Chapter 184: News from Great-Aunt

When Zhou Yimin arrived at the post office, he was surprised to find that there was no mail for him.

That was strange. Auntie No. 1 had clearly said there was something.

“You’re from Courtyard No. 56? What’s your name? What’s your relationship with Zhou Xuhua?” one of the staff suddenly seemed to recall something and asked.

Zhou Yimin nodded. “I’m Zhou Yimin from Courtyard No. 56. Zhou Xuhua is my father.”

“That’s it then. The package is over there. It was originally addressed to your father. But someone from your courtyard told our postman that your father had left with a widow. So, you can receive it on his behalf, but you’ll need to provide proof,” the staff member explained.

Zhou Yimin understood now—it had been sent to his dad.

“I just need to prove that Zhou Xuhua is my father, right?” Zhou Yimin asked.

The man nodded. Otherwise, anyone could walk in claiming to be someone’s son or brother and take the package—who would be responsible for that?

Zhou Yimin pretended to search his pockets.

In truth, he always kept the household registration book in his shop backpack and carried it around “just in case.”

The hukou booklet had been introduced as early as 1958, though it was still called hukou bu at the time.

“Comrade, this is my family’s registration booklet,” Zhou Yimin said, handing it over.

The staff member examined it for a while before returning it to him and letting him take the items.

Zhou Yimin found there was one box and one large bag—it was a bit heavy. When he saw the sender’s name, he was astonished—it was from his great-aunt who had married far away in the south.

After picking up the items, Zhou Yimin headed straight back to Zhoujiazhuang.

He believed that his grandfather would be thrilled to receive something from his great-aunt.

Recently, Zhou Yimin had tried to inquire about her whereabouts, but to no avail.

Hurrying back to the village, he ran into the old man who was wandering around aimlessly.

He shouted, “Grandpa! Let’s go home. There’s news from Great-Aunt!”

Old Zhou, who had been strolling through the village, froze at his grandson’s words. It took several seconds for him to process it before his old legs suddenly sprang into action, dashing off at full speed.

He was overwhelmed with emotion!

For so many years, there had been no word from his older sister. He had braced himself for the worst, thinking he’d never see her again in this lifetime. Who would’ve thought—there was finally news from her.

“Yimin, how’s your great-aunt?” the old man asked anxiously as soon as they entered the house.

Zhou Yimin pointed at the box and large bag on the floor. “These were sent by her. Take a look, Grandpa.”

“No letter?” the old man asked, clearly hoping more for a letter than a pile of goods.

“Maybe it’s inside,” Zhou Yimin guessed.

Without another word, the old man opened the box and the bag.

Grandma came over too.

She had always liked her husband’s older sister. Since marrying into the family, she’d never met her, but every New Year and holiday, they received packages from the south.

“Grandpa, here’s a letter,” Zhou Yimin said, pulling two envelopes from the box.

One was addressed to Grandpa, and the other to his father, Zhou Xuhua.

The old man snatched his letter with trembling hands, carefully opened it, and began to read every word, not even skipping a single punctuation mark.

As he read, his eyes grew misty.

“How is your big sister?” Grandma asked anxiously.

The old man wiped his eyes and smiled. “She’s doing well. A few years ago, the whole family moved to Hong Kong. No wonder we lost contact.”

At those words, Zhou Yimin and the others finally understood.

That explained everything.

Who would’ve thought Great-Aunt’s family had gone to Hong Kong?

Everyone turned their attention to the items in the package: there were clothes for Grandpa, Grandma, Zhou Xuhua, and even Zhou Yimin himself—denim outfits.

Denim had been invented a long time ago.

Over a hundred years ago, during the gold rush in the America, a 25-year-old German man named Levi Strauss also went to San Francisco in search of gold. But when he saw the countless gold prospectors, he changed his mind and opened a store selling daily necessities, including tents and canvas used for wagon covers.

One day, a gold miner said to him, “I think your canvas would make great shorts. The cotton ones we wear now wear out too fast.”

Levi thought it was a good idea and stitched up a batch of shorts from the canvas. They sold well. He went on to open a clothing factory in San Francisco.

By now, denim had already entered China, but in very limited quantity, and it had not yet become popular.

It wasn’t until much later, when trends swept across the country, that denim really took off—wide-flared bell-bottoms became all the rage.

But those pants with rounded hips and street-sweeping flares were hard for the older generation to accept. Some even took scissors to the streets, cutting off any such pants they saw.

There were also popular small goods from Hong Kong in the package.

Among them was a small radio and a camera.

“Grandpa, this is a radio too,” Zhou Yimin said.

They already had a radio at home, but compared to this one, it was much larger. The one in front of them was clearly more compact, which surprised the old man.

“This is a radio too? That small?”

Zhou Yimin explained, “The smaller it is, the more advanced. This kind is called an ‘atomic grain radio’ in the south. It’s probably quite expensive.”

By now, Hong Kong was on the rise. “Made in Hong Kong” was gaining fame, with many recognizable brands. The most well-known among them were Red A plastic goods and atomic grain radios.

“Red A” was one of Hong Kong’s famous brands, founded by Starlight Industrial in 1949. They sold various plastic household items, with the Red A plastic bucket being the most famous—extremely durable. During Hong Kong’s repeated water shortages, these buckets were essential.

Another globally popular “Made in Hong Kong” item was the atomic grain radio.

After World War II, scientists invented a transistor that could be used in radios, also known as “atomic grain,” which drastically reduced the size of radios and made them more portable.

As early as last year, foreign manufacturers had begun setting up radio assembly plants in Hong Kong, followed by multiple American companies.

“My sister, spending so much… why?” the old man scolded on the surface, but his heart was full of joy.

It wasn’t about the goods—what made him happy was that his sister still thought of her younger brother, just like before.

Truthfully, they didn’t lack anything these days. In the past month or two, their grandson had brought back so many nice things that they had nothing to worry about. Everything they used or ate was the best in the village.

Zhou Yimin fiddled with the camera, planning to take a family photo sometime.

His great-aunt had likely sent the camera with this in mind—hoping they’d send some photos back.

Zhou Yimin didn’t plan to take any of these things out of Zhoujiazhuang. Even the denim outfits—wearing them outside would be a bit too eye-catching.

(End of Chapter)