While Fang Yuan was packing his things, Zhou Jiahui also opened her suitcase and took out money and tickets.
"Jiahui!"
Zhou He's shouts came from outside.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Jiahui quickly replied, "Coming!"
Turning to Fang Yuan, he asked, "Sister Fang Yuan, you said yesterday you were going to town to buy things today, are you still going?"
Yesterday, they bought kang mats, kang cabinets, and wooden basins in the village.
But other things, such as thermos flasks, needles, thread, and matches, had to be bought from the supply and marketing cooperative in town.
Most importantly, she hadn't eaten much for breakfast, so she needed to buy some food to fill her stomach.
Fang Yuan nodded: "Of course, I'm still missing quite a few things!"
Although the original owner's father treated her fairly well, since Wang Qingqing was also going to the countryside, everyone's things were the same on the surface.
Fang's father could only give her money so that she could buy the items herself when she arrived at the destination.
Besides clothes and blankets, all she brought was a lunchbox and a ceramic jar; she was still missing quite a few other things.
"Let's go then, my brother is waiting for us!" Zhou Jiahui said after closing her suitcase.
“Okay!” Fang Yuan quickly locked his suitcase.
The two returned to the main room, where Liu Chunfang, who was sitting opposite them, came out and asked them:
"Wait a minute, are you going to town to buy something?"
It was said to be a question, but it was actually a statement of affirmation.
She came out specifically because she heard Zhou He's shout and knew that the two of them were going out.
"Hmm, are you going?" Zhou Jiahui, who didn't know anything about Liu Chunfang, asked enthusiastically.
"I won't go. I just wanted to ask if you could bring back some dark-colored needles, thread, and buttons for me," Liu Chunfang said with a smile to Zhou Jiahui.
She noticed Zhou Jiahui on the train.
She's well-dressed and generous, so bringing her a small gift shouldn't be a big deal, right?
Fang Yuan stood to the side without saying a word. She knew what kind of person this woman was, so she ignored her if possible.
Zhou Jiahui nodded nonchalantly: "Needle and thread? Okay, I'll bring them back for you!"
After the two left the house, they followed Zhou He and Luo Jin away from the educated youth settlement.
Of the five people who came this time, apart from the things Liu Chunfang asked them to bring, the other four were going to town to make purchases.
Since they planned to eat together, they naturally needed to go to town to buy some food supplies.
The Red Flag Brigade had over a thousand members, so they had horse-drawn carriages specifically for going to town.
The horse-drawn carriages entered the town at roughly the same times: once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Each trip cost 5 cents, and a round trip cost 10 cents.
When it snows heavily in winter, the trip is changed to once a day because the weather is short.
The driver said he worked even harder than a factory worker, so he gets half of the toll money.
The Red Flag Brigade is neither far nor close to the town; it takes about half an hour to get there by horse-drawn carriage.
It will also pass through a short section of the neighboring Yongsheng Brigade, where the original female lead, Wang Qingqing, cut in line.
"Why aren't there any tractors? I've heard that many places have them."
Zhou Jiahui complained, rubbing her sore buttocks from being jostled around.
They also came by horse-drawn carriage yesterday. This rural area they went to is really too poor.
When the various brigades picked them up yesterday, they all used oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages.
"It's good enough to have a horse-drawn carriage. Some brigades still use oxcarts, which are even slower than ours. It's too cold here in winter; the tractors freeze solid," Luo Jin replied with a smile.
It's not just because it's cold here, but also because it's remote.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have chosen this place.
“You’re right, I’m going to the countryside now, I have to get used to it,” Zhou Jiahui replied with a smile.
"It's okay, we can buy bicycles later," Fang Yuan replied.
She has nearly 600 yuan, which, although she doesn't have a ticket, is more than enough to buy a bicycle.
Zhou He glanced at Fang Yuan thoughtfully, then smiled and said, "That's fine, but I really don't know if they sell it in this town."
“Yes, we can buy bicycles to ride. Brother, do you know where the supply and marketing cooperative is?” Zhou Jiahui asked hurriedly.
If they had a car, she and her older brother could get one and take turns riding it.
This town looks like it has several streets, but I don't know where the supply and marketing cooperative is, or if they have bicycles inside.
"I asked about the location yesterday, come with me!" Zhou He led the group in one direction.
We also saw a state-run restaurant on the way.
“There’s a state-run restaurant here. Shall we eat here before we go back?” Zhou Jiahui said happily.
Seeing that neither Fang Yuan nor Luo Jin objected, Zhou He nodded: "Okay!"
Fang Yuan kept observing the situation in the town so that it would match up with his memories.
This small town looks old, but it's actually quite big, at least half the size of a county town.
Several surrounding brigades rely on this place to exchange goods, and they also have to change vehicles here to go to the county town.
They exist in state-run restaurants, supply and marketing cooperatives, purchasing stations, and the black market.
We walked several hundred meters further before finally seeing the supply and marketing cooperative.
The supply and marketing cooperative has only one floor, but the area is not small.
The group stepped into the supply and marketing cooperative, where rows of counters lined up against the wall from left to right, forming a long U-shape.
Behind the counter, there is a row of display cabinets against the wall.
The display was full of items, indicating that there was no shortage of supplies here.
When Zhou Jiahui came in, she immediately looked around and didn't see any bicycles, but she did see a sewing machine.
Fang Yuan looked around and saw that there were five sales clerks in the store.
They sell cigarettes and alcohol, snacks and food, fabrics, soy sauce, vinegar and groceries, as well as radios, watches and sewing machines.
"Go and see what you need yourselves, and we'll meet at the entrance later."
Zhou He said something to the group, then walked towards the tobacco and liquor counter.
"Sister Yuan, let's go take a look over there!" Zhou Jiahui said to Fang Yuan, pointing to the snack counter.
She brought a lot of other things with her, so she didn't have much food. She'll have to buy some to take back with her when she comes to town.
“Okay, let’s go take a look!” Fang Yuan nodded.
Zhou Jiahui has a taste for food, and so does Fang Yuan. She not only has more than 500 yuan in cash, but also some receipts from this place.
In this life, she is still a 'rich person', and naturally, she doesn't hesitate to buy things.
Fang Yuan bought a pound of White Rabbit candy and a pound of fruit candy, as well as some local specialty snacks such as mung bean cake, steamed rice cake, and sachima.
These items, except for the White Rabbit candy, were all free.
After buying the pastries, Fang Yuan also bought a kettle, spending the industrial coupons she had brought with her.
I was originally planning to check the fabric counter to see if they had any mattresses or something.
After all, winter would arrive in two months, and the two quilts she brought, one thick and one thin, were not quite enough.
However, the salesperson simply said that they had no stock.
Yes, all these things for keeping warm and protecting against the cold are sticking up.
She had no choice but to turn around and go to the grocery store counter, where she bought two cents worth of needles and thread and two cents worth of matches.
A pack of matches contains ten small boxes, and each box costs two cents.
Finally, they weighed out another pound of salt and another pound of sugar, as well as another pound of soy sauce and another pound of vinegar.
The plastic jugs for buying soy sauce and vinegar were purchased directly from the supply and marketing cooperative.
Nowadays, soy sauce and vinegar are sold in large barrels weighing tens or hundreds of kilograms, and then in plastic containers weighing one kilogram, half a kilogram, or even two or one ounce.
You can fill it with as much as you want, and then pour it into your bottle or jug. That's how soy sauce came about.
Unfortunately, she didn't have any oil coupons from here, but the supply and marketing cooperative didn't sell oil either; she had to buy it from the grain station.
There are no large iron pots or bowls here, so it looks like I'll have to go to the black market.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com