Far away in Moscow

Chapter 20 The Container Market

Since Bayin and Dried Persimmon appeared in the dormitory last month with bloody faces, the foreign students in Maji were extra vigilant when they went out, and rarely went to too far or too remote places on weekdays.

From the subway map, Maji is located in the northwest of Moscow, while the big market is in the northeast, and it takes more than ten stops by subway.Hu Yi didn't want to go that far, but the temptation of fried dough sticks was too great.

Northerners love fried dough sticks. For as long as he can remember, at least half of Hu Yi’s weekly breakfast has fried dough sticks with soybean milk. The taste of fried dough sticks has become an indelible memory for him since he was a child.

Since I arrived in Moscow, the lunch in the school cafeteria is inseparable from mutton and carrot fried rice with mashed potatoes and beet soup. When I return to the dormitory, I basically rely on bread and milk instant noodles to fill my stomach. Specialty foods are definitely out of reach.

After more than two months, I have spoiled these Chinese students.Now I heard that fried dough sticks can be eaten in the big market, and each of them is like a glutton, looking forward to a quick feast every day.But the big market is too far away from the school, and the various areas inside are dotted with thousands of stalls. It is like a small city. If there are no old students to lead them, they will definitely get lost.

Another two weeks passed in a blink of an eye, and the New Year's holiday had just ended. Lu Tao finally issued a notice: "I will take you to the big market on Saturday, and we will gather and depart on time at 05:30 in the morning."

"05:30?!" Hu Yi said in a daze, "It's not yet dawn!"

"People in the market start work after eating early, and the fritters are gone later in the day." Lu Tao explained: "We also go to work early in the morning, and the journey takes more than an hour."

In Moscow in January, the days are fleeting and the nights are extremely long.It gets dark at 05:30 in the afternoon, and you have to go to class after [-]:[-] in the morning and walk at night wearing stars and moons. [-]:[-] in the morning can definitely be regarded as the middle of the night.

A few days ago, those students who were crying and yelling to eat deep-fried dough sticks heard that they were leaving at 05:30, and they all said that they would talk about it next time, but few of them really followed.Hu Yi and Li Baoqing also struggled a bit, but when they thought of the delicious fried dough sticks, they still struggled to get up on time.

Surprisingly, Peng Song got up earlier than them, and when the two of them were sleepy and washing their hands, he waited impatiently at the door, fully dressed, with a look of excitement on his face.He is now attached to Hu Yi and Li Baoqing, and he will follow them wherever they go. Although Hu Yi often doesn't give him good looks, Li Baoqing is relatively kind most of the time.

Lu Tao has a strong sense of time, and when he arrived at 05:30, he and Yan Zhiwen appeared in the lobby on the first floor.The others didn't linger for too long, everyone assembled quickly, and walked into the night with their bodies curled up.

Now Moscow has entered the coldest season of the year, and midnight is the coldest time of the day, and the outdoor temperature is about minus 20 degrees.

Everyone wore thick clothes, and Peng Song even wrapped himself up like a ball. He wore sweater, fleece and warm clothes, long johns, wool trousers and jeans, gloves, hat and leather boots. He wore a thick long down jacket and a scarf. Go around a few times to cover the neck and face, leaving only a pair of eyes exposed.

It snowed all night last night, and now I just want to stop.The dark clouds in the night sky are gradually dissipating, and the thick snow reflects the hazy moonlight. Under the street lamps, you can vaguely see snowflakes flying in the wind, which is not a winter night.The few people who were staring in a daze just now were blown by the cold wind, and immediately they were not sleepy, and walked quickly towards the subway station on the snow.

Hu Yi had read in a book before that the severe cold of Moscow had killed countless Napoleon's expeditionary army overnight, and had also helped the Soviet Red Army repel the German invaders.The story is lively, but it’s not so good when it’s your turn to experience it yourself. He didn’t wear very thick clothes. As soon as he walked from the dormitory building to the road, he felt his hands and feet were frozen, and the cold air penetrated into his pants. The calf is cold and cold.

"Damn, it's so cold." Hu Yi muttered and quickened his pace.Turning his head to see, Peng Song's short legs were tossing back and forth tightly, and he kept muttering: "It's too cold, it's too cold, I'm freezing to death."

Hu Yi said contemptuously: "Are you afraid of the cold if you wear so many clothes?"

