There was also more than twenty yuan in loose cash, along with grain coupons, meat coupons, and other ration tickets.
Even with that amount of money, the original owner had never been willing to spend much on herself. She only had the two outfits she wore most often.
The most ordinary dark-blue blouse, and a tin of snow cream. She had bought the cream because she often sewed clothes and was afraid the rough skin on her hands would snag the fabric, so she used it to moisturize them.
The more Shen Yueliang looked through the original owner’s belongings, the more clearly she could feel what a gentle and sensible girl she had been.
She even found a sentence written in one of the notebooks.
It said she was sorry to her brother and wanted to save enough money to find him a different wife.
Tracing the familiar handwriting with her fingertips, Shen Yueliang couldn’t help smiling.
Alright then. She would find a way to help fulfill that wish.
After spending two days, Shen Yueliang finished making the clothes for Su Zhiqing and even made a few small modifications.
However, she did not head to the family quarters immediately.
She first needed to make a trip to the county town.
She had not forgotten about making the honorary banner.
But she didn’t have any red fabric on hand, nor did she have yellow thread. She needed to buy those in town, along with colored pens and paper for another purpose.
She also wanted to buy more meat.
Her brother was injured, and she planned to write him a letter and send some dried meat along with it. Military training was exhausting, and dried meat was excellent for restoring energy.
“Mom, I’m going to the county town. Do you need me to bring anything back?”
Lin Qinfen had already changed into her work clothes and was preparing to head to the fields. After thinking for a moment, she said,
“We’re out of matches at home. Bring back a few boxes. We don’t need anything else.”
“Alright, got it.”
Carrying a basket, Shen Yueliang headed out.
Hearing the conversation, He Erhong ran out of the house.
“Bring me two jin of peach pastries and one jin of fruit candies.”
“No ration coupons.”
Without even turning around, Shen Yueliang continued walking.
He Erhong stomped her foot angrily.
“Look at how your daughter treats me, her sister-in-law!”
Pretending not to hear, Lin Qinfen headed off to work.
Qinghe Village belonged to Lihua Commune.
Walking from the village to the town took nearly an hour, while reaching the county town required more than three hours on foot. Fortunately, buses ran from the town to the county.
An hour’s walk wasn’t impossibly far, but it wasn’t close either.
Shen Yueliang wasn’t incapable of walking it.
She simply felt that walking wasted too much time.
Looks like I need to find a way to buy a bicycle first.
But buying a bicycle required a bicycle coupon, and those weren’t easy to obtain.
Maybe I should check the black market sometime.
People say you can buy anything there.
I wonder if that’s true.
She had never seen it herself.
Just as she was thinking this, a bicycle bell rang behind her.
This time she had no intention of hitching a ride, so she simply stepped aside without looking back.
Unexpectedly, the bicycle stopped in front of her.
Chen Zhao had recognized her from afar.
Planting both feet on the ground, he gripped the handlebars tightly and glanced at her.
His hands unconsciously tightened.
“Shen Yueliang, where are you going?”
The first thing Shen Yueliang noticed wasn’t Chen Zhao at all.
It was the bicycle beneath him.
A Phoenix-brand bicycle.
The classic twenty-eight-inch model.
It looked quite imposing when a man rode it, though for women it was a little too tall. If your legs weren’t long enough, you’d have to compensate with your hips.
Still, regardless of its size, she couldn’t help feeling envious.
Because she didn’t have one.
Thinking regretfully about that, she finally looked at Chen Zhao.
Chen Zhao was on good terms with her brother.
He had a refined appearance and had completed high school before returning to the village. Now he handled accounting work for the production brigade and rarely had to do field labor, earning a monthly salary instead.
Not only in Qinghe Brigade, but in several neighboring brigades as well, families with daughters all wanted to arrange a marriage with him.
“I’m going to the county town.”
“I’m heading to the commune to submit a work report. I can take you to town on the way and save you a lot of walking.”
Shen Yueliang hesitated.
After all, this was the 1970s.
Riding on a bicycle with a male comrade seemed like the sort of thing people should avoid for propriety’s sake.
Chen Zhao gripped the handlebars even tighter.
