Chronicle of the 70s
Chapter 68 - 066 Buy a bicycle monthly ticket for an additional 60 - s

Chapter 68: 066 Buy a bicycle monthly ticket for an additional 60 Chapters

Li Xianglu frowned as she swallowed the bun in her mouth and with a slight pause, she asked, "Why would the son of the Li Sanhe family say such a thing?"

Qin Xi looked up at Li Xianglu and remained silent.

Qin Zhen, with a mouthful of bun, exclaimed, "He must be sick in the head."

Qin Xi frowned at her brother speaking while eating and lightly smacked him, signaling him to move away from the bowl as she said, "The situation is probably not that simple. Don’t go out alone these days."

Just thinking about Li Erfu’s house gave Qin Xi a headache. That girl being abducted was frightening enough, and now what issue was stirring up?

Meanwhile, Ge Sanmei was dining at Li Sanhe’s house, taking a big gulp from a bowl of corn porridge and then biting into a somewhat tough piece of cornbread with a hint of disdain, "Don’t you know to serve something nice when you have guests over?"

Li Sanhe’s wife, Qu Kuxing, scooted over with an ingratiating smile, "There’s plenty of time ahead, mother-in-law. Once the marriage is agreed upon, everything will be easy to negotiate. But now that your daughter has been adopted into another family, what to do? Can you actually make the decision on this marriage matter?"

Ge Sanmei slurped down half a bowl of thin porridge in one go and took a big bite of the bread before saying, "Of course, even if she’s been adopted out, she still came from my womb, didn’t she? How could I not have a say in her marriage?"

She added a large helping of cold mixed eggplant to her plate, took a bite, nodded, and said, "Your family’s eggplant is not bad, meaty and thick. Bring me a couple when I leave; Er Fu at home loves them."

Qu Kuxing rolled her eyes behind the kang table, somewhat disdainful. Ge Sanmei always boasted about her own family’s wealth, yet she hankered for a few vegetables too. These eggplants really were good though, growing so well and maturing early. She recalled that the eggplant seedlings had been given by Ge Sanmei’s domineering daughter to her niece.

It seems she was also quite skilled in the fields. Once her son becomes a live-in son-in-law, wouldn’t everything in that household belong to them, including the city residence registration? Thinking up to this point, Qu Kuxing cheerfully agreed.

The next morning, bright and early, Li Xianglu and Qin Xi went to the commune on foot and caught the first bus to the county town. Arriving there at just about nine thirty, it was during the busy farming season, and on a Monday too. With people off to work and school, the streets weren’t very crowded.

The two headed straight to the third floor of the Jinquan Department Store where the bicycles were sold.

The employees had just started their shift and were lazily dozing in their seats. Seeing the two young people approach, they barely lifted their eyelids before returning to their naps.

Qin Xi had already received a bicycle ticket sent by her father a while ago, and had enough industrial coupons and money. Mr. Li had suggested waiting a bit longer, so they ended up buying the bikes together today.

Li Xianglu also wanted to buy a bike. Grandpa Lan had saved up enough industrial coupons; twenty-four in total, and many had been borrowed to make up the amount.

The salesperson in the bicycle section was a young woman, who lazily wiped a bicycle down and frowned at the approaching pair, "Just look, don’t touch." She muttered under her breath, adding, "You can’t afford to pay if you break it."

Qin Xi was used to such attitudes, but Li Xianglu, slightly annoyed, said, "Auntie, we’re here to buy bicycles!"

The young lady was left agape, unable to utter a word in response to being called "auntie".

Li Xianglu’s eyes caught sight of a bicycle at the back and lit up, "Wow, it’s a ’Phoenix Head’!"

This was a ’Raleigh’ bicycle from the UK, named for its badge resembling the head of a phoenix. Known as ’Phoenix Head Bicycle’ among the people, the brand was famed for its fine craftsmanship and quality materials. Even decades later, it was still considered one of the best among bicycles.

Li Xianglu remembered reading about this bicycle when she was in school. After the establishment of the new government, the country had imported two or three batches of these bikes. It was indeed rare to see one in such a small county town, and this was the only one left.

The salesperson looked down her nose, saying, "This ’Phoenix Head’ is the last one left in the whole county. Originally there were four, but the public and safety bureaus and the Armed Forces Department bought three. Now only this one remains. Three hundred yuan, twenty-four industrial coupons, and one bicycle ticket!" After sizing up the two, her head tilted high, as if to imply they couldn’t even afford a bike chain.

Li Xianglu openly rolled her eyes and turned to Qin Xi, "Do you like this one? The quality is really good, and look how smooth the design is." She added for clarity, fearing Qin Xi wouldn’t understand the quality, "It could carry three Qin Zhens without breaking."

Qin Xi shook her head with a hint of amusement and then earnestly said, "Since you like it, I’ll buy it."

Li Xianglu’s eyes sparkled as she promptly nodded. The ’Phoenix Head’ bike was the only 28-inch men’s model left; she could only buy the 26-inch ’Feige’ next to it, which was produced in Tianjin and cost 168 yuan. At that time, the quality was still very good—there was no skimping on materials or counterfeit goods from small factories.

The sales clerk sold two bicycles in half an hour, finding it somewhat unbelievable as she checked their payment documents. She even called over a hardware salesman from next door to help verify them for a while before finally taking the money and paperwork to the cash register.

After taking the money and issuing the receipt, the two left the department store with their bicycles. However, on the third floor, Li Xianglu could only slowly move downward, until on the second floor Qin Xi quickly ran up to take her bicycle and go down.

The two cheerily rode out of the department store on their bicycles. Qin Xi watched Li Xianglu’s adept cycling, not bothering to ask how she suddenly knew how to ride, but just looking at her with a smile.

Qin Xi had something to take care of, while Li Xianglu needed to deliver a basket of vegetables to Grandpa Lan, so the two parted ways.

Li Xianglu rode her bicycle straight to the retirement community’s courtyard. The young guard already recognized Li Xianglu, but he still made a phone call to report before letting her in.

Once inside, Li Xianglu pushed her bike along slowly. It was still early, and some people were returning from buying breakfast outside.

When Li Xianglu arrived, Mr. Lan was in the courtyard having breakfast. Seeing her, he happily stood up, went over to help her with the basket of vegetables, and said while looking at her bicycle with a smile, "Oh, you finally bought it. Look at how stingy your grandpa is. I told him to buy it earlier, but he didn’t listen. He said he wanted to wait a bit longer."

Li Xianglu stopped her bicycle with a laugh, then responded to Mr. Lan’s invitation to have breakfast, "No need, Grandpa Lan, I’ve already eaten. I had vegetarian buns for breakfast, made with our home-grown vegetables — they were really delicious."

Seeing the girl’s genuine refusal, Mr. Lan didn’t insist anymore and cheerfully finished his breakfast. At that moment, a neatly dressed young man came out of the house—it was Lan Yunian, the same person Li Xianglu had seen from a distance last time.

Author’s Note: Thank you to Anonymous Zhang for the monthly ticket, and to my good buddy.

Thanks to Little Nvzi for several monthly tickets.

Thank you to Zheng Yinzhi for quite a few monthly tickets.

Thank you to Little Love 93 for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to "123" for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to Soi for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to not buying Carrefour for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to Mei Shan for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to You Ran Su Yue for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to tiantiangg for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to hellwaker for the monthly ticket.

Thank you to wangdeeabao for many monthly tickets!

Thank you to yesui for the monthly ticket!

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