Chapter 8: Going to the City

After breakfast, Xu Zeming took Tang Xiaoxiao and He Xiaoqian to the place where they would take the ox cart.

When they arrived, the ox cart wasn’t there yet.

“There’s a department store in the city, and there’s a foreign exchange counter in the department store. You can go and take a look if you need anything.” Xu Zeming said.

“Okay, thank you, Comrade Xu.” Tang Xiaoxiao thanked him.

“Try to keep your distance from Cao Hui and Wang Erxi.” Xu Zeming thought for a moment and finally told them.

The two girls looked at each other and nodded.

It was the busy farming season, so there weren’t many people taking the ox cart, but a few aunties arrived one after another.

“Comrade Xu, are you going back today?” An auntie greeted Xu Zeming.

“Auntie Wu, I want to go back early.” Then Xu Zeming turned to introduce them. “This is the village head’s wife. Just call her Auntie Wu.”

“Hello, Auntie Wu!”

“Oh, these are the two new female educated youths, aren’t they? They’re so pretty.” Auntie Wu greeted them with a smile.

“Look at their clothes, their families must be well-off. Why did you think of coming to our countryside?” Another auntie said with a smile.

“Auntie, I’m here to repay a debt of gratitude.” Tang Xiaoxiao smiled.

“Auntie Li, Comrade Song Jingzhi from the village is Comrade Tang’s savior.” Xu Zeming explained for Tang Xiaoxiao.

“Our Comrade Tang is a good girl who repays kindness. She came to the village specifically to find our Jingzhi. Let me tell you…” Auntie Wu was also tasked with spreading the news.

Tang Xiaoxiao looked at Xu Zeming, who nodded at her.

Tang Xiaoxiao immediately understood his meaning. It was better for some things to be spread by others than by herself.

She didn’t say anything else and let Auntie Wu talk. Xu Zeming and He Xiaoqian occasionally chimed in.

They spread the story of Tang Xiaoxiao coming to Yuhu Village to repay Song Jingzhi for saving her life vividly. The aunties praised her so much that she felt embarrassed.

Soon, the ox cart arrived. Yuhu Village was close to the city, and it only took half an hour to get there.

“The department store and the supply and marketing cooperative are in the same direction. If you have meat tickets, you can go to the meat station to buy some meat, buy bacon, it can be stored for a long time.” Xu Zeming reminded them before going to the train station.

The ox cart leaves at 10:30 am, those aunties need to go back to prepare lunch, it comes out again at 1:30 pm, and goes back at 3:30 pm.

“Comrade Xu, thank you. Be careful on your way back.”

After saying goodbye to Xu Zeming, the two girls walked towards the department store.

“Xiaoxiao, I want to go back in the afternoon, what about you?” He Xiaoqian wanted to eat at the state-owned restaurant for lunch.

“I have to go back in the morning. I want to go to the meat station to buy some pig trotters, make some pig trotter soup for Song Jingzhi and send it over.” Actually, she wanted to act separately from He Xiaoqian and take some things out of her space.

“Then let’s act separately. I saw a cinema over there, I want to go and take a look. I’ll go to the state-owned restaurant for lunch and then buy things in the afternoon.”

“Okay, be careful.”

“I’ll bring you some delicious food back. I saw someone selling candied haws secretly.”

“You only care about food and fun.” Tang Xiaoxiao laughed.

The two girls said goodbye. Tang Xiaoxiao went to the supply and marketing cooperative first. She had seen Auntie Wu and Auntie Li enter the supply and marketing cooperative.

She had to buy some things in front of them to prove that she had money and tickets and wasn’t lacking anything. Otherwise, it would be difficult to take things out of her space later.

“Hello, I want a thermos, a flashlight with batteries, a bar of soap, two boxes of matches, a box of face cream, half a pound of Great White Rabbit milk candy, half a pound of fruit candy, a pound of peach crisp, a pound of sponge cake, a pound of salt, a bottle of soy sauce, that’s all for now.”

“Comrade Tang, you’re buying so many things.” Auntie Li couldn’t help but ask.

“Oh, Auntie Wu, Auntie Li, you’re here too. I’m sorry, I was thinking about what to buy and didn’t notice you.” Tang Xiaoxiao looked embarrassed.

“It’s okay.” Auntie Wu said with a smile. “Comrade Tang, there’s a small supply and marketing cooperative in the brigade. You don’t need to come all this way to buy some things.”

“Thank you, Auntie. I didn’t know. By the way, Auntie, where is the meat station here?”

“Are you going to buy lard to melt for cooking oil? Turn right out of here, walk a little further, there’s a sign for the meat station.” Auntie Wu said with a smile.

“Okay, thank you, Auntie Wu.” Tang Xiaoxiao paid for her things, put them in her carrying basket, and greeted the two aunties before leaving the supply and marketing cooperative.

“Guilan, what kind of family does this Comrade Tang come from? She’s dressed so well, and she doesn’t care about tickets or money when she buys things.” Auntie Li asked softly.

“Don’t ask so many questions. Anyway, my old man said that this Comrade Tang’s family is not simple. Otherwise, why would she come to our village? There are so many firefighters in the disaster area, how could she find her savior so quickly? It’s our Jingzhi.”

“You’re right. Maybe she’s a girl from a big courtyard.”

Leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, Tang Xiaoxiao went to the post office first. She sent a telegram to her parents, telling them that she had arrived safely and asking them to take care of themselves.

Next, Tang Xiaoxiao hid in an alleyway with few people, using her carrying basket as cover, and took out several pounds of pork belly, two pounds of bacon, two large bones, and two pounds of spare ribs from her space. After thinking for a moment, she also took out a cleaver.

“So heavy?” Including the things she bought at the supply and marketing cooperative, it weighed over ten pounds.

Tang Xiaoxiao was about to go to the ox cart stop, but then she thought, she would definitely come to the city often in the future, and it wouldn’t be convenient to always take the ox cart.

She took out a Phoenix brand bicycle from her space and then found out where the police station was. She rode her bike there to get a license.

After getting her bicycle license and having the stamp put on it, she immediately rode back to the village. Luckily, she remembered the way, otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to find her way back.

Back at the educated youth center, Tang Xiaoxiao locked her bicycle at the door of her room. The first thing she did was to make bone broth for Song Jingzhi.

She didn’t have any firewood yet, and she was too embarrassed to use Liu Fengjuan’s again, so she went to Auntie Cui’s house, where she bought the carrying baskets.

“Auntie, I need to cook something urgently, and I want to buy some firewood from you.”

“Oh, girl, why would you pay for firewood? Just take some and use it.” Auntie Cui said with a smile. The firewood was all cut from dead trees on the back mountain, why would she charge for it?

“No, I won’t take it if you don’t charge me.” This was all hard work that people had carried back from the mountain, how could she not pay?

“You girl…”

“Auntie, I’ll give you 50 cents. You can give me as much firewood as you think is appropriate.” She saw that Auntie Cui had a lot of firewood.

“I’ll have my husband push a cart for you.” Auntie Cui was a straightforward person.

“Then I’ll trouble you, Auntie.”

When Uncle Cui pushed the firewood to Tang Xiaoxiao, she was truly surprised by the amount. Uncle Cui pushed a full cart of firewood, chopped into strips.

Uncle Cui even stacked it neatly under her eaves, so it wouldn’t get wet in the rain.