Chapter 79
The night before officially leaving, Ye Manzhi did two important things.
The first thing is to entrust Ye Lihua to Comrade Chang Yue'e again.
The second thing was to entrust her government bonds and jewelry to Comrade Chang Yue'e.
The kitten was easy to deal with. After discovering that the gates to No. 16 Courtyard were locked, it could easily return to Old Ye's house. After all, it was a well-known playboy in the courtyard and a skilled mouse catcher. It couldn't be lost or starved.
But Ye Manzhi was worried about what to do with his valuable belongings.
Including the two Sundays before and after, they will be away for a total of 22 days. No one is at home for such a long time. What if they are targeted by thieves?
To withdraw money from a passbook, one needs a household registration book and a resident ID card. It's okay to leave the passbook at home, but there are no restrictions on redeeming government bonds. Anyone can go to the bank to redeem cash.
They have a thick stack of government bonds!
Wu Zhengrong comforted her, "Given the security of our compound, no one will be able to sneak in. I've already asked the soldiers on duty to patrol our area more often."
Before he got married, he often went out and kept his belongings at home, and nothing went wrong.
Ye Manzhi grumbled, clutching the biscuit box. "Even though I'm the deputy director of the neighborhood committee, I have to be honest. The security in our neighborhood isn't as good as you say. When I lived in the apartment building, things got stolen from us every now and then. Just on our wedding day, two wine cups and three clay figurines went missing from my house. Someone must have taken them while the chaos was going on."
Wu Zhengrong: “…”
A wine cup is fine, but what is the value of stealing a clay doll ornament?
Ye Manzhi searched everywhere in the house for a place to hide something, but this year's pest control work was more thorough, and there was not even a rat hole in their house, which was not suitable for hiding anything.
After discussing it with the military representative, she entrusted the biscuit box and Ye Lihua to her mother.
Although Chang Yue'e was grateful for the trust of her daughter and son-in-law, she felt a lot of pressure when she was suddenly asked to keep the couple's property.
In front of the young couple, Chang Yue'e opened the lid of the box and took a look to see roughly what was inside, then closed the lid again.
I cut two seals, had my daughter sign them, and then solemnly sealed the box.
"You two can go out without worry. We have someone at home all day, so your things won't get lost."
Seeing that the mother and daughter actually held a serious handover ceremony, Wu Zhengrong couldn't help laughing.
Ye Manzhi secretly glared at him where her mother couldn't see.
What are you laughing at? These two are both full of wisdom in life!
Director Xiao Ye, who is very wise, is about to go on a long journey for the first time. He is only excited and does not feel any reluctance to leave for the time being.
So, when Old Ye came home from get off work and expressed his sadness of parting with his daughter and son-in-law, Ye Manzhi really couldn't empathize with them at all.
She was only gone for 22 days and came back, what's there to be reluctant about?
But Ye Manzhi still decided to coax Lao Ye.
She found the pastry box she used at her mother's house, then fiddled with it in her parents' room for a while, and secretly called Lao Ye in.
"What can't be said outside?"
"Of course, this is something we can't tell anyone about outside," Ye Manzhi handed him the box of pastries. "Dad, I'm going on a long trip. Please keep this box for me."
"What's inside?" Ye Shouxin said as he was about to open the lid of the box.
"Anyway, this is something very important to me. I don't trust anyone else. Just keep it for me." Ye Manzhi held down his hand that was about to open the lid, deliberately showing a suspicious look. "Dad, you won't take advantage of me not to secretly look at the things inside, will you? If you want to peek, I'll ask Mom to keep it for you."
Ye Shouxin shook the box casually, curious about what was inside, but still said confidently: "That can't be done. Why would I look at your box? Leave it to me, and don't worry!"
"Alright," Ye Manzhi handed him the box and emphasized again, "You are only responsible for keeping it, but you are not allowed to peek!"
Ye Shouxin waved his hand impatiently, "Don't worry."
After his daughter and son-in-law left, he hid the aluminum box under the bed.
On the first day, he was curious but resisted opening the box. The next night, he tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Chang Yue'e, annoyed by him, asked him why he was so busy in the middle of the night.
Ye Shouxin couldn't keep the secret from his wife, so he quietly revealed his daughter's entrustment to her.
"Don't be too jealous. Lai Ya still trusts me when it comes to big things. I just don't know what's in that box."
