Starting a new chapter in life

"Look, follow this path, and you'll find a main road. Keep walking north along that road until it reaches the end. You'll see the road into the city on your left. You should be familiar with that area by now. I won't take you the route to the company; if you want to go to the city, that would be a longer route."

Jingyan knew that the girl probably didn't trust her, and she didn't really want to go to someone else's unit either. Not only was she unfamiliar with it, but there wasn't a single kind-looking person there either. She was feeling uneasy. She thanked the girl, put the candy in her hand, and followed the direction the girl pointed out.

The girl patted her chest after seeing that she had indeed left. "Luckily, she was just passing by. If she had been a spy or a kidnapper, I would have been in danger. Next time I come, I must come with someone. I was so scared, so scared."

Both were afraid the other was a bad guy, so they walked very fast after parting ways. After more than half an hour, Jingyan finally saw the familiar road and confirmed that the girl's directions were correct. Only then did she feel relieved and slow down her hurried pace. She straightened the basket on her back and went home in a good mood.

When I got home, I locked the front door, fed the chicks, and then went to the backyard. I poured all the mushrooms from the basket onto the cement floor, took out two baskets to store the mushrooms that needed to be dried, and also took two basins to store the mushrooms we would eat in the next couple of days. All the utensils were ready.

Looking at the cement steps, for the sake of my health, I went into the warehouse, grabbed a straw mat, put it on the ground, and sat down. Holding a pair of scissors, I started to sort them. I cut off the old stems of the hazel mushrooms, removed the pine needles and other debris from the surface, and sorted the white shiitake mushrooms, purple-faced mushrooms, and giant shiitake mushrooms into separate piles in the basket, not wanting to mix them up.

After trimming the stems off the egg yolk mushrooms and chanterelle mushrooms, I put them in a vegetable bowl. These two need to be blanched. Whether I stew or stir-fry them, there aren't many of them, so I just put them together to cook. I'm too lazy to separate them. I put the grass carp in a separate bowl. Tomorrow I'll buy some spare ribs and make a stew.

Picking and choosing, though not very fast, there weren't many mushrooms, and it wasn't long before we finished. There were quite a few hazel mushrooms, taking up almost half a basket. Both baskets had mushrooms, which we spread out by hand on the lids of the jars in the storage room, planning to take them outside to dry tomorrow. The sun is already setting, so there's not much left to dry.

I brought two basins of fresh mushrooms into the kitchen and swept the messy dirt, leaves, and mushroom roots from the backyard into a dustpan, intending to throw them in the garbage dump outside tomorrow along with the other trash.

After cleaning up, I hesitated for a moment, but still cooked myself some mung bean porridge with a side dish. That would be enough for one meal. I had been in the mountains all day, so I boiled some water and wiped myself down. After that, I touched the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) and went to the small hut to sleep on the bed. Sleeping on a heated kang in this hot weather was because I was afraid of being too cold.

After taking a nap, Jingyan opened her eyes and looked at the cot beneath her, feeling somewhat speechless. Having gotten used to sleeping on a large kang (heated brick bed), suddenly sleeping on a small bed made her feel a bit cramped. She got up and walked around the room a few steps, measuring the size with her feet. She confirmed that the room wasn't small, and a two-meter-wide bed would be more than enough.

After getting dressed, he went to the main house and took out his wallet, along with the cookie box hidden in the wardrobe. He carefully counted the money and cash; there was a total of over 430 yuan. With He Zhijun's allowance over the past few months, the monthly income from braised meat, and the money from the surplus grain he had just sold a few days ago, it was quite a lot.

He counted out a hundred yuan and stuffed it into his wallet. Then he picked out the change and stuffed in the thirty-odd yuan notes as well. The remaining three hundred yuan were all in neater bills, five-yuan and ten-yuan notes, which he put back into the change box. He then hid it at the very back of the wardrobe, tidied up his clothes and other things to make sure it was not noticeable, and then closed the wardrobe door. He put the food coupons, oil coupons, meat coupons and the like into the drawer of the dressing table, took the wallet and headed straight for the bus stop.

She spent three cents to sit in the secondhand shop she'd visited before. It was the same man, still sitting at the entrance with his pipe. He recognized Jing Yan immediately, quickly stood up, and habitually tapped his pipe. Then he realized it was empty, and smiled sheepishly at her, saying, "My wife wants me to quit smoking, so I'm just using this to satisfy my craving." Then he asked, "Is there anything you'd like to buy, young lady?"

