Since they were idle anyway, Qiao Lanshu followed Huang Erling to stroll around the department store near the military compound.
Longcheng City wasn't large, but it still had three department stores.
The one Huang Erling brought her to was the closest to the military compound and was a full three stories high.
It sold absolutely everything, from towels and soap to watches and bicycles. You could buy anything, provided you had the ration coupons. Without coupons, having money alone was useless.
When Qiao Lanshu left home, her father had given her not only five hundred yuan and two hundred yuan worth of national grain coupons, but also some non-staple food coupons, cloth coupons, and so on.
After all, when he saw her off at the train station, the original intention was for her to join her husband at the military base.
So these things essentially served as her dowry.
Now, carrying these coupons, she could cut some new cloth to take back and make herself a new outfit.
Since she was getting married, she ought to wear red for good luck and festivity.
Huang Erling led Qiao Lanshu for about ten minutes before they arrived at the department store.
Passing by the fabric counter, Huang Erling asked Qiao Lanshu, Do you want to make new clothes? The plain weave fabric here is forty-five cents, while the corduroy is a bit more expensive at one dollar and fifty cents, but corduroy is warmer. Take a look.
The saleswoman at the fabric counter recognized Huang Erling. Looking at Qiao Lanshu, she asked, Sister Ling, who is this? Your younger sister from your hometown?
Huang Erling laughed, How could my family have such a pretty sister? This is Commander Qin's family member, Comrade Xiao Qiao. She is getting married, so I brought her to buy some cloth.
The saleswoman's eyes instantly widened, and she stared at Qiao Lanshu non-stop.
Qiao Lanshu was speechless.
It was truly bizarre. Why did everyone who heard she was Qin Yuanzheng's family member look at her with that kind of expression?
It made her feel very strange.
The saleswoman asked Huang Erling in astonishment, Sister Ling, how old is this little girl? Does she know that Commander Qin...
Saying this, she quickly shut her mouth and cast a somewhat embarrassed glance at Qiao Lanshu.
She wanted to say, isn't Commander Qin incapable? Does the little girl not know?
But under Huang Erling's glare, she didn't dare to finish. She hurriedly pulled out several bolts of cloth and said, How about you take a look at this? This twill fabric is quite thick and only costs sixty cents, which isn't expensive. Look at this army green one; it can be used to make a military-style uniform. You cannot imagine how sharp it looks when worn.
People nowadays, regardless of gender, all liked to wear military uniforms, so fabric in this color was extremely popular.
Twill was thick, warm, and durable. It could be worn for years without tearing, and with some patching and mending, it could last another three years. One piece of clothing could easily last for ten years.
Qiao Lanshu touched the fabric and also thought it was nice. She said, I will take this one. Sister Ling, if I want to make a set of clothes, how many feet of cloth should I buy?
Qiao Lanshu didn't know how to make clothes and wasn't very clear on this.
Huang Erling looked at her height and said, Seven feet will be more than enough.
When Qiao Lanshu came here, she only brought four sets of clothes she wore in Yangcheng. They were all very thin and couldn't be worn until summer.
Right now, she only had a newly bought padded jacket on her back. She needed to make at least two more sets to have enough to wear.
Coincidentally, her father had given her twenty feet of cloth coupons, so she bought fourteen feet worth. After the saleswoman cut the fabric, Qiao Lanshu went to buy a pair of fleece-lined warm shoes.
Originally, she wanted to buy leather shoes, but even if she bought them, she wouldn't be able to wear them in this weather.
Wearing something warm was much more practical.
She already had vanishing cream for her face, but she still needed some daily necessities.
She had Huang Erling lead her to the daily necessities section, where she bought soap, towels, two washbasins, as well as toothpaste and toothbrushes.
Qiao Lanshu wandered around the department store and, seeing water buckets, bought two of those as well, along with a water dipper and a washbasin stand.
Finally, she went to buy five bowls, five pairs of chopsticks, two stainless steel basins, and five dining plates.
She was very happy while buying these things because she was about to build her own little family. This feeling was very novel.
It also made her look forward to it.
She had bought quite a lot of things, but fortunately, she had Huang Erling to help carry them. Huang Erling then asked, Have you bought a mattress yet?
Their rooms all had beds, so they didn't need to heat a traditional kang.
But the bed was just a simple wooden frame; a mattress still needed to be laid on top of it.
Qiao Lanshu asked, Where can I buy a mattress?
Huang Erling replied, We can look around, but they are not easy to find. After all, these days, everyone heats a kang. You would be better off having two thick sleeping pads made; they are warm too.
Qiao Lanshu nodded, That works too.
Making sleeping pads also required fabric, so they had to go check out the cotton sellers, since pads needed cotton too.
Seeing Qiao Lanshu getting married at such a young age without any family to help her, having to figure out and buy everything herself, Huang Erling felt quite sorry for her.
Qin Yuanzheng's family wasn't around either, so they couldn't help out here.
Fortunately, although Comrade Xiao Qiao was young, she was quick and efficient in her actions and willing to listen to advice. As for Qin Yuanzheng, being older, he knew how to care for people and was very thoughtful. With the two of them as a couple, their future days would definitely get better and better.
Qiao Lanshu and Huang Erling simply couldn't carry any more, so the two of them first carried the things they just bought back to the military compound.
The two guards at the compound gate saw them, and one of them hurried over and said, Which floor do you live on, Sister-in-law? Let me help you carry these over.
Qiao Lanshu felt a bit embarrassed, but Huang Erling seemed used to it. She said, Building Five, Unit One, Second Floor. Thank you, young comrade.
The young guard picked up all the items and walked away briskly, as if flying.
Qiao Lanshu was speechless.
She hadn't even managed to say a single word of thanks.
Huang Erling said with a smile, Truly a strong and robust young man, so full of energy.
