Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 218 Visiting Wu'ai

The next day, Xiaowei and Xiaohong got up a little after seven o'clock, washed up, and went downstairs for breakfast.

Xiao Hong gave Xiao Wei a few more safety reminders, and Xiao Wei nodded and listened. After that, Xiao Hong went to school, and Xiao Wei bought fried dough sticks, soy milk, oven-baked pancakes, and tofu pudding and went upstairs. He turned the stove to its lowest setting, put the steamer on top, added some water, and put the breakfast in the steamer to keep it warm.

At 8:30, Xia Maosheng yawned and came out of the house to wash his face, brush his teeth, and eat. Xiao Wei said, "The food factory is about to start work. Shall we go through the yard first? The snow is so deep over there, and the gates on the walls aren't open."

While eating, Xia Maosheng said, "Let's get someone to take care of it and clear it out. The main door can be opened too; we can just cut a hole in the wall and weld it on. No need for much cement, and it'll be sturdy. Once it gets warmer, we can just paint it and that'll be it."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "Okay, then I'll trouble Master Chang to buy me something when I get back. The old man is very kind."

Xia Maosheng asked, "What should we buy?"

Xiao Wei said, "I haven't decided yet. I've never been to his house, so I don't know what he needs. Wouldn't it be awkward if we bought something and he didn't like it?"

Xia Maosheng took a sip of tofu pudding and said, "What's so awkward about it? What he has is his, and what we give is ours. It's nothing. You're overthinking it."

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "That's true. So, what should we buy?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Why don't we just give him 500 yuan and he can't refuse? It's hard to say whether buying something cheap or expensive."

Xiao Wei said, "Okay, then I'll go back and get him five hundred yuan. Oh, by the way, is the room ready to live in now? Is there anything we need?"

Xia Maosheng said, "We have all the big stuff. If we need anything small, we can buy it over there. We need quite a few needles and thread too. Who would think of anything right now? I think we should go to Wuai Street. The karaoke bars, dance halls, cake shops, and billiard halls are all open now. It's probably hard to buy those little decorations in Longcheng."

I'm planning to decorate the entire restaurant area, from the main entrance to the back, with a starry sky effect, and install spotlights and colored lights on the signs. Didn't you say you wanted fabric upholstery inside? We'll have to buy the fabric here too. It'll add up to quite a bit of stuff. The billiards area doesn't need much work, but the lights need to be on, right?"

Xiao Wei nodded, glanced at his watch, and said, "Okay, let's go to Wu'ai when they get up. Oh, right, we haven't bought a pool table yet, shall we go take a look?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Wu'ai has everything, go and find it. Wake them up, we're running out of time."

Xiao Wei hurriedly got up and knocked on the door. After knocking a few times, Chen Hui, with a poop in his eyes and his hair sticking up, opened the door.

Xiaowei said, "Let Chen Xiao sleep. You hurry up and get ready. Let's go to Wu'ai. We're running out of time."

Chen Hui yawned, nodded, and closed the door. Three minutes later, he came out dressed, washed his face, and brushed his teeth. Xiao Wei helped him get his breakfast. He wiped his face, sat down, and started eating, asking, "Where are we going to Wu'ai?"

Xiao Wei said, "Lamp, fabric, decorative items, bed sheets for our own use, and a pool table—there are so many things we need to buy, so hurry up."

Chen Hui shoved the food into his mouth in a daze: "Yesterday, um, you didn't say anything yesterday, you only remembered today. Why didn't you two wait until you left Fengcheng to tell me?"

Xiao Wei said, "I really didn't remember. Old Xia just mentioned it."

Xia Maosheng had already tidied himself up and was looking in the mirror, fixing his hair. He said, "It just suddenly came to mind. I only had this idea yesterday when we went out. Look how bright it is here at night. People are definitely more willing to go out and join in the fun when it's bright."

In the early 90s, "starry sky" lights were very popular in Fengtian. These were strings of small light bulbs that filled the entire front or back of storefronts, creating a bright, dazzling display at night. They were usually white, with very few using other colors. Back then, as soon as it got dark in Fengtian, every large restaurant, hotel, or shop that felt confident would put up a huge array of these lights, becoming a unique part of the cityscape.

Chen Hui nodded and said, "I thought you didn't use that in Longcheng. I didn't mention it because you hadn't brought it up. If you had, I would have gotten it for you sooner." He wiped his mouth and stood up. "Let's go, we're really running late."

Xia Maosheng went to the kitchen to turn off the stove, and Xiao Wei, carrying his camera, led the three of them downstairs after closing the door.

When the three of them arrived at Wuai Street, it was already 9:15. Some of the stalls in the market had already closed up shop, but most of the stalls that closed up early were selling clothing and shoes. They didn't focus on retail; the people who brought the goods had left and they didn't want to continue operating, so they closed up shop.

Entering from the main gate of Wuai Market, walk along the right side past the market management office and public toilet, and you'll find stalls selling all sorts of crafts and sundries. They have stalls that are two meters wide, one after another, selling everything from playing cards and mahjong sets to plastic products, handicrafts, pottery, bamboo products, glassware, artificial flowers and plants, and children's toys.

At this time, Wu'ai was still operating outdoors. Forget about heating, even the stalls were completely open, with only a canopy above to keep out the rain. Screams whistled through the barbed wire fence from the northwest.

The vendors were bundled up in cotton-padded coats and hats, masks and scarves, their hands tucked in thick cotton gloves, looking like refugees fleeing a famine. Their exposed faces were red and white from the cold; it was truly hard work. Even meals were a struggle. The market was surrounded by boxed lunches and open-air fast food stalls. Buyers and vendors alike stood in the snow, eating a bite of food in the wind—a bite that wasn't too hot or too cold—and drinking a sip of hot water was considered a luxury.

This area also has the most foreigners, especially Russians. They wander around the market with their watches, binoculars, and cameras, and anyone can trade with them or buy things directly with money; their prices aren't high. These foreigners all carry calculators. They don't speak the language, so they just use the calculator to input numbers: 200? No, no, no, it'll be 250.

Back then, Russian cameras, binoculars, and military belts were quite popular there, while all of our light industrial products were bestsellers.

Russian girls are quite beautiful, generally over 1.7 meters tall. Their small figures and delicate faces are truly captivating. Their bright eyes seem to have a magical power. Even in the dead of winter, they show off their long legs. If you didn't know what they would look like in their thirties or forties, you would definitely be completely mesmerized.

Chen Hui led Xiao Wei and Xia Maosheng around the market, where they bought some decorative items, handicrafts, oil paintings, some hanging ornaments and wind chimes. Xia Maosheng also bought two sets of mahjong tiles. Then the three of them found the man in yellow vests to load the things into the car before heading to the fabric market.

The fabric section is indoors, located opposite the main entrance of the Wu'ai Market, in the knitwear market.

The market here is open all day, so there's no rush. The three of them wandered around inside and unexpectedly found decorative fabrics. They didn't expect there to be a place that specializes in selling decorative fabrics. After asking around, they learned that this kind of decoration is now popular. Wealthy people will use decorative fabrics to cover the entire wall and lay pine wood flooring on the floor, which is definitely high-class.

The three of them discussed it and decided that since they were going to hold two events at the dance hall, they would choose two colors: white and pink, one for a funeral and one for a wedding. They also bought some red for the stage. Then Xiaowei suddenly had a brilliant idea and said, "Why don't we just cover the whole room over there? It would be so comfortable and look great."

(End of this chapter)