Chapter 7: The Unity Supply and Marketing Cooperative

“If you’re not enthusiastic about eating, there’s a problem with your thinking.”

A steamed bun the size of an adult’s fist, a bowl of sauerkraut soup, and a small dish of spicy chicken gizzards – two people finished the meal in a flash.

“Sister-in-law, I’m going to the commune later. Is there anything you need me to buy?” Wen Wan changed her clothes, picking up her basket and preparing to go out.

She had just heard Tian Xiaochao’s planned menu and wanted to see if there was any pork at the commune to add to the dishes.

It wasn’t just to add a little extra to the meal for Tiger and the other uncles and aunties, but also for Wen’s father and Wen’s mother. During the busy farming season, eating a bit more fatty food would help them keep their strength up.

“Xiaowan, you should rest more at home.” Tian Xiaochao frowned and tried to persuade her. Her sister-in-law had almost lost her life yesterday and should be resting in bed.

Wen Wan shrugged and smiled lightly, “Sister-in-law, I’m almost fully recovered.”

“Then wait, I’ll change my clothes and go with you.” Seeing that she couldn’t persuade her sister-in-law, Tian Xiaochao supported her belly and got up to go to the room.

Wen Wan waved her hand in refusal, “Sister-in-law, don’t bother. Go rest. I’ll deliver the food and then go to the commune to buy some alcohol.”

Without waiting for Tian Xiaochao’s agreement, she turned and strode out of the house.

Tian Xiaochao chuckled and shook her head, understanding that her sister-in-law didn’t want her to tire herself out. Her heart felt as sweet as a glass of sugar water.

Her mother was right; she, Tian Xiaochao, had truly married into a good family.

She was only six months pregnant, and the whole family wouldn’t let her work in the fields. Several other pregnant women she knew were still bending over in the fields, desperately earning work points.

Wen Wan, who had walked far away, didn’t know that the person she most needed to protect, the pregnant Tian Xiaochao, was happily reflecting at home.

During the lunch break, a row of people sat on the ridge of the field. Some took out their dry rations to eat, while others chatted in small groups waiting for someone to deliver food.

“Oh… Cui Yulan, is that your Wen Wan?” A plump aunt resting under a big tree looked ahead and nudged Cui Yulan, who was sitting next to her.

Cui Yulan looked over and quickly got up to greet her, “Xiaowan, why are you here to deliver the food?” As she spoke, she reached out to take the bamboo basket and led Wen Wan to a shady spot.

She couldn’t let the sun shine on her daughter’s fair and tender little face.

Wen Wan smiled sweetly, “Mom, try this. Sister-in-law specially made your favorite spicy chicken gizzards today; it’s especially appetizing.”

She then looked up and greeted the familiar aunties one by one, “Aunt Pang, Aunt Liu…”

“Xiaowan, wait here.” Cui Yulan divided the food in the bamboo basket in half, put a bowl of sauerkraut soup aside, and said, “I’ll take it to your dad and the others.”

Wen Wan was about to stop her and say she would go, but Aunt Pang stopped her.

“Xiaowan, you won’t find your way. There are only grown men over there, it’s not appropriate for a young girl like you to go.” Aunt Pang finished, taking a sip of the sweet potato porridge her granddaughter had brought.

A hint of doubt flashed in Wen Wan’s eyes. As she was about to ask, she looked up and saw Wen’s mother already walking away.

About ten minutes later, Cui Yulan returned hurriedly.

“Xiaowan, go home and rest early. We’ll bring the jar back tonight.” The first thing Cui Yulan did when she arrived was to urge her daughter to go home and rest.

Wen Wan was about to say she was going to the commune to buy things, but hearing this, she curled her lips and nodded obediently.

Leaving Erqiao Village, Wen Wan carried the bamboo basket and, following the original owner’s memory, strode towards the commune, arriving at the Unity Supply and Marketing Cooperative, dusty and tired.

Looking at the sign “Unity Supply and Marketing Cooperative,” Wen Wan truly felt that she was in 1978, an era of scarce resources.

Although it was a supply and marketing cooperative, all the goods were visible at a glance. Two wooden cabinets stood against the wall, sparsely stocked with goods.

“Sister, do you have any pork?” Wen Wan tentatively asked. She knew that regardless of the time, insiders would always reserve some good goods for themselves.

“No.” Wang Zhen, the saleswoman at the cooperative, replied gruffly.

If it weren’t for the girl looking as white and plump as a glutinous rice ball, she wouldn’t bother responding.

If you want good things, you have to come and queue up before dawn. Asking if there’s any meat in the afternoon is really… tsk tsk.

Wen Wan instantly understood that her question was ill-timed, as she didn’t know the saleswoman.

Thinking of the simple seasonings in the kitchen cabinet from washing dishes at noon, Wen Wan made up her mind to buy a lot. Money could be spent to be earned.

“Sister, give me three pieces of brown sugar, a pound of white sugar, and two pounds of glutinous rice sticks…”

Wang Zhen stood up and looked at Wen Wan suspiciously, “Little girl, you can’t return the goods once they’re packaged.”

She didn’t take Wen Wan seriously at first, thinking that the little girl didn’t have much money and wouldn’t buy much.

“Sister, I have ten yuan, is that enough?” Wen Wan was quick-witted and immediately understood Wang Zhen’s implication.

After hearing this, Wang Zhen smiled and quickly started weighing, wrapping the brown sugar in oiled paper, putting the white sugar in a bag, heating the cutting knife with a candle to seal it…

Wen Wan remained calm on the surface, but secretly marveled: So this is how packaging worked in the 1970s.

After paying and packing her things, thinking about the additional seasonings, her sister-in-law’s dishes would have an extra flavor, and her mouth began to water.

Remembering that she had taken out ten yuan and received four yuan and fifty cents in change, Wen Wan couldn’t help but laugh. She almost couldn’t buy soy sauce and white wine; it was Wang Zhen who lent her the cooperative’s bottles, charging her one yuan as a deposit.

Compared to later generations, all these things cost only a little over three yuan, which was incredibly cheap, and money was valuable.

It was still early, and on the way back, Wen Wan kept an eye on the lush plants and trees by the roadside. She had to see if there were any suitable crops to move into her space.

She couldn’t stay at home all the time and go to work in the fields to earn work points. Not to mention Wen’s father and Wen’s mother wouldn’t agree, she herself wasn’t willing either.

She could endure hardship, but the return for that hardship was only a few work points, which she wasn’t willing to accept.

1978, what a great time. It was March 1978. By December, a historical event that would change China would arrive.

Seeing a purslane, Wen Wan looked around, saw no one, and secretly moved the green purslane into her space.

“Our hometown…is in the hopeful fields…” Wen Wan became happier and happier as she worked, humming a song unconsciously.

She was now full of hope, as if countless amounts of money were beckoning her, lining up to run into her bag.