RIRW – Chapter 38

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After finishing the pancake, Zuo Dan took an apple out of her crossbody bag and handed it to Shen Yiming. “My third uncle brought it back.” She believed in returning a favor—if she had food, it wouldn’t be right to keep it all to herself. Zuo Dan considered herself a principled person.

Shen Yiming didn’t hold back and took a bite. “Sweet.”

Zuo Dan thought to herself, Of course, it’s sweet—pure and natural, no pollution. She took out another apple for herself and bit into it. All along the way, the only sound was the crunching of apples.

By the time they reached the town, both the apples and the pancakes were finished.

Rubbing her full stomach, Zuo Dan thought the journey to the town didn’t seem so far after all—it flew by while eating and drinking.

On the bus, Zuo Dan skillfully covered her face with a towel, thinking smugly, Shen Yiming might look all neat and proper now, but just wait until we get to the county town—he’ll be a mess. No matter how clever someone is, they need experience.

Even someone as smart as Shen Yiming wouldn’t see this coming.

Before the bus even departed, Shen Yiming struck up a conversation with the ticket seller. Dressed neatly and with his handsome looks, Shen Yiming naturally received better treatment than the average passenger. The ticket seller, an older woman, chatted with him with a smile on her face.

Shen Yiming started by mentioning a relative of his who worked in the provincial bus company and went on to talk about some new buses being rolled out in the city.

The ticket seller, impressed by his knowledge, found him completely different from the usual rural passengers. Her interest piqued, she exclaimed excitedly, “I’ve seen those new buses—they’re so shiny!”

Shen Yiming replied, “When I left the provincial capital, I heard they were planning to upgrade the buses in smaller towns. Why hasn’t it happened here yet? These buses look like they’ve been in use for years. Experienced drivers like you deserve to drive new ones—better for the bus and safer for the passengers. Inexperienced drivers would just ruin the new vehicles.”

The ticket seller sighed, “Exactly! We’ve submitted so many requests, but since we’re from a small place, we have to wait for the older buses from bigger cities before we get anything. This bus, for example, is a retrofitted one that’s over a decade old.”

The driver joined the conversation, “This old bus has been my responsibility for four or five years. Every time it breaks down, I have to fix it myself.”

Shen Yiming said, “Being from a small town doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get proper service. The working people deserve good transportation—getting to the city isn’t easy, so they should at least have a reliable ride.”

The other passengers chimed in, agreeing. “Exactly! I’ve taken this bus three times, and it broke down twice. It’s such a hassle!”

Zuo Dan chuckled to herself, Seems like I’ve been lucky—ridden it twice and no breakdowns yet.

Shen Yiming spoke seriously, “I’ll ask my relative about this when I get back and see if they can pay some attention to it. We absolutely need to replace these old buses. It’s one thing for us occasional passengers, but the driver and the ticket seller have to deal with it every day—it’s too much wear and tear on them. We can’t let these people who serve the public suffer like this.”

The ticket seller beamed with delight. “That would be wonderful! If this works out, you’ll have done a great service for our town.”

The driver was also grinning ear to ear. Even if it was just a hope, it was better than waiting helplessly for headquarters to send down another clunker.

As the bus prepared to leave, Shen Yiming noticed Zuo Dan with a towel over her face. He asked, “Are you still feeling unwell?” Then, turning to the ticket seller, he said, “This is my fiancée—she gets dizzy as soon as she’s exposed to the wind.”

The ticket seller quickly replied, “Then let’s close the window right away. We can’t let her get worse.”

Shen Yiming blushed and said, “Oh, I wouldn’t want to trouble everyone. It’s not ideal to close the windows when we’re all sitting in the bus.” Even as he expressed reluctance, his smiling eyes swept across the other passengers.

The kind-hearted passengers responded, “What’s the problem? We’re all like family here —helping each other is only right.” Besides, they were happy to close the windows; normally, the ticket seller didn’t allow it, saying the air would get stale. But no one enjoyed the dust blowing in their faces.

Thus, the wide-open windows were promptly closed. Someone even offered to switch seats with Zuo Dan and Shen Yiming, moving them to a spot less exposed to the wind.

With an embarrassed smile, Shen Yiming led Zuo Dan to a seat near the front, where the breeze was minimal even if the windows were open.

Once the bus started moving, Shen Yiming closed his eyes to sleep.

Zuo Dan lifted her towel and gave him a blank look before pulling it back over her face—not to shield from dust, but to hide her expression.

