"Now you're scared? Why didn't you say anything when you were taking a walk with the old lady earlier?"
Xiao Jiu choked on his drink and stood up abruptly: "I can't wait until dark; my family will worry if I do."
She tried to go outside to observe, but he pulled her back.
"No, you can't go out now. If you get involved, I'll kill you!"
Looking at his fierce expression, Xiao Jiu was speechless.
"You're not very old, but you're quite ruthless. Don't keep talking about death."
"Stop talking nonsense. These days, I see people starving to death every few days. Otherwise, why do you think I'm here?"
After saying that, he didn't forget to look her up and down, "I asked you earlier and you haven't answered me yet, do you have any food?"
"No!" Xiao Jiu answered crisply.
"How did you exchange the cloth with that person?"
"Give me the money,"
"Impossible! She's been squatting here for days, all she wants is food. If you don't give her food, I'll twist your head off and use it as a ball!"
His confident yet violent demeanor truly disgusted Xiao Jiu.
"If I say no, then no."
Xiao Jiu sneered when his gaze fell on her schoolbag.
"What, you want to rob me?"
"Didn't you say you didn't have any? If you don't have any, are you afraid I'll take it from you?"
Just when Xiao Jiu thought he wouldn't dare, the beggar actually reached out and grabbed her schoolbag.
"I don't believe you don't have food. Take out your food, and I'll give you money. I need food to save lives, so I have no choice but to offend you!"
When he forcefully ripped the strap of Xiaojiu's backpack off her neck and rummaged through its contents despite her struggles, he was dumbfounded.
Not only was there no food, but there wasn't even the cloth that had just been traded. Inside, there was only a lunchbox and two or three books.
"Where's the food? Where's the cloth? You just swapped cloth with that woman."
"Nonsense, I was being chased away, of course I hid the cloth. What if I got caught? Wouldn't that be catching me red-handed?"
Observing his expression, she saw his once bright eyes dim instantly, and she couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy.
But when he looked up at her, she quickly hid this subtle change.
"You really have no food?"
Xiao Jiu shook her head, "No, I'm just a student, how could I possibly have food?"
I came here today just to see if there was anything suitable to bring to my older sister's engagement party, and then I saw that piece of cloth...
You just said you needed food... to save lives?
He leaned against the earthen wall behind him with a dejected look on his face, his eyes filled with a sense of helplessness and frustration, and he even punched the wall with his hand.
"It's been three days. My family has run out of rice for three days now. There's still a month until next month's food rations. What should I do?"
Xiao Jiu's eyes flickered slightly: "Is your family registered in the city?"
He chuckled and said self-deprecatingly, "How could that be? My younger brother and sister and I are all registered as rural residents, just like my mother."
My dad has a city household registration, but he works in a mine. He earns a high salary, but the money he earns doesn't reach us.
My grandmother hid all the grain in the house, and I couldn't find it.
She wanted to force us to go back to the countryside, but my mother had just given birth to my younger sister, who was less than 100 days old.
My mother married into the city, and my uncles in the countryside are all married and have wives. How could they let us go back and eat and drink for free?
In this cold weather, would I really want to go back to my grandma's house in the countryside and cause chaos again?
Not to mention my mom's unwillingness, my brother and I also don't want to go back and have to put up with other people's attitudes.
My mom is also a very strong-willed person. She would rather stay here and get angry with my grandma, even to the point that her milk supply dried up, than leave.
A few days ago, I couldn't take it anymore and got into a fight with my grandma. I pushed her down, and she hit her head on the table and bled. She had to go to the hospital.
They didn't leave us anything at home, and my aunt and uncle are even eating with us at the hospital. They're trying to drive us crazy!
"Do your aunt and uncle have jobs?"
He pursed his lips, his eyes reddened, and his tone was extremely indignant.
"Temporary workers earn 17.5 yuan a month, which is not even enough for their own expenses, and they don't hand over a single penny."
This family survives entirely on my father's meager salary of forty or fifty yuan a month. If it weren't for his grain rations at the mine, my grandmother would have starved to death.
"Where are you from?" Judging from the accent, it doesn't seem like you're from their area.
“My dad is mute, and he lives in one of the surrounding villages.”
Upon hearing this answer, Xiao Jiu understood. She wondered why a perfectly good city man would marry a country woman.
It turns out that it was because his father was disabled.
In this era where children's household registration follows their mothers, urban men almost never marry women from the countryside.
It was especially clear from his voice that his father's family was not well-off.
He's mute again, so he really can only find a wife in the countryside.
“My dad wasn’t born mute; it’s a sequela of a fever he had as a child, and my grandma made all the difference.”
In this situation, one's mind would probably not be working very well, especially since it occurred when the person fell into the water as a child and had a high fever, making it even more likely.
It is well known that even if someone who has been drowning for a long time is rescued, their brain will be different from that of a normal person.
Furthermore, the child has a persistent high fever that has rendered him mute, so the long-term effects may be more severe than those from drowning alone.
The old lady was afraid that her eldest daughter-in-law would take control of the family, which is why she was so harsh on them.
To be honest, I don't quite understand. Since they've found him a wife, why can't they accept his child?