Peng Song twitched his nose vigorously, pointing at his eyelashes and eyebrows covered with icicles with his big cotton gloves, his teeth chattering constantly: "Frozen eyes, the eyeballs hurt so much."

Several people stepped on their feet, running and bumping into the subway station, a sense of warmth rushed over their faces.Moscow’s winter is like this. Standing outdoors for 2 minutes will freeze through, but as long as you find a small hut and drill inside, you will be warmed up quickly.

As soon as the body warmed up, sleepiness hit immediately. There was no one in the subway in the morning. Hu Yi and Yan Zhiwen chatted for a while, yawned and closed their eyes, and fell asleep all the way to the station.

The place where Lu Tao works is located in the Izmailova area in the northeast of Moscow. It was the largest commodity distribution market in Moscow at that time. Most of the stalls in the market are neatly arranged containers, so it is usually called the container market.The Chinese also call it "an ant market" or "ant market" according to the homonym of the place name.

The Ant Market is very large, and it is divided into many different areas. A large number of businessmen from various countries operate stores here, among which the Chinese account for a considerable proportion.

At seven o'clock in the morning, the sky was still dark, and there were already many people on the road between the markets, either quietly pulling goods in a hurry, or chatting in small groups, smoking cigarettes and whispering.Their accents are mixed, including plausible Russian, twittering Vietnamese, various other foreign languages ​​that they cannot understand, and various Chinese dialects.

Lu Tao led them around in the small road, came to a relatively open living area, and went straight to a pointed hut made of logs.As soon as the door was opened, Hu Yi and the others immediately smelled the long-lost aroma, rushed in almost with tears in their eyes, took out a lot of rubles and prepared to have a good meal.

This store is opened by Chinese people, and there are indeed many kinds of domestic snacks.In addition to fried dough sticks and soy milk, there are fried cakes, sesame balls, braised noodles, Xiaolongbao and so on.Although the craftsmanship can only be regarded as so-so, but after all, it is the taste of hometown that has not been tasted for a long time. Several people almost ordered all the things in the store, gathered around a big table and gobbled it up.

"It's delicious, and it still smells like fried dough sticks!" Li Baoqing muttered angrily with his mouth full, "Every morning, the old man only has white bread and black bread, and it doesn't smell like fart at all."

Hu Yi swallowed a bun, grabbed another piece of fried cake, licked his lips and said, "The black bread still smells like sour pancakes."

The rest of the people smiled and didn't speak, they just stuffed their heads in silence.Everyone was [-]% full after eating, and sat in the shop feeling satisfied, rubbing their stomachs and chatting, until the sky was getting dark, and they reluctantly lined up and walked out the door.

The outside was a little busier than before. Pedestrians and trailers were constantly shuttling between the markets, and the snow in the middle of some roads had been trampled into mud.This group of people was cold and sleepy when they came, but they cheered up after eating, and happily followed Lu Tao and Yan Zhiwen, asking them anecdotes about the market as they walked.

"Chinese goods account for more than half of the market. Clothes, shoes and socks, and furs are basically imported from China." Lu Tao avoided the dirty snow on the ground and said, pointing to the containers on both sides of the road: "There are many Chinese people who come here to do business, and even more part-time workers. Those who sell goods, do coolies, provide all kinds of life services, and rely on various legal or illegal means to make a living. There are all kinds of people."

Hu Yi looked around curiously following Lu Tao's gaze: "Hey, it seems that life in this place is quite convenient, but it's a bit dirty and messy."

"Thousands of Chinese people live and work here, of course it is convenient." Lu Tao nodded with a smile: "The market is like a village in a city, where you can eat, drink, have fun, basic necessities, food, housing and transportation. If you don't If you dislike the poor environment, it’s okay to live in it forever and never come out.”

Everyone imagined the life in the market, chattering and expressing emotion.A preparatory student asked, "How much salary do you get paid for working here?"

Lu Tao said: "I mainly use my holidays to help my boss sell goods, and I will occasionally come to help with odd jobs when I am not in class. I can probably get about four to five hundred dollars a month."

"Whoa! Four or five hundred dollars for odd jobs!?" The preppies envied.Li Baoqing slapped excitedly: "It's more than my parents' wages combined, and I can earn a year's tuition in three months! Brother Tao, I will also work in the market in the future, do you think it's okay?!"

(End of this chapter)