Chapter 84: Whoever Feeds Is Mother

The colleague immediately began to plead, and Chen Weiguo pretended that he had been worn down by their persistence and relented with a soft heart. Soon enough, everyone in their department knew, and it was no longer possible to keep it from the neighboring department either.

Perhaps it was because they had been hungry for too long, or maybe everyone just wanted to have a better New Year. There was no need to even go to Fang Ya’s unit—the three hundred jin of fish, divvied up at three to five jin per person, with some gritting their teeth to buy eight or ten jin, quickly sold out within Chen Weiguo’s workplace. Of course, none of the dried sweet potatoes were left either.

“Weiguo, we really owe you this time,” one of the section chiefs at Chen Weiguo’s unit said to him.

It truly was timely. At home, his mother had been starving herself to save food for her son, to the point her vision was starting to blur.

Everyone everywhere was starving, and the various work units were all trying to find solutions. After all, if word got out that someone had died of starvation in their unit, it would be a huge problem.

Their unit had been worrying about what to do, and just then, Chen Weiguo managed to bring in fish and dried sweet potatoes. Dried sweet potatoes counted as food too—even if there were just two sacks, or even twenty more, it would never be too much.

At this point, even wheat bran would be fought over—at least it could be mixed with wild greens as a meal substitute to fill their stomachs, which was better than eating clay or drinking cold water to stave off hunger.

Chen Weiguo smiled sheepishly. “Chief, you’re too kind. As long as you don’t blame me, I’m relieved.”

“Blame you? What for!” The section chief’s expression turned serious. “We’re just helping our fellow farmers, after all. We’re all comrades in the revolution, just with different roles—there’s no division between us!”

In these hard times, if one family had firewood and another had food, refusing to adapt meant freezing or starving to death. Besides, since everyone in the unit had bought some, no one would talk, and nothing would come of it.

What’s more, everyone knew the risks of buying things on the black market. It was safer to buy from people you knew; everyone knew each other’s backgrounds, and no one had to fear betrayal.

If only two or three people bought in secret, there might be reason to worry. But if everyone bought, no one would turn themselves in, so safety came with numbers.

After a few words of small talk, the section chief finally reminded him, “Weiguo, if something like this comes up again, remember your colleagues in the unit.”

The implication was clear: if there was ever more food, fish, or vegetables to sell, he should prioritize the people in his own unit—after all, he made his living there too.

Chen Weiguo nodded repeatedly. “Absolutely, definitely.”

He made an excuse that he needed to see off the villagers and help them buy some things, so he was generously granted two days’ leave.

The section chief, smoking a cigarette, reflected that being close to home really had its advantages. No wonder Chen Weiguo had tried every means to transfer back here. Now, with city dwellers starving, only those in the countryside had land and could quietly keep some food in reserve.

Many people in the city without urban residency couldn’t hold on anymore and had taken their families back to the countryside. At least there, they could have something to eat and wouldn’t starve to death. If nothing else, they could dig up wild greens from the mountains to get by.

Who knew when these wretched days would end?

The section chief shook his head, stubbed out his cigarette hard under his foot, and as he turned to leave, his steps were a little lighter—tonight, his mother could finally have a proper meal.

A pound of fish at the supply store cost thirty cents and required ration coupons—one fish coupon per month. If the store didn’t have any, you couldn’t buy any, even with a coupon. So when fish from Niuluo Village was sold at fifty cents a pound, Chen Weiguo’s unit snapped it all up in no time.

It was a rare opportunity; if Chen Weiguo hadn’t just transferred here, they wouldn’t have had a chance.

Fang Ya had already reached out to her colleagues, but to her surprise, the three hundred jin of fish were gone in a flash. Her colleagues were still hoping for more, not wanting to miss this chance, so Chen Daliu conferred with Chen Weiguo, and they decided to take the ox cart back to the village and bring another two hundred jin of fish.

By the time they made the second trip, it was already past eight in the evening. Those who had been waiting anxiously had no complaints—the price was already agreed upon, everyone knew how much they wanted, so they simply weighed their portion, paid, and went home.

Bai Xi didn’t sell any fish, since both she and Xiao Hei ate a lot, but she did have Chen Daliu take two hundred jin of dried sweet potatoes to sell. Fang Ya’s unit was quite pleased to be able to buy some as well.

On the way home, the three of them were starving, but their hearts were light and happy.

“Weiguo, your section chief is quite a decent fellow,” said Chen Daliu, who, as the person most used to dealing with both villagers and city folk, noted that this was the first time he’d ever seen an official offer him a glass of water.

Chen Weiguo laughed. “Chief, you don’t know—before today, that section chief always called me Comrade Chen Weiguo. Today, it changed to just Comrade Weiguo.”

Chen Daliu instantly understood and, as he drove the ox cart, muttered, “Ah, they’re all sharp characters. Whoever has milk is the mother, as they say.”

“Weiguo, you need to be cautious. Watch out for someone trying to use you as a scapegoat or trip you up.”

They were from the same village—if something happened to Chen Weiguo, it would look bad for Niuluo Village as well. Of course, he didn’t hesitate to offer this reminder, though he also knew Chen Weiguo was no stranger to the ways of the city.

Chen Weiguo replied, “Chief, don’t worry. Even though a lot of people bought from me, no one would dare make trouble—after all, it was the whole unit. And besides, if you look at it closely, I was only the go-between; I didn’t take anything for myself. If anyone tried to get me in trouble, they’d be implicating themselves.”

Fang Ya chimed in, “Chief, you really don’t need to worry. No one wants to starve, and other units are quietly doing the same, just keeping it to themselves.”

Chen Daliu patted his chest and laughed. “I’m not worried—especially since we have the ledger. With it, you’ll be fine.”

When the two looked puzzled, Chen Daliu explained, “You think I told you to record everyone’s name and quantity just to keep things straight?”

Fang Ya asked, “Wasn’t that the reason?” She remembered the chief saying the ledger was Bai Xi’s idea. At the time, she’d thought Bai Xi was young but clever.

“Of course not,” Chen Daliu replied. “With this ledger, if anyone tries to harm you, they won’t get away with it—the names are all there, with their fingerprints, too.”

At this, Chen Weiguo and Fang Ya immediately understood and nodded in agreement.

That’s right. Back then, with everything in chaos, everyone thought the ledger was just to keep track of who bought what and to settle accounts with the villagers later. No one realized there was another purpose.

Though Chen Daliu didn’t look back, he could guess the couple must be quite impressed by now. He hummed with satisfaction to himself—he’d only realized this later, but keeping accounts had been Bai Xi’s idea, which showed her foresight.

All three of them admired Bai Xi’s far-sightedness.