Qin Zhiyu was pressed down onto a stool while Xu Sangluo stood behind her, styling her hair.
Qin Zhiyu usually cherished her hair very much and was reluctant to cut it.
So it was quite long—when let down, it reached her waist.
Xu Sangluo picked a long pink ribbon with white dots and tied a small bow in the middle.
She fixed it near the front of Zhiyu’s head, slightly behind the forehead. Then she took a small section of hair from the center of the front and braided it into a thin braid, threading it through the middle of the bow.
The two ends of the ribbon were crossed beneath the hair and brought upward, then braided together with the hair into a loose braid that slanted down to her chest.
At the end, another bow was tied.
Then she clipped a small heart-shaped hairpin near Zhiyu’s ear to secure the ribbon on top of her head.
“All done. Take a look.”
Xu Sangluo straightened up and handed her a small square mirror.
Qin Zhiyu had been waiting impatiently for this moment. She excitedly grabbed the mirror and looked into it with both anticipation and nervousness.
The moment she saw the reflection, she froze.
After a long moment, she murmured blankly, “I–Is that really me?”
The girl in the mirror looked both familiar and strange. Qin Zhiyu could hardly believe it was her.
In truth, Qin Zhiyu had a very good natural foundation. Otherwise, in her previous life, even in such a miserable state, she wouldn’t have caught the eye of a wealthy businessman.
It was just that now her skin was tanned from the sun, slightly yellow from poor nutrition, and she hadn’t fully grown into her features yet.
Mother Qin couldn’t help but laugh. “Sangluo is really skillful with her hands. It’s like you’ve become a completely different person.”
“Mom, is this really me? I—I…”
She carefully pinched the bow at the end of the braid and lightly touched her hair, afraid that she might accidentally ruin it.
Then a wide smile spread across her face as she said happily, “Wow, I look so pretty!”
Mother Qin laughed and scolded jokingly, “Shameless girl. Looking like such a mess and still wasting the hairstyle your Sister Sangluo made.”
Qin Zhiyu immediately protested, pouting. “How am I a mess? I clearly look great. I’m naturally beautiful!”
After saying that, she turned and suddenly hugged Xu Sangluo.
“Thank you, Sister Sangluo! You’re amazing. Is there anything you can’t do?”
Xu Sangluo packed away her things, both amused and helpless. “You’re exaggerating.”
“It’s not exaggerated at all!” Qin Zhiyu said, still unwilling to put down the mirror as she admired herself.
Suddenly, she lowered the mirror.
“No, such a beautiful hairstyle has to be seen by more people! Mom, Sister Sangluo, I’m going out for a bit. I’ll be back soon!”
Before she even finished speaking, she had already rushed out the courtyard gate.
“Where are you going—? That girl, always so rash… really now. Sangluo, sorry you had to see that,” Mother Qin said helplessly.
Xu Sangluo smiled and shook her head. “Not at all. Xiaoyu is very straightforward. She’s adorable.”
“Grandma, Auntie Sang~”
At that moment, little Qin Yan poked his head out from behind the door curtain, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists.
Clearly, the noise in the courtyard had just woken him up.
After Qin Zhiyu ran off to show off to her good friends, receiving countless compliments and stirring up plenty of envy and jealousy, she returned home in high spirits.
Seeing that her mood was indeed much better, Xu Sangluo felt relieved.
With Qin Zhiyu around, she no longer needed to stay in the courtyard the whole time watching over things.
As noon approached, she slung a bamboo basket onto the bicycle and rode toward the town.
But before leaving, she brought an extra lunch container with her.
The container belonged to Qin Zhiyi. She filled it with a serving of refreshing vinegar stir-fried cabbage.
She also took a small basket and wrapped several freshly steamed braised pork and cabbage buns in cloth.
After telling them not to wait for her for lunch, she wobbled away on the bicycle.
Mother Qin didn’t stop her from bringing lunch to Qin Zhiyi. In fact, she was even a little pleased.
Although she felt somewhat guilty toward Xu Sangluo, deep down she still hoped her son and Xu Sangluo might develop a relationship.
