My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 74 Preparation
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Zhou Jiye and Xu Guoqing have been away from Shanghai for several days now. They should have arrived in Lingnan long ago, but communication is inconvenient in this era, unlike in the future when everyone has a mobile phone and can contact each other immediately by sending a message or making a phone call.

Telephone penetration is pitifully low these days, sending telegrams is a huge hassle, and writing letters is even more difficult. A letter sent from Lingnan to Shanghai can take several days, and the person might even return before the letter is still on its way.

After Zhou Jiye and the others left, Lin Ying was left alone in Shanghai. Having already quit her job selling tea eggs at the movie theater, Lin Ying had nothing to do for the time being. Since returning to Shanghai more than half a year ago, Lin Ying had been busy, especially during the days when she was selling tea eggs. She basically had no rest. Taking advantage of this break, she could relax a bit.

He cooked at home, cleaned the house, planted some flowers and plants in the yard, had afternoon tea with Fang Manxia, ​​listened to music, chatted, or took walks nearby. This kind of leisurely life allowed him to relax his constantly tense nerves.

Of course, Lin Ying couldn't stay at home all the time. After a couple of days of having nothing to do, she couldn't sit still anymore. After having lunch at home, Fang Manxia went for her usual afternoon nap, while Lin Ying, having nothing else to do, simply went out and rode her newly purchased bicycle.

Zhou Jiye had a bicycle, but the one he used to go to Lingnan was sitting at home unused. Lin Ying, though she could ride a bike, couldn't possibly ride it. When Zhou Jiye bought the bike, he specifically wanted a 28-inch truck for going to the suburbs to collect goods. It was very sturdy and heavy, and given its size, Lin Ying, who wasn't very tall, couldn't fit on it. Considering convenience, two days before their trip to Lingnan, they went to a store and bought a Forever 26-inch women's bicycle.

Although the bike was secondhand, not brand new but solidly built, and the price wasn't high. After buying it, I took it to a repair shop for maintenance, added a front basket, registered it, paid the vehicle tax, and then it was ready to ride.

Riding her bike through the streets of Shanghai, Lin Ying felt incredibly relaxed. However, she wasn't just out for a leisurely stroll; she was observing the streets as she rode, especially the more bustling areas, stopping occasionally to take a look.

Zhou Jiye's trip to Lingnan was something Lin Ying had already discussed with him. Even if Xu Guoqing hadn't said he wanted to go with him, this trip was still necessary.

With the arrival of reform and opening up, there are more and more small vendors in the market, and the competition among them is becoming increasingly fierce. Although Zhou Jiye can still continue to do business whether he is at the vegetable market or Lin Ying is at the movie theater, there are more and more people in this field, and it is no longer necessary to continue. Moreover, as the opportunity arises, why squeeze with others? It would be better to switch to another field.

The TV series "The Man from Atlantis," which aired not long ago, caused a sensation in society. Lin Ying and Zhou Jiye were keenly aware of this. Moreover, they knew that in the early 1980s, the best business was undoubtedly the goods from Hong Kong. Although the special economic zone in Shenzhen had not yet been established, some goods had already entered the mainland through various channels, but it just hadn't spread to the north so quickly yet.

This is why Lin Ying and Zhou Jiye ultimately decided to go to Lingnan, but unexpectedly, Xu Guoqing offered to accompany Zhou Jiye, leaving Lin Ying in Shanghai.

Lin Ying not only did not refuse this change, but also happily agreed. Putting aside the fact that Xu Guoqing had done them a favor, they also needed to solve the problem of the letter of introduction to go to Lingnan. They did not know many people in Shanghai, and the scalpers were unreliable. Apart from Xu Guoqing, no one else could help them with this.

In addition, Xu Guoqing and Lao Wen had a good relationship with them. After the last dinner, the four of them were starting to resemble a small group. Lin Ying trusted their character. Moreover, Xu Guoqing was right; it was really inconvenient for her to go alone as a woman. No one knew what the situation was like in Lingnan, so it was most appropriate for him to accompany Zhou Jiye. Besides, Xu Guoqing also had a comrade-in-arms in Guangzhou.

So Zhou Jiye and Xu Guoqing took the train to Lingnan together, but Lin Ying didn't stop working after they left.

Lin Ying felt that no matter what the outcome of Zhou Jiye and Xu Guoqing's trip was, they would bring back something, and once they did, they would have to figure out how to sell it.

How to sell them? It's simply a matter of setting up a stall. But where to set up a stall? That's the question.

The vegetable market where Zhou Jiye used to do business was bustling, but it was a place where people bought vegetables. The people coming and going were either elderly aunties and uncles or housewives (househusbands). These people were usually very careful with their money and would haggle and calculate over every penny of the vegetable price. Under such circumstances, how could fashionable goods from the south possibly sell in the vegetable market?
The target audience for these things should be young people, because young people are more open-minded and more receptive to new things.

