The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 172 Alone in the Morning (1020+ Monthly Tickets)_1

Chapter 172: Chapter 172 Alone in the Morning (1020+ Monthly Tickets)_1

Huo Yingjie felt exhilarated, as he was about to spend time alone with He Tiantian.

Huo Yingjie got up and hurriedly put everything away, not wanting his family to see it; he’d wash it himself when he returned during the day.

After dressing, brushing his teeth and washing his face, he took his crossbody bag filled with various coupons and left.

He Tiantian was also ready, dressed warmly with a hat knitted from black yarn on her head, adorned with a large yarn ball that was loose and soft, looking especially nice.

It was just that it was dark, and Huo Yingjie couldn’t see clearly.

"Brother Yingjie, have some hot water, it’ll warm you up," He Tiantian offered, handing over her thermos filled with hot water, which could be drunk or used to warm hands.

"Thank you!" Huo Yingjie indeed felt a bit parched and took several sips, feeling comfortable all over, from the inside out, his entire body relaxed!

He Tiantian held the thermos, following by Huo Yingjie’s side.

In Huo Yingjie’s hand was a large basket with a burlap sack inside, ready to be filled with goods.

"What are we buying today?" Huo Yingjie asked, in an era of scarce resources, shopping for New Year’s was like going to battle; sometimes even with money and coupons, being at the end of the queue meant you might not get anything.

He Tiantian thought for a moment and said, "It’s not about what we want to buy, but about what the supply and sales cooperative has, that’s what we can buy! Anyway, I brought all the coupons from home and also quite a bit of money, we’ll buy whatever we see, as much as we can. Otherwise, these coupons will go to waste if we don’t use them. New Year’s is coming up, and there are lots of things we need; whatever we buy, we’ll find a use for it at home."

Seeing He Tiantian speak so logically, Huo Yingjie was very pleased; his other hand patted He Tiantian’s round head and accidentally touched the big ball on her knitted hat, leading him to chuckle and pinch it a couple of times.

It was now dark, and even if there were people around, everyone was in a hurry, not paying attention to them.

Huo Yingjie took one of He Tiantian’s hands in his, his large hand enveloping her small one, as they walked forward together.

He Tiantian felt completely satisfied, experiencing the precious rush of emotions once more from the feeling of Huo Yingjie holding her hand, blissful.

The two walked at a leisurely pace on the road, and even if there were some uneven spots, they managed to avoid them carefully or simply leaped over them under their joint vigilance.

Soon, they arrived at the supply and sales cooperative near their home, where a long queue had already formed outside the door.

He Tiantian took out the Grain Coupon and said, "Brother Yingjie, these are my family’s Grain Coupons and money, go and buy grains; buy as much as you can. I’ll go over to the vegetable section and try to get more cabbages, radishes, potatoes, and such."

Huo Yingjie smiled and said, "Alright, I’ll queue over there, and you stay here. If the goods are heavy later, just call me to carry them."

"Okay," He Tiantian crisply replied, taking her things and lining up elsewhere.

The two were several meters apart, yet their eyes frequently met unintentionally.

Huo Yingjie’s gaze was always warm, focused.

Feeling happy inside, He Tiantian would also feel shy, quickly turning her eyes away, her heartbeat accelerating.

Previously, He Tiantian worried about being able to interact comfortably with Huo Yingjie upon meeting him again, thinking her mentality had aged after decades of experiences from her past life. But when they met and embraced, the rapid beating of her heart told her it was possible.

No matter how many years had passed, because of love, that heart would always beat faster for this man.

Soon after they had started queuing, more people joined behind them, waiting for the supply and sales cooperative to open.

At six o’clock in the morning, the supply and sales cooperative opened on time.

The crowd queuing at the door rustled as the salesperson inside, holding up a cone made from rolled-up paper, shouted loudly, "Line up, line up! If you don’t queue, you won’t be able to buy anything."

Despite feeling anxious, everyone knew they needed to queue orderly if they wanted to buy something quickly. Not queuing properly would just cause trouble, and within two minutes, police from the nearby station would emerge to arrest anyone causing a disturbance.

With order maintained, the salesperson could pick up the pace a bit.

Items like rice were rationed, with each person being allowed to buy only ten pounds per day—no more, and neither money nor grain coupons could change that. The same went for other essentials, with a maximum of three types of staple foods per person each day.

Today, Huo Yingjie had bought ten pounds of rice, ten pounds of flour, and ten pounds of cornmeal.

He Tiantian had purchased twenty pounds of cabbage, ten pounds of radishes, and ten pounds of potatoes, all of which she loaded into a sack and carried on her back.

Seeing He Tiantian, short in stature, carrying a large sack on her back, Huo Yingjie quickly went up to help, saying, "You should have called for me. Why didn’t you?"

"It’s not heavy. I can manage," He Tiantian said with a smile, "The day has already broken, let’s head back. We’ll come again tomorrow."

There was no way Huo Yingjie could let He Tiantian carry all that! Seeing that the sack wasn’t full yet, he added ten pounds of rice and ten pounds of flour. He carried the sack, letting He Tiantian hold on to the ten-pound bag of cornmeal.

"Actually, we could have taken more." He Tiantian remarked. She was quite strong, and that weight felt insubstantial in her hands. It’s just... it was difficult for her to explain to Huo Yingjie why she was so strong!

"As long as I’m here, I’m not going to let you get tired!" Huo Yingjie chuckled, "You just hold the basket, and let’s head home."

Huo Yingjie shouldered the large sack, and He Tiantian carried the basket.

Turning his head, Huo Yingjie spotted a fair, little face with a cute pom-pom hat, possibly due to the vigorous movement, a small, round earlobe was peeking out.

Dayu Tree Alley was three miles away from the supply and marketing cooperative, and Huo Yingjie and He Tiantian made their way home with their loads. Huo Yingjie planned to bring back a small cart today; it was certainly more comfortable than carrying everything on his back.

"Huh? He Tiantian?" At a turning point, a woman called out to He Tiantian.

He Tiantian turned around and saw it was Liu Lingli.

If Liu Lingli had ignored her just a few days ago, why was she now going out of her way to greet her?

She must be interested in something, as that woman doesn’t wake up early for nothing.

He Tiantian smiled and said, "Oh, it’s Sister Lingli. You’re heading back too?"

"Yes, I’ve been buying tickets for several days and arrived a bit late. When I went to find you, the people from Qijia Village said you had already gone home," Liu Lingli replied, "Since we’re from the same place, how about we go back together when it’s time to head back?"

He Tiantian responded with a smile, "Let’s talk about it then. I might have other things to do!"

Liu Lingli didn’t get upset upon hearing this; instead, her enthusiasm increased, and she said with a beaming smile, "Sure, it’s up to you. I have nothing to do at home, so I’ll come over and hang out!"

"Actually, I’m quite busy. I have to make paper boxes every day to supplement our household income. If you come over to play, you can help me, and I won’t be so tired," He Tiantian replied pretendingly excited, "Sister Lingli, you must come!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Lingli’s face stiffened for a moment. She wondered what had happened to He Tiantian’s family, that they had fallen on such hard times, just like her family, they now had to earn money by making paper boxes.

******

Enthusiastically promoting a new book "Husband, it’s Time for Dinner." The future husband is a handsome troublemaker. Since she’s ended up with him, she’ll make every effort to train and mold him just right~