Chapter 84 : It’s like pie in the sky

Song Shiwei was startled and quickly grabbed a child in each hand, holding them tightly by her side.  

Zhou Cheng and Zhou Lin were also frightened.  

“What’s happening?”  

“Yeah, why are these people acting like this?”  

At that moment, the staff at the counter picked up a loudspeaker and shouted, “Queue up! Everyone, queue up! One at a time!”  

The people at the front were acting like they had gone mad, pushing forward with cash and tickets in hand.  

Song Shiwei felt a bit regretful if only she had a radio ticket, she would have tried to grab one too.  

“They’re rushing to buy a radio! Do you want one?”  

Zhou Cheng and Zhou Lin’s eyes immediately lit up, and they nodded enthusiastically.  

“Yes!”  

Song Shiwei smiled and said, “Alright, next time I’ll find a way to get one for you too!”  

She remember what Gu Changrong tell her.  

He had mentioned that if she cooked, he could get her some tickets.  

Maybe she could even get a TV ticket!  

She then went to the counter selling cold cream and bought a bottle of it along with two tubes of frostbite cream.  

She also picked up some pretty new hairpins and hair ties for Xinxin.  

Of course, there were many beautiful autumn clothes at the counter, but Song Shiwei didn’t have enough cloth coupons. Even if she wanted to buy clothes for the children, she simply couldn’t afford them.  

Zhou Cheng and Zhou Lin understood their situation, so after glancing at the clothes longingly, they quickly looked away.  

All she could do was buy a few pairs of cotton gloves for the children and another pair for Sun Meimei’s family.  

Seeing other children dressed in new clothes, she thought to herself that she had to find a way to get more tickets so her children could have a good life and the same things as others!  

After leaving the department store, they made their way to the pier.  

By the time they arrived, it was already past two in the afternoon, and Xiao Zhang was waiting for them.  

After buying the tickets and boarding the boat, they made their way back to the army compound, arriving around four or five in the afternoon.  

Under the big willow tree at the entrance of the compound, Sun Meimei, Jian Qiu, and Wang Chunxiang were sitting with a group of other military wives, sewing shoe soles.  

Nearby, several children were playing and running around.  

From a distance, Sun Meimei spotted Song Shiwei and the others carrying large and small bags toward them.  

“Hey, Weiwei and the others are back!”  

She immediately set down the shoe she was working on and walked over to help carry the bags.  

But when she saw the massive bundle on Xiao Zhang’s back, she couldn’t help but laugh.  

“Oh my goodness, where did you go? That package is huge, don’t tell me it’s full of cotton-padded jackets?”  

She had spoken in a joking tone, and the other women nearby laughed as well.  

But Song Shiwei nodded seriously.  

“Yes, they’re all cotton-padded jackets. More than a dozen of them!”  

The women who had been laughing suddenly widened their eyes in shock.  

“What?”  

“All cotton-padded jackets?”  

“More than a dozen???”  

“Tingyue’s wife, did you strike it rich on this trip? My goodness, how much money and how many tickets must that have cost!”  

Even Sun Meimei and the others were in disbelief. Jian Qiu and Wang Chunxiang set down what they were holding and hurried over.  

“Weiwei, is this true? They’re all cotton-padded jackets?”  

They were poor, and none of them had many cloth coupons. They had to wear the same cotton-padded jackets year after year, mending them whenever they got torn.

Who doesn’t get frostbite on their hands and body every winter?  

So when they heard that Song Shiwei had brought back more than a dozen cotton-padded jackets in one go, everyone was shocked.  

They all gathered around.  

“Weiwei, where did you get these cotton-padded jackets?”  

“Yeah, how much does one cost?”  

“Where did you buy them? Were they expensive?”  

Song Shiwei asked Xiao Zhang to place the large bundle of cotton-padded jackets on the grass beside her. The bag was made from a single piece of fabric. Since she had nothing to carry them in, Sun Zeyan had found some leftover fabric and asked the workers to stitch a temporary bag for her.  

Although the bag was made from small fabric scraps, when pieced together, it was nearly ten feet long!  

As soon as she opened the outer layer of cloth, everyone saw that the bag was indeed filled with cotton-padded jackets!  

Sun Meimei couldn’t help but exclaim, “Oh my God, these are really all cotton-padded jackets!”  

She turned her head in disbelief and looked at Song Shiwei. “Weiwei, how did you manage to get so many cotton-padded jackets?”  

Song Shiwei smiled and said, “It was just by chance! I met Director Sun from the garment factory. Their factory had an overstock of cotton-padded jackets and wanted to sell them at a discount, so I brought some back!”  

As soon as everyone heard this, they were instantly excited.  

These cotton-padded jackets were made of high-quality fabric, durable and warm!  

“A discount? How much is one?”  

“Yeah, Weiwei, how much does one of these jackets cost? My kids’ jackets are so worn out they can barely wear them anymore. But we don’t have enough cloth and cotton coupons, so I’ve been worrying about that!”  

“Everyone’s in the same boat! My son’s and daughter’s cotton-padded jackets are too small, and mine is already three or four years old, it’s falling apart. I’ve patched it so many times, it looks terrible!”  

Jian Qiu was just as excited. She grabbed Song Shiwei’s sleeve and said happily, “Weiwei, you’re amazing! You even know the director of the garment factory!”  

Song Shiwei waved her hand and smiled. “It was just a coincidence!”  

Then she spoke loudly to everyone.  

“These cotton-padded jackets were originally meant for the supply and marketing cooperatives of department stores. You all know that no matter how much they sell for at the counter, they cost at least a dozen yuan each, and you also need cloth coupons. But this time, the factory is selling them at a loss only five yuan per jacket, and no coupons required! Of course, we’re keeping seven of them for ourselves. As for the rest, whoever needs one can…”  

Before she could even finish her sentence, the women went wild.  

“I want one! I want one!!”  

“I want one too!!”  

“No, I was first! I want it!!”  

“I said it first, I’m taking one!”   

For a moment, the scene turned chaotic.  

Of course, a cotton-padded jacket for just five yuan without needing a coupon, where could you ever find such a deal?  

It was like pie falling from the sky!  

Anyone who didn’t jump at the chance was a fool!  

Some even wanted to buy multiple jackets. After all, military families were usually from cadre households, and their husbands had stable incomes.  

But the country was still under a planned economy, and every household had fixed quotas for food, oil, cloth, and other essentials. It wasn’t like you could buy whatever you wanted whenever you wanted!  

Seeing everyone scrambling for the jackets, Song Shiwei was shocked. She had expected them to sell well, but she hadn’t imagined they would be this popular!  

Even the sisters-in-law who were usually so polite were acting like they had gone mad!  

She quickly waved her hands and said, “Don’t worry! One at a time. There’s enough for everyone. I only have ten jackets this time, but if you need more, I’ll bring more the next time I go to the city!”