Su Xiaoruan dared not go to the Black Market. She had truly experienced this era, she wasn't some transmigrator, so she clearly knew how severe the crackdown on the Black Market was during this time.
She knew even better that those doing business on the Black Market were either forced to come because they had no way to survive, or they had powerful backing.
Su Xiaoruan belonged to neither category, so she absolutely could not risk it easily.
Su Xiaoruan's Second Aunt lived in the County town; her Second Uncle was a Worker at the Machinery Factory, so they lived in the Machinery Factory's Family Courtyard.
Didn't this present an Opportunity to earn a little bit of pocket money?
Grandma Su brought Su Erlan some Rice and Flour, and also wanted to see if she had any Imperfect Cloth, as Grandma Su was thinking of making some New Clothes for the family.
Su Erlan had studied for a few years, and after getting married, relying on her Husband's family's connections, she found a way to get into the Textile Factory, so she received a quota to buy Imperfect Cloth every month.
When Su Erlan saw her Mother arrive with her Niece, she was naturally extremely happy.
"Mother, you've come at the perfect time today! I just finished the night shift, and it's a major Shift change, so I won't be on until four in the Afternoon tomorrow."
"Mmm, you worked all night, you must be tired. Why don't you go get some sleep and don't worry about us."
"I'm not tired. Please sit down quickly. Why is Ruan Bao here too? Didn't you have class?"
Su Erlan had three daughters and one son; two daughters were already married, and the son and one daughter were still in school.
"Mhm, my grades are good, and the Teacher takes care of me. As long as I can attend the Exam, it's fine."
Su Erlan's eyes lit up, "Is that so? Our Ruan Bao is such a little genius!"
Su Xiaoruan smiled, feeling Embarrassed.
Grandma Su didn't stand on ceremony with her own daughter and stated the purpose of her visit after sitting down.
Su Erlan laughed, "I thought it was some big deal. You wait right there, I'll go into the room and get it for you."
Su Erlan came out of the room carrying a bolt of light blue Cotton Cloth.
"I just managed to get this from the Factory a few days ago. I was actually planning on bringing it to you tomorrow."
Grandma Su couldn't stop smiling when she saw so much cloth.
"So much! How much are you keeping?"
"I'm not keeping any, you take it all."
"That doesn't seem right!"
Grandma Su was worried that Er Lan's Mother-in-law would have objections.
Su Erlan, however, didn't take it seriously, "You don't need to worry about my Mother-in-law. I gave them two Cloth Tickets, and they are picky about what they like, so I'll let them buy whatever they want themselves."
Grandma Su was very pleased; this second daughter was sensible and sharp, and her life was prosperous.
"Grandma, Second Aunt, I want to go wander around downstairs."
Grandma Su immediately became serious, "What are you wandering around for? Be careful of snatchers!"
"Grandma, I'm not leaving this Residential community, I'll just walk around downstairs."
Su Erlan wasn't worried about her Niece; she was old enough now, and she wasn't leaving the Residential community, so nothing would happen.
Su Xiaoruan still successfully persuaded her Grandmother and went downstairs alone.
However, when she reached the corner of the First floor, she entered the Space.
Su Xiaoruan found a counter specially selling Wigs in the Supermarket, got a grayish-white Wig, then went to the cosmetics counter to apply a simple elderly makeup to herself, and even deliberately put several age spots on her face.
Just as she was about to leave, she saw herself in the mirror and felt that this wasn't right, so she bent her waist a bit more, and only then did she look like an old person.
Fortunately, Su Xiaoruan was wearing a set of green imitation Military Uniform today; this kind of Clothes could be worn by anyone, regardless of age or gender, and it was the most fashionable attire at the moment.
These Clothes were sent to her by her Eldest Uncle last year.
After making all the necessary preparations, Su Xiaoruan loaded ten catties of Flour, ten catties of Rice, and two catties of Pork Belly into the Bamboo basket.
The Bamboo basket was something she had secretly placed in the Supermarket before coming over.
Along with it, she had also brought in a hot Cornbread Steamed Bun.
Su Xiaoruan touched it and found the Cornbread Steamed Bun was still warm, which made her a little happier.
This meant the Supermarket had a preservation function, so she didn't have to worry about the supplies here spoiling.
Next time, she would try to see if she could bring living things in besides herself.
After coming out, Su Xiaoruan went directly to the row of buildings in front.
After wandering around a few times, she finally saw an Old Lady coming out of a building, holding a basket in her hand, likely intending to go buy groceries.
"Elder Sister, want some meat?"
Su Xiaoruan had observed carefully; this Old Lady was dressed very cleanly, without any patches on her Clothes, and her hair was meticulously combed, meaning she definitely wasn't short of Money voucher.
The Old Lady was startled at first, but then, seeing it was an older Sister carrying a Bamboo basket, she immediately lowered her guard.
"You have meat?"
"Yes, only two catties of Pork Belly, plus some White Rice and White Flour. I'm trying to save up Money voucher for my child to buy a Bicycle; otherwise, I wouldn't take these out to trade."
This reason was quite compelling.
After all, a Bicycle was truly not cheap in those years, and the most important thing was that a Bicycle ticket was hard to come by.
The Old Lady glanced into her Bamboo basket, then looked left and right, "I say, Big Sister, why are you only coming now? Come, come, come with me to my place, let's have a good chat, you and I."
Su Xiaoruan followed her lead for a few steps but had no intention of actually going to her home.
What if there were a few Strong Laborers at her house? Wouldn't it be too easy for them to forcibly take her Things?
When they reached the entrance to the building, Su Xiaoruan was unwilling to go any further.
The Old Lady seemed to understand her thoughts and proactively asked, "How much do you think is appropriate for you?"
Su Xiaoruan thought for a moment, "Elder Sister, are you taking all of it?"
The Old Lady nodded, "Yes, I want it all."
Su Xiaoruan calculated, "If you have tickets, I'll give you a slightly cheaper price. If you don't have tickets, Rice is eighteen cents per catty, White Flour is twenty-one cents per catty, and Pork Belly is seventy cents per catty."
The prices Su Xiaoruan quoted were not high; the Grain station probably had similar prices, but tickets were required.
Su Xiaoruan was mainly trying the waters; if she sold to the next person, the price would definitely be a bit higher.
The Old Lady was straightforward and found an Industrial Ticket and a Sugar Ticket from her person. Su Xiaoruan gave her a one-cent discount on each item.
After the exchange was complete, Su Xiaoruan found an unoccupied spot to change her Wig again, swapped her top for one with patches, and then circled around to the row of buildings in the back.
By changing her appearance back and forth like this, Su Xiaoruan went in and out of the Space several times, ending up with twenty yuan, six mao, and eight fen, plus a small stack of various tickets.
Su Xiaoruan dared not take out large amounts of Grain, mainly because she was worried about being targeted.
In this era, anyone holding supplies would not only be targeted by the Public Sector but also by some shady characters from the Black Market.
Being targeted by either side was definitely not a good thing.
Su Xiaoruan put away the Money voucher, changed back into her original attire, and arrived just in time for Lunch.
"Second Aunt, are Bicycles being sold in our County town now?"