On the first day of the month, the market day, Shen Yunfang had fed the sheep at the production team early in the morning and then set off to find Dashuan's wife at the Wang Family.
Since there were quite a few people heading to the market on this day, young folks like Shen Yunfang and Dashuan's wife couldn't count on the village cart and had to rely on their legs to get there.
It was nearly twenty kilometers from Gaijiatun to the commune, which would take roughly two hours to walk.
Dashuan's wife had also arranged to meet two other young wives she was friendly with, including Shen Erzhu's wife and Wang Jianjun's wife; the four of them walked together on the path leading out of the village.
"Yunfang, did you really have a falling out with Shen Yingxue?" Wang Jianjun's wife was a cheerful person, and without much effort, became chummy with Shen Yunfang, chatting and gossiping as they walked.
"I wouldn't say we've had a falling out, I just stopped picking wild vegetables for her," Shen Yunfang considered her words carefully before replying. Although she didn't want to be taken for a fool, she didn't want to offend anyone either. They were all from the same village, seeing each other all the time, and if she said something unpleasant and it reached the ears of those concerned, that would only create enmity.
"Oh my, and that's not a falling out? I bet Shen Dafu and his family are green with envy whenever they see you," Wang Jianjun's wife said nonchalantly with a wave of her hand.
Indeed, they had had free labor before, and now that she had quit, of course they looked down on her.
"There's nothing I can do about it; I'm really not in good health and can't handle heavy work," Shen Yunfang still tried her best to find excuses. After all, it was always good to have a fig leaf.
"Ha, it's for the best that you fell out. Now that you're not on good terms with Shen Yingxue, I'm not afraid to say, that whole family is just awful. You don't know, but my family's land is right next to theirs. They always try to sneak into our land and take what they can. I've seen it with my own eyes, yet her mother can still blatantly lie and quibble. With a mother like that, what kind of daughter could she raise?" scoffed Wang Jianjun's wife with disdain.
So there was such a backstory.
"You better stop talking about it, you've repeated that story eight hundred times. Can't you talk about something else?" Shen Erzhu's wife chided her.
"There're plenty of lousy things about their family, but I just love to talk about this one," retorted Wang Jianjun's wife defiantly. "Besides, the old saying isn't wrong: 'you reap what you sow.' Just look at Shen Dafu's offspring, isn't Shen Yingxue the fruit of his pretentiousness?"
"You should really keep some virtue in your mouth. That young girl hasn't done anything to offend you," Dashuan's wife said kindly. Although she liked to gossip, she was uncomfortable speaking ill of others behind their backs.
"I just can't stand her arrogance. When she needs you, she's all 'sister this, sister that,' and when she doesn't, her nose is pointed to the sky," complained Wang Jianjun's wife bluntly. "They're all like that in her family, what does she have to be proud of?"
"She's a high school student, of course she has the right to be proud. If you're capable, go to high school yourself, then you can walk with your nose in the air too," said Shen Erzhu's wife.
"Hmph, I'm afraid I'd trip and fall if I couldn't see the road. And don't think I don't know that nowadays high schools hardly teach anything. She goes to school just to kill time and avoid work. Who doesn't see that? Yunfang, you went to high school too. Am I right or not?" Wang Jianjun turned to ask Shen Yunfang.
Schools at that time had been disrupted by the previous years' movements and had become virtually nominal. Therefore, many students would take leave to go home to work after starting high school. Using connections at graduation time, they could still obtain a diploma and technically be high school graduates. Stubborn ones like Shen Yingxue who persisted in attending school were indeed rare.
Shen Yunfang couldn't remember, so she could only chuckle twice.
"Why are you asking Yunfang? Are you bullying her?" Dashuan's wife frowned a little, protective of Yunfang, whom she had brought along. She wouldn't allow Yunfang to be belittled.
"Oh come on, you're just thinking too much. How am I bullying anyone? I just wanted Yunfang to confirm it for me," Wang Jianjun's wife realized that asking Shen Yunfang so directly was a bit tactless, as it implied that Shen Yunfang wasn't much either. "Yunfang, sister didn't mean anything by it; don't take it to heart, okay? Sister might be straightforward, but I don't have a bad bone in my body. You'll see once we spend more time together," she reassured.
"Pfft, you're quite something, aren't you? Is it common for someone to sing their own praises like this?" Shen Erzhu's wife couldn't stand it anymore.
"This isn't about singing my own praises, what I'm saying is all true," Wang Jianjun's wife argued loudly.
With just these few people bantering, the walk wasn't boring at all.
However, gradually, Shen Yunfang began to fall behind.
The road leading out of the village was a dirt path, and at the beginning, Shen Yunfang hadn't felt anything, but after about an hour of walking, her feet started to hurt; she felt the road stretched on endlessly, wondering when it would end.
"Tired, huh?" Dashuan's wife saw Yunfang continually rubbing her legs and knew the girl must be worn out from the walk.
"Yeah, how much farther?" She had never walked such a long distance and was suddenly struggling to cope.
"We've only walked half the distance," said Wang Jianjun's wife, who was used to such walks; trekking back and forth for twenty or thirty li was nothing to them.
"What? That much longer?" Shen Yunfang really cried out in distress, feeling if she continued to the destination, she was sure to develop blisters on her feet.
No matter what, they'd already reached the halfway point; there's no turning back an arrow once it's been shot, so they had to tough it out and keep going.
By the time the group arrived at the market, the sun was almost directly overhead, with Shen Yunfang having slowed down everyone's pace.
Shen Yunfang, who initially didn't want to take another step, found renewed energy after seeing the vast market and eagerly pulled the others to start exploring from the beginning.
The market was actually set up on a Drying Yard next to the commune, about the size of a basketball court.
It was already the end of October, and the weather had turned cold, so the merchandise at the market was quite limited.
It was divided into several sections: one for vegetables, where, at this time of year since the gardens were closed, they sold winter vegetables like cabbage, potatoes, radishes, leaf mustard, carrots, spring onions, ginger, garlic, and other easily stored produce. Another section sold groceries, with vendors offering tofu, Douya, and vermicelli. Another sold daily necessities, such as pots, pans, ladles, basins, and baskets woven from willow branches. And there was also a section for livestock; at this season, there were only a few piglets and lambs for sale.
"Sister-in-law, are they allowing private transactions now?" Shen Yunfang asked, somewhat excited. Clearly, the situation in the village she was in was different from what she remembered from her past life. Pigs and chickens were allowed to be raised freely, so perhaps private trading was also permitted.
"What are you thinking, child?" Dashuan's wife quickly pulled her over, fearing that what she had just said would be overheard.
Wang Jianjun's wife and Shen Erzhu's wife also looked at her as if she were a fool.
"Is that not allowed?" Maybe she had guessed wrong.
"Of course, it's not allowed. That's considered an economic crime, the crime of speculation and profiteering," said Dashuan's wife in a low voice.
"But, all these..." Shen Yunfang pointed at the market, confused; weren't people selling there?