Back to my 1980s

Before long, the sound of a group of children making a racket could be heard outside the courtyard gate.

"He's back. That kid's always so quick," a neighbor joked.

"Hey, they disappear in the blink of an eye, they're so naughty every day, you can never catch them." Someone whose own child was inside chimed in.

After the children entered the yard empty-handed, the adults asked in surprise:

"Where's the scale? Didn't I tell you to borrow one? Didn't your Uncle Zhao lend it to you?"

"no!"

"Borrowed! Uncle Zhao brought it himself."

"Borrowed it! We ran fast, Uncle Zhao is walking slowly behind!"

The children chattered excitedly, and before they could finish speaking, Uncle Zhao followed them into the yard, carrying a scale beam in one hand and a weight in the other.

"It's with me! I was afraid these kids would break it because they're clumsy, so I brought it over myself, and also to see what kind of fish needs such a big scale."

After Uncle Zhao finished speaking, his gaze fell on the ground in the middle of the crowd.

"Wow, that's impressive! How did you get it up here?"

"Hua Zi and Xiao Ru were bored this morning and went to the riverbank. They found it stranded and brought it back," Zhao's mother replied.

After listening, Uncle Zhao saw a group of children around him with shining eyes and warned:

"These past few days have been rainy, and the river has swelled considerably. The upstream sluice gates have been opened to release water, and there are many undercurrents downstream. None of you children are allowed to go near the river!"

The children shrank back in fright at the shout and nodded repeatedly to indicate that they understood.

Seeing that everything that needed to be explained had been said, Zhao Hua smiled and said, "Thank you, Uncle. Come, come, let's weigh the fish first."

Uncle Zhao smiled and responded, deftly lifting the weighing rope. Zhao Hua and his two older brothers exchanged a glance, then stepped forward to gather the sack together and lift it up.

Uncle Zhao gently pressed down on the weight and slowly moved it. Only when the scale was steadily level did he squint at the scale star.

The weighing rope was stopped at exactly 57 jin.

He immediately counted: "Fifty-seven pounds, exactly. It's truly rare."

As soon as he finished speaking, the onlookers started discussing it. Some were calculating how much the fish was worth, while others were smacking their lips and asking how to cook it to make it taste the best.

Seeing that the fish had been out of the water for too long and was on the verge of death, Zhao's mother quickly said, "Hurry up and deal with it, or it will die and become stale."

Zhao Hua looked at the fish and silently pondered in his heart. At this time, his eldest and second eldest brothers had already separated from the family.

She usually just comes over to use some tools and lend a hand; her older sisters have all gotten married and moved out.

I'm left to live with my parents and younger sister. Logically, my parents should be in charge of all the big and small matters in the family.

Thinking of this, Zhao Hua turned to his mother and asked, "Mother, what do you think we should do with this fish?"

Zhao's mother was stunned for a moment, then looked up at the sky and said, "Hey, did the sun really rise in the west today? You even asked for my opinion first! When have you ever asked for my opinion? Tell me! Did you get into trouble outside again and come back to me to clean up your mess? If I see you running around outside again, I'll break your legs!"

Zhao Hua couldn't help but twitch his lips and gave his mother a speechless look.

Well, she's my own mother, so I'll let her say a few words.

He was very uneasy. He hadn't figured out what happened in his past life, and now he was lying in his grandmother's house the moment he opened his eyes in this life. He wasn't sure if he had caused any trouble.

Zhao Hua opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed the words that were about to come out.

He couldn't very well tell his mother that he was starting over and didn't even know if he had caused any trouble.

I'm so angry I could die. What if someone asks me to exorcise evil spirits and give me talismanic water?

When he remained silent, Zhao's mother became even more convinced that she had guessed correctly, and raised her hand as if to slap the good-for-nothing to death.

When Zhao Hua saw her mother raise her hand, she quickly hid behind her. In those days, women did farm work all year round, and their hands were covered with hard calluses.

I'm wearing so little clothing, if I get hit hard, it'll definitely hurt for a long time.

Zhao Hua hurriedly tried to recall what had happened, but he couldn't find any clues about what major trouble he had caused recently.

He grabbed the younger sister who was watching the commotion and pulled her in front of him, whispering, "Why did I sleep at Grandma's house last night?"

