Chapter 21
“More!” Huazi shouted after finishing, “Mom! I want more!”
Sister Yang said, “Wait.”
She went into the kitchen, and came back out in a blink: “How is it gone?”
She was a bit puzzled; she had watched the pancakes being made in the morning, so there should have been enough.
Lin Xixi’s expression tightened.
She had wanted to make more, but this era was not like the eighties or nineties; rice and flour were strictly rationed. In the morning, her aunt was watching by her side while she made the pancakes. When she wanted to scoop another bowl of flour, her aunt kept insisting, “That’s enough, that’s enough.”
It prevented her from making any more. She had taken some to Yan Lei, so naturally, what was left wasn’t enough. A growing boy could eat his father out of house and home.
Lin Xixi hurriedly said, “Uncle ate quite a lot.”
“That little rascal!” Sister Yang cursed, “He doesn’t even know to leave some for the kids.”
Yan Lei waited at the intersection for a while, and the other three arrived. When the vehicle arrived, Regimental Commander Zhao trotted over. All five cadres were present, and they all left in one car.
Once they sat in the car, before Yan Lei could speak to Regimental Commander Zhao, Regimental Commander Ma twitched his nose: “What’s that smell?”
Battalion Commander Xue and Battalion Commander Wang also said, “It smells like pancakes.”
Everyone’s gaze fell upon the lunchbox in Yan Lei’s hand: “What kind of pancakes? They smell good.”
Regimental Commander Ma rubbed his stomach: “I’m hungry just smelling them; I haven’t had breakfast yet.”
Yan Lei handed it over: “You have some.”
Regimental Commander Ma was happy: “Then I won’t stand on ceremony.”
He opened the lid and saw that the pancakes had been cut into pieces, which made them easy to handle. He picked up a piece and took a big bite: “Not bad!”
Seeing him eating with such relish, Battalion Commander Xue and Battalion Commander Wang couldn’t help but take a piece each: “I’ll have one too.”
They also invited Regimental Commander Zhao to join them. Regimental Commander Zhao waved his hand: “I don’t need any, I just ate.”
Regimental Commander Ma praised while eating: “These pancakes are well-made; delicious!”
Regimental Commander Zhao continued to wave his hand: “Even if they’re delicious, I can’t eat any more; I had scallion pancakes for breakfast. Leave a piece for Xiao Zhang. Hey, Yan hasn’t eaten yet.”
Regimental Commander Ma said, “I’ll buy Yan a big flower roll at the Cafeteria later!”
Yan Lei said, “No need, I’ve already had breakfast.”
Xiao Zhang laughed while driving: “Leaders, save me a piece! Save me a piece! It smells so tempting!”
Everyone burst into laughter.
After finishing, Regimental Commander Ma wiped his mouth and thanked Yan Lei: “Thanks.”
Yan Lei waved his hand and said, “Don’t thank me, they’re from Old Zhao’s family.”
Regimental Commander Zhao: “?”
Yan Lei said to Regimental Commander Zhao, “Help me thank your wife; it was thoughtful of her to send me pancakes. It just so happens that my wife made porridge and fried eggs this morning, and I came out having eaten my fill. I really can’t eat any more.”
When mentioning “my wife made porridge and fried eggs,” Yan Lei straightened his back and puffed out his chest, looking full of spirit.
Regimental Commander Ma chuckled and teased: “Oh, the sun must be rising from the west.”
Everyone knew that Yan Lei and his wife didn’t have a good relationship, and that he was a long-term regular at the Cafeteria.
Battalion Commander Xue kicked him. Regimental Commander Ma quickly said, “Just joking, just joking.”
Yan Lei was in a very good mood this morning and didn’t mind: “People can improve; how can one always look at people through the lens of the past?”
As he spoke, he returned the lunchbox to Regimental Commander Zhao: “You can just take it back yourself, and remember to pass on my thanks to your wife.”
