The next day, Lin Qionghua went to the market with her uncle.
She only sold popsicles. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to sell starch jelly, but her uncle was afraid it wouldn’t be safe for a child to handle a knife, so he firmly forbade her from selling it.
Fortunately, there wasn’t much starch jelly—only two basins. Her uncle rode the tricycle alone, hawking as he went, and it was sold out very quickly.
Lin Qionghua had a bowl herself. It must be said, her father’s cooking skills were excellent; the seasoned starch jelly was sour, spicy, and appetizing—one bite made you want another.
Lin Weimu pushed the empty cart back and reported the good news to her, “It’s all sold out. I think starch jelly sells better than popsicles.”
Popsicles were indeed better for cooling off, but they were just water and couldn’t fill you up. Starch jelly was made from sweet potato flour, which could satisfy hunger.
Many people came to the market from far away, having woken up very early, and they were long since hungry. Eating a bowl of starch jelly to pad their stomachs was not a bad choice.
Lin Qionghua said happily, “Then I’ll ask Dad to make more next time.”
Lin Weimu nodded, “There’s no more sweet potato flour at home. I’ll go buy some.”
Lin Qionghua quickly said, “Uncle, let me go buy it. I haven’t strolled around the market yet.”
Children are always eager to play, and Lin Weimu laughed, “Alright. But come back quickly once you’ve bought it.”
Lin Qionghua happily went to buy the sweet potato flour. After buying ten catties, on her way back, she saw a stall selling jewelry. There were gold, silver, and copper pieces—all fake, of course.
The price was cheap; a fifty-gram gold bracelet only cost one yuan. From the surface, it looked no different from real gold, and the weight didn’t differ much from the real thing either. At least as an outsider, she couldn’t tell the difference.
After returning home and finishing their meal, she followed Song Lanfang to the county town without delay to buy gold jewelry.
With the scorching sun overhead, Song Lanfang waited for the bus with an umbrella, chatting idly.
“Mom, don’t you feel bored staying at home every day? Why don’t you come sell starch jelly with us?”
Song Lanfang was already hot, and hearing her daughter’s words, she was even less interested, “I’m not going. What if the sun tans my skin?”
Looking at her beauty-conscious mother, Lin Qionghua felt she was a completely different person from the mother in her past life. In her past life, to earn money, her mother would hawk goods under the blazing sun; let alone an umbrella, she didn’t even wear a straw hat when she was busy.
“Aren’t you bored?” Lin Qionghua felt that staying cooped up at home all day was meaningless. Finding something to do would be so much better.
Song Lanfang chuckled, “Who says it’s meaningless? I make all the clothes at home. Cleaning takes time, too.”
Lin Qionghua fell silent. She had forgotten that in this era, her mother was a neat freak, keeping the house spotless. She asked curiously, “Mom, since you can even make clothes, can you make hair accessories?”
She pointed to a clip on the head of a beautiful female passenger in front of them, “Mom, look at that butterfly hair clip; it’s so pretty. Can you make some for me? Once made, I can sell them. Starch jelly can only be sold in the summer, but hair clips can be sold all year round.”
Song Lanfang didn’t know where to buy such accessories, but with her daughter looking at her expectantly, she couldn’t refuse, “I’ll give it a try then.”
“Thanks, Mom!”
When they arrived at the jewelry store, Song Lanfang originally wanted to buy a gold lock for her daughter, but she refused and insisted on a gold bracelet, “Mom, I think this looks better.”
“Nonsense, a gold lock looks better on a child.” Song Lanfang looked at the exquisite craftsmanship of the gold lock; she felt such intricate work was suitable for children and loved it more the longer she looked.
Unfortunately, Lin Qionghua didn’t buy it; she only liked the gold bracelet, “Mom, you buy one too, and we’ll wear them together, like a matching mother-daughter set.”
She slipped one onto her mother’s wrist. It had to be said, with both wrists side by side, they really looked like a mother-daughter set.
