Chapter 3

Besides money, the tin box contained quite a few booklets and ration tickets. The booklets included the Grain Ration Book, Coal Ration Book, Industrial Ration Book, and Supplementary Food Ration Book, all issued by the Military Family Resettlement Office after the household registration was completed.

There were even more ration tickets—grain tickets, oil tickets, fabric ration tickets, meat tickets, soap tickets, match tickets, and so on, covering all aspects of daily life.

Among them, the majority of the grain tickets came from He Dongchuan, given to the original owner. There were also industrial tickets, which were distributed based on salary—ten yuan per ticket. Since his salary was high, he had accumulated quite a few.

Most of the other tickets were obtained using the ration booklets, part of the monthly quota supply.

Su Ting rummaged through and took out the soap tickets. At this time, each household was allowed to purchase six bars of soap per month. The original owner had never bought any before, so she planned to use up all the tickets at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

She would never share soap with others except for washing hands.

Not only would she not share, but she also wanted separate soap for washing her hair and bathing. Even for laundry, she needed a different kind. Just calculating in her head, she figured she could use at least half of the six bars of soap each month.

Fortunately, there were still industrial tickets, which could be used to buy a wide range of items—from small things like soap and light bulbs to big ones like bicycles and sewing machines.

With He Dongchuan’s salary, she could use as much soap as she wanted. If the Supply and Marketing Cooperative had any, she could even buy scented soap, which was far better than regular soap.

She also needed to buy a few more enamel basins. Currently, the bathroom only had one metal bucket and two enamel basins—one for washing the face and one for soaking the feet. Without even thinking, she knew they were shared by the whole family.

She had to buy two for herself and keep them separate.

The more she thought about it, the more she realized she had too many things to buy. She simply stopped sorting the tickets and brought everything she might need, especially the industrial tickets—she had to take extra.

After gathering the tickets, she also counted out five Great Unity bills and got ready to leave.

Just as she stepped out of the Master’s Bedroom, there was movement in the room next door. The door was pulled open from the inside, and He Yan, carrying a schoolbag slung over his shoulder, walked out.

Su Ting raised her hand to check the time. “You’re going to school?”

He Yan responded with a simple “Mm.” He turned his head slightly to look at Su Ting. In the past two days, she had always gone back to lie down after eating. Why was she still outside today?

Children’s eyes could never hide their thoughts. Su Ting could tell what He Yan was thinking. She coughed lightly and said: “I’m going to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative to buy things. Want to come along?”

The Supply and Marketing Cooperative and the Military Primary School were both outside the family compound, so they were headed in the same direction.

“Oh.”

Although He Yan’s tone was indifferent, Su Ting took it as agreement and followed him out.

The houses in the family compound were generally divided into two types: one where two households shared a courtyard, and another that was standalone with its own courtyard. However, even within these categories, the sizes varied. The former ranged from 50 to 80 square meters, while the latter, the standalone houses, were at least 80 square meters.

The He Family lived in Building No. 66, belonging to the first type—two units sharing a courtyard. Both homes had the same area, about 60 square meters, but their layouts were mirrored.

The He Family’s house was on the right, facing the sea. From the living room window, one could see golden sand, the blue ocean, and occasionally, seagulls flying past.

However, the best view was from the courtyard outside. The enclosing wall was quite low, reaching only Su Ting’s knees. On a good weather day, bringing out a reclining chair and sitting outside to enjoy the scenery would have been nice.

Unfortunately, the He Family didn’t have a reclining chair—otherwise, she wouldn’t have spent the past two days lying inside.

To the left of the He Family was the Jiang Family. The male head of the household, Jiang Wei, served in the naval unit and was currently out at sea. His wife, Wang Lixia, had been following him in military postings for three years and was temporarily unemployed.

Since the original owner wasn’t familiar with her, Su Ting wasn’t sure whether Wang Lixia had chosen not to work to take care of the children or if there were simply too few job opportunities on the island, and she was still waiting for an assignment.

Jiang Wei and Wang Lixia had two children. The elder one, Jiang Rong, was eight years old and in second grade. The younger one, Jiang Weidong, was five and not yet in school.

At this moment, the Jiang Family’s front door was wide open, but the doors to both the master’s bedroom and the second bedroom were closed. Su Ting couldn’t tell if anyone was inside.

She wasn’t particularly curious, either. After a quick glance inside, she withdrew her gaze and continued walking with He Yan, stepping out of the courtyard and turning right toward the family compound’s entrance.

