"Xiao Feng, your job is settled. Hua Zhu is about to graduate from high school, and jobs are impossible to find now; there's no demand for temporary workers either. I asked Uncle Lu, and he said the Mechanical Factory probably won't be hiring workers this year, so Hua Zhu might have to go to the countryside."
Qiao Jiuru was tidying her son's bed for the night, while telling him about the problem her youngest daughter was also facing.
Now, attending high school no longer allowed one to take the college entrance exam; high school graduation was the end. One either took over a parent's job, bought a job, or went to the countryside.
"Mom, Little Sister can't go to the countryside; it's too hard there. She can't endure such hardship."
Su Feng was only twenty-one this year. He graduated from high school at seventeen and was recommended to medical school as the top student in the city. But the situation now was completely different from when he was back then. Little Sister didn't have a recommendation quota and couldn't take over their parents' jobs. If she still didn't have a job by then, she would have to go to the countryside.
"Don't I know that?! So, your father, Uncle Lu, and I discussed it to see if we could get Hua Zhu to go to the countryside near the Hospital where you'll be working. That way, you two siblings can look out for each other. You'll be working in the military, and Hua Zhu will have a brother in the military, which can save her a lot of hardship. Plus, when the time comes, you can give her some money and tickets, and her life won't be bad at all."
"Xiao Feng, this is why your mother and I arranged for you to join the military Hospital early. The main reason was to have you help your sister. You go and establish yourself in the military first; it will be good for both you and your sister."
"Mom and Dad have considered everything very thoroughly, Xiao Feng, you must listen to them. Once the employment notice from the military Hospital arrives, you should report immediately. Your Elder Brother and your Elder Sister-in-law are still at home, so you can focus on your work without worry."
In the living room, not only was Su Huaiyuan present, but also Su Ze, who already knew about the crisis facing his family. The father and son tacitly persuaded him together.
"Mom and Dad, I'll listen to you. When I start working, I'll also send you money."
Although Su Feng was very intelligent, he trusted his family implicitly, so he had no doubts or reluctance whatsoever. He was even thinking about sending money to his parents after he started working.
Qiao Jiuru and Su Huaiyuan exchanged a knowing glance, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
In this era, besides reading, there were no other entertainment activities in the evening. So, the family went to bed before ten o'clock.
The bed in Su Huaiyuan and Qiao Jiuru's room was empty. The two who should have been asleep in that bed were currently sleeping in the courtyard bedroom within the Ink Bracelet space.
The couple entered the space several times every day and discovered that time inside the space was twice as slow as outside. So, they agreed to rest in the space at night and leave for the black market around three in the morning, which meant they wouldn't worry about not getting enough sleep and affecting their daytime work.
At three in the morning, the couple emerged from the space, having slept for a full seven hours. They were now full of energy.
They quietly took a few cloth bags and set off on their bicycles.
Today was Sunday, a day off from work, so the couple planned to exchange for more provisions and then visit the properties under their names to continue collecting superficial items.
Qiao Jiuru and Su Huaiyuan visited two black markets consecutively and managed to buy three hundred catties of rice, two hundred and fifty catties of flour, twenty catties of brown sugar, one hundred eggs, three old hens, twelve salted fish, five catties of dried mushrooms and fungus, three catties of wool yarn, six catties of cotton, and over thirty various ration tickets.
Each time the couple obtained goods, they would take advantage of the darkness to find an empty place and store them in the space. Once it started to get light enough to see people, they went to a two-and-a-half courtyard house belonging to the Su family.
There were many good things in this Su family courtyard, but the most valuable items were not kept here. Su Huaiyuan's father and elder brother were very farsighted before going abroad; they did not place Su Huaiyuan's share of the family fortune in such an obvious location, but instead hid it separately in three inconspicuous small houses not under his name.
However, this courtyard still contained over a dozen large gold bars, over a dozen pieces of jewelry of varying value, as well as furniture and some daily household items.
This courtyard had not yet been searched, and all the items were still there. Qiao Jiuru, without a word, collected all the gold bars, jewelry, furniture, and daily necessities into the space.
Qiao Jiuru and Su Huaiyuan spent less than an hour in total in this courtyard, completely emptying the entire house.
Afterward, they went to a nearby National Restaurant for breakfast, ordering both wontons and noodles, and even packing fifteen meat buns and steamed buns each, along with ten fried dough sticks.
Anyway, they weren't short on money now; any missing tickets could just be bought with money at the black market.
After breakfast, the couple began shopping again at the Department Store and Supply and Marketing Cooperative located far from Peking University, at the other end of the city.
Their main focus was on buying things that could fill their stomachs and provide warmth. In just these two days, Qiao Jiuru had only spent a little over one thousand yuan out of the five thousand yuan she had taken out. Money in this era truly lasted a long time.
At the same time, Su Ze was also shopping at another Department Store. The tickets he held were given by Qiao Jiuru. She had asked him to buy inconspicuous items, such as brown sugar, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, alcohol, milk candy, biscuits, and pastries—items commonly used in a household.
Su Feng and Su Hua Zhu, who rarely returned home, had slept well. When they woke up, their Elder Sister-in-law, Zhou Wanwan, had already prepared breakfast.
"Where are Mom and Dad?! Are they not up yet?!"
Their parents' bedroom door was still closed, and the siblings thought their parents hadn't woken up yet. Su Feng quietly asked his Elder Brother.
Su Ze had already finished breakfast and was about to go out for shopping. Hearing his younger brother's words, he explained their parents' whereabouts.
"Mom and Dad left before dawn to buy some things for you to take to your unit."
So that's how it was!
Only then did the siblings realize, sitting down quietly to eat. Afterward, they stayed home to help their Elder Sister-in-law with their nephew, clean the house, and do some chores.