Chapter 40 Chapter 40 Shopping Daily

8am Sunday morning, South Cliff Island Pier.

The first ferry out of the island slowly opened its cabin door, lowered the deck, and extended a long wooden board from inside to connect to the pier.

Xia Qinqin was held in Xia Junshan's arms, and pointed at the ferry excitedly and said, "Mom, look, the door of the boat is open."

Xia Junshan smiled and said, "Yes, the boat door is open, let's get on board."

Because it is the weekend, there are quite a lot of people going to the market today. Many children went to the market with their parents. After getting on the boat, they ran around in groups of three or five in the cabin.

The family of three left home early and lined up at the front of the queue to board the ship. We were lucky enough to sit by the window, feeling the morning sea breeze and feeling very comfortable.

As the ferry sailed, Nanya Island became smaller and smaller in sight, and in front of us was the endless blue sea.

Xia Qinqin leaned on the window, pointed at a few seagulls flying low over the sea and shouted, "Hello, little birds, we meet again!"

The seagulls seemed to understand what Xia Qinqin said. One of them flew towards the ferry. Xia Qinqin was surprised and said, "Wow, you heard my voice. Are you coming to play with me?"

As she spoke, she stretched out her hand to catch the seagull, with most of her body leaning out. Xia Junshan, who was holding his daughter tightly, hurriedly moved her body back.

Meng Yufei said in a serious tone: "Qinqin, sit still and don't lean out of the window!"

Xia Qinqin heard the seriousness in her mother's tone, so she retracted her hand obediently and said aggrievedly, "Oh..."

Xia Junshan touched his daughter's hair and explained to her, "Mom is worried about Qinqin's safety. You just leaned out and you could fall into the sea if you're not careful. Then you won't be able to see Mom and Dad again."

After hearing this, Xia Qinqin immediately said hastily: "I don't want to leave Mom and Dad, oh, I..." As she spoke, her tone became aggrieved, and tears welled up in her big eyes.

Xia Junshan panicked for a moment, and whispered: "Dad didn't mean that... Dad was saying, it's a hypothetical situation, not real..."

Meng Yufei patted her daughter on the back and said softly, "Mom and Dad will never leave Qinqin. No matter where you go, we can find you."

Xia Junshan nodded quickly and said, "Yes, Mom and Dad will always be with Qinqin and will never be separated."

Xia Qinqin said to Meng Yufei: "Mom, I was wrong. I wanted to talk to the bird. I didn't mean it." Then she opened her arms and asked her mother to hold her.

Meng Yufei reached out to take her daughter, kissed her on the cheek, and said, "I know. Remember this in the future. No matter what you do, you must always put your own safety first. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I see."

Meng Yufei pointed to the seagulls outside the window and said softly, "Look, they like to fly outside and don't like to stay in the cabin. Can we watch them here?"

"Okay~"

Xia Junshan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the smile return to his daughter's face. It is really not easy to take care of a child. If an adult is not careful, what they say may cause harm to the child.

The ferry sailed for more than an hour and stopped at the pier in Qiongzhou City. Passengers lined up to get off the boat. There was a bus from the pier heading to the city. The family of three walked to the bus stop. Because it was the starting point, there was an empty bus parked there.

The conductor, who was sitting next to the door, saw them boarding the bus and asked, "Where are you going?"

The bus fares in this era are not unified. Different distances charge different fees. It is definitely impossible for a driver to handle it alone, so each bus is equipped with a conductor position.

Xia Junshan replied: "Go to the city center station."

"It's three cents per person, and children don't need tickets."

Meng Yufei handed over a dime, and the salesperson gave her four cents in change, tore up two tickets and handed them to her. He also reminded her, "When there are more people getting on the bus later, remember to hold the child."

The bus stopped and started, and after swaying for half an hour, it finally arrived at the center of Qiongzhou City, and the family of three got off the bus.

Qiongzhou City is located at the southernmost tip of China. Although it is not as prosperous as other cities in China, its infrastructure is very complete. Walking on the streets of Qiongzhou City, you can feel the unique flavor of a coastal city.

Although Xia Junshan had only been to the city twice, he had memorized all the routes in the city center. He brought his wife and daughter to Fang Yuan Hotel for breakfast with ease.

In the morning, the family of three only ate a few biscuits to fill their stomachs, as they had almost consumed all the food after taking the ferry from the island.

The architecture of Fangyuan still retains the appearance of a hundred years ago. The gate is an antique wooden building with a plaque hanging above it with the words "Fangyuan State-owned Hotel" in large characters. It is obvious that this was written by later generations.

