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Chapter 13: Buying Ration Tickets for Fu Zhewei on the Black Market
A rush of fury shot straight to her head. Lin Jianxue clenched her fists tightly, nearly unable to stop herself from storming out, grabbing Tong Caihe by the hair, and giving her a ruthless scolding before throwing her out of the house.
“Calm down! Lin Jianxue, you have to stay calm!”
She took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled, forcing herself to cool down.
“Now’s not the time… It’s not the right moment to tear things apart with them…”
She reminded herself over and over again in her mind.
She had been reborn—returned to the year 1976—everything was still salvageable.
All those past losses? She’d just consider them offerings to the dogs. From now on, she would never again let the Jiang family bunch of ungrateful bloodsuckers take a single advantage of her. Not only that, she would make them cough up every bit of what they’d taken—plus interest.
Lin Jianxue carefully sorted the remaining ration tickets in the drawer and packed them neatly into a small leather satchel.
The satchel had been a birthday gift from her father, Lin Yuefeng, last year. Back then, she had found the style old-fashioned and shoved it to the bottom of her trunk. Looking at it now, the quality was actually very good—perfect for holding these valuable tickets.
After putting away the ration tickets, Lin Jianxue thought for a moment and retrieved a red bankbook from a hidden compartment at the bottom of the dressing table.
She had opened this bank account after joining the art troupe, depositing all her monthly wages except for a bit of pocket money.
She remembered Jiang Yubai had once tried to probe how much money she had in the account, but she had always dodged the question with vague answers.
Lin Jianxue opened the bankbook and reviewed each deposit entry:
The balance showed a total of 412 yuan.
Seeing the number, Lin Jianxue let out a long breath of relief.
“Thank goodness… I wasn’t completely brain-dead last time—I didn’t spend everything raising that leeching Jiang family…”
She gave a self-mocking smile and tucked the bankbook into her leather satchel as well, a flicker of gratitude in her heart.
“Mom, I’m heading out for a bit,” she said, slinging the satchel across her shoulder, making sure the zipper was tightly shut. She let Shen Wu know before stepping briskly out the door.
Outside the communal building, the cold wind cut like knives. Lin Jianxue instinctively shrank her neck.
She tightened her cotton coat and quickened her pace, jogging down the narrow street straight toward the nearby bank.
The bank was quiet, with only two counters open—one for deposits and one for withdrawals.
Lin Jianxue went to the withdrawal window and handed over her bankbook. “Comrade, I’d like to make a withdrawal.”
The clerk was a young girl wearing black-rimmed glasses, head down as she counted paper bills.
She took the bankbook, glanced at it absentmindedly, then looked up and asked in a formal tone, “How much would you like to withdraw?”
“Four hundred,” Lin Jianxue said crisply.
The clerk paused for a moment, surprised, and looked Lin Jianxue up and down.
Back then, 400 yuan was a substantial sum—nearly a whole year’s salary for a regular worker earning 30–40 yuan a month.
Though Lin Jianxue wore simple clothes, she carried herself with confidence and didn’t look like someone strapped for cash. Still, the clerk kindly advised, “That’s a lot to take out at once. Would you like to split it up? Carrying that much isn’t very safe.”
“No need, just give me the full 400,” Lin Jianxue said firmly. “In forty ten-yuan notes, please.”
Ten-yuan bills would be easier to spend, saving her from having to exchange them later.
Seeing her insistence, the clerk didn’t say more and quietly began processing the withdrawal.
Soon, she counted out forty crisp “Big Unity” notes, wrapped them in kraft paper, and handed them to Lin Jianxue.
Lin Jianxue carefully placed the money into her leather satchel, zipped it up securely, and then left the bank.
Instead of heading straight home, she took a detour toward the department store.
She remembered that behind the department store, in a narrow alley, was a fairly large black market.
That black market had existed for years.
She had first discovered it by accident—while shopping with Shen Wu near the store, they’d taken a wrong turn and stumbled into the alley. Back then, she had been startled by the shady transactions happening there and thought she’d walked into some underground crime ring.
But Shen Wu had seemed unfazed. She had pulled her away and whispered once they were out:
“There are several black markets like this in the capital. Don’t talk about it to anyone—these are all off-the-books deals. They sell everything here, even meat, sugar, and grain ration tickets. But don’t ever buy from them. If you get caught, you’ll be in serious trouble!”
She had been young and easily scared—since then, she had stayed far away from that alley.
But now, she had no choice but to go.
First, she stopped at the department store and bought a thick scarf, wrapping it tightly around her face so that only her eyes showed. Then, she took a deep breath and stepped into the hidden alley.
It was still morning, and the black market had just opened, but the alley was already crowded.
Lin Jianxue stood at the entrance and scanned the scene.
Some people squatted in corners selling eggs and cabbages—homegrown produce.
Others held stacks of ration tickets, glancing around nervously in search of buyers.
An older man with sharp eyes spotted her hesitating at the entrance and came over.
“New here, young lady?” he asked, lowering his voice with a sly smile. “Looking for anything specific? I’ve got all kinds of tickets—industrial ones too.”
Lin Jianxue had come today specifically to buy ration tickets.
She figured if she sent cash directly to Fu Zhewei, he definitely wouldn’t accept it—he was too proud.
But food and meat ration tickets—those were what the Fu family needed most right now.
He probably wouldn’t refuse those.
She pulled her scarf higher, revealing only her eyes, and lowered her voice deliberately.
“I need grain tickets and meat tickets. Industrial coupons too. How many do you have?”
The old man immediately recognized her as a big buyer.
He glanced around, clearly wary of being interrupted or robbed, and said in a hushed tone, “Young lady, let’s go somewhere more private to talk?”
@ apricity[Translator]
Immerse yourself in a captivating tale brought to life through my natural and fluid translation—where every emotion, twist, and character shines as vividly as in the original work! ^_^