Chapter 6: Buying Rice, Flour, and Oil

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Lin Yu was up. Because he needed to go to town to buy rice, flour, and oil, he had to borrow a pushcart from Brother Dachun. If he went too late, Dachun would have already gone out to sea and might not be home. Furthermore, he needed to give Dachun a heads-up so he could sell his catch under Dachun’s name; otherwise, if he were reported by someone with ill intentions, it would lead to a heap of trouble.

Lin Yao’s illness had mostly cleared up. With her fever gone, the little one was full of life again. As soon as she woke up, she eagerly asked when they would have white flour steamed buns, smacking her lips in anticipation. Because she was saving room for those buns, the little girl stubbornly ate only two snails for breakfast.

Wang Yufen still found it hard to believe that her son had suddenly earned so much money, yet she had no choice but to accept it. Accustomed to a life of hardship, she couldn't help but urge her son not to be extravagant, reminding him that money was hard-earned and that he should develop the habit of saving.

Lin Yu readily agreed. "I know, Mom. But there’s a balance between saving and spending—after all, we have to eat, don't we? I’m going to Brother Dachun’s place in a bit to borrow his cart so I can stock up on rice, flour, and oil."

"What? You’re borrowing the cart? You aren't planning to go to town, are you?" Wang Yufen was startled. "You need ration coupons for rice, flour, and oil in the city. Where would we get those? You should just look around the nearby villages; if anyone has a surplus, they might sell it to you. Even if they don't, it doesn't matter—sorghum and cornmeal are always available and cheaper. Just buy enough of those for us to get by."

"How much can I get that way? At most three or five pounds of each, and I wouldn't be able to find oil. Besides, I already promised my sister we’d have white flour buns tonight," Lin Yu said with a grin. "Don't you worry, Mom. I have a plan. You and Yao just wait for me to come back, and get ready to steam those buns."

With that, Lin Yu threw on his coat and headed out. Watching his retreating back, Wang Yufen opened her mouth to offer more advice but ultimately said nothing. She realized with a start that her son seemed to have grown up. Her heart was a jumble of emotions, like a pebble cast into a calm lake, stirring up ripples.

Lin Yu walked through the morning sunlight to Brother Dachun’s house. It was also a mud-brick house, but it looked much better than theirs, with a fence around the yard and everything kept spotlessly clean. Everyone in the village said Dachun was excellent at managing a household and that whoever married him would be well taken care of, yet he remained a bachelor to this day.

"Brother Dachun, are you home?"

Before long, Dachun walked out. Seeing it was Lin Yu, he quickly put down the net he was holding and greeted him. "Oh, it's you, Xiao Yu. Come on in. How are your mother and Yao? I’ve been so busy these past few days I haven't had a chance to check on you. You came at the right time; take this bag of corn grits back with you, and here are a few fish."

Wang Dachun knew it wasn't easy for his mentor’s wife to raise two children alone, and that they were struggling just to put food on the table. The corn grits were something he’d traded for by selling two fish and trekking to a mountain village the night before—at least it would keep them from going hungry.

"Tell your mother not to ration it too strictly," Dachun said with a smile as he tied the bag. "I’ve been catching plenty of fish lately, enough to sell a few every day. When this runs out, I’ll bring you more."

Lin Yu knew Dachun was honoring the debt of gratitude he owed his late father; a teacher for a day is a father for life. His father had taught Dachun every aspect of his fishing craft without holding anything back. In this era, where they still relied on small boats to head out to sea, technique and experience were everything. The old saying went that if you teach a student everything, you’ll starve the master, so almost no one taught without holding something back. That was why Wang Dachun felt such deep gratitude.

"Brother Dachun, I didn't come to ask for rice. I came to borrow your pushcart. I’m planning to go to town to buy some supplies, and I can't carry it all—a cart would make it much easier," Lin Yu said with a smile.

"What? Buying rice and flour?" Wang Dachun’s eyes widened in shock, his voice rising involuntarily. "Do you have the money? Don't get any crazy ideas—you must not do anything illegal!"

Lin Yu quickly reassured him. "Brother Dachun, what are you thinking? I sold some crab-tiger fish yesterday and made some money."

"Really?" Dachun remained skeptical.

"It's true. I sold them at the pier, and plenty of people saw me. If you don't believe me, go ask around." Lin Yu continued, "Brother Dachun, can I discuss something with you? I want to sell my catch to support my mom and sister, but I’m afraid of busybodies reporting me. Could I sell them in your name?"

Dachun understood instantly. As long as you met your quota for the village, whatever else you sold was your own business, but if you sold privately without meeting that quota, it was considered speculation and could lead to public denunciation.

"That's fine, but can you really catch enough? We have boats, and even then, the daily catch is limited. After handing in the quota, there's hardly anything left. Can you really do it? How about this: come out on my boat. With your help, we’ll be twice as efficient, and you can take the surplus to sell for your family."

Lin Yu shook his head. "No, Brother Dachun. If we sell all the fish, what will you do? You haven't married yet. I heard you like Xiao Cui from the next village, and her mother is asking for the 'three things that turn and one that rings'—and thirty-six legs of furniture."

Dachun blushed at the mention of this. "That... that's not urgent."

"Don't say it's not urgent," Lin Yu insisted. "Xiao Cui is a good girl, and she’s pretty; the threshold of her house is being worn down by suitors. If you don't hurry, someone else will snap her up."

"Anyway, I need to get to town. Where’s the cart? I’ll take it and bring it back tonight."

