Chapter 15: Desk Mate Fu, May This Letter Find You Well

Lin Jianxue let out a silent sigh and carefully counted the stack of ration coupons once more. After confirming the amount was correct, she pulled out the prepared money from her pocket—eighteen large bills—and handed them to Old Man Li.

Old Li took the money, inspecting each note one by one. Only after verifying they were genuine did he smile broadly and hand Lin Jianxue five yuan in change.

“Little miss, count it—make sure it’s all correct.”

Lin Jianxue accepted the change without much fuss and tucked it straight into her pocket.

She then carefully placed the thick stack of coupons into her leather satchel, zipped it up, and finally let out a long breath.

With these coupons, Fu Zhewei should be able to weather this difficult time… right?

That thought lingered in her mind as she turned and walked briskly toward the post office.

Inside, a wave of warm air greeted her, filled with the scent of ink and paper.

Behind the counter sat an older woman, lazily cracking sunflower seeds. When she saw Lin Jianxue walk in, she lifted her eyelids sluggishly.

“Comrade, you sending something?”

Lin Jianxue stepped up to the counter and nodded. “Mm-hmm.”

“Regular parcel or registered mail?” the woman asked as she finally put down her seeds and slowly got up from her chair.

In those days, mailing something wasn’t as simple as it would be in later years. You had to choose between regular and registered mail. Regular was cheap but prone to getting lost. Registered cost more, but was safer.

“Registered,” Lin Jianxue replied without hesitation.

These coupons had been painstakingly acquired—if they were lost in the mail, she’d have no one to cry to.

The postal worker slowly pulled a registered mail pouch from the drawer and handed Lin Jianxue a pen, pointing her chin at the pouch.

“Little miss, you can read and write, right? Fill it out yourself—who it’s for and where it’s going.”

“I can read,” Lin Jianxue replied with a smile as she took the pen.

It wasn’t a strange question. Illiteracy was still common then, so the woman’s assumption wasn’t surprising.

Oddly enough, even though she thought she had long since forgotten the address, as soon as she picked up the pen, it came flooding back—like a spring bubbling from deep memory.

Heilongjiang Province, Harbin City, Hulan County, Tonghua Village, Shuguang Production Brigade — Fu Zhewei.

She wrote the address carefully, one stroke at a time.

When she was done, she neatly sorted the coupons by type and size, stacked them properly, and carefully slid them into the registered pouch.

Then, she asked the clerk for a piece of paper.

Without comment, the woman pulled a lined sheet from the drawer and handed it over.

Lin Jianxue took the paper and paused for a moment in thought. Then she began to write:

“Desk Mate Fu, May this letter find you well.
Thank you for the bracelet—this is a return gift.
I’ve been accepted into the cultural work troupe and don’t lack money, so don’t send this back. If you do, I’ll be angry.
Please give my regards to Uncle, Auntie, and Qingqing.”

She signed it with three elegant characters: Lin Jianxue.

After writing the letter, she exhaled lightly, folded the sheet neatly, and placed it into the registered mail pouch with the coupons.

She had no hidden intentions—she just worried that Fu Zhewei’s pride would stop him from accepting her help. He was the type who’d rather starve than take charity, so she carefully worded the note to make it sound like a fair exchange.

She pushed the now bulging mail pouch across the counter.

The woman, still chewing sunflower seeds, took the bag, weighed and squeezed it, clearly surprised by the thickness, and looked up at Lin Jianxue.

In times like these, not many people mailed out such full packages.

Still, she said nothing. Post office workers had seen all kinds of things and long since learned to keep a straight face. She simply said, “To Heilongjiang Province? That’ll be five yuan.”

Lin Jianxue pulled out the money and handed it over.

After checking each bill, the clerk stamped a receipt with a red ink seal and handed it to Lin Jianxue.

“This is the tracking number and your receipt. Keep it safe—you can check the status of the mail at the post office using that number.”

“Thank you,” Lin Jianxue replied, carefully folding the receipt and tucking it into her pocket.

Once outside, she glanced at her watch—still early.

Instead of heading straight home, she detoured to the local supply and marketing cooperative.

The one in the capital was far better stocked than the ones in rural areas—shelves full of goods, dazzling in variety.

Upon entering, she walked straight to the agricultural supplies counter.

She stood there, looking at the various tools and seeds. Her gaze landed on a row of bottles and jars lined up along the wall.

Then, turning to the clerk, she asked directly:

“Ma’am, hello—do you have any heat-inducing medicine for sows? My grandma’s pig won’t go into heat, and she won’t breed.”