Bai Fumei in the 70’s

He Songbai took the letter and folded it in half and stuffed it into his pocket.

He got on the bicycle, and his thin figure quickly disappeared into the dark night. He passed Tiezhu's house when he finished his return trip, and he gave Teacher Gu's letter and thirty kilograms of pork to Tiezhu.

Tiezhu carried the pork and said with a smile, "This pork does not have to be handed over to Gou Sheng. They sell it, which is very popular, but I can help Brother Bai to sell it. If I take the pork to the black market, my food stall will be full of people!"

Tiezhu could see that it is not easy for He Songbai to make this hard money, so he would help sell such a sought-after pork. They would only make a little profit by selling it to Gou Sheng.

The retail price of a pound of pork is seven cents, and meat tickets are scarce, with a share of three or four tickets per person per month. The price of pork on the black market can be tripled. When the business is good, especially for the festival when it costs two yuan a pound, some people will still want it. In the off-season, the meat also quickly sold out. It is very rare to encounter a backlog of pork on your hand until it smells bad.

However, He Songbai just wiped his sweat and he refused without hesitation.

"No, there is a lot of money to make."

He paused and continued, "There will be times when they will be needed in the future."

There are a total of six people on Gou Sheng and Mao Dan's side. Two of them with lame hands are left at home to stay up and down, and the other four are running around to make money. Although the life was very bitter, but they somehow have a full meal.

It's not the huge profits he had imagined. Liang Tiezhu has a flexible mind, does not accept status quo, and has an honest face. He is enthusiastic and diligent. He can make regular customers and save money. Others doing black market reselling can't even make half of him. Li Zhong is backed by a big tree so he can enjoy the shade, he has a wide range of news and contacts, and he can make a lot of money while sitting at home comfortably.

But with Gou Sheng's team, they belong to the kind of hard-working and unprofitable bottom-failure. The unsuccessful ones have already honestly returned home to farm and will not stay in the black market.

He handed the two pounds of fat from labor today to Tiezhu and replaced it with lean meat, because the girlfriend does not like fatty meat.

"I won't delay you, just go."

Tie Zhu nodded and set off on the big golden deer. The dim light from his bike on the mountain road drifted away and disappeared into the thick night.

He Songbai stared at the man and rode his phoenix bike after he left. He rode back to the village, letting the phoenix go back to sleep.

Today is particularly tired, because there was a master in the slaughterhouse who chopped his hands, he has to chop two more pigs than usual. When he closed his eyes, a deep sleepiness struck him, and he fell asleep until the sun is high. The sunlight from an open window stabbed him to open his eyes.

He Songbai took out the watch in his arms and glanced at it. His heart sank, and he wiped his face with regret.

He ran to get up and wash, and then turned to the brigade's farm tool room to pick a hoe. After he climbed the mountain, everyone has done half of the work, and when they saw him, they couldn't help but ridicule.

"It's very diligent. See if you can burn your farts this day, right?"

"Don't talk about it. It's good for the young master of the National People's Congress to work with us regardless of his ancestors." The person who spoke was beaten by He Songbai last month. He dropped his hoe and simply stopped working. There was a gust of wind.

"Came late and loved to sleep lazily on the construction site. This month, if he can still get ten centimeters, I am not convinced."

Wang Xiuzi smiled happily on his face, and babbling, "Sister Zhao is gone, and Sister Pan is here."

"Hey, hey..."

Wang Xiuzi just finished his chatter and was beaten on the ground again.

This time it was Pan Yuhua who was hitting people. His big fist hit the person's face. "You dare to say it again?"

He Songbai raised his eyelids and turned a blind eye to all of this around him.

He carried his hoe to do his own work, he didn't have the strength to fight, he wanted to keep his strength to make money.

After working at noon, everyone squatted under the shade of the trees to eat. He Songbai did not bring any food to the construction site, so he had to go down the mountain and go home.

As he passed by the bullpen. Gu Huaijin held a thick and torn thing in his arms and wiped his tears silently.

He Songbai pretended not to see it, and walked around silently.

Gu Huaijin looked like his back, and he snorted with a deep voice, "He's second, you come."

He Songbai walked over.

Gu Huaijin asked, "You went in a hurry last night, I forgot to tell you."

"Did you see a letter for me at the post office?"

He Songbai emphasized, "I just put your letter this morning."

He looked at Teacher Gu in surprise. Are senior intellectuals so weak in spirit? It's just a bit of work. He was beaten a few times, and hands and legs were all over the body. Even his mind was not normal.

He said, "You are confused."

Teacher Gu was choked and said, "I'm just a little anxious. I'm getting old and confused."

"But... you can't be a smarty pants, promise to help me see it next time?"

His old face turned red, and he sighed, "I have been here for inspection since March, almost half a year. I was so busy that I haven't even sent a letter to my family during the project. Now... I am not qualified to move around."

"If you are free, just help me to see it. I am grateful for my whole life."

He Songbai stepped down. He did not accept Teacher Gu's "selling misfortune." In his view, there were more people who were miserable than Teacher Gu, but he still has time to help Teacher Gu. This old guy is a thief, he helped him once, and he wants to be on him every time.

This time he lived in the cowshed, and he even wished to have a long neck to look at their house when eating.

He Songbai said: "I don't need your gratitude. Just keep your mouth shut as a thanks."

His face sank, his sword eyebrows erected fiercely, "I don't have much abilities, but it's still more than you."

Teacher Gu lays silently in the drying valley, turning over his thick book.

A pair of tearful eyes showed through the cracks in the tattered and dirty paper.

After He Songbai left, he learned the accent of this place and murmured to himself:

"My gratitude is still useful!"

"Poor boy, don't know the goods!"

After a long time, he returned to reality, "I am useless..."

After Gu Huaijin "appreciated" his engineering plan, he hid it under the dry corn with satisfaction. He felt that those little boys who didn't know the heights of the sky could not keep it together. But... he was stunned that he couldn't find evidence to prove where something went wrong.13

After Gu Huaijin finishes his farm work every day, his daily work is to turn over the booklet he has recorded daily since March. It is both struggling and suffocating.

...

In the evening, He Songbai counted the money and tickets accumulated over the past few days one by one. He kept a part for himself in case of emergency, and gave the rest to his grandma.

Grandma was stunned to see the money. She was a woman who has seen the big world. She had days when she spent money like running water, and had the hard time when she was starving poorly. She used to give more than just this amount of money.

But now the money is from her grandson's own hands and she was stunned.

She muttered, "These money grandma will help you save and leave it for you to get a wife."

She carefully packed all the money with a clean handkerchief.

He Songbai listened and frowned, "Didn't you promise me not to worry about my business?"

Grandma didn't speak, and her turbid eyes revealed a thorough look, staring straight at her grandson.

Those eyes were mixed, distressed, and helpless.

Like a wise old man, every tiny change fell into her eyes.

After a while, she snorted, "Know it!"2

"Grandma's little Bai is good everywhere. If you stay single until you are older, don't be afraid. There must be good things behind!"