Chapter 33: Thrifting at the Junkyard

Come back! Of course, he would come back! He loved spicy food the most!

Gu Ye felt a surge of joy inside, but his expression remained well-controlled. His face was still calm, and his tone remained indifferent. He even pretended to hesitate for a moment before giving a faint “mm” in agreement.

Jiang Yue looked at the smug expression on Gu Ye’s face and couldn’t help but secretly laugh.

She didn’t take Gu Ye’s aloofness and coldness to heart. In the past couple of days, Gu Ye’s attitude towards her had become much more subtle, unlike the first day after they returned from the Provincial Capital when he had been cold and sharp-tongued. Last night, he had even allowed her to sleep in the same room as him.

What Jiang Yue thought was that as long as Gu Ye was willing to come back and eat, she was confident that he would not want to leave her.

She was very confident in her cooking skills!

In fact, Jiang Yue knew that Gu Ye liked spicy food because it was mentioned in the original book. The female lead and male lead went on a blind date, and the female lead made a dish of stir-fried chili with pork. The male lead’s eyes immediately turned red, and later, he explained that it was because his mother was from Hunan Province. This dish reminded him of his mother, and at that moment, he decided that he wanted to marry the female lead.

It was really far-fetched!

Jiang Yue couldn’t help but laugh when she remembered this part of the plot.

Putting aside whether someone as calm as Gu Ye would be moved by a dish of stir-fried chili pork from a female lead he had never met, feeling both gratitude and admiration and deciding she was the one for him—just think about it!

Let’s not even mention how, in this dog-blood romance novel, in order to hype up the female lead’s charm, the author had piled on so many buffs for her. Beauty was the least significant of her traits.

The female lead was smart, talented, a great cook, kind-hearted, and had an eye for detail. In the book, every man who met her couldn’t take his eyes off her. After marrying the male lead, the female lead didn’t slow down either, attracting countless admirers. She always had a line of licking dogs around her.

Thanks to her status as a time traveler, she could always sense the right opportunities. Whatever business she started, she always made a huge profit, accumulating a massive fortune, and causing many outstanding men to fall in love with her.

In the book, it was her cooking that won over the male lead, but in reality, no one would eat the dishes made by the female lead, Pei Xueyun.

There was still about a month before the female lead would appear, and Jiang Yue planned to use this time wisely to increase Gu Ye’s affection for her.

As she thought about the plot, Jiang Yue scooped the lard she had rendered into a jar. Once the lard cooled, it would solidify into a white paste. She remembered that when she was a child, her grandmother used to like stir-frying with lard, and the fragrance was especially delicious.

Gu Ye wasn’t idle either. He entered the room and scattered cockroach powder in every corner.

After finishing these tasks, Gu Ye was about to head back to the team. As he walked out, he saw Jiang Yue swinging her arms.

In the afternoon, the small courtyard became quiet. Jiang Yue stood under the corridor, shielding herself from the midday sun. She glanced around the courtyard and decided that she would discuss with Gu Ye when he came back in the evening whether they could plant a tree in the courtyard. With summer approaching, having a tree in the courtyard would provide some shade, and if they planted flowers in the corners, it wouldn’t feel so monotonous.

Jiang Yue took an afternoon nap. In the afternoon, she planned to visit the county town to check out the supply and marketing cooperative for fabric and see if she could find a tailor to make a couple of outfits.

She didn’t like a single piece of clothing in the Original Owner’s wardrobe. She had only been wearing them when going out to buy groceries these past few days, and they were unbearably stuffy, making her break out in little heat bumps.

Jiang Yue walked to the county town. Upon arrival, she went straight to the supply and marketing cooperative. The current supply and marketing cooperative was a state-run entity and quite popular, but back then, there was no such thing as “the customer is always right.” let alone good service.

When a customer entered, the salespeople inside would glance over from the corner of their eyes before continuing with their own activities—some were eating sunflower seeds, some were knitting woolen sweaters, and others were lying on the counters, not even lifting their heads.

