Zhou Jingrui took the fifty cents he hadn’t spent yet from his little pocket and handed it to Qin Baozhu.
“Mommy, you can have my money too.”
Qin Baozhu glanced at him and accepted it without hesitation.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Zhou Jingrui beamed with delight.
Jiang Zhi looked on, completely speechless…
Even a child’s snack money?Qin Baozhu, do you have no shame?
Complaints were complaints, but the three of them still tidied up, wrapped their scarves, and headed into the old street of the small town through the cold air.
There were only three convenience stalls in town, all selling cheap snacks—mostly from shady factories with no safety checks. They were unsanitary but cheap, and extremely popular among the kids.
Zhou Fuguang didn’t allow the children to eat those unregulated snacks. When he took them out for treats, he would drive them to the big supermarket in the county.
But he was far too busy at work to keep making those trips, and with two kids at home, plus Qin Baozhu, no amount of snacks could survive the three of them.
So whenever Zhou Jingrui craved something, he would secretly buy those forbidden little treats from the convenience stall.
The stall was right across from the kindergarten. Since it was the weekend, there weren’t many customers. The shopkeeper, who was eating porridge, saw Jiang Zhi and Qin Baozhu arriving with a child and immediately greeted them enthusiastically.
“Little friend, want some spicy sticks? We just got a batch of ‘Tang Monk Meat.’ Want to try?”
For a five-year-old, spicy sticks were an irresistible temptation.
He instinctively turned to look at Qin Baozhu.
Qin Baozhu stared at the stall’s display—those crudely packaged, greasy little snacks—and frowned.
Could that stuff even be eaten?
One bite and you’d probably get diarrhea…
With her memories restored, Qin Baozhu had become very picky about food. She glanced at Zhou Jingrui’s expectant little face and stopped Jiang Zhi from paying for the spicy sticks.
“These spicy sticks…” They didn’t look clean at all. “We’re not buying any. Rui-rui, do you want bubble gum instead? What flavor?”
Then she went to check the bubble gum.
Zhou Jingrui’s little face fell. He looked pleadingly at Jiang Zhi.
Jiang Zhi could only shrug—nothing she could do.
After all, Qin Baozhu was his biological mother. Since Mom had spoken, an outsider like her couldn’t force spicy sticks onto the kid.
In the end, Jiang Zhi paid for twenty bubble gums in assorted flavors and ten strawberry lollipops.
Qin Baozhu didn’t hog everything; she split off five gums and two lollipops for Jiang Zhi. Jiang Zhi checked her watch, took two strawberry lollipops, and pushed the rest back. “I don’t like sweets. I’ll just take two. I still want to walk around town a bit. Are you going back?”
Qin Baozhu didn’t want to return yet. She wanted to explore the town, so she shook her head. “We just got here. I’ll walk around with Rui-rui a bit more. If you’re busy, go ahead.”
Jiang Zhi had been checking her watch repeatedly. It was obvious she had come to the street to look for someone—not just to take them snack shopping.
Seeing how sensible Qin Baozhu was made her feel a little moved.
She fished around in her pocket and pulled out a five-yuan bill, pressing it into Qin Baozhu’s hand. “Baozhu, you’re so sweet. Take Rui-rui and walk around more. Let’s meet back here at this stall, okay?”
“…” Qin Baozhu looked at the five-yuan “big bill” in her hand, raising an eyebrow. Jiang Zhi was far more generous than Zhou Fuguang—she’d given her ten yuan just from one outing.
A genuine smile appeared on her face. “Sure. Go take care of your business. Rui-rui and I will wait for you here after we’re done playing.”