Song Lanfang immediately made up her mind and bought this gold bracelet. In addition, she bought gold earrings, a gold necklace, and a gold ring.
“Mom, aren’t you buying one for Dad?” Lin Qionghua asked immediately, looking at the large gold chains and big gold rings made for men.
Song Lanfang wanted to, but, “Your dad doesn’t like wearing these. He’s a cook, so wearing these while cutting vegetables isn’t convenient.”
“Mom, if you buy him one, Dad will feel that you value him. He doesn’t necessarily have to wear it.” Lin Qionghua put in a good word from the side, and Song Lanfang was indeed convinced, “We’re both buying one; if your dad doesn’t have one, he’ll definitely feel uncomfortable. Fine, we’ll buy one for your dad too.”
At the time, the price of gold was 80 yuan per gram, including a crafting fee of two yuan per gram.
They picked out six items, totaling 205 grams, with a total amount of 10,250 yuan.
Song Lanfang paid without blinking, and the other sales assistants looked enviously at their colleague who served her. With such a large purchase, the commission was quite significant.
Coming out of the jewelry store, Song Lanfang took her daughter to buy clothes. The clothes in the county town were much more fashionable than those sold in the town.
Song Lanfang’s eyes crinkled with a smile, “I thought I would never be able to afford clothes from a department store in my life. I didn’t expect to be able to buy them before I was even thirty. It’s just like a dream.”
Seeing her mother change into a dress and look like a city woman, Lin Qionghua felt sentimental. Her mother was truly so young and so beautiful right now.
She praised repeatedly, “Mom, you look so good. If only I were like you.”
Song Lanfang laughed, “You’re still young, you haven’t fully grown yet. When you’re older, you’ll definitely look better than Mom.”
Once the dress was on, Song Lanfang didn’t want to take it off. She asked the sales assistant to pack it up and went to pay.
Lin Qionghua waited in the store. When Song Lanfang finished paying, collected her old clothes, and called for her daughter, she found her stooped over, looking toward the shop opposite.
Song Lanfang took a glance; there weren’t many people in the shop opposite. She walked over and patted her daughter’s back, “What’s the matter?”
Lin Qionghua hurriedly grabbed her mother’s arm and pulled her downstairs.
Once they were downstairs, she told her mother, “I just saw Dong Liang.”
Song Lanfang was slightly startled, but didn’t think much of it, “So what if you saw him? Although we did have an unpleasant falling out before, you don’t need to hide from him. We haven’t done anything to wrong him.”
Lin Qionghua shook her head, “Mom, you misunderstood. Don’t forget, that’s a women’s clothing store.”
Song Lanfang was interrupted by her and realized, “Ah! Did he bring his wife to buy clothes?”
Thinking about it carefully, it seemed unlikely. Dong Liang wasn’t an attentive person; how could he bring his wife shopping as soon as the relocation money arrived?
She looked at her daughter, and Lin Qionghua didn’t hide it from her, “He brought a woman; I don’t know her, but she’s very pretty and very young.”
Song Lanfang felt conflicted. Actually, it was no surprise that Dong Liang had a mistress.
She didn’t want to mention such a disgusting person and didn’t bring it up again afterward.
However, Lin Qionghua was a troublemaker. After arriving home, she put her gold bracelet into her drawer, locked it, and then went to Dong Liang’s house.
Dong Liang’s wife, Wang Caixia, was cleaning at home, and their two sons, similar in age to Lin Qionghua, were out playing in the village as usual.
Seeing Lin Qionghua come over, Wang Caixia assumed she was looking for the two children to play with and said, “Dabao and Erbao are not at home.”
Lin Qionghua leaned close to her and whispered mysteriously, “Auntie Wang, my mom and I went to the county town to buy clothes just now and saw Uncle Dong Liang taking a pretty lady to buy clothes. They were very intimate.”
She gestured, “That lady was holding Uncle Dong Liang’s arm.”