After entering, the family of three found a seat by the window and sat down. On the east wall were rows of wooden signs with the names of the dishes written on them.

After looking for a long time, we finally ordered crystal shrimp dumplings, coconut milk mille-feuille, barbecued pork buns, and a bowl of red bean double skin milk for Xia Qinqin.

This meal was not cheap, costing one yuan and fifty-three cents, plus half a catty of grain coupons and two ounces of meat coupons.

It was rare for the family to come over for a meal, and both of them had a salary, so they didn't feel too bad.

The snacks were served in small steamers. Meng Yufei pointed to the steamer containing crystal shrimp dumplings and said to her daughter, "Qinqin, this is the crystal shrimp dumplings that Auntie Zhang mentioned."

Then he picked up a shrimp dumpling and put it next to Xia Qinqin's mouth, saying with a smile: "Try it and see if it tastes good."

Xia Qinqin devoured the shrimp dumpling in one gulp. The outermost layer of dough was soft and tasty. When she bit into it, the delicious soup gushed out from inside and filled her mouth. The springy shrimps collided between her tongue and teeth.

"Mmm, it's delicious. Auntie Zhang is right."

Xia Junshan scooped a spoonful of Shuangpi Nai and said with a smile: "Take another sip of Shuangpi Nai. I heard that it is made from local buffalo milk."

These days, transportation is inconvenient and it is difficult to drink milk in places where cattle are not raised.

Xia Qinqin went over to eat the double-skin milk again and said curiously, "This milk is soft and hard, delicious!"

Soft refers to the texture of double skin milk, and hard refers to its comparison with liquid milk.

Xia Junshan scooped another spoonful and said, "It's delicious. Eat more. It's nutritious and will help you grow taller."

"Wow, Qinqin is going to grow taller!"

After the family of three finished their morning tea, they walked to the department store opposite. The ten-story building stood out from the crowd in the center of Qiongzhou in the 1960s.

The package from Hai City hasn't arrived yet, so Meng Yufei plans to buy some clothes first. Oh, and also two pairs of shoes. She has been changing between two or three pairs of shoes these past few days.

The first floor mainly sells non-staple food, the second floor sells clothes, and the third floor sells electrical appliances and department stores.

Xia Junshan suggested: "Let's go up to the third floor first, buy the radio, then go down to the second floor to buy clothes, and finally go to the first floor to buy groceries. It will be convenient if we go all the way down."

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "Okay, let's go to the third floor first."

Xia Junshan exchanged the radio ticket with a sewing machine ticket from his home. Nowadays, the highest requirement for people to get married is "three turns and one sound", which means a bicycle, a watch, a sewing machine, and a radio.

These four items are rare, not only are they expensive, but tickets are also hard to come by. Families who can prepare all of them at once not only need money but also connections. For an average family, it is already very good to prepare one or two items.

Among these four items, the first choice of an average family is a bicycle, which is the most practical. The next choice is a watch and a sewing machine, and the last choice is a radio, which is not as practical as the previous ones.

Therefore, it was quite easy for Xia Junshan to exchange the sewing machine ticket for the radio ticket.

The family of three came to the counter on the third floor. In this era, most department stores did not allow customers to select items.

People who want to buy things come to the long wooden counter that is half a person's height, tell the salesperson standing behind the counter what they want to buy, and then the salesperson takes the things from the shelf behind him.

If you meet a salesperson with a good attitude, you can ask for a few more items to choose from. If the attitude is bad, you can decide whether to buy or not and they won’t let you choose. It’s good enough that they have the items.

After all, whether the sales are more or less has no impact on their wages. Especially for salespeople who sell hot-selling goods, they can sell as many goods as they send out invoices, and they don’t need to worry about what to do if the goods cannot be sold.

"We want to buy a radio." Xia Junshan said to the salesperson.

Xia Qinqin put her hands on the counter, stood on tiptoe to expose her eyes, and said to the salesperson, imitating Xia Junshan's words: "We want to buy a radio."

Xia Junshan looked down at his daughter's strenuous little movements, then smiled and held her in his arms. Xia Qinqin's vision suddenly widened, and she stared at the items on the shelves.

The salesperson saw Xia Junshan in military uniform and Meng Yufei and Xia Qinqin dressed well, and knew that they could afford it. Unlike some people who come every day just to look, it is the most annoying when they just look but don't buy.

"Okay, wait a minute."

The salesperson took the radio from the counter in the middle of the back, put it on the counter, and said, "Yes, this radio is a Panda brand radio produced in Jingzhou City."

