Qiao Wengang also carefully studied Shen Yunchu and little Lihua.
He realized—neither of them had been truly frail or naturally thin. It had only been a few days, and both mother and daughter already had healthy color in their cheeks, lively and bright.
He pinched himself with a grin. “Ow. Not a dream.”
Early the next morning, the family headed to the department store.
Shen Yunchu was a little worried. According to Nan Lingyi, they needed to buy and furnish the whole house—there would be tons of items. How were they supposed to bring everything home?
Thankfully, the ticket system had been abolished recently. Otherwise, buying anything required ration tickets, which made even browsing stressful.
These days, the department store was packed—truly a sea of people. Without ticket restrictions, everyone suddenly wanted to buy things freely.
But when people arrived with their saved-up money, most became reluctant to spend it.
Even without tickets, those hard-earned savings weren’t easy to part with.
So the place was full of people browsing—but not many actually buying.
The Qiao family entered the bustling hall.
Lihua, sitting on her father’s shoulders, covered her mouth and gasped, “So many people, Mommy, Daddy!”
Shen Yunchu had never dared shop here before. Under Old Madam Qiao’s watchful gaze, she’d never been able to save private money. She hardly had the chance—or courage—to step inside.
But today, she touched the one-yuan note in her pocket.
1 yuan — 1,000,000 milliyuan of purchasing power.
She could buy whatever she wanted without worrying about the price.
“Mom said the house feels boring. Let’s look at televisions first.”
Once she spoke, Qiao Wengang led the way.
On a black-and-white TV, a drama was playing. Little Lihua was immediately captivated. Tilting her head, she exclaimed, “Mommy, that person got caught!”
Her innocent comment made surrounding shoppers laugh.
The shop assistant smiled. “Little one, this is a television. It’s a great thing.”
Shen Yunchu asked, “How much is it?”
“This one doesn’t require tax. Seventeen inches. Two thousand milliyuan.”
He didn’t elaborate. Everyone asked about TVs, but few ever bought one. He understood why—two thousand milliyuan was no small amount.
Yunchu examined it closely. It was already far beyond anything she ever dreamed of owning. But then she thought of her mother. Her mother liked the best. She couldn’t settle for less.
“Excuse me… is this the most advanced? Are there better ones?”
The shop assistant blinked in surprise. “Ah—not quite. This is the cheaper model. We do have an imported one—color TV, flat screen design, better for the eyes, much better picture quality, and the signal is stronger. But… it’s a bit expensive. Over ten thousand milliyuan.”
Shen Yunchu sucked in a breath. That price was more than her lifetime wages.
Before, she would’ve instantly waved her hands and said:
“We’ll look around. We don’t need it.”
The assistant, seeing her expression, gave a sympathetic smile. “For most homes, the two-thousand model is plenty. It’s our bestseller.”
But today—
Yunchu made a decisive choice.
“Could you show us the color television? If possible, we’ll take that one.”
That color TV had been sitting in storage for ages. The staff joked it would become a museum piece at this rate.
But today—someone finally asked about it.
The salesman was thrilled. He might actually make a major sale today.
He led the family to it. The moment the screen lit up, the vivid colors were incomparable to black-and-white.
“This isn’t even a competition,” Shen Yunchu murmured.
So she paid immediately and ordered the color TV.
Then came the next problem. “But… how will we take it home?”
The salesman thought fast. He couldn’t let such a massive sale slip away. “Don’t worry—we’ll deliver it. Just leave your address.”
Department stores were no longer like the old days when salespeople held all the power and shoppers needed to beg for items.
Times had changed overnight. Those who adapted quickly were earning handsomely.
Yunchu’s eyes lit up. If delivery was included, then she could buy freely without worrying about transportation.
“We’ll be buying a lot of items. Could they all be delivered together?”
The salesman nearly burst with joy. “Of course!”
She wrote down the address. The salesperson recognized it immediately—it was a villa in the western district. A wealthy address.
After securing the TV, they continued shopping.
Knowing Nan Lingyi’s tastes—she disliked old things—the family simply bought everything new.
The salesman followed behind, jotting down a list so long it made him jealous to the point of pain.
When would he ever shop like this—only considering whether he liked something, not the price?
“Did we get everything on the list?” Yunchu asked, holding Lihua’s hand.
Wengang studied the list carefully. “Most of it. A few things we’ll need a carpenter to custom-build.”
She nodded.
As they spoke, they suddenly ran into someone familiar. Jin City wasn’t large—running into acquaintances was common.
“Isn’t this Team Leader Qiao and Yunchu?”
The woman’s nasal, sharp voice grated on the ears. Lihua fidgeted uncomfortably and covered her little ears.
Shen Yunchu recognized her—Wu Min, a coworker at the factory. They never got along. Wu Min often dumped extra work on her under the excuse of “training” her.
As a permanent worker, she had power. Yunchu, a temporary worker, had no choice but to swallow grievances silently.
Yunchu gave a polite nod and tried to walk away.
But Wu Min wouldn’t allow it.
Today, she was out shopping for her wedding with her fiancé — she needed someone to show off to.
So she raised her voice dramatically:
“Yunchu, why are you leaving so quickly? Ahh, I’m out shopping with Tang Qiang today for our wedding. My future mother-in-law gave me a lot of money and told me to spend it all. But I’m so overwhelmed—I don’t know what to buy! You’ve been married before and have experience. Why don’t you advise me?”
Salt.
Right on the wound.
Everyone knew that when Yunchu married Wengang, her maternal family didn’t care and her in-laws were hostile. The wedding was simple, hurried, and embarrassing.
Wu Min knew it too.
And she said it anyway — deliberately.
(End of chapter)