Jiang Yue looked around. The store mainly carried “dikequang” and cotton fabric. She would never buy those flashy “dikequang” fabrics. She planned to buy a few bolts of cotton fabric to make some clothes for herself. Once she had the chance, she would go to the city to check out foreign trade stores.

“How many feet would you like?” The saleswoman asked impatiently when she saw Jiang Yue was asking for fabric.

“Big sister, I want to make a top and pants. I don’t know how to calculate it. Could you give me some advice?” Jiang Yue wasn’t upset and asked the saleswoman with a pleasant smile.

The saleswoman, not wanting to be rude, glanced at Jiang Yue. Seeing that she was well-dressed and good-looking, her expression softened. After a quick look, she gave Jiang Yue the measurements she needed. “A six-foot length should be enough for the top, and eight feet for the pants.”

“I’ll take twelve feet of this white cotton fabric, and nine feet each of the blue and black fabric.” Jiang Yue said.

“Are you sure you want this kind of cotton fabric?” The saleswoman was surprised. Seeing how well-dressed Jiang Yue was, she thought she was here to buy “dikequang.” which was the most popular fabric at the time.

“Yes, I want cotton fabric!” Jiang Yue confirmed.

The other seller couldn’t help but notice when Jiang Yue paid and took her receipt so quickly.

After the fabric was wrapped up, Jiang Yue asked the saleswoman: “Big sister, is there a good tailor in the county town who makes clothes?”

“You’ve come to the right person.” said the middle-aged saleswoman who had been munching on sunflower seeds. “Go to Nanmen Street and look for Old Lady Yang. She’s skilled!”

Jiang Yue asked for directions, thanked her, and then headed towards Nanmen Street. The county town wasn’t big, and it was easy to see. The houses were all low and old, and every few steps, one could see a red slogan posted on the walls.

As Jiang Yue passed by the junkyard, she suddenly stopped in her tracks. She remembered that in the original book, the female lead often went to the junkyard to scavenge, and on one occasion, she found a Yuan blue-and-white porcelain piece, which was later sold for a sky-high price of one hundred million.

Jiang Yue didn’t expect to find Yuan blue-and-white porcelain in the junkyard, but that didn’t stop her from going in to take a look.

An old man was watching over the junkyard. He had only two teeth left, but his clothes were neat and tidy, and his hair was combed neatly. He was sitting at the door, puffing away on a dry tobacco pipe.

When he saw Jiang Yue walk in, he lifted his eyelids and, while exhaling smoke, asked: “Selling scrap?”

Jiang Yue shook her head. “No, I’m just looking.”

The old man squinted at Jiang Yue, moved his lips a little, and pointed to the far corner on the west side. “Books and paintings are over there. Five cents per jin, pick whatever you want!”

Jiang Yue raised an eyebrow. It seemed the old man thought she was someone who came to scavenge for books.

However, there were indeed many treasures in the junkyard from this era. Perhaps due to the campaigns from a few years ago, many people dared not keep books at home, and with the destruction caused by the young rebels, many valuable books and paintings were ruined or ended up in junkyards.

A few years ago, no one would dare take such books home. If they were discovered, they could be criticized or even paraded in the streets. But things had improved in recent years, especially after the college entrance exam system was restored last year. The atmosphere for studying had returned, and more people were coming to the junkyard to search for books.

Jiang Yue was just casually looking around, but she actually found some authentic ancient paintings, and not just one. Jiang Yue’s grandfather was an antique collector, and having grown up around him, she had a decent knowledge of this field. She picked out over ten pieces, feeling a surge of excitement. If her old grandfather were here, he’d probably go crazy with joy.

When Jiang Yue left the junkyard, she was holding a large stack of rolled-up paintings, with a few ancient books tucked under her arm. She walked with a confident stride.

Today’s haul was really something!

Even though she only spent a couple of yuan today, in a few decades, any one of these authentic pieces could easily fetch hundreds of thousands, even millions.

She was going to get rich! She was going to get rich!

Jiang Yue decided that from now on, whenever she had time, she would visit the junkyard. Who knows, she might even beat Pei Xueyun to finding a Yuan blue-and-white porcelain piece!