When Xu Sangluo arrived in town, she walked around and took a look.
She discovered that there were actually more people doing business in town than she had expected.
However, there weren’t many people setting up stalls. Most were old shops along the street.
The few vendors who did set up stalls were mostly villagers who carried vegetables to sell.
Although economic reform had begun in 1981, the comprehensive opening of private business only happened this year.
But many people were still constrained by the mindset of “speculation and profiteering are forbidden,” a belief that had persisted for more than a decade.
Especially in some backward rural towns, there wasn’t even anyone willing to be the first to “eat the crab.”
In comparison, the situation in Gaoshui Town was somewhat better.
After wandering around for a while, Xu Sangluo had a rough idea in mind.
She planned to go to the county in the afternoon to take another look.
But it was already noon. Judging by the time, Qin Zhiyi should be finishing work soon.
She rode her bicycle while asking for directions along the way, and finally found the red brick factory in a rather remote area.
The dirt road outside the brick factory was even harder to travel on, full of wheel ruts as well as muddy pits and puddles.
Xu Sangluo had no choice but to push her bicycle along the wall, stepping on the stones by the roadside.
When she reached the factory gate, she saw many people coming out of the factory.
Quite a few workers were sitting on stone blocks by the roadside or on small piles of scattered broken bricks, eating while chatting.
Some were simply gnawing on hard steamed buns.
Others held aluminum lunch boxes, while some just cradled enamel mugs and drank water.
Everyone wore the same work uniform as Qin Zhiyi, covered in reddish-gray dust, with a grimy towel hanging around their necks.
When Xu Sangluo walked over, she attracted quite a few looks.
When the workers saw her, their eyes lit up.
But no one dared to approach or strike up a conversation.
After all, being labeled a hooligan was still a serious crime these days.
However, Xu Sangluo didn’t see Qin Zhiyi anywhere outside.
She parked her bicycle to the side and went up to ask someone.
“Big brother, may I ask if Qin Zhiyi works here?”
The middle-aged man she asked was momentarily stunned.
Before he could speak, a dark-skinned man across from him spoke first.
“Comrade, you’re looking for Qin Zhiyi? That’s unfortunate—he just left.”
Xu Sangluo was startled. “Left? Do you know where he went? When he’ll be back?”
“What’s your relation to him?” the man asked.
Xu Sangluo paused for a moment. After thinking about it, she answered vaguely, “Family.”
Hearing that, the man raised his eyebrows in surprise and looked her up and down, his expression soon turning into one of envy.
He happened to be someone fairly familiar with Qin Zhiyi.
He knew that Qin Zhiyi only had one younger sister who was still in middle school.
This woman clearly wasn’t her.
Since she said she was family, there could only be one other possibility.
Tsk tsk, that kid Qin Zhiyi sure kept things well hidden—quietly marrying such a beautiful wife without anyone noticing.
It was enough to make people jealous.
“Go straight down this way. When you see a corner, turn in there, then turn right and walk a bit further. There’s a scrap collection station there. He should be there right now.”
After saying that, the man seemed a little worried and stood up.
“Or maybe I should just take you there.”
Xu Sangluo quickly waved her hands. “No, no, it’s fine. I remember the directions.”
As she spoke, she returned to her bicycle and took two steamed buns out of the basket.
“Here, thank you. These are homemade buns—please don’t mind them. I’ll be going now.”
The man felt too embarrassed to take them and tried to return them, but Xu Sangluo had already turned around and run off.
He looked down at the plump white buns in his lunch box, now stained with a bit of soup, and couldn’t help swallowing.
Noticing the gazes from people around him, his expression stiffened. He quickly picked up a bun and took a big bite.
Half of it disappeared in one mouthful.
But the moment he began chewing, his eyes suddenly widened.
Meanwhile, Xu Sangluo followed the directions the man had given and walked for about ten minutes before she indeed saw a scrap collection station.
She couldn’t help feeling puzzled.
What was Qin Zhiyi doing at a scrap yard?
Collecting scrap?