Jingyan smiled back: "Big brother, I'm here to find a big bed, preferably a double bed, a wooden bed would be fine too, preferably one that can be disassembled, and of course, it has to be sturdy."

The man understood: "Is it because it's getting hotter and hotter, and you have to cook every day? The kang (heated brick bed) is too hot to sleep on, so you want to get a bed to sleep on?" Seeing Jingyan nod, he slapped his thigh, leaned closer to her, and whispered:

“We have a large mahogany bed hidden in our inner storage room. It’s about 2.3 or 2.4 meters wide. It’s the kind that was custom-made for wealthy families in the past. There are even carvings on the headboard. But a few years ago, during the Cultural Revolution, someone secretly sold it. I received it and immediately hid it in the inner storage room. This is a government store. Back then, the checks weren’t strict, so it slipped through the net. This is a good thing. Would you like to take a look, young lady?”

Jing Yan's eyes lit up: "Can this bed be disassembled?"

The man nodded: "If I can't take it apart, how am I supposed to hide it? Even the bed frame is made of mahogany. The regulations haven't been as strict in the last two years. If my place wasn't so small, I would have bought it back for my own home long ago."

"Isn't the price also quite attractive?" Jing Yan hesitated. She had a lot of money at home, but it didn't last long. If she knew the price later, she wouldn't be able to get this bed for four hundred yuan. She was very unsure of herself.

The man knew her worries and was also a little sad: "This bed has been hidden away in my house for seven or eight years. After all, it's been kept hidden and hasn't been well maintained. The wood is sturdy enough. I just went to see it recently, but it looks very worn out and won't fetch a high price. If you want it, I'll give you 150 yuan and deliver it to your door and assemble it for you. Girl, let me tell you, this bed is really worth it. It's made entirely of mortise and tenon joints, without a single nail, so it can be disassembled into many pieces. Even if you go to other places in the future, you can ship it by hand."

Jing Yan was truly tempted. "Then, take me to see it?"

The man furtively glanced around the shop entrance, making Jingyan furious. Was he trying to make sure everyone knew he was up to no good? Luckily, the man quickly called over a shop assistant to keep watch at the door. He led Jingyan to the back of the shop, and when they reached a wall, he pushed it open, creating a doorway just big enough for one person to pass through.

Looking at the pitch-black interior, Jingyan was reluctant to step inside. If she hadn't bought things here before and if Sister Gao hadn't said it was a respectable place, she would have been afraid of being kidnapped. This didn't seem like a place for good people.

However, seeing the man shake his head so much to let her in again, Jingyan thought, "This guy can't be a bad person, right?" Gathering her courage, she cautiously stepped inside. Once inside, she didn't dare move. Hearing the sound, the man followed her in. She released her hand, and the door automatically closed. The man probably knew she was scared, and as he groped his way in, he said, "Don't be afraid, little sister. Just stand there for a bit. I'll turn on the light in a bit, and then it'll be bright."

Not long after he finished speaking, there was a click, the sound of the light cord being pulled, and then the dim light of the bulb came on. The room was not small, but the light was not bright. The man was a little embarrassed: "I dare not install high-wattage bulbs here. If the brightness is too great, people will notice it."

Jing Yan covered her forehead: "I'm coming in now, aren't I?"

“You’re the buyer, not someone else,” the man said matter-of-factly.

Jing Yan… “Okay, where’s the bed you showed me?”

The man quickly led her to a corner. There weren't many things there, but they all looked old. There was a canopy bed or a four-poster bed, the kind she had seen in palace dramas in her previous life. There was also a chaise longue and several antique-style shelves. In short, they were very beautiful, but they looked like they wouldn't be easy to dismantle.

As she walked along with the people, she came to a corner and saw a large pile of wood there. Jingyan finally understood why they said it wasn't well preserved. It wasn't well preserved at all. It was just scattered and piled up like this. What effort did you put into it?

Seeing the obvious disappointment in her eyes, the man felt a little embarrassed and stepped forward to pick up a piece of wood that should have been from a bed leg, handing it to her: "Look, it really is mahogany."

Jingyan took it and examined it. Yes, it was indeed mahogany, though the color was somewhat mottled. It looked like the broken wooden planks in a haunted house that had been abandoned for thirty years in a TV drama.

