Three days had passed since the first batch of Paopao Bamboo Shoots was ready. Wang Juxiang first went to the village entrance with a bamboo basket on her back, asking the elderly man driving the oxcart to wait a moment, then went to pick up Su Qing.
Knowing she was going to town with the old lady today, Qian Maizi gave her fifty cents—forty for the round-trip fare and ten to buy the old lady a shaobing or a bowl of water in town. When traveling, one shouldn’t rely entirely on the elderly.
After over half an hour, the oxcart arrived in town, and the grandmother and granddaughter got off, heading straight for the purchasing station.
Despite carrying such a heavy basket of bamboo shoots, Wang Juxiang didn’t complain once, dutifully following behind Su Qing and occasionally reminding her to walk slowly.
This child really is quite good, Su Qing thought, walking ahead with her hands behind her back, nodding from time to time.
The town’s purchasing station accepted everything—rice, flour, cooking oil, eggs, grains, plastic shoe soles, rags, gunny sacks… Naturally, dried goods from the mountains were also welcome. While the Supply and Marketing Cooperative sold pickles and fermented vegetables, items like Paopao Bamboo Shoots were clearly not among them.
“Ma’am, what you have here is just pickles, nothing special. How about one cent per jin?”
Wang Juxiang’s face flushed with excitement. Although making these bamboo shoots was labor-intensive, the bamboo shoots themselves were foraged from the mountains, costing nothing. If they could be sold, she would bring her parents, brothers, and sisters-in-law to dig for more in the evenings.
“Young man, do you have chopsticks? Try a taste. My bamboo shoots are nothing like the pickles you have here. One cent is too cheap—how about three cents?”
The young man’s eyes widened in surprise. How could dried bamboo shoots be so special? Intrigued by the old lady’s mysterious demeanor, he asked for a pair of chopsticks, picked up a strand, and chewed it.
His eyes widened instantly—the sour and spicy flavor was incredibly appetizing, leaving him craving more after just one bite.
“Hmm~, hmm~, Ma’am, you’re right, this really does taste delicious. Come, everyone, try some.”
Skeptical, several others at the purchasing station took chopsticks and sampled it. They all agreed it was tasty, but three cents was too expensive. After some back-and-forth, they settled on two and a half cents.
“Thirty jin of bamboo shoots comes to seven yuan and fifty cents, Ma’am. Here you go.”
“Just some worthless rural stuff. Tomorrow, I’ll have my son bring more, hoping to earn a little money before winter to buy cloth and make shoes for the children.”
“You’re so thoughtful, always thinking of the younger generation. I’ll be here tomorrow—if your son comes, have him look for me. My surname is Liang.”
“Sure, young man. Thank you so much today. This is my first time in town, and I’ve met such a kind person like you—what luck! When I make offerings to our ancestors for the New Year, I’ll ask them to bless you with a prosperous official career.”
“Ma’am, you flatter me. I’m just a small purchasing clerk.”
…….
Wang Juxiang walked out of the purchasing station in a daze. She had truly broadened her horizons—her grandmother’s mouth wasn’t just for scolding people but could also spout so many praises. She had charmed the young purchasing clerk into grinning widely, unable to hide his delight.
“What are you standing around for? Let’s go. Grandma will take you to the state-run restaurant for wontons. After that, we’ll go to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative to buy some hair ribbons for you and your sisters.”
“Grandma, I’m not hungry. You eat!”
Su Qing patted her on the back, “Silly girl, come on, listen to Grandma.”
The wontons at the state-run restaurant were generous in portion, with ample filling, and the broth was simmered from old hens—authentic ingredients that made it incredibly fragrant. At first, Wang Juxiang felt a bit restrained, but after a few scoldings from Su Qing, she let loose and ate heartily, her eyes squinting with delight from the delicious taste.
Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, the grandmother and granddaughter returned home.
Wang Juxiang held a bundle of hair ties and distributed them one by one to her sisters in the room. Fengzhi examined hers left and right, utterly delighted. Many of the older girls in the village used scraps of cloth or thread to tie their hair.
Of course, her mother Liu Aijun had a salary and never lacked hair ties or ornaments, but these were bought by Grandma, and it felt completely different.
Knowing that shredded bamboo shoots could fetch a good price, the Wang family members started carrying baskets up the mountain after work. Wang Yongqiang was the most enthusiastic—he was desperately short of money, as Zhao Su’e had been particularly affectionate with him lately.
He had asked his eldest sister-in-law to make a set of clothes from the seven meters of fabric his mother gave him, and he secretly gave the remaining two meters to Zhao Su’e. Good heavens, she even sneaked a kiss on his cheek late at night.
His heart warmed instantly, and he felt he could marry her soon. At this point, he not only needed to show his efforts to his elder brothers and sisters-in-law but also let Su’e see his hard work.
The leadership of the Hongxing Production Team was quite lenient with the Commune Members. As long as they didn’t slack off during work and prioritized production, they turned a blind eye to minor infractions like secretly raising a couple more chickens in the cellar or foraging for wild vegetables and game in the mountains.
While the Wang family was busy digging for bamboo shoots on the mountain, Su Qing quietly called Wang Haifeng into the house.
“Mother, you wanted to see me?”
“Lao Liu is here, come sit. Mother wants to talk with you.”
The muscles in Wang Haifeng’s cheeks twitched. Like his second brother, he was one of those who rarely earned their mother’s favor. Now, suddenly faced with her smiling face, he felt uneasy all over, his scalp tingling and a chill running down his back.
“Heh heh!”
Wang Haifeng: “…”
Just say what you have to say—why laugh so creepily?!
“Lao Liu, I heard about you and Hongmei going to town recently to trade dried vegetables and mushrooms.”
“Mother, let me explain—”
“Don’t be afraid, I’m not blaming you. Times are tough, and you have three students at home. Defu is at an age where he’s growing fast. I’ve been through it all, I understand. Lately, our family has earned a bit from selling shredded bamboo shoots, but it’s still not enough. I’m thinking of renovating the house before winter, so I want you to find someone to sell the shredded bamboo shoots on the Black Market. Sell it for three fen per jin, give two fen and five li to the family, and keep the extra five li as your hard-earned fee.”
Upon hearing this, Wang Haifeng’s eyes lit up. Five li per jin—ten jin would be five fen, one hundred jin would be five mao, one thousand jin would be… No capital needed, just a trip at night, without much effort. The more he thought about it, the more excited he became.
“Mother, you—you’re really letting me do this?”
Su Qing sighed, pulled a White Rabbit Milk Candy from her pocket, and pressed it into his hand.
“My son, in your mother’s eyes, all you siblings are equally dear. When your seventh brother was away from home before, I worried day and night and couldn’t attend to your own families. Now that I’m old and don’t have much time left, I just want to see our family members living better before I close my eyes forever. I’ve been managing this household my whole life, and now it’s time for me to rest.”
Wang Haifeng felt a lump in his throat upon hearing this, clutching the White Rabbit Milk Candy tighter in his hand. That foul mouth of Li Hongmei was just spewing nonsense – who said Mother didn’t care about him? Mother had been thinking of him all along.
She always thought of him first when there was profitable business to be done. He must work hard and live up to his mother’s expectations!