Chronicle of the 70s

Qin Zhen had never ice skated before and was extremely excited. Each person had to pay a deposit of one yuan and then they received a pair of shoes that fit. Li Xianglu looked down on the ice skates with a bit of disdain; they were quite an eyesore, likely having been worn by many people.

Seeing this, Qin Xi pointed to a few pairs of new skates and asked, "What about those new ones?"

The attendant’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. These new ice skates were acquired through his connections. He had noticed that many people who came here were from well-off families and were reluctant to wear shoes others had worn, particularly the girls. Moreover, they had money and were willing to buy a new pair for themselves. So, he secretly brought in some to sell at a markup. The four of them managing this place all knew the score—Old Wang even sold tea eggs—so no one made any fuss about it.

So, when he heard someone inquire about new skates, the attendant was in high spirits. His triangular eyes squeezed into a smile as he said, "Those are new, no tickets needed, sixteen yuan a pair."

Qin Xi nodded; the price was reasonable. He pointed to the white ones and said, "I want a pair in size thirty-six of the white ones."

The attendant quickly brought out a box from below and rummaged through it, handing over a pair of white skates. Li Xianglu took them and, despite their somewhat coarse craftsmanship, they were new. Their school also had an ice rink, so buying a pair wasn’t really a loss. At worst, she’d just go skating a few more times.

After paying and changing their shoes, everyone began to carefully make their way inside.

At this time, Qin Zhen had already taken several heavy falls. His classmate, a tall and robust boy, laughed out loud beside him.

Qin Zhen was infuriated and struggled desperately to get up, but ice skating required finesse—exerting force would only make things worse. The sound of ’thud’, ’thud’ crashes could be heard continuously.