Chen Li Shu sat down at the table after the person left, picked up the letter, and opened it. The first thing that caught her eye were two bold characters: Li Shu.
Your letter and meat sauce have been received. The comrades love the meat sauce you made very much and have been praising your excellent cooking skills. As for the content of the letter, I think it's too short. Aren't you always studying? I think writing letters is a good opportunity to practice. Start with a thousand characters, and submit one letter every half a month. The content must let me understand your life comprehensively.
Also, the Chinese language is profound and extensive. Simplify where you can, but don't omit things where simplification is not possible. For example, the phrase "missing you very much" is too vague. I hope you can expand on it appropriately, making me feel your longing for me more deeply.
Lastly, I look forward to your reply.
Signed, Gu Xing Dong.
Reading the content of the letter, Chen Li Shu couldn't help but silently complain: Writing a letter is one thing, but why is it assigned like a task? Is he really treating her like a soldier under his command?
How is "missing you very much" vague? And expand on it.
Chen Li Shu looked at the letter for a long time, and then her lips curved into a smile. A trace of cunning flashed in her clear eyes.
She took out paper and pen and quickly wrote a three-page letter. Then, remembering he had said the meat sauce was delicious, Chen Li Shu decided to take leave the next day to go to town and buy some beef to make beef chili sauce.
The next morning, after she told Li Xiu Lan and her husband about it, they both agreed.
"I'll tell the team leader when I go to the commune later. You be careful on the road," Li Xiu Lan reminded her.
"I know, Mom." After responding, Chen Li Shu went back into the house and packed the hair accessories she had recently made.
There were less than a thousand in total. She hadn't been to the supply and marketing cooperative in town for a long time, so she decided to go and see how things were.
On her way to town, Chen Li Shu first went to a familiar supply and marketing cooperative. The clerk was very happy to see her come in.
"You haven't been back since the last delivery, and I didn't have your contact information, so I was so anxious."
Telephones were not common at that time, nor were pagers. Contacting someone was indeed quite difficult.
"We've been busy at home lately," Chen Li Shu explained with a smile. "It's still thirteen cents, Sister Li. How many do you want this time?"
Hearing that the price hadn't changed, Clerk Li hesitated. "Sister, you might not know, but they're selling them for fifteen cents each now. Your price of thirteen cents is a bit high."
With more goods, competition naturally became fiercer. Chen Li Shu nodded in understanding.
"Sister Li, you know my situation. I'm basically earning a living through hard work by running back and forth. If it's any cheaper, it's really not worth it. However, since we've been cooperating for so long, and you've asked, I have to give in a little. Just give me twelve cents. If it's any more, I might as well not do it."
Seeing that she had put it so plainly, Clerk Li thought for a moment and said, "Then please reserve a hundred for me first."
Who knew when Chen Li Shu would come next? It was better to keep a little more.
Chen Li Shu readily counted out a hundred for her and then went to other shops.
Two of them found it too expensive and asked her to lower the price, but Chen Li Shu refused.
Soon, she sold all the hair accessories at twelve cents each, earning eighty-seven yuan.
Looking at the time, it was only around nine o'clock. Chen Li Shu decided to go to the black market again.
This time, she didn't bring anything, and her clothes were quite plain. Plus, it had been a long time since she had been there, so she figured no one would recognize her.
Having made up her mind, Chen Li Shu headed straight for the alley she had been to before. Many faces were new to her, which put her more at ease.
After looking around, she didn't see anything she liked. As she was about to leave, her gaze fell on the old man she had spoken to last time. Two pieces of broken porcelain were still displayed on his stall. Chen Li Shu couldn't help but stop.
"Girl, what are you looking to find? Tell me, maybe I have it."
Chen Li Shu didn't really have anything specific she wanted to find. Seeing the old man ask, she was momentarily speechless.
"Here, girl, why don't you come with me to my place? It's not far. I have a lot of things, and it's only a few steps away." The old man was very enthusiastic as he was setting up for the day.
Seeing that it was similar to what he had said last time, Chen Li Shu thought for a moment and nodded, "Then I'll go and take a look."
Seeing her nod, the old man told the person at the next stall to keep an eye on his place and then got up, leading Chen Li Shu further into the alley.
After several twists and turns, they stopped in front of a faded black lacquered courtyard gate.
Chen Li Shu looked at the courtyard gate and thought that if no one had led her, she would never have found this place.
"Come in quickly, girl."
The old man went up the steps, took a set of keys from his belt, and opened the courtyard gate. As soon as Chen Li Shu stepped inside, she saw all sorts of杂物 piled up in the courtyard.
"These are things that were smashed during the 'smash the landlord and capitalist' campaign years ago. They're all piled here. The materials are all good, and some people come specifically to find them. If you want any, it's two Mao per jin."
Chen Li Shu looked at the dilapidated chair legs, bed frames, and the like, estimating that the good, large pieces had already been picked through. What was left was just broken wood that could only be used as firewood, so she shook her head.
The old man wasn't disappointed and led her further inside. Once inside, there were even more things.
Books, old newspapers, and the like were piled up almost into a small mountain. On the other side were various broken items, like glass bottles, bottle caps, and toothpaste tubes. Further inside, against the wall, were some porcelain pieces and fragments.
Seeing her gaze drift over, the old man patiently explained, "Those are things from wealthy families in the past. Those who know their value buy them from me privately. Complete ones are ten yuan each, and broken ones are sold by weight."
Chen Li Shu nodded. Her gaze was drawn to a relatively intact double-handled vase.
She had seen similar ones on television before, and they were called blue and white porcelain. If it were an antique, it would be worth a lot of money.
Chen Li Shu couldn't help but step closer and pick up the vase to examine it carefully. It was white with blue patterns, and the vase itself wasn't large, only a little over a foot tall.
She didn't know much about such things, but she guessed that anything left after others had picked through it wouldn't be an antique. It just looked nice and would be good for holding flowers.
"Old man, can it be cheaper? You know, things that have been picked over are probably worthless. I just like the look of it and want to use it as a vase. Ten yuan is too expensive. I can buy a festive, patterned one at the department store for less than five yuan."
The old man thought that what she said made sense. It was rare to have a customer, so he said, "Then take it for five yuan. No cheaper than that."
Chen Li Shu nodded and took the vase. Her gaze then fell on the pile of books. She squatted down and rummaged through them, unexpectedly finding many books. Most of them were textbooks and study materials from before 1966. This was incredibly precious, and Chen Li Shu felt like she had found a treasure.