*
On Sunday morning, Gao Xiaoping brought her lover Zhou Yakun to the house to see the house as scheduled. The couple were very satisfied with the house. Under the witness of Aunt Chen, both parties signed the rental agreement and paid the remaining rent and deposit.
Because Yunqiao would not be back in the Northeast for several days, he did not give her the key to his house for the time being.
Yun Qiao said, "Before I leave, I will give the key to my house to Aunt Chen. I'll ask Aunt Chen to pass it on to you later."
Aunt Chen nodded and agreed: "Okay, I'll pass it on to you later."
Although Gao Xiaoping and Aunt Chen's family were related, their kinship wasn't very close, and any back-and-forth would only cost them favors. She felt bad for bothering her all the time. "Why bother Aunt Chen with such a small matter? I work at the fabric counter in the department store up ahead, so it's not far away. What day are you leaving? Send someone to tell me in advance, and I'll come get the key myself."
Yun Qiao thought for a moment and said, "Sister Xiao Ping, I'll give it to you. I have to go to the department store to buy something before I leave, so it's just right for you."
"That's fine." Gao Xiaoping said with a smile, "When you come to the department store to buy something, you must come to me. I'm in charge of the fabric counter. I know you educated youth must buy fabric before going to the countryside, so if you need anything, just tell me."
"This is too much trouble for you. I'm so sorry."
"Hey, don't talk about whether it's troublesome or not. It's just a matter of words. Since you call me Sister Xiaoping, then we are family. There's no need to be polite to each other."
Yun Qiao saw that Gao Xiaoping was speaking from the heart and was not just being polite, so she agreed: "Sister Xiaoping, I won't be polite with you. I really want to buy some cloth."
"What kind do you want? Tell me as soon as possible. If something is in short supply and hard to find, I can reserve it for you in advance."
"It doesn't have to be the best," Yun Qiao said. "I have an uncle, an aunt, and two cousins in the Northeast. I want to buy some extra cloth to make clothes for them. But if I buy so much cloth, I can't afford the best, so something cheap and affordable will do."
"Oh, that's a lot of cloth indeed," Gao Xiaoping said. "A man needs at least eight feet of cloth to make a single coat, and ten and a half feet for a full set of trousers. Add in the clothes for two children, and it'll take at least four or five feet. Do you have enough cloth coupons?"
"I'm still short on cloth coupons, so I'm going to find someone to exchange them for. After all, I'm in the Northeast now, and I don't know when I'll be able to come back next time."
"Well, we have a batch of defective cloths for sale at our counter. They got soaked by a leak in the warehouse over the summer, and then they weren't cleaned up in time, so they got some mold. They can still be used after washing. Although the price is still the same, no receipt is required. If you don't mind, I can save some for you."
Yun Qiao's face showed a flattered look: "Really, Sister Xiao Ping! It's great that I can buy some cloth. How could I dislike it?"
Gao Xiaoping nodded: "Of course it's true, I'm not kidding you."
Yun Qiao held Gao Xiaoping's hand and thanked her repeatedly: "Sister Xiaoping, thank you so much. If it weren't for you, I don't know what to do!"
In those days, supplies were scarce and a person was only given sixteen feet of cloth coupons per year, which was only enough to make a single set of clothes. For families with many people, it would take several years to get a new set of clothes.
Even if it is a defective cloth, you can't buy it just because you want it.
Fabric is a hot commodity. When defective fabric is sold at a discount, it is usually reserved by insiders who know the news in advance. They take some for themselves and leave some for relatives and friends. Most of the defective fabric is sold out before it is actually put on sale.
So if you don’t have any connections at home, you won’t be able to buy defective cloth even if you want to.
Yun Qiao counted out twenty yuan from the rent he had just received and stuffed it into Gao Xiaoping's hand: "It's cold in Northeast China, and making a cotton-padded jacket requires a lot of fabric. Sister Xiaoping, please leave me some extra money. Take this money first, and I'll make up for it later if it's not enough."
"That's enough, twenty yuan is enough to buy a lot." Gao Xiaoping put the money away and asked her, "Do you have any requirements for the pattern?"
Yun Qiao smiled and shook his head, saying, "No requirements, any cloth will do."
"Then I'll keep it for you."
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