That afternoon, Li Long drove the tractor to the County Seat. Having a tractor really felt convenient now. A bicycle was convenient too, but he had to pedal it himself, and it could not carry much. The tractor was different. Most of the things he planned to buy would fit in a single load.
This time, his elder sister-in-law, Liang Yuemei, and his second sister-in-law, Chen Lirong, came along. His elder sister-in-law was there to advise him on which purchases would be practical; naturally, Li Long knew less about that than she did. Bringing his second sister-in-law was purely to give her a change of scene. Her two children had quickly settled into the Preschool Class and made a bunch of little friends. Chen Lirong lived at the Stable and only came over to chat with his elder sister-in-law each day. She had not really made friends yet and did not know the others well, so Li Long had thought of taking her out for a break.
Presumably, before long, once his second older brother, Li Anguo, had settled down in Kuytun and acquired a house with a courtyard, he would be able to bring his family over.
Li Long drove the tractor to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative first. It was his workplace, and after a word with the sales assistants, he could get most things for just a little above cost, so he bought the pots, bowls, ladles, and basins there.
Charged with outfitting her younger brother-in-law's new home, Liang Yuemei selected each item carefully, without the slightest carelessness. Chen Lirong was rather reserved at first, but as Liang Yuemei asked her opinion from time to time, she gradually relaxed. She stopped worrying about the sales assistants' looks and offered her opinions earnestly.
Meanwhile, Li Long went to