Chapter 15
The Xu family lived a peaceful life. Except for being worried about their eldest daughter who was working in the countryside in Yunnan, everything else was pretty good.
After changing out of his sweater and trousers, Xu Di put on a cotton jacket and trousers. Snowflakes were floating outside the window, heralding the arrival of winter!
"Hiss, it's so cold!"
"How is it? Has the stuff been sent?"
"They have sent it. The cotton cloth, Jiefang shoes, cloth shoes, ointment that Xu Mei wanted, and the clothes that Xu Di made for her sister, have all been sent. I also took back the things that Xu Mei sent back, but I don't know what they are."
Father Xu put down the package in his hand. His hands were red from the cold from the journey.
"Dad, drink some hot water."
Xu Di brought over a teacup of hot water. His father's nose was red from the cold.
"Can my sister come back for the New Year this year?"
"I don't know. I've been gone for almost two years. I think I should be able to take some time off. Fortunately, your sister is in the military corps and has a salary. She's a civilian. Otherwise, I don't know how exhausted she would be!"
As Xu's mother unpacked the package, she sighed, Xu Mei would be 21 years old during the Chinese New Year and was at the age to get married. What would she do if she couldn't come back for a while?
This group of educated youth who went to Yunnan Province could not easily return to the city. She still didn't agree to let Xu Mei take over her job.
Mother Xu sighed. Her heart was really hanging in the air. And what about Xu Di? He is about to graduate, but he still hasn't found a job.
"Wow, so much brown sugar and mushrooms, are these dried fruits?"
Mrs. Xu looked at the package that her mother-in-law had opened, which contained all the local specialties sent back by Xu Mei.
"Mom, there's a letter. See what my sister wrote?"
Xu Di took the letter, and her mother didn't recognize many words.
"Xu Di, come and see what your sister said. How are you doing there?"
Everyone in the Xu family stared at Xu Di and asked her to read the letter quickly.
Xu Di tore open the envelope and took out the letter paper.
"My sister said everything is fine there, except that she misses home a little. The work is not too tiring, but the climate in the south is humid, and she is slowly getting used to it.
Mom, my sister said she has a boyfriend! ”
Xu Di saw the key information and shouted it out hurriedly.
"We are dating. Where is the man from? What does he do? Is he a local?"
Xu's mother was anxious. If she married a local, there would be no hope of her coming back.
"No, he is also an educated youth from Shanghai."
Xu Di read the rest of the content and quickly informed her mother, who became anxious.
"Shanghai is not close, why don't you find a fellow countryman from Beijing?"
Xu's mother was still not satisfied. They lived in the south and north respectively, and even if they returned to the city, they would not be close to each other!
The others didn't say anything. They were more than a thousand miles away, and even if they wanted to stop it, they couldn't reach them.
Xu Mei is a person with her own ideas, otherwise, she couldn't just go to the countryside.
Xu Di didn’t know whether Xu Mei’s choice was right or not. He had heard in his previous life that the locals in Shanghai were very xenophobic, and he didn’t know what the future would be like.
The atmosphere in the Xu family was a bit depressed because of Xu Mei's incident, and everyone went back to bed early.
Xu Di locked the door and entered the space.
It’s been more than three months, and the space has changed a lot.
The previously empty black soil is now planted with crops.
More than a dozen fruit trees have grown to more than one meter tall and will bloom and bear fruit next year.
One year in space is equivalent to more than three years outside.
Under the tree, groups of chicks chirped non-stop.
Xu Di had already made some separation. The hens that had laid eggs were together, the roosters were together, the newly hatched chicks were together, and the chicks that had grown hard hair were together. The partition walls are all made of willow branches, which have a high survival rate, and are now more than one meter high.
Xu Di used straw ropes to chain the willow branches together to form a tree wall, making it impossible for them to pass through.
Of the seventeen chickens at the beginning, there were thirteen hens and four roosters. After the chickens started laying eggs, Xu Di collected forty or fifty of them and put them in a duck feather bag to incubate. He did this batch after batch, and now there are already hundreds of chickens in the space.
We have accumulated a lot of corn, enough to feed the chickens for a year.
I will plant corn again next year and also look for some other varieties of fruit trees. A large area of leek fields has been planted with roots. Xu Di has bundled the harvested leeks in half-pound bundles, and has accumulated quite a lot.
Speaking of this scale, it was also found from a scrap yard, and it was found in batches. The weight was found later. Reading novels, those time-traveling women go to scrapyards to shop, buying yellow croakers of all sizes, antique calligraphy and paintings, by the handful.
But Xu Di had been there several times and bought a stone mill, a scale, some picture books, and the set of "Self-study Series of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry" published by Shanghai People's Publishing House, both new and old, and finally found all seventeen volumes.
As for the rest, not even a silver coin was found, let alone valuable things like yellow croaker, diamonds, and jewelry boxes.
I don’t know if she was unlucky or if she didn’t have any antiques, calligraphy or paintings, but she didn’t see them anyway.
Xu Di didn't know how to use that beam scale, so he went to learn from someone how to use this old-fashioned scale. In his previous life, this kind of beam scale was almost never seen.
The winter vacation is only half a month away. Xu Di plans to start her own small business as soon as the vacation starts.
I don’t dare to go to the black market, but I can still try it in the various family compounds. By the way, you can also get some information and inquire about job openings.
Soon, winter vacation arrived, and Xu Di went back to the countryside first to bring some food to her grandparents. She also sent some of the brown sugar, dried mushrooms, and dried fruits that her sister had sent over, and also sent Xu Jun over at the same time.
After returning from his grandfather's house, Xu Di made an excuse, saying that he was filling in for someone else and working temporarily for a month.
"Xu Di, is this reliable?"
"Mom, my classmate's friend introduced me to this. Her sister is pregnant and has a strong reaction. She wants to find someone to take over for a month. The salary will be mine, but it's only for one month, until the end of the year at most."
Xu Di had no choice. If she didn’t find an excuse, she couldn’t go out and sell goods every day!
Because they lived far from home, Xu's mother and others would not go to confirm it. Xu Di's classmates were all from nearby staff housing compounds, so Xu's mother did not suspect anything.
The next day, Xu Di went out after breakfast.
She planned to take a walk around the staff quarters near the factory where she was said to be in charge.
Eggs in grocery stores now cost about five cents each, and are cheaper in the summer. Chives are also available, but they are not sold in grocery stores. They are sold secretly by individuals for speculation.
Xu Di didn't know the exact price. She only saw it once from a distance and didn't hear how much it was traded for.
There was nothing else in the space that could be sold except leeks, eggs, and cornmeal that she ground in her spare time.
He also planted some tomatoes and cucumbers, but they could not be taken outside. Xu Di grew them for his own consumption and could not even share them with his family.
Xu Di didn't intend to tell anyone that she had a space.
A secret is only a secret if it is known only to you. If someone else knows it, it is no longer a secret.
Xu Di had already made preparations. He found a dog-skin hat discarded by his father, an old piece of clothing from his brother, and sewed a large mask.
Fully armed, nothing is missing except a pair of eyes. I guess even if Xu’s mother saw her, she might not recognize that this was her daughter.
Everything is ready, and Xu Di plans to start selling things.
He had a large basket on his arm, containing six bundles of leeks and dozens of eggs.
Xu Di looked around and saw no red armbands. He took a deep breath and stepped into the family compound in front of him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