Jingyan lifted the bed leg and asked him seriously, "Is this what you call worth it? You want to take it home? Look at the other things in your room, they're all neatly protected, but this, what's the difference between it and being stored on a wooden board? Not to mention it's piled up here like garbage, and you still dare to ask me for 150 yuan for this?"

"But this really is mahogany, even the bed boards are made of it, it's all high-quality material." The man still wanted to argue his case (a last-ditch effort).

Jingyan took a few steps closer and carefully examined the carved headboard she had mentioned earlier. The workmanship was average and not very refined. Even items from wealthy families would be relatively ordinary. Such rough carving was not worthy of a family with a rich cultural heritage.

"If you're sure there are no missing parts and you can assemble it, it'll be 100 yuan, including delivery and assembly. Are you willing to pay?" Jingyan was particularly confident when negotiating prices now. If it weren't for the other furniture in the room, she would have thought it was worth 150 yuan, even if it was a bit worn out. But compared to the good stuff in the room, it suddenly became trash. If she didn't negotiate the price now, when would she?

The man hesitated for a moment, then said, "Hey girl, can you add a little more?"

Jingyan shook her head, then her eyes moved to the other furniture in the room, finding them more and more beautiful. She pointed to a bed and asked, "Isn't that the canopy bed that wealthy families used to have?"

She was just guessing; she had heard of a few famous ancient furniture names in her past life, and this was the only one she remembered. She blurted it out casually, but when she saw the man's surprised expression, she knew she had guessed correctly. She quickly suppressed her excitement at her lucky break and asked, "How much does that cost?"

The man shook his head vigorously: "Apart from this mahogany bed, nothing else in this house is for sale."

Jing Yan had an "I knew it" look on her face: "Look, the one you're selling isn't to your liking. Since you don't like it, give me a reasonable price. You know, a bed is a big purchase, and most people don't need to buy one often. The one I happen to need is something you can only dream of. If it sits for a few more years, this mahogany bed will really be ruined. It's better to exchange it for some money so I can have a place to live that I like."

"When I came to buy furniture before, I actually took away a cot. I don't need a bed, I just wanted a bigger and more comfortable one, and it would be suitable for my home. Otherwise, if my home is smaller, this bed really wouldn't fit."

The man thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "One hundred and one hundred. Ten yuan is for delivery and assembly. If there are any problems, the technician can fix them on the spot. If you agree, I'll find someone. If you don't agree, then forget it. I can't lower the price any further."

"Are you sure you can't give any more?" Jingyan asked again.

The man shook his head firmly: "Don't ask anymore. It's the lowest price at 110. Ask again and I'll beat you up." He shook his fist, but his threat lacked conviction.

Jing Yan nodded reluctantly: "I won't pay you first. How about you assemble the bed for me and then I'll pay? This pile of wood, how am I supposed to know if there are any flaws here or there? Being able to live here and living comfortably are two different things. I won't compromise on this."

The man readily nodded: "No problem, I'll go with my master, and you can just give me the money later."

Jing Yan shrugged indifferently: "Sure, I just want to see the finished product. Shall we go out? When can you deliver it? If you deliver it now, I'll go with you. If it's later, I'll have to take the bus by myself."

The man led her outside: "Wait for me in the shop for fifteen minutes. I'll go find someone to get another tricycle. You can go with the tricycle; it'll give you directions. I'm too lazy to find it myself according to the address."

Jingyan returned home with her men. The three men carried the wood to the guest room in several trips. They folded up the cot and placed it upright in the corner, instructing the craftsman on how to position the headboard and footboard. While giving instructions, they told Jingyan, "There are rules for arranging the bed. The headboard should not face the door directly. As for any taboos, we can't mention them now. Just know that."

Jing Yan nodded in deep agreement. The bed didn't seem too difficult to assemble, but because it was a mortise and tenon structure, many parts couldn't be mixed and matched, so it took a while. By the time the bed was assembled, an hour and a half had passed.

The man looked at Jing Yan with a proud expression: "The assembly fee I charged wasn't expensive, was it? Not just anyone can install this structure. I also said that this bed wouldn't be missing anything, and look, it's a perfect replica."

Jingyan sat down and tested it; it was indeed very stable. She poured a bowl of mung bean soup for each of the three people, counted out 110 yuan, and handed it to the man. The man finished the mung bean soup in a few gulps, took the money, and counted it carefully. "The money is correct. Well, sister, we'll be going now. If you need anything in the future, come find me. But don't even think about the things in my secret stash."