When Qin Xiangju heard this, she wanted to say to him, "Why don't you go to heaven? You want to exchange everything, but it's not really worth it."

Lin Yiyi knows the prices of crabs and prawns. She often places grocery orders for her mother on the grocery shopping app. Crabs like this cost about 60 to 70 yuan per pound, and prawns cost 50 yuan per pound. If calculated according to modern prices, 5 pounds of crabs would cost about 350 yuan, and 3 pounds of prawns would cost 150 yuan, which adds up to 500 yuan. In modern times, if you buy some rice, you can buy 200 pounds.

But in this era, let alone 200 kilograms of rice, people are unwilling to exchange even 20 kilograms of rice.

Lin Yiyi was in a dilemma for a moment. She didn't want to take advantage of the boy, but the price she offered couldn't be out of line with the times.

The young man saw that Lin Yiyi looked embarrassed and thought that Lin Yiyi was not satisfied with what he proposed. After thinking for a while, he said, "Why don't you tell me the transaction object, and if it is acceptable, we will trade." If he was not satisfied with the transaction object, he would not trade.

Lin Yiyi could see that he was nervous, so she thought for a moment and said, "As for crabs, how about I give you three buns for one pound of crabs?" People of this era don't like to eat crabs, firstly because it's troublesome, and secondly because they think there's no meat in them. This crab is not big, about three per pound. In everyone's eyes, the meat squeezed out of three crabs is not as big as a bun. In an era that values ​​practicality, the main thing is to fill the stomach, so many people are not willing to exchange one pound of crabs for three buns.

The young man heaved a sigh of relief when he heard this: "Okay, then...that noodle..."

Lin Yiyi said, "I have three buns and a bowl of noodles here. I'll give you nine buns and two bowls of noodles, which is exactly five kilograms of crabs. What do you think?"

The young man quickly said, "Okay, thank you so much, you are such a good person."

Lin Yiyi: "Do you have anything to store buns and noodles?"

The young man only had two wooden barrels filled with crabs and shrimps. He said, "I'll pour out the crabs and wash the barrels. You can put the noodles and buns in the barrels."

Lin Yiyi: "...How about this, I'll lend you two bowls to hold noodles and steamed buns. Next time you have crabs or shrimps, you can bring them to my house to trade, and return the bowls to me. How about that?" If the other party really refuses to return the bowls, Lin Yiyi feels that she has gotten a bargain, after all, the price of the crabs and shrimps can buy ten bowls. If the other party returns the bowls, will she still worry about not being able to eat crabs and shrimps in the future?

Young man: "Thank you." This lady is so nice.

If Lin Yiyi knew what he was thinking, she would definitely correct him. She was only 17 years old and not the eldest sister. In front of men, many women like to be younger sisters.

Lin Yiyi smiled and said, "Then let's talk about how to trade shrimp. You want rice and cloth, right?"

The young man nodded, "Yes, my eldest sister is getting married, and I want to give her a piece of cloth to make a new dress." He said shyly, "Our family is poor, I can't afford anything else. My sister has never worn new clothes, so I just want to give her a piece of cloth. But I know these shrimps are not enough to exchange for enough cloth to make a new dress. How about you do the math, and wait for me...wait for me to go fishing for crabs and shrimps in a few days, and then I'll send them to you, and you...can you..." The young man couldn't say the rest, and he felt that he was asking too much.

Lin Yiyi: "Okay, I'll take the shrimp first. Next time you come to return the bowl, bring the crabs and shrimps you caught. I'll calculate how much cloth you should give me then. What do you think?"

The young man said, "Okay, thank you, big sister." He was not afraid that Lin Yiyi would owe him the debt. If she did, he would only lose three pounds of shrimps. But if she didn't owe him the debt, he could buy his sister a new piece of cloth, so he felt it was worth it.

The young man put down one of the wooden barrels containing shrimps. There was sea water in the barrel, which could keep the shrimps alive for a while longer. The live shrimps would taste better when they were ready to be eaten.

After the young man left, Qin Xiangju asked, "Yiyi, you exchanged nine buns and two bowls of noodles for five pounds of crabs. Does that count?" In Qin Xiangju's opinion, it didn't count. The crabs were only as big as her palm, and even five pounds of crabs couldn't be counted as buns and cold noodles.

