Chapter 005 Queueing Troubles
The family enjoyed a delicious meal of cold-mixed pork head and liver. Of course, they didn't finish it all. Chen Jinhua salted the leftovers, soaked the meat and bones in water, and made a soup that evening.
At this time, people have the habit of taking a nap. The nap does not need to be long, half an hour is enough. After a good sleep, you can go out to work at around 2 pm with full energy.
It's daylight saving time now, so as long as I can get to work by 2:30, life will still be very comfortable.
It's no wonder people miss state-owned enterprises back then; they were truly uninhibited. Everyone felt like they owned the factory, and as long as they were a regular employee and didn't commit a major offense, they couldn't be fired, even if they yelled at the factory director.
Everyone in the family had gone to work, and Jiang Nan, with her injured foot, naturally stayed home to recuperate. But she couldn't sit still either. She moved the flower pot on the windowsill and peeked down. The elderly people downstairs were chatting animatedly.
Even though it was on the fourth floor, the elderly people there were very loud, and Jiang Nan had sharp ears. Plus with the real-time broadcast from the system, he was really fascinated by what he saw.
"Xiao Nan, why didn't your family cook lunch? You are injured, won't your father make you something good to replenish your body?" Old Mrs. Liu was sharp-eyed. When she saw the little head sticking out from the fourth floor, she shouted in a shrill voice.
"Hehe, I came back late at noon, so I just had some steamed bread and pickles to make do. My mother loves me, so she stewed bone soup for me in the evening to nourish me." Jiang Nan did not hide it. People had no concept of privacy at that time, and they all lived in tube-shaped buildings. There was no privacy at all. If you sneezed at home, the neighbors could hear it. Talking about privacy was a joke.
When Grandma Fang heard this, her eyes flashed.
"Why do I smell fried eggs at noon? Did anyone eat fried eggs at noon?" Jiang Nan spoke quickly, bringing up a new topic to attract attention.
As expected, Old Lady Qiu curled her lips and glanced at Granny Fang with disdain: "Some people cry poor all day long, but they eat just fine. Yesterday they had steamed buns, today they have scrambled eggs. I don't know where they get the money."
Old Lady Liu immediately agreed: "That's right, widows talk about widows all day long, and they eat better than us working couples. Why are you pretending to be pitiful?"
Grandma Fang had a bitter face and a weak voice, looking very sad. She said, "I'm an old woman, so I'm willing to eat coarse food. But I have three children, the two youngest are only eight years old, and they need to eat something good to nourish themselves. My daughter Qiaolian has it hard. In addition to working every month, she has to make paper boxes at home after work, and on Sundays she has to go to the surrounding mountains to pick wild vegetables."
She habitually began to play the victim, blabbering on and on: "Life is hard at home, but what can we do? We have to let the children eat better. We steamed buns at home, but we only steamed three, which are for the children. The rest are cornbread. I saved three scrambled eggs today after saving them for several days. I fry them to supplement the children's nutrition. My Nansheng and Nanhai need to be nourished. Their legs cramp at night and the pain keeps them awake all night. Our family is suffering."
Grandma Fang came from the south. She was thin and small. She was good-looking when she was young. But now when she acts pitifully, she is really like an old white flower swaying in the wind, which makes many old men come to support her.
"We're all neighbors, and Xiao Fang's family is really having a hard time. Lao Qiu, Lao Liu, why are you two always picking on Xiao Fang? You shouldn't bully people like this."
"That's right. It's not easy for everyone. What's the point of this? Old Cheng, take care of your wife at home. Don't bully your neighbors like this."
Everyone looked at each other and talked, but they quickly changed the subject.
Grandma Fang lowered her head and pretended to wipe away tears. With a look of gratitude, her shoulders trembling, she thanked everyone: "Thank you so much. You are all good people. My family is so lucky to live in a tube-shaped building and have such good neighbors."
"Why are you saying this? Where were we just talking about..."
Jiang Nan listened to the live broadcast with great interest, marveling at the skill of Grandma Fang, who played the victim with such ease. Looking up, she suddenly saw Sun Lingling, who had gone on a blind date with Lin Bing that morning, approaching with a stern expression. She was still wearing the same orange dress, but with a white headband that matched her white plastic sandals perfectly.