Chang Yue'e saw that he was unable to sleep because of his daughter's trickery, which mainly affected her sleep, so she suggested: "The box is not locked, why don't you open it and see what's going on? Why are you making such a fuss?"
"That's not good, right? Lai Ya won't let me open it."
While talking, Ye Shouxin reached for the flashlight under his pillow, and dragged the aluminum box out with his butt sticking out.
"Since you are so curious, I will open it and take a look."
He asked his wife to hold a flashlight to illuminate it while he went to pick at the aluminum cover.
The lid of the box opened, revealing several notebooks and a note.
Ye Shouxin first pulled out a notebook and found that it was Ye Lai Ya's old exercise book.
He was still wondering why this girl gave him several exercise books?
With the help of the flashlight, the couple squinted their eyes to read the contents of the note -
Comrade Ye Bu Shouxin, didn't you promise not to peek?
Chang Yue'e and Ye did not keep their promise: "::::::"
Ye Bu Shouxin took a while to react and finally realized that he had been fooled by his own daughter.
After realizing this, he was furious: "F*ck, that little bitch has learned how to fool her father! Wait until she comes back from the south..."
*
At this time, Ye Manzhi had already boarded the train with Wu Zhengrong and headed to Guangzhou.
They had two destinations. The first stop was to Guangzhou to visit Wu Zhengrong's eldest sister and her family.
Then, depending on the situation, she would take a boat from Guangzhou or Zhanjiang to her father-in-law's residence.
There is no direct train from Binjiang to Guangzhou, so they have to go from Binjiang to Beijing first, then take the Jinghan Railway from Beijing to Hankou, and finally take the Hanyue Railway from Hankou to Guangzhou.
It takes four or five days to reach Guangzhou after changing trains twice.
Although the route was very complicated and some transfer points were not even in the same train station, Ye Manzhi was always in high spirits and enthusiastic.
From time to time, he would take out the map and confirm with Wu Zhengrong where he was.
As the conductor rang the copper bell again between the carriages, Ye Manzhi quickly handed the map to Wu Zhengrong and urged, "Hurry, hurry, the train is about to stop. Let's prepare in advance this time!"
Wu Zhengrong stood up from his seat, stood in front of her, and unfolded the map to block other people's view.
He whispered, "Take out some of your money and put it here with me. Don't you find it troublesome to lift up your clothes every time?"
"I'll leave the change with you later."
Not long after they got on the train, they heard that someone had lost money in the hard seat car.
Although the probability of a soldier being robbed is very low, Ye Manzhi still transferred all the money on Wu Zhengrong to her.
She lifted the hem of her shirt with ease and pulled out a few banknotes and two dollars from her waist bag, which was close to her belly button.
"Leave these on you. You'll pay for the things you buy later."
Neither the couple could use the special pair of pants she made.
After Wu Zhengrong stuffed the money into his trouser pocket, he looked a bit unserious, and both he and others felt a bit embarrassed.
Ye Manzhi also tried it on herself. The shorts were wearable, but they were not breathable after being stuffed with cash, especially in the hot summer. After trying them on for a long time, Ye Manzhi felt uncomfortable, so she changed the shorts into a waist bag overnight.
She is sensitive to cold but not heat in her belly button, so she puts some mugwort in her waist bag and it works very well to protect her waist.
I heard the conductor reminding me in the carriage that we had arrived at Chengde Station.
The two of them leaned over to the nearest car window, and Ye Manzhi asked quietly, "Do you think we can buy some dry food or fruit here?"
The train slowly pulled into the station. Wu Zhengrong squinted his eyes and glanced ahead, then said slowly, "I don't even have a bet. I won't guess."
Ye Manzhi whispered a few words in his ear and asked, "How is it?"
"Yeah." There were other people in the car, so Wu Zhengrong didn't say much. He nodded as if to acknowledge her bet, "Then I'll guess the fruit."
"Okay, then I guess it's dry food. However, I'd like to have some fruit. I still hope you can win."
They only brought enough food for one day, and had to eat all the rest on the way.
Ye Manzhi particularly looks forward to the train arriving at stations, especially small train stations. Every time the train stops, there are local villagers selling homemade dry food on the platform, as well as fruits and peanuts and melon seeds.
She bought two large bunches of rose-scented grapes at a small bus station yesterday and ate them happily for the entire afternoon.
But she had been walking all day and still hadn't met anyone selling fruit.