The younger sister was startled by his sudden pull and glanced at him strangely when she heard the question:

"Isn't your room piled high with rapeseed, leaving nowhere to sleep? Why don't you make do at Grandma's?"

Zhao Hua breathed a sigh of relief and said to his mother, who was still glaring at him:

"I didn't cause any trouble, I was just asking casually."

Zhao's mother looked at Zhao Hua with some doubt. There were too many people around, so she didn't press the matter further. She just glared at him fiercely before letting it go for the time being.

Seeing this, Zhao Hua's gaze fell back to the large, motionless fish on the ground.

He started doing the math in his head.

Judging from the neighbors' conversation, it's about 70 cents a pound, and 57 pounds would sell for about 40 yuan.

This amount of money was no small sum in a rural area in 1983.

I remember that at that time, the able-bodied men in the village would go out to do odd jobs, earning only one yuan a day, and they had to rely on luck to find work.

No matter how skilled a carpenter is, he can't earn more than one dollar and fifty cents a day.

Many families were fortunate enough to work hard for a month, but they still couldn't earn ten yuan in their pockets.

There's no way I'd eat it. If I were to say that I kept it for my family to eat, my mother would beat me to death.

Besides, there's no way we can finish it all, and it's not enough to share with relatives and friends. If someone doesn't get any, that'll be something to talk about later.

Thinking of this, Zhao Hua looked at his mother and said:

"Mother, while this fish is still fresh, I'll take it to the restaurant in town to sell. The market's almost over, there aren't many people left."

Hearing this, Zhao's mother had no objection. She nodded and helped him push the cart over, instructing, "Xiaoru, go and get some dry straw to put on the mat."

The younger sister answered crisply and ran to gather a pile of dry grass to spread out.

Zhao Hua and his elder brother worked together to put the fish onto the cart.

"Drive carefully, don't panic, the ground is damp and covered in mud," Zhao's mother reminded her worriedly.

"I know, don't worry, I'm leaving." Zhao Hua replied and pushed the cart to walk out. After taking two steps, his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

It's 1983 now!

Would openly selling fish like this be labeled as speculation and profiteering? He hesitated for a moment, then asked Zhao's mother in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Zhao's mother paused for a moment, turned around, went into the house, took out a shopping list, and handed it to Zhao Hua.

"It's alright, we've already handed in all the fish traps for the task. Just take this form with you, and show it to anyone if they ask for it."

Zhao Hua took a pale yellow piece of paper with black characters printed on it and the commune's official seal.

Zhao Hua held the form, folded it neatly, and put it in his pocket, feeling much more at ease.

I heard that these days, as long as each household delivers 30 jin (15 kg) of fish to their quota each year, the remaining fish can be legally sold.

Without further hesitation, he gripped the handlebars and pushed the bicycle out of the courtyard gate: "Mom, brother, I'm leaving."

Zhao Hua waved his hand

The eldest brother, second brother, and youngest sister watched him go for a while, and once he was out of sight, they each turned around and went about their own business.

The onlookers gradually dispersed, leaving only a few close friends chatting with Zhao's mother.

After walking for a short while, Zhao Hua realized that pushing the bike was too strenuous, so he turned the handlebars around and pulled it instead.

But the ground was so muddy that the wheels kept getting stuck.

Zhao Hua struggled for a while, but it was really difficult.

If we keep dragging it out like this, how long will it take?

After thinking it over, he decided to get off the cart and carry it himself.

It's only four or five miles, and fifty or sixty pounds isn't a problem for me. Walking and resting occasionally is better than going through all this trouble.

Thinking of this, he pulled the cart back, picked up the fish, and left.

Seeing him suddenly return, the people in the courtyard asked, "Why are you back?"

Zhao Hua turned around with the fish on his shoulder and said to them, "The road is too bad to push, so I'll just carry it; it's easier that way."

After saying that, he carried the fish and strode out the door, heading straight for the town.

It took about half an hour to get to the commune restaurant in town. Zhao Hua went straight to the kitchen to find the head chef to check the food.

The head chef didn't say much and went straight to the manager to negotiate the price. After looking at the price, the manager quoted 90 cents per pound, and then weighed the food and settled the bill.

These days, restaurants are all state-owned. As long as you have good stuff, they won't hesitate to take it. They're pretty bold and straightforward...

51.3 yuan.

Zhao Hua took the money, counted it, and left after confirming that everything was correct.