“Mom, I’m home! Come out quick and hold the bike steady for me!”
Ye Qingyan’s voice sounded weak and drained. Ji Qiuyun immediately set down the ball of yarn she was holding and hurried outside.
“What’s the matter?” Ji Qiuyun stepped forward to steady the bicycle, her eyes falling on several rolled bundles strapped to the rear rack. “This is plastic sheeting… what on earth did you bring this back for?”
“Let’s get it unloaded first. I’ll explain everything later.” Ye Qingyan had walked the whole way home while holding the cargo in place, and she was utterly exhausted.
Together, mother and daughter unrolled the plastic sheeting and stacked it neatly in the corner of the room.
Ye Qingyan drank a mug of warm water and let out a long, relieved breath. “Mom, I went through a lot of trouble to get this plastic sheeting — it’s going to be incredibly useful.”
Ji Qiuyun looked thoroughly confused. “Oh? What could plastic sheeting possibly be good for?”
Ye Qingyan spoke slowly and clearly. “I’ve read about a new way of farming. You build a frame over the soil, then cover it with this plastic sheeting. Once we’ve built these little greenhouses, we’ll be able to grow vegetables even in winter!”
“Can that really work? I’ve never heard of anyone doing such a thing.”
It was no wonder Ji Qiuyun was skeptical. In this era, greenhouse farming simply didn’t exist yet. From what Ye Qingyan knew, this method wouldn’t begin spreading until around 1990.
Ye Qingyan kept her explanation as simple as she could. “The plastic won’t block the sunlight, but it will trap the carbon dioxide the plants release as they grow. It keeps the warmth inside — that’s the whole trick. Think about it: the only reason we can’t grow vegetables in winter is because it gets so cold the plants freeze to death, right?”
Ji Qiuyun hadn’t understood a word about carbon dioxide. But she understood that last sentence perfectly. It made perfect sense. Of course the seedlings died when it got too cold — that was exactly why they couldn’t grow anything.
Ji Qiuyun nodded, beaming with pride. “When you put it that way, it does sound sensible. People say there’s no point in girls getting an education — but look how useful it is! Just see how much you know!”
Ye Qingyan smiled faintly. “It’s all just theory in books, though. Controlling the temperature, managing water and fertilizer, keeping pests away… anything could go wrong at any step.”
“Worth a try, then!” Ji Qiuyun said cheerfully. “We’ve got nothing else to lose. And if it works… shouldn’t we tell everyone in the village how to do it too?”
Ye Qingyan shook her head helplessly. “I’m afraid that won’t work. This plastic sheeting isn’t just expensive — it’s extremely hard to get hold of. If I hadn’t gotten lucky today and found someone who happened to have some in stock, I wouldn’t have been able to buy it at all.”
“How expensive is it?”
Ye Qingyan held up five fingers.
“Five yuan?”
“Fifty yuan.”
Ji Qiuyun gasped sharply. “That’s outrageous!”
“Which is why we mustn’t tell anyone about this. Let’s keep it between us.”
Ye Qingyan had always loved tending plants. Back at the villa, she had built herself a glass conservatory with her own hands. While researching gardening methods, she had read up on greenhouse farming and studied the detailed principles behind it. That was why she’d taken a chance and gone to the black market — hoping she might find some plastic sheeting.
If they succeeded in growing vegetables, they wouldn’t just feed themselves — they could sell the surplus too. Right now, the only vegetables available at the supply and marketing cooperative were turnips and Chinese cabbage. Fresh leafy greens, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers… those would fly off the shelves.
Without further delay, the two of them got straight to work. They turned the soil, cut bamboo poles, and built the frames right where they’d marked out the plots. Ye Qingyan had built conservatories before — the principles were the same, and she knew exactly what she was doing.
Days flew by as they worked. The weather turned colder… and their first crop was thriving inside the greenhouses. The plants looked healthy and strong. As Ye Qingyan gazed at the ripening tomatoes, eggplants, beans, spinach and mustard greens, her eyes lit up. These were ready to be sold.
It took several days of persuasion before Ye Qingyan managed to convince Ji Qiuyun to let her take the vegetables to market. Ji Qiuyun’s fear was simple — what if they got caught? But Ye Qingyan knew the truth: fortune favors the bold. The cautious go hungry. Plenty of people were trading privately already. Where there was demand, there would always be those brave enough to take the risk. Hesitation got you nowhere.
They harvested the vegetables together, then slung two bamboo baskets securely onto either side of the bicycle’s rear rack. Each basket was piled high, covered at the top with burlap sacks. Before dawn broke, Ye Qingyan was on her way — pedaling down quiet country lanes toward the black market.
When she arrived, she found an empty spot and propped up her bike. She pulled back the burlap covering… revealing piles of fresh, vibrant vegetables.
Before she could even call out to passersby, a woman nearby spotted her goods. “Well look at that! Fresh vegetables, for sale!”
Several people standing nearby turned and walked over immediately.
“Miss, how much are these?”
Ye Qingyan smiled warmly. “Everything is the same price — 30 cents per pound. What would you like?”
“Give me two pounds of tomatoes, one pound of mustard greens, and two pounds of spinach!”
“I’ll take one pound of beans and one pound of spinach!”
“Two pounds of eggplants, and one pound each of spinach and mustard greens!”
“Plenty for everyone! No rush, one at a time!” Ye Qingyan weighed the produce, collected money, and gave change calmly and efficiently.
Fresh vegetables were a rarity in winter. At 30 cents a pound, prices were higher than in summer — but still affordable. Word spread fast. More and more people gathered around her stall. Even other vendors stopped by to buy from her.
In no time at all, every last vegetable was gone. Many who had arrived too late crowded around asking when she would return.
“I’ll be back tomorrow,” Ye Qingyan told them with a smile. “Same time, roughly.”
“You must come!” one woman called out. “I’ll be here waiting!”
“I will,” Ye Qingyan replied politely. “Take care, madam.”
Riding home with empty baskets, Ye Qingyan felt light and relieved. Back home they counted her earnings: 16 yuan and 80 cents in a single day.
“That’s wonderful!” Ji Qiuyun beamed. “Sixteen yuan in one day! It won’t take long to earn back every cent we spent on that plastic sheeting. All our hard work is paying off!”
For several days in a row, Ye Qingyan set out early and sold out almost instantly every time.
Only after selling the last of that batch did she suddenly remember… she still hadn’t replied to Pei Ze’s letter.