As soon as the train stopped, several middle-aged women rushed to the window carrying baskets. While others were still shouting and calling for help, Wu Zhengrong had already stretched out his arm very experiencedly and waved two Mao banknotes.
Seeing that there was money here, a woman in a headscarf came running over with a basket, "Comrade, do you want some Beijing white pears?"
"want."
Considering the rarity of fruit, Wu Zhengrong bought all the remaining six Beijing white pears in her basket.
Ye Manzhi happily nudged him with her elbow. "You must have seen the Beijing white pears in the basket a long time ago! And you even tricked me into making a bet!"
"Those pears are under the basket. My eyesight isn't that good yet."
Wu Zhengrong only saw from a distance that other passengers on the platform took out two fruits from the basket.
Ye Manzhi bought the fruit and was in a good mood so she didn't argue with him. After washing the Beijing white pear, she gave one to Director Guo sitting opposite her.
"Xiaoye has had a good appetite all the way here," the middle-aged woman glanced at her belly, "Are you going to be a mother?"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
She just got her period last week, how could she be a mother?
As for the little bulge on her belly, that’s her waist bag!
"I just have a good appetite, haha," Ye Manzhi changed the subject and asked, "Director Guo, are our tickets the same from now on? Can we still stay in the same carriage?"
The journey was too long, so Wu Zhengrong bought a sleeper ticket.
I happened to be in the same carriage with a delegation from the province.
This delegation was going to Guangzhou to attend the National Materials Exchange Conference. More than 20 people occupied half of the carriage. The female cadre who was in the same compartment with the couple was the director of the Materials Department of the Binjiang Commercial Bureau.
"We have the same destination, so our tickets should be the same," Director Guo pointed at the newspapers in their hands, "Xiao Ye, lend me yours."
Ye Manzhi's hands were covered in pear juice.
Wu Zhengrong handed her the newspaper and asked, "Director Guo, can we take a look at your book?"
In order to travel light, they did not take any other books with them except the books given as gifts.
I just spend my time reading newspapers every day.
Although they are husband and wife, they have to keep a distance when they go out. What's more, he is wearing a military uniform, so he has to be more careful about the impact.
Except for meal times, the couple were like the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, one on this side and the other on that side.
Wu Zhengrong had long been tired of the fields and wastelands along the way, and he couldn't talk to his wife all the time, so he was so bored that he just read the gaps in the newspaper.
Director Guo handed him the book generously.
This is the novel "Day and Night" written by Soviet writer Simonov.
The story is set in the Battle of Stalingrad during the Great Patriotic War.
Wu Zhengrong habitually opened the title page and found that it was a traditional Chinese version published by the Moscow Foreign Languages Publishing House in 1951.
Now that the country is promoting the use of simplified Chinese characters, old books written in traditional Chinese characters are rarely available in bookstores.
No wonder he hadn't read the book before.
"Director Xiao Ye, would you like to watch it together?" Wu Zhengrong took the initiative to invite.
Ye Manzhi nodded quickly, washed the juice off her hands and sat next to him.
The sleeper car is full of beds, and they both have their own seats. If they always sit on the same bed, it will easily attract attention.
This time we finally found a reason to sit next to each other.
She had never read the book "Day and Night" before. Wu Zhengrong held the book and she was responsible for turning the pages. The couple read the book for the whole afternoon.
This book describes a large number of war scenes. Ye Manzhi actually doesn't like reading war books or watching war movies, but Wu Zhengrong is fascinated by it, so she doesn't want to show that she is not making any progress.
As I read on, I gradually immersed myself in the fierce street fighting in Stalingrad, where people fought for every street and every house day and night.
Reading on the train was a bit tiring for the eyes, so they enjoyed the scenery for a while, read for a while, and continued reading on and off for more than two days.
Unfortunately, when the train arrived at Guangzhou Station, the two had not been able to read to the end of "Day and Night" and had to return the book to Director Guo.
Ye Manzhi wanted to ask Director Guo, did Battalion Commander Shabulov and female military doctor An Niang end up together?
She didn't care about the Battle of Stalingrad, she just wanted to know whether the two of them had achieved a happy ending.
Director Guo smiled and said, "I haven't finished reading it yet. How about you take the book home and read it? And then return it to me when you get back to Binjiang?"
If it were an ordinary small cadre, he might have accepted the book and then taken the opportunity to curry favor with the leader while returning the book.
