"And then, well, what your sister actually wanted to say is, it's not just this thing, you know, women and children seem to like these weird little gadgets, things for little girls to tie their hair with, and the cushions your sister made, and the bags little girls carry, as long as they're pretty, people will ask about them."
"I'm telling you, yes, some people really do have to live on that 20 jin of grain ration a month, but you also know, this is the capital city, and there are many people who want to exchange things but can't find a way, you understand?"
What's so hard to understand about that?
The capital city, which has been the seat of the emperor since ancient times, has a rich history. It's a place where you can throw a brick and hit seven low-ranking officials. It's not like you're just digging blindly. You might just find two gold bars by touching a corner of a wall. How many wealthy families are there?
This is something that can't be said openly over the phone. Some people can't afford to eat, but there are even more people who have money but nowhere to spend it.
No matter when, the gap between the rich and the poor is a social phenomenon. The poor get poorer and the rich get richer. The saying "Why don't they eat meat porridge?" is a clear and straightforward illustration of this.
Jian Dan roughly understood what Zhu Yan meant. She could make money, but she genuinely wanted to bring Jian Dan along. Otherwise, there were plenty of relatives and friends who wanted to make money and were skilled at needlework, so why go to all this trouble to tell her?
"Brother-in-law, I understand. Thank you and my sister for thinking of us. I'll tell them when I get back."
Tell my sister not to worry about me. I'll check if the things have arrived in a bit.
Oh, by the way, my sister loves sticky rice cakes, right? I'll make some when I get back and mail them to you in a few days.
After hanging up the phone, I confirmed that it hadn't arrived yet. The snow here is heavy, and neighboring provinces have also been affected to varying degrees. Road transport and railways are the hardest hit. This sack of goods probably only just left Beijing. The staff there told her to come back in a couple of days to check.
"Don't worry, with the recent heavy snow, the roads are difficult to travel, and there will definitely be a lot of backlogged parcels, so delivery will be a bit slower. Come and check in two or three days, and they should be almost there."
Jian Dan has been receiving and sending parcels quite frequently over the past few years, so she's quite familiar with the post office staff and can chat with them a bit.
Two women were on duty today; they were knitting and chatting with Jian Dan at the same time.
Simple and smiling, she thanked them.
"Okay, I understand, sister. I'll go back and make some red bean buns, and I'll mail them out when I come back in a few days. Do you like red bean buns? I'll bring you some to try later."
The two women exchanged a smile. This young woman was indeed generous; before, she had only occasionally given them a few pieces of candy, and had even accepted that big, red apple.
"Oh, thank you, sister. My little girl loves those chewy bits. She's been craving them for years. I was thinking of making some for her to enjoy now that winter is here."
As you can see, the snow was so heavy it even collapsed my parents' house. We quickly traded our meager amount of sticky rice for coarse grains. Sister, I have to thank you.”
Seeing that she was about to cry, Jian Dan became a little restless.
"Well, I'll head back now and come back in a few days."
The two people, who had just been given a big promise by the sticky rice dumplings, waved goodbye to her with unusual enthusiasm.
"Girl, don't worry. We're on duty all week. When your package arrives, we'll make sure to put it away for you and not give it to anyone else."
She had already put the three boxes of braised pork and twenty servings of dried vegetables into her base space. She moved quickly and quietly, only taking them out when she was almost at the village entrance. She wrapped them in a bundle, and they were still warm when she got home.
The two children were indeed worried; it was already past four in the afternoon, and they hadn't even had lunch.
Simple got anxious as soon as she heard it.
"How can you not eat? You're growing, nothing can interfere with your meals."
"Perfect timing! This meat was made by Chef Zhang. I also bought some vegetables and dry food. Have a bite to tide you over."
Once they saw the person, the two children were relieved and regained their appetite, asking questions as they ate.
"Sis, did you really go to Uncle's? Did you see him?"
Jian Dan didn't hide anything from them; aside from the spatial aspect, she learned everything else from them.
"It looks like things are slowly getting better. First, the troops and armed forces came to the rescue, and then as the roads opened, supply trucks from outside started to bring in supplies. This situation won't last too long."
By the way, how's the village?
She had been at the military base for half a day but hadn't seen Xiao Wu's team. She was in a hurry to get home and hadn't looked closely in the direction of the village before asking about it.
Cheng An paused, the braised pork in his hand fell back into the lunchbox, and the rice in his mouth lost its flavor.
Cheng Rui couldn't keep his mouth shut.
"Sister, Fifth Brother got injured. Second Grandma was yelling for her chicken again and insisted on pushing Fifth Brother to dig it out for her. As a result, while they were digging, the house collapsed again, and the roof beams fell down. Fifth Brother was right underneath, and Second Grandma was blocking him from behind, yelling at him not to come out. His head and back started bleeding."
The village chief went to find Uncle Mu, but Uncle Mu said the road was difficult to travel and taking him to the hospital would waste more time, so he treated his injuries first. When we came back, he was still unconscious.
Jian Dan frowned. This wasn't an earthquake; she hadn't expected this unexpected turn of events.
but,
"Which second mistress?"
Cheng An pouted.
"And who else? The one the villagers say she took everything back to her nephew's family, driving her own son into the mountains where he never came back,"
Ah, isn't that the big pillar that Old Master Liu picked up, now Liu Gang, his biological mother?
"When did this happen? Didn't I just go out yesterday?"
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