noffsinger Chapter 6 Buying Piglets
Chapter 6 Buying Piglets
Zhaoyuan is located in a county in the central region. The county has a population of over 130 million, making it a large county. It is 80 kilometers away from Huzhou Province.
The county town is small, and the commercial building is the only large shopping mall in the area, so it's very lively.
Zhao Yuan first went to the commercial building, which had many shops on three floors. The first floor sold daily necessities and electrical appliances, while the second and third floors sold clothing.
Zhao Yuan browsed from the first floor to the third, looking at everything, but the clothes sold there were all the same style and looked very old-fashioned. Zhao Yuan found a corner to sit on the ground, lit a pipe, and observed the flow of people while smoking. The flow of people was not bad.
Next to the commercial building is a Xinhua Bookstore. The sales clerks sit behind the counter, and the books are all displayed inside. Some books can be read by their titles on the counter, but you have to ask the sales clerk to take them out to read.
Zhao Yuan walked into Xinhua Bookstore, asked the salesperson for a book on animal husbandry, flipped through it briefly, and then returned it to the salesperson.
Zhao Yuan strolled all the way to the farmers' market, which was located by the river. There was a relatively wide square by the river with some sheds and the like, which should be the place where stalls could be set up.
Zhao Yuan recalls that in the 80s, many educated youth who returned to their hometowns were unemployed, so there were farmers' markets and night markets in the county and towns. By paying a small management fee, they could set up stalls there to make a living.
There is a fireworks shop next to the farmers' market.
Zhao Yuan walked into the fireworks shop and picked up a large, square, columnar firework.
"Comrade, how much is one of these fireworks?"
"These are aerial fireworks, 2 yuan each."
A stylishly dressed woman answered.
"So expensive."
"It's not expensive; the price would be even higher if you bought it in big cities like Hiromi or Kyoto."
What's the price if I buy more?
"How much do you need? We're the manufacturer, it depends on how much you need."
The woman glanced at Zhao Yuan suspiciously, but still answered him politely.
In his previous life, Zhao Yuan knew that Jinyang County was most famous for its fireworks, which were sold far and wide, both domestically and internationally. Many people started their businesses with fireworks, and Xiongxiong Fireworks even became a listed company with a consistently good stock price.
"I have a large order in Guanghai Province that requires cooperation."
The woman glanced at Zhao Yuan, looked him up and down, and thought he seemed honest enough not to be a swindler.
"If the order is large, we can offer even better discounts. We have a wide variety of products. This is my factory address. You can come to my factory and talk to my husband."
As she spoke, the woman wrote an address on a piece of paper and handed it to Zhaoyuan.
Zhao Yuan glanced at the address, then put the piece of paper into his pocket.
Zhao Yuan continued to walk around and take a look.
Finally, I went to the meat processing plant and bought a pound of meat with my meat coupons.
"Comrade, do you have any piglets for sale?"
The old man selling pork looked up, strung the weighed meat together with a straw rope, tied a knot, and handed it to Zhaoyuan.
I casually picked up a rag and wiped my hands.
"Go check in the back room to see if they still have any today."
"Thank you for your trouble, comrade."
Zhao Yuan took the meat, thanked the old man, and quickly walked into the meat processing plant.
"Hmph hmph hmph"
The sound of piglets grunting came from the room behind the meat stall.
No meat coupons were needed to buy piglets, and Zhao Yuan spent 8 yuan to buy a lively sow piglet.
Zhao Yuan carried pork in one hand and a piglet in the other as he walked toward the bus station.
"My dear, my dear."
A familiar voice called from behind, as if someone was calling him.
Zhao Yuan turned around and saw He Sihai running up. He and Zhao Yuan were old sworn brothers (meaning they were sworn brothers, although they had never actually become sworn brothers, they always addressed each other that way).
He Sihai lived in another village in the same hometown, and the two met when they went to deliver goods to the XXX factory.
I often eat and drink with Zhaoyuan, but most of the time I eat at Zhaoyuan's house.
Zhao Yuan is now prepared to stop paying attention to these so-called "fake friends," as they only cause trouble.
But I still gave a perfunctory greeting.
"Dear friend, you've come to the county town today too. What brings you here?"
"Oh, I cut my hand very deeply and had to go to the hospital for stitches and bandages, but the doctor at the clinic didn't dare to take my case."
As he spoke, he showed Zhao Yuan his hand, which was wrapped in gauze.
"How could you be so careless? Is the cut very deep? And it's bandaged so tightly."
"It was very deep. When I was splitting the bamboo, I lost focus and the knife cut right into it. It was like a ghost. I've never been injured so badly before."
