Chapter 62: Super Sweet

Early the next morning.

Li Aiguo was startled awake from his sleep by a knock on the door.

"Brother Aiguo, Mother is calling you over to the house for breakfast."

Rubbing his eyes, he slipped on a short-sleeved shirt and pulled the door open.

There stood He Yushui, looking bright and lovely in the sunlight.

Though her eyes were somewhat red and swollen, her pretty face radiated happiness—a stark contrast to the despair and furrowed brows of the past two days.

"Brother Aiguo, Mother said making breakfast by yourself is too much trouble, so she cooked cornmeal porridge and invited you over to eat."

Mother He had come back to life?

Li Aiguo paused for a moment.

Then he remembered that last night, He Yushui had taken Mother Liu as her adoptive mother.

It seemed He Yushui had stepped into her new role rather quickly.

Understanding that Mother Liu was simply showing her gratitude, Li Aiguo did not refuse.

He picked up his enamel washbasin, went to the middle courtyard to wash his face and brush his teeth, and then brought his bowl and chopsticks over to the neighboring Liu household.

On the rustic square table sat the usual fare: cornmeal paste, black corn-flour steamed buns, and plain stir-fried baby cabbage.

Just as he sat down, Mother Liu emerged from the side room carrying a plate.

"Here, Aiguo, try these and see if Mother's pickled duck eggs have absorbed enough flavor."

On the plate lay three salted duck eggs, cut in half to reveal vibrant, red-orange yolks that resembled miniature rising suns.

Li Aiguo silently marveled in his heart.

It was clear Mother Liu truly cherished He Yushui, bringing out salted duck eggs that she usually only saved for special holidays.

Mother Liu's ancestors had migrated from Gaoyou, and the people of Gaoyou were natural experts at pickling duck eggs.

Every year, the residents of the courtyard would ask Mother Liu to help them pickle their duck eggs.

After sealing them in jars for over a month, they would take them out and boil them, turning them into a feast-worthy dish fit for entertaining guests.

Without standing on ceremony, Li Aiguo picked up a piece of the pickled duck egg and took a bite.

The egg yolk was savory, tender, mealy, and rich with oil, offering an exquisite texture.

He Yushui quietly gnawed on her black bun and sipped her cornmeal porridge.

A look of deep affection crossed Mother Liu's eyes. She picked up a piece of pickled duck egg with her chopsticks and transferred it into Yushui's bowl. "Yushui, you're at the age where you're still growing. You need more nourishment."

"Mother..."

Biting into the fragrant, rich yolk, He Yushui felt a wave of emotion wash over her. She turned away quietly and wiped the tears from her eyes.

Never before in her life had anyone treated her with such kindness.

Mother Liu looked at He Yushui with pity, knowing the girl had suffered far too much hardship.

Turning to Li Aiguo, who was slurping his porridge heartily, she said, "Aiguo, Yushui's clothes have long been too small for her. I want to sew a new set for her, but I don't have any fabric ration coupons. Mother knows you have wide connections. Could you help me buy some fabric coupons and cotton thread coupons?"

Hearing this, He Yushui looked as though she had been struck by lightning. She stood up in a panic and waved her hands frantically. "Mother, the clothes I have on are just fine!"

In this era, with industrial production lagging behind, fabric coupons were more precious than grain.

Ordinary residents were only allotted six feet of fabric coupons and five inches of cotton thread coupons each year.

For someone of He Yushui's slender stature, making a set of cotton clothes still required eleven feet and three inches of cotton fabric, along with seven inches of cotton thread.

Buying that much fabric and thread on the black market would cost at least five yuan.

Knowing Mother Liu would spend that much money on her, He Yushui felt a pang of guilt.

Li Aiguo looked at He Yushui. The cuffs of her clothes were worn white, and her elbows were covered in layers of patches, though those things were hardly unusual.

Wear it for three new years, wear it for three old years, patch it up and wear it for three more—such was the characteristic style of the times.

However, her sleeves had shrunk nearly to her forearms, and her trouser cuffs exposed her ankles; the clothes were clearly a size too small, and that simply wouldn't do.

He nodded and said, "Alright. I'm scheduled to run a train today, but as soon as I have some free time, I'll go to the black market and scout some out for you."

"Thank you so much."

Mother Liu's mind was put at ease. After taking a few more sips of porridge, she glanced at He Yushui's thin, slight figure, and another thought occurred to her.

Smiling with narrowed eyes, she said, "Aiguo, you train drivers have special positions. Do you happen to have any sprouted soybean quotas?"

Sprouted soybeans were soybeans that had grown sprouts.

In those days, sprouted soybeans were considered a nourishing tonic—prescribed by hospitals as "edema medicine" for edema patients and distributed as supplementary food under special quotas.

