Chapter 154: Strengthening Each Other's Resolve

They headed to the supply and marketing cooperative first.

More than half of the group were visiting the county town for the very first time, so they were naturally eager to see how the county’s cooperative compared to the one back at the commune.

It certainly was different—it was much more crowded, and there was a wider variety of goods on sale.

As a new batch of cargo had just arrived that very day, the supply and marketing cooperative was packed to the brim. Heads bobbed everywhere as people browsed for what they needed or stood in long lines to make purchases.

The sections for non-staple foods, toilet paper, soap, and other daily necessities were relatively manageable.

The fabric counter, however, drew the biggest crowd, with customers snaking around in a massive queue.

Li Kai and Tang Xin exchanged glances, both reading the same thought in each other's eyes: trading and commerce were bound to thrive more and more in the future.

This mutual realization solidified their determination to pursue this path going forward.

In fact, there was a reason why Tang Xin had rushed to the county town today. When Li Kai returned home yesterday, Chen Li-guo had asked him to pass along a message to his sister-in-law.

The message was that new goods would arrive at the supply and marketing cooperative today, and knowing Tang Xin was a woman, she would surely love such things.

Of course Tang Xin loved them, but her primary goal was to observe and understand the market trends.

The items in her spatial farm warehouse were multiplying, but since she wasn't sure if some of them fit the era, she hadn't dared to take them out casually.

Venturing out to see the world and gain a firmer grasp of the current market would make whatever Tang Xin planned to do much easier in the future.

With a grand and magnanimous wave of her hand, Tang Xin declared to the group, "Come on, my treat today! Let's all eat our fill."

Li Kai was unaware of the true extent of her earnings, assuming she had only made a share from her labor points. In reality, that wasn't the case at all.

Those apples were hers as well, and cashing in on them had yielded a massive payout.

Furthermore, this kind of business could clearly be repeated. The fruit basket designs could be altered, and the items sold could be diversified.

Mainly, this practical experience coupled with their successful collaboration gave Tang Xin a surge of confidence. She had plenty of ration coupons and cash on hand right now, making it the perfect opportunity to treat her family to a proper meal.

Although Aunt Fang felt that dining at a restaurant must be terribly expensive and that spending money like that was less sensible than buying vegetables to cook at home, she couldn't bring herself to voice any objections when she saw how excited the children were.

Still, everyone knew better than to be overly extravagant and wasteful, so they chimed in to say they just wanted noodles.

Thus, with great generosity, Tang Xin asked the restaurant attendant to bring out a bowl of every single type of noodle they had. That way, they could mix and match, allowing everyone to sample every flavor.

There were seven of them in total, but naturally, they didn't order seven bowls of noodles, as the shop only carried four different varieties.

After ordering four bowls of noodles along with several steamed buns, and paying with cash and food coupons, they found a large table and sat down together.

Because Tang Xin had visited more than once, the restaurant staff remembered her.

Moreover, Tang Xin was generous; on previous visits, she had always shared candies and pastries with others, so the staff held a very favorable opinion of her.

Fearing that the children wouldn't be able to finish a whole bowl by themselves and waste the food, Tang Xin simply asked for several extra bowls. She split the four bowls of noodles into eight portions so everyone could have a taste.

They could also swap different flavors with one another, and if the noodles weren't enough, there were meat buns too, ensuring everyone enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying meal.

Even the noodle soup was licked clean, and the three little ones exaggeratedly rubbed their bellies as they let out burps of contentment.

While visiting the supply and marketing cooperative was a treat for the women who loved to shop, bringing the children along meant a trip to the bookstore was in order, where they could read and pick up some school supplies.

Tang Xin bought a dictionary—an essential learning tool that anyone in the family could use.

Pencils, notebooks, and paper were not bought here; Li Kai had connections and knew where to find cheaper ones that didn't require ration coupons.

Ever since the kids started school, procuring these supplies had become his responsibility.

Spotting some pictorial storybooks, however, Tang Xin let the children flip through them for a while before ultimately buying three that caught their fancy.

One for each child, with the option to trade once they finished reading. The rest of the stock didn't suit their needs.

With the ongoing educational reforms at the time, the bookstore stocked virtually nothing that appealed to Tang Xin.

Besides, she remembered the historical trajectory from her books; even though this was a parallel universe, major historical events remained largely the same.

This meant it would still be a few years before the college entrance examinations were reinstated, making it a bit too early to look at preparatory study guides.

Crucially, such books weren't even available on the market yet.

Regardless, the group had a wonderful time wandering around. Even though they didn't buy many items during this trip to the city, everyone was in high spirits.

Upon returning, they would have plenty of stories to brag about to others. Each person carried home a wealth of new experiences to serve as conversational currency for outshining their peers later on.

The journey back involved a combination of riding in vehicles, walking, boarding another vehicle, and walking a final stretch before reaching home. Tang Xin assumed that after wandering around all afternoon and doing all that walking, the little ones would undoubtedly feel tired.

Instead, every single one of them remained in an ecstatic state, showing not the slightest hint of fatigue.

This was because, while in the county town, the second brother had bought each of them toys.

To Tang Xin, these items lacked any real value—the sort of cheap trinkets sold three for ten yuan in future generations. But the three children were thrilled, as these were the first store-bought toys they had ever received in their lives.

When they played at home in the past, the most they could hope for was for their father, who was handy with his hands, to carve small wooden toys like toy pistols.

Even those were popular enough in their production brigade that many local kids were willing to play with them just for a turn.

Now, however, Li Jiang, Li Hai, and Gu Nan unanimously agreed that bringing these new toys back would instantly make them the coolest kids in the Eighth Production Team of the Abundant Harvest Brigade!

What Tang Xin did not know was that shortly after they left the county town, Li Sheng and Wang Dongliang also drove back.

However, they drove straight to the supply and marketing cooperative at the commune.

Li Sheng first bought some pastries and candies, getting two portions of each, paid with cash and coupons, and tossed them into the back of the truck.

Wang Dongliang was momentarily startled. Although both men belonged to the Abundant Harvest Brigade, their respective production teams were located on opposite ends.

Furthermore, Wang Dongliang’s courtyard was spacious enough to accommodate a truck, so he was always the one who drove the vehicle back, and the two men would normally part ways right here at the commune.

Seeing Li Sheng get out of the truck and then get back in with purchases left Wang Dongliang deeply puzzled.

To his surprise, Li Sheng pulled out one package of pastries and one bag of candies from his haul and handed them over. "Take these back for Auntie and the kids to enjoy."

Wang Dongliang shook his head in refusal. "Come on, cut that out. We're good brothers."

"Right, we are good brothers. This is a token of filial piety for my aunt, plus some treats for my niece and nephew."

Since Li Sheng had put it that way, Wang Dongliang had no choice but to accept the items.