"Your hand isn't ruined, is it?"
"It's not that serious, but I bled a lot, so I'm afraid I won't be able to finish this month's orders."
“It’s alright, I’ll knit them myself. I’ll send 200 of them over together.”
"Okay, thank you."
"You bought so much meat, it's time to have some meat! Do you have any wine at home? Let's go over to your place for a meal."
As he spoke, he nudged Zhao Yuan with his shoulder, his face beaming with smiles.
"No, this is for the children and Fangfang. Fangfang gave birth yesterday to a baby girl."
"Hmm? Another little girl. Is this food for the children and Lin Fangfang?"
He Sihai asked in return, his eyes wide open, looking at Zhao Yuan with a face full of doubt.
Is this trillion dollars?
Shouldn't he have invited everyone to his house for a drink, then gone on a drunken rampage? When did he start buying meat for his kids and wife?
The key thing is that Lin Fangfang gave birth to another baby girl yesterday.
He Sihai looked at Zhao Yuan again.
"Aren't you going to invite me to your house for drinks today?"
He Sihai looked at Zhao Yuan and asked another question.
"Let's do it another day. I'll deliver the bamboo baskets this month. We need to rush to finish them. You should get some rest."
As he spoke, he walked quickly toward the bus station. There was only one bus a day to return home, which would depart after noon. If he missed it, he would not be able to go back.
Zhao Yuan beats and scolds his wife and daughters. These bastards only pretend to advise him for a moment or two. Everyone knows that Zhao Yuan beats and scolds his wife and daughters after drinking, but they still often invite Zhao Yuan to drink, and most of the time Zhao Yuan pays for it.
"These bastards," Zhao Yuan cursed inwardly as he walked.
He Sihai followed Zhao Yuan quickly, completely baffled as to why Zhao Yuan had suddenly changed.
"Honey, are you alright?"
He Sihai couldn't help but ask a question.
"You're the one who's been traumatized."
Zhao Yuan answered as he walked.
"Lin Fangfang gave birth to another daughter, and you didn't get angry, you even bought meat for her to eat?"
Zhao Sihai pressed for an answer.
“What’s there to be angry about? A girl is a girl. Who knows, she might be much more successful than your son in the future. Haven’t you seen how much more capable my Zhao Di is than your son?”
Zhao Yuan talked as he walked, without even glancing at He Sihai.
He Sihai didn't ask any more questions and silently followed behind Zhao Yuan, supporting his injured left hand with his right.
Upon arriving at the station, Zhao Yuan only bought his own ticket.
He walked towards the car.
"Zhaoyuan, the meat you bought today is good, it looks delicious."
As soon as he got on the bus, Zhao Tiancheng, a fellow villager who was already sitting inside, started making a fuss.
"Let's go to your house for drinks today."
"Drink your head, this is for Lin Fangfang."
Zhao Yuan answered.
"Hey, didn't I hear they had another girl? Could it be a boy?"
Zhao Tiancheng said with ill intent.
"It's a girl. Girls are good. They'll be much better off than sons. You'll all be envious of them in the future."
Zhao Yuan answered calmly. He chose a seat by the window, placed the piglet at his feet, and the piglet grunted in the bamboo cage.
He Sihai got into the car and sat next to Zhao Yuan.
He was still pondering why Zhao Yuan's personality had suddenly changed so drastically, as if he no longer recognized this Zhao Yuan.
"Hehe, if you can't have a son, you can only say that daughters are good. I'm afraid you'll beat your wife and daughters behind closed doors."
"I'm a little provocative," Zhao Tiancheng said. He had three sons and one daughter, which was a source of great pride in the countryside.
"Zhao Tiancheng, stop with that foul mouth."
Zhao Bingshan, from the same village, scolded Zhao Tiancheng.
Zhao Bingshan was Zhao Tiancheng's distant uncle. He also only had three daughters and used to be ridiculed. However, his eldest daughter married into the family and now has grandchildren. People stopped mocking him, but he always remembered the humiliation he felt.
"Thank you for your help, Uncle Bingshan."
Zhao Yuan thanked Zhao Bingshan, ignored Zhao Tiancheng, turned his head to look out the window, and no longer paid attention to these people.
In the past, Zhao Yuan would have been very upset, and there would have been a storm of anger when he got home.
But Zhao Yuan was very calm today, and Zhao Tiancheng's words had no effect on him whatsoever.
They remained silent the whole way.
"We've arrived at Hejia Village, get off the bus."
The driver reminded him.
"Zhaoyuan, I'm getting off the bus. Let's have a drink together next time."
He Sihai got out of the car and greeted Zhao Yuan, who nodded slightly in response.