Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 900 899 Second-hand Clothing Shop

"What should we do with this child?" The baby girl, who had eaten and drunk her fill, was already asleep in Zhang Guifang's arms.

The baby had been sucking hard on the delivery device, and Jia's wife was in pain, but as a mother herself, she didn't say anything and instead patted the baby's back to comfort him.

Wang Yang left with that person, but the other neighbors were like mice caught on a sticky trap, unable to move their legs. Their steps were not only slow but also very small. When they heard Zhang Guifang ask this question, they not only perked up their ears but also became too lazy to take a step.

“Auntie, why don’t you let me raise her? I still have some milk, and she’ll eat more and more as she grows. As long as I have something to eat, she won’t go hungry.” Chu Chunxue was also in the crowd of onlookers and hadn’t gone too far. When she heard Zhang Guifang ask this, she stopped.

Chu Chunxue had recently miscarried, and the baby was a girl. Today, when she saw this girl, she was reminded of that poor child. Besides that, she also had the idea of ​​repaying the debt of gratitude.

Tang Zhitong reminded Liu Chengzhi to report his gambling debts to the police station. The police station registered the case that day, and the next day, people from the municipal bureau came to investigate.

Chu Chunxue witnessed Wang Yang's attitude towards Tang Zhitong today. Although she had no evidence, she did not believe that the comrades from the Municipal Public Security Bureau would make a special trip just because of her report.

The key point is that the comrades from the Municipal Bureau handled the matter very efficiently. Within a few days of the investigation, not only were the burly men who came to collect the debt arrested, but it was also rumored that the Wan family was hiding behind them, and they were also completely wiped out.

Chu Chunxue herself wouldn't believe it if someone hadn't given her a push from behind.

However, due to the mourning period and the fact that her family didn't have anything worthwhile to offer, Chu Chunxue didn't go to express her gratitude in person. She planned to keep this kindness in her heart and talk about it later.

Seeing an opportunity to resolve her troubles right before her eyes, Chu Chunxue wanted to seize it.

After Chu Chunxue said that, the other neighbors who were waiting to see what was going on not only craned their necks but also turned around, showing a tendency to gather in front of the Tang family's door again.

"This...isn't this inappropriate?" Zhang Guifang looked at Chu Chunxue, then at her son, and hesitated.

Zhang Guifang's statement wasn't because she didn't trust Chu Chunxue with the child, but simply because she felt it was inappropriate for Chu Chunxue to adopt the child. Although she had just taken over her deceased husband's job and her salary plus compensation was better than that of ordinary families, she was carrying a baby girl who was less than a month old and couldn't be left alone at all. Didn't Chu Chunxue go to work?
"Sister Chunxue, this isn't appropriate. The child is still young and needs constant care. You have to go to work and can't manage it," Tang Zhitong refused decisively.

These days, human life is cheap. Many rural women have to go back to work in the fields just a few days after giving birth. The children are either left in the care of the elderly or the infirm, or left on the bed to cry. After a while, they get used to it and stop crying.

The situation in the city was better, but Tang Zhitong had his own considerations.

Although we don't plan to keep it, it is still a small life, and we should take good care of it within our means.

Chu Chunxue intended to raise the girl, but Liu Zhangshi would be released from prison soon. Given her viciousness, it would be a miracle if she didn't abuse her. And then there's Liu Jiaming; with his tyrannical nature, wouldn't he bully this girl to death in the future?

For such a young child, entering the Liu family is no different than entering hell.

"Hey, how about Old Lu's family? They've never had any children, have they?" Seeing that the Tang family had no intention of raising the child and had even ruled out Chu Chunxue, the onlookers started considering suitable families in the neighborhood.

"Come on, people raise dogs even if they have to raise them, and besides, his family doesn't have any milk."

"It's still early, let's go back first, we'll talk later." What others said sounded like sarcastic remarks to Tang Zhitong, since none of them stood up and said they would raise the pet themselves like Chu Chunxue did.

Tang Zhitong planned to send the child to an orphanage. He certainly wouldn't raise a child of unknown origin, but before that, he had to go to the police station to see if Wang Yang had gotten anything out of that person earlier.

Tang Zhitong didn't have much ill will towards the child's mother. After all, even if someone abandons a child, they still want to find a good home for the child, which shows that they must be in real trouble.

If the other party can take the child back, Tang Zhitong wouldn't mind lending a hand and giving them some money privately.

After bringing the baby girl into the house, Tang Zhitong finally revealed his thoughts.

"Really not going to raise her? Maybe she really is a baby-giving baby." Zhang Guifang looked at the baby girl's pink and wrinkled face, her words full of reluctance. If she grows up, she will definitely be beautiful.

"Mom, if you want to hold your grandson or granddaughter, you can do it after the New Year. Just be patient. My food ration will be reduced by two jin starting next month, and ordinary residents of Beijing will have to follow suit within two months. Children aren't cats or dogs; we can only take care of ourselves first. Don't you agree?" Looking at the pink and tender baby girl, Tang Zhitong could only try to persuade her in various ways.

