Chen Lishu left thirteen pieces for Gu Xingping and gave all the remaining thirty pieces to Zhou Bin.
After seeing off Zhou Bin, Chen Lishu and Gu Xingping went to the department store. Chen Lishu did not go directly to the second floor to look at the bicycles, but first looked at the woolen yarns on the first floor.
Gu Xingdong wears military uniforms all year round in the army and has no chance to wear other outerwear. Chen Lishu thought of knitting a sweater for him so that he could wear it under it when the weather is cold.
"Comrade, are you looking at the wool? We have a complete range of products, including blended wool, nylon thread, and acrylic thread, and the price is quite cheap. You only need an industrial coupon to buy two taels."
The salesperson saw the two people standing in front of the counter and began to sell hard.
Although blended wool and acrylic threads are cheap, the quality is not very good. Chen Lishu's eyes fell on the pure wool on the other side.
"Comrade, how do you sell that?"
The salesperson looked in the direction of her finger and said with a smile: "This is pure wool from Shanghai, it costs one yuan or two."
Chen Lishu happened to still have some industrial coupons in her hand. She made a rough estimate in her mind and finally chose four pounds of beige wool. She and Gu Xingdong each knitted one, which was considered a couple's sweater.
After buying wool, she and Gu Xingping went to the second floor. There were quite a few bicycle brands, including Phoenix, Forever, Feige, etc.
I asked the salesperson about the price. Erba Dabang bicycles range in price from 150 to 180. Kun bicycles are cheaper, but they also cost between 120 and 150.
"If you want to install a car cover or something, it will cost another two or three yuan." The salesperson added at the end.
If there was no car cover, mud would splash everywhere when it rained. Finally, Chen Lishu chose a permanent brand women's bicycle. With the car cover, the total cost was 152 yuan and a bicycle ticket.
As the aunt and sister came out of the department store pushing bicycles, they suddenly felt envious looks from everyone around them.
"Sister-in-law, can you ride?" Gu Xingping touched the brand new car and couldn't put it down.
Chen Lishu smiled and shook her head: "No." In her previous life, the conditions were not good and she had never had any contact with her. Later, when she came to the city, the Lu family had one, but the whole family was so precious that they would not let her touch it easily. Later, there were more buses, so naturally
Never had a chance to learn.
Gu Xingping worried: "I don't know how either."
Chen Lishu smiled: "It just so happens that we two learn together."
The two of them pushed the car all the way to the small courtyard. As soon as they turned around the alley, they saw Ding Chen standing at the door of their courtyard.
"Why are you here? Is there something wrong?" Gu Xingping took two quick steps over and asked.
Ding Chen's eyes lit up when he saw her coming back: "I came to look for you yesterday and found that you were not there."
"We have returned to the village in the past two days." Chen Lishu said, taking out the key and opening the door.
"My parents said they would like to invite you two to our house for dinner. Thank you for the dumplings."
In fact, it was Ding Chen who suggested that the two of them be invited to dinner. The parents of the Ding family felt that what their son said was right, so they nodded in agreement.
"How much can a bowl of dumplings cost? You city people are so polite."
Gu Xingping said with a smile, then patted the newly bought bicycle and asked Ding Chen: "Isn't the new bicycle my third sister-in-law bought very beautiful?"
Ding Chen nodded immediately: "It's still a permanent card, it looks pretty good."
Gu Xingping couldn't help but bend her eyes and grin when she heard his praise.
Ding Chen saw the two people entering the yard and stood by the door and asked again: "Will you come over that night?"
Gu Xingping couldn't make up her mind and turned to ask Chen Lishu: "Sister-in-law, shall we go?"
Chen Lishu thought for a while and nodded: "Then let's go."
"I'll go back and tell you." Ding Chen got the confirmation and immediately turned around happily and went home to make preparations.
It was not the first time to eat at someone's house empty-handed, so Chen Lishu took the time to go to the supply and marketing store at the corner of the street and bought two packs of fruits. During dinner, she and Gu Xingping took them to Ding's house.
From what Gu Xingping said, Chen Lishu thought that Father Ding and Mother Ding would be two very serious people, but who knew that both of them were very kind.
"Xingping and Xiao Chen are here." Ding's mother Sun Shuzhen smiled and said hello when she saw the two coming in.
Because I learned from my son that the two of them were military relatives, I had a good impression in my heart. Now I saw that Chen Lishu also looked like a clear-eyed person, and I knew that she was a good boy, and my impression became even better.
"Hello, uncle and aunt." Chen Lishu smiled and put the things in her hands on the table.
"I heard from our family Ding Chen that Xingping didn't do well in the exam this year. Are you going to repeat the exam for another year?" Ding Yongfeng asked after gesturing for the two of them to sit down.
Chen Lishu clearly felt that Gu Xingping next to her was tense, her back straightened, and she stuttered as if answering the teacher's question in class: "Yes, yes, my grades are not very good."
Ding Yongfeng smiled and told her to relax: "This is at home and not at school, just a casual chat. Don't be nervous."
"This is a conditioned reflex, and I can't control it myself." Gu Xingping said in a low voice, feeling a little embarrassed.
Seeing how straightforward she was, the others couldn't help laughing.
"If your child is nervous, don't mention school. It's a rare visit to your home. Why don't we have dinner and chat while we eat? This way we can relax more."
As she spoke, Sun Shuzhen stood up and asked everyone to sit down, and then motioned to Ding Chen to help serve the dishes.
Chen Lishu and Gu Xingping stood up to help but she stopped them, so they had to sit back down.
There are four dishes in total. Sun Shuzhen’s cooking skills are very good and the food is delicious.
After the meal, the two sisters got to know the Ding family a lot. Chen Lishu also learned that Ding Yongfeng taught mathematics in high school and Sun Shuzhen taught Chinese.
"My mother used to teach English, but in our middle schools we all learn Russian, so we had to switch to teaching Chinese." Ding Chen interjected with some regret.
When we had a good relationship with the "Big Brother" of the Soviet Union, there was a wave of enthusiasm for learning Russian in China, especially in the Northeast where they were located. The foreign language in all middle schools was Russian, and only large places like provincial cities would offer English classes.
Chen Lishu was surprised when she heard Ding Chen's words, and then she felt a little excited inside.
Although foreign language is not a required subject in next year's college entrance examination, if you want to apply for a foreign language major, you will need to take an additional test. She has never been exposed to chemistry and physics, and it is too late to learn it now, so from the beginning she made up her mind to only study liberal arts courses.
However, her education level is limited, and English has become her only strong point at present.
But there was no honest reason that could not be explained to the outside world. Originally, Chen Lishu wanted to use Xu Ning as an excuse, but who knew that she also studied Russian.
"Aunt Sun, can I learn English with you? You don't need to teach me anything. You just need to give me some guidance from time to time. It won't take up too much of your time."
After Chen Lishu asked this question cautiously, she held her breath and looked at Sun Shuzhen. She was even more nervous, fearing that others would find it troublesome and reject her directly.