She pointed in the distance and exclaimed, "Isn't that Sun Lingling from this morning? Why is she here?"
The old men and women hurriedly turned their heads to look. It didn't matter what they saw, but Old Lady Liu stood up first and snorted coldly, "How dare she come here? Even if the soldier is a little older, he's a poor match for her."
"Exactly. How dare she do that?" Old Mrs. Cao, who was sitting there picking vegetables, agreed. "We can't let her deceive Dabing. Dabing is from our building after all. He can't let her suffer this loss."
Jiang Nan immediately looked east. Lin Bing had taken a day off for the blind date and hadn't even gone to work in the afternoon. He hadn't come out yet, so he was probably still taking a nap.
There was no movement upstairs, but downstairs there was a commotion. The elderly men and women stood in front of Sun Lingling, their voices filled with righteous indignation.
"What are you doing here, you little bitch?! Don't bother the people in our building. The soldiers are from our building. Get out of here if you know what's good for you."
"That's right, get out of here right now. You're pregnant and you're still pretending to be a girl and going on a blind date. How shameless of you!"
Sun Lingling was so angry that her face turned pale. If she hadn't been so hungry, she would have slapped these people in the face. Even though she didn't hit them, she couldn't help but yell back at the top of her voice: "It's none of your business. You guys are so bored."
"Hey, how can you talk like that? Do you know how to respect the elderly and love the young? Is that what your family taught you? You have no manners!"
Sun Lingling stamped her feet, put her hands on her hips, and cursed, "Get out of my way! You all claim to respect the elderly and love the young, but you're all barking louder than dogs. Do you think you deserve it? Where's Lin Bing? Let him come out. We can't let this blind date go like this."
"Hey girl, if you have a brain disease, you should get it treated as soon as possible. You never know what the consequences will be." After a while, Grandma Fang spoke softly.
What a joke! I've never heard of a blind date that didn't work out and still had to pay the bill. What? Do you think you're a prostitute from the old society who charges money for even a single meeting?!
Sun Lingling spat, ignoring the rage of the crowd, she raised her head, stiffened her neck, and shouted upstairs, "Lin Bing, come out. I, Sun Lingling, am going on a blind date with you because I think highly of you. Stop sitting around pretending to be a quail. I know you're home. If you have the guts, come out and we'll talk it out. I'm telling you, eighty-eight betrothal gifts, three turns and one ring, thirty-six legs, not one less. In recognition of your filial piety, your disabled father won't have to be sent back home, but he'll have to do the housework. Am I being accommodating enough? Lin Bing, come out now. Do you hear me? I've relaxed my conditions. What are you talking about?"
The crowd was stunned. They had never seen anything like this before.
Well, I'm a little overwhelmed.
How could a pregnant whore dare to ask for so much? Even for a city girl, a betrothal gift of 66 was considered high. At that time, the most common betrothal gift for marriage was 20 or 30 yuan.
Sun Lingling dared to ask for eighty-eight with just a few words? And three turns and a ring, thirty-six legs, why didn't she go to heaven?!
Suddenly, Old Lady Liu screamed like a chicken being strangled by the neck, "Did a donkey kick your brain? A slut like you doesn't even want a dowry, and you still dare to ask for a betrothal gift?"
"That's right, there are all kinds of people these days. This girl, she doesn't even have a chance to escape the summer heat!"
The other aunties pointed and talked at Sun Lingling, but Sun Lingling didn't take it seriously at all. She kept yelling at the people upstairs. She is a very shameless person.
Upstairs, Lin Bing was still taking a nap. His house was on the fourth floor, so if the noise downstairs was quiet, he wouldn't be able to hear it.
But now that the quarrel had begun, he naturally heard it too. However, he didn't react immediately. When he heard the yelling and cursing, he got up in anger, pushed open the bedroom door, and saw his father sitting at the dining table with a sullen face.
His family lived in a small area, and they had been allocated this house in the first place because his father had been injured while rescuing someone. The oil field had allocated a house to his family as a thank you. It was only 40 square meters, with two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and no living room.