Lin Yiyi said, "Let's eat it once in a while. When dad gets off work in the evening, you and dad can go to the county town. I will cook for you. It will definitely be delicious." Her crab with scallion oil, braised shrimp... just thinking about it makes her drool. For this kind of dish that does not require cooking skills, Lin Yiyi likes it no matter how she looks at it. As she said, she put her arm around Qin Xiangju's shoulder again, "Mom, we are in a good condition now. Brother Yu has a high salary, and my royalties are not bad. My father-in-law is also a worker now. We have the conditions at home. We have to eat good food once in a while. People live their whole lives. When they have the conditions, they must be good to themselves, otherwise when they are old and can't eat anymore, they will have nothing to eat." Lin Yiyi knew that people of this generation pay attention to thriftiness. If the elderly are reluctant to eat, then the younger generation can only buy some good food for them.

Qin Xiangju is actually a very insightful person. Although she thinks that there is no need to make plans, what her daughter-in-law said makes sense. To put it bluntly, the family has already been divided, so how can she be so lenient?

"Sister, we are back." Lin Sanjun and Lin Sijun took a walk and came back when it was almost lunchtime. Lin Sanjun was very eye-catching, holding a bamboo mat in his arms.

The bamboo mats of this era are different from those of later generations. The bamboo mats of later generations are either square or striped, but the bamboo mats of this era are woven with bamboo strips. The thin bamboo strips, about one millimeter thick, are woven into a mat, so it takes a lot of time. Not only are the bamboo strips difficult to prepare, but they also need to be cleaned after weaving, otherwise people will be scratched by the bamboo mat when they sleep.

Lin Yiyi was born in the late 1990s. This kind of bamboo mat no longer existed at that time. However, she had seen this kind of bamboo mat in her grandmother's photo album. It was a photo of her father when he was a child. Her father was wearing a red bellyband and a high-top braid. He was sitting on a bamboo mat and sucking his little hand with his mouth. He looked chubby and very cute.

Another advantage of bamboo mats is that they are particularly cool to sleep on in the summer, especially if you wipe them with cold water before going to bed. They are cooler than straw mats.

Lin Yiyi: "Did you change the mat?"

Lin Sijun: "For my elder sister."

Lin Yiyi was stunned.

Lin Sijun chuckled and said, "Sister, aren't you complaining about the heat? The grandpa who bought the mat said that sleeping on it would be cooler. There were originally two bamboo mats there, but one was replaced by someone else."

Lin Yiyi's eyes warmed up: "What about you guys?"

Lin Sijun said indifferently: "We are men. If it's hot inside, we sleep outside in the yard. That's how the masters sleep. Sister, you are a lesbian, you can't sleep outside."

Lin Yiyi opened her eyes wide, trying not to let the tears flow out, but... she still couldn't control herself.

Seeing her crying, Lin Sijun was frightened: "Sister, what's wrong with you?"

Lin Yiyi waved towards them and said, "I am touched. You have finally grown up. I am very pleased."

Lin Sijun laughed again.

Lin Yiyi wiped her eyes with her sleeve, her eyes were still red: "How did you change this bamboo mat?"

Lin Sijun: "We exchanged two kilograms of meat coupons and a bag of brown sugar. The old man wanted 20 kilograms of fine grains, and we even bargained with him.

Lin Yiyi said: "You guys are awesome."

Lin Sijun was extremely proud and felt very happy when his sister praised him.

Lin Yiyi took out a bowl and said, "Let's eat when your eldest brother comes." Then she served a bowl of cold noodles, two vegetable dumplings, and a bowl of green bean soup. She said to Qin Xiangju, "Mom, please take these to Dad. I won't leave here."

Qin Xiangju said, "Okay, I'll go over there."

Not long after Qin Xiangju left, Qi Bocai and Liang came back, bringing someone with them, Xiao Ling. Xiao Ling met them when they were exchanging things, and she knew that Lin Yiyi and Qin Xiangju were here, so she asked them to come together.

Xiao Ling: "Second sister-in-law, where is mother? Didn't you say she was here?"

