Back to my 1980s

"Brother? You're so happy you found money?"

"Huh? No, I bought some cement."

Cement is stronger than mud. If you apply cement to the cracks in the wall, you won't have to worry about insects, scorpions, or rats crawling under the bed and making holes.

Nowadays, earthen houses are not only for people to live in, but also for many poisonous small animals. Zhao Hua has heard more than once about people being poisoned and hospitalized.

Once, when Zhao Hua was asleep, his arm was covered with ants. The little creatures seemed to think he was food and wanted to carry him to the ground.

However, a thousand kilograms of cement is definitely not enough. It's not enough just for building walls. He even wants to use cement to pave a floor, so that the rats have nowhere to burrow.

"You'll find out tonight. Let's go catch some fish now. I'm going to haul cement tonight. We really have to keep an eye on this stuff, or it'll be too easy for someone to drag it away."

"Huh? Go now?" Zhao Ru peeked outside. The sun hadn't set yet, and going out to catch fish now would easily tan her skin. She had only managed to get her fair skin back after going out on cloudy days and at night.

"Yeah, it's fine if we don't go now, anyway I don't have time to go fishing tonight, so we can only go now."

Zhao Hua picked up the enamel cup on the table, which contained cooled water. He smelled it, found no strange odor, and drank it straight down in one gulp.

"Good grief, I left the tea to cool for half a day after I woke up, and you drank it all in one gulp." Zhao Ru muttered under her breath, then said, "Let's go now, where did you get the cement?" She still couldn't bear to part with the money she earned from selling fish.

He put the cup back on the table and laughed, "I bought it, of course. Where else could I have gotten it? Just pour me another cup. It's all cold now, and you haven't drunk any of it, which means you're still not thirsty."

"Let's go then, come back soon." Zhao Hua turned around, put the remaining money in his pocket into the drawer, took out the key to the bow of the boat, changed his clothes, went out and picked up the fishing net from behind the door.

Zhao Ru had already changed her clothes and was waiting for him in the yard with a bucket and a carrying pole ready.

After everything was settled, the two went to the riverbank.

It's always cooler by the river than on the bank in summer.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhao Hua, who was pulling in the net, looked up and said, "It's getting dark. There should be about forty or fifty pounds here. Let's go back after we've hauled this net in."

Zhao Ru nodded. She had no objections; it would be enough for her to sell at the market tomorrow morning.

After hauling in the net, the two went home and started raising the fish. Seeing that the light was still on in his parents' room, Zhao Hua went to his mother's door and asked her what was wrong. He learned that the tractor driver hadn't arrived yet.

Unsure of what time Zhao Hua had arranged to meet him, Zhao Ru simply waited at home for him to come to her. She and Zhao Ru ate some leftovers in the kitchen. Zhao Hua counted out more than three hundred yuan from the house and went out to tell Zhao Ru, who was washing dishes, "Go to sleep. You have to get up early tomorrow to sell fish. Don't leave the door open for me. I'm going to sleep at the educated youth settlement in a bit."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ru turned her head and looked over, saying, "No, I don't want to sleep at home. When I came in just now, it was like a furnace. I want to go to the educated youth settlement too."

"It's up to you. Mom said she knew we were coming back early today, so she sent Dad over to keep an eye on things by himself. I reckon he only brought his own bed. If you want to go, you'll have to carry your own bed with you."

Zhao Ru peeked outside, then shrugged and said nonchalantly, "It's only just gotten dark, Qinghe probably isn't asleep yet. I'll call her to help me carry it!"

Zhao Hua shrugged and said, "Do whatever you want, I'm leaving now." Then he went straight out the door.

These days have been sunny, and the moonlight is very bright at night. He can see the road clearly even without a flashlight, and he arrived at the tractor driver's house in just a few minutes.

Sure enough, they were still awake; candlelight was still on inside. Zhao Hua walked to the window and knocked.

A voice responded from inside, and after confirming it was Zhao Hua, the door opened shortly afterward.

"I heard from my wife that you bought cement? How much?"

Zhao Hua smiled and lowered his voice, saying, "A thousand catties isn't enough for me. I'd like to buy another thousand catties. I wonder if you can sell them to me tonight."

"Oh! It's alright. You should have told me you needed cement earlier. If I couldn't buy it, I know where else I can get it. I'll take you there later. I didn't know you needed this stuff. I thought you were just going to use lime to cover it up."

Zhao Hua chuckled. He wasn't surprised that Zhao Hua hadn't thought of it, because everyone was now subconsciously using mud to build houses, which had become a habitual way of thinking, and they hadn't thought about cement at all.

As for him knowing where to buy cement, Zhao Hua wasn't surprised. There was only one tractor in the village, and he was the one who had to haul large quantities of goods. Who knew how much he had been hiding over the years?

After the tractor came out, Zhao Hua gave him the address. He wasn't surprised at all and took Zhao Hua directly to the asbestos tile factory.

The factory was pitch black, but as soon as the tractor approached, the lights in the warehouse came on, and then the gate was opened. The tractor driver didn't even ask Zhao Hua before driving the vehicle into the factory, and the warehouse manager immediately closed the gate again.

Zhao Hua glanced at the two's smooth and effortless movements, a sentence stuck in his throat, unsure how to utter it.

The warehouse manager came over as soon as the vehicle stopped, shook hands with the tractor driver, and then went straight to Zhao Hua, who had just jumped off the vehicle.

"You're here quite early. I thought you wouldn't be here anytime soon. I was just about to lie down for a bit." The warehouse manager's tone was much warmer than when we first met during the day.

Zhao Hua put his arm around his neck again and pulled him to a corner. The tractor driver was quite sensible and knew they might have something to talk about, so he didn't come closer.

Seeing this action that seemed vaguely familiar to him, the warehouse manager didn't rush to speak. Zhao Hua glanced around and lowered his voice, saying, "Brother, this thousand catties might not be enough. I'd like to get another thousand catties, is that alright?"

The warehouse manager smiled and said, "I knew you wouldn't have enough cement. A thousand catties is barely enough for two rooms. I can give you another thousand catties, but only grade 325. The price is the same as before."

"Sure." Zhao Hua nodded. He hadn't expected to get 425 cement anyway, as it was a rare commodity. He guessed that the fact that 425 cement could be given to him during the day was because it was so scarce, which made it easier for him to work with, for example, the leftover cement from repairing the factory.

In reality, there should be more 325 grade cement, but it doesn't make much difference to Zhao Hua. He's just building a house, and the strength is sufficient for him regardless of the grade.

Without saying a word, Zhao Hua counted out 190 from his pocket and handed it to him. The warehouse manager took the money and led Zhao Hua to the warehouse where cement was stored, asking him to carry ten bags from the corner at the back of the factory.

Then he pushed a small cart and somehow found ten more bags for Zhao Hua.