Dachun pointed to a small shed beside the house. "It's in there. Go ahead and take it. Be careful, the wheels are a bit wobbly—don't let it tip over on you."

Lin Yu went into the shed and pulled out a single-wheeled cart. The body was made of rough, cracked planks that had long since lost their original color, faded to a dull, weathered gray-brown. The frame barely held together, and the joints were loose and shaking, emitting a teeth-grinding creak with every touch.

Lin Yu pushed the cart toward the city of Xiong Yue.

Although not large, Xiong Yue was a century-old city with a long history. The narrow streets wound and turned, the blue stone paving polished to a soft luster by the passing of time, as if holding the residual warmth of countless hurried footsteps from the past. On both sides of the streets stood low, irregularly arranged houses, their mottled walls having witnessed countless storms, some with missing roof tiles but still standing stubbornly.

In the distance, the ancient city wall looked weathered but remained upright, as if guarding the memories and soul of the old district. Every corner exuded a rich sense of history, making one drift into reveries of a bygone era.

Pushing the cart, Lin Yu’s thin frame looked somewhat clumsy. He soon reached the only supply and marketing cooperative in Xiong Yue.

The cooperative wasn't large—just an independent courtyard with a mud-brick house. Because it was a small city in the Northeast surrounded by rural areas, its purchasing power was limited, and there weren't many people there.

Lin Yu didn't go in immediately; instead, he scanned the surroundings. Even though he had money, he didn't have coupons. Getting rice, flour, or oil at the cooperative without them was impossible. While the policies had loosened by 1983, some things, like candy, could be bought without coupons. However, for items like bicycles, sewing machines, or watches, money alone wasn't enough.

But where there is policy, there are loopholes. Some people have coupons but no money, and because there was demand, there were always ticket scalpers. Lin Yu had been worried that a remote, third-tier city like Xiong Yue wouldn't have any, but he had overthought it.

Soon, his gaze locked onto a middle-aged man with a pockmarked face wearing grey cloth clothes, standing under a large poplar tree in the courtyard. The man had a cigarette in his mouth and was scanning the people entering the courtyard, occasionally striking up a conversation with a shifty, furtive air.

Lin Yu was certain this was a scalper.

After parking his cart, Lin Yu walked straight over. He didn't beat around the bush. "Uncle, do you have grain and oil coupons?"

The pockmarked man looked him up and down, asking suspiciously, "I do, but can you afford them?"

"If you have them, I can afford them."

The answer piqued the man’s interest. It was the first time a kid had come to him to buy coupons. "You want rice, flour, and oil coupons, right? How many?"

"20 pounds of rice coupons, 40 pounds of flour coupons, 10 pounds of meat coupons, a dozen yards of cloth coupons, and I also need oil coupons. Tell me how much."

The middle-aged man was stunned. The kid wanted a lot, but he didn't have that many on him. "Kid, that's a lot. I don't have that many here! If you aren't in a rush, buy what I have now, and I can hunt down the rest for you later?"

Lin Yu frowned. "How many do you have?"

"20 pounds of rice, 20 pounds of flour, 5 pounds of meat. I don't have cloth or oil coupons. If you take all of these, I'll round it down to 3 yuan. How about it?"

"Fine, I'll take them!" Lin Yu agreed helplessly.

Truth be told, the price wasn't cheap. White flour was only 0.22 yuan a pound, and rice was 0.18 yuan a pound; three yuan could have bought over a dozen pounds of flour. But he had no choice—he needed them. He also knew that in such a remote city, coupons were hard to come by, so a premium was reasonable.

Having secured the coupons, he stepped into the cooperative. A sense of aged, rustic simplicity washed over him. The space was cramped, the mud walls were mottled, and a few dim bulbs cast a weak light. Wooden shelves lined the walls, and simple glass counters sat in the middle. Inside, salt was piled in small mounds, next to bags of white and brown sugar. Large glass bottles of soy sauce and vinegar bore faded labels, and a few small tins of tea sat in a corner, emitting a faint fragrance. On another shelf were loose candies; the wrappers of the fruit drops shimmered enticingly in the dim light. Occasionally, children accompanied by adults would stare fixedly at the sweets, tugging at their parents' sleeves.

There were few customers. A grey-haired shop clerk sat behind the counter, flipping through a worn magazine, only occasionally looking up at the shop’s activity. A calico cat was curled up in the corner by the door, dozing, indifferent to everything around it.

The whole cooperative was filled with a quiet, slow atmosphere. Time seemed to move lazily here; only the occasional murmur of conversation broke the silence, making one feel that this was a small, quiet corner of life still ticking away.

Since there were few people, Lin Yu quickly bought what he needed. The 20 pounds of flour cost 4.40 yuan, and the 20 pounds of rice cost 3.60 yuan. Just those two items cost 8 yuan. The remaining change wasn't enough for meat, so he bought some salt, sauce, vinegar, and some fishhooks and nets. He ended up with only 20 cents left.

Lin Yu felt truly helpless—he still hadn't bought oil or cloth. But at least the rice and flour were taken care of; for the next month or two, the three of them wouldn't go hungry.

After loading everything onto his cart, Lin Yu spoke to the pockmarked man again, asking him to help secure cloth coupons. The man readily agreed, though he warned that due to various factors, oil and cloth coupons were the hardest to get and would be relatively more expensive.

After their conversation, Lin Yu pushed his cart of rice and flour, leaving the cooperative feeling satisfied.