Two grandsons and one granddaughter, isn't that wonderful?
Why are you so ungrateful?
"You just said that the next time you receive your food rations, does that mean you'll still be able to get your family's food ration book?"
He shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe if they're pushed to the limit, they'll do anything!"
My grandmother was a typical person who only took in but never gave out. During the difficult times a couple of years ago, my maternal grandparents sent her a lot of dried vegetables.
Now that my grandparents are in trouble, she not only refuses to help, but also wants to send us back.
"If I hadn't managed to go out and earn some food all these years, I doubt my mother would have been able to give birth to this child."
Xiao Jiu looked at him in surprise: "You... how old are you?"
"Thirteen,"
"You're not going to school anymore?"
He shook his head. "I've never been to one. I did some literacy classes before, so I can write my own name and do arithmetic."
"Then what are you here for?"
Anyone who dares to operate in the black market must have some capital, but he doesn't seem to have any.
“I follow Brother Tao. He thinks I’m clever, so I run errands for him. It’s dangerous, but I can occasionally bring home some food.”
"So you guys have an organization here too,"
"Nonsense, how could this city have risen up without someone organizing it?"
It's just too dangerous lately, and Brother Tao is out of food.
With the year-end approaching and no money to be made, Tao was so anxious that he developed blisters in his mouth.
These incompetent officials, however, don't let their subordinates have an easy time; they come to inspect every few days.
Those who run slowly will be caught; you won't get out without five ten-yuan bills.
Xiao Jiu understood now, "So, these people are arresting people so frantically so that they can have a prosperous New Year?"
"Well, if they're lucky enough to catch people with meat and food, then their efforts during this time haven't been in vain."
Everyone looks out for themselves; the black market is a juicy piece of meat, and everyone wants a piece of it.
That's real skill – getting the food into your mouth and swallowing it into your stomach.
During their subsequent conversation, Xiao Jiu learned that the man's name was He Yuan, also known as Thirteen, and that he lived in Peach Alley near Willow Alley.
The whole family was crammed into a house of just over 30 square meters. The second uncle was not yet married, and the aunt was not yet married either.
This old lady is always scrimping and saving, trying to save money for her second son's wife. As for her eldest son, she probably hasn't even considered them.
"Is your brother Tao really good to you? What's his full name?"
"Brother Tao's surname is Tao, and his name is Tao Tao."
Xiao Jiu: "..." Tao Tao? Tao Tao!!!
I even ran into someone with the same surname and pronunciation?
When asked her age, she said she was already in her thirties or forties.
"Tao is a great guy. He started working hard when he was a teenager. He's very bold and has great vision."
They used to run a silk and cloth business, but then the public-private partnership came into effect, and they were able to receive dividends.
Later, I don't know what she was thinking, she quit and got a permanent position as a truck driver in the department store's transport team.
We travel all over the country, and we're only able to make a living by following him because of his connections.
Wow, just by listening to this, you can tell that Brother Tao is indeed very farsighted!
Being your own boss is great, but you still have to listen to others, which is restrictive, passive, and makes the work less enjoyable.
I traded this shop for a permanent job, still as a driver for a transport team. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I started a black market business. Brilliant!
Xiao Jiu's eyes darted around, and she suddenly had the idea that 'business delivered to our doorstep is free, so why not take it?'
What's the price of grain now?
He Yuan glanced at her and said, “It depends on what kind of grain it is. Coarse grains like sweet potatoes, potatoes, and sorghum are three yuan, soybeans, mung beans, and peanuts are five yuan, and refined grains like white rice and white flour can be bought for ten yuan per jin. Cornmeal and millet can also be sold for seven or eight yuan. Just quoting prices is useless; I’ve never seen anyone come to sell grain.”
"What about the meat and eggs?"
He Yuan, observing her expression, immediately lit up and moved closer to her.
"Do you have connections?"
Xiao Jiu gestured with his lips, and He Yuan quickly offered a price.
"Pork is ten yuan a pound, eggs are two or three yuan each, and duck eggs are five yuan each."
Xiao Jiu gasped, "This is insane!"
He Yuan shook his head. "It's a vicious cycle. The less they can sell, the more they raise prices, trying to attract people with lower prices."
But you know what the situation is right now. We can't even get enough to eat ourselves, so how could we possibly sell ourselves out?
The government has introduced many policies to encourage farmers to sell grain. Have you ever heard of rewarding grain coupons?
Xiao Jiu looked confused. "What are food coupons?"
"It means that farmers produce grain, sell it to the state in the form of public grain, and the state then distributes it to urban residents with grain coupons."
Xiao Jiu pouted, "I'm from the countryside, I know. People in the countryside don't even have enough to eat, so even if she gives out reward grain coupons, it won't make a difference."
"This is the difference between urban and rural areas. Even when there is a shortage of supplies in the city, they can still manage to supply them. But for farmers, there are many things they can't buy without coupons. Their daily lives have nothing to do with these coupons. There is no fairness in this world."
Seeing He Yuan's indignant and dissatisfied expression, Xiao Jiu guessed it was related to household registration. If they had followed their father's household registration, settled in the city, and received government-subsidized grain rations, perhaps they wouldn't be living such a stifling life now.
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