Ever since his injury, Lin Youliang has been staying upstairs all day, so he must be in a bad mood. Now, hearing the shouting and cursing downstairs, his face is even uglier. Seeing his son storm out, he suppressed his anger and said something still stiff: "I'd better go back to the village. Staying upstairs all day is not a solution. I'm not paralyzed. Living in the countryside, I can often go out and chat with the neighbors..."
Lin Bing wiped his face and interrupted impatiently: "Come on, you don't even want to go back, why are you pretending to be so righteous?"
Lin Youliang was so angry that he gasped: "If you weren't entangled with a widow, do you think I would be willing to stay upstairs?"
"If you don't want to stay, then leave. I didn't ask you to stay."
Lin Bing retorted harshly, turned around, slammed the door, and roared downstairs in anger, "You want to do it, but I don't. What? Just because we're on a blind date means I have to marry you? What are you dreaming of? I'm an oil worker after all. Why wouldn't I marry a virgin girl, but a slut like you? And you're trying to be flexible? Do I need you to be flexible? My dad gets a monthly allowance, he doesn't need you. Go to hell."
As he said this, he spat fiercely at the people downstairs and slammed the door shut with a bang.
Jiang Nan felt that the melon was a little rotten, and it was no wonder he felt unhappy.
Sun Lingling was wrong, and Lin Bing was also right to refuse. After all, when it comes to love, it's all about mutual consent.
But everyone keeps calling her a slut. That's too harsh. And isn't that projectionist responsible for 80% of this? Why is everyone constantly scolding Sun Lingling, while no one mentions that bastard?
[Because that bastard didn't dance in front of you. And, host, based on my conclusion from scanning so many people, this era places great emphasis on women's chastity and favors men over women, which is unfair to women.]
Jiang Nan was bored and was about to carry her stool back to her room. In her previous life, she had studied design and found endless joy in staying indoors and drawing. After all, now that she was here, she had to enjoy herself wherever she went.
"Qiu's wife, where did you buy the watermelon? Does the supply and marketing cooperative sell watermelons?"
Suddenly, a sound even sharper than Old Lady Liu's came from downstairs. Jiang Nan didn't say a word and ran into the house, pocketing the tickets, change, and cloth bag, and rushed downstairs in two steps.
That speed can't even be called a leap, it's simply flying.
It was also because Jiang Nan in this life had long legs. While others went down two steps, she went down ten steps in a flash, running faster than the old men and women watching the fun downstairs.
"Hey, Xiao Nan, isn't your foot injured? How come you run faster than a rabbit? You have to leave some for us old people, don't buy too much."
"Oh, Grandma Liu, you can only buy one per person. Didn't you see Aunt Tao already got one? Hurry up and get the ticket and money. If you're late, they'll be gone."
Old Lady Liu thought it was true. She slapped her thigh and rushed home. Her old man was unreliable, sitting on a stone bench all day to cool off. This family still depended on her.
Old Mrs. Liu ran home with her head held high, but Jiang Nan didn't have time to care about her and just rushed forward.
It's not that she doesn't respect the elderly and love the young, and is considerate to the elderly, the weak, women and children, but these days, there is a shortage of supplies.
She'd traveled through time for so long, yet she'd barely had a chance to eat watermelon. Imagine her, decades from now, digging into a watermelon while watching a TV series—how beautiful! To live like this again, she'd have to be in her seventies or eighties, right? Wouldn't she have diarrhea if she ate watermelon then?
I don't want to think about it anymore, I still have to go quickly. Didn't you see that everyone didn't even bother to watch the fun, but just went to the supply and marketing cooperative.
The smart ones will go and queue up first and wait for their significant other at home to hear the news and come to give them the tickets.
The supply and marketing cooperative wasn't far from their No. 1 compound. As the name suggested, No. 1 was the oldest family compound, and it had the most complete logistical support. Jiang Nan arrived in less than five minutes, and even then, a long line had already formed outside the supply and marketing cooperative.
Jiang Nan wiped the sweat from his forehead and spoke to the woman in front of him in a familiar manner: "Auntie, are there a lot of watermelons this time? I see there are quite a few people here. Can we buy some?"
The auntie waiting in line was also idle. When she saw Jiang Nan approaching her, she replied naturally, "Why call me auntie? I could be your grandmother."
