Over the past few days of checking in, she had accumulated quite a lot of supplies in her space. Rice, flour, grain, oil, fruits, vegetables—she had it all. Yesterday she had even signed in and received a medical kit, which contained iodine, alcohol pads, gauze, bandages, cotton swabs, saline solution, a tourniquet, a thermometer, scissors… and other first-aid supplies.
That was a real surprise for Lin Shiyao. In these times, medical supplies were extremely scarce. Although she didn’t need them right now, it didn’t hurt to have them.
There was more food than she could finish. Her mother was quite sharp. At the beginning, she had taken some things out a few times, and her mother looked at her suspiciously. That made her nervous, worried that her secret identity would be exposed. Her “vest” absolutely could not be revealed. So later, she took out less.
Her mother worked at the supply and marketing cooperative. Since she hadn’t seen Lin Shiyao go there to buy anything, there was only one possible explanation: the black market. Everyone assumed she had gone to the black market. She couldn’t reveal the system, so she simply let them think that. But her parents would not allow it. They immediately held a “three-court joint trial,” lecturing her repeatedly that the black market was full of all kinds of shady people, and that the Red Armbands often arrested people there.
They warned her again and again not to go to the black market. Even though… well, she hadn’t actually gone yet. Lin Shiyao only had so much courage. She had originally planned to take some supplies there to sell one day. Now she had completely given up the idea.
Although she couldn’t go to the black market, she could learn from the era novels she had read before and sell near factory residential compounds instead. She didn’t have that many goods in her space anyway—going once a week would be fine. Money added up bit by bit.
Once she made up her mind, it was time to scout the area. Lin Shiyao put on a pair of black pants and rummaged through her wardrobe, but couldn’t find a single old outfit. Finally, she dug out a long-sleeved shirt made of bright floral fabric from the bottom of the closet. It was the ugliest and oldest piece of clothing she owned. She put it into her space first and would change into it once she reached her destination.
Oh right, a mask. Suddenly she remembered that the medical kit she had signed in included masks. But when she took one out, it was sky blue. That wouldn’t do—wearing that would attract even more attention. So she’d have to rely on her makeup skills.
She found the cosmetics the original owner had used in a desk drawer. She would use them for a disguise. With everything ready, Lin Shiyao got on her bike and rode out of the residential compound.
Besides the steel factory where her father worked and the textile factory where she worked, there was also a machinery factory nearby. All in all, their city had quite a few factories, creating many jobs. With jobs came income, and with income came purchasing power.
The more she thought about it, the more energized she became. She pedaled furiously. People on the street only felt something rush past them; when they looked carefully, all they saw was dust kicked up by the bicycle’s rear wheel. They couldn’t help but curse. What kind of person was that? Couldn’t she ride slower? Was she in a hurry to reincarnate?
Lin Shiyao had no idea she had been scolded. She was only thinking about the money that was about to come in. Her savings were about to increase again. Although she still had some pocket money saved by the original owner, plus the money she had earned recently from translation work, totaling 505 yuan in bits and pieces, it was still far from enough to buy property and become a landlady after the Reform and Opening Up. She had to save enough money now—otherwise, what would she use to buy houses later?
At the entrance of the textile factory residential compound, Lin Shiyao changed into the floral blouse she had stored in her space, put on makeup so heavy that even her own mother wouldn’t recognize her, and carried a basket covered with a cloth so no one could see what was inside.
Today she planned to test the waters first—just five jin of flour and ten eggs.
Based on her earlier observation, the auntie in front of her, walking with a chubby little boy, would be her first customer. Why? Because in this era, how many elderly people wore brand-new clothes without patches? The older generation had lived through war and famine, pinching every penny. Clothes were patched and worn for years. But this auntie was dressed neatly and clearly not short of money. And her grandson was plump and well-fed. If she wasn’t a customer—no, her “God”—then who was?
“Auntie, is this the textile factory compound? I’m looking for someone named Wang Cuifen. I’m her relative from the countryside. Our chickens have been laying a lot of eggs, so I brought some to nourish her.” As she spoke, she subtly lifted the cloth covering the basket.
The auntie had been curious about what she was bringing as a gift. When she saw the large eggs and the white flour—things not even available at the supply cooperative—and looked at Lin Shiyao’s outfit, she immediately understood.
This was no visiting relative.
She called her grandson over and took Lin Shiyao’s arm. “Sister, you’re here! Dazhu said you were coming. I’ve been waiting for days. Come, come sit at my place.”
Lin Shiyao followed her to her door, heart pounding, staying alert. Seeing her cautious expression, the auntie smiled. “Sister, my surname is Zhao. Just call me Auntie Zhao. This is my home. My son and daughter-in-law are at work. Don’t worry.”
“Alright, Auntie. Look—this is five jin of fine flour. It took a lot of effort to get. My family is short on money; we can’t even bear to eat it ourselves. Look at the quality—make noodles with this and they’ll be wonderfully chewy. And these eggs are so big; you can’t even buy ones like this at the supply cooperative. The flour is two yuan without ration coupons, and the eggs are eighty cents.”
Auntie Zhao examined the flour. It was indeed fine flour, much better than the usual enriched flour sold. She bought everything without hesitation.
“Sister, bring more good things next time. I’ll take them all,” she said as Lin Shiyao prepared to leave. Supplies were scarce these days. Even with money, sometimes you couldn’t buy anything.
“Alright, Auntie. If I have good goods next time, I’ll come again. Are there others in this compound who might need some? I can bring more.”
“There must be, but I’m not sure if they’ll buy. I’ll quietly ask my friends in the next couple of days. When you come next time, I’ll let you know.”
“Okay then, Auntie. I’ll be going.”
As Lin Shiyao walked out of the compound, she finally let out a long breath. Though she had seemed calm, inside she had been panicking.
Heavens, this was her first time doing business in both her past and present lives. She had been terrified that the auntie might report her. Today she earned two yuan and eighty cents. Not much, but it was a good start. She had made a connection with Auntie Zhao. This route in the textile factory compound was now open.
Once she reached a deserted spot, she removed her disguise and tossed everything back into her space, then rode home. On the way, she passed a state-run restaurant and went in to buy four meat buns. She ate two herself and saved two for her younger brother. It cost one liang of grain coupons and forty cents.
When she got home, her brother wasn’t back yet. She made herself a cup of malted milk and picked up the meat buns she had just bought. Mm, so delicious. As expected of the state-run restaurant chef’s skills—the buns were stuffed full of fragrant meat.