At noon, after finishing work, Lin Qianyi planned to go to the factory’s convenience store to pick up a few things. She still needed to go out occasionally to buy supplies.
When she arrived at the store, there wasn’t much left. The meat had all been sold, and the vegetables were few and a bit wilted, probably because of the hot weather. Lin Qianyi looked around but didn’t buy anything. She got back on her bicycle, feeling conflicted. In this scorching heat, should she go to the supplementary food supply station? It was a bit far from here. But she couldn’t keep eating meat without buying any; that wouldn’t make sense. After all, no one would believe that she had bought a lot of meat and kept it in this heat—there’s no way it would last.
Lin Qianyi rode slowly, lost in thought. Ahead, an elderly lady was staggering a little, then leaned to the side as if about to sit down. Lin Qianyi quickly dismounted and went over to support her. “Grandma, are you okay?”
The elderly woman shakily sat down on the steps by the roadside. Lin Qianyi recognized her as Grandma Sun, who lived in their building, though not in the same unit.
“I’m fine, maybe it’s just the heat… I think I’m a bit overheated,” Grandma Sun said, her face pale.
“Thank you, Qianyi,” Grandma Sun said, recognizing her.
“Wait here, I’ll go get you a cold soda,” Lin Qianyi said, quickly riding back to the convenience store. There was no bottled water available, so she bought a soda that had been chilled with ice.
She hurried back to Grandma Sun, who was still sitting there.
“Take a sip, it’ll cool you down a bit. There’s no other water right now,” Lin Qianyi said, handing her the soda.
“Thank you,” Grandma Sun said, taking a sip.
“In this heat, you shouldn’t go out, especially at noon,” Lin Qianyi said, fanning her with a few sheets of paper she had in her bag.
“I wanted to come buy some meat, but it’s all sold out,” Grandma Sun sighed. She couldn’t be away from home too long and couldn’t make it to the supplementary food station.
“Grandma, I was just about to go buy meat. I can bring some back for you,” Lin Qianyi decided.
“Really, Qianyi? Thank you so much!” Grandma Sun was delighted.
“I’ll go soon. Are you feeling better?” Lin Qianyi asked, checking her complexion.
“Much better,” Grandma Sun replied, finishing the soda. The cool drink had helped, though her head still felt a little dizzy.
Grandma Sun took out a dime to give Lin Qianyi. Afraid she might refuse, Grandma Sun said, “Qianyi, don’t refuse. You have to take the money for the soda, or I wouldn’t dare let you help me get the meat.”
Seeing this, Lin Qianyi accepted it, taking the money and the empty bottle. “Wait a moment, Grandma. I’ll return the bottle and then take you home.” She returned the bottle to the store.
Back, she helped Grandma Sun onto the back seat of her bicycle and rode her home.
Grandma Sun’s son worked as a technician at the factory but had been bedridden for several years due to illness. His child was still young, and his wife had to work, so Grandma Sun took care of everything at home. She had saved some meat coupons to buy meat for her son’s health but couldn’t get any. She also wanted to buy a chicken but couldn’t.
“What would you like me to get?” Lin Qianyi asked.
Grandma Sun happily handed over the money and coupons. “Help me get a pound of pork. If there’s a chicken, see if you can buy one too. There might not be enough coupons.”
“All right, no problem,” Lin Qianyi thought. Surely she could get some, and if not, she would make do.
Lin Qianyi went home, took some ready-to-eat food from her space, then headed to the supplementary food station.
There wasn’t much meat left—just a small piece, which she bought. The poultry section had sold out. She wasn’t sure if it was because the supply was low or the demand was high, but by noon, everything was gone. She bought some other vegetables, and when she picked up her bicycle, she secretly slipped a piece of meat from her space into the bag.
She rode back toward the factory, arriving at the dormitory. She first went home, unpacked the vegetables, leaving a large piece of meat and a chicken for Grandma Sun. Then she went to deliver them. Grandma Sun was overjoyed to receive a whole piece of pork and a chicken, especially since even with money, it was often hard to buy. Lin Qianyi gave her the remaining money and returned home.
She hadn’t taken a nap that afternoon, but she had solved the problem of buying groceries and helped someone in need. Plus, she even earned a few cents. Lin Qianyi wasn’t planning to make money off the meat she kept in her fridge; she had her regular job and didn’t need to take such risks. But helping those in need was fine.
Seeing the time, Lin Qianyi went to work. That afternoon, after finishing her translation and checking it, she took it to Engineer Xu’s office.
When she arrived, Xu was discussing something with someone. Lin Qianyi prepared to leave.
“Qianyi, just a moment,” Xu said, spotting her. Lin Qianyi held the materials and waited nearby. Their office was a bit far from Xu’s, and since he worked in the technical building, it was a bit inconvenient to run back and forth.
Xu quickly finished his discussion and then called her over. “Come over, Qianyi.”
“Engineer Xu, here’s the latest manuscript.” Lin Qianyi handed over the documents.
Xu took a look and nodded. “Not bad, Qianyi. Your speed and quality have been excellent. You’ve already made a big dent in the backlog of materials.”
“Qianyi, the bookstore has some translation work. They’d like your help. What do you think?” Xu put down the manuscript.
“Sure,” Lin Qianyi agreed readily. This work was easy and could earn her some money—perfect.
“Tomorrow, go to the bookstore and see Manager Cao. Just go during working hours and tell your supervisor that I asked you to deliver some materials,” Xu instructed.
“All right,” Lin Qianyi nodded.
“Manage your time wisely. The factory’s materials aren’t urgent at the moment, so translating a little each day is enough,” Xu said subtly, implying that she could handle the bookstore translation alongside her factory work.
“Thank you, Xu,” Lin Qianyi understood that this was his way of looking out for her.
“These materials need to be translated too, but there’s no rush. Take your time,” Xu added, handing her another stack of documents.
Lin Qianyi thanked him and happily carried the materials back to her office.
“Qianyi, are you ready to leave? Aren’t you coming with us to go shopping?” Wang Lan, already packing up, asked.
“No, you guys go ahead,” Lin Qianyi replied with a smile.
Wang Lan loved shopping, but Lin Qianyi wasn’t sure what was worth browsing in these streets where nothing much was available—just the usual goods at the supply store. No matter the era or the abundance of material goods, women always seemed to love shopping.