Chapter 8

The thing is, Erliuzi delivered firewood to Luo Tong several times, and each time she was seen by the villagers, so the villagers started to spread the rumor that she and Erliuzi were having an affair.

The rumors spread more and more. In that era, there were few entertainment programs, and gossiping became a major hobby for the villagers.

My aunt also said that she saw the bad guy climbing the wall to look for Luo Tong late at night.

Because of the rumors, the educated youth in the Youth Home were also affected. Now whenever they go out, they will be pulled aside by the village aunts and asked questions.

After a few times, everyone got annoyed. In addition, Luo Tong had always been arrogant, so even though she was the heroine of the book, no one liked her very much.

Luo Tong knew what these villagers wanted to do. They just wanted to ruin her reputation and make her marry a second-rate guy. She would not let them control her. Zhao Yancheng saw that she was distressed about this matter and took the initiative to stand up.

“Luo Tong, I have a way to deal with second-rate people.”

“What method?”

Zhao Yancheng leaned over to Luo Tong’s ear and told her his plan, and Luo Tong asked uncertainly.

“Will this work?”

“That’ll work. This way they’ll know how powerful you are and won’t dare spread rumors anymore.”

Soon, Luo Tong was persuaded. Since they were shameless, don’t blame her for being cruel.

That day, Li Fang and her friends came to find Su Qingge to go up the mountain to collect firewood. Because of the cotton coupons she gave them, they all bought cotton and could spend the winter peacefully, so they were very grateful to her.

Su Qingge thought that since they were going to the mountain anyway, they could go together. They first went to the captain’s house to borrow a cart. Sun Peizhen lent it to them with a smile and said.

“You are all girls and don’t have the strength to push the cart. After you pick it up, I will let my son help you push it.”

Since they had someone to help them, they naturally agreed. Li Fang felt that Sun Peizhen was too straightforward, but she didn’t think too much about it and waited for them to reach the bottom of the mountain.

There were already quite a few people collecting firewood, so they immediately separated to collect firewood. By noon, Su Qingge had collected five large bundles of firewood.

This made Lin Man and Lin Mo, who came with them, very envious. The two sisters only picked up three small bundles, but they were only envious, not jealous.

Li Fang was also shocked and thought that although Su Qingge looked weak on the surface, she was actually a good worker.

When it was time for dinner, the others sat down where they were, took out the dry food they brought, and continued to pick up trash after eating. Su Qingge also imitated the villagers.

She brought an omelet wrapped with fried fish, and it was super satisfying to take a bite.

Li Fang, Lin Man, and Lin Mo also came over and sat next to her. The three of them shared the lard scraps, steamed bread slices, and millet buns they brought with them with her.

“Su Zhiqing, let’s eat together.”

Lin Man spoke, and the two nodded in agreement. Su Qingge saw that the three of them were sincere, so he accepted their things and put the fish pieces on the ground for everyone to eat together.

“Just call me Qingge.”

With Su Qingge’s fish fillets, Li Fang and the other two were very satisfied with the meal, and they decided to treat her well in the future.

“Qingge, let’s go to the county town together tomorrow. We’ll treat you to a meal.”

Thinking that she hadn’t been to the county town for a while, he needed to find an opportunity to deal with the wild animals, so he nodded and agreed. Seeing that she agreed, the three of them started talking about other things.

“I also need to buy some wool and knit a sweater, otherwise a cotton-padded jacket won’t be windproof. Qingge, do you have a sweater?”

Li Fang finished speaking and looked at her.

Su Qingge shook her head. She had a cotton jacket and cotton pants, as well as clothes from the small world, so she would never feel cold.

“Buy some wool and I’ll knit you one.”

Li Fang said it happily, and Lin Man and Lin Mo immediately said that they also wanted a sweater. Li Fang agreed and said that as long as they provided the wool, she would knit it for them.

“It’s settled then. Let’s go buy yarn together tomorrow.”

After agreeing, they continued to collect firewood. Su Qingge thought that she could knit two sweaters for Sun Peizhen and Tian Xueyue. After they finished collecting firewood, Su Shengli came over.

After helping them deliver the firewood back to the educated youth site, Su Shengli pushed the cart away, fearing that his younger sister would stuff something into his mouth again.

Su Qingge was too lazy to move at night, so he took the cooked food from the small world and ate it, then lay down on the bed to sleep.

The next day, before she woke up, Li Fang and the other two came to call her.

“Qingge, get up, we’re ready to go.”

“good.”

