout at them.
After walking for half an hour, another ox cart passed by. This time, there was an old lady on it who shouted and asked her if she was going to the county town. When she nodded, she immediately asked someone to stop and let her get on the cart.
Zhou Jiao laughed heartily. Such enthusiasm!
Seeing the old lady and a few others making room for her to get on the bus, she didn't refuse and quickly climbed in, "Thank you, auntie."
"Girl, why don't you wait by the roadside? Your shoes will wear out if you walk."
"Girl, where are you from?"
"No need to ask, I think this girl is from the city. Is she a daughter? I can tell at a glance that this child went to the countryside to play before school started and came home."
"Big sister, you're right. Girl, move closer, or you might get thrown to the ground."
Unable to refuse the warm invitation, Zhou Jiao moved closer. She listened as the enthusiastic women began chatting about whose daughter was getting married at the end of the year, how much they should contribute, and when they would go to help make new quilts. As they talked, they even started talking about what dowries they had brought when they got married.
When they arrived at the county town gate, Zhou Jiao got off the car with them in a daze. If the aunties and grandmas had not been shopping separately, she would have really wanted to continue listening to the gossip.
Compared to the dirty talk of the old ladies in some villages, these enthusiastic ladies told funny stories that made people laugh uncontrollably.
Compared to my hometown, this county town seemed a bit smaller, but it had all the necessary facilities. The central health center was especially large, with a number of blue brick and tile buildings.
Zhou Jiao wandered aimlessly until she came across a few young girls carrying bamboo baskets and chatting while selling embroidery. On a whim, she followed them.
In front of the purchasing station, there was a line of people selling local specialties and straw sandals. Zhou Jiao listened to the prices and the sound of abacus coming from inside and shook her head regretfully. It was a pity that she couldn't set up a stall opposite!
"Sister, they really don't accept embroidery. What do you say?"
"That's right. If I had known not to listen to my second sister, we might as well have brought the dry goods from home here to sell."
"Okay, don't blame Xiao Zhu. It's not bad to keep it as a dowry for you."
"You silly girl, you have no shame, you just say whatever you want."
"Stop arguing. What should we do next? I have to go to work this afternoon. Come up with a solution quickly."
"We don't have a car to go back now, how about we pool our money and buy noodles?"
"I don't have any money."
"Second sister, you are the most stingy!"
Zhou Jiao listened to their conversation and laughed heartily. Seeing them leave, she followed them for a while and found that the girls had left the city gate, so she hurried forward to greet them.
"Little sister, are you selling embroidery? Can you show me some?"
One of the girls glared at her and said, "Who calls you little sister? You're small, but you're quite courageous. You're obviously younger than us, yet you still call us little sister..."
A girl beside her quickly pulled her back and smiled apologetically at Zhou Jiao, "My second sister has a bit of a bad temper, please don't be offended."
Zhou Jiao looked at the girl just now and laughed happily.
Isn't that how her son usually talks?
Seeing that they misunderstood, she smiled and said, "My son is five years old. Are you selling embroidery? Can you let me see it first? If it's suitable, I'll take it."
Several girls were so shocked by her words "My son is already five years old" that they opened their mouths and seemed not to hear what Zhou Jiao said next.
Zhou Jiao pointed helplessly at the bamboo baskets they were carrying, "Aren't you selling them?"
The one who had spoken first immediately woke up, put down the bamboo basket, took out a pillowcase from it, unfolded it for Zhou Jiao to see, and said hurriedly: "This cloth is woven by us sisters. We heard that some girls in the city can't embroider pillow tops, and someone sold it back to the village. We thought it was true, but it turned out to be a scam."
Zhou Jiao understood that the girls had misunderstood. This was definitely a private transaction, not a purchase station. She didn't intend to explain it to them. Speculation at this time was a serious mistake; a single mistake could ruin the girls' reputations.
"How much are you planning to sell it for?"
"ah……"
Unexpectedly, when Zhou Jiao opened her mouth, the girls were dumbfounded. They really didn't know how much they could sell it for. They just heard the villagers say that it could be sold, and they thought that if they went to the purchasing station, people would give them a price.
Zhou Jiao slapped her forehead speechlessly. Considering that her ultimate goal wasn't this, she could only ask, "Besides these embroidery pieces, do you sell the homespun fabric you weave?"
"Sell it! But you have to go back with us."
Zhou Jiao nodded. Isn't that enough? Once they get to their village, they can find out what local specialties they have by asking the aunties and grandmas in their hometown.
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