But Ye Manzhi judged others by herself. If a stranger borrowed her half-read novel and didn't return it for nearly a month, she might be angry.
She also wants to know the ending!
"No need, Director Guo. I'll go to the bookstore and buy a copy when I get a chance. Your book is quite good and suitable for collection."
The train arrived in Guangzhou in the morning and the couple said goodbye to the members of the delegation.
After getting off the bus, I immediately felt the temperature difference between the north and the south.
"The south is indeed much hotter than where we are!" Ye Manzhi had just woken up and was still as energetic as the first day he got on the bus.
This was beyond Wu Zhengrong's expectations. He thought that the four-day journey would definitely consume some of Comrade Xiao Ye's enthusiasm.
Guangzhou Station is a big station with a lot of passengers. Ye Manzhi was afraid that she would be squeezed and lost, so she pulled at the hem of his shirt and looked around.
"Shall we go to my eldest sister's place first?" She still remembered that she came to Guangzhou to visit her eldest sister's family.
"Let's find a guesthouse first. Big Sister has to go to work during the day." Wu Zhengrong grabbed her wrist and walked out of the station. "It's your first time meeting her, so you should dress properly, right?"
Ye Manzhi nodded repeatedly, the military representative knew her very well.
She really didn't want to meet her elder sister-in-law in such a humiliating manner.
With their marriage certificate and letter of introduction, the two of them booked a double room in the guesthouse.
I went to the public bathroom to take a shower first, and then started to think about lunch.
There are many southerners in the military industrial compound, and Ye Manzhi had asked what delicious food there is in Guangzhou long before leaving.
She lay in bed, counting the names of the delicacies she remembered, "When are we going to the island? Can we try all these delicious foods in the next few days?"
She brought so much money with her just to spend it.
Eat all the delicious food she has never tasted before.
"Yes," Wu Zhengrong said, shaking the Guangzhou Daily he had just bought. "Right now, the Guangzhou Restaurant is holding a 'Famous Dishes and Delicacies Exhibition'. They say there are thousands of Cantonese dishes, dim sum, and snacks. We can go to the Guangzhou Restaurant and try them."
Ye Manzhi couldn't help swallowing. "There are actually thousands of varieties? Are there Wenchang chicken and Jiangnan crispy pigeon? Mr. Sun's wife said that these are the specialties of the Guangzhou Restaurant. They sound delicious!"
"I think so." Wu Zhengrong smiled and handed the newspaper over. "Read it for yourself."
He went out and asked the waiter at the hotel for a map of Guangzhou, intending to visit the Guangzhou Restaurant and take a tour of the Pearl River.
Their trip was completely aimless, they just went wherever they wanted and there was no need to rush like a delegation.
Therefore, the two were not in a hurry to take a car to their destination. After leaving the hotel, they strolled along the unfamiliar city streets.
"Do you think Battalion Commander Shabulov and An Niang will be together in the end?" Ye Manzhi was admiring the scenery along the way, still thinking about the content of the novel.
Wu Zhengrong guessed: "Maybe they are not together."
"Why?" Ye Manyi was anxious.
Wu Zhengrong calmly analyzed: "Those Soviet writers always like to create tragic characters. To make their works more profound and topical, they probably won't give them a happy ending. Perhaps one of them will sacrifice himself."
The two of them happened to stroll to the door of a Xinhua Bookstore, and Ye Manzhi couldn't wait to run in and ask the clerk if they had "Day and Night".
Employees of local state-owned enterprises can speak some Mandarin.
After listening to Ye Manzhi's detailed description of the author and content of the book, the other party shook his head and said that it was out of stock, but he could help them register it.
Ye Manzhi said that she was here to visit relatives and might not be able to stay until the books arrive.
The female clerk and her colleague chattered in Cantonese, but Ye Manzhi and Wu Zhengrong didn't understand a word.
When she turned around again, she introduced a grocery market to the two of them.
"It's not far from our bookstore. There's a commercial street just two blocks away. There are a few newsstands there that might have the book you're looking for. We rarely sell books in traditional Chinese anymore, so you might try your luck at a newsstand."
The two thanked the salesperson and followed his directions to the grocery market.
"This should be it," Ye Manzhi said speechlessly, pointing to the alley ahead. "Guangzhou people actually call a small street like this a commercial street? It's not even as wide as our Shidao Street, let alone China's main street!"
