"Cousin, I'm just telling you this. I won't admit it outside this door. Nowadays, there are big canteens everywhere in the countryside, and a group of people eat and drink without saving at all. When have we ever lived like this? Damn, how big is the gap like this? Cousin, you are the accountant of the brigade, so you must know better than me."
"In the countryside, if there is no food, how can we survive in the city? There will definitely be a shortage of food in the future, so my family is trying to find a way to collect food. Cousin, if you have the connections, you can also collect some food. Who can say what will happen next? .”
Zuo Lin and Sababa Sababa blew out thick smoke.
Sighed: "Actually, I know that too. Many knowledgeable people in the commune have secretly stored grain. This is already an open secret. Ordinary villagers have no choice but to go directly to collect grain from the militia. Most of them are from the brigade and a few people. The leader of a team falsified the money in his account, deducted it from the public account, and deposited it."
He slowly continued: "It's also a crime. Fortunately, the situation in our village is better..."
The two of them sighed for life.
Yan Jiecheng then explained to Zuo Linhe: "Cousin, I came here this time to see if there are any mountain products and prey in our countryside, as long as they are edible."
Zuo Linhe didn't reply to Yan Jiecheng's words. He frowned and asked, "Is it already so serious?"
Yan Jiecheng could only nod silently.
"Cousin, please let a few familiar people secretly look for local goods. Anyway, the canteen will confiscate any money you have at home. You might as well secretly exchange some money with me for emergencies."
"However, everyone must keep their mouths shut and don't talk about it everywhere."
"Xie Cheng, don't worry about that. After all, we in Zuojiazhuang are all one family, there are no people with foreign surnames, and the village is united."
"Take grain harvesting as an example. In villages with complex households and many conflicts, commune members' families harvest all the grain. In fact, every household in our village has some grain storage."
The two of them didn't sigh any more. After all, they were not saviors. They couldn't care about themselves, so how could they care about others.
Yan Jiecheng was left at home, while Zuo Linhe went out to contact him about the goods.
Within an hour, Zuo Linhe came back. He took off his hat when he entered the house, took a sip of water and said, "There is no food, but there are a lot of non-staple food."
"They are all apricot peels, almonds, walnuts, persimmons, hawthorn slices, mushrooms, fungus, wild vegetables, and dried radish. Do you want them?"
"If you want it, how can you not want it? As long as it is edible, I will accept it."
The two of them totaled the prices. Apricot peels, almonds, walnuts, and hawthorn slices were all calculated at ten cents per pound.
Mushrooms, fungus, wild vegetables, and dried radish are all priced at 20 cents.
After the two of them had finished adding up, villagers came to the door one after another carrying bags and baskets.
Yan Jiecheng stayed in the main room and did not come forward. Zuo Linhe negotiated with everyone in the kitchen.
Yan Jiecheng looked out of the window. The villagers were walking in a hurry and did not speak to each other when they met, as if they had not seen them.
After a while, Zuo Linhe walked to the main room. He whispered to Yan Jiecheng: "Uncle Wu, he is carrying two dried rabbits. His price is a bit high, 40 cents per pound, which is 30 cents in previous years, so I want to ask you if you want them?"
Then he added: "Lao Wushu is a hunter. The eldest son in the family is three years older than you. We have agreed to get married this year and will get married after the new year. No, I can't help you with money. If you can help, please help. "
Yan Jiecheng thought for a moment and said, "Give him 45 cents, based on the price of pork."
Zuo Linhe looked at Yan Jiecheng in surprise and asked, "Three-and-a-half cents is enough, but this price is not affordable. You are at a huge disadvantage."
"It's okay, cousin, this rabbit is quite good when it's dried. Besides, since Old Fifth Uncle is a hunter, if he catches something good in the future, he won't think of me first."
"That's right, okay, then I'll interpret it as you want."
At around nine o'clock in the evening, Yan Jiecheng entered the courtyard carrying a bag.
Fortunately, his house is in the front yard, and the doorkeeper is his father.
Otherwise there will be another disturbance.
When they got home, the three little ones were already asleep, so Yan Jiecheng poured out the contents.
Carefully fold the bag and put it away.
This bag is a washed and yellowed cloth bag sewn with a flour bag. It was borrowed by Yan Jiecheng from Zuo Linhe's family and will have to be returned next time.
"This, this, so much." Yan Bugui said as he flipped through some dry goods.
"It's a pity that it's just dry goods. Without food, it's hard to live in the countryside now."
This big bag of stuff was not expensive, and it cost Yan Jie more than nineteen yuan in total.
Fortunately, fungus, mushrooms, and ground vegetables can all be soaked.
"You are still too young and don't know how to live. How much does it cost? This rabbit only costs 30 cents a pound. How can it be the same price as pork."
"Here, boss, we agreed that I won't reimburse you for the extra money you spent. Besides, look at the fungus you received, it's too small."
"Okay, okay, Dad. Remember to leave a few kilograms of jujubes for me to soak in water to drink. Put the rest in the cellar and hide them. I don't want you and my parents to reimburse you, so consider it my filial piety to you two."
Although Yan Bugui disliked the bad and expensive things, he still wanted to reimburse Yan Jiecheng.
Yan Jiecheng was angry and funny.
My father is really principled.
Seeing that Yan Jiecheng didn't want them to pay, the old couple immediately praised the plump jujube.
When you arrive, Yanbu will hide something good.
After leaving the cellar, there was another round of calculations. According to the old couple, this little thing could help the whole family save a whole month's food rations.
After the old couple finished their calculation, the third aunt heard Yan Jiedai crying and went to comfort the child.
Yan Bugui looked at Yan Jiecheng sheepishly and said, "Boss, can I use one of your rabbits?"
Yan Jiecheng thought to himself: Could it be that he was greedy and wanted to eat rabbit? In his heart, his father was a restrained person, which was not like him at all.
"Hey, what are you thinking about? I'm going to visit the old gentleman." Yan Bugui saw the look on his boss's face and knew that he was thinking wrongly, so he said quickly.
"Old sir?" Yan Jiecheng was puzzled.
"Hey, he was your father's teacher back then. This matter starts with your stingy grandpa." The third aunt answered after coaxing Yan Jie to watch.
"In the past, your grandfather used to pull foreign cars in the car dealership, and he often pulled a gentleman from the school."
"The old gentleman has no children, so your grandfather will ask your father to wait at his house every day."
"Not long ago, the old gentleman taught your dad how to read and write. Your grandfather's plan was successful, and your dad finally learned to read. By the way, old man, what did the old gentleman teach you?"
Yan Bugui recalled his schooling experience as a boy with a look of sadness on his face. When the third aunt asked, she said:
"The old gentleman is a traditional literati. He taught me at home at that time. He first taught me how to read hundreds of surnames and the Three-Character Classic, and later learned Dual Rhymes and the Thousand-Character Classic."
"I read some Tang poetry, The Analects of Confucius, Zengguang Xianwen, Guanwen Guanzhi, etc. I also taught the newly compiled Mandarin at that time."
"The old man was very knowledgeable and had no reservations about me. He even helped me with some writing from time to time. Later, he even recommended me to be a teacher at the National Fourth Elementary School."
"The old gentleman is an alcoholic and loves to eat meat. But you also know the situation in our family these years, so I am not preparing for this..."
