Yang Dai took out the golden melon seeds she had prepared. “These should be enough to trade for quite a bit on the black market.”
“Give them to me. I’ll go to the black market.” Han Lin’s brow was still furrowed, his tone filled with disapproval.
Yang Dai thought again of the trick she used that morning—crying.
But unfortunately, she wasn’t prepared now, and the tears just wouldn’t come.
Besides, from what she remembered, tears were most effective when used sparingly. If she relied on them all the time, they would lose their value.
“The black market is too dangerous. Patrols come at any time.” Han Lin’s knowledge of the black market came from his own memories.
In the past, when Han Lin was idle and wanted to eat something nice, he often slipped into the black market. Before marriage, most of his money had come from there.
But making money there wasn’t easy. More than once, he had narrowly avoided being caught by patrols. After he had earned enough to live comfortably for a while, he stopped going.
Recently, with the family split and the new house repairs, every bit of his savings had been spent on bricks. Now, he didn’t even have a single coin.
And unlike Yang Dai, the Crown Prince Han Lin didn’t have a storeroom he could draw from at will. With no money, he truly had nothing.
“Then I’ll go to the commune with you. I won’t go to the black market. I’ll just wait outside. I want to see what it’s like.” Yang Dai was curious about the commune. Relying only on the original body’s memories, too much still felt unfamiliar to her.
“Wait a couple of days. The black market only opens on days ending in five. Today’s just the twelfth.” Han Lin was reluctant, but since Yang Dai had spoken so directly, he couldn’t refuse.
Still, he was already planning where he might get some ration coupons—whether for grain, oil, or cloth. With those, Yang Dai could shop at the commune’s supply cooperative while he went to the black market.
“I went to the brigade elementary school today and signed up. I want to be a teacher.” Yang Dai shifted the topic, sharing her day’s news.
“One teacher takes two classes. School’s done by three in the afternoon.” That was what Yang Dai liked best—light work and short hours.
“You’ll definitely manage,” Han Lin said firmly. He himself had gone to that elementary school.
His teacher had been barely literate, teaching while learning at the same time. Sometimes she’d stumble over characters she couldn’t read.
Yang Dai’s ability was far stronger than that, so she would be fine.
Yang Dai smiled. She thought so too.
When she left the school earlier, she hadn’t seen her scores on the test papers, but she felt good about them.
And the main thing was—there weren’t many competitors.
She had seen five educated youth today, all high school graduates, all eager to take the teaching post.
But in Yang Dai’s memory, educated youth and the brigade members had an invisible wall between them. They rarely mingled, and both sides looked down on each other.
The brigade thought the city youth were useless troublemakers with bad tempers who always complained about unfairness.
The educated youth thought the villagers were unreasonable and cliquish.
Such prejudice couldn’t be erased overnight. The brigade school would naturally prefer “their own” over outsiders.
Yang Dai knew her reputation wasn’t good, but at least she was one of their own. With equal qualifications, the school would choose her over an educated youth.
Thinking this way, Yang Dai picked up her books again.
Since she’d brought them home, she had been reading often. When she took the test, whether in language or math, she felt at ease. With trial teaching in a few days, she wanted to be well prepared.
Meanwhile, Han Lin finished tidying up the dishes and prepared to head back to work.
“When I come back tonight, let’s go eat at the old house together.” Before leaving, he reminded her, already thinking about whether he could somehow scrape together money to buy a coal stove at the black market.
With a stove, they wouldn’t need to light a fire every time to cook, making things easier. Even if Yang Dai was home alone, she could still have a hot meal.
But for now, that was only a thought. With not a penny in his pocket, he couldn’t afford a coal stove—nor even the coal.
As he walked, he pondered how to earn money quickly. He couldn’t really depend on Yang Dai’s storeroom to support him. His pride wouldn’t allow it.
Yang Dai studied diligently all afternoon. When Han Lin had washed up, she went to the kitchen to fetch sweet potatoes and a few steamed buns, ready to visit his parents.
Han Lin took the food from her hands, opened his mouth to speak, then shut it again, walking silently.
At the Han house, Mother Han had already prepared dinner, and everyone was back.
“Eldest Sister-in-law, Second Sister-in-law.” As Yang Dai entered, she ran into the two women carrying out a bucket of water and greeted them.
