Chapter 29: Sister Liu Mei

"Alright, let's do that. Uncle Chen, I'll be heading back first." An Yinan said to Chen Shao, then hurried away.

Her stomach was growling with hunger now, and she didn't know if there was any leftover food at the State-run Restaurant!

An Yinan strolled along, observing the streets and people of this era, watching story after story; the people of this era were very simple and warm-hearted, yet because of the scarcity of material goods, they had also added a touch of pettiness.

Life will get better!

After walking for about twenty minutes, she finally reached the State-run Restaurant. It was already nearly ten o'clock; never mind breakfast, she estimated that lunch would still be an hour away.

An Yinan walked into the State-run Restaurant, "Excuse me, is there any breakfast left?"

The words had barely left her lips when a voice came from the back, "Gone, it's all gone. Don't you look at what time it is? Breakfast? Why don't you eat yesterday's dinner instead?"

Liu Mei was extremely annoyed. She had started work at five in the morning and had been busy until eight; her head was spinning, so how could someone be asking for breakfast at this hour?

Was the person a fool? She sat at the serving window, pounding her aching legs, wanting to see what this fool looked like.

An Yinan sighed inwardly. No breakfast; it seemed she would have to be hungry for another hour or so, waiting for lunch.

If she didn't eat, she really wouldn't have the strength to walk back.

Next time, she could heat up some steamed buns in advance and toss them into her space, so she would have something to pad her stomach when she was hungry.

The steamed buns in her space were all cold now. The weather was already cold, and eating cold buns—wasn't that a bit too miserable?

"Huh? Little sister, is it you?" When Liu Mei saw clearly who it was, she quickly stood up, opened the kitchen door, and walked out.

She had been waiting for this young girl for several days, and she felt some regret over her own mouth.

Why hadn't she looked clearly at the person before speaking?

When would she ever fix the habit of having a fast mouth? What if she had left a bad impression on the young girl?

"Big sister, you're at work." An Yinan turned back and looked at Liu Mei; it was the waitress who had given her the silk scarf that day.

Liu Mei felt a bit embarrassed, slapped her own face, and her face was filled with smiles, "Hi, look at this mouth of mine, it just has no gatekeeper. I started work at five this morning and didn't get off until after eight; I was really quite tired, so I couldn't help but let it slip. Little sister, please don't take offense."

An Yinan didn't blame her; after all, in this era, having a proper job was a point of pride, and there was no concept of "service-oriented" or "the customer is God" like in later generations.

The general environment was like this; she had no reason to resent anyone.

"Big sister, what are you saying? How could I be such an unreasonable person?" An Yinan smiled.

When Liu Mei heard this, she was even happier. This little sister was very sensible and didn't have the fussiness of her age, "Wait here, sister will go get you some breakfast."

The words had barely left her lips when Liu Mei ran back to the kitchen before An Yinan could say anything.

In just over ten minutes, a bowl of wontons and two meat buns were brought out. Each wonton was the size of a wine cup, the skin was very thin, and the filling inside could be seen directly. Floating on top of the wontons were tender green cilantro and a sprinkling of dried shrimp—it couldn't have been more tempting.

Even with An Yinan's self-control, she couldn't help but swallow her saliva.

And the meat buns went without saying; they were as big as two of An Yinan's fists. One meat bun plus a bowl of meat wontons—she had to say, this feeling was truly comfortable.

Liu Mei watched An Yinan eating with relish, and only when she was almost finished did she say, "Little sister, let me ask you something. Do you have any more of those little scarves?"

The reason it was called a "little scarf" was because what An Yinan had given was a Square Scarf, but there was no term for "square scarf" yet; they were all just long scarves.

Liu Mei thought of her cousin's envious look, and it felt incredibly satisfying. From childhood to adulthood, whether in looks or marriage, her cousin had always been a step above her, and whenever she bought something, she would come to show it off, leaving Liu Mei unable to retort.

Only this time, the material and color of this little scarf had made her little cousin speak softly to her for the first time.

Her heart felt as if she had eaten two popsicles in the dog days of summer—comfortable.

And the one who had brought all this to her was the young girl in front of her.

An Yinan hadn't expected the Square Scarf to have an effect so quickly. She had been prepared to promote them; giving one to Liu Mei was partly to build a good relationship so that it would be more convenient to eat at the State-run Restaurant in the future, and partly because if there was a channel for income, it would be a good method. After all, Liu Mei was a formal employee and wouldn't risk her own rice bowl; this channel was much safer than the Black Market.

"I do have some, but my godmother said they were goods from Shanghai. The last time she sent them to me, it was for my own use. I just liked you, big sister, so I gave you one. Why do you ask, big sister?" An Yinan widened her eyes and looked at Liu Mei with a face full of confusion.

That innocent expression and confused look perfectly portrayed a naive sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl.

After all, she hadn't watched television in later generations for nothing. By grasping the key positions, key movements, and the essentials, she could still put on a performance.

Liu Mei gave a dry laugh. Thinking of the demand from her circle of friends and her cousin, although she felt a bit embarrassed, she still spoke up, "This... little sister, sister has a few good friends and a cousin who also want this little scarf. Do you think you could...?"

Secretly happy was An Yinan's state of mind at that moment, but her face wrinkled in a frown, looking troubled.

"Price is not an issue; my little sisters all have jobs," Liu Mei quickly whispered in An Yinan's ear.

Actually, these Square Scarves were very easy to make. They were all scraps she had left over from before, and then with a pass of the electric sewing machine, a little square scarf was finished. Give her an hour, and she could make over a hundred of them.

But scarcity makes things valuable.

An Yinan looked at Liu Mei apologetically, "Sister, I won't stand on ceremony with you. My godmother said that getting the goods in Shanghai costs two yuan each. Adding the postage and such to get them here, I estimate..."

Liu Mei did the math; her little sisters would definitely accept this price. Besides, these were goods from Shanghai. Every time they went to the city's Supply and Marketing Cooperative to buy things, the Shanghai goods would be snatched up as soon as they arrived; they couldn't buy them at all.

"Little sister, three yuan each, how about that?" Liu Mei didn't hesitate and asked directly.

An Yinan thought about it; long-term Development Economics was more important, and she didn't intend to do a one-time deal. She wasn't an expert in other things, but clothing was her old trade. Developing this relationship would be of great help to her.

"How about this, sister? I treat you like my own sister. From the first moment I saw you, I felt very close to you. Let's not talk about those outsider things. I'll only give these Square Scarves to you for two yuan and fifty cents each. How you give them to others has nothing to do with me, and I won't admit to it either, alright?" An Yinan calculated that two yuan and fifty cents was not a low price; how much grain could that buy?

It was only people who weren't short on money who would spend this much to buy a Square Scarf; mostly it was young girls, as everyone has a love for beauty.