After walking for about five minutes, they arrived at the compound’s main gate.

Near the entrance was an open space—not paved with cement, but flattened from years of use. When there were announcements to be made, the military wives would be gathered here for meetings.

To the left of the open space stood a bulletin board, mainly used for posting notices and documents. Behind the bulletin board was a row of brick houses, which housed the Military Family Resettlement Office and the Women’s Federation office.

To the right of the open space was a leisure area, where two stone tables were set up, each surrounded by four stone stools. There were also two long benches nearby, providing a place for people to sit and chat.

A few lush, leafy trees grew beside the tables and stools, offering shade. Someone had even hung two swings from the thick tree trunks for the children to play on.

These two swings were incredibly popular among the children in the family compound. Every time the original owner passed by, there would always be kids lined up, waiting for their turn. In fact, they often argued, and sometimes even fought, over how long each person got to swing.

Today was no different. As Su Ting passed by, she glanced in that direction and saw seven or eight children gathered around the two swings, all waiting for their turn.

As she looked away, she noticed that He Yan was also watching the children.

Recalling the memories left by the original owner, she realized that he had been on the island for almost half a month but had never gone on the swings before. So, she asked: “Do you want to swing?”

“No.” He Yan denied outright. After a brief pause, he added: “I used to swing all the time. It’s nothing special.”

Su Ting thought, If it’s not fun, why did you do it so often? She didn’t believe him but chose not to call him out on it. Instead, she said: “So, you just want to play with them?”

He Yan instantly reacted like a startled cat. “I don’t want to play with them! I’m already in school. I’m a big kid now. I don’t play with little kids!”

Su Ting found this amusing.

Although the kids on the swings did look quite young—about four, five, or six years old—she was pretty sure He Yan had just turned six himself. Where did he get the confidence to think of himself as a big kid while considering the others little kids?

Seeing the smile on Su Ting’s face, He Yan grew even more annoyed. “What are you laughing at? Am I wrong?”

Su Ting grinned and said: “Of course, of course. You’re absolutely right.”

But He Yan’s expression didn’t improve. He could tell she was just humoring him, just like many times before—saying “yes, yes, yes” but not really taking him seriously at all.

Fine. If she didn’t want to talk to him, he wouldn’t talk to her either!

He pressed his lips together tightly and walked ahead, quickly putting distance between himself and Su Ting.

As a seasoned office worker, Su Ting was good at reading people’s emotions. And He Yan’s mood was so obvious that it was impossible to ignore. She sighed and asked: “Why are you walking so fast? Are you mad?” Then she picked up her pace to catch up.

He Yan ignored her and kept walking.

Alright, no need to ask. She had her answer.

“You’re definitely angry.” Su Ting was certain. She began to guess: “Why are you mad? Because I said you wanted to swing? Or because I said you wanted to play with them? Or was it because I laughed? None of those? Then is it becau—”

The little boy, who had been walking with his head down, suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked up at her. With a blank expression, he said: “You’re so noisy.”

Su Ting: “…” Did a little brat just tell her off?

Seeing that she was momentarily speechless, He Yan couldn’t help but lift the corners of his lips. But then he remembered he was still supposed to be mad, so he quickly pressed them down again and said: “We’ve reached the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. Stop following me.”

Su Ting glanced to the left—sure enough, they had arrived.

When she looked down again, the little brat had already turned and dashed off.

…

Outside the Navy Compound, there was a street lined with various storefronts. The canteen, butcher shop, Supply and Marketing Cooperative, grain station, vegetable market, and guesthouse were all located here.

Among these establishments, the Supply and Marketing Cooperative was one of the larger ones. It occupied two storefronts that had been connected in the middle, forming a U-shaped layout with three counters on each side.

There were a total of six counters, but only four shop assistants. The remaining two counters, which sold clothing, fabric, shoes, and other large items, didn’t have dedicated staff since business there was slower. The assistants at the adjacent counters would watch over them when needed.

With so few employees, and at this time of day, even fewer customers, the Supply and Marketing Cooperative felt almost deserted. When Su Ting entered, only one person was browsing the counter selling cooking oil, salt, sauces, and sewing supplies. The other three shop assistants were either dozing off or chatting while working on their needlework. Even when they noticed her coming in, they didn’t bother to acknowledge her.

Su Ting had read plenty of historical novels in her past life and knew that during this era, being a shop assistant was considered a stable, lifelong job. It was completely normal for them to ignore customers, so she didn’t take it personally. Instead, she walked in and checked each counter one by one.

