Bai Xue now held a thirteen-yard fabric coupon and was able to buy fabric without requiring any coupons, which made her ecstatic.
Soon, the woman selling fabric brought over some black cotton fabric with flaws.
"Here you go! Girl, I only have ten yards left over here, so I managed to spare you a bit!"
"Big sister, can you sell it all to me?" Bai Xue immediately said with a big smile.
"But this is reserved for others! I can't break my promise... Besides, you can use coarse burlap to sew bags; this cotton fabric is for making clothes!"
"Big sister, the New Year is coming, and this meat is in high demand! Would you consider it?" Bai Xue tempted.
"So... can you get pork? Preferably with a bit more fat!" The woman selling fabric brightened up and asked.
"Sure! Three pounds of pork belly! I'll deliver it to you the day after tomorrow! But the price is according to the black market rate! I can't get it at regular price!" Bai Xue confirmed the price beforehand.
"I understand! Then I'll sell you all this fabric! Take it! Also, don't waste such good cotton fabric, even though it has a flaw in the dyeing, it's still cotton! If you want to sew bags, I have coarse burlap here too, and I can sell it to you without coupons! But you must remember to not forget me when you have good stuff!"
"Thanks, sister! I definitely won't forget you when I have good things!" Bai Xue was delighted as she heard that! Such a good deal is not to be missed!
"Just call me Sister Wu! If you can get me good stuff, I'll reserve fabric without coupons for you too!" The two happily established a friendship based on mutual interests.
Bai Xue got the burlap bags and ten yards of cotton fabric, then she bought ten yards of coarse burlap and some thread and needles. Although she couldn't make clothes, Wang Cuihua could, and she could ask her to teach.
She packed everything up, including the remaining nine burlap bags, and prepared to put them into space storage after leaving the supply and marketing center.
After leaving the warehouse, she paid for the fabric: ten yards of flawed fabric totaled eight yuan, ten yards of coarse burlap four yuan, plus the burlap bags and thread and needles.
This altogether cost her fourteen yuan, and with the seventy-five she earned earlier, she had over two hundred and forty yuan left now.
She then took out two cans of milk powder coupons and went to the milk powder counter to buy two cans of milk powder.
Each can of milk powder costs three yuan and fifty cents, containing two pounds, and since Pingyang Town has a milk powder factory, as long as you have milk powder coupons, you can buy them.
After buying the supplies, she left the supply and marketing center and prepared to go home.
Passing by the health clinic, she still stopped by the dead-end alley in front.
When she came out, her burlap bag was already full.
She took out seven large twisted dough sticks from her supermarket space, enough for each family member to have one.
Plus, a big cabbage, a bunch of vermicelli, a pound of pork, and twenty large white steamed buns.
Her supermarket only had steamed buns and not stuffed buns; she thought if she knew she'd come here, the supermarket would surely sell big meat buns, so she wouldn't have missed eating them here.
Tonight she planned to stew pork and cabbage with vermicelli and add large white steamed buns.
All the little ones could eat until their bellies were round.
"Little girl?" Bai Xue was carrying the heavy burlap bag, struggling to walk, when a male voice sounded from behind.
She turned around unexpectedly, her mouth forming an O shape.
The boy riding over on the old-fashioned bicycle from behind looked just like her favorite Bojun Yixiao, didn't he?
She quickly looked back and almost had her heart skip a beat, forgetting what year it was. She thought she was meeting her idol.
She gazed foolishly at the boy approaching.
"Little girl? Did I scare you? What are you spacing out for?" Zhang Yuan approached Bai Xue, got off his bicycle, waved his hand in front of her, and asked.
Bai Xue finally snapped back to reality and upon closer inspection realized there was a difference, only a slight resemblance, but the demeanor and voice were different.
"Comrade, who are you? Do you need anything from me?" Bai Xue calmed down and regained her voice.
"Forgot about your lifesaver so quickly?" Zhang Yuan teased at the girl in front of him.
He had just seen this little girl staring at him absent-mindedly as if she wanted to eat him.
And now she was pretending not to know him.
"Uh... are you Brother Zhang from the educated youth spot?" Bai Xue belatedly grasped the meaning in Zhang Yuan's words and asked dully.
As after she woke up that day, Xiao Shan had told her that it was Brother Zhang from the educated youth spot who saved her.
"Why are you here alone? Did you walk all the way?" Zhang Yuan didn't confirm but asked her.
"Mmhmm!" Bai Xue rolled her eyes internally; if she didn't walk over, did she float? She wasn't like him with a brand-new bicycle.
"If you don't mind, shall I give you a ride back?" Zhang Yuan asked with a smile.
Bai Xue observed that this boy liked to smile, his smile particularly sunny, causing her to be dazed and reminding her even more of a certain someone.
"I've got so much stuff...is that okay?" Bai Xue pointed at her large burlap bag that she just set down.
"No problem, put the stuff upfront, and you sit at the back! Hurry on!" Zhang Yuan efficiently set up the bicycle, easily lifted Bai Xue's stuff onto the front holder, and called her up.
Bai Xue didn't stand on ceremony, and once Zhang Yuan placed the items up front, she too sat on the backseat.
"Hold on tight!" Zhang Yuan said and pedaled off.
Bai Xue noticed that in such cold weather, biking might not be better than walking back. The cold wind blew through her, but fortunately, she'd added some shoes and warm pants and a wool sweater for warmth.
Zhang Yuan was altogether different, wearing a military-green cloak, riding with the sides of his fur hat down, seeming not cold at all.
"Brother Zhang, thank you for saving me! I still don't know your name yet!" Bai Xue spoke, watching the snowy scenery, then a gust of cold wind rushed into her mouth, making her cough.
"I'm Zhang Yuan! I know you, Bai Ruxue, right?" Zhang Yuan's character appeared unusually cheerful compared to boys of this era who blush around girls.
"Yes! How do you know my name?" Bai Xue asked.
Zhang Yuan's face slightly heated; he paused before saying, "We're in the same team, working together! It's not strange to know."
"I didn't know your name!" Bai Xue said softly.
"Comrade Bai Ruxue! What were you doing in Pingyang Town?" Zhang Yuan paid no heed to Bai Xue's whisper and attempted small talk.
"Buying stuff! Didn't you see I bought a big burlap bag?" Bai Xue relaxed a bit, knowing more of Zhang Yuan's personality.
"Oh! I saw it. I went to town to send a letter to my family! By the way, can you read?"
"Mmhmm!" Bai Xue wasn't being aloof; it was the cold wind making speaking uncomfortable.
Throughout the ride, Zhang Yuan asked trivial things, and Bai Xue responded simply, until finally, Bai Xue couldn't bear it and asked,
"Comrade Zhang Yuan, aren't you bothered by the cold wind in your mouth?"
"Not at all! It's okay!" Zhang Yuan continued to smile.
Thinking, given today's rare opportunity, if he didn't chat a bit, how could he find chances to get closer in the future?
Bai Xue didn't know on that day she had her incident, Zhang Yuan had been following her from afar, originally planning a chance encounter for a chat, but then an incident occurred, which ended with him becoming her savior.
He returned her home, worried incessantly, and eventually when her father got into an accident, he heard news and rushed over, calming down only after seeing her standing there defiantly against her grandmother.
Returning to the youth spot, tossing and turning, expecting her to come thanking him, but waiting endlessly. Today while sending a letter to his grandmother, he met her by chance.
Excitement causing him to struggle controlling his emotions, incessantly speaking to relieve his excitement.
In reality, he only saw her from afar during work, fell for her at first glance, then wandered around to find out her name, attempting to arrange times occasionally to work together, though it seemed she'd never noticed him.