My 1978 Hotel

Chapter 99: Going to the market to buy a black pot, two piglets

"A wheelbarrow is a wheelbarrow."

Li Feng got up early in the morning and went to the team to pick up the ox cart, but Han Fuguo beat him to the ground with a pipe. He had no choice but to turn around and look for Han Futian. "Uncle Futian, tell me, I'm not using the ox cart for anything improper, how could Uncle Fuguo hit me?"

"I'll hit you lightly."

Han Futian rolled his eyes. "Boy, the fields have been getting drier these days. The oxcarts have been used to fetch water these days. You dare to ask to borrow an oxcart? You're asking for a beating." "I don't even want to lend you a wheelbarrow."

Without saying anything else, Li Feng pushed the wobbly unicycle back home. It was really hard to operate the unicycle. "Second brother, can you push this?"

Gao smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Boss, you think I'm omnipotent? This kind of unicycle was basically unavailable in the 1990s. I'm afraid even my dad wouldn't be able to push it if you asked him." "Forget it, let's make do. We have to hurry to the commune, otherwise we won't be able to make it to the market."

The Ma Ya Market, also known as the Ma Ya Conference, is held on the first and fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Farmers from all over the country gather to exchange surplus produce, livestock, or handicrafts. The market usually ends in the morning and ends in the afternoon, with everyone returning home.

It was almost six o'clock, so we had to hurry. If we didn't get to the market, it would be after eight o'clock, which was unacceptable. We had to get to the market early, otherwise we wouldn't get anything good. Gao Ju and Gao Cheng helped tie the bamboo baskets, bamboo plaques, bamboo baskets, and bamboo baskets to the wheelbarrow.

Li Feng was pushing the cart, while the two brothers Gao Ju and Gao Cheng were holding the rope in front. Not to mention that the ditch in the middle of the road was actually caused by a wheelbarrow that had stuck the wheel. Li Feng just had to control himself so that he wouldn't go off the road. Even so, he encountered many problems along the way.

The wheelbarrow wasn't easy to push, and it was a shame I couldn't even borrow a cart. Oh, if only I had a bicycle. I could just tie it up and get to the commune. "Finally," Li Feng said, dusting himself off after arriving at the commune around eight o'clock.

Li Feng shook out the towel and followed the local customs. He usually wrapped himself in a towel when he went out. The road was dusty and dust would fall on his head after just a few steps. "Finally we're here. Let's find a place to set up the stall first and then rest for a while."

"Second brother, the eldest brother and I are busy. Take some food coupons and money and go see if there's any food left at the breakfast stall. We can grab some to eat."

He didn't want anything delicious or fancy. As long as it wasn't some fruit or fried dough stick that looked like a bomb, it would be fine to eat. These days, Li Feng has figured out the ropes of life. Nothing is great, so being able to fill his stomach is good enough.

First, find an open space, which is a little distance away from the commune. Li Feng leans the wheelbarrow against a big tree. Although it is difficult to push the wheelbarrow with wooden wheels, if you dare not pay attention, it will become someone else's in the blink of an eye.

As soon as he finished packing, Li Feng couldn't wait to experience the rural fair in the late 1970s. He looked at what everyone was wearing. Most of them were gray and black, and some were white old-fashioned shirts. Most of them were homemade and used cloth buttons.

Ninety-nine percent of the shoes were cloth, and almost everyone, young or old, regardless of gender, wore a towel or a hat. Those who wore hats generally came from better-off families. "There weren't many people wearing patched clothes."

Li Feng grumbled, but then thought about it, since he was attending a fair, he had to dress respectably and cleanly. "Boss, keep an eye on me. I'm going for a stroll." He grabbed a basket, not to mention that almost everyone at the fair had one.

There are all kinds of things, such as woven bamboo and wooden strips, but there is no plastic. After all, plastic is still a high-end product these days, and is only used in ordinary sandals. It costs a few dollars a pair, and ordinary farmers don’t buy it.

"boss."

"Call me brother."

Li Feng reminded in a low voice, why doesn't this kid change his words before going out?

"Brother, how much is this basket?"

"Fifty cents, or fifty cents for an item."

"to make."