"You can't tell. You look young."
"You're such a talker, little girl." The older woman, wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt, smiled even more sincerely upon hearing this. She whispered, "A whole truckload of stuff has arrived this time, so we're sure we'll be able to buy it. I heard the supply and marketing cooperative was planning on selling it tomorrow, but a few grandpa and grandma enjoying the cool breeze saw it and started a commotion before they finally sold it."
At this point, the aunt lowered her voice, looking extremely mysterious: "Do you think we can still buy it after one night? Who knows, it might be divided up by the people in the supply and marketing cooperative overnight. Now, there is a commotion, and the supply and marketing cooperative has no choice but to sell it in advance."
"I see." An elderly man in front of the woman in blue shirt suddenly understood. "Generally, the supply and marketing cooperatives get new supplies in the morning. I was curious why they were selling watermelons in the afternoon. So this is what's going on."
"That's right." The blue-shirted auntie was very proud. "I heard it from Auntie Lin from our courtyard. She was there at the time, and everyone in our courtyard knows it."
"Which hospital are you from?"
"I'm from the refinery, and my son is a technician!"
"That's not close. But your son is really promising. A technician must be at least a college graduate."
The elderly men and women up ahead chatted animatedly, and Jiang Nan listened with amusement, embodying the famous aphorism, "Be cheerful wherever you go," to its fullest extent. This was her philosophy of life. Well, she herself said it, a famous aphorism.
"Xiao Nan, let grandma stand in front of you. You see, grandma's legs are not very flexible, and she came a little late. There are many people behind her, so I'm afraid she won't be able to buy a watermelon. Grandma has three children at home, all waiting to eat watermelon. It's not easy for grandma either. Just respect the elderly and love the young, and let grandma go."
Granny Fang hesitated, her eyes pitiful and helpless, looking quite pathetic. Although she was a pretty old woman, her power had diminished considerably due to her age, yet she still managed to silence the young people who were about to speak.
There is no way, young people are thin-skinned. They are all unemployed family members, and their words do not carry much weight.
The aunties behind them, however, disagreed. They were all old Dongting Lake dwellers, so what was the point of performing Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio here? If they couldn't see through this little trick, then their whole lives would have been in vain.
"I'm telling you, old comrade, you're the only one with children? I have four at home, so what do I have to say? We have to follow the first-come-first-served principle. If you're late, you have to stand at the back. There's no reason to cut in line. If you're being unreasonable, we'll call the supply and marketing cooperative to handle this. You can't do that."
"That's right, everyone has children. Don't bully a little girl just because she looks young. You're in the front of the line, what if we can't buy it? There's no one like you. Come on, go line up at the back."
"Old Liu, watch over here. I'll take this comrade to the back of the line." A female comrade in a white shirt and short sleeves and a Hu Lan haircut came out of the line. She looked to be in her fifties and it was obvious that she had retired from her post, with a look of concern on her face.
Granny Fang was a bully who only cared about the weak and feared the strong. Seeing the female comrade with an official appearance and a look of displeasure, she didn't dare to make a scene anymore. However, she was still unwilling to give in and said timidly, "Xiao Nan, how about you give up your seat to Granny? Go to the back and queue up. Look, there are only three of us in your family. You're sixteen, and your parents are in their prime. What's the big deal if they don't eat watermelon? Give it to us old comrades and children. Carry forward the style. Sister, don't you agree? Young comrades should carry forward the style and give way to the old comrades."
Now no one in the crowd said anything. If Granny Fang had cut in line, they wouldn't have approved. But since Granny Fang had asked Jiang Nan to give up her seat, and it didn't hurt their interests, they couldn't complain. After all, what if the girl was willing?
Jiang Nan was definitely not willing to do that. She was not someone to be bullied. She crossed her arms and said, "Grandma Fang, it's not that I won't let you. Look, I've been injured while doing what is right. Shouldn't I eat something good to nourish myself? Besides, you should respect the old and love the young. You should also take care of the young comrades. You always say that you've eaten more salt than I have eaten rice, so you must have eaten more watermelon than me. I'm only sixteen and haven't had watermelon for a few years. Please take care of me and let me have some watermelon."
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