Tang Zhitong had heard of the saying "baby-giving baby," which mostly applies to couples who have been married for many years without children. Some couples who adopt a child will then have children one after another.

There are also cases of people who abuse their adopted children after having their own biological children. Tang Zhitong heard of one such case where, after giving away the eldest adopted child, one of the two biological children died and the other was injured.

Whether it's retribution or not, we don't know. As long as you live with your conscience and don't do anything against your conscience, that's fine.

Tang Zhitong felt no guilt whatsoever in sending the baby girl to the Beijing Municipal Welfare Institute.

I can't speak for other places, but the welfare home in Sijiu City is a key project of the Women's Federation, and the average living standard of its residents is no lower than that of ordinary residents.

It is precisely because of the good conditions that it is still very difficult to get a child into the school.

"Alright! I'll find some clothes for this child. Poor thing, she was just brought here wrapped in a tattered coat." Hearing her son say this, Zhang Guifang woke up from her unrealistic daydreams. She had Fengzhen hold the baby girl and planned to rummage through Fengzhi's old clothes.

"Are you planning to send him to an orphanage?" Xiao Wang asked quietly from the side.

"Yes, this is the safest approach. I'll go to the police station when I get to work. If they can find out the child's biological parents, they can return her. If not, I'll call Sister Xiaoqin and ask her to arrange for her to go to an orphanage. Don't worry, this child will definitely grow up well." Tang Zhitong took Xiao Wang's hand and comforted him, watching Fengzhi gazing at the baby girl in her younger sister's arms with her legs crossed.

As for whether doing so would cause trouble for the welfare home, Tang Zhitong didn't consider it at all. He had come up with ideas that earned so much money for so many organizations, and the welfare home was built with that money. The fact that he had given away an abandoned baby was nothing.

"Then I'll go iron the clothes; they haven't been ironed yet." Xiao Wang knew her husband was right, so she smiled at him, withdrew her hand, and went back to her room.

Zhang Guifang was busy looking for clothes, Xiao Wang went back to iron clothes, Fengzhen held the baby girl, Fengzhi looked at the strange sight, and even Beibei stretched her neck at Fengzhen's feet. The whole family was busy, and Tang Zhitong could only shoulder the heavy responsibility of heating up breakfast.

When Tang Zhitong returned to the main room after heating up the food, Zhang Guifang had already found some old clothes for the baby girl to change into, and the baby girl's feeling of coldness disappeared immediately.

"Mom, did you find any little notes or anything while you were changing clothes?" Tang Zhitong asked, squatting down on the ground after cooking the white porridge.

“There’s nothing there, just a tattered overcoat,” Zhang Guifang replied without turning her head. “It seems you don’t plan to reclaim her later.” Tang Zhitong shook his head, somewhat emotional. Separation from one’s own flesh and blood is heartbreaking, but doing this shows conscience, avoiding the trouble caused to the child and new family by demanding “birth debt” later.

"Mom, I'll have the orphanage come pick them up later. You can hand the child over to them then." Tang Zhitong ladled the white porridge into a bowl to cool it down, planning to go back to her room for a quick wash.

"Okay, I understand." Zhang Guifang replied. She wasn't an unreasonable person. Her family relied entirely on her son and daughter-in-law's salaries to make a living. The young couple had made up their minds, and she, as someone who lived off the family, couldn't force them, even though she was an elder.

After finishing his meal, Tang Zhitong put on the neatly ironed white shirt that his classmate Xiao Wang had put on and went to the police station first.

"I found out. A couple of days ago, she saw a woman carrying a child near Dongbianmen. She felt sorry for her and advised her to find a good home for the child, and told her about your family's situation. Your neighbor is very kind; she explained how to get to your house in detail." Although she repeatedly said that she meant well, Wang Yang was still left speechless.

"Fine, so I'm the good family now. Should I thank her properly?" Tang Zhitong sneered. Kindness? More like ulterior motives, right? If she really had that kind of kindness, shouldn't she at least ask for their opinion first? Who's she trying to morally blackmail?
“It’s hard to sentence someone in this situation. I’ll just scare her a little and teach her a lesson.” Wang Yang could hear Tang Zhitong’s dissatisfaction, but this matter involved neither abuse nor trafficking, so it was really difficult to define.

"Alright, then I'll trouble Director Wang." Tang Zhitong didn't plead for his neighbor, as he was only making things more difficult for himself. He wasn't Saint Kirk, and he didn't have the magnanimity to calmly forgive the murderer even after being killed.

Upon arriving at the transport station, Tang Zhitong first called Miao Xiaoqin. As for Director Ye, there was no need to make a special call; Miao Xiaoqin, as his secretary, would definitely relay the message.

Next, they reviewed the payroll, got Fang Yuan's signature, and then went to find He Hongchuan together.

The formalization ceremony was solemn and serious. The host gave a speech, the candidates also spoke, those with voting rights raised their hands, they recited the oath, and the clerk took meeting minutes, etc.

When Tang Zhitong came out after the ceremony, his back was soaked with sweat, feeling both hot and excited.