Qiao Lanshu smiled, not knowing how to respond to that.
Seeing her shy demeanor, Huang Erling told her, This is the benefit of being a military family member. You get to live in such a safe compound and have guards to help out. When my children were still small, I let them play in the yard by themselves without even needing to watch them. The guards at the gate would keep the doors shut tight to prevent them from going out.
Sometimes, if there were special circumstances at home and no way to take the children to the nursery, they would also ask the guards to help drop them off.
They were very happy to help run errands. After all, they were all comrades-in-arms with revolutionary bonds, and they watched over these children as if they were their own.
By the time the two of them returned to the second floor, they saw the guard had placed the things at the door and was standing there keeping watch.
That guard knew Qiao Lanshu's identity, she was Commander Qin's family member!
Huang Erling said, Young comrade, thank you for your hard work. Come in and have a cup of tea.
The young comrade quickly shook his head, No need, Sister-in-law. I will head back to my post now.
Their guardhouse had two people on duty, and usually, the requirements weren't that strict, so one of them could step out to help run errands and such.
Qiao Lanshu hurried to open the door, went inside, and brought out all the remaining walnut pastries. She shoved them into the guard's hands and said, You work hard standing guard. Take these to fill your stomach.
The guard absolutely refused to accept them, No need, Sister-in-law. We have rules; we cannot accept your things.
In fact, apart from what the military provided, they were not allowed to accept anything from anyone else.
So, the guard turned around and quickly ran away.
Qiao Lanshu: "..."
Huang Erling helped her carry the things into the house, looked around, and said, "The house we live in is very new. Look, the walls are all white, so there is no need to paste newspapers over them. By the way, did you forget to buy a pot today?"
Qiao Lanshu smiled and said, "There is no need to buy a pot. Commander Qin has one in his dorm, and he will bring it over."
Huang Erling smiled and said, "That works. I have to go now; the kids are about to finish school. I need to pick them up and buy some groceries on the way. Next time you want to buy groceries and don't know the way, just come find me, and I will take you."
Qiao Lanshu gratefully walked her to the door and said, "Sister Ling, thank you so much for your trouble today."
Huang Erling waved her hand. "No need to be so polite. We are neighbors now. As the saying goes, a distant relative is not as good as a near neighbor. Let's get along well and help each other out."
Qiao Lanshu nodded and watched Huang Erling return to the house next door.
She then began to organize the things she had just bought today.
However, she realized that everything she bought today was for daily use; she had forgotten to buy any food.
She figured she would just ask Qin Yuanzheng to buy some when he came back later.
Moreover, she felt troubled looking at the fabric and cotton she had brought back. She didn't know how to make clothes, so she would need to find someone to help her with these materials. She had forgotten to ask Huang Erling just now.
She went next door again and caught Huang Erling right before she left. When she asked her, Huang Erling immediately said, "Sister, if you trust me, just give the materials to me and I will make them for you. Look at the clothes I am wearing—what do you think? I made them all myself."
Huang Erling happened to be unemployed and had a lot of free time. She often took on odd jobs, making clothes and quilts for others to earn some pocket money.
Of course, Qiao Lanshu trusted her. She immediately replied, "Of course I trust you."
As she spoke, she took out a ten-yuan note and pressed it into Huang Erling's hand. "Sister Ling, I need a padded cotton jacket, a set of everyday clothes, and two thick mattresses. I am not sure if there is enough cotton, so could you take a look for me? If it is not enough, I will go buy more."
She had run out of cotton ration coupons, but she could ask Qin Yuanzheng if he had any.
Neither of them had anyone to help prepare their bedding. They needed two mattresses for the bed and two quilts, all of which had to be newly made. After all, Qin Yuanzheng's quilts were single-sized ones issued by the military, which they couldn't use now that they were married.
Huang Erling handed the money back to her and said, "I don't need this much. Five yuan is enough. Let's move the things to my house first, and I will rush to get the clothes done for you tonight."
Huang Erling was a woman of action. She immediately carried the newly bought fabric and cotton to her house next door, accepted five yuan from Qiao Lanshu, and then went out to pick up her children.
...
Meanwhile, Qin Yuanzheng thought that since they were moving today, he probably wouldn't have time to cook for his wife. So, he took two aluminum lunchboxes, got some food from the cafeteria, and then walked out of his office carrying them.
He first returned to his dormitory to gather his clothes and daily necessities, along with a steamer, a wok, a spatula, and other kitchen utensils. He put them all into the car, ready to take them to their new home.
His dormitory was quite empty, as he didn't have many belongings to begin with.
The furniture belonged to the military, so he couldn't take it with him.
He looked around, saw nothing else worth taking, stepped out of the dorm, and locked the door.
As he came out, he saw his cousin Yang Wenyan approaching.
Yang Wenyan was pushing a bicycle and said, "Yuanzheng, I finally found you. Your sister-in-law made a pork and vegetable stew tonight. Hurry up and come back with me to eat."
Qin Yuanzheng used to go to Yang Wenyan's house for dinner from time to time.
But now, he shook his head and said, "No thanks, Cousin. I have things to do."
Yang Wenyan thought he was just unwilling to go. He sighed and said, "I am really sorry about what happened with Wang Huiping last time. Your sister-in-law and I truly didn't know anything about it. Please don't take it to heart."
Qin Yuanzheng nodded. "I know, Cousin. I got married. I will be busy moving these next two days, and I am hosting a wedding banquet in three days. You should bring my sister-in-law over for dinner then."
Yang Wenyan: "..."
Yang Wenyan thought he had misheard.
He stared blankly at Qin Yuanzheng. "Yuanzheng, what did you just say?"
Got a marriage certificate?
What certificate? With whom?
It couldn't possibly be Wang Huiping, could it?
