Ye Sheng had just reached the dining table when she heard Wang Ying’s words. She stumbled and nearly fell, quickly stopping her: “No, no need, we don’t need any of that.”
Wang Ying didn’t believe her: “Why wouldn’t you need it? Let me tell you, these young men—they all act so proper on the surface, but come nighttime, they’re like young bulls with endless energy. You two just got married, so getting pregnant now wouldn’t be good. You should enjoy your time as a couple a while longer.”
Ye Sheng was taken aback by Wang Ying’s bold words and could only give an awkward smile while changing the subject: “Sister-in-law, did you make this noodle dough yourself? It looks really chewy.”
Wang Ying was a bit pleased: “Ah, all the girls around here know how to make this. Can you handle spicy food? Add some of this stir-fried tomato, egg, and chili on top—that’s what makes it truly delicious.”
Ye Sheng nodded: “I can handle spicy.”
Wang Ying grew even happier: “Then you and Xiao Zhou are a perfect match. Xiao Zhou loves chili peppers too—he can’t eat a meal without them.”
She gestured for Ye Sheng to pick some dishes and mix them into her noodles, then poured some tomato, celery, and potato sauce over Beibei’s noodles, mixed them, and skillfully fed Beibei.
Ye Sheng took the opportunity to learn more about the world here: “Sister-in-law, do you work?”
Wang Ying nodded: “Yes, I do. I teach at the middle school across the street. It’s summer break now, so I’ve got nothing to do. My son just started high school this year—he’s spending the summer at his grandma’s place in Urumqi.”
Ye Sheng was somewhat surprised: “Your child is already that old? I really couldn’t tell.”
Wang Ying laughed: “When I was your age, I’d already had my son. I’m almost forty now, so of course my kid’s about to start high school. It’s just that Zhou Yanshen married late—lots of men his age already have kids who are five or six.”
Ye Sheng noticed that Wang Ying had a remarkable talent: no matter what they talked about, she always managed to steer the conversation back to Zhou Yanshen. It was a shame she wasn’t a matchmaker.
From chatting with Wang Ying, Ye Sheng learned that life here was quite backward. The city was a bit better, but the average monthly wage was only around two hundred yuan.
Because Zhou Yanshen and his comrades were pilots of special aircraft, their salaries were much higher, and they also received border defense allowances. Their daily meal stipend was considerably more than that of ordinary soldiers.
Wang Ying started pushing her agenda again: “Their salary is more than a whole family can spend. You’ll never have to worry about money at home from now on.”
As for doing business, Wang Ying dismissed it without a second thought as unreliable: “Doing business is so hard, and you work from dawn till dusk without making any money. I think you’d be perfect for the Art Troupe.”
Ye Sheng smiled awkwardly and didn’t pursue that topic further.
After the meal, Ye Sheng insisted on washing the dishes before leaving with Beibei. She thought it over and decided she still needed to go out and buy some pots, pans, and bowls.
Judging by the situation, she wouldn’t be able to leave anytime soon, and she couldn’t just show up at Wang Ying’s house for every meal.
She took Beibei for a stroll down the street and bought a wok, four plates, four bowls, and a set of chopsticks. She also picked up some seasonings. She’d originally wanted to buy rice and flour, but with Beibei in tow, she couldn’t possibly carry everything back in one trip, so she’d have to settle for taking these things home first.
With both hands carrying bags, she couldn’t hold Beibei’s hand. Ye Sheng tried to communicate with Beibei: “Beibei, Auntie’s hands are full right now, so I can’t hold your little hand. Can you just walk along with Auntie?”
Beibei didn’t answer, just stared straight ahead.
Ye Sheng didn’t mind and continued speaking, “Auntie takes one step, Beibei takes one step, okay? This way we can get home quickly.”
With that, she tentatively walked forward two steps and noticed Beibei following along with his little steps. When she stopped, Beibei stopped too.
Ye Sheng was pleasantly surprised. “Beibei, you’re really amazing! Let’s go home like this, and tonight Auntie will make you some delicious little pancakes.”
She walked slowly, and Beibei followed with great effort, without stopping once.
As Ye Sheng walked slowly, she spoke gently to Beibei, “Beibei, you see this road is the way home. You need to remember it. Also, if you ever get lost, look for uncles wearing the same clothes as Uncle Zhou—they’ll take you home.”
“Wow, Beibei, look over there—there’s a carriage, and the horse is white. It’s so beautiful.”
No matter what she said, Beibei didn’t respond, but Ye Sheng didn’t mind. Since Beibei could understand, it didn’t matter if he didn’t reply. She’d just keep talking to him—maybe one day he’d respond.
After bringing the things upstairs, Ye Sheng found a notebook and pen and carefully wrote down every penny she’d spent today. This money would need to be repaid to Zhou Yanshen in the future.
Then she took Beibei out to the street again, planning to buy some flour, rice, and cooking oil.
The July afternoon was still scorching hot. After walking this distance, Ye Sheng felt that the gauze wrapped around her chest was soaked through, and her undershirt seemed to stick to her back.
Looking at Beibei, his little face was flushed red, with fine beads of sweat on his forehead.
Ye Sheng thought for a moment. “Let’s go buy an ice pop first. After we eat it and cool down, we’ll go shopping, okay?”
Without waiting for Beibei’s response, she led him to a street vendor pushing a cart with an icebox. Fruit ice pops were ten cents each, and banana ice pops were twenty cents.
Ye Sheng was a bit curious and decided to buy one of each—getting Beibei the twenty-cent banana ice pop.
She took him to a shady spot to eat.
Not caring whether the steps were dirty, she pulled Beibei down to sit. “When I was little, I never got to eat ice pops like this. People say this is the taste of childhood, but unfortunately Auntie was too poor back then—I never had a childhood taste at all.”
She tore open the ice pop wrapper and took a lick, squinting her eyes with satisfaction. “It really is delicious! There’s not even a hint of additives.”
She helped Beibei tear open his ice pop wrapper too. “Since we’ve eaten ice pops together, we’re good friends now.”
After saying that, she childishly tapped her ice pop against Beibei’s. “No matter what difficulties we face, as long as we work hard, we’ll definitely get through them! Auntie’s biggest wish right now is to return to her own world.”
After muttering this, Ye Sheng thought about how Beibei was still young—even if he could understand, he couldn’t speak—so she couldn’t help pouring out her feelings. “In Auntie’s world, there are so many tall buildings, very wide roads with lots of cars. There’s a kind of phone you can hold in your hand called a mobile phone. Whenever you miss someone, you just dial their number and you can see them.”
The more she talked, the more she wanted to go back.
She threw away the ice pop stick, patted her face, and stood up. “Since I’m here, I have to live my best! Beibei, let’s work hard! Come on, let’s go buy rice and flour now.”
She bought a few pounds each of flour and rice, plus a small bottle of peanut oil, and carried them back.
Ye Sheng was again carrying things in both hands, keeping Beibei close by her side. She was so focused on watching Beibei that she didn’t notice someone suddenly rushing toward her from across the street.
Before she could react, a solid slap landed on her face. “Ye Sheng, have you no shame? How dare you do such a thing!”
Ye Sheng felt a sharp, burning pain on her cheek. Looking up at the furious short-haired woman before her, she searched her memory and realized it was her older sister, Ye Jing!