Chapter 37

Speaking of the matter of going to the market, Qiao Wei’s excitement was no less than Yan Xiang’s. It was her first time attending such a large rural gathering.

Their town was called Xiahe Town, with a river nearby, not too far away. The distance from Yan Lei’s house to the riverbank was about the same as going to the large courtyard.

The market was right on the bank of the river, essentially where Yan Lei dug mud.

Communities from several nearby villages had come, bringing their own agricultural and sideline products as well as handicrafts. There were various modes of transportation—trucks, tractors, horse-drawn carts, mule carts, and even hand-pulled carts and carts pulled by roosters—everything could be seen.

Qiao Wei and Yan Lei had already seen many people by the river when they went for their morning jog.

“Siping Township is famous for making bamboo products,” Yan Lei told Qiao Wei. “They should definitely have these small chairs, but finding larger ones will depend on luck. If they’re not available, I’ll go to Qingshan Town next week to buy one for you.”

This man kept his promises.

Qiao Wei happily agreed, “Okay. Let’s go and have a look at the market first, in case they have it.”

The family of three carried a woven basket and a net bag, heading cheerfully towards the riverbank.

The road was filled with people heading to the market by the river, families after families, adults and children alike, all wearing smiles. Going to the market in this era was truly a grand and joyful event, almost a major form of entertainment.

It was almost like a significant festival.

Arriving at the riverbank, Qiao Wei, for the first time since crossing over, saw so many people crowded together.

It seemed like the entire town had gathered at the riverbank. No, it was even more than that—besides the townspeople, there were also people from various communities who came to sell their goods.

There were no industrial products in this market, and as far as the eye could see, it was filled with agricultural and sideline products as well as handicrafts. It was exactly what Qiao Wei liked.

Passing by several stalls, she couldn’t move forward. She looked at this and touched it. In no time, her basket for buying groceries was already full.

Yan Lei squeezed through and grabbed her, “Found it. Siping Township community is over there.”

Comfortable large bamboo chairs were Qiao Wei’s main target today. She gave up on the things in front of her, pulled Yan Xiang, and followed Yan Lei towards the Siping Township community.

Siping Township was famous for its bamboo products, and there was a large area displaying bamboo items. Bamboo baskets, bamboo trays, large brooms made of bamboo twigs… and there was even a large display of small bamboo chairs, obviously a popular product.

Luckily, behind this large display of small bamboo chairs, Qiao Wei spotted two bamboo reclining chairs!

And they were the foldable kind!

“Is this okay?” Yan Lei turned to ask Qiao Wei, “Is it the kind you want?”

“Yes, yes, yes! Just get two of them, quickly!” Qiao Wei hurriedly shook Yan Lei’s arm. Since the incident with the canned peaches, she knew very well that when you see something good, you have to act quickly: “We need both.”

“One isn’t enough for you to sit on?” Yan Lei wondered.

Qiao Wei scolded him, “Fool, isn’t it nice if you and I each have a chair to sit under the eaves and eat melons on summer nights?”

Her eyes were lively, and there was a sparkling smile.

Yan Lei’s heart thumped.

Just imagining it, in the evening, after dinner, the two of them sitting under the eaves, holding hands, chatting, and laughing—the scene was truly warm and beautiful.

“Okay, let’s buy both!” Yan Lei went to negotiate the price with the seller, and soon, he came back to tell Qiao Wei, “I’ll take them home first.”

But Qiao Wei pointed to something else and asked, “What is that?”

It was also made of bamboo, four-legged like a small table, but it was rectangular, a bamboo frame with a bamboo-woven surface, similar to the patterns on bamboo summer mats.

Yan Lei thought that city people really lacked knowledge; he said, “Isn’t it a cool bed?”

It was too hot in the summer, so some people would sleep on this kind of bamboo cool bed, but it was more commonly used in the fields, where people watching over the fields would sleep.

Qiao Wei went over it and pressed it with her hand. The bamboo weaving had a slight elasticity. She sat on it for a try, and it was quite comfortable.

“This.” She patted the cool bed. “I want this.”

Today, she had resumed her morning jog, and she looked especially good.

Sitting on the cool bed, she looked up at Yan Lei, her eyes full of anticipation.

Yan Lei directly asked his fellow villager, “How much?”

In the end, Yan Lei carried a large bamboo broom, and with Qiao Wei’s woven basket now full, he instructed them, “Don’t get separated.”

“We have this.” Qiao Wei raised her hand and shook it.

Because Yan Xiang was too small, she had deliberately tied a rope to her and Yan Xiang’s wrists, a baby anti-loss strap.

So, Yan Lei led the villagers from Siping Township, pushing a flatbed cart with a bamboo cool bed and two folding bamboo reclining chairs to their home.

At home, he directed people to unload the bamboo chairs and the cool bed. The chairs were arranged under the eaves, and the cool bed was temporarily placed in the courtyard. Yan Lei would wait for Qiao Wei to come back and decide where she wanted it. He also put the miscellaneous items Qiao Wei bought into the house, freeing up the woven basket for her to take back.