Lin Yiyi: "I went to bring food to Dad. What did you get in exchange?"

Xiao Ling said, "It's nothing. I exchanged some sugar, a few pounds of meat, and some flour. We don't have many eggs left at home, so I just exchanged some to pass the time." The notice was only issued in July, and the eggs could only be stored for a month at most, 20 to 30 at most. Who said eggs can't be stored for a long time?

It has to be said that eggs are the universal "currency" on this trading day. Nine out of ten households trade with eggs, which are also the eggs that everyone has saved in advance. However, on this trading day, Lin Yiyi's stall is also one of the stalls with the best "business". The things in her stall are more affordable and the prices are also cheap. One egg costs three vegetable buns, and everyone is willing to eat them. Even if it is just one egg and a bowl of noodles, everyone is willing to trade with gritted teeth.

The reason why cold noodles are so cheap is mainly because the price of flour is low. A pound of flour is less than 0.2 yuan, and half a pound of flour is 0.1 yuan, which can make three bowls of cold noodles. A pound of eggs costs 0.6 yuan, and an egg is about 0.6 cents, so it is more expensive to bring some nutrients that can replenish the body, such as eggs and meat.

However, when the rural economy is fully developed, the price of crabs and shrimps will also rise. Lin Yiyi remembers that when she was reading the period article, she was curious and checked it on the Internet. According to the prices of that era, a pound of crabs cost 30 cents and a pound of shrimps cost 50 cents. However, there are few crabs and shrimps now, so there is no market and no market price. Besides, crabs really have little meat. You can only buy three crabs for 30 cents a pound. This thing is too extravagant.

Xiao Ling still had a few eggs on her, and she didn't know what to exchange them for, so she exchanged them for vegetable buns and noodles from Lin Yiyi, intending to take them back for the child. Lin Yiyi didn't give her much, so she gave her the amount she exchanged. Qi Bocai and Liang were both there, and if she gave Xiao Ling too much, they wouldn't have any, and it wouldn't look good.

Xiao Ling left without waiting for Qin Xiangju. She had to go home to cook because her mother-in-law had been in poor health recently.

Lin Yiyi held her hand and said, "Come to the county town when you have time. Your second brother was thinking about you a few days ago."

Xiao Ling said, "Hey." Her second brother missed him? Of course not, and the second sister-in-law was just being polite.

However, as soon as Lin Yiyi mentioned Xiao Yu to her, Xiao Yu came pushing his bicycle.

Lin Yiyi immediately stopped caring about Xiao Ling: "Why are you here?"

Xiao Yu: "I got off work at noon and came to take a look." Seeing the women of the Xiao family were all here, he was a little surprised, "Do you want my help?"

Lin Yiyi shook her head: "No, I'm almost done exchanging things. Look, all I'm exchanging are eggs." Needless to say, she has a lot of eggs. This time, she made 5 jin of flour buns, which is equivalent to 90 buns, and 10 jin of cold noodles, which is equivalent to 30 bowls. They are almost all exchanged. As for mung bean soup, she didn't make much, because mung bean soup in summer is not durable. If there is no ice, it will probably go bad from morning to afternoon. So many times, if someone exchanges a lot of things, she will give them a portion. "You eat first." As she said that, she began to serve things, cold noodles, buns, and lobsters. Although the stall was covered with a tent, it was still very hot. The so-called tents were actually straw huts, passing by in rows.

Just as Lin Yiyi had finished packing her things, Qin Xiangju arrived. She was very happy to see her son: "Why are you here?"

Xiao-Woo: "Come and take a look."

Lin Yiyi: "Mom has been helping me this morning. Thanks to you, I am not busy. After the stall is closed, mom and dad will come to our house. I have changed crabs and shrimps today and invite mom and dad to come over and try them."

Xiao-Woo: "Well... you've worked hard, mom."

Qin Xiangju smiled and said, "I didn't help much. Your wife changed two pairs of shoes for you and said she would cook crabs and shrimps for you. She changed them especially for you. You should treat her well."

Xiao Yu: “Yeah.” He looked at Lin Yiyi, his eyes full of tenderness.

Qin Xiangju said to Bocai and Liang, "You two should go back. Your father and I will not be going home today. We will go back and tell your grandparents."

