Although only one night had passed, the piglets seemed to have grown a lot, looking much more lively. Qin Laidi first carried out the crushed piglet to prevent the sow from eating it, then thoroughly cleaned the pigsty inside and out to avoid bacterial infection.
For postpartum care of sows, nothing was more important than cleanliness. The village couldn’t achieve sterility, but at least feces, urine, and bloodstains had to be cleaned promptly. After that, she washed the ground and walls twice with light salt water, then laid down fresh, dry straw. Only then did Laidi finally have time to rest.
Fortunately, because she had intervened in time to prevent difficult labor, both sows did not reject her, nor did they bite her.
Laidi had studied traditional Chinese medicine under Elder He, not veterinary medicine. But during her years in Lenghe Town, there was no dedicated veterinary station or breeder. When villagers came to the clinic, she had no choice but to step in. Over time, she gained some experience.
Wang Lifen and Li Benfen watched from the side for a while and had nothing to criticize about her work attitude.
When Laidi returned home at noon for lunch, she found that there were a few grains of rice added to the sweet potato bran soup. On the kang table lay a sack of rice—fifteen jin in total!
“You silly girl, I told you to get coarse grain. That way we could’ve exchanged for thirty jin more. But you insisted on white rice—look how little this is.”
Qin Laidi slurped a mouthful of fragrant white porridge. “Grandma, this white rice can be used for something else.” In these times, coarse grain was the staple, while white rice was the real luxury.
“For what?” Qin Guihua and Pandi both looked at her.
Laidi glanced toward the door, ran to close the gate, then whispered, “I’m going into the city tomorrow.”
As expected of the clever third granddaughter, Qin Guihua immediately guessed, “You want to take it to the black market to trade for something else?” In the past, Laidi had sold eggs and soybeans, so this wasn’t surprising.
“Don’t worry, Grandma. I promise I won’t let us go hungry.”
Qin Guihua, used to being cautious, began nagging about how someone from another brigade had secretly sold grain, got caught, and was convicted of speculation. Some were sent to commune study sessions, others to labor reform farms, and one was even exiled to Beidahuang, bringing shame to the whole family.
Qin Laidi herself wasn’t entirely sure about the current situation—these memories were too distant for her.
Pandi, however, said softly, “I’ll go with Third Sister. Tomorrow happens to be Sunday.”
Though Qin Guihua was fierce, she was reasonable. She thought that Laidi was no longer young and was now married—her future life should be managed by her and her husband. She couldn’t protect her like a hen forever. “Alright, you two be careful. Take five jin first. If it gets confiscated, it won’t hurt too much. Just don’t get yourselves into trouble.”
Laidi was clever, Pandi was meticulous—the sisters complemented each other.
That night, Qin Laidi moved her bedding to the pigsty. Next to it was a small low room. During the day, she had already laid down thick, dry straw. Since it was summer, sleeping directly on it wasn’t cold.
She wondered where Old He had gone today, whether he had enough to eat and wear. Well, one thing was certain—this blockhead definitely wouldn’t be thinking about her.
To him, his newlywed wife was just a little girl he had only met once.
Lost in thoughts, she woke up countless times through the night. Finally, at dawn, after feeding the pigs and settling everything, Qin Laidi hurried home to wash her face. The sisters quietly hid the rice in their baskets and headed straight for the village entrance.
A full-time breeder could still take breaks. During the day, when there were many people around, she could ask another villager to watch over things.
“Laidi, over here! Pandi, come quickly!” A young woman at the village entrance waved at them.
Qin Laidi froze for a moment before recognizing her—it was her childhood friend, Liu Baozhu.
Liu Baozhu was also her neighbor, just separated by a wall. The Liu family was also raised by a widow with a single child. Though that son died early, unlike the Qin family, Liu Baozhu’s mother later gave birth to seven sons, making her very strong-willed. The Qin family, on the other hand, had seven daughters and was mockingly called a “nunnery” or “kingdom of daughters” by Widow Liu, leading to many fights with Qin Guihua.
But no matter how much the two grandmothers quarreled, the simple-minded Qin Laidi had often played with Liu Baozhu as a child. They studied together until junior high. Laidi stopped school to ease her grandmother’s burden, while Liu Baozhu continued steadily through high school. If university admissions hadn’t been suspended, she might have even gone to college.
“You’re going to the commune too? Why didn’t you say earlier? We could’ve gone together.” Liu Baozhu curiously glanced at their baskets.
When Laidi saw her face, her gaze flickered subtly.
How could she ever forget that face?
Back then, after she followed the army, Liu Baozhu wrote her many letters, made several phone calls, and even visited her in Lenghe Town. She cried about being forced by Widow Liu to marry a widower in his forties. Feeling sorry for her good friend, Laidi let her stay for a while, helping with childcare and housework.