Just as he was about to go out again to the market to find his wife and son, someone else arrived at the door, shouting, “Is this the Yan family?”

Yan Lei came out from the house and said, “Yes.”

The visitor, a fellow villager, asked loudly, “What’s your wife’s last name?”

Yan Lei replied, “Qiao.”

“That’s right. It’s your family.” The fellow villager untied the rope around his chest and unloaded the thing on his back, “Your wife sent this over.”

It was a rattan-woven double-door small cabinet.

Yan Lei opened the door and saw three layers inside, like a bookshelf. There were also two drawers at the top.

“What’s this for?” he asked.

“Do whatever you want with it,” the fellow villager said. “Use it to hold bowls, put clothes on, display books—it’s up to you.”

After saying this, the fellow villager sized up Yan Lei and asked, “You’re some kind of official, right?”

Yan Lei replied, “I serve the people.”

The fellow villager grinned, “Officials sure know how to talk. Your wife… really knows how to, really knows how to spend.”

He probably wanted to say she knows how to spend money, but thinking about avoiding marital conflicts, he changed it to “buy.”

Yan Lei straightened his back, “Of course, isn’t earning money for spending on your wife?”

The fellow villager chuckled, giving him a thumbs up, “That’s the spirit; truly an official.”

The woven item made of rattan had some volume but was very light. Yan Lei carried it inside with one hand and left it there.

He locked the door and went to the market with the fellow villager, chatting along the way.

The fellow villager talked a lot, “Your wife is from the city, right?”

Yan Lei casually replied, “She attended high school.”

“Oh, still an educated person.” The fellow villager praised, “I took a glance, and she looks like a city person. What about you, are you also from the city?”

Yan Lei mentioned his hometown, “From the countryside.”

“Then you’ve got some ability.” The fellow villager gave him another thumbs up, “Marrying an educated woman.”

Captain Yan walked this whole way with his back straight.

However, when they arrived at the market, it wasn’t easy to find people. After searching for a while, he found them in the area selling food.

It was still morning, and they were already eating cold noodles.

Seeing him, Qiao Wei greeted him with a smile, inviting him to sit on a small stool and eat cold noodles together.

“What’s all this?” Yan Lei asked with his hands on his hips.

Qiao Wei’s woven basket was taken back by Yan Lei, but she had bought a backup basket!

Now this back basket was placed next to her feet and was almost filled with things.

She was really something.

“Farmers eat better than us, you know?” Qiao Wei pulled Yan Lei to sit on a small stool, “They don’t need food stamps to buy food.”

How could Yan Lei not know? He also placed the woven basket he brought back under her feet and chuckled, “Of course, they are the ones growing grains, so they have a better life in terms of food.”

In this big market, various communities also brought a lot of agricultural and sideline products to sell. Qiao Wei had seen many food items.

Here, buying food didn’t require food stamps or meat stamps, so buying a bit more wouldn’t cause any issues.

“If that’s the case, when we want something that the city doesn’t have, we can go to the countryside…”

Yan Lei timely coughed, interrupting her.

Qiao Wei immediately reacted, shrunk her neck, pursed her lips, and looked left and right. Fortunately, in the noisy market, not many people heard what she said.

Yan Lei pulled the small stool closer to her and said, “Don’t overthink it. During the market, the communities bring things to sell. What are you planning to do in the countryside? Buy from the locals?”

Qiao Wei tentatively nodded.

Captain Yan chuckled, poking her forehead with two fingers, “Thinking of making a quick profit, huh?”

Qiao Wei shrank her neck again, “So strict.”

“Otherwise?” Yan Lei replied.

Qiao Wei knew, but people who came from the modern world with abundant commodities lacked a real understanding of the term “investment and speculation.”

“Do we need to be cautious?” she asked.

“If you get caught, you’ll definitely be in trouble.” Yan Lei scared her, “We can’t make such mistakes.”

Qiao Wei hurriedly nodded, “Got it.”

Seeing her quail-like appearance, Yan Lei found it amusing. Glancing around, everyone was bustling around buying things and moving, and no one paid attention to them.

He leaned close to Qiao Wei’s ear, lowered his voice, and spoke the truth: “When you really want to buy, be clever about it; don’t get caught.”

Qiao Wei’s eyes instantly lit up, giving him a sideways glance.

Indeed, timid people couldn’t achieve great things. Those who could rise to high positions were never truly obedient and rule-abiding people.

Yan Lei, as if nothing had happened, took a chopstick and dug into the cold noodles.

He had jogged all the way here, squeezed through the crowd to find people, and was already sweaty. Eating cold noodles under the shade of the trees was truly refreshing.

All private transactions outside the public sector were defined as speculative activities.

However, the needs of the people were there, and planned economies couldn’t meet them. These “speculative activities” continued to exist underground, and no matter how much authorities tried to clamp down, they persisted.