Qi Spinach: "I understand." The mother-in-law went to the county town to enjoy her life.

Lin Yiyi: "Sister-in-law, here are some vegetable buns and cold noodles. Can you please take them to grandpa and grandma?"

Qi Bocai and Liang Shi didn't stay long. After Lin Yiyi packed her things, they went back. As soon as they left, Lin Yiyi's stall was open for dinner. Lin Dajun hadn't come yet. The three Lin brothers, Qin Xiangju, Lin Yiyi and Xiao Yu also had noodles and buns, as well as lobsters from the Lin family. Of course, it was difficult to change the lobsters, so they just took them out and ate them.

When Lin Dajun came over, everyone had already finished eating. His face was covered with sweat as he ran over from the pig farm. Lin Dajun was very curious about what his brothers had exchanged, so while eating, he asked them about the situation. He learned that they had exchanged a desk and a cabinet for him to use when he got married, and he felt that his brothers were really considerate of him.

After finishing his meal, Lin Dajun hurried back to the pig farm. Lin Yiyi had exchanged almost all of her things, so she took Lin Wudi for a walk in the afternoon. Then they saw some food stalls selling maltose, even salted duck eggs, and watermelons. So Lin Yiyi exchanged a few pieces of maltose, some salted duck eggs, and three watermelons.

In the afternoon, Lin Yiyi and Qin Xiangju packed up the stall and prepared to go back. The backpack and the wooden barrel were not very heavy, but the table might have accounted for the weight. If Qin Xiangju was not there today, Lin Yiyi would have to wait for Xiao Yu to get off work before pulling the cart. But with Qin Xiangju, a middle-aged woman used to farm work, she was very strong, so she pulled the cart, and Lin Yiyi and Lin Sanjun pushed it from behind.

It's not that Lin Yiyi was unfilial and let her mother-in-law pull the cart, but this body was only 17 years old and didn't do farm work, so she really didn't have the strength. Plus, she and Lin Sanjun were pushing from behind, so Qin Xiangju didn't feel tired at all. And the road from the commune to the county town was relatively flat.

When they got home, Lin Yiyi poured cold boiled water for everyone and said to Qin Xiangju, "Mom, you take a rest. I'm going to go out and return the cart." The cart was borrowed from the scrap yard; they didn't have one at home.

Qin Xiangju: "Okay."

Lin Yiyi first went to the scrap yard to return the cart, and then went to the department store. Her father-in-law and mother-in-law came home. Since they were coming for dinner, they would definitely stay overnight, but they didn't have any change of clothes. Maybe in this day and age, it's okay to not take a shower for a night, but Lin Yiyi still prepared clothes for them.

Unable to find suitable clothes for them in the department store, Lin Yiyi thought about it and looked in the system mall. Cotton and linen were popular in this era, so she chose a gray cotton short-sleeved top and black linen trousers. The prices of such simple styles of clothes and pants were very cheap. Lin Yiyi also prepared old man's underwear for Qin Xiangju. As for her father-in-law, she definitely would not prepare any. When Xiao Yu came back, she would let Xiao Yu give his father the underwear he used to wear. It would not matter between father and son.

Then, she bought a few more bottles of beer before going home. Today we have crabs and shrimps, how can we not have beer? Besides, my father-in-law will also come over, so let them drink slowly.

Lin Yiyi returned home and saw Qin Xiangju boiling water.

Lin Yiyi said: "Mom, you take a rest, I'll take care of these."

Qin Xiangju: "It's okay to sit down anyway. You've been tired all day, so you should rest first."

Lin Yiyi said: "Then please help me deal with the crabs and shrimps."

Qin Xiangju: "That would be great."

Lin Yiyi added, "Sanjun, watch the fire. When the hot water is ready, pour it into the kettle, and then help your sister wash some potatoes. Sijun, you can take Xiaowu out to play for a while. Your friends mentioned you a few days ago. Here are some maltose. You can share them with your friends."

Lin Sanjun: “Yeah.”

Lin Sijun: “Hey.”

Qin Xiangju is really satisfied with Lin Yiyi as her daughter-in-law. She is filial to the elderly and keeps her own family in order.