Su Qingge got up, dressed and washed quickly, and then went to ride the ox cart together. When she got on the ox cart, she realized that Li Fang and the other three were each carrying a large basket.

The ox cart was shaking, and they met Luo Tong and Zhao Yancheng on the road. The two were riding bicycles and soon distanced themselves from them.

After arriving at the county town, the four of them went to the supply and marketing cooperative first. They really were selling wool today, but there was only one kind, gray. Even with that, Li Fang and the others were afraid they wouldn’t be able to get one.

The three of them took Su Qingge and grabbed all the wool before buying other things.

Su Qingge watched them buy this and that, and finally understood the purpose of their carrying large baskets.

“Qingge, buy as much as you can now. When the New Year approaches, you won’t be able to grab anything even if you come.”

Su Qingge saw that there were indeed more people today than before. At this time, fresh pork arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative, and Li Fang and the other two immediately joined the ranks to grab the meat.

Su Qingge was not interested in the meat, but was interested in the pile of pig offal next to her. After Li Fang and the other three had grabbed the fat meat, they saw that she wanted to buy the pig offal and hurriedly pulled her over.

“Qingge, what do you want this for?”

“This is edible.”

The three of them looked disgusted. How could pig offal be as delicious as fat? They liked fat the most. Seeing that they couldn’t understand, Su Qingge didn’t explain much and asked the salesperson.

“Hello comrade, I want all this pig offal. How much is it?”

The salesperson glanced at Lin Man and said.

“You’re Lin Man’s friend, so give me ten cents and take this pig’s offal.”

Su Qingge turned around and saw Lin Man smiling sweetly. She looked at the male salesperson and immediately understood.

No wonder Li Fang and the others knew that there was wool for sale today. It must be because of someone in their family.

“Comrade, I want the big bone next to it too.”

The salesperson helped her put the pig offal and big bones into the backpack. The pile weighed at least 30 kilograms, and Su Qingge was very satisfied.

Seeing that she didn’t listen to the advice, Lin Man saw that there was still some pork and whispered to her.

“Qingge, you should go grab some meat. The captain will gather people to open up the wasteland in a few days. If you don’t replenish it now, how will you be able to eat it when the time comes?”

This land reclamation is voluntary. The educated youth can go if they want to, or not. Su Qingge looked at the three of them.

“Are you all going to open up new land?”

The three of them nodded in unison. They earned a lot of work points by reclaiming wasteland, and this was the last time they would earn work points before the New Year.

Work points are food, and they will not miss this opportunity.

After being persuaded by the three people, Su Qingge bought half a pound of lean meat, and then the four of them went to the state-owned restaurant together.

I saw that today’s offerings include braised spare ribs, pork stewed with vermicelli, dumplings, and sweet and sour pork.

They each ordered one portion so they could eat together later. Su Qingge lowered her head and took out the bills from her bag. The three of them had already paid.

“Qingge, we invite you.”

Su Qingge agreed, thinking that she would send them some of the pig offal when she returned. The four of them found a seat and sat down. While waiting for the food, Lin Man explained to her the relationship between herself and the male salesperson.

“Qingge, he’s mine. If you want to buy anything in the future, tell me and I can ask him to give you a discount.”

“How long have you been together?”

Su Qingge just said it casually, but unexpectedly Lin Man sighed.

“It’s been two years. I wanted to get married but he told me to wait until he saved enough money for the bride price and three turns and one ring before marrying me.”

Su Qingge had a hunch that something was wrong. In this day and age, basically, if the matchmaker met once and found a good match, the two families would discuss the marriage. Two years was a bit too long.

But seeing Lin Man’s expression, she didn’t say much. When the dishes were ready, Lin Mo and Li Fang went to serve them. The three of them hadn’t eaten meat since the autumn harvest.

They were so generous today because they wanted to invite Su Qingge.

So, the three of them didn’t even bother to talk and just focused on eating. Influenced by them, Su Qingge also ate a lot.

After dinner, Su Qingge separated from them and agreed to meet at the ox cart at three o’clock in the afternoon.

Su Qingge knew that Luo Tong had been trading on the black market, so she didn’t plan to go.

There are three factories in the county: a machinery factory, a steel factory, and a textile factory. She planned to sell her goods in these factories. She disguised herself in the small world, replaced the things in her backpack with wild animals, and then waited for the first buyer to come.

A female employee who was returning to the factory after lunch saw Su Qingge carrying a basket and walked up to her and asked her quietly.

“Comrade, do you have any fine grains here?”