Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

When buying stationery, I was even more meticulous. I bought eight fountain pens, several bottles of ink, a stack of notebooks with plastic covers, and boxes of pencils, erasers, and rulers.

Finally, he went around to a slightly quieter counter, looked around, and ordered two cartons of Daqianmen cigarettes and two bottles of Jingzhi baijiu. This was for Zhang Tiejun, Wang Lixin, and in case he encountered other people with whom he needed to make arrangements.

In total, it cost nearly a hundred yuan, and we also used up quite a few ration coupons.

The salesperson wrote out the receipt, he paid the money, and then sorted the bags and packages, tied them securely with the old bed sheets and ropes he had brought, and tied them firmly to the back seat and crossbeam of the new car.

The car immediately felt heavy and full.

He pushed the cart out the door, found a deserted corner of an alley, looked around, and quickly put most of the items into his storage space, leaving only a small portion on the cart to avoid attracting attention.

When Liu Xiangyang was almost back in the village, he didn't go straight home. Instead, he changed into a bicycle and rode to the brigade headquarters.

Upon entering Zhang Tiejun's office, one sees Zhang Tiejun and Wang Lixin discussing something. When they see Liu Xiangyang, the two stop talking and Zhang Tiejun asks them a question.

"You're back! Did you get your new car?"

"Yes, I received them. They're the same permanent cards as before. Uncle Zhang, Captain Wang, I got these from my Uncle Lu's house. I don't smoke much, but I thought you guys had a big smoking habit, so I brought them over for you."

"You smoke too, don't you? You gave them all to us, so what are you going to smoke for yourself?" Zhang Tiejun asked, looking at the two packs of cigarettes in his hand.

"I just smoke for fun. I can't finish a pack of cigarettes in ten days or half a month. I still have several packs at home."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony. Old Wang, you can take this too. It's a small token of Xiangyang's appreciation."

When Liu Xiangyang pushed open the courtyard gate and returned home, everyone was gathered together playing and joking.

"Xiangyang is back!" Le Yao called out, "and he brought a lot of things with him." She ran over to catch Liu Xiangyang.

"Xiangyang's back!" Her eyes sparkled. She glanced at him first, then curiously looked at the things bundled on the back of his bicycle. "Wow, he brought so much stuff!"

Everyone else in the room stopped what they were doing and looked over. Xue Bingbing was wiping her hands at the kitchen door, Luo Lan put down the half-finished shoe sole, Zuo Qingqing and He Xiaoqin peeked out from the inner room, and Le Qi also stood up from the table, still holding half a pencil in her hand.

"Yeah, I'm back." Liu Xiangyang propped up the car and started untying the ropes. "I bought some things on the way."

Xue Bingbing came over to help, and seeing the mountain of fabrics, food, and daily necessities, even though she was mentally prepared, her eyelids still twitched: "Why...did you buy so much?"

"Spring plowing is here, everyone's tired, we need to eat something good. It's time to change the fabric for the season, we should buy some new clothes. We need pens and notebooks for studying." Liu Xiangyang said briefly, taking the items into the house one by one.

Zuo Qingqing, the most lively of them all, had already come closer, picked up a bag of fruit hard candies, and exclaimed excitedly, "Candy! And milk candy too! This is expensive!"

"Each person gets a portion, don't eat too much, or you'll rot your teeth," Liu Xiangyang said casually, placing two boxes of "Lighthouse" brand soap dishes and a magpie enamel basin on the table. "This, put it over there on the washstand."

Roland picked up an enamel basin, touching the bright magpie perched on a branch pattern on it, looking at it again and again. He Xiaoqin and Jiang Xiaowen also gathered around, whispering, "It's so beautiful."

Leqi, however, was more interested in the stack of stationery. She picked up a new fountain pen, unscrewed the cap to look at the nib, and then flipped through the paper of the notebook. She nodded and said, "This is good. It's easy to write on and doesn't bleed ink."

Liu Xiangyang pushed all the fabrics in front of Xue Bingbing: "Take a look, you decide how to divide them." Dark blue khaki fabric is suitable for making trousers and jackets, light gray polyester can be used for shirts, and floral cotton fabric is naturally for girls' clothes.

Xue Bingbing touched the fabric, already having a plan in mind, but didn't say anything, only nodded: "Keep it for now, we'll talk about it when we have time."

"Keep the white sugar and brown sugar in the kitchen, and the soap, toothpaste, and such," Liu Xiangyang pointed. "Bingbing, you keep those too, and distribute them to everyone monthly. As for cookies, candies, and snacks, anyone who's craving something can take some, but don't let them interfere with your meals."

He spoke casually, as if it were the most ordinary thing to distribute, but everyone in the room knew that each of these items was top-notch in the village, requiring tickets and money, and an ordinary family might not be able to acquire even one or two of them in a year.

"Oh, right," Liu Xiangyang took a small paper packet out of his pocket and handed it to Le Yao, "It's for your sister."

Le Yao took them, opened them, and found two identical silver hair clips with a simple wavy pattern. She exclaimed in surprise, took one out, tried it on her head, and then handed the other to Le Qi, who had walked over: "Sister, look!"

Leqi took it, but didn't put it on immediately. She held it in her hand for a moment, then looked up at Liu Xiangyang.

She smiled very slightly and carefully put the hair clip into her pocket.

With everything mostly put away, Xue Bingbing and Luo Lan quickly cut a piece of the pork belly they had bought and stewed it with cabbage and vermicelli. They also made pancakes with fresh flour, and the enticing aroma filled the air.

The stew was steaming hot, the flatbread was soft and fluffy, and the room was filled with the satisfying sounds of chewing along with the crisp pickled radish strips.

"Spring plowing officially begins tomorrow," Liu Xiangyang said while eating a pancake. "Qiqi and Yaoyao, be more careful with the issuance of seeds and farm tools from the warehouse, and keep the accounts clear daily."

Le Qi hummed in agreement, and Le Yao nodded, "Don't worry, Brother Xiangyang."

"Scorers, stick close to your teams. I've given you the standards. Follow the rules. If you have any questions, talk to your team leader immediately." He looked at Roland and the other three.

Roland nodded, and Zuo Qingqing patted her chest: "No problem!" He Xiaoqin and Jiang Xiaowen also responded quietly.

"Bingbing, the school has adjusted class schedules for spring plowing. Make sure you don't fall behind in your evening studies."

"I know." Xue Bingbing added some food to his bowl.

After finishing their meal and tidying up, the light was moved to the table in the center of the main room. Xue Bingbing then distributed the newly bought pens and notebooks, one pen and two notebooks to each person.

"As usual, look at it yourself first, do the exercises, circle any you don't understand, and we'll discuss them later." Her voice was gentle, yet carried an undeniable orderliness.

For a moment, the only sounds in the room were the turning of pages and the scratching of pens on paper. The glow of the electric light enveloped several young figures engrossed in their studies, while outside the window, the night deepened and the occasional bark of a dog could be heard.

Leqi sat the straightest, her brows slightly furrowed, clearly having encountered a problem. Leyao bit her pen, secretly glancing at her sister's notebook.

Roland wrote so fast he almost tore the paper apart, and Zuo Qingqing couldn't sit still, swinging her legs. He Xiaoqin and Jiang Xiaowen were whispering to each other, their heads close together.

Xue Bingbing sat on a stool a little further away, and under the lamplight, she held a piece of dark blue khaki cloth in her hand, lightly drawing lines with chalk as she was tailoring clothes for him.

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I was stuck in the review process all day yesterday, and I lost a lot of hair revising the story. Please add it to your bookshelf, please read it, and please give it a five-star review.