The first thing that caught her eye was a stack of enameled basins, placed on the bottom shelf behind the household goods counter. The shop assistant there was a middle-aged woman wearing a faded blue-gray military uniform, the same one who had been napping openly during work hours.

Su Ting walked over and called out: “Comrade?”

Hearing her voice, the woman at the next counter, who was working on needlework, turned her head and shouted: “Sister Peng, someone’s here to buy something.”

The double call woke Sister Peng up. Her head slipped from her propped-up hand, and she instinctively leaned back. Squinting at Su Ting, she yawned and asked: “What do you want to buy?”

“Enameled basins.”

“Do you have the ration tickets?”

“Can the industrial ticket buy enameled basins?” Su Ting asked uncertainly. She had inherited most of the original owner’s memories, but some parts were still a blur. For example, she knew what items certain tickets could buy if it was clearly written, but if it wasn’t, she had no idea.

“Yes.” Sister Peng stood up from behind the counter, walked over to the shelf, and picked up two basins. Turning to Su Ting, she asked: “Which one do you want?”

The two she had picked up were both primarily red, with one featuring the Double Happiness symbol and the other showing Tiananmen Square, with the words “The East is Red” written underneath.

To Su Ting, both designs seemed a little tacky and overly festive, but what she thought of as “tacky” was actually just the current style. Besides, these were the only two available options, so she had no choice but to say: “I’ll take both.”

Sister Peng looked surprised and asked: “Why do you need so many basins?”

“For use.” Su Ting thought the question was a bit strange.

“Don’t you have any basins at home?” Sister Peng paused and then suddenly remembered: “Wait, didn’t Colonel He buy a bucket and basin on the first day you came to the island?”

Su Ting didn’t recall anything like that. In fact, she hadn’t inherited many memories of He Dongchuan, and whenever he appeared in the original owner’s memories, his face was always blurry, like it had been pixelated.

She wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t want to be seen or if the original owner didn’t want her, as an outsider, to know what He Dongchuan looked like.

If it was the latter, Su Ting just wanted to say that she didn’t want to see him either!

What’s so special about a man anyway? He didn’t have a phone to play with, nor bubble tea to drink. What was the big deal?

She couldn’t think about it.

If she did, it would only hurt.

With a forced smile, Su Ting said: “Those were for him and his son. These two basins are for me. I’ll keep them separate from theirs.”

The other shop assistants, who had been observing, couldn’t help but glance over. One of them, who was more straightforward, remarked: “You’re quite particular, huh?”

Su Ting thought, What’s so particular about that? It’s just being hygienic, but judging from the look on the other person’s face, it seemed like they didn’t separate things at home, so she kept that thought to herself to avoid offending anyone.

After buying the basins, Su Ting also picked up six bars of soap and two bars of scented soap, all using the industrial ticket. She also bought sunflower seeds, peanuts, biscuits, and pastries, adding a bit of everything to her purchase. Additionally, she got two pounds of bananas and two pounds of oranges, thinking that she had eaten too much for lunch and needed to make up for it elsewhere.

As she made her large, sweeping purchases, the shop assistant couldn’t help but ask: “Are you sure you’ll be able to finish all this?”

Su Ting counted the money and replied: “This much will be gone in a few days.”

The fruits on the island didn’t require ration tickets, and the prices were cheap—bananas were three cents per pound, and oranges were two cents. The four pounds of fruit totaled only one yuan.

Although Su Ting didn’t think much of the cost, the shop assistant did. One yuan wasn’t a lot, but the amount of food she had bought was substantial. Without even counting the soap and enameled basins, the food alone had already cost her two or three yuan.

Even though He Dongchuan was a Colonel with a monthly salary and allowances amounting to over a hundred yuan, no amount of money could withstand her kind of spending!

Su Ting didn’t care about that. In her past life, she had been frugal, working hard to save up for a down payment on a house. But what did that get her? She’d only lived in the house for a couple of months before she lost it.

If she had known this would happen, she would have spent all her savings, at least then she wouldn’t feel bad about it.

But regrets were useless. All she could do now was spend what needed to be spent and use what needed to be used. Who knew which would come first, an unexpected event or tomorrow?

So, Su Ting ignored the questioning looks of the others and, after finishing her shopping, left.

However, the gossip about her in the Supply and Marketing Cooperative had only just begun.

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