Chapter 44: Buying Fabric

There was a long line at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. An Yinan didn't know what was going on, but she was pushed over by the crowd. Since she had enough time, she decided to see what everyone was buying.

"Which color do you want?" When it was An Yinan's turn, she saw that the Supply and Marketing Cooperative was clearing out discounted fabric. There were two colors: army green and bright red. However, there wasn't much bright red left, while there was still some army green.

"How much is it per foot?" An Yinan liked the army green very much. If she could buy more, she wanted to buy enough to make clothes for Beibei and Chen Xun.

"Thirty cents a foot. Discounted fabric doesn't require a Cloth Coupon. One person can buy a maximum of ten feet." That meant three yuan. It wouldn't be enough to make clothes for Chen Xun.

"I want ten feet of army green." An Yinan pointed to the army green fabric; there was still plenty left at the moment.

The salesperson looked at An Yinan. "You don't want the bright red?"

In this era, people had to buy bright red fabric for weddings and then make a set of bright red clothes themselves; this was already a matter of great prestige.

Whenever bright red fabric hit the counter, it would basically be snatched up instantly. This time, the color was a bit too dark, which was why it had become discounted fabric.

There was still a little bit of bright red left, but there was quite a lot of army green remaining.

"No, thank you." An Yinan shook her head.

"You can actually take more of the army green." The salesperson softened her voice.

"How much can I take at most?" An Yinan asked.

"Why don't you wait a moment? There are two bolts of army green fabric in the back warehouse that are from the same batch as these. If you want them, will you wait?" Every salesperson would prioritize grabbing discounted goods; they could use them themselves or resell them for money.

She had grabbed two bolts of army green fabric first, but her mother insisted she exchange them for bright red. Her money was tied up in the fabric; usually, army green sold very well, but with the bright red available, it had been sitting there.

Now that she had run into An Yinan, it was the perfect chance to swap the fabric.

"That works too." An Yinan nodded and stood to the side, watching everyone frantically snatching up the red fabric.

The "Double Harvest" was over, and it was almost time to pay the public grain and the "love grain." The winter-nesting period was also the time when the most weddings took place; with the farm work finished, there was just enough time after getting married to have babies.

By the following spring, everyone would be a new bride with a big belly.

This was a common phenomenon in the countryside; having babies and doing farm work didn't hinder each other, and that was probably just how it was.

After waiting for more than half an hour, the salesperson stood on a stool and shouted loudly, "The red fabric is gone! Those who want the discounted army green fabric, keep lining up. The bright red fabric is already gone; even if you line up, there isn't any left."

"Why is there so little? I wanted to grab a few feet to make clothes for my daughter."

"I don't know. It's thirty cents and doesn't even need a Cloth Coupon. It's fine to buy it and store it."

"Sigh, if I had known, I would have come to line up earlier."

The crowd dispersed in a noisy bustle. The long line from just a moment ago vanished in the blink of an eye as everyone went about their own business. Only two or three people buying the discounted army green fabric were still in line.

After measuring the fabric for those few people, the salesperson went over to An Yinan. "Alright, let's go."

The two of them quickly walked to the warehouse. Inside, there were bolts of fabric of various colors. The salesperson took out two bolts of fabric from behind a cabinet. "I originally kept these for myself, but my mother told me to get more red fabric, so I have to turn these over. If you want them, take them both. It's also thirty cents; I'm not making a profit off you."

One bolt of fabric was forty feet. An Yinan handed over twenty-four yuan directly without any hesitation and tucked the two bolts of fabric into her pocket.

With these two bolts of fabric, she had her return gifts.

The fabric in her space was too high-end, and there was a huge difference in material and craftsmanship. For people who knew her well, she really couldn't explain the source.

However, fabric from the Supply and Marketing Cooperative required Cloth Coupons, and her coupons weren't enough to make a set of clothes for Beibei. Running into this discounted fabric this time, she just went ahead and gathered everything she needed.

Finding a place where no one was around, she put everything into her space before slowly walking toward the State-run Restaurant.

Just waiting in line had taken nearly an hour, and it wasn't early anymore.

Approaching the State-run Restaurant, she saw Liu Meijie pacing back and forth at the entrance.

Seeing An Yinan from afar, Liu Mei hurried over. "Little sister, you've finally come."

An Yinan was a bit surprised. Didn't Liu Meijie take a break after two o'clock? It had only been ten minutes past, didn't she have to clean up?

"The Square Scarves are all cleared out. My cousin said there are many people on her side who want them, and my sisters have many people who want them too. There's a demand for at least two hundred. Little sister, as long as there are Square Scarves, I'll take them all here. I'll take as many as you have." Liu Mei quickly shared the situation. After her cousin had sought her out, she specifically asked for twenty more and told her to make sure to save them for her next time.

As for the other sisters, it was even worse; even the few they had kept for themselves had been divided up quite a bit. There were personal favors involved, and they simply couldn't refuse. But it was a good thing, too; their status in their respective units had become more secure.

"I'll see how many my godmother can mail over, and I'll bring them all to Liu Meijie when the time comes." An Yinan didn't refuse either. It seemed the market wouldn't be saturated for a while; she could release another hundred.

Even if those state-run textile factories wanted to imitate them, they couldn't. The patterns, materials, and craftsmanship were not things that could be imitated in this era.

Those old materials could make the shape of a Square Scarf, but they couldn't make the inner essence of a Square Scarf.

Different materials and patterns looked different when worn on a person.

"That would be wonderful. These are the measurements for two Woolen Coats for male Comrades. Also, for the Woolen Coats that godmother sent over last time, keep the ones you want to wear yourself, and bring the rest to me too." She had mentioned the Woolen Coats to those sisters today, and everyone was already eager to try. Never mind a few pieces; she believed that even if there were dozens, they could be sold.

An Yinan nodded in agreement. With the magazines in her space and the Woolen Coats she had taken on, she could stay quietly for these next few days.

"Alright, I'll come to the County next week and bring them all to Liu Meijie." An Yinan nodded and agreed to the matter.

Although the selling price was cheaper, it was much more convenient and safe.

With their business settled, Liu Mei pulled An Yinan into the State-run Restaurant. She took out the braised pork that had been set aside in advance. It wouldn't fit in the lunchbox anymore, so Liu Mei poured it directly into a large porcelain basin and covered it with a lid.

She also took out a whole bag of steamed meat buns.

"You take this basin back first, and just bring it back to me next time. These steamed meat buns are something Ershu just learned to make. I saw you liked them, so I took the liberty of saving thirty for you." It was cold now, so there was no fear of them spoiling. Besides, An Yinan had said that all their little companions ate together, so the consumption was naturally high; thirty would only be two or three days' worth of food.

An Yinan quickly packed the items and paid Liu Mei. Liu Mei didn't decline much; even if she wanted to treat her to these things, she couldn't afford it.

"Liu Meijie, see you in a week then. I'll head back first to call my godmother." An Yinan greeted Liu Mei and walked toward Shi Zhu Zi, where Uncle Niu kept his ox cart.