"I'm sorry!" Jiang Shiyue poked her head out from behind Lin Shian, held up three fingers and swore, "I promise I will never do such a wicked thing again!"
"Oh! As the old saying goes, it's hard to change a person's nature." Zhuangzhuang's mother didn't believe in Jiang Shiyue's character. She knocked the edge of the pot with a rolling pin and said, "Even if you return this pot, I wouldn't dare use it again. You sold the food you used to eat into rags. Who knows how many people have touched it in the meantime? The old man who collected the rags was so dirty all day long that he had lice crawling all over his clothes. I don't dare to take this pot anymore!"
"How much is this pot for? I can compensate you, right?" Jiang Shiyue proposed new compensation conditions.
Zhuangzhuang's mother glared at him, "I carried this iron pot from Jiamusi. Do you think a dollar or two is enough to compensate me? If you are really sincere, give me your aluminum pot as compensation."
Jiang Shiyue thought for a moment and frowned: "But my aluminum pot is very small, can your family use it?"
The diameter of her pot is 32 centimeters, but the diameter of Zhuangzhuang's iron pot is 43 centimeters.
"Tsk, if you don't want to part with it, just say so. What do you care whether our house can be used or not? I knew you were not sincere!" Zhuangzhuang's mother rolled her eyes and was about to close the door.
Jiang Shiyue nodded readily, "Deal! I'll take the iron pot."
After saying that, he pulled Chen Shanhe towards Da Liu's house.
Zhuangzhuang's mother was dumbfounded. She held the rolling pin in her hand for a long time, unable to recover. She stared at the sky and muttered to herself, "Is it raining red from the sky?"
Chen Shanhe asked Jiang Shiyue: "Are you really willing to exchange your aluminum pot for this broken iron pot?"
Jiang Shiyue shrugged, "I couldn't ask for more. Aluminum pots are unhealthy, but iron pots are so much better! They can also replenish iron. And they're big enough for the three of us to eat together!"
Chen Shanhe suddenly stopped, looked down at Jiang Shiyue, and repeated, "The three of us? Eating together?!"
When the two of them first got married, Jiang Shiyue ate in the cafeteria with Chen Shanhe. Later, Jiang Shiyue disliked the cafeteria food and asked for a special meal.
The food standards for officers and soldiers are very low now.
The air force soldiers, who are said to have the highest food standards, only have three yuan and fifty cents a day for food, while ordinary soldiers may not even get one yuan a day.
The average soldier was provided with about 40 kilograms of food and half a kilogram of meat per month.
Two-thirds of the food is coarse grains.
The food allowance for most companies with more than 100 people is only 50 yuan.
Most of the soldiers are young and middle-aged men. They are busy with daily training and activities, so these food can only barely fill their stomachs.
Therefore, in order to fill the stomachs of the officers and soldiers, they could only spend the least money to buy the most satisfying food, among which potatoes were the most popular among the kitchen staff.
Potatoes can be used to make soups and dishes, and can also be used as a staple food to satisfy hunger.
The original owner had eaten enough potatoes and insisted on making a fire to cook.
Chen Shanhe refused. He wanted to share the hardships with the soldiers in his battalion and distribute the extra food to the new soldiers who had little allowance.
The original owner was such a selfish person that he would never compromise, so he bought a small aluminum pot and cooked his own three meals a day from then on.
The small aluminum pot that Zhuangzhuang's mother was eyeing had just become popular in Shanghai and was priced at twelve yuan, while her iron pot only cost one yuan and eighty cents.
That's why Zhuangzhuang's mother was so surprised when Jiang Shiyue agreed to the exchange. Even Chen Shanhe was surprised.
Jiang Shiyue was also at a loss for words for a moment, but seeing that Chen Shanhe was just surprised and had no intention of objecting, she nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will pay for the food."
There's nothing she can do about cooking.
In my previous life, I relied on takeout, and in this life, I can only eat in the canteen of the compound.
Chen Shanhe automatically ignored the issue of food expenses and just said, "Just don't regret it!"
******
Da Liu was from Chen Shanhe's battalion, so naturally he had to give them some face and let the couple into the house.
It's just inevitable that they are treated differently.
She treated Chen Shanhe warmly but looked at Jiang Shiyue coldly. She even only poured a cup of tea and handed it to Chen Shanhe.
Jiang Shiyue had been subjected to so much cold words and insults in the past two days that she felt numb and didn't take it seriously. She took the initiative and got straight to the point: "I'm very sorry for breaking your bike."
Wang Hong was reminded of her sad past again. Her eyes reddened and she stamped her feet. "Why did you intervene earlier? What's the point of apologizing after you broke your bike?"
Jiang Shiyue reached into the iron pot and took out two pounds of pork belly wrapped in oil paper. He then took out a piece of letter paper from his trouser pocket and placed them on the table. He explained, "This piece of meat is a small token of my apology. This piece of paper is an IOU. I will definitely return you a new bicycle within three months."
Da Liu didn't even glance at the IOU and snorted coldly, "Can you not be like a schistosomiasis? Camp Chen's allowance is for you to calculate clearly."
After three months, Chen Shanhe had just enough money to buy a bicycle after deducting necessary living expenses.
Upon hearing this, Chen Shanhe picked up the IOU from the table and opened it to take a look.
Although Jiang Shiyue had given him enough surprises in the past two days, his eyes still moved slightly when he saw her words.
Jiang Shiyue's handwriting was completely different from before. The handwriting was gentle and delicate, with light strokes and smooth, powerful yet gentle lines. This was very similar to the personality Jiang Shiyue had shown in the past two days.
It is said that the handwriting reflects the character of the writer.
Jiang Shiyue explained in a good-tempered manner: "I won't use Chen Shanhe's money. I broke your bicycle, and I will definitely earn money to pay it back myself."
Wang Hong was so angry that her eyes turned red. She clenched her fists and shouted at Jiang Shiyue, "You make money? How do you make money? You talk better than you sing! Do you think money is dirt at your doorstep? You can dig up a pile with just a shovel."
"I bought a lot of clothes before, and I should be able to get some money if I sell them. Of course, the clothes from last year and the year before may not be easy to sell, and they need to be altered." Jiang Shiyue glanced at the curtains and tablecloths in Da Liu's house while speaking.
These were probably all pieced together by Wang Hong using scraps of cloth. It was obvious that she was good at sewing. A new idea suddenly occurred to her, "If you don't believe me, you can come with me and supervise me. You can also help me if you want. I'll give you an extra fifty cents for altering one piece of clothing, and one dollar for a set."
Wang Hong refused without thinking: "You wish!" She didn't want to help the thief.
Da Liu had been in the compound for a long time and knew how much Jiang Shiyue loved buying clothes. When he heard that she wanted to sell clothes, he widened his eyes in surprise, looked at Jiang Shiyue and then at Chen Shanhe.
Chen Shanhe nodded and pointed at the meat Jiang Shiyue placed on the table. "This is what she bought with her clothes. She..." Chen Shanhe glanced at Jiang Shiyue and gritted his teeth to promise her, "She should do what she said."
Big Liu opened and closed his mouth. Although he didn't believe Jiang Shiyue's words at all, he couldn't deny Chen Shanhe's face.
Wang Hong had just arrived at the compound and didn't know what kind of cadre the battalion commander was. She immediately started to retort, "Who would believe her? I've heard some gossip in the compound these past two days. Sister Jiang Shiyue's usual behavior is truly..."
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