Xia Junshan said, "Let me try and see if it works."

The salesperson asked: "Do you know how to use it?" Don't damage it.

Xia Junshan nodded, put his daughter down, picked up the radio on the counter, opened the back cover, and said, "Please put the battery in. We have to try to see if it can make a sound before buying something, otherwise we will have to come back and change it."

Seeing that Xia Junshan seemed to know how to use a radio, the salesperson took out four No. 1 batteries from under the counter, handed them to him and said, "Remove the batteries when you don't need the radio."

Xia Junshan installed the battery, pressed the switch, and adjusted the button on the front. After a while, a sound came from inside.

The salesperson said, "It's good, right?"

Xia Junshan nodded and asked, "How much?"

The salesperson held out his hand and said, "Let me see the ticket first."

Meng Yufei took out the radio ticket from her bag, put it on the counter and said, "Here."

The salesperson took the bill, looked at it carefully, nodded and said, "This radio is one hundred and twenty dollars."

This is equivalent to three or four months' salary for an ordinary worker. Buying a radio was a big item for a household in that era.

This price was about the same as Meng Yufei's estimate. The radio that the Meng family bought was a German imported brand, and it seemed to have cost more than three hundred yuan at the time.

From this perspective, domestically-made radios are much cheaper.

After paying the money and picking up the radio, Meng Yufei noticed that there was a chess set for sale at the next counter, so she walked over and bought a set.

Xia Junshan said, "You like playing chess, why didn't you tell me earlier? I have a set in my office. I'll bring it back to you someday."

Meng Yufei paid for the chess set and said, "You put the chess set in the office. Do you want to play a few games with your leaders and comrades occasionally?"

Xia Junshan nodded, and Meng Yufei said, "Then you won't have anything to put down after you bring it back? Let's buy another one and put it at home, and teach Qinqin how to put it down when we have time."

"Okay, my chess skills are pretty good. I'll teach her when I have time. We can also compete with each other some other day."

Holding the radio and chess pieces, the family of three went downstairs to the second floor to buy clothes.

Meng Yufei first bought two sets of short-sleeved shirts and shorts for Xia Qinqin. The temperature has been rising day by day in the past few days, and it is almost 30 degrees during the day. It is time to wear short-sleeved shirts.

She bought herself two short-sleeved tops and a pair of black wide-leg pants, and bought Xia Junshan two vests, a blue shirt and a white shirt.

Xia Junshan said: "I don't need it. The clothes issued by the army are enough for me."

In this era, soldiers like to wear military uniforms when going out, and workers like to wear work clothes when going out. This is a symbol of their status.

Meng Yufei said: "You have to change your clothes occasionally. You can't always wear the clothes issued by the army."

I also bought a set of pure cotton summer pajamas and a set of four-piece bedding for each of the three members of the family. It would be most economical to make these by myself, but Meng Yufei didn't have that much time, and she was not good at sewing, so she had to spend more money.

Fortunately, they brought enough cloth coupons today, and the service attitude of the clothing salesperson was much better than the one upstairs just now. He enthusiastically packed up the things they bought and tied them together for easy carrying.

In the days before plastic bags, packing was a technical job and a necessary skill for every salesperson. Some department stores even had packing competitions to see who could pack the goods quickly and conveniently.

Although the salesperson packed the clothes very well, they were still not easy to carry as we bought too much. Xia Junshan then took out a folded snakeskin bag from his military bag.

After unfolding it, I put the clothes and sheets in it and carefully placed the radio on top. The fabrics acted as a buffer for it and there was no need to worry about it getting damaged.

Xia Junshan put the snakeskin bag on his shoulder and said, "Let's go. We still need to buy shoes."

Meng Yufei smiled and said, "How did you think of bringing this bag? It's so convenient. I don't have to carry so many things in my hands."

"In the past, people in the countryside would carry woven bamboo baskets to gather. That day, I saw someone using this bag to carry things on the street. I thought it was very convenient, so I bought one and put it at home."

This bag is made of plastic. China only started producing plastic a few years ago and it is not very common.

They went to the shoe counter again and bought a pair of white sneakers with green soles for Xia Qinqin, which cost eight yuan and twenty cents. A pair of Jiefang shoes cost four yuan. They also bought a pair of blue cloth shoes, which were cheaper, two yuan and fifty cents.

In this era, shoes of different sizes are priced differently. Meng Yufei bought a pair of white sneakers for 9.10 yuan, while Xia Junshan bought a pair of white sneakers for 10.20 yuan.

