There was a long line again at the entrance of the supermarket, and the magnificent scene of queuing for nucleic acid tests in wind and rain a year ago occasionally came to mind.
Now that there is another long queue, how can I not be excited?
Without hesitation, I joined the line. It doesn't matter what we're queuing for. As the saying goes, the early bird catches the worm. The wisdom of the ancients is never wrong!
I was about to ask, and the woman in front of me in the queue said, "Teacher Wang, are we more civilized than those city people this time?"
A man in his sixties in front of her, wearing a striped shirt and black-rimmed glasses, with a few white hairs but still neat, turned his face and smiled, "Very civilized. Our village has its own style, calm and composed. The person in charge of the supermarket just said that we should queue up in a civilized manner, and there is no shortage of salt."
The woman named Niuer pulled her throat and shouted ahead, "Xiuqin, Xiuqin, did you hear that? Teacher Wang praised us for being civilized. We have plenty of salt!" She whispered to Teacher Wang, "She was so anxious that her shorts got wet, and she came out to queue without cooking. Is it necessary?"
Xiuqin, the woman in front, turned her head, "If Teacher Wang says so, we can rest assured. Sister-in-law, how many packs are you planning to buy?"
Niuer sneered, "How many packs? Are you kidding me? I brought two thousand yuan. If I don't buy a few boxes to take back, would it be fair to the Bodhisattva? I also want to send a box to my junior high school student studying in Shanghai. Young people don't understand anything. Yesterday, she called me and said that grabbing salt is useless and that studying has ruined her brain. Teacher Wang, can you give us a fair answer? We won't cook dinner and wait in line for over an hour. Is buying salt really effective?"
Teacher Wang pushed his glasses, "Well, theoretically speaking, this time the Japanese are discharging nuclear wastewater. Once the seawater is contaminated, there will be iodine-131 in the radioactive material, with a half-life of only 8 days. If it is absorbed by the human body, the consequences would be unimaginable. Taking potassium iodide can reduce the absorption of iodine-131. That's the general idea."
Niuer waved her hand, and the basket almost hit me on the head, "Teacher Wang is truly someone who has been a principal before. His knowledge is far superior to those experts who speak in a falsetto on TikTok. He explained it very clearly. So, this matter is already clear. Eating salt can prevent radiation, and preventing radiation means preventing cancer, right?"
An old man next to them nodded, "That's absolutely right. I remember in 2003, I also fought for salt. A lot of people died back then, and you couldn't even buy a pack of salt in the small shops. In the end, we used up all the soy sauce and put Banlangen in the soup."
Teacher Wang nodded, "That's the idea. Iodized salt contains iodine, although the effect may not be very obvious, but it's better to have it than not. It's something we eat every day anyway, so what's the harm in buying a couple of extra packs at home? It's not like it's a big deal, right? Sister-in-law, you have a high income from your labor insurance."
Niuer laughed so loudly that my ears were buzzing, "Xiuqin, did you hear that? The country has given us such good retirement benefits. How can we not buy a few more packs? Is it fair to the Bodhisattva?"
At this moment, a man behind me who looked like a troublemaker kept nudging backwards, "Don't squeeze, people in the back! They all have shaved heads, as if they're robbing something. Buying a few packs of salt is like robbing eggs!"
A villager who knew him laughed and said, "Afa, if you don't buy it now, there's still time. Go home and have some old wine. We'll have one less person in line."
Afa, shirtless, patted his belly and said, "If I drink my mother's old wine and the Japanese poison the water, will I survive? Even crabs are afraid to peel now."
The villager took over the conversation, "If you don't want to eat it, give it to me. This batch of crabs is fine, I guarantee it. The next batch of seafood will probably be for survival. Keep your mouth shut and peel a few less crabs, or you might be poisoned by the Japanese."
Afa spat and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, throwing one to the villager.
He lit the cigarette, took a puff, and said, "This world is a mess, with viruses and poisoned water. It's hard to live. How can the next generation handle it?" Smoke came out of his mouth and nostrils as he spoke.
Teacher Wang obviously knew Afa and pointed at him, "Afa, don't talk nonsense. This time, it's obvious that the Japanese are targeting our country. They have always been a bunch of bad people, doing things like killing and arson in the past. Now they're poisoning the sea, which is also because our country is better than them."
Afa still respected Teacher Wang and gave him a cigarette, but Teacher Wang waved it off.
"I know, I know. It's all things caused by the Japanese devils."
They were having a lively discussion, and my stomach growled with hunger. The line moved forward, and more than half of it had passed.
In theory, I neither agreed nor opposed buying salt. Like Teacher Wang said, it's a few yuan for a pack, and it brings peace of mind.
The loss from a year ago is still vivid in my mind. They said there was sufficient supply of cold medicine, so I confidently stayed at home, but what happened? The situation suddenly changed, and I couldn't buy a single pill. I begged and borrowed a box of ibuprofen from a friend.
I have to say, that medicine was truly effective. Once I took a pill, the virus was completely gone. But it's really hard to endure the symptoms. One moment I'm hot, the next I'm cold, and my whole body aches. So now, does it make sense that iodized salt can protect against radiation? I don't know. But what if it does?
If young people don't learn their lesson from this experience, even the Bodhisattva won't help them.
Regardless of the salt, its use, or the experts, I will always stand with the vast majority of the people.
Skipping a meal, queuing a few more times, a few yuan for a pack of salt, it's worth it for peace of mind.
Luckily, it's salt for radiation protection. If it were sea cucumbers for radiation protection, even the Bodhisattva wouldn't be of any use. We can only leave it to fate.
At this moment, the person in charge of the supermarket came out and shouted, "Last pack of salt."
The line fell silent for ten seconds, and then suddenly there was a thunderous sound, "Grab it!"
With a buzzing sound, people turned into locusts, rushing forward while villagers cursed and pushed.
Rules are meant to be followed when there is strong enforcement.
Teacher Wang's glasses were knocked off in the chaos, "Everyone, don't be chaotic, queue up in a civilized manner! The supermarket will restock soon!"
Niuer used her shopping basket to cover Afa's head and shouted, "Junior high school student, you're stealing my salt. May the Bodhisattva make you unable to have children!"
Seeing the situation getting out of control, I quickly hid to the side, feeling even more certain that I must continue to queue for salt tomorrow.