The older woman in the floral headscarf was completely dumbfounded.
Aunt Feng and Qin Baozhu continued walking.
Seeing her old neighbor’s eyes nearly popping out of her head, Aunt Feng chuckled, “Lao Qin, you big mouth! Once this gets out, probably everyone in Dejing Town will know about you.”
Qin Baozhu licked the glutinous rice paper off the candied hawthorn. “Isn’t it a good thing if the town knows?”
“Not a bad thing at all,” Aunt Feng replied, feeling happy she could communicate with Baozhu. Such a beautiful girl, it would be a shame if she stayed quiet and dumb. Now that she could talk and carry on a conversation, it was perfect.
“Everyone in our town hopes Little Zhou finds a good wife. Don’t let his quiet nature fool you. He’s impressive—he runs two factories right here in town, and they’re doing really well. Lots of young people from the town work in his factories, earning 200 a month. He and his friends also run a poultry and pig farm; eggs, chicken, pork—they sell them to the villagers here for a bit less than outside prices, giving back to the community.”
“You’ve always been obedient at home, but now, you’re even better. I don’t even have to watch you, and I can walk and chat with you at the same time.”
Aunt Feng’s words were full of praise and admiration for Zhou Fuguang.
Two hundred a month?
Qin Baozhu’s father worked in the Shanghai railway system, earning 3,000 a month. That salary alone meant she had never wanted for food or clothing in her life. Add the perks and extra income from the railway department, and as an only child, Baozhu had lived a life of luxury, truly like a little lady.
But Zhou Fuguang paid others’ wages. Two hundred a month per person—who knew how many employees he had? He might even earn more than her father.
At home, her mother didn’t even allow her to leave the air conditioning on all night. Seeing Zhou Fuguang’s generous use of the air conditioner, she realized he probably was really wealthy.
And yet, he only gave her fifty cents pocket money!
The more Qin Baozhu thought about it, the more she felt Zhou Fuguang was unreasonable—mean to her, mean in general. She frowned and bit into the candied hawthorn with a crunch.
Walking with Aunt Feng, she nibbled the candy so quickly that soon, she had almost finished the whole skewer.
Aunt Feng winced, seeing her chomp it down, and advised, “Baozhu, eat less sugar. Little Zhou said you have a cavity.”
“Don’t talk to me about him!” Baozhu protested indignantly.
Aunt Feng looked at her confused, puzzled by the girl’s angry little face.
What now…?
Luckily, they soon arrived at the morning market.
Because they’d come later, there weren’t as many people as there had been at six o’clock. But the food, drinks, and goods for sale were still plentiful.
Qin Baozhu’s eyes lit up little by little at the rare treats she had never seen before.
Aunt Feng, noticing her delight, happily took her to buy the sticky bean buns she liked.
“I’ll take two,” she said.
The vendor charged fifty cents and handed over a pair of hot sticky buns, wrapped in small plastic bags, fragrant and chewy.
Qin Baozhu shared one with Aunt Feng. “Here, you eat this.”
Oh! Their Baozhu didn’t eat alone!
Aunt Feng was touched. She tried to refuse. “No, no, Baozhu, you eat! Auntie’s already full.”
Seeing Aunt Feng decline, Baozhu didn’t hold back. She stood there, lowered her head, and bit into it. The sweet aroma of chestnut filling and glutinous rice filled her mouth. She closed her cat-like eyes in delight.
Seeing her so pleased, Aunt Feng couldn’t help but smile like a grandmother with her granddaughter.
She then bought her a baked bun filled with preserved vegetables and pork and found a small shop where they could sit and eat mini wontons.
Aunt Feng told Qin Baozhu, “Baozhu, you eat here. I’m going to buy some vegetables. When I’m done, if you want anything else, I’ll take you to buy it.”
She hesitated but didn’t give Baozhu any pocket money.
Earlier, Zhou Fuguang had given Aunt Feng fifty yuan to take Baozhu to the market. Normally, he would only give thirty yuan. The town wasn’t expensive, and the factory provided meat and eggs—thirty yuan was enough to feed a family for five days. The extra twenty yuan was specifically for Baozhu’s snacks.
And the reason he gave it to Aunt Feng instead of Baozhu? Aunt Feng was clever enough to understand.
Baozhu sat on a stool, nibbling her baked bun. Her pale little face was dwarfed by the bun.
She nodded. “Got it. I’ll wait here for you.”
Seeing Baozhu so obedient, Aunt Feng relaxed, smiling. “I’m going to buy beef now. Baozhu, stay here and don’t wander off.”
“Mhm,” Baozhu replied.
After Aunt Feng left, she told the wonton shop owner she would leave the bun and stepped out.
There weren’t many shoppers left at the market.
Qin Baozhu wandered aimlessly through the street.
Small vendors lined both sides, selling all kinds of things, some even selling clothes. But Baozhu wasn’t interested in the clothes.
Walking further, she finally saw a small convenience store she liked. She went in, handed over fifty cents, and bought five lollipops, asking the shopkeeper, “Uncle, where’s the train station in our town?”
The shopkeeper looked at her, took the money, and said, “The train station? You need to take a bus to the county—about three hours.”
“Oh,” Baozhu said, putting the lollipops in her pocket, and casually asked, “How much is a train ticket from the county to Shanghai?”
The shopkeeper hadn’t been to Shanghai either. “About twenty-five yuan. Shanghai isn’t nearby.”
Twenty-five yuan?
Zhou Fuguang only gave her fifty cents a day. When would she ever save up that much?
Baozhu tore off the candy wrapper and popped a lollipop in her mouth. The sweet strawberry flavor didn’t cheer her up.
Not only did she have to save money, but she had to do it right under Zhou Fuguang’s watchful eyes. If he caught her, her pocket money would surely be confiscated.
Sullen, she started heading back.
She almost ran into Aunt Feng, carrying her shopping basket and anxiously looking around.
Aunt Feng, with sharper eyes than Baozhu, spotted her in the snow-white fox-fur coat first and breathed a sigh of relief. She hurried over, grabbing Baozhu’s hand.
“Baozhu, why are you running around alone? You don’t know anyone here. What if you got lost?”
Baozhu pulled out a lollipop and showed it to Aunt Feng. “I went to buy candy.”