Regimental Commander Zhao was a rough man; Yan Lei didn’t think he could be so thoughtful as to have Lin Xixi bring him pancakes. It must have been Sister Yang.
Even Qiao Wei, who couldn’t get along with others, admitted that Sister Yang was a good person and reliable.
Regimental Commander Zhao knew how busy his wife was in the morning. He also recalled that he hadn’t seen her for a moment in the morning, and Lin Xixi had run out. Then he looked up at Yan Lei’s dashing face…
Someone who had been through it all understood perfectly well.
No wonder his wife was nagging him yesterday, saying that Xixi was grown up and beautiful, and they should hurry and introduce her to a good match so everyone could rest easy.
Truly, a grown daughter cannot be kept. It’s no big deal for a child to grow up and develop romantic feelings. But she shouldn’t be looking for a married man!
Regimental Commander Zhao couldn’t undermine his own family, so he could only take the lunchbox and pretend to be indifferent: “What’s there to thank? You know what your sister-in-law is like.”
He would teach that stubborn girl a lesson when he got home!
Qiao Wei went out very early today.
In the morning, after waiting for Yan Xiang to get up and eat breakfast, the two of them held hands and went out, heading straight for the Farmers Market!
The custom in this era was that when buying meat, it wasn’t a matter of you getting the cut you wanted. It depended on the salesperson’s mood; whatever piece the salesperson cut for you, that was what you had to buy.
Don’t want it? Fine, don’t buy it, just don’t block the people waiting in line behind you.
If you caught a diligent salesperson, they might have it cut and laid out already, and you could pick. If they weren’t diligent and had a big ego, they would cut it on the spot, and you couldn’t choose.
The meat seller at the town’s Farmers Market was one of the not-so-diligent ones. Qiao Wei had already experienced this yesterday, so today, in order to buy the meat she wanted, she specifically bought a very large piece of meat.
The middle-aged women at the back of the line were unhappy: “Why are you buying so much by yourself?”
There was a limited amount of meat every day; if the people in front bought too much, the people behind might not be able to get any.
The salesperson was not only lazy but also liked to stir up trouble, chuckling: “They have plenty of meat coupons.”
She took out the meat coupons without blinking; one look and you could tell she was a cadre’s family member.
Qiao Wei smiled: “We have guests at home.”
She was beautiful and had a good attitude, so the aunties stopped arguing and just grumbled instead.
But beautiful people were easy to remember, and someone recognized her: “Wasn’t it her yesterday? Why does she buy so much meat every day?”
Goodness, you can’t even buy a little extra meat. Qiao Wei took Yan Xiang’s hand and hurried away.
Yan Xiang asked: “Mom, are we having guests at home?”
“Shh.” Qiao Wei winked at Yan Xiang, “Mom was lying to them. Actually, Mom wants to fry pork cracklings.”
Frying pork cracklings and rendering lard required more fatty meat. But people nowadays preferred fat over lean; fatty meat was a good thing and even more sought after. In order to get a little more fatty meat, she had to buy more.
And Yan Xiang had no idea what pork cracklings were.
“In short, it’s something delicious.”
“Fried eggs are delicious too! I like eating soft-boiled eggs!”
Like father, like son; he loved soft-boiled eggs just like his dad.
“Pork cracklings are even more delicious.” Qiao Wei held his hand and swung it back and forth, “Let’s go, let’s go buy vegetables!”
On the way home, they passed by the Supply and Marketing Cooperative store. She was about to walk past, but when she glanced inside and saw something, Qiao Wei suddenly grabbed Yan Xiang and pulled him into the store.
“Comrade, comrade, I want that!” Qiao Wei’s eyes lit up.
Yan Xiang’s eyes also brightened: “Wow, canned food!”
A row of canned yellow peaches was brightly displayed on the shelf.
“Why didn’t I see them yesterday? Did I come too late and they were sold out?” she asked.
The Farmers Market was like that; if you went late, some things would be sold out, like meat or fruit. If that was the case, she really had to get up earlier in the future.
