"Sis, do you think this is okay?" As he spoke, he handed over the two bags of baby formula he was holding to Ling Chengyan.
Ling Chengyan glanced at the baby head on the packaging, her eye twitched slightly, then she compared it to the opened bag of formula. It was exactly the same.
She was suspicious; could the formula from the black market have come from the department store?
"It's great." Ling Chengyan nodded.
Gou'er returned a few small bills to Ling Chengyan: "A bag of formula is three yuan eighty cents, this is the change."
Ling Chengyan bought it for one yuan eighty at the department store, thought five yuan on the black market would be a good price, and gave Gou'er ten yuan. Unexpectedly, the price on the black market was even lower than she imagined.
Ling Chengyan slightly raised her eyebrows, did not take the extra money: "You keep it."
After finishing, she drank the remaining soup, wiped her mouth, picked up little Shi Tou, and left Da Xiong's house.
Gou'er and the others were stunned, but Xiao Xi, who was busy in the courtyard, saw the small bills in Gou'er's hand and snatched them before chasing out the door.
Once outside, Ling Chengyan carried Xiao Xing and headed into the alley next door. Xiao Xi chased out of the alley but couldn't see Ling Chengyan and the two children. After a moment of shock, he quietly returned.
Ling Chengyan took Xiao Xing and Shi Tou and then went to the department store.
With money and food coupons, Ling Chengyan bought a can of malted milk essence and two packs of biscuits for Xiao Xing to eat. The little girl was skinny and yellow, clearly not getting enough food and drink, and needed proper nutrition.
Hearing the bustle on the other side, Ling Chengyan inquired and found out that the textile counter was selling damaged fabrics without needing cloth coupons.
There was no queue; everyone was squeezing. Whoever got in front could buy.
In terms of strength, Ling Chengyan was not one to fear.
The grocery counter was still manned by Zhou Hongyan, with whom Ling Chengyan shared some familiarity from previous encounters. She placed Xiao Xing at the counter, asked for a favor to keep an eye on her, and rushed to grab the fabric.
Within ten minutes, Ling Chengyan came back with a roll of fabric. There were four types of floral-patterned fabrics on sale, and Ling Chengyan bought two yards of each, rolled together, it wasn't a small roll.
By buying all this fabric, she and the two kids could have at least two new outfits each, with spares for washing. Ling Chengyan felt noticeably more cheerful and smiled at Zhou Hongyan at the grocery counter, expressing her thanks.
The mother and kids left the department store, and it took Zhou Hongyan a while to process. This woman bought so much fabric; even if it's cheap, it must have cost over ten yuan, in addition to the malted milk essence and biscuits... nearly twenty yuan in total.
This country woman, where did she get so much money? Maybe, not from a proper source?!
Ling Chengyan wasn't aware she was being suspected, as she took the two children on their way back. Before leaving the county-town, they hitched a ride on a tractor, bumping along, back to the commune.
It was bumpy, but much faster compared to mule carts or horse carriages.
The mother and kids got off at the commune and hitched a ride on an ox-cart for part of the way. When they arrived back in the village, the sun had yet to set, hanging in the west like a boiled salted yolk.
Early February, the thawing of the soil began, and farming families were getting busy.
The team hadn't fully started work yet, but some people were organized to transport fertilizer to the fields, aiming to turn and level the soil for spring sowing as soon as it thawed.
As Ling Chengyan and her two sons entered the village, work was ending. A group of men at the village committee were putting away farming tools and vehicles, heading home for dinner, and saw the mother and sons returning. A tall and robust man in his thirties approached.
Xiao Xing called crisply: "Uncle."
Ling Chengyan followed suit: "Big Brother." This was likely her uncle's eldest son.
"Finally, you're back, your aunt was talking about it all day. Big Brother was just saying he'd go check on you, and see if you hadn't returned yet." A younger man approached, picked Xiao Xing up, and put her on his shoulder.
"Third Uncle, giggle, giggle, it's so high!" Xiao Xing giggled happily, grabbing the man's ear.
This was Wang Futang's second son, ranked third among the cousins.
"Little girl, be gentle, don't pull your second uncle's ear off..."
"Third Brother, be careful. You think Xiao Xing is your pair of little monkeys at home?" Wang Lianqi scolded.
Third Brother Wang Lianfa didn't mind and cheerfully promised, then ran home with Xiao Xing quickly.
Wang Lianqi carried himself like a big brother, asking about Ling Chengyan's trip to the city for Shi Tou's medical treatment. Ling Chengyan replied briefly.
Wang Lianqi looked a bit embarrassed, coughed, and said: "We didn't take good care of things."
Ling Chengyan replied: "No need to blame yourself, Big Brother. This matter was difficult for Uncle and you all."
After all, it was just Uncle and cousins, with some distance between families. Interfering in the affairs of a niece-in-law (younger cousin's wife) wasn't proper by any means.
Wang Lianqi glanced at the frail woman and suddenly realized his parents and he might not fully understand this cousin's wife, who was unexpectedly wise and generous.
It was a pity that the fourth brother ended up in prison, and the second uncle and aunt weren't reliable either...
Upon returning to the main house, Wang Lianfa had already rolled up his sleeves and trouser legs, and was busily shoveling manure out of the pigsty.
"Xiao Xing is inside with her granny." Seeing them enter, Wang Lianfa smiled, showing a set of white teeth.
Ling Chengyan nodded and followed Wang Lianqi into the main room.
Aunt welcomed them: "Quickly, put the child down to rest. After a whole day, you must be exhausted, huh?"
After taking the baby, Aunt walked into the inner room, muttering: "Ah, such a small child, traveling all day really takes a toll..."
"Mom." The eldest sister-in-law called but offered a tea cup to Ling Chengyan: "Yan'er, have some water. How was the child's check-up? What did the doctor say?"
Ling Chengyan repeated the doctor's words and added: "The doctor gave a recommendation, bought a bag of formula to feed first."
"Oh, bought formula? Good, good, feed him first..." Aunt seemed thoughtful, then said, "There are several ladies in the village nursing babies, I'll talk to them, have them take turns coming to help nurse (nai, fourth tone, breastfeeding) the child."
Receiving help from nearby relatives to nurse children was familiar to Ling Chengyan; in Great Chu, there was no formula. When a child was born without milk, one had to ask women with children for help.
Aunt's kind intention, Ling Chengyan did not refuse. She happened to be blind in this world, having more contact, knowing more people would help her get familiar and integrate quickly.
"Thanks so much, Aunt."
"You silly child," Aunt Qu Cui laughed, giving a light pat to Ling Chengyan, "don't be so polite with me."
As they were talking, little Shi Tou woke up and started crying.
Before Ling Chengyan could check, Aunt was already unwrapping the swaddle and soon smiled: "Little thing, turns out you pooped (ba, bowel movement), hey, quite a lot, it's clear you had a full meal too..."
Ling Chengyan glanced back and saw Uncle and Cousin looking pleasantly amused as Aunt changed the diaper, without a hint of dislike.