Wu Zhengrong also looked suspicious, but there were indeed quite a few stalls in this alley, some selling books, some selling clothes, shoes, hats, meat and seafood, and there was even someone who placed two radios on the ground.
When he saw other things, he didn't think anything of it, but the fact that radios could be sold outside made Wu Zhengrong alert.
He was just about to tell Ye Manzhi about his doubts, but Ye Manzhi had already taken the lead and squatted in front of a bookstall.
There were many foreign language books on the bookstall, as well as English and Russian dictionaries.
Ye Manzhi glanced at the dazzling cover and asked the stall owner directly, "Comrade, do you have 'Day and Night' here?"
The stall owner was from Guangdong and didn't seem to speak Mandarin. After listening to Ye Manzhi's words, he replied with a string of words that she couldn't understand.
Before Ye Manzhi came out, she had no idea that the biggest obstacle to her trip would be the language barrier.
She thought for a moment and then scratched the words "day and night" on the dirt road with her toes.
"Is there such a thing as this book?"
This time the stall owner seemed to understand, and immediately showed an expression of sudden enlightenment.
He also winked at Ye Manyi and Wu Zhengrong behind her and smiled teasingly.
Ye Manzhi understood it as "Why didn't you write earlier? If you had written earlier, I would have understood it a long time ago!"
Seeing that he understood, Ye Manzhi was very happy and thought that body language was also a very useful way of communication!
"How much is this book?"
The stall owner raised a finger and said, "One yuan."
“So expensive?”
Ye Manzhi thought it was a bit expensive, but Xinhua Bookstore no longer sold this book, and it might not be available anywhere else.
Besides, Director Guo’s book is quite thick, so I’ll just take it one piece at a time.
I can take this book back and put it on Wu Zhengrong's bookshelf as a treasure.
The two parties exchanged money and received the goods.
Ye Manzhi gave him the money, but after taking the book, she felt that something was wrong with it.
The cover was wrapped in brown paper, so the title of the book could not be seen, but it was not as thick as the book "Day and Night" they had just read.
She was just about to ask the other party if he had taken the wrong book when a sharp and rapid whistle suddenly came from the alley entrance.
Before Ye Manzhi could ask any more questions, the stall owner and the people from several nearby stalls all packed up their things and rushed to the other end of the alley like workers hearing the bell to get off work.
Seeing that she was still standing there stupidly, Wu Zhengrong grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the nearest fork in the road.
The alley was filled with whistles and the sounds of chasing footsteps. Several men with red armbands were shouting something in Mandarin as they chased.
A man wearing a red armband passed by them and wanted to come up to question the two of them. However, after seeing Wu Zhengrong's military officer ID, he said nothing, nodded, and continued to chase the group of vendors.
"What's going on?" Ye Manyi murmured.
"Maybe we've found the wrong place. This doesn't look like a proper commercial street, but more like a black market. A city-run grocery market can't possibly sell radios, right?" Wu Zhengrong speculated. "I suspect they're selling smuggled foreign goods."
Ye Manzhi held the book in her hand and asked, "Then I won't buy smuggled goods, right?"
"It's just a book, it shouldn't be that serious."
Ye Manzhi thought, she only spent one dollar!
This dollar cannot be wasted!
So she quickly opened the book and checked its contents.
As a result, you won’t know until you turn it over. Once you turn it over, you will be shocked. After seeing the content on the page clearly, Ye Manyi’s face is filled with shock. His hand shakes and the book drops to the ground.
"What's wrong?" Wu Zhengrong thought there was some bloody and violent content in the book, which scared her.
When he bent down to pick it up, he heard Ye Manzhi say anxiously, "Don't pick it up, that book is not serious!"
Wu Zhengrong still reached out and picked it up.
When he turned the page, he could see clearly what was inside - a man and a woman were fighting among the fairies.
He flipped through the book and found that almost the entire book was filled with content that was not suitable for children.
The scale is so large that it is eye-opening.
"Oh, stop reading!" Ye Manzhi said, her face flushed. "That guy looked quite honest, how could he be so frivolous! I asked him to buy the Soviet novel 'Day and Night,' and he actually sold me this kind of book!"
Wu Zhengrong closed the book with a subtle expression.
Speaking carefully, there seems to be nothing wrong with the stall owner's understanding. This book can barely be considered "Day and Night".
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