Li Feng started strolling after he finished speaking. The journey was quite interesting. He took out his camera from time to time to take a few photos. It was a pity that he didn't have a video camera. Otherwise, if he hadn't taken the photos and posted them on his Tik Tok, he would definitely become popular.

"what?"

Li Feng took a quick look. It looked quite lively, and as he got closer, he saw something selling piglets. "How much?" The middle-aged farmer, who was bargaining, changed his expression slightly, and several people looked at Li Feng.

"Just dispersed, why did they run away?" Li Feng muttered. He didn't have anything. He looked up and down and found that apart from his camera, he didn't bring anything else. In fact, Li Feng himself didn't pay much attention. His clothes were not brand new, but almost new Dacron, and he was wearing a pair of cloth shoes that were obviously bought.

Although his hair is short, you can see it's been trimmed if you look closely. He's carrying a delicate, even pretty basket, and a camera, looking like a city dweller. How could a farmer not be afraid? You might be accused of speculation and profiteering just for selling a piglet.

Not to mention, raising sows is generally prohibited in rural areas due to the waste of feed, and few people would secretly raise sows, after all, piglets are not cheap. "Why are you running away? Can I still be Wu Shengnan? Besides, policies are policies, but the actual implementation is another matter."

Li Feng hadn't really planned to buy piglets, but seeing these people running away when they saw him, he got angry, so I bought them anyway. I still couldn't believe it, everyone ran away when they saw me, but Li Feng chased after them to buy piglets, now it was good.

Soon, the news spread throughout the market, and all the piglet sellers fled, some going home, some running into the fields. "These scoundrels are brave, don't you think? The small ones are okay, but you think they are timid, daring to secretly raise sows."

Forget it, Li Feng unconsciously strolled around again, taking pictures, but these people were hiding when they saw me, and the whole event was almost ruined by Li Feng. "Hey, Wu Gongan, are you here for the meeting too?"

Wu Shengnan didn't expect to meet Li Feng at the market. She had just received a report that a crackdown on speculation and profiteering was taking place at the market, causing panic among the people. She was a little confused because the county had only sent her to Maya Commune.

Why does another person come out to crack down on speculation? Besides, it is almost tacitly allowed in the big market. As long as it is not excessive, everyone turns a blind eye. Haven't you seen people bargaining and selling piglets while loudspeakers shouting about cracking down on speculation?

Farmers always have to exchange their surplus items, although money cannot be involved, but this has been the old tradition for many years. As long as it is not excessive, for example, if you sell piglets, you definitely cannot get a whole basket of them at once. No one will care about one or two.

The original purpose of rural fairs was to enrich rural life and provide farmers with a window to trade household supplies.

"You come, why can't I come?"

"Public Security Wu, that's not what I meant."

Li Feng thought, this Wu Gongan is crazy. Why is he talking to a great writer like me? He only has a father who is the deputy director of the county revolutionary committee. "I mean, there are no profiteers at this fair. I'm cracking down on you."

Wu Shengnan's temper flared up as she listened to Li Feng's seemingly unkind words. "You don't know what's going on with you, but you're suspected of being a profiteer. If you weren't a writer, I'd probably have you arrested. Sooner or later, I'll have solid evidence and lock you up." Huang Shengnan always felt that Li Feng's smile was fake. He was always smiling, so he must be a smiling tiger. She even felt that Li Feng was mocking her incompetence and inability to catch him. "Mind your own business. Don't let me catch you, or I won't care who you are."

This was even more so now. Wu Shengnan's face turned even uglier. Li Feng wondered if this woman was about to have sex. Why was her temper getting worse and worse? "Public Security Officer Wu, I'm a good citizen. No, I'm a law-abiding successor to the socialist cause."

Wu Shengnan rolled her eyes at you, then remembered the things Li Feng had written in her pocket and took them out. "Here you go. Don't write anything carelessly, or you'll end up in trouble if something goes wrong."

"what?"

Wow, these are the words I wrote with my left hand yesterday. Okay, Li Feng took it. I thought about it all night and really regretted it. If he really died, the ticket and money would be sent to him. Who knows what kind of trouble that guy would cause.