“When your brother came home on leave last time, he specifically asked me to look after you and Auntie. You’re Xiangdong’s sister—you’re practically like a younger sister to me.”
Oh no.
Chen Zhao wanted to smack himself.
What younger sister?
His mouth was so clumsy. He had said the wrong thing.
However, Shen Yueliang thought his reasoning sounded quite reasonable.
Besides, it wasn’t just this trip.
She would still have to walk a long distance after returning from the county town.
And since Chen Zhao had already said he regarded her as a sister, refusing repeatedly would make her seem overly fussy.
“Then I won’t stand on ceremony.”
At that point, Chen Zhao found himself unable to say anything further.
Shen Yueliang sat on the rear seat with both hands properly resting on her knees.
Because the original owner spent most of her time sewing at home, she hadn’t interacted much with other villagers.
Unable to think of any conversation topics, Shen Yueliang simply looked up at the sky while thinking about the clothes she was making.
“I heard your aunt came over causing trouble again, and that you fainted before. Are you alright now?”
Chen Zhao was the one who started the conversation.
Nothing stayed secret in the countryside, especially when everyone lived in the same village.
Shen Yueliang didn’t intend to hide it.
“Something like that happened. I bumped my head, but it’s nothing serious. I’m almost fully recovered.”
Chen Zhao seemed to nod.
After a pause, he added,
“If your aunt brings people over to cause trouble again, you can come find me.”
Shen Yueliang acknowledged it.
Her brother had told her the same thing—that she could seek Chen Zhao’s help if she ran into trouble.
“Okay.”
For some reason, immediately after she said that, the bicycle suddenly wobbled.
Fortunately, Chen Zhao quickly steadied it.
For a moment, Shen Yueliang wondered if perhaps she was too heavy.
But that couldn’t be right.
She was actually quite slim.
The rest of the journey passed in silence.
After more than twenty minutes, they arrived in town.
Shen Yueliang climbed down from the back seat.
“Thank you for the ride.”
“It’s nothing,” Chen Zhao replied.
Nodding, Shen Yueliang happened to see the bus arriving.
After saying goodbye, she jogged over.
The bus doors opened, and passengers began disembarking.
Stepping aside to let them pass, she suddenly saw something roll to her feet.
Instinctively moving her foot away, she looked down.
It was a green canteen.
Ahead of her stood a young woman.
The woman appeared to have traveled a long distance and looked dusty from the journey.
She wore two glossy black braids, was very pretty, had fair skin, and was dressed in a pointed-collar shirt, black trousers, and simple cloth shoes.
Though dressed plainly, she carried herself with remarkable grace.
She held a green travel bag in her left hand and a netted carry bag in her right.
Her eyes were fixed helplessly on the fallen canteen.
Immediately understanding what had happened, Shen Yueliang bent down, picked up the canteen, and handed it to her.
“Ah, thank you.”
The woman flashed her a sweet smile.
“No problem.”
Shen Yueliang returned the smile.
Since she was rushing to catch the bus, she handed over the canteen and quickly boarded.
Fortunately, there was still an empty seat in the last row.
She sat down and found herself thinking about the young woman she had just met.
She really was beautiful.
The bus rattled away with its passengers.
Moments later, a jeep pulled into the bus stop.
Ji Yanchuan parked smoothly.
“Stop looking so stern. Our place is remote enough as it is. It’s not easy getting a young female comrade to come work in the infirmary. Don’t scare her away. Besides, even though she’s young, she’s your mother’s apprentice and highly skilled.”
Ji Yanchuan turned his head and glanced at the passenger beside him.
It was Li Shuhui, the wife of their regiment’s political commissar.
“Sister-in-law, you’re less of a military wife and more of a matchmaker.”
Li Shuhui glared at him angrily.
Then she leaned out of the vehicle and looked around.
Spotting a young woman carrying several large bags, she immediately headed over.
“Hello. You must be Comrade Meng Yao from Beijing, right? Welcome, welcome.”
After receiving a nod, Li Shuhui called over her shoulder.
“Ji Yanchuan, are you really not getting out? With all this luggage, are you seriously going to make two women carry everything themselves?”