Lin Xiaxia hummed a tuneless little song as she carried a paper-wrapped bundle of meat buns in her hand. She had just stepped through the entrance of the guesthouse when the curly-haired woman at the front desk called out to her.
“Young lady, wait a moment!”
Lin Xiaxia stopped and looked around. Seeing no one else nearby, she pointed at herself.
“Ma’am, were you calling me?”
“Of course I was. Come here, come here.” The woman smiled warmly and waved her over.
Lin Xiaxia walked toward the counter. As soon as she approached, the savory aroma of the meat buns drifted through the air. The grease-soaked paper wrapping gleamed golden, making the buns look especially tempting.
“My, you’re certainly eating well,” the woman remarked, smacking her lips as her gaze fell on the buns in Lin Xiaxia’s hand. “Meat buns aren’t easy to get these days. You need meat coupons to buy them.”
Lin Xiaxia smiled and replied half-truthfully, “It’s not too bad. My family still has some savings. Since I’m leaving soon, I figured I should at least have a good meal before I go.”
“If your family is that well-off, why would you want to go to the countryside?”
The woman looked puzzled as she picked up the enamel mug on the desk and took a sip of hot water.
“These days, what city girl doesn’t hope to find a decent job and live a stable life?”
“Well, circumstances forced my hand.” Lin Xiaxia sighed, putting on a helpless expression. “My parents are biased, and staying at home only means putting up with their mistreatment. I’d rather go to the countryside and have some peace. By the way, what did you call me over for?”
As she spoke, she took a steaming meat bun from the paper package and handed it over.
“Here, I just bought these. It’s still hot. Have one.”
The woman hurriedly waved her hands in refusal.
“Oh, no, I can’t possibly take that! Meat buns are expensive. I can’t accept something like this from you.”
“It’s only one bun. It’s not worth that much.” Lin Xiaxia insisted on placing it in her hand. “Consider it my thanks for looking after me. I’ve troubled you quite a bit while staying here these past couple of days.”
Unable to refuse any longer, the woman accepted it. She carefully wrapped the bun in paper and placed it inside a drawer.
Then she leaned closer and lowered her voice.
“Young lady, I saw you carrying several large bags to the post office this morning. They looked pretty heavy. Were they filled with grain?”
She paused, a hopeful look appearing in her eyes.
“To tell you the truth, my husband has been complaining lately that he never gets enough to eat, and my child is still growing. Food is scarce these days. Even if you have coupons, the supply and marketing cooperative is often out of stock…”
“If you have some connections and can get your hands on extra grain, I’d like to buy some from you, even if it’s a little expensive.”
Lin Xiaxia immediately understood.
Food was precious in these times. Nearly every household had to tighten their belts just to get by.
She thought about the large stockpile of rice and flour inside her space. It wouldn’t hurt to trade away some of it, and she might even gain a useful connection in the process.
“Ma’am, to tell you the truth, I do have a way to get some. But…”
She lowered her voice even further.
“I don’t want money. I only want national grain coupons. If you trade with grain coupons, for every ten jin worth of coupons, I’ll give you an extra five jin of grain.”
The woman’s eyes instantly lit up, and her voice trembled with excitement.
“Really?!”
“Of course. Why would I lie to you?” Lin Xiaxia patted her chest confidently.
“But we’ll have to hurry. My train to the countryside leaves tomorrow afternoon, so tonight is the only time I can arrange everything. If you’re sure you want some, I’ll go contact my source right away.”
“I do! Of course I do!”
The woman nodded repeatedly, her eyes shining even brighter. She quickly asked another question.
“Besides rice and flour, can you get eggs and meat too? My son has been craving meat like crazy. He hasn’t had any in months.”
“I can get them. I can get all of those things,” Lin Xiaxia replied quietly. “There’s quite a bit available. If you can find a few more families and pool your coupons together, I can give you a better deal.”