The eldest, Sun Qiaoyun, disliked both Han Lin and Yang Dai. She was about to roll her eyes, but when she saw the food in Yang Dai’s hands, she forced herself to hold it back, answering with a lukewarm “hm.”
The second, Huang Fengxia, smiled. “Go on in. Father and Mother are waiting.”
As the four of them passed—two out, two in—Yang Dai still caught their words.
Sun Qiaoyun sounded satisfied. “The third daughter-in-law is better than the third son. At least she knows to bring rations when coming to eat.”
“They’re both high school graduates after all,” Huang Fengxia said, her envy obvious.
“What’s the use of high school? Still just a pair of…” Sun Qiaoyun’s tone was full of scorn. She despised both husband and wife, still bitter against Han Lin.
Yang Dai pretended not to hear, washed her hands, and went to the main hall.
Seeing the electric lamp there, she suddenly remembered—their own house had no electricity.
To her, the lamp was a rare treasure. Though it wasn’t bright enough to light the whole room, it was much more convenient than candles, and she liked it very much.
Unfortunately, electricity was expensive. Mother Han rarely allowed the lights on. During the days she had stayed here, she had only enjoyed it briefly before bed.
Yesterday, in the rush of moving, she had fallen asleep right away and forgotten. Now, seeing it again, her eyes were full of longing.
Han Lin noticed her gaze. Already worrying about money, he grew even more restless. His fingers twitched slightly.
“Third, work hard these days. In a few days, come with me to the county,” Father Han said after dinner.
“Every year around this time, the Housing Department inspects homes. Come along, get your face seen.”
As soon as he finished, Sun Qiaoyun wanted to speak, but her husband glared at her. She swallowed her words, though her lips twisted in dissatisfaction.
Yang Dai saw all this clearly but kept her thoughts to herself, focusing on her upcoming trial lesson.
Meanwhile, Mother Han pulled her aside. “I already spoke to the team leader. From now on, you’ll go back to cutting pig grass. It doesn’t earn much, but it’s easier. Just don’t go quitting halfway again.”
Her tone carried reproach.
With plenty of strong men in the family, the Hans earned many work points. Mother Han herself had stopped going to the fields years ago, tending only to the private plot and some chickens and ducks.
This morning, after feeding the birds, she’d gone to check on her son and daughter-in-law.
Han Lin was fine—though careless, he at least stayed put.
But when she went to the wheat fields to help Yang Dai weed, hoping to earn her some points, she found out from the record-keeper that Yang Dai had already left.
Seeing her single lonely point on the record nearly made her storm home to scold her.
“Cutting pig grass is work you’ve done before. Less pay, but easy. Just keep at it. Tomorrow morning, I’ll come call you both. We’ll go together.”
She planned to supervise Yang Dai closely. One point a day was too shameful.
Yang Dai kept quiet. Her mind was on teaching, but since nothing was certain yet, she said nothing.
“Don’t worry, Mother. We’ll be fine.”
After Father Han finished speaking to Han Lin, it was late, and the couple prepared to leave.
Mother Han pressed the family flashlight into Han Lin’s hand. “It’s dark. Take this.”
“Don’t worry. Our house will have electricity soon.” After leaving his parents’ home, Han Lin switched on the flashlight and made this promise.
He had seen Yang Dai’s lingering gaze at the lamp and couldn’t hold back.
“We’re husband and wife. I trust you. But there’s no rush. Only a few households here even have electricity.”
The cost was high. They’d need an electrician, wiring, bulbs—everything cost money. Only a handful of well-off families in Huangzhuang had electricity, and even fewer actually used it.
But the more calmly Yang Dai spoke, the more anxious Han Lin grew.
Back home, as Yang Dai lit a candle, he paused. “Go to sleep first. I’m heading to the mountain. Don’t wait up.”
“It’s so late. Whatever it is, leave it for tomorrow.” Yang Dai pulled at him, trying to stop him.
“There are wild animals in the mountain. If I dig a trap tonight, there might be prey by morning.” Han Lin was determined. He wanted to bring back meat for their meals, maybe even trade the extra at the black market.
Seeing his resolve, Yang Dai didn’t argue further. Instead, she said, “Wait. I’ll get something for you.”
She brought out a bow. “This was my grandfather’s.” Then a knife. “My father sought this out especially.” Then an axe. “Forged from fine iron. Choose whichever you need.”
Finally, she handed him a small porcelain bottle. “Be careful not to get hurt. I’ll wait for you to come back.”