Happy time is always short-lived, and festive fireworks only bloom in an instant.
After drinking and eating, the teachers, students and friends left one after another, leaving only a mess of cups and plates in the courtyard. It's not that no one asked to stay and help, but they were all driven away by Jiang Yulou.
He couldn't ask his classmates and friends to help clear the plates.
However, Tang Yuewen wanted to stay, but he had no objection. In his heart, the girl is already his considered wife. You don’t need to distinguish between your own family members so clearly.
However, he was reluctant to let Tang Yuewen do the heavy work. The most she could do was clear the dishes, and that was all.
As for moving tables and chairs and washing dishes, he and his eldest brother did it alone.
After all the busy work inside and outside, it was getting late.
Jiang Yulou originally wanted to leave Tang Yuewen at home for the night, but the girl had classes tomorrow, so she had to give up regretfully. So, after talking to his family, he took her back to Shuimu University on a borrowed bicycle.
Before parting, the two of them flirted with each other for a while, needless to say.
It wasn't until Tang Yuewen walked into the dormitory that he couldn't bear to look away.
When going back, Jiang Yulou muttered while pedaling his bicycle: "It seems like it's time to buy a car."
After all, he is considered a rich man now, and it is really inconvenient to travel without a bicycle.
However, these days, if you want to buy industrial products, you need industrial coupons. Only people with formal jobs have this thing. Jiang Yulou, a poor student, naturally doesn't have it.
This didn't bother him either.
Although Jiang Yulou didn't have any, he had many friends, so it wouldn't be difficult to squeeze out some industrial coupons for him.
But, who to look for?
After a little thought, the answer is there.
That means looking for Dayang... ahem, looking for Olivia.
Olivia is a foreigner. She has a foreign exchange coupon and can enter the Friendship Store.
So, the next day, Jiang Yulou shamelessly found Olivia.
"Dear Jiang, what do you want to see me for?"
"Yes, Olivia, your best friend is in trouble."
"Oh, tell me?"
"I want to buy something, but I don't have an industrial coupon, but you have a foreign exchange coupon and can enter the Friendship Store, so I want to ask you to take me in to buy something. Of course, I will pay for it."
"It's a small thing, I'm happy to help you with this and enhance the relationship between us."
Olivia smiled. Recently, Jiang Yulou helped her get a piece of news about China's policies, which earned her praise from her supervisor and made her realize Jiang Yulou's importance to her future.
Moreover, he is so handsome and talented, and he is completely different from those aristocratic children in China who like to please her.
If Jiang Yulou was willing, she would be happy to have something happen with him in this foreign country.
Thinking of this, her eyes widened when she looked at Jiang Yulou.
Jiang Yulou didn't notice the dangerous look in her eyes. After getting her agreement, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Without further ado, let's go."
The two went back to Jiang Yulou's house first and took Jiang Yuanchao with them. This time he is planning to make a large purchase. If there are not enough people, it will be a bit troublesome.
After everyone gathered together, the three bicycles headed towards the Friendship Store together.
The Friendship Store in Yanjing is on Donghuamen Street. The place is very conspicuous and easy to find.
The products sold in the Friendship Store include imported goods that have not yet appeared in the domestic market, such as Hershey chocolates, Marlboro cigarettes, and Swiss watches, as well as domestic luxury goods such as Maotai liquor and silk.
In addition, scarce commodities such as color TVs and refrigerators can also be found in Youyi Store.
Speaking of foreign exchange coupons and friendship stores, it is particularly interesting.
In some novels and film and television dramas about Yanjing in the 1980s, some "players" can enter Yanjing Hotel and Friendship Store, exchange for foreign exchange coupons, and recruit special girls to meet.
Foreign exchange coupons are a bit unfamiliar to some people, but Kenneth Steinke, a journalism professor at the University of Iowa in the United States, said: "If money could talk, then the voice of foreign exchange coupons would be 50% louder than the RMB."
In the beginning, the Friendship Store was only open to foreigners, while mainland Chinese could only stop and look at the door.
In fact, Friendship Store is a special product of the era of shortage of supplies.
In the 1950s, the Soviet Union had "Little Birch Stores" that served the privileged class and foreigners. In the era when everything was following the "Soviet Big Brother", our country also learned this "special provision system".
Since 1951, some high-end state-owned consumer goods stores have appeared in several major cities in China. Some of these shops later developed into friendship shops as symbols of friendship with foreign guests.
In 1979, in order to facilitate the import of materials and expand the scope of business, the country began to implement a foreign exchange retention system, which allowed local governments and enterprises to obtain a certain proportion of foreign exchange.
But at the same time, due to the implementation of a unified RMB market in the country, foreign exchange is prohibited from circulating domestically. Therefore, in order to facilitate foreigners’ consumption in China, the country began to issue “foreign exchange coupons” specially designed for foreigners.
Since then, a "dual currency system" has been formed in which RMB and foreign exchange certificates circulate in the market at the same time. At that time, many foreigners called foreign exchange coupons "travel currency."
This kind of exchange coupon is equivalent to the RMB, and there are 7 denominations and 9 versions, namely the 1979 version of one hundred yuan, five hundred yuan, ten yuan, five yuan, one yuan, five jiao and one dime coupons.
According to relevant regulations, when foreigners enter the country, they need to exchange their foreign currencies into foreign exchange certificates at domestic banks and use them with the same value as RMB within the designated range.
At that time, foreign exchange certificates were considered a "privileged" currency because they could buy scarce commodities that could not be purchased with RMB.
Gradually, some people get some foreign exchange coupons from overseas relatives and friends, or sell the foreign exchange on hand to the country, and a certain amount of foreign exchange coupons will be returned. Against this background, Friendship Stores began to open to ordinary people with restrictions, and foreign exchange coupons became a special pass for people to enter "Friendship".
"We're here, let's get off the car,"
After arriving at the Friendship Store, Jiang Yulou stopped the car and said to his elder brother Jiang Yuanchao: "Brother, you are waiting for us outside the Friendship Store. Just take care of the car and don't lose it."
Jiang Yuanchao was a little frightened when he looked at the Friendship Store, which was obviously different from ordinary places. Now that his younger brother won't let him in, he just does what he wants.
In fact, it's not that Jiang Yulou doesn't want his elder brother to follow him, but that this place actually only allows foreigners to enter. He followed him because he could speak English and could pretend to be a foreigner. The eldest brother seemed to be a good citizen of his country, but no one believed him even if he said he was a foreigner.
"Come on, Olivia, let's go in."
Jiang Yulou said, holding his head high and chest high, looking particularly arrogant, and let Olivia hold his arm.
Sure enough, when the people at the Friendship Store saw this posture, they didn't dare to stop Jiang Yulou and let him sneak in easily.