“But let me make one thing clear. I only want national grain coupons, meat coupons, and cloth coupons. You can trade using those coupons directly. There’s no need to pay extra cash.”
At the time, every household received only a limited number of ration coupons. A family might receive only one or two jin worth of meat coupons in an entire month.
But there were often times when people had coupons yet couldn’t find any meat to buy. As a result, unused coupons gradually accumulated.
Trading those saved coupons for actual food was a good deal for everyone involved.
The two whispered back and forth for quite some time before finally settling on the quantities and exchange rates.
Afraid of missing such a rare opportunity, the woman quickly found a trusted coworker to cover her shift, then hurried off to contact neighbors and acquaintances.
Lin Xiaxia also went outside and wandered around for appearances’ sake. After turning the corner at the end of the street, she quickly returned to the guesthouse.
She purchased everything she needed from the Space-Time Shop and even bought several small cloth bags, dividing the rice and flour into convenient five-jin and ten-jin portions.
By the time night fell, the guesthouse’s front entrance had been locked.
The courtyard was completely quiet, illuminated only by a few dim yellow streetlights.
The woman secretly came to find Lin Xiaxia and led her around to the back entrance.
Lin Xiaxia told her to wait a while before bringing the others over. She then headed alone to a secluded spot she had picked out earlier that day.
Before long, the woman returned with five or six people.
They were all friendly-looking middle-aged or elderly men and women, each carrying a bulging cloth bundle. Clearly, they had brought along all the ration coupons they had saved at home.
The woman lowered her voice as she introduced Lin Xiaxia.
“This is Xiaxia, the young lady I told you about. She brought all the goods.”
Lin Xiaxia didn’t waste time with unnecessary talk.
She immediately pulled away the cloth covering the bamboo baskets.
“My goodness! Look how fresh this meat is!” an older woman exclaimed softly.
“And this rice! Just looking at it makes me hungry!”
Lin Xiaxia smiled.
“Everything is here. We’ll trade according to the rates we agreed on. Those with enough coupons can choose what they want first.”
Everyone immediately got busy.
One person traded for three jin of flour, another for two jin of rice. Some exchanged grain coupons for eggs, while others used cloth coupons for meat.
Everyone brought out their most valuable ration coupons, afraid they wouldn’t be able to trade for enough goods.
Lin Xiaxia efficiently counted the goods while collecting the coupons.
Before long, almost everything prepared for the trade was gone.
When she finally counted her gains, she found herself holding a thick stack of ration coupons.
She had accumulated nearly twenty jin worth of national grain coupons, more than five jin worth of meat coupons, and several brand-new cloth coupons.
These coupons would be extremely valuable in the countryside. In many situations, they were even more useful than cash.
The biggest surprise was a bicycle coupon, along with several industrial-goods coupons.
“Xiaxia, thank you so much!”
The woman held meat and eggs in her hands, grinning from ear to ear.
“If you ever come back here, you have to visit me at the guesthouse!”
“I definitely will.” Lin Xiaxia smiled as she carefully put away all the coupons she had received.
After seeing everyone off, she returned to her room in an excellent mood.
Not only had she traded away some of the supplies stored in her space, but she had also obtained the ration coupons she desperately needed.
She had accomplished two things at once.
After putting everything away, Lin Xiaxia went to bed early.
The next morning, she had just finished washing up when the woman arrived carrying steaming wontons and buns.
“Xiaxia, hurry over and eat. They’re still hot.”
Lin Xiaxia wiped her face with a towel.
“Ma’am, you’re being far too generous.”
“After everything you did for us, treating you to one meal is the least I can do. Everyone was incredibly grateful to you last night.”
The woman continued warmly, “Especially Auntie Liu’s family. Her daughter-in-law just gave birth and is still recovering, and they were worried they wouldn’t have anything nutritious for her to eat. Those red dates, dried longans, and free-range chicken you brought were a tremendous help.”