An Moxue left the police station and went to the post office.
As the year drew to a close, there were more people at the post office receiving money orders, and An Moxue waited in line for a while.
When it was her turn, the postwoman, Sister Yu, said warmly, "Comrade An, you've come to collect your subsidy! You didn't come to collect it last month, so we'll collect it together."
An Moxue smiled and replied to Sister Yu, "Sister Yu, thank you for your help. I've received them all." She then handed the notebooks to Sister Yu, the postwoman.
Sister Yu took the notebook and began registering, not forgetting to ask Mo Xue, "Comrade An, is there anything else?"
"Thank you, Sister Yu, but I don't need it for now. We can talk about it next month."
Sister Yu skillfully counted the money and tickets and handed them to An Moxue, saying, "It's the New Year, so I have a few extra tickets. Take a look, and if there are no problems, that's all."
An Moxue took the money and tickets, looked at them, and said, "No problem."
Then I left the post office.
As the year draws to a close, there are noticeably more pedestrians on the streets.
An Moxue thought that the New Year was approaching, so she wanted to see what she could buy in the county and take some back with her.
Upon entering the supply and marketing cooperative, well...
It was packed with people, shoulder to shoulder, so crowded that the line stretched all the way to the door. It was difficult to get out. An Moxue decisively turned around, pushed open the door, and left the supply and marketing cooperative.
She thought for a moment, and since it wasn't mealtime yet, she leisurely went to the recycling station, hoping to find some books to read.
Inside the scrap yard, an elderly man with only one arm was sitting on a stool reading a book, with a cup of hot tea on the table.
"Grandpa, I'd like to browse through some books. Do you have any?" An Moxue said, taking out a few candies and placing them on the table.
The old man placed the book face down on the table, looked at An Moxue, and asked, "What book would you like to read, little girl? It's been a while since you've come."
An Moxue thought for a moment and said, "I don't care what kind of book it is, as long as it's valuable. Astronomy, geography, medicine, strange tales, ghost stories, anything is fine, sir, I'm not picky."
"You're not choosing yet? You're the one who's really picky!"
"Grandpa, is it okay to read your little library?"
"What are you talking about? I don't have any little library."
An Moxue raised an eyebrow and pointed inside. She wasn't some clueless idiot who had never been here before.
The old man puffed out his beard and glared, saying, "How can you be so clever, young lady!"
"Sir, is this alright? I promise, I will take good care of the books. We are both book lovers, we are kindred spirits!"
"Who said we're on the same page? How old are you? How old am I?"
"Alright, alright, fellow senior, is that alright? Please don't be offended."
"You have to promise to treat these books well before I let you choose."
"I promise."
"Alright! Come with me!"
The old man led An Moxue to the innermost room, which had no windows. He unlocked the door, left it open, lit a kerosene lamp, and said, "Choose one! Hurry up, and remember to close the door if anyone comes. Come out again after they leave."
After saying that, the old man left.
The room wasn't big, but it was lined with bookshelves all around, filled with books. Some of the books showed obvious signs of damage, while others had been repaired.
An Moxue looked through each bookshelf, taking out any books she liked, and before she knew it, she had found dozens of them.
The old man noticed that An Moxue hadn't come out for a while, so he came over to take a look. He saw a stack of books on the ground and An Moxue was reading a book in her hand. Her arrival didn't stop her. After glancing up, the old man quietly went back.
An Moxue stopped after she had looked through all the bookshelves.
When she saw the books on the ground, she was surprised herself, as she hadn't expected to have picked out so many books without realizing it.
Thinking she should take quite a few books, she looked at this one and that one, reluctant to part with any of them. This scene was witnessed by the old man who came to check on the situation again. The old man said, "You've picked out so many, can you take them all? If you can take them all, then take them all! But you can't make it clear beforehand that even if you take them and something happens, you can't say that you took the books from here, I won't admit it."
An Moxue gritted her teeth and said, "I want them all. I can take them. Don't worry, no one has been able to find my things yet!"
The old man squatted down and started counting the books. There were fifty-eight in total. After he finished counting, the old man said, "No matter the size, each book is three cents. That's seventeen dollars and forty cents in total. Do you want it?"
To everyone's surprise, An Moxue said, "Sir, can I pick two more books to make it a round number?"
The old man, having learned a thing or two, readily agreed: "Okay."
An Moxue found two more books on the bookshelf. After she finished, she said to the old man, "Grandpa, could you find a sack to put the books in? Otherwise, I can't carry all these books!"
"Wait here." The old man said as he went out of the house. A moment later, he took out a burlap sack, handed it to An Moxue, and said, "Pack it up. I'll take the sack from you."
"Thank you, sir."
An Moxue packed her books, carried the sack on her back, and left the house. The old man extinguished the kerosene lamp, locked the door, and followed An Moxue to the doorway.
An Moxue paid eighteen yuan for the book and left the recycling station with a sack on her back.
Once they reached a secluded spot, An Moxue stored a sack of books into her spatial storage.
After thinking about it, I realized that the Chinese New Year is coming soon, so I should prepare some delicious dishes.
Thinking it over, he took a basket from his spatial storage, filled it with some ingredients, covered it with straw, and carried the basket as he wandered the streets of the county town, turning left and right until he finally arrived at the gate of a secluded courtyard.
An Moxue rhythmically patted the courtyard gate. After a short while, the gate opened, and a middle-aged woman came out. As soon as the woman saw An Moxue, she became extremely enthusiastic, pulling An Moxue into the courtyard. As they walked, she said, "Moxue, you're not being fair! It's been so long since you came to see me. You can't be like that heartless Sicheng, who only comes once in ages, and even then it's just for a good meal. He didn't even bother to come and see me properly. It's pitiful for an old woman like me, all alone and helpless." After saying that, she wiped non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.
How was An Moxue supposed to respond to that? Especially that "you little ingrate," it just sounded so awkward!
Moreover, she came today specifically to ask Aunt Qing to cook something delicious.
"Aunt Qing, has Wu Sicheng not come to see you in a long time?"
"No, I came with you last time! What about you?"
"Me? I haven't seen him since we parted ways at your place last time," An Moxue said guiltily.
"Oh! That brat, he doesn't know how to please girls at all, no wonder he's single!" Aunt Qing said through gritted teeth, with a hint of schadenfreude.
After saying that, she instantly regained her elegance, as if her expression had changed completely, and asked An Moxue, "What ingredients did you bring? How would you like to eat them?"
An Moxue said, "Aunt Qing, here is a fish for you as a New Year's gift. You can help me prepare the rest, but we have to hurry because I need to catch the 2 o'clock train back."
"Okay, leave it to me! I guarantee you'll be satisfied. Come on, come into the kitchen with me and help me out. Do you know how to start a fire or something?"
"Aunt Qing, I'm fine with helping out. Can I watch you cook? Aren't chefs supposed to keep their recipes secret?"
"Oh, I cook. If I say it's okay, then it's okay. Come with me!"
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