Hearing this, Wang Caixia couldn’t hold her broom steady; she walked into the house with an almost ashen face.
Lin Qionghua waited for a moment and saw her coming out of the main hall, looking furious. She hurriedly stepped forward, “Auntie Wang, please don’t tell Uncle Dong Liang that I told you. Otherwise, he will definitely hit me.”
Naturally, Wang Caixia wouldn’t have a cold face toward a child. She forced a stiff smile, “Alright, you go home quickly. Just pretend you don’t know about this, and don’t spread it around.”
Seeing that she was angry and her wish was fulfilled, Lin Qionghua nodded and went straight home.
By the time she reached home, Lin Weisen had returned and was trying on the new clothes Song Lanfang had bought.
She had specifically bought him a suit for formal occasions. It had to be said, an expensive suit was truly stunning. Wearing it, he looked like a groom—spirited from head to toe.
Song Lanfang looked him up and down, nodding with satisfaction, “From now on, wear this suit for formal matters. Wear T-shirts for daily life. I bought you several today, so you can alternate them.”
Lin Weisen was only particularly fond of food, but he wasn’t picky about clothes. He wouldn’t mind wearing a single T-shirt for over ten years, so hearing that she bought several at once, he repeatedly said it was a waste, “Why buy so many? What a waste.”
Lin Weisen looked at the dress she was wearing, “This color suits you; it’s really pretty. You should wear this color more often from now on.”
“I’m still young, so no one will say anything if I wear pink. When I’m forty and wear this color, everyone will say I’m trying to look younger than I am.” Song Lanfang looked at herself in the mirror, clearly very satisfied.
Lin Weisen laughed, “You’re still young, you should wear bright-colored clothes. Our family has money now; don’t be stingy about spending it. Spend more time dressing yourself up.”
Song Lanfang glared at him playfully, “As if you needed to tell me!”
She showed him the jewelry she had bought, wearing the four-piece set, looking quite wealthy.
Lin Weisen hugged her and looked at their reflection in the mirror, “You don’t have to envy anyone else anymore, right?”
Song Lanfang smiled tenderly and put a gold ring on him. Lin Weisen frowned, “Why should I wear this? It’s not convenient to do things, and it would be such a pity if I lost it later.”
Song Lanfang told him, “You’ve raised a good daughter who insisted I buy one for you, saying that since she and I both have one, you’d be sad, disappointed, and crying if you didn’t have one.”
Lin Weisen looked at his own hand; the gold ring on his wheat-colored skin looked exactly like an upstart. He found it funny, “Filial piety is a good thing, but you should just keep it for me. A man wearing this—doesn’t it clearly tell others that I’m an upstart?”
Song Lanfang felt he looked alright wearing it, “Didn’t you see others wearing big gold rings? Aren’t you afraid of being outdone by them?”
“Why would I compete over this?” Lin Weisen held her hand, “I’ll take you out; that’s a silent display of wealth.”
Song Lanfang was well-maintained; her skin was fair, and her figure was well-kept, making her look like a maiden. Walking together with her, Lin Weisen felt very proud.
Song Lanfang chatted with him for a few minutes and then told him about their encounter with Dong Liang dating a young woman.
Lin Weisen was disgusted, “Why didn’t I notice before that he was such a scoundrel? He tried to sow discord between us before, and now he’s actually spending money on other women while being miserly with his own wife and children. Isn’t there something wrong with his brain?”
After he finished, he told Song Lanfang not to mention it, “It has nothing to do with us. If he finds out that you were the one who told, and since his wife can’t get a divorce, they are a couple after all, who knows, they might come to our house to cause trouble. I have to go to Meihua Village to supervise the work, and you won’t be able to handle him alone; you’ll suffer.”
Song Lanfang nodded.
Eavesdropping outside, Lin Qionghua awkwardly scratched her head. She had already told her! But since Auntie Wang promised not to tell Dong Liang, it meant the other party wouldn’t betray her.