In the evening of the same day, Gu Biao and Ma Feng, two secondary school boys, took turns riding bicycles and went to Gongchenqiao Wharf.

From Qiantang to Hujiang, if you ride a bicycle directly, it is 180 kilometers, and your physical strength will definitely be unbearable.

But if you can take a boat from the Grand Canal to Gusu first, and then ride a bicycle from Gusu, 60 kilometers is enough, and it will take 3 hours to ride quickly. Today's teenagers have to do some physical work, so riding dozens of kilometers is completely normal. (Farmers in the mountains can walk dozens of kilometers on foot)

Gu Biao is also quite curious about the canal, an ancient mode of transportation.

In later generations, he had only seen the sightseeing cruise ship with the structure of the painting boat on the Grand Canal, from Wulin Gate to Gongchen Bridge, and he could swipe 3 city bus cards once.

I never thought that the old Grand Canal was still used to transport people at the end of the 70s.

Let's experience the hard times.

The ship was divided into two cabins, and it was not full.

Gu Wei's ticket was 5 cents and he could sleep above deck, while Ma Feng only bought 3 cents and had to sleep in a stuffy tank with no windows below the waterline.

It seems that he has a lot of consciousness as a horse boy, and knows that smelling the dirty air for a night can save two cents for the eldest brother.

When Ma Feng helped Gu Biao carry the bicycle onto the boat, the boat boss tried to stop him, saying that the car took up space and he had to make up two cents more for the boat.

Gu Biao didn't care about the two cents, and was ready to pay for them.

Ma Feng didn't follow, and bargained with the boat boss: "Don't bully people! We have less luggage, plus how much does this car weigh?

Look at how many things that uncle picked up just now? The flat shoulder is bent, and it is definitely much heavier than our car, and you didn't ask him to add money! Are you bullying us for being young? Who else is that, I want to see what he picks in his burden, whether it weighs my bicycle or ......not."

Ma Feng had sharp eyes, and as he spoke, he turned off the map cannon and pointed out all the guests who looked like old farmers and carried heavy flat burdens.

These days, it's not easy to go out, so it's normal to overload your luggage.

A few of them were pointed out by Ma Feng, and they all looked like gallant and fat crab farmers, perhaps they picked up a load of hairy crabs from Gusu and came to Qiantang to sell them. When I went back, I refused to run empty, so I sold some local agricultural and sideline products in Qiantang to make some money from selling my strength.

These people want to keep a low profile, after all, they are engaged in speculative trading, and it is not good to be shouted out.

So they all spoke to Ma Feng in the spirit of calming things down: "Boat boss, look at other people's teenage children, it's not easy to go out, it's a little bigger." ”

The boss of the boat saw that the other party was outnumbered, and they were all instigated by Ma Feng, so he gave up.

Gu Biao watched secretly, thinking that his emotional intelligence still needs to be improved.

Even a child like Ma Feng can incite the masses for his own use without a teacher, what a gap.

……

After getting on the boat, Ma Feng didn't want to go down to smell the smell and sleep immediately, and there was no place for him in the upper cabin, so he sat on the open deck and watched the scenery.

In fact, there is nothing to see, the Grand Canal in the 70s, because people have no awareness of environmental protection, all kinds of industrial pollution, the water quality is very smelly, not better than the lower stuffy tank cabin.

Gu Biao picked a clean position and sat aside, and then told Ma Feng the truth: "Actually, you don't have to buy a ferry ticket today." All you have to tell me is that you need a letter of introduction to buy a long-distance bus ticket, and then I'll get a letter of introduction. ”

Gu Biao said, took out an envelope from his arms, and shook it in front of Ma Feng.

Ma Feng was shocked at the time, and felt that Gu Biao was simply powerful: "This is a letter of introduction, Brother Gu, how did you get it?"

Gu Biao whispered: "In my father's factory, he is currently engaged in a technical research project, and he needs to coordinate various scientific research materials. He was the head of the technical section, so I asked him to ask the unit for a letter of introduction.

