Return to the 1982 Staff Compound

Chapter 54 Post Office

"Child, your brother-in-law is very nice to me..." Qiu Hongling felt her nose a little blocked. Her brother actually knew how to care about others.

Qiu Huoming cleared his throat and continued, "Sister, if you are unhappy living in his house, don't hide it from your family. Remember to go back to your parents' home. I will support you. Don't be afraid... Compared to face, we all think that your happiness is more important."

Qiu Hongling over there suddenly covered her mouth to suppress her sobbing.

On the other end of the phone, my brother was still nagging: "Mom wants you to take a day off tomorrow and not go home. She's afraid it'll be inauspicious during the Qingming Festival. You should take good care of yourself. She made some clothes for you and will have someone bring them to you later. Hongye and Hongshuang are clamoring to come visit you during the summer vacation..."

……

The call was finally hung up. Qiu Huoming took back his deposit, paid 8 cents for the phone bill, and felt a little bored for a moment.

My sister always reports good news but not bad news. I hope what she says is really good.

It was still early, so he walked to the counter to look at the stamps. At that time, there were also people who liked stamp collecting, but it was just a hobby, so any stamp issued on the market could be bought if they wanted.

The legendary stamps of later generations, the first generation of zodiac "Monkey Stamps", are the golden monkeys painted by Huang Yongyu with a face value of 1980 cents in 8.

Qiu Huoming stared at the golden monkey on the counter, the DNA in his heart beating wildly, and a set of data flashed through his memory. There were 80 stamps in one edition, and a total of 500 million sets were issued. It was the zodiac sign with the least issuance, the first edition, and the first set... With all these blessings, a generation of legendary stamps was born.

But this is a long-term investment. In Qiu Huoming's memory, the first stamp collecting craze in China did not occur until 1984, and it quickly faded away. In 87, the monkey stamp was only sold at a high of 17 yuan per piece, followed by a continuous low period...

March 1991 was the official beginning of the domestic philatelic craze. From that year on, Monkey stamps seemed to have taken off on a helicopter, soaring to the top, and those in good condition could be sold at sky-high prices.

Qiu Huoming calmed himself down and asked the staff behind the counter, "Comrade, do you have the full version of this monkey stamp?"

"Yes, but not much. How many do you want, little comrade?"

"Give me a tenth edition..."

"There are no more than ten editions. There are only three left. Do you want them?"

"Yes, and I also want this leaflet inside and the four-sided scroll next to it."

The staff casually took out the four-piece set and the single sheet, placed them on the table, then squatted down and searched for the whole sheet of stamps in the cabinet.

Qiu Huoming looked at the slight crease on the corner of the square union with heartache.

"A total of 19.6..." The staff member quickly gave the amount while fiddling with the beads on the abacus.

Qiu Huoming paid the money and took the three sets of monkey stamps sandwiched between white cardboard. He felt like he was walking on clouds. These stamps that were so difficult to collect in later generations were now in his hands?

Unfortunately, the county town is too small and the quantity sold is small.

Qiu Huoming was obviously in a good mood, but there was something obviously wrong with the sky outside. The air was damp and the air pressure was very low.

He also put the monkey stamps into the cloth bag, carefully wrapped the corners, then held it in his arms and ran towards home.

Finally, the moment I got home, the rain started to fall, and soon it got heavier, hitting the roof and windows.

Qiu Huoming wrapped the stamps in another layer of oil paper and put them in the drawer. His total net worth now was 570 yuan. He took out 4 yuan and put it in the interlayer pocket of his coat, and wrapped the rest of the cash in oil paper and hid it with the stamps.

In a trance, he had the illusion that he was a wealthy man.

Rainwater was sliding down the eaves. In the living room opposite, Qiu Hongye was staring blankly with his chin in his hand. Qiu Hongshuang was sitting on a small stool, flipping through a picture book with its cover missing.