Moreover, people in Shanghai are very concerned about their image and like to show off. No matter how poor their family is or how bad their living conditions are, they must make sure they are clean and presentable when they go out. This is a custom in Shanghai.

For example, in Zhao Dan's movie "Street Angel", the drummer he played lived in a pigeon coop and had very poor living conditions, but he would still polish his leather shoes so much that they could reflect a person's image before he went out.

Another popular item nationwide is the "false collar," a specialty of Shanghai. Although it's just two simple pieces of fabric with a collar, it makes you look like you're wearing a crisp shirt. Plus, it's inexpensive and easy to wash, so both men and women buy several to rotate, giving them a very presentable appearance. Therefore, Lin Ying carefully considered that if these items were to sell in Shanghai, she needed to find a lively place with many young people, where she could also set up a stall. For the past two days, Lin Ying had been cycling around, searching for a suitable location to sell her goods.

But after wandering around, Lin Ying found that there were lively places, places where she could set up a stall, and places with many young people, but very few places that combined all three elements; most of them were not suitable.

Riding west along Avenue Joffre, Lin Ying occasionally turned onto the side streets for a spin, but the results were still not optimistic.

She looked at several places, but even the best one was only so-so. When she finally reached Huating Road, Lin Ying stopped her bike, looked at a short side street in front of her, and finally sighed softly.

In Lin Ying's memory, Huating Road was once the most famous clothing and small commodity market in Shanghai, and was known as "China's No. 1 Street" in the 1980s and 1990s.

In the late 1990s, Huating Road was relocated to Xiangyang South Road, not far to the east, and the Xiangyang South Road Market was reopened. Instead of declining, it became even more bustling, and its fame spread directly from China to abroad. Even many big stars and big figures from abroad would make a special trip to visit it when they came to Shanghai.

Unfortunately, the Huating Road Market doesn't even exist yet. This once-famous little street is currently deserted, no different from the surrounding streets. Compared to the bustling Xiafei Road area a few hundred meters to the east, it appears even more desolate, with nothing but a few passersby and residents walking by.

This greatly disappointed Lin Ying. Before the Huating Road Market appeared, Lin Ying couldn't think of where to set up a stall. Should she choose one of the places she had observed over the past few days? Although they were barely acceptable, none of them seemed like the best choice to Lin Ying. However, she didn't know when the Huating Road Market would appear. Time was of the essence, and she couldn't just wait idly.
Shaking her head slightly, Lin Ying continued riding away, turning left ahead and taking another road. After riding for a while, she unknowingly arrived near the vegetable market where Zhou Jiye used to sell old hens. Since she was already passing by, Lin Ying decided to stop by Lao Wen's stall. She hadn't seen Lao Wen for several days and wondered how he was doing.

When we arrived, we found Lao Wen dozing off behind his stall, wearing a rubber apron. In front of him was a worktable for slicing eels, two large buckets of hot water on his left, and a wooden bucket with a lid on his right, which must have contained the eels he usually sold.

"Brother Wen!"

Lin Ying stopped the car and called out to Lao Wen. He was still half asleep when he heard her call and opened his eyes groggily. He rubbed his eyes and looked around blankly. Seeing this, Lin Ying couldn't help but laugh.

"Here you are, Brother Wen!"

"Oh my, it's Lin Daiyu!" Old Wen snapped out of his daze and finally saw Lin Ying riding her bicycle with one foot on the ground and the other on the pedal. He quickly got up and greeted her warmly.

"What brings you here today? You're a rare guest! Come, come over here."

Lin Ying got out of the car, pushed it around to the back of the stall, put down the kickstand and parked the car. She glanced at Lao Wen's stall and asked with a smile, "I went out for a walk and just happened to pass by on my way back. Brother Wen, how's business?"

Old Wen shook his head bitterly, took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it: "It's not even half as good as before. More and more people are setting up stalls these days, and the competition for business is fierce. It's getting harder and harder to do business now."

"There's nothing we can do about it. We're in the same boat, otherwise we wouldn't have had to close down our business. We used to have just one stall, but now so many have popped up, diverting all our business. No wonder we're struggling. But let's just hang in there for now. Maybe Brother Qing and the others will come back and come up with a solution. By the way, has Brother Qing called you yet?"

"I don't have a phone at home. Even if I want to make a call, I have to call a public phone. Long distance is inconvenient and expensive. I haven't heard from them, but judging from the time, they should have arrived in Lingnan by now. Has Xiaoling called you?"

Lin Ying shook her head. Old Wen thought she had come to ask about this, and fearing that Lin Ying would worry, he comforted her, "Don't worry, those two big men won't get into any trouble. Your Xiao Ling is tall and strong; most people couldn't handle her just by looking at her. As for A Qing, he went to the Northeast to work in the countryside when he was sixteen. He's very experienced and has a lot of experience outside. Besides, he has comrades-in-arms in Guangzhou. They definitely won't get into any trouble together. Maybe they'll be back in a few days."

(End of this chapter)