Fisherwoman: After my divorce, I became rich by fishing at sea

It was already past ten o'clock when we drove to the county town.

Perhaps because it was near the end of the year, there were a lot more people walking on the streets of the county town than when Fu Wan had come before.

"Hey, is there a market in the county town today?"

Fu Wan asked casually, and Ye Xiaocui counted the days with her hands, "Today is the 22nd, which is indeed market time in the county town."

No wonder there are so many people on this road.

Qin An Ning was completely bewildered. How could there be a day for the market? She used to go early in the morning in the capital, and the alleys were full of vendors. But later on, the market was strictly controlled, and few people dared to take the risk.

At this moment, looking at the hawkers carrying loads on their shoulders on the road, she was so curious that she couldn't take her eyes off them.

They looked at others, and others looked at them too. Cars were rare in the county town, not to mention that they could see that the driver was a woman.

This made passers-by stop and look curiously. Fu Wan looked at the bustling market not far away and suddenly became interested.

It had been a long time since she had visited the market in the 1980s.

The last time was when I was in town in August!

"An Ning, let's park the car nearby and go to the market!"

"Oh, okay."

Go straight on the road next to the market and turn two corners to reach the supply and marketing cooperative. Diagonally opposite is the county police station. It is very safe to park your car near the police station.

After all, even if there was a thief, he wouldn't be bold enough to steal things at the door of the police station.

Qin An Ning couldn't help but agree with Fu Wan's suggestion. As soon as they got off the car, Fu Ming and Fu Liang arrived at the door of the supply and marketing cooperative.

For two grown men, speed is the key when riding a bike. Even though they wrapped their legs with cotton cloth before setting off, they were still so cold that they stamped their feet after getting off the bike.

Especially Fu Liang who was sitting in the back, he was shocked and numb all over.

"Hey, should we go to the supply and marketing cooperative first or the cannery first?"

"Let's not go to the supply and marketing cooperative or the cannery, let's go to the market first, brother, the county market is here today!"

"Going to the county market? Let's go and have a look!"

Fu Ming rubbed his hands together, finally warming them up. He and Fu Liang were out today just to carry things, and they were completely at their beck and call.

Fu Liang had no objection to this. After all, it was almost noon and the vendors at the market had to go home. The Supply and Marketing Cooperative and the Friendship Store would not be around, so there was still time to have lunch and then go shopping.

After they reached a consensus, they went to the market in a mighty procession.

In Fu Wan's impression, the local market in Fujia Village is on the first, third, fifth, seventh and ninth days of the lunar calendar, while in the county town it is on the 24th, 68th and 80th days. If it is the first or fifteenth day, vendors will come out to set up stalls regardless of whether there was a market the day before.

There are two markets in the county town. The one Fu Wan and her friends went to is bigger. As soon as they arrived at the market entrance, they saw a crowd that stretched as far as the eye could see.

There were people setting up stalls on the roadside, some selling snacks like candied haws and sesame cakes, some selling New Year's goods like melon seeds, peanuts, fruit candies, and some reselling radios and watches.

Fu Wan took a look and saw that some vendors placed their goods on the table for people to choose from, while others simply placed a snakeskin bag on the ground and put their own things on top of the bag.

According to experience, the former are permanent merchants in the market, while the latter may be villagers from nearby towns and villages who come here to sell things.

Generally speaking, the things sold by villagers are either grown by themselves or picked in the mountains, which are more original.

Professional vendors buy goods wholesale from other places, and their prices are cheaper than those in the supply and marketing cooperatives. They basically sell candies, biscuits and the like.

Qin Anning stayed in the laboratory every day and had never met so many people. She nervously grabbed Fu Wan's arm. Fu Wan patted her hand and signaled her to relax.

"An Ning, don't be nervous. It's very interesting to visit the market. Look over there."

After saying that, she gestured to Qin An Ning to look at Ye Xiaocui and Jiang Chunlan. The old sisters had already started squatting on the ground to pick things.

"Hey, sister, how much are you selling these melon seeds?"

"Melon seeds are 20 cents per pound, sister, these are all melon seeds from the seeded melons I grow at home, which I cook and dry myself.

Try it, it must taste good!"

After saying that, the old lady stuffed a handful of melon seeds into Jiang Chunlan and Ye Xiaocui's hands.

Ye Xiaocui did not refuse and cracked two melon seeds, but her face did not show whether she liked it or not.

But Fu Wan did not miss the approval in Ye Xiaocui's eyes. Sure enough, the next second, Ye Xiaocui started to bargain.

"Sister, these melon seeds taste okay, but they lack a little salt.

How about this, you give me less and we can weigh two more pounds."

Jiang Chunlan, who was listening nearby, agreed, "Yes, a little less. We'll all weigh it."

The older sister looked like a typical farmer, with her head wrapped tightly. Perhaps because she often went out in the morning, her face was a little chapped from the cold.

Seeing that Ye Xiaocui and Jiang Chunlan did not look like rich people, the elder sister sighed and nodded in agreement.

"Okay, I'll give you 15 cents. The party is almost over, and I want to go home early!"

Although it was only five cents less, Ye Xiaocui and the others were very satisfied.

They prefer this kind of melon seeds. They are expensive in town, more than 20 cents per pound!

The eldest sister only had more than nine pounds of melon seeds left, so Ye Xiaocui and Jiang Chunlan simply bought them all. Since they had nothing to do at home during the New Year, it would be nice to eat some melon seeds and chat.

Moreover, these melon seeds are dried well, so you can store them in the rice jar and eat them until next summer.

Qin An Ning was stunned. It turned out that one could buy so many melon seeds at one time, and the most important thing was that one could bargain when buying things.

In the past, when she bought things at the supply and marketing cooperative and the Friendship Store, she would just pay and leave, without any negotiation on the price.

After watching Ye Xiaocui shopping, Qin Anning was no longer so reserved. Fu Wan saw this and bought two candied haws from the stall next to her and handed one to Qin Anning.

"Try it and see if it tastes as good as those in the capital."

This candied haws is not as big as the ones sold in Beijing, and the haws are wild haws. The vendor is a smart guy, having set up a pot nearby to make the candied haws.

Passersby looked at them with envy. The boss heard what Fu Wan and Qin An Ning said and laughed heartily.

"Haha, comrade, just eat them. I picked these hawthorns myself on the mountain. If they're not sweet, I won't charge you!"

Fu Wan took a bite and found that the sugar coating on the hawthorn was very crispy and sweet, mixed with the slight sourness of the hawthorn. It tasted really good.

Qin An Ning also took a bite of what he had in his hand.

“It’s delicious, very similar to what I used to eat.”

This hawthorn even tastes better, and the core isn't very big.

Seeing that Fu Wan and Qin An Ning had started eating, Fu Ling and Qin An Ning next to them stamped their feet in anxiety.

"Mom, Aunt Qin, have you forgotten us?"

Fu Wan looked down at the child and suddenly realized what was wrong.

Oops, I forgot to bring the child with me!