Chapter 50: What brand is this?

Duan Chengliang was in no mood to fuss over the shop assistant's changing attitude. Weren't people these days all like that? He hadn't transmigrated long ago, but he had adapted to this aspect quite quickly. Encountering it more and more made it second nature, and he had long since ceased to find it strange. Of course, the main reason was that he had anticipated it and possessed a resilient mindset.

Buying a bicycle was truly troublesome—not a whit simpler than buying a car in later generations, and the service attitude was incomparable to the girls at 4S dealerships. Therefore, the entire process almost tested even Duan Chengliang’s good temperament to its limit.

He had to re-register and carefully re-check the voucher for the registration queue issued to him by the store, along with his work unit's letter of introduction.

Additionally, there were several other documents in the store that required his signature and confirmation.

In the end, without even catching a glimpse of the bicycle, 147 yuan was spent, with no prior arrangement for inspecting the goods before payment.

Duan Chengliang watched as the shop assistant deftly collected the money and issued the receipt. After all the bustling was done, he thought it was finally time to go look at the bicycle. But after waiting and waiting, the shop assistant simply remained busy with her own affairs, seemingly endless paperwork piled up in her hands.

He stood in front of the counter in utter bewilderment. After waiting for a moment, seeing the plump shop assistant expressionless and making no move, he asked, "Comrade, where is the bicycle?"

The shop assistant acted as if she had just realized a person was standing there. She reacted with an "Ah," and said, "Look at me, that's just how I am. Whenever I get busy with work, I always forget things. I'm so sorry, I completely forgot about you. Let's go, come with me to the backyard to push out the bicycle."

Duan Chengliang looked at the haughty shop assistant walking ahead, continually giving himself mental suggestions: *We won't stoop to the level of a woman. Once we buy the bicycle and ride it, we'll be the coolest cat on this street.*

However, before he could become the coolest cat, Duan Chengliang looked at the bicycle before him and was dumbfounded.

It was no Pigeon, let alone a Permanent or a Phoenix—after all, Phoenix had just established its factory and didn't even have a brand yet.

He looked at the very sturdy heavy-duty 28-inch bicycle before him, utterly baffled, and asked the shop assistant doubtfully, "What brand is this?"

He muttered to himself, *Please, anything but some off-brand bicycle.* That was the only bad thing about buying things in this era—there was nothing to choose from. Whatever they gave you, you had to take. As the saying went, *having anything at all is good, so what are you being picky about?*

This time, however, a look of envy appeared on the shop assistant's face. She reached out and gave the bicycle seat a hearty slap, her expression full of yearning.

"What brand? The 'Great National Defense' produced by the Qingdao Bicycle Factory! Let me tell you, Duan Chengliang, you've got good timing. The Great National Defense is about to be discontinued to switch to producing the 'Small National Defense.' By then, those bicycles won't have the muscle this one does. This bicycle can carry enough grain to rival a donkey cart. You should be counting your blessings and smiling secretly."

Well, in this era, people's aesthetic appreciation for bicycles had nothing to do with whether they looked good; they only cared about whether they had muscle and how much cargo they could haul.

After all, having managed to buy a bicycle with great difficulty, it needed not only to carry a family of several people, but also to handle large bags and small sacks—the more, the merrier.

Undoubtedly, the Great National Defense produced by the Qingdao Bicycle Factory in front of him was a champion among load-bearers. Hearing the plump shop assistant's endless introduction, Duan Chengliang finally came to understand another unique aesthetic of this era that he previously had no concept of. At the very least, he now knew that this so-called Great National Defense was a good ride.

Even if you didn't ride it, just pushing the bicycle down the street made you the coolest cat on the block.

He had originally intended to load the grain he had just picked up from the grain store onto the bicycle to experience what it felt like. On second thought, he decided against it. Between the bicycle, the coal stove, and all that grain, it would be far too high-profile. So the grain stayed in his spatial dimension instead.

Taking advantage of the time today, he had converted all his rewards from the spatial dimension and the coarse and fine grain ration coupons he had just gotten from Yi Zhonghai—keeping only two catties of fine grain coupons and five catties of coarse grain coupons—into solid, tangible food.