Everyone understood this.

So, the key was not to get caught.

“What if we get caught?” Qiao Wei asked for advice.

“That’s why I said your revolutionary capital is too weak,” Yan Lei scorned her but still pointed her in the right direction, “Run. Run as fast as you can.”

Qiao Wei happily exclaimed, “Alright, I’ll practice running fast.”

The family of three also had lunch at the market. Yan Lei ate four large flatbreads, Qiao Wei felt full after eating one, and Yan Xiang could only manage half.

Yan Lei finished the remaining half, not wanting to waste any.

It was Qiao Wei’s first time exploring the big market, and since most of the goods were non-industrial, it had a rural charm. She genuinely wanted to buy whatever caught her eye.

Shopping truly brought joy, evident in her eyes and expressions.

Yan Lei couldn’t help but glance at her face. He always felt that Qiao Wei’s eyes were sparkling, and her face seemed to be glowing.

If she wanted to buy something, let her buy it. He didn’t object.

However, when Qiao Wei wanted to buy an entire piece of self-woven coarse cloth, he stopped her, “Buying this… for what?”

She used to buy ready-made clothes directly from department stores in the county or city. The supply and marketing cooperative in the town also sold clothes, but larger places had more color options and better patterns.

Before, she couldn’t appreciate these natural-colored or indigo-dyed coarse fabrics.

“It’s useful,” she said.

Alright, if she wanted to buy it, let her.

But when she wanted to buy a pair of thousand-layered plain fabric shoes, the kind worn by rural elderly women, Yan Lei stopped her again, “How about getting a new pair of leather shoes in the city?”

“These are comfortable,” she said.

Fine, let her buy.

However, when Qiao Wei wanted to buy straw sandals, Yan Lei found it a bit unbearable.

“This, you can’t wear these,” he told her, “They’ll rub your feet raw. Only people with calloused feet can wear these.”

“I know,” Qiao Wei smiled, “I want to hang these on our wall. Oh, they’re selling bamboo hats over there. I want to buy one. Oh, there are straw hats too. Straw hats are fine. Go and buy one!”

She pushed Yan Lei to hurry him.

Yan Lei had no choice but to squeeze through to buy a straw hat.

Qiao Wei paid for straw shoes on this side.

Turning back, she hung both the straw hat and straw shoes under the eaves, giving the place a rustic atmosphere.

Just as she was feeling happy, she suddenly heard someone calling her. She turned around and saw Qiao Wei, who was delighted, saying, “Xiao Zhang, huh? What’s this? What’s this… came with Xiao Lin?”

While Qiao Wei spoke with a smile, her eyes looked towards Lin Xixi beside Xiao Zhang.

Lin Xixi was still wearing the dress from yesterday. It was quite normal; in this era, people didn’t change clothes every day. That would be considered a bourgeois decadent style. Wearing borrowed clothes or wearing the same clothes for several days was common.

Driver Zhang wanted to say something, which in the future would probably be considered an official announcement or something similar.

But Lin Xixi coughed, stopping him. Driver Zhang could only beat around the bush, saying, “Uh, yeah, just strolling around.”

Strictly speaking, they weren’t officially a couple.

Among the people introduced to Lin Xixi for a blind date by Captain Zhao last night, Driver Zhang was actually the lowest-ranking. However, being a driver who could drive was highly valued at the moment, and he wouldn’t have trouble finding a job even after leaving the military.

Compared to others, he had an advantage – he had flexible and unrestricted time.

In addition, the others would need to take leave if they wanted to leave the military camp. Yesterday’s collective blind date was also specially approved by the political commissar. However, Driver Zhang didn’t need that; he could arrange his time freely.

So, this clever young man went to Captain Zhao’s house early in the morning and offered his company, “There’s a gathering today; let me accompany you. I can also help you carry things.”

Captain Zhao and his wife were pleased. Since Lin Xixi had agreed yesterday night, it was Driver Zhang who had accepted.

But since the man was so attentive and came on his own, there was no need to say proactive things like, “My niece wants to be in a relationship with you.” Captain Zhao said, “We’ll go later; why don’t you young people go first? Gangzi, Yingzi, Huazi!”

Captain Zhao shouted three names, telling them, “Go with your sister and Brother Zhang.”

On the other side, Sister Yang pushed Lin Xixi into the house to change into yesterday’s dress, gave her a yuan, and whispered to her, “Behave well and pay attention.”

Lin Xixi pretended to be coy, changed into yesterday’s patched skirt, and, with her three siblings, headed to the gathering with Xiao Zhang.

Before they reached the riverside, the three younger ones ran ahead, leaving only her and Xiao Zhang.

Xiao Zhang directly confessed, “Comrade Lin Xixi, I’m Zhang Guoqiang, 20 years old this year, currently in the army with a rank 24 salary of 42 yuan per month, and I can drive. I would like, um, I would like to be in a relationship with you.”