When they finally arrived in the county, everyone disembarked clean and tidy, and Shen Yiming’s neatly parted hair remained perfectly in place. Even the ticket seller waved goodbye to him with a cheerful smile, a stark contrast to the usual aloof attitude toward other passengers.

As they walked away from the bus, Zuo Dan remarked, “You told her you’d apply for new buses. What if they don’t get them? Let’s see how she treats you next time you ride.”

Shen Yiming replied, “Who said I was lying? I really do plan to help them apply for new buses.”

“…Just for the sake of closing a window, isn’t this a bit much?” Zuo Dan couldn’t believe he’d go to such lengths for such a small favor—it didn’t seem like his style to make a losing deal.

Shen Yiming said, “I’ll be visiting the county town often now that I’m in Zuojiatun. Taking this bus every time is too much of a hassle. Plus, this vehicle is over a decade old and modified—it’s an accident waiting to happen. For my own safety, I think it’s worth it.”

Zuo Dan looked puzzled. “Shen Yiming, with your skills, why didn’t you just stay in the city? For someone like you, staying in the city should’ve been entirely up to you.”

She had always found it odd. Although staying in the city was difficult at the time, as long as one managed to find a work unit to take them in, they could avoid being sent to the countryside. Shen Yiming might not have any family connections, but he was a local with a sharp mind—it should’ve been easy for him to stay. If she had a better background and lived in the city, she was confident she could have secured a position.

Shen Yiming was silent for a moment before asking, “If you wanted to crush an ant, do you think it could escape?”

This hinted that someone had deliberately targeted him.

Zuo Dan laughed. “You make it sound like some big leader had their eye on you and was determined to send you to the countryside.”

Shen Yiming said quietly, “You never know.”

The two found a small restaurant, where Zuo Dan paid while Shen Yiming provided food stamps. Together, they enjoyed a meal of cabbage dumplings. Neither asked the other about their respective errands—both knew the other wouldn’t tell the truth, so they didn’t bother trying.

After the meal, Shen Yiming went to catch a ride back to the provincial city. According to him, it would take until evening to arrive, but he seemed content with the journey. After all, some educated youth were sent to far-flung rural areas, where current communication and transportation conditions made it nearly impossible to visit home even once a year.

As he was about to board, Shen Yiming said, “Zuo Dan, next time I’ll take you to visit the provincial city.”

Zuo Dan waved him off. Big deal—I’ve been to Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.

Once Shen Yiming left, Zuo Dan unexpectedly felt a bit bored. She had to admit, having a companion for the trip to the county made it different from traveling alone. It reminded her of the times she went shopping with classmates and friends.

This trip to town was ostensibly to shop, so Zuo Dan dutifully browsed the supply and marketing cooperative.

There was plenty of meat at home, so she didn’t need to buy any. As for wheat flour and other grains, her orchard had those in stock. She usually didn’t use them herself, but during festivals, taking some out made for a good celebration. After looking around, she decided to buy some fabric to make new clothes. Although the orchard had clothing in storage, they weren’t suitable for this era. Most of what Zuo Dan wore were hand-me-downs from Zuo Huan. They didn’t fit well, with sleeves patched together from scraps. Even the outfit she was wearing to town now was made last year when Zuo Dacheng, unable to bear the sight any longer, bought fabric and asked Li Hui to sew it overnight. For those clothes, Xu Fengxia had caused quite a commotion at home for days.

At the cooperative, the sales clerk from last time recognized Zuo Dan and greeted her with pleasant surprise, “Comrade, why don’t you come here to shop more often? I’ve been waiting for you for days!”

Zuo Dan smiled and said, “Been busy at home, helping my sister-in-law take care of the kids.”

“You, a young girl, stuck at home all day—what a shame.” The clerk sighed, sympathizing with her. Then she asked, “By the way, do you still have those big apples from your family?”

Zuo Dan had guessed this was the reason. “Nope, my sister-in-law ate them all.”

“Oh dear… that’s disappointing,” the clerk said, looking immediately let down. “I was hoping to get some for the upcoming festival.”

Hearing this, Zuo Dan replied, “Even if we had some, I wouldn’t dare trade them. Last time I went home, I was terrified someone might accuse me of profiteering.”

The clerk perked up at this, sensing a possibility. She thought Zuo Dan’s family still had apples but didn’t dare trade them. She whispered, “Sharing extra produce from your own family isn’t profiteering. As long as you’re not reselling for profit, it’s fine. Look at the black market in the county—how many people actually get arrested for trading farm goods? The authorities just put on a show. If they cracked down seriously, half the county would starve. Plenty of people here are still registered as rural households and don’t get rationed grain. Without the black market, they’d go hungry.”

