Chapter 36 : Buying Things in the County

Nangong Ruochen took out a Phoenix-brand bicycle from his room, got on it, then turned around and said to Yun Siying, “What are you looking at? Get on the bike.”

Yun Siying climbed onto the back seat, and Nangong Ruochen pedaled the bicycle out of the Youth League Courtyard. As they passed the village entrance, they saw a bullock cart parked there with several people sitting on it. When those people saw Nangong Ruochen riding with a pretty female comrade, their eyes filled with disbelief, and they momentarily forgot to gossip with those around them.

“Nangong Ruochen, is this bicycle yours?” Yun Siying asked. Having a bicycle made long-distance travel much more convenient, but her backside was suffering. They hadn’t ridden far before she started to feel sore.

“Yeah. I go to the county town a lot. It’s much more convenient to have a bike,” Nangong Ruochen replied as he looked at the country road ahead.

Glancing at the bullock cart at the village entrance, where several educated youths were already sitting, Yun Siying asked in confusion, “Why aren’t you taking the tractor to the county today?”

“The tractor is the team’s treasure, it uses a lot of fuel. Every time it’s taken out, the team leader gets heartbroken. Besides, there’s the bullock cart to use.”

They arrived in the county town. Nangong Ruochen parked the bike, paid a dime to the old man watching the bicycle storage, and took Yun Siying into the supply and marketing cooperative.

Seeing the aunties holding baskets and lining up at the door of the store, Yun Siying was reminded of the chaos of scrambling for supplies every time they went shopping. But the people here were much more civilized, no shoving, and thankfully, no one got hurt.

Still, she had plenty of experience navigating crowds. She grabbed Nangong Ruochen’s sleeve and squeezed forward. She was strong and skilled, and before long, the two of them reached the counter.

Nangong Ruochen watched her smooth and practiced movements with admiration. Every time he came to the supply and marketing cooperative, he never managed to get in because of the aunties. They didn’t line up properly, and the moment a male comrade like him got close, they’d start yelling that he was a hooligan. It scared him so much he’d run off, while the aunties laughed in triumph.

Today, thanks to Yun Siying leading the way, he finally made it to the counter without issue.

“Comrade, give me ten pairs of white work gloves,” Nangong Ruochen said. He had already gotten a rough idea of the supplies Yun Siying needed on the way there, so he picked out the essentials. Then he turned to her and asked, “What shoe size do you wear?”

“Size 36,” Yun Siying replied, trusting him to help her get everything she needed for work.

“Two pairs of Jiefang shoes, one pair of rubber rain boots both size 36 and one raincoat,” Nangong Ruochen told the salesperson.

“Alright, comrades, anything else?” The salesperson, seeing that the two of them were neatly dressed, quickly found the requested items and placed them on the counter.

“Siying, is there anything else you need?” Nangong Ruochen asked. He had never shopped with a female comrade before. Though he had agreed to help her pick things out, he only knew about the work-related necessities, nothing beyond that.

Yun Siying looked around the counter and smiled. “Sister, I’d like two pounds of peach cakes, two pounds of glutinous rice flour, two pounds of pastries, and five pounds of White Rabbit milk candy.”

“Young comrade, that’ll be thirty-one yuan and five pounds’ worth of candy coupons,” the salesperson said cheerfully. She was in her thirties and clearly delighted by how warmly Yun Siying had called her “sister.” As she counted the requested goods, she worked the abacus swiftly and calculated the total.

“Thank you, sister,” Yun Siying said sweetly, handing over the money and coupons.

She saw Maotai liquor on the counter. Although the time and place were different, most of the product names remained the same, so she didn’t think too much about it. It was said that Maotai would be very valuable in the future. She said again, “Sister, give me six bottles of that Maotai liquor.”

The salesperson patiently explained, “Little comrade, each person is only allowed to buy two bottles of this liquor at a time.”

“Thank you for the clarification, sister. Then I’ll just take two bottles,” Yun Siying said. She wasn’t short on money now, and it didn’t cost much to stock up on a bit of liquor.

“Alright, that’ll be 16 yuan in total,” the salesperson replied with a smile, took the money from her, and handed her two bottles of liquor.

Seeing the pile of items in front of her with no bags to carry them, Yun Siying looked around the counter in embarrassment. Luckily, she spotted a backpack and, scratching her head, said to the salesperson, “Sorry, sister, um… I’d like a backpack too.”

“Sure, a backpack is 50 cents each,” the salesperson said with a smile, noticing her awkwardness.

Yun Siying paid, quickly packed the items into the backpack, and Nangong Ruochen instinctively carried it. The two of them then squeezed their way out of the supply and marketing cooperative.

The aunts outside looked at Yun Siying like she was a prodigal daughter, and soon the gossip started.

“Tsk tsk tsk, whose daughter is this young comrade? So extravagant. If she gets married, she’ll definitely squander her husband’s fortune.”

“Exactly! She’s just a pretty face. Her man better keep an eye on her, no family could afford such wastefulness.”

Unaware of the aunts’ gossip and judgments, Yun Siying had already walked out of the store. Nangong Ruochen took her to the meat processing factory. Seeing the long line, the two joined the queue.

“Siying, what kind of meat do you like?” Nangong Ruochen asked when it was almost their turn.

“Pork belly, both fat and lean. It’ll be delicious as braised pork. And braised spare ribs are great too,” Yun Siying answered without hesitation.

When they reached the front of the line, Nangong Ruochen told the salesperson, “Comrade, I’d like two pounds of pork belly and two pounds of spare ribs.”

“Alright.” The salesperson picked up a sharp knife and skillfully sliced off a chunk of pork belly. It weighed exactly two pounds. Then he did the same with the spare ribs.

Yun Siying looked at the salesperson with sparkling eyes, what a true master of their craft. She was thoroughly impressed.

“That’ll be three yuan and twenty cents, plus three pounds’ worth of meat coupons,” the salesperson said, tying the meat and ribs neatly with straw rope and handing them to Nangong Ruochen. He happily paid with the money and coupons.

“Comrade, I’d like five pounds of fat meat,” Yun Siying said. She wanted to render it into oil, since people rarely got to eat meat these days.

“That’ll be four yuan and fifty cents and five pounds’ worth of meat coupons,” the salesperson said, handing her the fat meat and intestines.

Yun Siying paid and took the meat. Then she and Nangong Ruochen left together. When they checked the time, it was already eleven o’clock, so they decided to head straight to a state-owned restaurant.

There were already a few people seated inside, and a queue had formed at the ordering window. Yun Siying said, “My treat this time. What would you like to eat?”

“I’ll have the braised pork,” Nangong Ruochen replied. After seeing her spending habits today, he realized she really wasn’t short on money, so he didn’t hold back.

“Alright, you go find a seat. I’ll line up and order.” Yun Siying walked over to the window and looked at a small blackboard listing the day’s menu. The food and prices were clearly displayed so customers could easily decide what to order based on their needs.