The salesperson clicked her tongue: “Do you think they sell them every day? They arrived yesterday afternoon; there were only two boxes in total, and I couldn’t bear to put them out. I just put them out, and you walked in. You’re lucky, comrade.”
Canned yellow peaches were considered a luxury item; you couldn’t buy them anytime, it was a matter of luck.
Understanding this, Qiao Wei asked: “Can I buy a whole box?”
The salesperson laughed out loud: “You can take both boxes away.”
In the future, buying things by the box from the supermarket was normal, so Qiao Wei took it seriously and actually took out her wallet. The salesperson was stunned: “Are you for real?”
Qiao Wei was also dumbfounded: “Weren’t you serious?”
The two of them stared at each other.
“You’re an interesting comrade.” The salesperson broke into a sweat, “If you buy them all, what will others buy? You can’t be so selfish.”
Qiao Wei was greatly disappointed. After thinking for a moment, she tentatively asked: “Then… can I have ten bottles?”
Canned food had a long shelf life. Since it was hard to buy, Qiao Wei wanted to buy as much as she could. People had an innate instinct to hoard, especially in an environment where supplies were scarce.
The salesperson glared: “A box only has ten bottles!”
Alright. Qiao Wei conceded again: “Then how about five bottles?”
The salesperson didn’t speak, just glared!
Qiao Wei asked helplessly: “Then how many bottles can I buy, in your opinion?”
The salesperson said: “There are only twenty bottles in total; one person can buy at most two bottles, no more.”
But it was early in the morning, and there was no one else in the store.
Qiao Wei wasn’t such a rigid person. Her eyes rolled, she opened her wallet, and lowered her voice: “Comrade, I have surplus grain coupons at home that I can’t use up. Do you think you could use them…”
The salesperson waved her hand: “What are you doing? Don’t pull that stuff.”
Qiao Wei didn’t give up: “Meat coupons? Fabric coupons?”
“You have quite a lot of coupons. Must be a cadre family, right?” The salesperson puffed out her chest, “Comrade, let me tell you, don’t try that with me… Wait? Wait? You have industrial coupons too?”
It was only Qiao Wei’s first time going out to buy things yesterday, so she had brought along all kinds of coupons. Hearing this, she immediately pulled out the industrial coupons: “Yes. Master, what does your family need to buy?”
“That, ahem… my child wants to buy a pair of rubber shoes…” The salesperson’s voice softened, and she no longer refused, “I’m just short one industrial coupon…”
Industrial coupons were much harder to get than grain or oil coupons. Because industrial coupons were allocated based on salary—one industrial coupon for every 20 yuan of salary. But you needed industrial coupons for everything: towels, handkerchiefs, shoes, umbrellas, pots, and bowls.
Yan Lei’s salary was high, so the allocated industrial coupons were also numerous. But there were few people in the family—only three—so the demand for daily necessities was small, and naturally, there were surplus industrial coupons.
Qiao Wei smiled and placed two industrial coupons on the counter, pushing them over: “That reminds me, I need to get a pair of shoes too.”
One coupon was enough to buy shoes, but she had pushed over two.
The salesperson looked left and right, then reached out and covered the two industrial coupons, coughed, and asked her: “…How many bottles do you want?”
…
And just like that, Qiao Wei went home with a pair of rubber shoes and four bottles of canned yellow peaches.
The reason she didn’t get more was that she realized it was too heavy when she put it in her vegetable basket. It was glass jars filled with syrup. She also had the vegetables and meat she bought from the Farmers Market, so she couldn’t carry it at all.
The salesperson even specifically instructed her: “Cover it with vegetables, don’t let anyone see.”
She added: “Don’t make a fuss. Just eat it secretly at home, don’t go showing it off.”
As she spoke, she looked around stealthily, fearing that another customer might walk in and catch them.
Well, buying a can of fruit had to be done in secret, like being a thief.