Zuo Dan hesitated. “I’ll ask my dad when I get back. I can’t make the decision myself.”

“I understand. Go ask him. We won’t let you take a loss.” The clerk seemed to understand her reluctance. After all, this was a small-town cooperative. Quality goods rarely made it here, and even higher-ups constantly asked her for items she couldn’t get herself. Otherwise, she wouldn’t need to go to such lengths just to get some fruit for the holidays.

Zuo Dan smiled. “Alright, I’ll ask after I finish shopping.” She added, “By the way, do you have any nice fabric? The holiday is coming, and I’d like to make some new clothes.”

“We do. I kept some good fabric for myself. If you like it, I can let you have a piece,” the clerk said, pulling out a few neatly folded pieces from under the counter. They were much better than what was displayed on the shelves.

“This is corduroy—it just arrived. We only have a few pieces,” the clerk said with a mysterious air. “It’s all the rage in big cities now. If you want, I can sell you one, but only one. My relatives and friends are eyeing it, too.”

As Zuo Dan ran her hand over the soft material, she thought, Who says people in the past weren’t fashionable? When I came here, this style seemed to be making a comeback with corduroy and flared pants.

The clerk continued, “We also have some Terylene. Although it’s not selling much right now because of the cold, it’ll still be good for next spring. It’s quality fabric.”

Zuo Dan said immediately, “I’d love some, but I don’t have enough fabric coupons.”

The clerk offered, “How about this—give me whatever coupons you have now, and later you can bring me some fruit in exchange.”

Zuo Dan hesitated.

The saleswoman urged her, “These are all high-quality materials, you know. I don’t sell them to just anyone. They’re from big cities, and they’re warm to wear.”

“Alright,” Zuo Dan gritted her teeth, “I’ll also get some cotton fabric.”

“No problem with that.” Cotton fabric wasn’t rare. Since she was already offering corduroy, there was no issue with adding cotton fabric.

In the end, Zuo Dan scraped together enough to buy fabric for clothes for herself and Li Hui and also managed to get some cotton fabric for Grandmother Zuo. As for the men in the Zuo family, she didn’t buy anything for them. With limited resources, she prioritized the women. After all, why did men need to dress up? And as for her third uncle, there was even less concern—he had already sorted out his clothing needs long ago.

Because she didn’t have enough coupons, the price was slightly higher than usual. She spent over five yuan in total but finally got everything she needed.

Remembering something, Zuo Dan asked, “Do you have any shoes for men? I’d like to get a pair for my younger brother. I’ll give you two pounds of apples later as thanks.”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier? We just got a few pairs of Liberation Shoes,” the saleswoman said, quickly pulling out a pair. “Look at this material—these will last ten years, no problem.”

“…”

After leaving the cooperative, Zuo Dan headed to the county high school. This time, she was lucky—Zuo Cong had just finished school. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but the kid seemed to have grown a little taller.

She handed him the Liberation Shoes and told him to wear them on his way back.

Zuo Cong’s face turned red with excitement, and he hugged the shoes to his chest, grinning foolishly.

Without chatting much, Zuo Dan left.

As soon as she walked away, Zuo Cong dejectedly hugged the shoes and headed back to school. As he entered the campus, Xu Liang stopped him.

With his hands behind his back and a pair of glasses perched on his nose, Xu Liang said, “I heard your sister came to see you?”

“What’s it to you?” Zuo Cong replied unhappily. He always felt this guy was out to get back at him because of how his sister had scolded him last time.

“…”

Zuo Dan had no idea about this encounter. She still had to deliver some fruit to the cooperative. Good relationships required give-and-take, and being on good terms with them would be useful in the future. Luckily, she had prepared some fruit the previous night while making gift baskets. Finding a discreet spot, she retrieved the items and quickly delivered them to the cooperative.

The saleswoman’s eyes lit up when she saw her.

This time, however, Zuo Dan didn’t bring much—just ten pounds. “This is all I’ve got. My sister-in-law already gave me a hard time about it.”

“No problem, no problem. If your sister-in-law ever needs anything, just come to me,” the saleswoman said graciously, though she inwardly thought the sister-in-law was being overly pampered.

After finishing her errands, Zuo Dan didn’t bother wandering around the county town. There wasn’t much to see anyway. If she wanted to explore, she could do so in the provincial city another time.

As she boarded the bus back home, the sun had already set.

Zuo Dan wondered to herself if Shen Yiming had made it home yet.