After Xu An and Xu Mo fell asleep, Xu Ning gathered a few cabbages and placed them in her storage space. She also took out some dried wild vegetables and mushrooms, planning to deliver them to the elderly couple the next day after sending her other packages. Seeing the chestnuts in the kitchen, she packed half a bag of them into her space as well.

The next day, Xu Ning first went to the post office to send off the packages. Then, she rode her bicycle to visit Grandpa Wang.

She knocked gently on the door twice and waited at the entrance. Grandpa Wang came to open the door, and when he saw Xu Ning, he smiled and said, “Oh, it’s you, young lady! Come on in.”

Grandma Wang also came out from the house to welcome Xu Ning inside.

“Grandpa Wang, Grandma Wang, my name is Xu Ning. You can just call me by my name from now on.

Today, I brought you some vegetables and the chestnuts I gathered in the mountains.”

As she spoke, she took out the cabbages and dried vegetables from her basket, along with the half bag of chestnuts tied to her bicycle.

“These chestnuts can be peeled and added to porridge while cooking. The dried vegetables and mushrooms can be soaked in water to make a delicious soup. The dried wild vegetables can also be chopped up to make dumpling fillings,” she explained.

Grandma Wang poured a cup of water and handed it to Xu Ning, saying, “Child, thank you so much. You must have put in a lot of effort to bring all this.”

Xu Ning smiled warmly and replied, “Grandma Wang, the cabbages are homegrown, and the wild vegetables were dug up from the mountains. The mushrooms and chestnuts were also gathered in the mountains, so they didn’t cost me anything. I have plenty at home. The cabbages I brought this time can be made into pickled vegetables. Next time, I’ll bring more fresh ones.”

Seeing several bundles of firewood stacked in the yard, Xu Ning asked, “Grandpa Wang, where did you gather this firewood? Do you only burn wood in winter and not coal? Don’t they distribute coal tickets in the city?”

Grandpa Wang sighed and explained, “They do give out coal tickets, but not many. So when I have free time, I go outside the city to collect firewood to use in winter.”

Grandma Wang added from the side, “Things have been much better these past two years. The director of the shoe factory, a retired military officer, learned about our situation. Now, when the factory distributes welfare, we also receive some benefits. He even made sure the street officials don’t trouble us anymore. Before, we not only had to sweep two streets but also clean the toilets on this street. Now, we’re only responsible for sweeping this one street, and they don’t make us clean the toilets anymore.”

Both of them spoke highly of the factory director, calling him a good person.

In her heart, Xu Ning thought, You two are good people as well.

As Xu Ning was leaving, she said to the elderly couple, “Grandpa Wang, Grandma Wang, I’ll bring you more vegetables and grain in a while.”

“We receive our grain supply every month, and with these, we can eat well for quite some time. The weather is getting colder, so don’t come running over here,” they said as they accompanied Xu Ning to the door. Xu Ning smiled and nodded in response.

Finding an empty alley, Xu Ning took out twenty sheets from her storage space. After a moment’s thought, she also pulled out two military coats. Given what had happened with Lin Miao, she felt that selling the items herself carried too much risk, especially since she didn’t know the character of the people she would be dealing with.

If she encountered someone fierce and opportunistic, not only would she risk not getting paid, but her safety could also be compromised.

On the other hand, Su Hongying was different; she worked at the supply and marketing cooperative, and people would assume the items came from there.

These past few days, Su Hongying had been waiting for Xu Ning. As soon as she saw her locking her bicycle at the door, she hurried out from behind the counter and said, “Xiao Ning, don’t lock the bike; come home with me!”

Xu Ning pushed her bicycle alongside Su Hongying, who lived not far from the cooperative—just a seven or eight-minute walk.

Once inside, Su Hongying closed the door. Xu Ning took the sheets out of her basket, and after glancing at them, Su Hongying handed Xu Ning some money, saying, “Xiao Ning, here’s 360 yuan. Count it for yourself.”

Xu Ning took the money from Su Hongying and said, “What’s there to count? I trust you, Hongying. By the way, my friend came over this time not just with sheets but also brought a few military coats. Do you want some?”

Su Hongying’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Yes! You don’t know how much I wanted those last two military coats. The leaders at my brother-in-law’s factory kept them, and one of them missed out because he complained that my brother-in-law didn’t tell him. My brother-in-law even wanted to keep one for himself but couldn’t get it. How many did your friend bring?”

“He can only give me two this time. If you want more, I’ll see if I can ask him to bring some next time,” Xu Ning replied, pulling the two military coats from her basket for Su Hongying to see.

After looking them over, Su Hongying decided to keep both coats. She then took out some yarn from the cupboard, saying, “Xiao Ning, this is the yarn you asked me to hold for you last time. It’s a total of six pounds. Also, this coal ticket is from my brother-in-law; he got approval from the leaders for 1,000 pounds. Since it doesn’t require a ticket, the price is a bit higher. You just need to find a truck to take it from the coal station.”

Xu Ning accepted the coal ticket and the yarn, smiling. “It’s great that I can buy it now, even if it’s a bit expensive. Thank you, Sister Hongying, and please thank your brother-in-law for me as well.”

After Su Hongying finished her tasks, she headed off to work. Xu Ning rode her bicycle back to the elderly couple’s home.

She planned to take 500 pounds of the 1,000 pounds of coal from the ticket, leaving the rest for Grandpa Wang to use. Last year, Liu Xiaotang had made her quite a few coal balls, so the 500 pounds would be enough for their needs this year.

As Xu Ning reached the entrance of the alley, she spotted Grandpa Wang sweeping the ground. She got off her bike and said, “Grandpa Wang, my relative gave me a coal ticket for 1,000 pounds. I still have last year’s, so I don’t need that much. Can you find a cart to help me bring some back?”

Grandpa Wang looked both pleased and worried. “Child, if you give us some, how will you have enough for yourself?”

Xu Ning replied cheerfully, “Grandpa Wang, I have plenty of firewood at home for heating. The coal is mainly for the stove; I won’t need much. It’s different in the city—there’s less firewood, and without coal, winter can be tough.”

Grandpa Wang went back to fetch a cart and followed Xu Ning to the coal station. She handed the ticket to the worker and asked them to fill Grandpa Wang’s cart first, planning to have Old Chen come over later to help her take her share back.

As Grandpa Wang was about to leave, he gratefully said to Xu Ning, “Child, thank you so much!”

Xu Ning waved her hand with a smile and replied, “Oh, Grandpa Wang, don’t mention it. Hurry back with the coal, and then go outside the city to gather some firewood. Make sure to keep the stove warm during winter!”

With tears in his eyes, Grandpa Wang pulled the cart full of coal back home. Xu Ning then went to find Old Chen to ask for his help in bringing back her share.

When Xu An came home from school and saw Xu Ning winding yarn, with a pile of coal outside, he asked, “Sister, are we making coal balls again this year?”

Xu Ning, fiddling with the yarn in her hands, replied, “Making coal balls is convenient for heating. Tomorrow is Sunday; can you help me out at home? I think with the two of us, we should be able to finish in a day.”

She pulled out the leftover yarn from last time, adding the six pounds she had just bought. It would be enough to make a sweater for her parents, Grandpa Qi, Uncle Lu and Aunt Lu. She placed the yarn in her basket and asked Xu An to take it to the cowshed so that her mom and Aunt Lu could knit whenever they had some free time.