Meng Yufei bought a pair of Jiefang shoes for herself and Xia Junshan, spending RMB 4.50 on one pair and RMB 4.90 on the other.

Thinking of the shoes in the shoe cabinet at home, in addition to the shoes issued by the army, Xia Junshan's latest pair of shoes was the leather shoes he bought when they got married. Meng Yufei dragged him to buy another pair of leather shoes, spending twenty-four yuan.

"I don't wear these shoes on a regular basis, and the pair of leather shoes I have at home have only been worn twice. Wouldn't it be a waste to buy more?"

"There will always be a time when I need to wear it. Now I am in charge of the money at home and I have the final say on how it is spent."

"……All right."

Xia Junshan glanced at the women's leather shoes on the counter and said to the salesperson, "Please show us those shoes."

Meng Yufei glanced at the heels of her shoes and said, "Forget it. It's more comfortable to wear sneakers and flat shoes on the island."

Xia Junshan said, "Didn't you just say that you will need to wear it after you buy it?"

Meng Yufei shook her head. "Really, no need. I bought this style of shoes two years ago. When the package from Haishi arrives, I will have shoes to wear."

Xia Junshan said: "Okay, let's buy it next time we go back to Haishi." The latest things in the country are sold there.

Putting the shoes into the snakeskin bag, Xia Junshan said, "Let's buy a mosquito net for the bed. The weather is getting hot and the mosquitoes will come out."

Meng Yufei said: "Let's buy two beds, and put one in the next room."

Xia Junshan was stunned for a second, then nodded and said, "Okay, buy two beds."

The mosquito net is made of cotton yarn with very fine mesh, which is very effective in preventing mosquitoes. The price is also affordable. I spent five yuan on two mosquito nets.

The snakeskin bag was suddenly bulging with stuff. Meng Yufei said, "Fortunately I didn't plan to buy an electric fan today, otherwise it would be difficult to take it back."

Xia Junshan said, "You don't need an electric fan at night now, so you can buy one next time you come. And you only need industrial coupons to buy an electric fan, and we have enough coupons at home, so we don't need to exchange them."

Except for the radio ticket, most of the money used in this large-scale purchase was cloth coupons. Most of the cloth coupons stored at home were used up in one go.

Xia Qinqin poked the bag curiously and asked, "Dad, isn't it heavy for you to carry?"

Xia Junshan threw the bag lightly over his shoulder, holding the bag with one hand, and picked up Xia Qinqin with the other hand, saying with a smile: "This little weight is nothing, Dad can run ten miles with you and Mom on his back."

Xia Qinqin didn't know what ten miles meant, but she understood that her father said he could carry her and her mother on his back. She praised, "Wow, Dad is so awesome, he's a strong man!"

Xia Junshan weighed his daughter in his arms and said with a smile, "Let's go buy some candy now, okay?"

"Okay~"

The family of three came to the food counter on the first floor. The candies here were mainly coconut candies and fruit candies. They weighed a pound of coconut candies for 70 cents and a pound of fruit candies for 90 cents.

The specialty snack here is pineapple cakes, which cost 20 cents per pound. Meng Yufei weighed two pounds and packed them into four small packages, each weighing half a pound.

I bought another two pounds of peach cakes. The price was the same as at the supply and marketing cooperative, one yuan per pound, and they also asked me to package them into four small portions.

Meng Yufei carried all these things by herself. Xia Junshan said, "Why not put them in the bag? Press the things down and it should be able to fit."

Meng Yufei said, "No need. Put the food in there so it won't have any bad smells."

Seeing that she could lift it without any effort, Xia Junshan did not insist.

In the morning, nearly three hundred yuan was spent. Even Meng Yufei, who was used to spending money lavishly, said with some emotion: "This money is really hard to spend."

Xia Junshan smiled and said, "It's not like I come here to buy things every day. Besides, the money is earned to be spent. It's worth it if I spend it happily."

Meng Yufei also laughed and said, "I'm quite happy."

Xia Qinqin held the fruit candy that the candy salesperson had just given her in her mouth, and nodded, "Qinqin is also very happy~"

The family of three came out of the department store. It was already twelve o'clock. Xia Junshan took them around a street corner and pointed to a two-story building and said, "This is the most famous state-owned hotel in Qiongzhou City. Let's have lunch here."

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "Okay."

Xia Junshan asked Xia Qinqin in his arms, "How about we have sweet and sour pork ribs for lunch?"

"good!"

It was lunchtime and the hotel lobby was crowded. In those days in state-owned hotels, there was no waiter to greet you after you entered the door.

