Since they were neighbors and had already spoken to each other, Fang Qiao couldn't say anything more and could only say, "It's okay, you can give it to me next month when you have the tofu coupons."
"Okay, I'll definitely pay you back next month when my husband gets his tofu coupons."
Chen Guizhi said, "This morning, everyone in our residential compound is going to dig shepherd's purse on the mountain behind the house. Are you going?"
The herb Hushengcao, a similar plant to shepherd's purse, grows in large patches in the space and is even more tender and juicy than the native shepherd's purse. Fang Qiao didn't want to go through all that trouble to run up the mountain again.
She shook her head: "I have other things to do this morning, so I won't go."
"Okay, I'll go now. We'll talk again later."
As Chen Guizhi came out of Fang Qiao's house, she shouted at the top of her lungs, "Tingting, Mom went up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables. You take Tiantian and don't go too far."
"knew."
After Chen Guizhi left, Fang Qiao sat by the window and wrote letters to Wang Yun and her third aunt.
At the very end of the letter, Fang Qiao wrote down his contact address and the factory's emergency contact number.
Tell them to write to you often if there's nothing urgent, and if there's anything important, they can make a long-distance call from the post office in town.
After finishing writing, Fang Qiao put the two letters into her satchel, along with some money and tickets, before coming out of the inner room.
Xiao Jing was wiping the table with a rag when Fang Qiao called out to her, "Xiao Jing, I'm going to the post office to mail a letter home today. I asked you to write a letter home yesterday, have you finished writing it?"
"Sister-in-law, I've finished writing it." Xiao Jing put down the rag in her hand, went back into the house, and handed the letter she had written to Fang Qiao.
The envelope was sealed with glue. Fang Qiao took it without looking at it and put it directly into her handbag.
She said, "I'm going to mail a letter and buy some things to send home. I might be back a little late around noon. Keep an eye on An'an. If she cries when she wakes up, make her a bottle of milk."
Xiao Jing nodded: "I know."
"Then I'm leaving."
As Fang Qiao slung her handbag over her shoulder and came out of the yard, she happened to see a stylishly dressed young woman knocking on the door of her neighbor's house to the west.
Their eyes met, and Fang Qiao smiled politely at her.
The woman didn't react much, but instead looked Fang Qiao up and down several times, her eyes revealing a hint of scrutiny.
Fang Qiao felt uncomfortable, pursed her lips, and turned to leave the family compound.
She took a bus at the bus stop in front of the residential compound and went to the nearest shopping mall, Xicheng Shopping Mall, to buy things to send home.
Fang Qiao arrived at the perfect time; as soon as she entered the Xicheng Shopping Mall, she saw large red signs advertising discounts on every counter.
Upon inquiring, I learned that Xicheng Shopping Mall had been diagnosed with foundation subsidence, cracks in the walls, and even multiple fractures in the floor slabs. For safety reasons, more than half of the mall has already ceased operations, and the remaining half is undergoing emergency clearance sales. In at most another half month, the entire Xicheng Shopping Mall will have to close for renovations.
The business closure for renovations is none of Fang Qiao's business, but she likes the price reductions and discounts.
The discounts and price reductions of that era were genuinely cheap, completely unlike the various tricks and schemes of later generations.
Once Fang Qiao entered, she couldn't stop buying things.
Specialty pastries are cheap, buy them!
Fresh cured pork is cheap, buy it!
Corduroy fabric is cheap, buy it!
High-top rain boots are cheap, buy them!
I'll buy everything I see that I like!
Fang Qiao bought three sets of everything. She kept one small set for herself, gave another small set to Wang Yun, and gave the largest set to her third aunt's family.
After all, Auntie San has a large family, and the old lady now lives with Auntie San, so buying too little wouldn't be enough to go around.
In this way, the money is spent even faster.
In less than half an hour, Fang Qiao had spent all the money and tickets she had brought.
The main problem was that she only had a little over fifty yuan with her, and the items in the bag, just two pairs of high-top rain boots, cost thirty yuan.
But no matter how expensive the rain boots are, you can't skimp on this money.
Because it rains a lot in spring and autumn, high-top rain boots are essential. Otherwise, if you wear ordinary rubber shoes to work in the fields, it's like soaking your feet in mud and water. By the end of the day, the soles of your feet will be white and peeling.
Of course, the price of two pairs for ten yuan is after a discount. Normally, a pair of rain boots can sell for around ten yuan.
Future generations may find this price outrageous, but that's the reality now: with a weak industrial base, anything related to industry is expensive.
For example, the Peace Dove brand bicycle sells for 150 yuan now, and it will still sell for 150 yuan twenty years from now.
This is a historical issue, and there is currently no solution.
When Fang Qiao left the mall, she was carrying several heavy bags, and her fingers were marked with red welts from the bags.
Unfortunately, there were people all around, and Fang Qiao couldn't just throw the items into her spatial dimension in front of so many people. Otherwise, if the items in her hand disappeared into thin air, the people who saw it would definitely think she was a monster, grab her, and burn her.
Fang Qiao could only carry these things and walk a very long way.
At that moment, she was incredibly envious of the people riding bicycles past her, who could simply tie their things to the back seat, ride off, and not get tired at all.
Unfortunately, a bicycle costs 150 dollars, plus 15 industrial coupons or a bicycle ticket.
Her family had 150 yuan, but unfortunately, they didn't have 15 industrial coupons or bicycle tickets.
Fang Qiao walked two hundred meters after leaving Xicheng Shopping Mall before finding a quiet, deserted alley.
She quickly slipped inside and threw the items into her spatial storage.
With the heavy object gone, Fang Qiao finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
It's so heavy and tiring!
Even after putting the items into the space, the red marks on my hands didn't disappear so easily.
Fang Qiao boarded the bus back and got off at the stop near the post office.
After getting off the bus, I found a quiet place and used my mind to retrieve the items I wanted to mail from my spatial storage before carrying them into the post office.
The post office was crowded, and Fang Qiao had to wait in line for quite a while before it was her turn.
After mailing the items and leaving, Fang Qiao glanced up at the clock hanging in the center of the post office and realized it was already 11:30 a.m.
There wasn't time to go grocery shopping anymore, so Fang Qiao took the bus directly back to her family compound, arriving home at exactly midnight.
Xiaojing is making lunch in the kitchen.
"I'm back."
Fang Qiao placed the things she bought on the table in the main room and peeked into the inner room through the curtain.
An'an was sleeping in her crib. Tian Tian moved a small stool and sat down next to the crib. When she saw Fang Qiao enter, she happily stood up from the stool: "Auntie! You're back!"
She snuggled into Fang Qiao's arms and said in a childish voice, "My little sister is asleep. Aunt Jing told me to watch over her, and I've been watching her very carefully."
"Good girl." Fang Qiao ruffled Tian Tian's hair and pulled a candy from her pocket: "Here's a reward for you!"
"Thank you, Auntie!"
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