Chapter 13: Wang Daquie

Cornmeal porridge, pickled radish strips, and black steamed corn buns.

Looking at the food on the square table, Li Aiguo felt a sourness in his mouth.

In his past life, he lived the life of a high-end club model; in this life, he was eating coarse grains and vegetables. The disparity was almost unbearable.

To be fair, Li Aiguo actually had a fair amount of money on him—over two hundred and twenty yuan. In the future, that would be equivalent to at least a "ten-thousand-yuan household."

Occasionally buying half a jin of meat, eating a dish of scrambled eggs, or cooking a fish shouldn't be considered excessive.

It was just that...

He had money now, but he had no coupons, and he couldn't buy grain.

In this era, resources were scarce—extremely scarce. Grain could not be supplied freely.

To ensure the basic survival of the nation's people, the state had implemented a unified purchase and marketing policy for grain three years ago.

Two years ago, the "Provisional Measures for the Printing of Grain Ration Coupons for Towns and Municipalities" officially went into effect.

Subsequently, various types of coupons flooded society, becoming a necessity for urban life.

There were two sources for coupons.

One was the official way—distributed monthly by neighborhood committees or work units.

The other was less official—purchasing them at the "pigeon market."

Li Aiguo had long since exhausted his grain and vegetable coupons for the month, so he had no choice but to use the less official method.

"It looks like I'll have to make a trip to the pigeon market tomorrow morning."

Swallowing a piece of the black corn bun that felt a bit scratchy against his throat, Li Aiguo made up his mind.

Two-thirty in the morning—the same time as Old Man Zhou the skinflint.

Li Aiguo climbed out of his quilt, put on his black laborer's trousers, pulled on a short-sleeved shirt, stepped into his yellow rubber boots, and walked to the door.

Suddenly, he turned back, pinched the bridge of his nose, and gave a bitter smile: "It seems I still haven't adapted to this era."

Li Aiguo bent down and rummaged through a wooden crate, finding an old raincoat. He felt the thick material, looked at his short-sleeved shirt, hesitated, and ultimately put the raincoat back.

Instead, he picked up a tattered woolen hat nearby and pulled it onto his head.

The black woolen hat happened to have two holes in it; after pulling it down, Li Aiguo looked at himself in the mirror and couldn't help but click his tongue: "Talk about being fully covered!"

"This will do."

Li Aiguo put on his hat, tucked his money into his pocket, grabbed the household's only appliance—a flashlight—and left the house.

It was two in the morning. The courtyard was pitch black, save for the dim, yellowish glow of the streetlights on the main road outside.

The stars were bright, and a cool breeze drifted by.

If the hat weren't so thick, it would have been even more comfortable.

The closest pigeon market to the courtyard was located next to the Xinbei Bridge.

Leaving the courtyard, Li Aiguo hurried toward the Xinbei Bridge, following the dim yellow lights.

There were few pedestrians on the road. The few that were there were all wrapped up tightly; one look told you they were "of the same kind." When they crossed paths, they would quickly step back to maintain distance.

After turning through several winding intersections, a wide expanse suddenly opened up before him.

During the day, this was a second-hand market, but by the early hours of the morning, it transformed into the pigeon market.

It wasn't that the people at the pigeon market didn't want to change locations, but if they stayed elsewhere, the early morning noise would disturb the residents.

Most people woken from their sleep were not in a good mood; they would rush to the police station, and the market sellers could only wait to be raided.

In fact, the Xinbei Bridge pigeon market had been cleared several times, but to no effect. People had to eat and dress; living people couldn't be held back by their own needs. Consequently, the scale of the pigeon market had actually expanded.

In the past, stalls were only set up around Suolong Well, but now, one could see the shadows of lights just past the teahouse on the northeast corner.

Li Aiguo wore his "robbery hat" properly, leaving only his eyes exposed, and strode into the pigeon market.