I think that when we go to Hujiang in the future, if we want to buy that kind of rare book, it will definitely be much more convenient to have this 'Shang Fang Sword', so as to force them to cooperate with us." ”

His father and Director Qin had such an important task on their backs, and they asked the factory for some letters of introduction, but they still had their hands on it?

Ma Feng was envious, but also felt a little frustrated: "That's my good intentions to do bad things, if I hadn't made my own decisions and bought a ferry ticket instead if I couldn't buy a long-distance bus, you would still be able to take the car comfortably tomorrow......"

In order to make up for his mistake, Ma Feng thought about it and said, "That's it, Brother Gu, I'll ride you all the way tomorrow." Don't look at me thin, it's no problem to ride 60 kilometers in one go!

"Don't," Gu Biao hurriedly stopped Ma Feng's ruthlessness, "The reason why I only told you now is because I don't want you to think too much and discourage your enthusiasm." You do things to achieve the end by any means, which is a good thing and worth cultivating.

I've never been to a foreign country by boat anyway, so it's good to experience life once. And if you hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't have thought of getting a letter of introduction - so, if you encounter something in the future, you should be bold and let it go, and it doesn't matter if you are wrong the first time, as long as you don't make a mistake the second time. ”

"Brother Gu, what you said makes sense, much higher than Teacher Yang. Ma Feng savored Gu Wei's words, and suddenly felt a sense of encounter, as if he was full of energy, and it would be okay to ride a 60-kilometer bicycle tomorrow.

The two chatted for a while, and then went back to the cabin to sleep.

The boat drove very slowly, estimated to be less than 20 kilometers in an hour, and the sound of the diesel engine was also very loud, which really refreshed Gu Ao's three views. The journey of more than 100 kilometers was stunned and drove all night.

About halfway through midnight, the boat went out of the Grand Canal and went to Taihu Lake, because the water of Taihu Lake is clear, and the environment is better. The advantages of Gu Biao's upper class are also reflected.

It's a pity that Gu Biao is already asleep, and he can't smell the difference between smells.

At four o'clock in the morning, the boat docked at Wujiang, and the boat boss woke up with a rattle bell, and the group got off the boat in a daze.

If it is paired with the BGM of Plants vs. Zombies, it will be more graphic.

Gu Biao endured the bad breath without a toothbrush, and when he stepped off the deck, he saw that there was already a large group of old farmers lined up on the dock, all carrying full of crab loads, and they should all be ready to take a boat to sell in other places.

"Is it so bitter? Going out at 4 o'clock is too hard, right?" Gu Biao couldn't help but sigh.

Ma Feng seemed to know more about the people's suffering than him, so he explained: "This is all speculation, and it is inconvenient in broad daylight, for fear of being seen." ”

Gu Biao's heart moved: "Why don't we buy a few catties and let them cook them for lunch, and keep them for lunch?" Anyway, we don't have a national food stamp, so we can't go to the restaurant to eat at noon." ”

Nowadays, people go on business trips, but they don't just need a letter of introduction to buy tickets and stay in guest houses. You have to have a unit issue you a national food stamp and meat stamp, so that you can buy food in a restaurant.

Otherwise, even if you have money, you have to wait to starve to death on the streets.

If you're lucky, you'll be able to be found before you starve to death and then repatriated.

Because Gu Biao and Ma Feng only went out for one day, they brought a few steamed buns as dry food on the road, and they didn't plan to buy food in Hujiang at all.

However, Ma Feng disagreed with Gu Biao's proposal: "What is delicious about hairy crabs? ”

People in this era generally think that fatty pork is the main meat, and other aquatic products are not a problem. In particular, the freshwater fish that are farmed according to the plan are also purchased with tickets, which is the least cost-effective.

The advantage of shrimp and crabs is that they are not classified, and many of them are caught privately by fishermen, and they can be bought without charging tickets.

