After sending Meng Tao out, the two girls stood at the gate of the courtyard and talked for a while. Zhou Cuiling told Meng Tao something: her father Zhou Shian came back last night and went to find Bao Shunfeng to get a certificate for her cousin Zhou Cuilian.

"I haven't seen Zhou Cuilian for a few days. Where did she go?" Meng Tao asked curiously.

Zhou Cuiling snorted, "Who knows? The day before yesterday, she suddenly ran to the commune to find my dad and said that she had been living in the city with her distant aunt. My dad didn't even know she had such a distant aunt, but she spoke very convincingly and said that her aunt had helped her find a temporary job in the paper mill and asked my dad to return to the village quickly to help her get a letter of introduction.

My father thought that Zhou Cuilian went to the city to work as a temporary worker, and she didn't have to pay money or food from her family, and she could get 18 yuan a month. Her family had many children and life was difficult, so this was a good thing, so my father helped her. In my opinion, Zhou Cuilian was avoiding Tian Xianglan. If you said that she was also at Tian's house that night, then the words Tian Xianglan scolded her might be true. "

"She's amazing. She found a temporary job so quickly and actually managed to hide away."

"It's better this way, so as to avoid causing a big uproar in the village. Our Zhou family can't afford to lose face right now. One of my cousins ​​is looking for a marriage partner, and the matchmaker has gone to my cousin's house in the back. I heard from my mother that the man will come to meet cousin Cuimei in two days. If he knew about Zhou Cuilian's situation, it would be affected."

Meng Tao nodded, she just treated it as gossip.

The next morning, Meng Tao took a horse carriage to the commune, took a bus to the county town, and caught the last bus to Mengzhou in the region, so he didn't have to stay in the county town for a night.

It was already past six in the evening when they arrived in Mengzhou City. They went to the hotel to check in and still requested a single room. Meng Tao put away her travel bag, locked the door, went out to the street to find a restaurant to eat, and then went shopping.

In fact, there was not much to go around. It was late at night and there was only a department store and a few stores open on the street. She had been to all of these several times, so why bother to go around? Meng Tao would not say that she went there just to feel the bright lights. It was so dim and gloomy in the countryside with kerosene lamps lit every night, which really made her feel suffocated.

She also went to the black market to take a look. There were not many people tonight. It was obvious that the two stalls were selling grain and game. The two bags of cornmeal were sold out quickly. A wild rabbit and several bamboo rats were surrounded by people, and people were bargaining.

Meng Tao didn't disguise herself. She just wore a scarf and didn't join in the fun. She just turned around and left.

She can't sell her fruit for money here. No matter how delicious it is, people will say that it is only produced locally and is not a rare fruit, so she can keep the price very low.

She couldn't afford to waste time bargaining when selling goods by the pound at the stall. If she encountered a patrol team, she would not be able to handle it alone. She had to find the right big buyer, sell the goods quickly, and then leave cleanly.

So go to a bigger city.

D Province, not Pingjiang City for the time being, then the provincial capital and the other two cities. Meng Tao thought about the provincial capital and thought of Meng Zhehan and Shen Yu there. Although the probability of meeting is not high, what if? Ask her why she came to the provincial capital again? She had to find an excuse, which was a headache.

Finally, Meng Tao bought a train ticket, changed trains in Pingjiang City, and went to Yicheng, which was more than 300 miles away from the provincial capital.

Meng Tao arrived in Yicheng at around seven in the evening. As she got off the train, a biting cold wind blew in her face, making her shiver. Only then did she remember that Yicheng was further north and much colder than her hometown.

She was only wearing a tweed coat and an old sweater underneath. It was quite warm in the train compartment, but it was no use once she got off the train. She had to wear a cotton-padded jacket. Her family had bought cotton and wool, but she had no time to make a cotton-padded jacket. She had just started to learn how to knit a sweater, so it would be difficult for her to wear a new sweater she knitted this year.

Looking at the clock on the wall of the waiting room, it was almost eight o'clock. Meng Tao decided to find a restaurant to have some hot food to warm up, then go to the department store to buy a cotton jacket, and then find a place to stay.

It was half past ten in the evening when Meng Tao checked into a state-owned hotel with her bags. As she walked on the street, she felt increasingly cold and was afraid that it was going to snow. She was afraid of the cold, so she bought two sets of cotton jackets and trousers, two pairs of shoes, and two sweaters in one go.

Fortunately, Sun Hong gave her so many national cloth coupons when she went to Pingjiang City last time, otherwise she would not be able to buy so many even if she had money as she was unfamiliar with the place.

In addition, she also bought a very old-fashioned loose-fitting black dress with floral patterns, planning to wear it out for activities tomorrow.

After a night's rest, Meng Tao got up the next day and washed up. She put on her cotton-padded jacket and the black dress with floral patterns, took out the makeup box that Shen Yuji had given her a while ago from the space, picked out two or three colors of rouge and applied them on her face. She then used an eyebrow pencil to slightly modify her eyebrow shape, and then covered her head with a khaki scarf. This time she didn't need to cover her face. The woman in the mirror with a dark yellow complexion, thick black eyebrows, and a dark red spot on each cheek, carrying a gray cloth bag, was so tacky that Meng Tao couldn't even recognize her.

After leaving the hotel, he had a bowl of hot noodle soup at a nearby restaurant, spending two taels of food coupons and thirty cents. Then he strolled along the long street, looking around like Granny Liu entering the Grand View Garden, and began to look for the black market.

The black market in Yicheng was not as easy to find as the one in Pingjiang. It was not until after four o'clock in the afternoon that Meng Tao found a place. She was tired from walking, so she went into a small park in the middle of the street to sit and rest. She chatted with an old lady who was taking care of her grandson and gave her two oranges. Then she learned from the old lady that she had gone there to exchange for food.

This black market is located in a long and winding alley in the south of the city. There are many passages, and the terrain is hidden and easy to evacuate. There are many stalls selling goods. If you look closely, you will find that the stalls are movable, with small wheels underneath, which can be pushed away for easy escape. These stall owners should all live near the alley.

There are also people who simply spread a piece of oil paper or newspaper on the ground and then place the things to be sold on it. These are from far away places.

There were only a few people buying things here and there. People who were involved in the black market knew that this did not mean that there were few customers. They would only come when they needed something and leave as soon as they got it. This was the rule. The black market was illegal and the patrol team would come at any time. If they were caught, they would be punished. Who would be willing to take the risk? Meng Tao came prepared. The cloth bag in her hand was bulging. When she walked, she stuffed it with newspaper balls. When she entered the alley, she changed the fruit and went in.

As soon as she stopped beside a blue brick wall, a man in his thirties wearing a melon-shaped hat and a small mustache came over. He put his hands in the pockets of his blue cotton coat and squinted his eyes to look Meng Tao up and down. He seemed to be unable to estimate her age and didn't know how to address her. After a while, he asked:

"Where did it come from? What's in it?"

I will participate in PK from tomorrow, and update 10,000 words for four consecutive days. I sincerely ask my dear fairies to cheer for the author, vote, collect, comment, and light up the five-star review! Please, please! 　　 　 (End of this chapter)