Even if it wasn't so, if it was published in the newspaper, his reputation would be ruined, and no educated youth would send him food coupons in the future. "Well, these are the ones my cousins gave me. You see, these two, alas, there's nothing they can do. They're so hungry."

Wu Shengnan thought to herself, haha, you are kidding me, but your cousin is not a good person either, and your cousin too, they will be arrested sooner or later, whipped, and sent to the mine for reform, and all the speculators will be killed.

As they were talking, they came to where Li Feng was setting up his stall. Hey, he didn't sell a single basket. That couldn't be right. Li Feng looked around and didn't see anyone carrying a basket that was more exquisite and beautiful than his own. How come he didn't sell a single one?
What the hell, Li Feng muttered to himself, could it be that Gao Cheng was too embarrassed to speak up? This guy had wasted several days of his time making up stories.

"Did you bring this?"

"Yeah, I usually have nothing to do, and since I've recently spent a lot of money on building a house, I thought of exchanging the basket for some supplies."

"Did you make it up?"

Wu Shengnan was a little surprised. This vegetable basket was so exquisite. It was more beautiful and delicate than the baskets used by ordinary city people. Most importantly, it had no burrs at all, which was extremely rare. The inside was very smooth, as if it had been polished.

Wu Shengnan was quite surprised that Li Feng had this skill. After all, Li Feng was already very good at writing poems and articles, but he actually had a skill to make a living. It really shows that you can't judge a book by its cover.

“How much are the baskets?”

"Sell it, don't sell it, exchange it."

Just kidding, we can't talk about buying and selling. You can exchange things with me with money, but you can't buy things from me with money. Everyone knows this tacitly.

"How to change?"

"Fifty cents or equivalent in exchange."

We are now bartering. Fifty cents is not money now, it is an item. Let's exchange freely. Wu Shengnan took out a dollar and handed it to Gao Cheng. "I want two vegetable baskets."

Gao Cheng looked at Li Feng and asked if he wanted to exchange. Li Feng nodded. "Yes, one dollar for two vegetable baskets."

“One hand delivers, the other hand receives.”

Li Feng stood in the middle. Wu Shengnan rolled her eyes. This was a rule from years ago. There was no need to go through so much trouble now. Never mind the trouble. Li Feng didn't want to be picked on by Wu Shengnan. Swap, done.

"The basket is yours."

"Ah."

Wu Shengnan took the basket and thought it was really pretty and delicate. Her mother would definitely like it. It didn't seem very sturdy, but it was small and delicate. "These things of yours are not easy to sell at the market."

"Change."

“It’s not easy to change.”

In the countryside, people use baskets for vegetables and other things, and the main features are that they are cheap, sturdy and durable. The baskets woven by Li Feng are too delicate and compact. They look good, but they are not as good as baskets woven from whole rattan for carrying important things.

“It’s easier to sell in the county.”

"County, Public Security Wu, I'm not being too arrogant, but your ideological awareness is a bit low. How can you think of selling things and go to the county..." Oh my god, Wu Shengnan looked at Li Feng with a strange look in her eyes, but the bamboo vegetable basket was not as outrageous as he said.

"Nowadays, we usually only arrest those who resell supplies at high prices."

Wu Shengnan was a little disdainful. "A vegetable basket like you wouldn't normally count." Actually, she wasn't worthy enough. You thought speculation was a joke.

"That's it."

Li Feng thought to himself, this little bitch, if he had just agreed with her, he would have been criticized, but now he was like, "Hey, big brother, pack up and let's go to the commune to buy an iron pot. Why is the second brother taking so long to buy meat?"

"Let's go and see."

Seeing that other things would not be sold for the time being, he simply gave up selling them and went to buy a big black pot. He would go to the commune pig farm later to take a look. Li Feng had just inquired and knew that the commune pig farm was selling piglets.

The general price is one yuan and twenty cents, and you can also get an invoice. This is a good thing. Buy a piglet weighing ten or twenty kilograms and slaughter it later. Isn't it meat? Li Feng plans to buy two and raise them first. When he wants to eat meat one day, he can kill them accidentally. It's perfect.

"What? I need a letter of introduction from the production team. I need a letter of introduction just to buy a piglet?" Li Feng was a little Spartacus!

(End of this chapter)