Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space novel Chapter 113

Chapter 113: Chapter 94: Current Situation (2)

Only after getting married did I realize that even corn bread can get stuck in your throat. We had no food quota, and I felt embarrassed to say I couldn’t eat, so I ate less. Anyway, Xiao Wu and my mother-in-law would secretly make something extra for me. My mother-in-law was really nice, secretly boiling a couple of eggs and hiding them in our room. Sometimes, when everyone went to work, she would secretly stash some corn bread for us, so they always said I had a cat’s appetite."

Zhou Jiao took a bite of food, then continued, "Xiao Wu and I couldn’t take it anymore, so we bought some rice. We had his mother make jujube rice porridge for me during my pregnancy, and the whole family could have some too. We hoped it would stop being corn goo and corn bread every day. If that got stuck in our throats, drinking some corn goo porridge would really choke us to death.

We couldn’t say this directly, because that’s just how his family ate, and they were all enjoying it so much, very happy. We couldn’t bring ourselves to say it out loud. Thank goodness you came with all that rice and flour; otherwise, I would have died.

Xiao Wu went to the county town at five in the morning the day after Ping’an was born, found someone to buy two pig trotters and two black chickens, and got his mother to quickly stew them for me. But his mother said to save it and eat slowly, that one pig trotter could last a day. Xiao Wu wanted her to roast one of the black chickens and keep another to stew for the kids at home. But she disagreed, saying what do kids need to eat it for? It’s all for the confinement period, and the family can eat until they’re full, so it’s unnecessary to roast it.

I wouldn’t dare buy even if I had money; buying too much is too expensive, buying less means we have nowhere to cook it. It’s fortunate you came, otherwise, we really wouldn’t be able to live. We were all set to buy a stove, cook wild game every day, and secretly sprinkle some rice to make something extra.

Xiao Wu said he cried while eating, but didn’t dare to say anything. That’s how his family ate, even Xi Zi’s family. He wasn’t home because he went to school, taking his ration to eat in the canteen. If he spoke up, he’d be thought of as heartless, and his parents would be hurt."

Lin Lishan laughed heartily, listening to her talk while eating.

Zhou Jiao continued, "Why is Xiao Wu best friends with the chef at the county restaurant? It’s because he would catch wild chickens and rabbits and have him cook them. Once cooked, he’d secretly bring some to me. If there were no meat coupons, he’d have to order at the restaurant and got familiar with them, and they’d make a bit more.

Didn’t you say I’ve gotten thin? Well, you didn’t see me before; I was even thinner then. In winter, when the big snow was blowing, I didn’t dare go out. Really, the wind would push me, and I didn’t even need to walk. Hehe, so unless it was something important, I never went out in winter.

Before getting married, I had no money. Everyone called me a golden baby, but I truly had no money. I just relied on Xiao Wu to take care of me and give me nourishment. After getting married, I had some money, but those damn coupons were another struggle—without food stamps or meat coupons, money was useless, especially without food stamps. You couldn’t even eat at a restaurant. But thankfully, we ate wild game and got healthier.

This time when you came, you brought so much stuff over, it’s the grain that’s the most precious. You can’t buy it even if you have money. Now if you don’t go to the countryside, you have no idea how scarce grain is. It’s the same in the county town; the supply barely lets you feel eighty percent full. People plan breakfast as white porridge, and it’s only by night they feel eighty percent full. Where did you buy this grain? Isn’t there enough grain in Beijing?"

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