It was already dark when Xia Liang came out of the kitchen. Her mother had called her for dinner, but she hadn't come out. When her mother saw her, she quickly brought out the food that had been left for her that evening. Xia Liang smelled the aroma of the food and realized how hungry she was. She picked up her bowl and started eating quickly. Seeing her in such a hurry, her mother quickly stopped her, saying, "Slow down, don't rush. If you eat so fast, you might feel unwell later." Xia Liang then slowed down and ate slowly. She put down her chopsticks after finishing the large bowl and let out a satisfied burp. Her mother urged her to wash up and go to bed. Xia Liang rested for a while, then went to the bathroom, washed up, and went back to her room to sleep.
At the county train station, Gu Yanxiao carried his luggage, ready to board the train. His father stood silently beside him, while his mother held his hand, reluctantly saying goodbye, "Take good care of yourself over there. Call me often when you have time." She reached for the suitcase in his father's hand, adding, "These are snacks I prepared for you. You won't be able to buy anything there. This should last you a while. If you need more, write to Mom, and I'll send you more." Gu Yanxiao was both amused and exasperated, "Mom, I'm not a child anymore. Why would I need snacks? Don't prepare any for me; you can take them back with you." He glanced towards the station exit, though he hadn't asked Xia Liang to come and see him off. But as he was leaving, he still wanted to see her one last time. His mother urged him, "Hurry up and get on the train, it's about to leave." Gu Yanxiao nodded and said to his parents, "Okay, I'm going on. You should go back and rest a bit more, you still have to go to work today." Gu's father, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up, "When you get to the army, you must train hard and live up to the country and the people." Gu Yanxiao nodded, "I know, you should go back now." After saying that, he picked up his bag and the suitcase he couldn't refuse and boarded the train. Gu's mother reached out and wiped away her tears. Seeing his beloved wife crying, Gu's father went forward to support her shoulders and comfort her. The two then headed home.
Gu Yanxiao saw the train was about to depart, but still hadn't seen the person he wanted to see. Disappointed, he lowered his eyes. Suddenly, a shout came from outside the window: "Gu Yanxiao, Gu Yanxiao!" Hearing his beloved's voice, Gu Yanxiao looked up sharply and saw Xia Liang running towards him. He jumped off the train in a few steps, rushed forward, and hugged Xia Liang, unable to contain his excitement: "Liang, why are you here?" He hugged her briefly and then let go. After all, they weren't married yet, and if they were seen together, he wouldn't be able to explain. Xia Liang, panting, said, "The shirts I made for you last night, take them with you." In the army, they were issued combat uniforms and such, and there was usually no opportunity to wear civilian clothes, but shirts could still be worn underneath. Gu Yanxiao opened the package and saw three button-down shirts inside. He happily held Xia Liang's hand and said, "You made me this last night..." "It's done! It was so hard. Don't do this again. Although I really like it, it hurts me to see you like this." Xia Liang blushed. Hearing the announcement over the loudspeaker, "The train from X County to the Black Market is about to depart. Passengers who haven't boarded yet, please board quickly." Xia Liang urged him to get on the train, but he couldn't move the man who didn't want to leave. Helpless, Xia Liang could only look at the people around them who were waiting for the train. Without paying attention to them, she tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek. Taking advantage of the man's dazed state, she pushed him onto the train. As soon as the door closed, the man came to his senses and hurriedly ran to the window to look at his beloved. "Liang, you should go back and rest quickly. I'll write to you when I get there. Remember to think of me. I will definitely miss you." Before he could finish speaking, the train had already started moving. He didn't know if Xia Liang had heard him. Gu Yanxiao didn't want to go back to the army.
After seeing Gu Yanxiao off, Xia Liang yawned and headed home. She had finished sewing late the night before, and she pedaled her bicycle home, panting, before falling into a deep sleep, knowing she had to go to work later. Xia Liang slept until twenty minutes before her shift, when her mother woke her up. She quickly washed her face, brushed her teeth, and rushed to the factory. It was nearing the end of the year, and the workload was heavy, so everyone in the factory was very busy. Xia Liang arrived at the factory just in time. As soon as she entered the office, she heard Wang Dayan, the foreman of the sixth shift, say, "We're picking up our New Year's supplies at 2 PM. I heard this year's is very generous. Everyone gets two jin of oil, two jin of meat, two feet of cloth, one jin of oranges, half a jin of sugar, one jin of biscuits, and three jin of apples. The director asked a few of us to collect them and then distribute them to the workshop." Xia Liang thought it sounded pretty good. These supplies would be considered meager in later years, but in this era, they were quite plentiful. Only large factories like garment factories could afford such things; small factories probably wouldn't even get half that. Then she thought, maybe the comrade who wanted to sell his job to her brother also wanted to collect all the supplies before leaving. Xia Liang chuckled at her own thought.
When Xia Liang got off work, he almost couldn't carry everything back home. Luckily, it wasn't far from home, so he managed to get it all. His mother was overjoyed to see so much stuff and kept saying, "Workers are so lucky! We country folk never see so much good stuff all year round!" Since coming to the city, they'd never lacked meat, but seeing so much was still a bit of a surprise. Xia Liang smiled and said, "Mom, we'll be on holiday in two weeks. We'll buy some to take back to Dad. He probably won't buy meat if he's home alone." Xia Dahe was an honest, simple country man. He could barely make ends meet with his own cooking and wouldn't put any effort into making something delicious. Besides, he probably didn't have any meat coupons. Thinking of this, Xia Liang felt a pang of guilt. While he and his mother lived comfortably in the city, he'd forgotten to send his father meat coupons. Xia Rong told him about it when she returned. Xia Rong laughed, "It's okay. Some villagers came to the county town earlier, and I asked them to take some coupons and money back." Xia Liang breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt guilty. He really hadn't been very considerate.
At No. 245 Guihuaxiang Lane, Xia Rong arrived at the agreed-upon location with Zhou Yuecheng. He knocked on the door, and it opened shortly afterward. Zhou Yuecheng, who had opened the door, quickly stepped aside to let Xia Rong in, saying, "Brother, you're here! Come in quickly!" The two went to the living room together, and Zhou Yuecheng hurriedly poured Xia Rong a glass of water. Xia Rong took a sip and then took out the money he had prepared beforehand—two hundred large wads of ten-yuan bills, two thick stacks. Zhou Yuecheng took them and counted them. After confirming that there were no problems, he told Xia Rong, "When you get there, just say you're my distant cousin. I'll handle the rest." Xia Rong nodded, and the two went to the factory.
Xia Liang had just returned home from get off work when Xia Rong also came back. Seeing his beaming face, Xia Liang knew in her heart that things had gone well. From now on, her brother would have a job, and the family's money could be spent more openly. Otherwise, even if they had money, they wouldn't dare to spend it. They would have to consider whether buying something was commensurate with their salary. After all, people knew their salary, and if they spent too much, people would become suspicious, and if someone with ulterior motives reported them, their family wouldn't be able to withstand an investigation.
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