Chapter 23: Why hasn't he/she come back yet?

Captain Lin pondered for a moment and said, "There isn't much fine grain, mostly coarse grains. There's corn grits, millet, and cornmeal, but the cornmeal is very fine; it was ground by the new machine the commune recently acquired."

Lu Qiaoge nodded. "Fine, as long as they can be exchanged, I'll take some of everything."

She then opened her canvas bag and took out everything inside.

"Captain, you decide on the exchange."

The Captain's eyes lit up with surprise when he spotted a flashlight. "A flashlight? And it's new?"

It wasn't just the flashlight; there were also rubber shoes, cigarettes, and a box of number one batteries. Just these items alone were quite expensive.

The grain in their brigade wasn't new either; it was all from last year, so even for an exchange, it had to be based on last year's prices.

A pair of men's sandals cost four yuan at the supply and marketing cooperative, and rubber shoes were five yuan.

Rubber shoes, in particular, were something an average family couldn't afford. Even as the Captain, he couldn't bring himself to buy a pair for himself.

But now, there was no need for money; they could exchange directly for leafy green vegetables and grain.

Moreover, in recent years, northern rural areas hadn't lacked food; almost every household had surplus grain.

Coarse grain was ten cents per jin, and even white flour was only eighteen cents. These items could be exchanged for a significant amount of grain.

Lu Qiaoge pushed the items toward him. "Captain, I'm heading out to help."

With a smile, she walked out of the brigade headquarters.

Seeing her canvas bag was empty, no one thought much of it. Gu Wenbo also glanced at her once before withdrawing his gaze.

Looking at the items, the Captain had a clear idea of the math.

He had made an agreement with Lu Qiaoge: when the truck hauled the vegetables away, he would follow in his horse carriage to the military factory to pick up the exchanged supplies.

Captain Lin thought this was a good plan; that way, the brigade members could take their goods home today.

He couldn't help but put the flashlight batteries in and turn it on. "Aiya, it's so bright! I heard this is military grade."

Happily, the Captain quickly turned it off to save power and carefully placed it in a drawer.

Nowadays, a flashlight like this would cost over two yuan including batteries, but it required an industrial voucher. And industrial vouchers were very hard to come by.

Looking at the things Lu Qiaoge had given him, Captain Lin quietly called the accountant over to calculate how much coarse grain should be given to her.

The accountant was handed a pair of gloves and happily stuffed them into his trouser pocket.

He then said to Captain Lin, "Comrade Lu has solved a major difficulty for us this time. When you go to the commune meeting again, you won't be criticized for being brainless."

The Captain glared at the accountant. "Stop the nonsense and say something useful."

Because of a verbal agreement with the canteen manager that had been voided, he had been scolded by the director for being brainless—why hadn't he thought to put it in writing? He hadn't thought that far ahead at the time.

After his teasing, the accountant continued with a smile, "Comrade Lu also said this isn't just a one-time thing. The leafy greens in our vegetable garden grow fast; there might be another crop in half a month. If the military factory still wants them, even my mother-in-law's garden has plenty of vegetables planted."

He added, "And in the autumn, we'll have cabbage, potatoes, and large radishes from our private plots..."

However, the Captain said cautiously, "There's no rush for the future. Verbal words don't count, but since this one time has helped us immensely, we cannot let Comrade Lu suffer a loss."

The accountant felt very gratified, thinking the Captain had truly learned his lesson from a mistake.

Thus, after the two of them had a private discussion, the accountant went out to continue organizing the vegetable loading, while the Captain went to the warehouse.

Once the leafy greens were all loaded into the large truck, the Captain also loaded the grain and a large basket of vegetables onto the horse carriage, which was fitted with a tailgate.

A young woman asked Lu Qiaoge if she exchanged for eggs. Lu Qiaoge's eyes lit up. "I do, I do!"

The young woman hurried home, and when others saw this, they were also tempted. Without even asking how to exchange, they headed back to their homes.

Lu Qiaoge consulted with the accountant: the members sold to the supply and marketing cooperative at seven cents per egg, so the exchange would be at nine cents.

In the end, they actually exchanged for two baskets of eggs, which Brother Gu carefully placed in a corner of the vehicle.

Lu Qiaoling was sweating profusely from exhaustion. She had to record the members' names, the types and weights of the vegetables, and what they wanted in exchange. She felt she had never been this busy in her life.

In the end, her records matched those of the scorekeeper perfectly.

Gu Wenbo looked at the crowd of members watching him expectantly and didn't know what to say. He hurried to call Little Si, who was playing happily with a group of children. "Little Si, it's time to go home."

Little Si and the tabby cat had purely come along to play. He had even made quite a few friends, mainly because he had shared a piece of candy with them.

As they were leaving, a child held his hand and said, "Come with us next time, and I'll take you to see the big green frog in the pond."

Little Si nodded solemnly.

Lu Qiaoge said to the members with a smile, "Don't worry, everyone. I'm heading back now. I've noted everything you want, and I guarantee I'll bring it all back to you today."

The elderly men and women were anxious, but they weren't worried at all. This was a huge truck; the cost of the fuel alone was likely quite high. Ultimately, this was all being done to solve their difficulties.

Gu Wenbo asked Lu Qiaoge, "Do we need to make another trip?"

"No need. Captain Lin is following us in his horse carriage. Once the vegetables are all exchanged, he'll bring almost everything back in one load."

The distance wasn't far. Without even stepping on the gas, they arrived at the military factory's neighborhood office in no time.

At this moment, Director Hu of the neighborhood office was incessantly asking Huang Juan, "Do you think Gucun Village will raise their prices or refuse to exchange? If that happens, we'll still have to pay the transport team for fuel and labor."

Huang Juan replied, "Didn't you see the vegetables yesterday?"

Indeed, she hadn't just seen them; she had eaten them. Of course, they were all obtained through exchange. The chives were very fresh, and the chive pockets were truly delicious.

However, it wasn't until the truck left that Director Hu realized Lu Qiaoge was merely an unemployed youth who only held a letter of introduction. Moreover, he had forgotten to tell Lu Qiaoge that she could call the neighborhood office once she reached the brigade headquarters.

Though, perhaps Gucun Village didn't even have a telephone.

Ren Xiaocui looked out the window. By this time, many family members who had heard the news were already bringing unused household items to exchange. And the crowd was growing.

In fact, it hadn't been fully publicized; to be safe, it had only been promoted on a small scale, saying that a batch of leafy greens would arrive at the neighborhood office at noon today and could be exchanged directly for daily necessities.

Therefore, many people came with daily necessities they rarely used. Some vegetable baskets even contained soy sauce, vinegar, or packaged salt. Many people brought matches, candles, soap, towels, and white porcelain mugs—various labor protection goods.

Before long, over a hundred people had gathered there. The bustling crowd even drew curious passersby.

As they learned what was happening today, they wondered who had made the connection, but they didn't know it was Lu Qiaoge. Still, leafy greens! They wanted to exchange for them too.

Just then, a union official arrived to deliver documents. Seeing the scene, he asked Old Hu in surprise, "Director Hu, what are all these people doing, carrying vegetable baskets and nylon bags?"