Just as Bi Tielin said, the Bi family is not short of people, they are just idle in the Northeast.
How idle are you?
Bi Tiegang and Liu Yafang from Zhaojiatun, Lianhua Town, Fuyi Township in Northeast China, along with their twelve-year-old Bi Sheng, were very well behaved and had very little to do.
For Bi Tiegang, since the beginning of winter, the only thing he could do was go to the city to visit Bi Jinzhi's store, and then help his brother-in-law Fu Guo with the goods when they arrived, so that he could feel a little sense of existence.
There is really plenty of time left.
The couple, along with a half-grown child on winter vacation, counted the days on their fingers every day, trying to figure out when the people from the city would be back home. They were eager for a quick Chinese New Year reunion.
Bi Yue's parents, who had been poor for most of their lives, had several thousand dollars in their hands. Except for some money they spent on a trip to the provincial capital to see a doctor and buy medicine for their legs, they kept the rest in their hands.
Bi Jinzhi urged her elder brother and sister-in-law to buy some New Year's goods. She had no choice but to encourage them. She went to her brother's house and rummaged through the jars and pots, but all she found was a little bit of meat, ten kilograms of rice and flour, and a few bowls of noodles. She didn't care what else was left.
What was it like in the past when we had no money? As soon as Bi Tielin left, we stopped buying things.
He said he'd bought the meat in preparation, thinking Bi Yue and Bi Cheng would be home for the holidays. He even argued, "It's still a few days before the Chinese New Year, so why would we eat so much while we're at home all winter?"
Bi Jinzhi was unable to persuade him, so she could only say something rude:
"You guys are almost squeezing out all that money. Eat what you need and spend what you need. Tielin and Yueyue Dacheng are out there howling like wolves. What are they earning money for?"
Besides, with one snowstorm after another, I really don't want to worry too much.
The shop is quite busy. I can't just climb up the mountain to deliver some delicious food, right? It's okay to bring money twice, but I have to climb up the mountain to deliver steamed buns and stewed meat. Wouldn't my mother-in-law be worried?
Brother, sister-in-law, just save up, isn’t that what the old saying goes? Save up, save up, a strong wind will pull up the pole! "
At that time, Bi Jinzhi's words made Bi Tielin, a seven-foot-tall man, spit on his lips:
"Pah! Why can't you control your mouth?"
Liu Yafang felt very uncomfortable when she heard this.
But the superstitious words did work.
From that day on, Bi Tiegang and Liu Yafang began to behave like "rich people" as rumored in the village.
Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the shopping scene.
You said that your sister and brother-in-law who married into other villages have opened shops in the county, and they still sell bicycles and home appliances, which are things used by rich people.
It is said that they were all bought by the younger brother who had just been released from prison. It is said that the younger brother was very capable. It is also said that the younger brother went to prison because of the bad feng shui of the Bi family's ancestral tomb.
Look, this time when old man Bi passed away, they simply chose a new place and even moved old lady Bi to a new home. Life has become different now.
However, the villagers in the nearby villages who pay attention to the Bi family are sometimes puzzled: Why does the elder brother from Zhaojiatun only make promises when he is trying to find a partner for his younger brother, but why does he have such a hard time at other times?
Bi Tiegang was still dressed casually, and Liu Yafang didn't put on any more clothes, which attracted a lot of attention.
After all, the Bi family is very eye-catching. They are a typical example of sudden wealth in the 1980s.
This money finally started to be spent in whole bills. The villagers slapped their thighs and said, "Look, this is the right way!"
But flowers are flowers, but you let people who have been poor for most of their lives do nothing every day and just think about how to enjoy themselves and eat and drink? Not to mention Bi Yue's parents can't do it, even Bi Sheng would feel uneasy.
How to spend the money?
Bi Tiegang went home to buy meat. He pushed half a pig back home on a cart and cut off a small piece from the loin and handed it to Liu Yafang: "Stew it with the whole pickled cabbage to satisfy Goudan's craving."
The rest was unloaded in the yard, and Bi Tiegang picked up the axe and started chopping.
Chop the meat into pieces and put them into the big vat in the warehouse. The meat will be frozen hard overnight.
I thought to myself that when the three older kids come back, I’ll take it out and eat it together when they want to eat it.
In other words, we didn’t eat much of it, as it was all frozen in the warehouse.
As for Liu Yafang, since Bi Jinzhi's family moved to the county, she no longer went to the town to attend the market. She spent three cents to take a bus to the county to shop, which was pretty good in her eyes.
Buy needles and wool, cut cloth by feet, and buy cotton by pounds.
Every day she would take these tools and whisper with Aunt Fat to knit sweaters, make clothes, quilts and mattresses.
But none of it was her own.
Bi Yue's blue plaid sweater, Bi Cheng's black sweetheart-neck sweater, new bedding for his children and brother-in-law, but poor Bi Sheng had no new clothes. He had to pick up his brother's old clothes. His mother said they could be worn again after some alterations.
Liu Yafang felt quite regretful and grumbled to Auntie Pang, "Yue's grandfather just passed away, so she can't wear a red sweater. Oh! My Yue hasn't even worn one yet, so it looks like we'll have to wait until next year."
The couple was so busy until a few days ago when they finished all the work they needed to do and were bored. Liu Yafang went to visit her uncle in the next village, and Bi Tiegang also came back from helping out in the county...
"Goudan, what are you doing?"
Bi Tiegang took off his cotton hat and shook off the snow. He glanced at Bi Sheng and felt a little heartbroken. But Bi Sheng and his father were not on the same page:
"Didn't you see it?"
Bi Sheng lowered his head and continued to display the handicraft product - empty Jianlibao cans.
Bi Tiegang frowned and gritted his teeth before expressing his opinion:
"Tomorrow I'll go to the county again and have your uncle buy you a few more cans if he sees you. Look at the way you look, you're almost trying to pry open the cans and lick the inside, and then you're slurring your lips! It's just sweet water, isn't it? You're so mad at me, what's there to drink?"
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