The sellers in the market laid out old newspapers or scraps of paper on the ground to display their samples. The stall owners sat beside them, illuminating their goods with flashlights; those without flashlights would place a kerosene lamp nearby for light.

The actual goods were hidden in nearby nooks and crannies.

This way, customers could accurately find what they needed.

If a raid occurred, the stall owners could drop their wares and bolt. Even if they were unlucky enough to be caught, a handful of millet would usually prevent them from being formally convicted.

This was precious experience gained through long-term struggle.

*As expected, the wisdom of the masses is high,* Li Aiguo thought to himself. With his hands behind his back, he followed the flow of people into the flickering lights and shadows of the market.

Li Aiguo didn't rush to buy anything. He first circled the market to memorize the exits, then browsed the stalls one by one. When he found something of interest, he would squat down and gesture prices with the owner.

However, what puzzled him was that the stall owners seemed a bit afraid when they saw him. When gesturing prices, they were reluctant and even shrank back.

*Is it just because I'm a bit more heavily disguised?*

*We're all in the same business in the pigeon market, yet they're so timid. Truly pathetic.*

"Not selling fish? Then why even set up a stall?"

After spotting a large carp only to be ignored by the owner, Li Aiguo stood up in frustration.

It was only because there was no management office here that he didn't go to file a complaint.

The worker running the fish stall hung his head and remained silent, acting as if the man before him didn't exist.

*Fine, if they won't sell, I can't force them.*

Li Aiguo stood up, preparing to head to the neighboring meat stall.

A heavy voice drifted into his ear: "Whoa, that hat... hiss... man, you're going too far."

Turning his head, he saw a burly young man leaning against a corner, arms crossed, looking his way.

This young man was also an oddity; he actually had a newspaper pasted over his face, with two holes cut out so a pair of blinking eyes could watch him.

"A guy with a newspaper on his face has the nerve to say someone else is going too far."

Li Aiguo put his hands in his pockets, prepared to argue with this young man about whether the woolen hat or the newspaper was more "excessive."

To his surprise, upon hearing his voice, the young man froze. The newspaper on his face fluttered upward: "Li Ermao?"

"Ermao" was Li Aiguo's nickname from the Railway Technical Institute.

It originated from the fact that after entering puberty, two little hairs had actually grown on his "rice grains."

Though he had steeled his heart and plucked them, the nickname had stuck.

Only his former classmates would know that name.

The voice sounded familiar, and Li Aiguo realized that the "Newspaper Monster" opposite him was named Wang Dakui. They had been classmates for a year before Wang had dropped out due to a family crisis.

Li Aiguo had a very good relationship with Wang Dakui. There was another classmate as well; the three of them often snuck into the train tracks and, while the old watchman wasn't looking, climbed onto the train cars to satisfy their curiosity.

"Ermao, this isn't the place to talk. Follow me."

After recognizing Li Aiguo, Wang Dakui looked around, led Li Aiguo through a series of turns, and arrived at a stall in a corner.

This spot was very remote, with no one around. On a scrap of newspaper on the ground sat a single cracked mountain walnut.

Wang Dakui snatched up the walnut, abandoned the newspaper, and led Li Aiguo into a nearby alley.

The alley was narrow, barely wide enough for one person to pass. It was pitch black and the ground was damp and sticky. Li Aiguo followed closely behind Wang Dakui.

They walked all the way to the end of the alley before Wang Dakui stopped, pulled out a key, and unlocked a courtyard gate.

"Ermao, this is my house."

"I lost those two hairs long ago. If you keep calling me that, watch out or I'll deck you."

Just as Li Aiguo was about to argue, he saw light flicker in a small room to the north, accompanied by a raspy voice.

"Dakui, is that you? Why so early today? Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened, Ma. It's still early before dawn. Sleep a bit longer. I have a friend here."

Leaning toward the window, Wang Dakui called out inside and listened to the movement within before leading Li Aiguo into the eastern room.