In addition, in the less coastal cities today, the only fish that can be bought without a ticket is the smelly hairtail fish - hairtail fish cannot be farmed, it is wild-caught. Moreover, it will die if it is out of water, and it is not good for long-term storage, so the official allows the people to sell it when they get it, without a ticket.

It's just that Qiantang is at least two hundred kilometers away from the sea, and now there are no refrigerated trucks, so all the hairtail fish in Gu Ao's memory are a little smelly, and they have been dead for at least three days.

However, after all, Gu Biao is still the soul of later generations, and his impression of hairy crabs is obviously better than pork.

So he ignored Ma Feng's advice, so he went straight to a crab farmer who was queuing up: "Uncle, how do you sell this crab?"

The crab farmer looked up and down, thinking that Gu Biao was joking.

On this pier, the price of crab is relatively cheap, after all, it is not worth much locally.

Gu Biao knew his concerns, so he asked: "Don't worry, I'll buy two or three catties, and you can give it to me according to the price of transporting it to Qiantang - but I have to borrow the fire from the boat boss to help me cook it." ”

As soon as he heard that Gu Biao bought it at the destination price, the crab farmer immediately agreed: "The ordinary four cents are one catty, and the largest is six cents." ”

Gu Biao took out two yuan: "Na, here are two yuan." Give me the three catties of the largest, and the extra two cents, you can take it and borrow a stove from the boat boss, and cook it for me quickly. ”

Of course, the best taste of hairy crabs is steamed, but Gu Biao knew that the boat boss would not dock for too long, and he didn't have that time, so he directly let it be cooked.

It's not so particular when you're out on the road.

As soon as the crab farmer heard that the crab was worth two cents by borrowing the stove to cook for a few minutes, he took the money and went. In less than five minutes, a basket of red hairy crabs that had been cooked quickly was brought back, poured into Gu Wei's duffel bag containing dry food, and vinegar was poured on the crabs.

"Come to Wujiang Wharf to buy crabs? Hey, what a weirdo. ”

"Could it be that he is an overseas Chinese from Hujiang and doesn't take money as money?"

Looking at the back of Gu Biao Meizi's departure, a group of crab farmers were still stealing legends there.

After all, pork is only more than six cents a pound now, and few people in Gusu buy hairy crabs at such an expensive price.

And Gu Biao's heart is blaming his father for not living at the moment: "Alas, I know that I can stare at meat! There are so many good things that can be bought without meat tickets and just money, but I just turn a blind eye!

He took advantage of the horse wind to pedal the bicycle in front, and he sat on the mat of the newspaper rack behind him, holding the bar with only one hand, and opening the crab pocket with the other hand, chewing all the way.

It was inconvenient to disassemble the crab leg delicately in the car, so he chewed it casually a few times and vomited the leg. I only concentrate on eating the crab pocket with plump crab meat and thick yellow cream.

Anyway, if you buy three catties in one go, you have to eat them all in one day, and it's not a pity to throw away your legs.

On the provincial highway from Gusu to Hujiang, dozens of crab legs were sprinkled along the way.

After eating half of it, Ma Feng also carried people to pedal the bicycle for three hours, almost so tired that he had to lie down, and finally arrived in Hujiang City.

Gu Biao patted his stomach, got off the schoolbag shelf, and walked to the Xinhua bookstore written on the address in a big way.

As he walked, he stuffed the bag of dry food in his hand to Ma Feng:

"Now, today you rode a bicycle to help me deliver the whole process, which is equivalent to saving me 3 yuan in ticket money, and I haven't been extra burdened.

I will give you a third of the money I have saved. It's a dollar crab, so let's eat it. Remember, this is called a performance review. In the future, anyone who does something that exceeds my expectations will be rewarded. ”

When Ma Feng heard this, his face was happy at first, and then turned into regret: "Brother Gu, you said earlier that it was better to buy half less and give me money directly!"

One dollar for one and a half pounds of hairy crabs, Ma Feng is not worth it in his heart.

The generation gap in values is too great.