With all the children back at school, the snow on the plains had almost melted, the roads were gradually drying out, and the nuisance of getting splashed with mud every day was slowly disappearing.
Li Long found time to visit the Purchasing Station and was surprised to discover far more people queuing in the yard to sell things than before.
Just today, there were a dozen or so people waiting in the yard, both resellers and original sellers.
As the weather warmed up, tea had once again been set out beneath the windowsill in the yard. Someone was carefully ladling tea into an enamel bowl with a dipper. After filling it, he put the dipper back where it belonged, then went to squat off to the side and drink.
On the ground beside the tea bucket sat a basin of water, with three or four enamel bowls either floating or submerged in it. When people finished drinking, they put their bowls in the basin, giving them a rinse themselves.
Li Long asked the last man in line, who looked as though he had come to sell his own things:
"Has it been this busy these past couple of days? Why is everyone coming to sell things now? Aren't you getting your farming supplies ready?"
"That's exactly why we're selling things now." The man smiled. "Where would we get the money for farming supplies if we didn't sell things? I hear credit cooperatives in some parts of Inland China are already lending farmers money to buy supplies. When will we be able to do that here?"
Li Long understood. This was precisely the time to prepare farming supplies, but some households had no money to spare. If they wanted bigger harvests and higher yields, they needed good seeds and fertilizer, and