Lin Yiyi said, "Mom, why don't you handle the crabs? I'm a little worried about getting bitten by them."

Qin Xiangju couldn't help laughing: "Okay, I'll do it. How do you want to deal with it?"

Lin Yiyi: "Just wash the crabs, peel off the crab shells, and put the crab shells and crabs separately into the bowl. I'll take care of the rest."

Qin Xiangju: "Okay, have you dealt with them all?"

Lin Yiyi: “Let’s deal with it.”

Qin Xiangju: "Okay."

Qin Xiangju was processing the crabs, while Lin Yiyi went back to her room to get a needle and then processed the black lines on the shrimps. She was quite good at processing the black lines as she had helped her mother do it before, but she used a toothpick at that time.

After the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had finished processing the five catties of crabs and three catties of shrimps, Qin Xiangju asked curiously, "What are you going to do with this?"

Lin Yiyi said: "For shrimp, braise it and grill it with soy sauce. For crab, add scallion sauce."

Qin Xiangju: "It sounds delicious. I'll try your cooking today."

Lin Yiyi: "Just wait and eat. Please help me light the fire and add more when needed."

Qin Xiangju: "Don't worry, I'll watch the fire."

In an ordinary family, how could a daughter-in-law dare to let her mother-in-law get angry? But Qin Xiangju herself has a straightforward personality, and she doesn't like daughters-in-law who are shy, so she is happy that Lin Yiyi is friendly with her. If the daughter-in-law is friendly with her, doesn't this mean that the son is friendly with her?

Lin Yiyi prepared the plates first, then cut the crabs in half. Because the crabs were small, they were only cut in half. One plate could hold three crabs, so Lin Yiyi prepared three plates. After the crabs were placed, she poured some cooking wine, chopped garlic, and placed it on top. Finally, she placed the three plates on the steamer.

The stoves of this era were very big, because many families did not separate and three generations lived together, so they had to cook food for three generations in one iron pot, and the stove had to be big. Therefore, the steaming rail of the stove could hold three plates.

Cook rice and steam crab at the same time, it's very quick.

Qin Xiangju looked at him and couldn't help but say, "You look pretty good in this state."

Lin Yiyi: "I just looked at the recipe, I haven't tried it yet, I'm actually very nervous. Mom, if the food I cook later is not tasty, you have to say it was you who cooked it in front of Brother Yu, so that Brother Yu won't dislike me. You are his mother, he dare not dislike you."

Lin Yiyi said this jokingly, and Qin Xiangju didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Okay, if it doesn't taste good, I'll take it for you."

Rice was cooking and crabs were steaming in one pot. Lin Yiyi had no spare time either. She cut the remaining two pounds of crabs, a total of six crabs, into small pieces, smaller than those for the steamed crabs, and then added salt, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, and minced garlic.

Qin Xiangju understood immediately: "Are you going to make pickled crabs?"

Lin Yiyi said: "Well, you can eat it tomorrow. You can also take some back when you go back. But you can't eat too much raw and pickled crabs, otherwise your stomach will feel uncomfortable."

Qin Xiangju: "So, are these crab shells thrown away?"

Lin Yiyi: "The crab shell is so fragrant. The most delicious thing is the crab shell."

Qin Xiangju watched.

Lin Yiyi cut the potatoes that Lin Sanjun had washed into pieces, put them into the iron pot, and then put the crab shells in: "Just cook the soup like this."

Xiao Yu got off work at about the same time as Xiao Daqiang, but because Xiao Daqiang had to walk from the commune to the county town, it would seem late. Knowing that his father was coming to the county town for dinner today, Xiao Yu rode his bicycle to pick him up as soon as he got off work, including his brother-in-law. On the way, Xiao Yu ran into Xiao Daqiang and Lin Dajun, who came together after get off work.

Xiao-Woo: "Dad, the army."

Xiao Daqiang smiled and said, "What are you doing here? It's just a short distance. I can get there in a short walk."

Xiao Yu said, "Yi Yi is worried that you are too tired from walking." It was indeed his wife's idea, and he hadn't thought of it yet. Then he said to Lin Dajun, "Dajun, you sit on the horizontal bar, and let your uncle sit behind you."