Qiu Huoming took out the "Story Club" and "Youth Literature" that he bought in the provincial capital last time, rushed into the living room, handed the books to Qiu Hongye, and said, "Let me show you two magazines..."

The room was dim under the rain, and Qiu Huoming turned on the light.

The younger sister looked up and said, "Mom said that we can't turn on the lights before 5 o'clock."

"Open it, I'll pay for the electricity."

The younger sister laughed, "I like to turn on the lights."

Qiu Huoming pointed at the picture book in her hand and asked, "What is the title of this book?"

"In "Red Lantern", the men joined the Boxers and the women joined the Red Lantern. Lin Heiniang was so powerful... but it's a pity that she died..."

He hadn't read the book, but he understood what was said. It was roughly about the story of the people's struggle against foreigners in the late Qing Dynasty. He felt a little sad when he looked at his little sister's picture book without a cover.

"Little sister, I'll subscribe to a year's worth of Children's Literature for you. There are many interesting articles in there that you kids will like..."

"There's no money at home." The younger sister shook her head. "I can borrow books from my classmates."

"It's okay. I have money. Tomorrow, Sunday, I'll ask my sister to take you to the post office to order it."

In fact, the current post office is still called the "Post and Telecommunications Bureau". Qiu Huoming called it that name because it was easier to pronounce and he never thought of changing it.

The eldest sister was reading a book about youth literature and art. She looked up and said, "Okay..."

Qiu Huoming saw the expectation in her eyes, but she refused to speak. She had always been very well-behaved, and was probably afraid of making him spend money. He reached out and rubbed her hair, "Don't forget, there are still your magazines. When you grow up, you can choose what to order. Don't be polite with me..."

A hint of joy flashed in Qiu Hongye's eyes, "Brother, do you make money from selling tapes?" It was normal for the eldest sister to guess when she saw so many cover materials in his room and how he copied tapes day and night.

"It's my sister, so smart." Qiu Huoming laughed and said, "Now I guess we can only order for the second half of the year. I'll give you five dollars each, and the extra money will be your pocket money..."

The price of a magazine usually ranges from 2 to 3 cents, so five dollars is enough.

The eldest sister lowered her head and rubbed her eyes.

The younger sister giggled happily, "Brother, I feel like I'm about to fly now..."

Qiu Huoming felt sad, and after putting down the money, he reminded: "Keep it all, don't show your wealth to others."

The eldest sister carefully folded the five-yuan note, wrapped it in paper, and stuffed it into the bottom layer of the pencil case.

My younger sister followed suit.

The rain outside was a little lighter. "I'm going back to my room. Do your homework when you have time. If you don't understand something, feel free to ask me."

"Okay!" The eldest sister obediently put down the magazine in her hand and took out the homework book from her schoolbag.

The little sister smiled and said, "I have finished my homework."

Qiu Huoming smiled, covered his forehead with one hand, quickly walked through the rain curtain and returned to his little room.

He looked at the 50 tapes left on the table, rolled up his sleeves and continued to work hard.

-

In the evening, Chen Suniang and Qiu Jianshe came back together.

Qiu Jianshe was holding an umbrella and holding Chen Suniang with one hand, which happened to be seen by Qiu Huoming who was standing at the door reciting. Chen Suniang blushed and twisted Qiu Jianshe's waist hard as soon as she got home.

"Dad, Mom, why did you come back together?"

Qiu Huoming asked in surprise, standing at the door of the small room through the rain and fog.

"I took a detour to pick up your mother from get off work because I knew she didn't bring an umbrella." Qiu Jianshe said complacently.

"You're so nice. The workshop originally gave me a big umbrella, but when they saw you coming, the people in the workshop started to make a fuss and took the umbrella away. I got soaked by your small broken umbrella..." Chen Suniang angrily patted the wet area on the right side of her arm.

Qiu Jianshe laughed, folded his umbrella and leaned it against the door frame outside the door.

Qiu Huoming saw that water was dripping from his left shoulder and couldn't help but laugh. This old-fashioned father was actually quite romantic.

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