On the sixteenth of Zheng Yue, there was still plenty of food at home, and the feast was quite lavish. Wang Aihua especially enjoyed crispy pork and braised pork in brown sauce, so much so that she nearly ate those two best dishes of braised vegetables all by herself.
"Hualian, your big brother and I will stay here for a day and go back tomorrow. We finally made it to the county, so we should buy some things for mom to take back home." Wang Aihua spoke nicely, but in fact, she just didn’t want to go back.
"Hualian, I’ve never seen the county at night before. Is it as lively as during the day?" Wang Aihua said excitedly, "I heard that there’s a park in the county with lots of animals. I’ve never seen them before despite my age."
People who didn’t know any better wouldn’t think Wang Aihua had come for medical treatment. It would be more accurate to say she came for sightseeing.
"I’ve never been out at night," said Zhang Hualian, pausing before adding, "Is there a park in Wangjiang County? I’ve never been there either. I’ve been in the county for two months now, and after preparing breakfast in the morning and cleaning up, it’s already noon. There’s no time to go around and look."
Wang Aihua pouted and said, "Hualian, I’m not criticizing you, but you must have some free time in the afternoon, right? Why don’t you go out and explore?"
"Auntie, my parents get up before four in the morning every day. They have endless things to do, how could they possibly find time to have fun?" Tang Yue replied with a slight lift of her eyelids, "Mom, I’m going to school this afternoon to register. Can you pack some vegetables for me? You said last time that you would save some crispy pork for me to take to school."
If Wang Aihua were to stay for a day, Ming Yue feared none of the crispy pork her mother saved for her would be left.
"Sure." Zhang Hualian agreed with a smile.
Wang Aihua said, "Xiao Yue, why do you need to bring vegetables to school? Don’t they serve food there?"
"It costs money," Tang Yue replied matter-of-factly. "Auntie, if it weren’t so far, I’d want to go home to eat every day. The food at school is both expensive and not tasty."
After a pause, Tang Yue said with a smirk, "Of course, Auntie, you’re so fond of your son. Xiao Xian must have plenty of pocket money at school, right? I heard there’s a fast-food restaurant behind No. 2 Middle School. Xiao Xian told me yesterday that he goes there for several meals a week."
"Really?" Wang Aihua wasn’t stupid, Tang Yue’s words were obviously referring to her, but she changed the subject, pretending she hadn’t caught the implied criticism in Tang Yue’s words.
That afternoon.
Before leaving, Tang Yue had advised Zhang Hualian again and again to keep an eye on the money and absolutely not to mention how much they earned in a day.
Zhang Hualian felt Tang Yue was overthinking, but she remembered the advice and casually mentioned it to Tang Zhengde.
While Tang Zhengyuan was resting, Tang Mingli was planning to go to the store. Wang Aihua had always wanted to have a look, and seizing the opportunity, she promptly said to Tang Mingli, "Mingli, I heard your stall is doing well. I want to have a look too."
"Sister-in-law, didn’t you say you had no money? Still thinking of buying clothes?" Tang Mingli spoke to Wang Aihua without any politeness.
Wang Aihua just smiled. The thick-skinned woman simply ignored Tang Mingli’s remarks and said, "Mingli, that’s not right. I might not have money, but can’t I just look?"
"Sure." Tang Mingli was annoyed with Wang Aihua. He wanted to invite his second sister-in-law to come along, but then he thought that with Tang Yue not around and given his second sister-in-law’s soft temperament, she might be taken advantage of.
"Eh, Mingli, isn’t your stall across from the market?" Wang Aihua had been to the market before, but when they arrived, she saw Tang Mingli heading in the direction of Xinlou Road.
"Hmm, the stall can’t be set up, so I rented a shop." Tang Mingli answered casually. After entering the shop, it didn’t take long for someone to deliver the signboard, and he got busy setting it up.
Wang Aihua stared intently at the large shop of two combined units. New clothes were always attractive, and especially so with the new styles that Tang Mingli brought in, it dazzled onlookers.


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