White flour, cornmeal, millet, and some corn grits. This time, he had even factored in fish and chicken for himself, which would suffice for a while. With grain in hand, his heart was at ease. Coupled with pushing the bicycle, he unconsciously broke into a swaggering stride. He was thoroughly done with pretending to act weak.

When Duan Chengliang returned to Nanluoguxiang, pushing the bicycle with one hand and carrying the sheet-metal coal stove with the other,

the grandpas and grandmas sunning themselves against the wall during the afternoon hours swarmed over.

"Oh, Duan Chengliang! You got your hands on the bicycle. A Great National Defense—that's a fine machine. You brat, time to go look for a partner now, eh?"

"Duan Chengliang, you bought this at the Beixinqiao store, right? Did a new shipment of bikes arrive over there?"

"Are there any extras left?"

...

For a moment, everyone was talking at once, asking all sorts of questions, but every gaze was burning with eagerness and envy.

Duan Chengliang casually greeted them. "I've been registered and in line since last October. Today I just happened to go buy my coal stove when the store told me it was my turn. You can imagine how hard it is to buy a bicycle. I originally wasn't even planning to get it, but seeing that the quality of the bikes arriving today was pretty good, I gritted my teeth and bought it anyway. At the very least, commuting to and from work will be more convenient from now on."

An old man remarked, "Using a Great National Defense just to commute back and forth to work is a waste. If this were down in the commune, it would definitely be a great helper in the fields."

Just then, Duan Chengliang heard a familiar voice say, "Duan Chengliang, didn't you get kicked in the leg and injured by Silly Zhu? How is it that you're still able to run out and buy a bicycle, and even bought a stove? You look like nothing ever happened to you."

Duan Chengliang turned his head and looked in the direction of the voice. Sure enough, it was Third Matriarch Jia. The old woman wore an expression full of gossip, holding a shoe sole in her hand, looking as though she too was out here sunning herself and keeping warm.

Moreover, the old woman was currently running her hands eagerly back and forth over his bicycle, her expression filled with a passion that probably surpassed any she had ever shown toward the late Old Jia.

Duan Chengliang smiled and said, "Well, I applied Old Uncle Li's medicine, so I can walk for now. But I still need to eat, so I went out to buy a few things. Once I get back home, I'll properly rest and recover. Though, come to think of it, isn't it strange? Ever since I started pushing this bicycle, even my injury feels a lot lighter. Grandpas and grandmas, do you suppose buying a bicycle actually has healing and therapeutic properties?"

The circle of grandpas and grandmas burst into laughter.

Quite a few of them shouted out that Duan Chengliang had been driven silly with joy from buying a new bicycle.

By the time Duan Chengliang pushed the bike and carried the sheet-metal coal stove into Courtyard No. 95, the only person still following behind him was Third Matriarch Jia.

As they reached the second gate, she was still chasing after him, asking, "Duan Chengliang, how much does a bicycle like this cost?"

"147."

"Oh, my goodness, so expensive! How long do you have to save up to buy a bicycle?"

Duan Chengliang pushed the bike through the second gate as he replied, "The money is secondary. The crucial thing is that bicycles are out of stock right now. Even if you have the money, you can't buy one. No matter which queue you line up in, if you don't wait a month or two, it's definitely not going to be your turn."

At this hour, Yan Bugui should have already gone to work, but Yang Ruihua was standing right at the doorway. Catching sight of the commotion, her gaze immediately glued itself to the bicycle.

She dropped the basin in her hands straight onto the ground and trotted over. "A brand-new bicycle! Duan Chengliang, is this yours?"

"Third Aunt, what kind of question is that? If it weren't mine, they wouldn't let me push it back here, would they?"

"Tsk, tsk, this bike really looks sturdy. Look at that main frame—how thick is that? It's way sturdier than your Third Uncle's bicycle."

As Duan Chengliang walked toward the east wing room, he said, "I wouldn't dare compare it to Third Uncle's. His is a Pigeon, and everyone knows Pigeon steel is tough. Just look at how many years he's been riding it without it warping. That tells you how good the quality is."