Compared to other supplementary provisions, both the quantity and price of sprouted soybeans were relatively low.

It was about the most common nutritional supplement an ordinary person could possibly acquire.

Sweet, cloyingly sweet—the affection between this mother and daughter was far too sweet.

Li Aiguo felt he had no choice but to add a little more sugar to the pot.

"Train drivers can draw five catties of sprouted soybeans from the logistics department every month. I haven't used my quota for this month yet. If you need them, I'll bring them back for you."

"You don't need to bring that many. The state gives those to you to build up your health. Mother only needs one catty."

As she spoke, Mother Liu fished fifteen yuan out of her pocket and pushed it into Li Aiguo's hand. "Mother doesn't know how much fabric coupons and sprouted soybeans cost, so take all of this money. If you don't use it all, just return the rest to Mother."

That was what you called open-handed and magnanimous.

Of course, Mother Liu trusted him precisely because she knew Li Aiguo was not the type to covet petty gains.

At that moment, He Yushui pressed her lips together, feeling as sweet inside as if she had eaten honey.

New clothes, sprouted soybeans—these were things she had previously only dared to see in her dreams.

Cutting ties with Silly Zhu was the absolute best decision she had ever made in her life.

Of course, the greatest contributor to all this was Li Aiguo.

If not for his brilliant scheme, backed by a firearm to drive away Yi 中海 (Yi Zhonghai) and intimidate Director Wang, she would never have broken ties so smoothly.

He Yushui looked up at Li Aiguo. "Brother Aiguo, can I help wash your clothes?"

"Then I'll have to trouble you, sister Yushui."

Naturally, Li Aiguo wouldn't turn down the offer.

He Yushui was far more reliable than the Third Aunt; she certainly wouldn't steal his laundry soap.

After finishing the meal, Li Aiguo returned to his room.

He tossed his dirty clothes and socks into the enamel basin, replaced the coal stove with a fresh coal ball, and secured the lid tightly.

Only then did he sling his canvas bag over his shoulder and pick up the train driver's exclusive lunchbox—the ox-kidney lunchbox.

Unlike the aluminum lunchboxes used by ordinary workers, the ox-kidney lunchbox was made of high-grade steel and was resistant to bumps and dents.

It was said to be a legacy from the Japanese occupation and had been standard equipment for the Japanese military back then.

He pushed his tandem bicycle out of the courtyard.

Passing through the front courtyard, Yan Bugui was squatting by the doorway brushing his teeth.

His eyes lit up as he looked at Li Aiguo's bicycle, and he muttered quietly to the Third Aunt, "If I could get a bicycle like that, it would be so much easier to go pick up scrap metal in the future."

The Third Aunt curled her lip. "That's just Li Aiguo piecing two bicycles together. Would you be willing to spend that kind of money?"

At the mention of spending money, Yan Bugui instantly deflated. He stared at Li Aiguo's departing back and said, "That kid Li Aiguo really has good fortune, actually becoming a train driver. I've heard the benefits on the railway line—from birth to death, the workplace takes care of everything."

Just then, Yan Jiecheng came out of the inner room yawning. "Dad, what's for breakfast?"

"Eat, eat, eat! All you think about day and night is eating. Have you turned in your wages for this month?" Yan Bugui spat out a mouthful of toothpaste foam and stared wide-eyed.

Yan Jiecheng looked entirely innocent. "Dad, I still have half a month before I get my high school graduation certificate... What wages?"

Right, he had forgotten about that minor detail... Yan Bugui forcefully pivoted:

"...I'm just reminding you that once you start working later on, you'll have to pay back the money for the flashlight, the candles, and the school fees you owe me..."

"Fine, I'm not eating. Don't you dare log this morning's meal onto my tab."

The mere thought that he had just graduated and, without even starting a job yet, already owed hundreds of yuan in massive debts made Yan Jiecheng feel an immense pressure. He hoisted his school bag and bolted away in a flash.

The Third Aunt felt sorry for the boy and wanted to call Yan Jiecheng back, but Yan Bugui waved his hand to stop her. "Young people won't starve to death from missing a single meal. Back in the chaotic war years when I hid under a counter and went three days without eating, didn't I turn out just fine?"

"You, oh you... your eyes are completely tunnel-visioned on money. Even if Jiecheng manages to get into the rolling mill as a locksmith by relying on the connections of Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady, he'll only make twenty-something yuan a month. He still has to get married, have children, and pay back your money. How is he supposed to live?"

"Well, that's true..."

Yan Bugui blinked his small eyes, slapped his thigh, and said, "We could ask Li Aiguo to inquire whether his locomotive depot is hiring workers."

"The wages at the locomotive depot are much higher than those at the rolling mill."

The Third Aunt nodded in agreement. "That actually sounds like a good idea."