You have to find a seat by yourself, queue up at the window to order, and then pick up the food at the counter.

People were moving back and forth in the hall, and the impatient voices of waiters could be heard from the front desk window from time to time. It seemed very noisy.

After looking around the hall, they found an empty seat in the corner. The family of three walked over. Xia Junshan put down his food and said, "I'll go order the food. What do you want to eat?"

The menu of this restaurant is also on the wall, but it is not a wooden sign like the Fang Yuan Hotel, but is written directly on a piece of paper and pasted on the wall.

Xia Qinqin sat on a chair with her upper body on the table. She followed her parents' gaze and looked at the wall. She recognized the word "ribs" on the wall and pointed at it, saying, "ribs, dad, Qinqin wants to eat ribs."

Xia Junshan smiled and replied, "Okay, order Qinqin's favorite sweet and sour pork ribs."

Xia Qinqin smiled, showing a row of small white teeth, and said sweetly: "Thank you, Dad~"

Xia Junshan touched his daughter's braid, then turned to Meng Yufei and asked, "What do you want to eat?"

Meng Yufei said: "Well, let's have braised yellow croaker."

Xia Junshan nodded and said, "The yellow croaker here is big and is also the signature of this restaurant. It tastes good."

Meng Yufei asked: "What do you want to eat?"

Xia Junshan said: "Then let's order the signature white-cut chicken and a bowl of vegetable and meatball soup."

He patted his army bag and said, "I brought a lunch box. If we can't finish it, we can pack it up and take it back."

"Okay." Meng Yufei nodded, took out money and tickets from her bag and handed them to Xia Junshan.

Xia Junshan took the money and ticket and went to queue at the window. Meng Yufei took out a handkerchief from her bag to wipe Xia Qinqin's hands and saw that the edges of the scabs on her hands began to fall off.

Meng Yufei touched it lightly and asked, "Does it hurt?"

Xia Qinqin shook her head. "It doesn't hurt, just a little itchy."

Meng Yufei said: "It will be fine soon. Just try not to scratch it with your hands for a few days, okay?"

Xia Qinqin nodded and said, "I understand."

After ordering the dishes, Xia Junshan came back with a note and brought the bowls and chopsticks for the three people. He then poured some boiling water and boiled the bowls and chopsticks again.

After waiting for a long time, they heard the waiter at the window shouting that their dishes were ready. Xia Junshan went to bring the dishes over. State-owned hotels these days focus on affordability, and each dish is very generous in portion.

Xia Qinqin finally ate the sweet and sour spareribs she had been craving for. She happily gave a thumbs up and praised, "It's delicious, just as delicious as my grandma's."

Xia Junshan smiled and gave her another piece of fish. "It's delicious. Eat more." He then gave Meng Yufei a piece of fish and said, "Try this fish and see how it tastes."

Meng Yufei took a bite and nodded, "It tastes good. I didn't expect that the meat of the big yellow croaker can be as tender as the small yellow croaker."

Xia Junshan said: "I heard that their steamed sea bass is also delicious. We can order it next time we come."

A family of three definitely couldn't finish these dishes. They ate half of a large yellow croaker, half of the sweet and sour spareribs was still left, but they finished all the boiled chicken.

In addition to eating a lot of sweet and sour spareribs, Xia Qinqin also drank two small bowls of vegetable and meatball soup. She touched her round belly and said, "I feel so full."

Meng Yufei said: "Then you should sit down and rest for a while, and then leave together after mom and dad finish eating."

The soup was not easy to take back, so Xia Junshan and Meng Yufei shared the vegetables and meatballs, and there was still a little soup left.

Xia Junshan took out a lunch box and packed up the leftovers. "Just go to the canteen to get some vegetables and rice in the evening."

After leaving the state-owned hotel, Xia Junshan suggested: "Let's go to the photo studio and take some pictures."

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "Okay, our family of three has never taken a photo together."

The state-owned photo studio was not far away. The photographer saw that the family of three had good looks and said with a smile: "What kind of background do you want to take the photo of? We have the City God Temple in Shanghai, the Tiananmen Square and the Great Wall in Beijing..."

The photographer loves to meet good-looking customers, so that no matter how he takes the photo, it will look good. He enthusiastically recommended the background wall in the store to this family of three.

Meng Yufei said: "Master, can we take the camera and go outside to take pictures? We are from outside the city and want to leave a souvenir here."

The master nodded and said readily, "Okay, I'll give you the imported camera that our store just bought at the end of last year. It's a German brand."

In the spring of 1965, the family of three took their first group photo on a street in downtown Qiongzhou.