Chapter 67: Shopping for the Return to the Village

“Of course, that’s a great idea. We were going to shop anyway. Let’s buy some study materials too, take them back with us. We’re going to college together,” Xie Zhi nodded.

Xu Jiaojiao kept thinking about the college entrance exam, which had been hanging over her head. She wasn’t worried about Xie Zhi passing—he was definitely the kind of person who could outperform many others easily—but he didn’t seem to have much confidence in himself.

“What if I don’t pass? You’d have to go to college alone.”

Xie Zhi returned to his usual calm demeanor and shook his head firmly. “If you don’t pass, then I won’t go either. I’ll supervise you while you repeat the year. Jiaojiao, I’m afraid if I go to college, you’ll find someone else and dump me.”

Xu Jiaojiao: “…”

Did he really think she was that fickle? She believed she was quite loyal in love. But at this moment, she completely forgot how she’d previously told him she didn’t want to marry him, and the shadow that left on his heart.

He’d rather give up college than leave her side. To him, she was like a kite, and he held onto the string tightly—always worried it might snap. He had to stay right there, or else once the string broke, she might be gone forever.

“I wouldn’t do that,” she said awkwardly.

“Jiaojiao, I trust you. But I still want to stay by your side, with you. Even if you can’t pass the exam your whole life, I’ll just keep working for the professor—he’ll pay me.”

Then he suddenly thought of something: Jiaojiao liked pretty things. He had to earn a lot of money, or she might drift away like smoke.

“Jiaojiao, wait for me—I’ll earn a lot of money. I can take on more projects if what I make now isn’t enough. I won’t let you suffer with me.”

Xu Jiaojiao was curious and asked, “So, how much do you make?”

“The professor gives me 300 yuan a month, teaching in the village gives me 8 yuan—so 308 yuan in total. My grandpa left me some money too, but I don’t know how much.”

“Three hundred yuan?! That’s a lot,” she muttered to herself.

She quickly did the math in her head. Her mom made 15 yuan a month, which was considered high income—like earning 3,000 yuan in the modern era. Then Xie Zhi’s salary would be like 60,000 yuan! Oh my god.

Xie Zhi thought she was mocking him and didn’t feel happy at all. He gently patted her head and silently vowed, It’s still not enough. Don’t worry, Jiaojiao, I’ll work hard to make more.

Xu Jiaojiao couldn’t help but sigh. The gap between people was just too big. No matter the era, knowledge truly was power. The stuff Xie Zhi worked on—experimental data, reports—was all in foreign languages. Even if translated into Chinese, she probably wouldn’t understand it.

After a quick lunch, the two of them went to the biggest department store to shop. Unlike the small towns that needed ration coupons and had purchase limits, this was a major developed city—everything was available. Even without coupons, you could just pay more.

Xu Jiaojiao was dazzled. The only thing she really focused on was the prices. Rice was 8 cents per pound, flour was 7 cents, and milk candies were 50 cents per pound.

“Honey, the rice is so cheap. Why can’t we afford to eat it?” Xu Jiaojiao had barely finished speaking when Xie Zhi quickly covered her mouth, afraid she’d say something too shocking.

“It’s not that we can’t afford it—it’s just not available. All the rice is transported to places like this. Shhh… Don’t talk about this outside,” he whispered.

That immediately reminded her of electricity rationing in the modern world. She didn’t know what to say and just sighed.

“So how much should we buy?”

“Ten pounds of rice, ten pounds of flour—no more.”

“Is that enough?”

“First, we might not be able to carry more. Second, if we get caught, it’s not worth the risk.”

Xu Jiaojiao rolled her eyes. If she hadn’t known anything about this, she might’ve tried to bring back 100 pounds—and probably get arrested. Most shops now were state-owned with strict qualifications. Buying too much was dangerous.

They ended up buying ten pounds each of rice and flour at 10 cents per pound. The flour was milled very fine and white, very appealing. Because people had limited ration coupons, they had to pay extra if they wanted more.

They were lucky—sometimes you couldn’t buy it even with more money.

Xu Jiaojiao also bought a bunch of candies and snacks. Then she went to a fabric store and picked out several yards of cloth for every family member. The patterns were trendy and would definitely look nice when made into clothes.

When they stepped outside, a shady-looking man approached them. “Comrade, want to buy some buttons? Pretty and fashionable ones. I’ve also got foreign hairpins.”

“Can I take a look?” Xu Jiaojiao asked. She hadn’t found any she liked earlier.

The man sneakily led them to a corner and pulled out a bunch of buttons, neatly sorted. They looked just like the trendy ones from her original timeline. She immediately paid and bought several.

While waiting for the bus, they heard someone being chased—probably the man from earlier—by a uniformed officer. He was small and skinny, so it wasn’t clear if he got caught.

“Isn’t that illegal?”

“It is—for now. But it’ll be allowed in the future. Come on, the bus is here.”

Xu Jiaojiao noticed that every time these topics came up, Xie Zhi would get very quiet. It’s true—those who know more often feel the heaviest burden.

That night after dinner, Xu Shu wrapped up all the pork he’d bought over the past few days in wax paper, planning to bring it back for a proper feast.

“Big Brother, you didn’t save any for yourself?”

“Silly girl, I eat at the canteen every day. I still get meat.”

Xu Shu earned 90 yuan a month, and his meals were covered with subsidies. Any extras, he paid for himself. He sent 15 yuan back home every month and saved the rest.

He pulled Jiaojiao into his room, took out a drawer, and handed her 2,000 yuan—all wrapped in envelopes.

“Just a bit is enough, why are you giving me so much? You still need money for yourself—and to get married!”

That was several years’ worth of his savings.

“Just take it. I’ll earn more later. Give it to Mom as soon as you get home. If you need money, ask her,” Xu Shu said.

In the end, Xu Jiaojiao accepted it.

They packed everything. Most of it was her purchases—odds and ends she wanted to take back for her parents.

After washing up, the girl snuggled into Xie Zhi’s arms. “I really don’t want to leave Big Brother.”

“We can come back again, okay?”

“I guess that’s the only way.”

The feeling of having family to lean on was indescribably warm. Though she had love in her previous life too, it wasn’t like this—being held in the palm of someone’s hand.

As the saying goes, love follows money.

She was determined to make her clothing store successful and not let her family down. She’d repay them several times over. With that vow in her heart, even sleep couldn’t bring her peace that night.