CHAPTER 63: CHAPTER 60: SHOPPING SPREE

"Yueyue, did you come alone?" Mr. Jiang, feeling that his relationship with his daughter had improved, spoke more casually.

"Yeah, my brothers need to earn work points to support the family, so I came to buy some daily necessities to take back. Dad, how’s mom doing?"

"It’s rare that you still think of her. But Yueyue... it’s better not to see her in the future. If you do, be cautious."

Jiang Mingyue: "?"

Let her guess... could it be that the bomb she dropped before has exploded? She just didn’t know how much Mr. Jiang had found out.

"Alright, I’ll listen to you, Dad."

Jiang Mingyue deliberately ate her fill first, then made an excuse to go out for a breeze. She came back and pushed out her bicycle just as the two inside had also finished eating and came out.

Jiang Mingyue then took out the gifts she had prepared from the basket.

"Uncle Zhu, Dad, you both probably have to rush to work; I won’t disturb you. These are the gifts I brought for you. Uncle Zhu, you must accept them."

Jiang Mingyue gave each of them a ham, nothing else, because a single ham weighs dozens of pounds, which is already quite substantial, and more would be too conspicuous.

"This..." Even Zhu Hongwen, who had seen many nice things, was stunned by the large ham.

"Uncle, it didn’t cost money. My two brothers hunted wild boars in the mountains. There were two, so giving you both one isn’t a problem. Take it."

Having said this much, Zhu Hongwen naturally accepted it.

Jiang Kangsheng was filled with mixed emotions, feeling exactly like his daughter had married another family.

Nonetheless, Zhu Hongwen still went through all his pockets, insisting on giving Jiang Mingyue some money.

"Girl, thank you for letting Uncle Zhu enjoy ham after so many years. I appreciate the gesture, but I know rural life is hard. You must take this money so you can trade it for some food; otherwise, I won’t accept the gift."

"This..."

Unexpectedly, Mr. Jiang took the money without hesitation, saying, "If he gives it to you, take it. This old guy isn’t short of this."

Zhu Hongwen rolled his eyes from behind: Who’s not short? It was just out of pity for the little girl’s rough hands.

Not only Zhu Hongwen, but Mr. Jiang likewise stuffed all the money he had in his pocket to her, just like last time.

"Dad, my family... isn’t as poor as you think."

"I know, this is just a token from your dad. I’ll save all my money for you in the future, don’t refuse."

Jiang Mingyue’s heart was racing: Being spoiled feels too good, so good that she didn’t want to refuse.

"Then thank you, Dad. When I have good stuff, I’ll come to honor you."

"Just take care of yourself first. If you need anything, just let me know."

The two elders watched her ride away on her bike.

Zhu Hongwen: "You don’t need to worry too much, I think the little girl is much more mature than when she was with you, and she hasn’t lost weight. Her host family must be treating her well."

"A parent’s heart worries thousands of miles away, don’t you know?"

Zhu Hongwen teased, "Old Jiang, stop talking in such a literary way. By the way, there’s some progress on the matter you asked me to investigate last time."

Zhu Hongwen took out an envelope from his inner pocket, opened it, and pulled out a small black and white photo.

"What’s this?"

"This is the person who took Xiao Cheng away at the train station. Still haven’t found out his name or where he’s from, you’ll have to wait. In any case, too much time has passed, many traces have been erased, making it difficult to find, but as long as Xiao Cheng is alive, there will be a day when we find him."

******

After Jiang Mingyue left, she headed straight to the department store. She was a millionaire now, eager to buy and buy, wishing her family a good life.

She went over the five thousand yuan coupon booklet, covering everything; as long as it was available in the department building, she could buy it.

After locking her bike, Jiang Mingyue headed straight for the candy counter.

"Xiao Xiao, I came to see you."

"Ming Yue? Oh my gosh! You finally came." Gu Xiaoxiao delightedly stepped out from behind the counter to grab Jiang Mingyue’s hand.

Not far away, Duan Min curled her lip disdainfully, thinking: just a village girl, I wonder if Manager Zhuang and the others are blind, always thinking about her.

To say the least, this person never learned their lesson, having forgotten the last lecture from Xiao Gao and Manager Zhuang. She still thought she had Vice Manager Li as her backing, not caring about others at all.

As for irrelevant people, Jiang Mingyue essentially treated them as air.

After mentioning the things she wanted to buy, Gu Xiaoxiao immediately pulled her along to check them off one by one.

"Big and small basins, all kinds? We have that. Look, this is the largest size, is it enough?"

Jiang Mingyue was overjoyed and decisively asked for twenty, and for other sizes, ten each.

What was comforting was that Gu Xiaoxiao didn’t even ask why she needed so many or express any surprise, nor was she worried about her being unable to pay.

It was quite amazing!

They added a lot to the dining sets, then onto ready-to-wear clothes, two suits per person, and two pairs of shoes as well. For those who do farm work, shoes are the quickest to wear out, some farmers even walk barefoot in fields and mountains full of stones and sharp thorns to save money on shoes, eventually growing thick calluses on their soles.

"Xiao Xiao, I also want to buy a sewing machine and a bicycle, is there any?"

"A sewing machine just got delivered —I’ll prioritize it for you— but there are no bicycles at the moment; when they get restocked, I’ll save one for you."

"Alright. Also, I need some fabric; my third sister loves making clothes. And, I need a hot water kettle, a coal stove..."

Jiang Mingyue also purchased some candies and biscuits, took two cans of malt milk essence, and after reckoning that there was nothing left behind, finally went to pay.

Her massive shopping spree left other salesclerks stunned and envious, except for Duan Min, who was filled with intense jealousy.

Even though she was just a village girl, why did she deserve to buy so much at once? It’s known she had tried multiple times to get a sewing machine by offering herself but failed. First, Xue Hong, then Vice Manager Li, promising to buy her one, yet once they had their fun, they forgot all about it.

Once Jiang Mingyue had finished paying and the items were stacked at the door, Duan Min’s hatred nearly spilled over the counter.

Taking advantage of an unnoticed moment, Jiang Mingyue surreptitiously gave Gu Xiaoxiao two chickens.

"Xiao Xiao, kill and eat them at home. We raise plenty, so don’t save them."

Gu Xiaoxiao felt embarrassed because she had only prepared a jar of her homemade pickled garlic for Ming Yue, thinking she might like it, though unsure when Ming Yue would come. It could last for a long time without spoiling, but now, it seemed too humble compared to Ming Yue’s generosity.

Psyching herself up, Xiao Xiao finally mustered the courage to take out the jar from under the counter and slipped it into Ming Yue’s basket.

"It’s pickled garlic."

"I like it, thank you, Xiao Xiao."

There wasn’t the slightest sense of reluctance; it was clear she genuinely liked it, which relieved Gu Xiaoxiao.