"Happy now?" After leaving the conference room, Fang Yuan patted Tang Zhitong with satisfaction and lit another cigarette for himself.

"Happy!" Tang Zhitong grinned, genuinely happy, but also feeling more pressure. To live up to his status, he had to find an even more profitable way to earn foreign exchange. But he hadn't come up with a single clue for several days, which was very frustrating.

"Keep up the good work! You guys are like the sun at eight or nine in the morning, you have a lot to achieve!" Fang Yuan was also happy, with a cigarette between his fingers, he pointed his arm outwards, exuding an air of confidence.

"I will definitely live up to Brother Yuan's expectations. However, Brother Yuan, I need to go to the school first after I finish eating. They're on holiday there, and there's still some finishing work to be done. If I can get it done today, I can get paid tomorrow." After the ceremony, Tang Zhitong was still thinking about Gu Mancang's matter and planned to finish the preliminary work first so that he wouldn't have time to prepare when he got paid tomorrow.

"Alright, I'll keep an eye on things at the office. Go ahead and do what you need to do." Fang Yuan waved his hand dismissively, his laissez-faire attitude towards Tang Zhitong unchanged.

After lunch, Tang Zhitong did not go to the Post and Telecommunications Institute, but went to Tianqiao instead.

The most famous feature of Tianqiao is its small theater, which offers a wide variety of performances including crosstalk, storytelling, monkey shows, opera, and acrobatics. In addition, there are four markets in the area: Gongping Market, Minsheng Market, Tianyuan Market, and Renmin Market.

Tang Zhitong's goal is the people's market.

People's Market is a comprehensive market. In addition to fruits, vegetables, fish and shrimp, and bicycles, it also sells second-hand books and clothes.

Lu Jian's act of stuffing clothes into the suitcase gave Tang Zhitong a hint: when preparing food for Gu Mancang, it would be best to also stuff some clothes around the food so that it wouldn't be so conspicuous when they got on the train.

Since its introduction to China, cotton has gradually developed into a strategic material.

Important and valuable items are generally unlikely to be hoarded at the bottom of society.

Whoever is covered in Luo Qi is not a silkworm breeder.

This applies to silk and satin, and also to cotton.

The saying that a family only has one pair of pants, and whoever goes out wears it, may be a bit of an exaggeration, but the situation of not having enough clothes to cover oneself still exists.

Especially in winter, most rural families are not well-off with cotton-padded clothes. The whole family wears thin trousers and huddles in bed. Those with poor conditions use straw as a blanket, while those with better conditions share a single cotton quilt.

Tang Zhitong wants to buy a cotton-padded coat.

The cotton-padded clothes could not only provide cover for this grain smuggling operation, but also allow Gu Mancang to take them back for her family to wear. Although they wouldn't be enough to fill their stomachs, they could be used to keep warm in winter and reduce energy consumption, which would indirectly save them food and greatly increase their chances of survival.

Places that sell secondhand clothes are called "guyipu" (估衣铺), and some people also call them "guyipu" (故衣铺).

Gu Yi (估衣) is easy to understand because there are no price tags or guide prices, and both parties have to estimate the price when buying and selling. However, Gu Yi (故衣) is more interesting.

As the old saying goes: New clothes are worse than old ones, but old friends are worse than new ones.

Using the character "故" on clothing adds a unique charm. Tang Zhitong felt that the name instantly became more evocative, but he didn't know why it hadn't become popular.

"Excuse me, how much is this cotton-padded coat?" Tang Zhitong asked, pointing to a cotton-padded coat hanging on the wall when he arrived at the second-hand clothing shop.

"Eight yuan." The vendor made a gun gesture towards Tang Zhitong.

"Wow, that's not cheap. It's almost the price of a new shirt." Tang Zhitong was a little surprised. Nowadays, an ordinary shirt usually costs only three yuan or so, and even the best one won't cost more than eight yuan. But this cotton-padded jacket in front of him was obviously old. The material wasn't the machine-woven fabric of today. The key thing was the style. It had a bit of a Manchu style. Who knows, it was probably the clothes that the descendants of some old man were selling after he passed away.

"Look at what you're saying, new clothes require cloth coupons, right? Making a cotton-padded coat like this would take up at least half a year's worth of cloth coupons for one person. Don't be fooled by the patches on this coat; feel how thick the cotton is. If you buy it and have a cotton fluffer redo it, you might just be able to make a quilt." The merchant was eloquent, persuading Tang Zhitong as he picked up the cotton-padded coat from the wall and placed it beside her.

Vendors are selective about their customers. The young man in front of him was well-dressed and clearly had plenty of money. He didn't want to miss the opportunity to make money.

Tang Zhitong touched it and found that the cotton was indeed thick, but it was far from being suitable for making a quilt.

Gu Mancang's family is large, so when they came to the secondhand clothing shop, Tang Zhitong didn't plan to buy just one item. Pointing to the other cotton-padded clothes on the wall with their simple styles and patches, she said, "Take these down for me so I can compare them."

(End of this chapter)