Low brick-walled courtyards and a maze of narrow alleys.
This area should be the resettlement zone of Red Fifth Street, old houses from decades ago.
Tian Xiang memorized the location, pushed her bicycle out from another alley entrance, found a grocery store, bought a few candies, and then returned to the same road.
At the major entrance to the alley, a few children were playing with stones. Tian Xiang rode over and asked them, "Did a lady in a floral dress come into this alley just now? Her hair is permed, big curls."
In this era, wearing a floral dress isn’t unusual, but permed hair is rare.
The kids initially ignored her, but when Tian Xiang took out some fruit candies, they asked, "Why are you looking for Aunt Jiang?"
The supporting female character’s surname is Jiang, huh.
Tian Xiang smiled and said, "Earlier she was buying vegetables at the market and left her scarf at our counter, so I brought it to her. Chased her here but lost track."
Having gotten the candy, the kids were enthusiastic and pointed the way for her immediately.
Tian Xiang asked, "Whose aunt is she?"
The kids didn’t understand, "What do you mean whose aunt? Aunt Jiang is just Aunt Jiang!"
Tian Xiang explained with a smile, "I’m asking whose wife she is, what’s her husband’s surname?"
"She doesn’t have a husband."
"He died in an accident at the factory..."
Turns out she’s a widow.
No wonder she has the supporting female character label.
As they say, widows often have trouble knocking at their doors.
Tian Xiang suddenly had a glimpse of what "Enlightenment Master" meant.
Isn’t it just that sort of thing?
Hasn’t eaten pork, but hasn’t seen pigs run?
Lu Feng, that big scoundrel, even goes after a widow.
This supporting character 8’s man died in the line of duty, and he still dares to get involved, worse than a beast!
Of course, the two of them might just be mutually attracted, hitting it off instantly.
Anyway, she’ll focus on this area later, she’ll definitely catch some dirt on Lu Zanman.
Tian Xiang went back satisfied, even cooking herself an extra egg for lunch.
...
Sanli Lane convenience hair salon.
Hu Honglian finished eating and was queuing at the public restroom to wash her lunch box when a colleague came over to call her.
"Granny Liu from the Qiaonan Convenience Store is looking for you."
Hearing it was Granny Liu, Hu Honglian didn’t bother washing her lunch box, asked her colleague to help, and went through the store to the front.
Granny Liu was standing under the big tree at the shop entrance and smiled at Hu Honglian when she saw her.
Hu Honglian, however, had a sullen face and a very unfriendly attitude.
"Sister Liu, you’re here. What’s the matter?"
Granny Liu, in her early fifties, also lives around Sanli Lane, but she works as a salesperson at the Qiaonan Convenience Store, which is within Red Fifth Street’s territory, so she’s half a Red Fifth Street person. Coupled with her salesperson status, she’s always treated with respect wherever she goes, feeling especially important.
Granny Liu pulled Hu Honglian, "What’s up, still mad at me? Hey, I didn’t know about that matter myself! If I had known Tian Xiang didn’t go, I would’ve definitely told Wu Jinzhu right there, to prevent any misunderstanding from embarrassing your family!"
Wu Jinzhu is Lu Feng’s mom.
"Honglian, it’s not our fault, it’s all Tian Chuying’s problem, no manners, shameless."
The two chatted and walked, heading to the flowerbed next to talk.
Hu Honglian said, "What’s the point in talking about this now, let’s drop it."
Hu Honglian’s anger hadn’t subsided, but Granny Liu laughed along, then excitedly told her, "This matter isn’t without a chance to turn around. Yesterday, when Tian Xiang caused a scene there, not only the Lu Family, but the entire Mechanical Factory learned about it. Tian Chuying wants to marry over there, no way."
Hu Honglian tried to hide her smirk, concealing the satisfaction in her eyes.
"Sister fights brother-in-law for a fiancé, if she can marry him, then society is upside down."
Granny Liu nodded, "That’s right. So this morning, Wu Jinzhu came to find me again, and we had a nice chat. The misunderstandings are all cleared up now. I was thinking that since it was a misunderstanding, why not give the two kids another chance to meet. Let the previous issues be tests for the young ones, let’s not dwell on it."
Looks like Lu Feng really fancies her daughter!
Oh dear, who would’ve thought that her daughter’s slap would make him a lovesick boy.
Hu Honglian felt joyful inside but wore a longer face, "Such a big issue, how can you just ignore it? Besides, this can’t be handled like this. Lu Feng looks at the sister after seeing the younger one, does he think the Tian Family’s daughters are cabbages in the market? This won’t work. Sister Liu, don’t bother with it."
After chatting with Lu Feng yesterday, Hu Honglian had already mostly decided on this son-in-law. She naturally agreed to the re-evaluation.
But some words can’t be said directly.
The girls from Sanli Lane going on a blind date with the guys from Red Fifth Street were already at a disadvantage.
This time, the Lu Family reached out, so she surely had to put on a show, give her daughter some face.
Granny Liu was also shrewd and caught on quickly after just a few words.
Thinking about the clothes Hu Honglian had made for her for two years, Granny Liu didn’t say much more. As a mother wanting to boost her daughter’s reputation, it was understandable.
However...
"You’ve met Lu Feng, the young lad. Are you really willing to give up just like that? Let me tell you, miss this chance, and you might never find such a handsome young man again. Honglian, come on, don’t be stubborn with me. Give the kids a chance."
Hu Honglian understood what it meant to quit while ahead and feigned hesitation, "If Lu Feng is sincere, it’s not entirely impossible, but my Xiangxiang is really upset right now, we can’t do this now, we need to let it cool off."
What Hu Honglian said was true, when she mentioned the idea of reconsideration yesterday, her daughter reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her whole person bristled.
Granny Liu felt a bit displeased; she’d brought the matter to this point, yet she’s still taking a stance!
But thinking about the generous matchmaking fee Wu Jinzhu mentioned, she suppressed her displeasure and continued persuading, "That’s true. But you should try to persuade her quickly, it’s rare for someone to speak up, and you can’t keep them hanging, you need to give an answer soon."
Hu Honglian nodded.
After work in the afternoon, Hu Honglian hummed a tune on her way home. She heard that Tian Chuying was doing volunteer work at the neighborhood committee, so she took a detour to have a look, saw her cleaning the bulletin board, and chuckled for a while covering her mouth.
When she arrived home, eager to share the news with her daughter, she found her daughter squatting in the hall practicing martial arts stances.
"Xiangxiang, what are you doing?"
A grown girl, huffing and puffing like that doesn’t look good.
Tian Xiang replied, "I’m practicing self-defense."
The morning incident served as a wake-up call for Tian Xiang, realizing that going against the male lead wasn’t a simple matter. If not for her agility today, the misunderstanding that arose could have led to her downfall.
For her own physical and mental safety, she decided to practice her skills every day.
If there’s no time, she’ll practice at home; if there’s time, she’ll go to the neighborhood drama group to practice flips with the elders and kids.
Hu Honglian picked up a picture book from the table, "You’re serious?" There are books too.
"Where did you get this from?"
Tian Xiang replied, "Found it in the library’s waste storage. Mom, don’t ruin it, I searched for it for a long time."
Hu Honglian was startled and quickly shut the door, "You sneaked in through the window again to read those books! This child, if they catch you, they’ll make you do volunteer work."
"Mom, it’s fine, I won’t go anymore."
"Remember that. You know, after work, I saw Tian Chuying doing sanitation work on the street, so embarrassing..."