Back to the 60s: The Struggle Career of a Charmed Wife-Chapter 1766: Untitled Untitled 3

Most government agencies and factories would have a day off on New Year’s Day. Coupled with the extra supplies during the festive season, the city remained lively even though New Year’s Day had passed for several days.

Long queues snaked in front of various grocery stores, oil shops, and food stores. Even in the state-run restaurants that sold breakfast, people were packed shoulder to shoulder. Many customers who couldn’t find seats waited at the door for others to finish eating, while many who managed to buy something took it home to eat.

The economy had developed slightly better in the past two years, moving away from the scenes of starvation that were everywhere over a decade ago. Some residents had already started preparing for the New Year early. Along the way, Feng Qingxue noticed many people sneaking around in hidden corners, conducting private trades, with some keeping watch. Most of them were rural folks coming to the city to sell things, farmers and farmer’s wives carrying bamboo baskets, looking around warily, trading chicken, duck, goose eggs, and various grains for city-exclusive tickets or money.

Even though the Lu Family lived comfortably, the shortage of goods among the common people hadn’t changed much.

Feng Qingxue didn’t visit Wucheng frequently. She peeked into a food shop and noticed that the meat counter was already empty, with not even a bone left on the chopping board. The counters for chicken, duck, fish, and eggs were also completely bare.

At the start of each month, when tickets and wages were distributed, was when most families tried to improve their diet.

With a small amount of supplies tightened in her basket, Feng Qingxue adjusted her mask, hat, and scarf, walking openly through the streets and alleys, prepared to visit the bookstore. Unexpectedly, a rough-handed man, about forty-something, carrying a burlap sack, passed by her side and murmured, "Comrade, do you want some fresh wild chickens and hares? They’re plump, each at least three or four jin in weight."

Upon hearing this, Feng Qingxue slowly smiled.

She hadn’t planned on selling anything or buying anything, but simply going out for a walk and taking supplies from her space back home. However, food from a few decades into the future couldn’t compare to the food now. The latter was truly natural and pollution-free; meat tasted like meat, eggs like eggs, and wild game was deliciously fresh.

Since she encountered it, Feng Qingxue was naturally glad to acquire some.

"How much are you selling them for?" Feng Qingxue lowered her voice but didn’t stop walking.

The middle-aged man’s eyes lit up, immediately following her closely and whispering, "One yuan per jin. It was quite a task for me to hunt them from the prairie and travel dozens of li to get here. I can’t sell them as lean meat. But if big sister has Cloth Tickets, Industrial Coupons, or Sugar Tickets, I’ll take eight mao per jin. If you have brown sugar or cloth directly, then one jin of brown sugar, one jin of sugar cubes, or one chi of cloth for one jin of wild game."

From his tone, it was clear he had done this many times before.

Feng Qingxue replied nonchalantly, "How much game have you brought in total?"

"Four wild chickens and five wild hares, totaling forty-two jin and eight liang. If the comrade wants them all, I can wipe off the fraction and consider it forty jin." The middle-aged man decided to approach Feng Qingxue because she dressed differently from an average person and generally wouldn’t let herself return empty-handed. City folks relied entirely on supplied goods and craved meat more than those from the countryside who ventured into the hills and meadows.

Feng Qingxue, being all ears and eyes, laughed, "I won’t let you suffer a loss. Three jin of brown sugar, twelve chi of khaki fabric, seven chi of labor cloth, and twenty Industrial Coupons, plus fifteen yuan."