It was during that time that Baozhu met a deputy company commander under Zhao Qingsong. Gradually, they developed feelings.
What angered Qin Laidi was that from the beginning, she had warned Baozhu that the man had a wife back home. She urged her to keep her distance and even tried to stop her several times. But Baozhu seemed blinded, throwing herself at him.
In the end, the man’s wife heard about it and came with her two sons, beating Baozhu and also holding a grudge against Qin Laidi. For years afterward, Qin Laidi was criticized behind her back in the residential compound.
Baozhu, however, walked away and married another man, eventually going to Shenzhen after the reforms and becoming very successful in business. Meanwhile, Qin Laidi bore the lifelong stigma of “inviting trouble” and “playing matchmaker.” Even before Zhao Qingsong died, he blamed her for his lack of promotion.
Because of this, his reputation in the compound suffered, affecting evaluations and promotions.
Although Qin Laidi would never be with Zhao Qingsong again in this life, she also had no intention of being friends with Liu Baozhu anymore. This was a matter of principle.
Liu Baozhu chatted cheerfully as usual, but seeing Laidi’s cold expression, she was puzzled. “Laidi, what’s wrong with you?”
Laidi ignored her completely. Just then, a tractor passed by, and she waved and hopped on.
Watching her back, Liu Baozhu fell into thought—could it be that she also had that dream? But that didn’t make sense. If she had, why would she push Zhao Qingsong away and let her take advantage?
The Qin sisters didn’t think that much. With a fare of five cents each, they arrived at the county in less than half an hour.
Though Hongxing County was mountainous, the urban area was flat. As soon as they entered the county, they felt a liveliness different from the village. Occasionally, bicycles passed by, and there were state-run restaurants, barbershops, and supply and marketing cooperatives.
Pandi felt a bit nervous. “Sis, weren’t we going to the commune? Why are we in the county?” And the five-cent fare was too expensive! Before leaving, Grandma had secretly given her twenty cents, telling her not to let Third Sister spend recklessly. But now, all the money was already used.
“Sis, you’re too cunning!”
“The more people there are, the more business opportunities.” Based on novels she had read in her previous life, places with more workers were better for selling goods.
They had only been to the county a few times before for their eldest brother-in-law’s banquet. But Pandi, being studious, had a good memory and clearly remembered where the black market was. “Sis, we should go left. Why are we going right?”
“Shh, we’re not going to the black market.” Competition there was too fierce. As unfamiliar faces, they would have no advantage, and they didn’t know when or where the enforcement teams might appear. They could easily become scapegoats.
One good thing about Pandi was that even if she didn’t fully understand, she knew when to stay quiet. She followed silently. After more than ten minutes, they arrived at an alley near the county hospital residential area.
Most people who lived in such housing had dual incomes. Laidi didn’t dare openly display their goods. While Pandi kept watch, she looked around cautiously.
Just as she was about to approach someone, two elderly women came up first. “Girls, what are you selling?”
Their appearance clearly marked them as villagers.
“White rice. Would you like some, aunties?”
New rice hadn’t come in yet, and it was the lean season. Everyone wanted a taste of white rice. The old women’s eyes lit up. “How much per jin?”
Qin Laidi couldn’t recall the prices of this era and guessed, “Twenty cents.”
“Whoa! That’s too expensive!”
She knew she had set the price high but, seeing their reaction wasn’t extreme, quickly added, “No ration tickets needed. It’s cheaper than the grain station overall.”
After thinking it over, the old women agreed. Grain was tight recently, especially fine grain. Even lining up overnight with ration tickets didn’t guarantee anything.
“How much do you have?”
Laidi took out a white cloth bag and let them inspect the rice. “Ten jin. I don’t have a scale. If you both want it, split the cost and divide it yourselves.”
Carrying a scale would make things suspicious if caught.
The old women weighed it in their hands—definitely ten jin—and were satisfied. They pooled their money.
After counting the payment, Laidi handed over the rice.
But for the next half hour, no one else came. Plenty passed by, but few even asked. Those who heard the price left immediately—few could afford it.
Pandi sighed. “Sis, if Grandma finds out we brought all this rice, will she beat us to death?” They had agreed to bring only five jin, but Laidi secretly brought all fifteen.
Laidi remained calm, not worried at all. Just then, someone approached. “Comrade.”
The short-haired woman gave Laidi a feeling at first glance—she must be a doctor. Perhaps it was intuition from the same profession.
“Do you have white rice?”
“Yes, home-grown japonica rice. Full grains, very fragrant. Would you like to take a look?”
The woman glanced briefly. “No need, I’m in a hurry. How much do you have left?”
“Five jin.”
She quickly weighed it. “Alright, still twenty cents per jin?” She reached into her pocket for a handkerchief bundle to count money.
Qin Laidi’s eyes suddenly shifted. “We don’t want money. Can we exchange it for something else?”