Chapter 4.2

After 7:00 am, she was the only one left in the dormitory.

Finally having some privacy, she immediately took out her small iron box to see how much money she had now.

After counting, she found that she was quite wealthy. The money her parents left her had all been given to her by Jiang Zhen. Her brother now had no object (girlfriend) to marry and no daughter-in-law, so he sent her thirty yuan and various coupons every month when he received his salary.

Although the quality of life of the original owner was much better than that of other educated youths, she was not an extravagant person. However, being Zhao Pengfei’s lackey before had cost her quite a bit of money and coupons. Now her little treasury had a balance of 418 yuan and thirty-one cents, as well as some coupons.

She took out ten yuan and put most of the coupons into her shoulder bag, then hid the iron box properly before leaving.

The Shanping Commune was next to the county town, and the Qingyuan Production Team was at the very edge. It didn’t take an hour to walk from the village to the county town market.

She left relatively late, so the probability of buying pork was very low, but she still went to the supply and marketing cooperative to try her luck. If she could buy some, she would give a piece of pork to Lu Che, and if she couldn’t, she would give him the equivalent meat coupons and money.

Speaking of which, Lu Che was really righteous. With his background, his life must not be easy, but after he bought meat for her, he never mentioned asking her to repay him. He was righteous, but she absolutely couldn’t be unrighteous.

When she arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative, sure enough, there was no meat left, only some pig intestines. She thought the pig intestine looked good, so she bought it.

Sour cabbage and pig intestine was one of her grandfather’s favourite dishes, and she had learned how to make it from her grandmother.

After her grandmother’s health deteriorated, she was called back to learn how to cook whenever she had free time. In her grandmother’s words, “If you don’t learn my specialty dishes, what will happen to your grandfather when I’m gone? Who will cook for him, and what if he starves?”

Her grandparents’ immortal love was what she yearned for most in her life, so she never settled, even if she turned thirty and became a ‘leftover warrior’.

Now, in the 1970s, with no takeout to order, she was grateful for having learned cooking skills.

After buying the pig intestine, Jiang Yao bought some seasonings and was about to buy sour cabbage when the shopkeeper said, “We don’t have any here. Go to the market over there and take a look. Many farmers are selling their own pickled sour cabbage today.”

“Alright, thank you.”

The market was not far from the supply and marketing cooperative, only a five-minute walk away.

Many farmers came out to the market today, making it very lively. Jiang Yao walked all the way, and people kept calling out to her.

She looked around and happened to glimpse someone familiar squatting in the corner.

“Lu Che, what a coincidence!” Jiang Yao walked over with a warm smile.

Lu Che looked up, his face showing little expression, and said lightly, “You should leave quickly. It’s not good for people to see you here.”

Jiang Yao knew that he felt inferior because of his background. Just as she was about to speak, a woman walked up to the stall and asked, “How much are these eggs?”

“Big ones are 1.5 cents each, small ones are one cent each,” replied Lu Che, still squatting, with an indifferent tone.

[1 yuan or RMB = 10 mao or dime; 1 dime = 10 fen or cents; 1 fen = 10 li]

“Too expensive. I’ll take all the big ones for one cent each, and the small ones for eight li (0.8 cents) each,” bargained the woman. Lu Che simply said, “No, it’s this price.”

“…” Big brother, your customer service attitude really needs some training.

Jiang Yao silently commented in her heart. But seeing the woman about to leave, she immediately stopped her and said warmly, “Auntie, you have a good eye. You know that the eggs from our village-raised chickens are especially good.”

Praised a few times, the woman’s mood improved, so she stopped and asked, “Are your eggs really that good?”

“Of course, our rural area is vast, and the chickens roam freely, so the eggs they lay are especially fragrant,” Jiang Yao continued to promote earnestly. “Every time we come to the market, we hope for repeat customers. I can guarantee that once you’ve tried our eggs, you’ll definitely come back next time. I see you’re buying so many at once, there must be someone at home who’s just given birth and needs to replenish their health. It’s necessary to eat well.”

“You’ve hit the nail on the head,” the woman chuckled. “My daughter-in-law gave birth to a chubby little boy a few days ago, nearly seven pounds!”

“Wow, a chubby little boy! Auntie, you’re really lucky,” Jiang Yao continued with her flattery, “But it’s your daughter-in-law who’s the luckiest, having such a good mother-in-law like you. Even buying eggs, she buys the expensive and good ones, it’s all about face.”

With Jiang Yao’s final flattery, the woman was completely won over. She bought all of Lu Che’s eggs and even picked up a few pounds of vegetables.

“Auntie, thank you for your support!” Jiang Yao packed up the items neatly and handed them to the woman.

Smiling, the woman took them and said to Lu Che, who was still in the background, “You, this kid, never says a word. How do you make money? Luckily, you have a clever daughter-in-law.”

Lu Che and Jiang Yao: “…”

Before they could explain, the woman lowered her voice and said, “I can see you’re newlyweds who haven’t had children yet, right? I have a secret recipe for giving birth to boys. If you’re interested, I’ll bring it out for you next time we meet at the market.”