As the school opening neared, the end-of-summer discounts in the department store were in full swing. Luckily, today wasn’t a weekend, and the customers in the store were mostly housewives shopping for clothes with their children. It was quite rare to see someone of Zhuo Feng’s age, accompanied by a niece who looked about fifteen or sixteen, out buying clothes.
Zhuo Feng was tall, over 1.7 meters. There were some clothes she wanted to wear in the past but felt too old for. Now, with a teenage niece around, she immediately took to dressing Xiao Xian up like a doll. She had been part of the school’s modeling team and had a good eye for fashion.
"A denim pleated skirt with a short-sleeved, chiffon white blouse will look both student-like and delicate. And these suspenders shorts, middle schoolers love these. We should also buy a few jackets for autumn," Zhuo Feng said as she picked out clothes with determination. In less than two hours, she bought Xiao Xian five large bags of clothes and pants.
"And shoes. Right, we also need to buy a backpack and stationery. After we finish on the first floor, we’ll go check out the sports goods counter on the fourth floor. Kids these days like to use Nike or Adidas backpacks." Xiao Xian replied, touched. In fact, while choosing clothes just now, her aunt had taken a fancy to several pieces, but Zhuo Feng hadn’t indulged herself.
The aunt and niece shared a distinctive trait: slim figures, fair skin, long legs, and large eyes – a combination of southern delicacy and northern stature. Walking together, they really looked like a pair of models, one tall and one small – the clothes from the counters looked gorgeous on them without fail.
They’d already spent nearly two thousand yuan on clothes, and Xiao Xian really wanted to take out the money from her space, but how could she explain such an unaccounted sum to Zhuo Feng?
Last night on the car ride, Xiao Xian remembered what her grandfather had given her before he passed away. She hadn’t paid much attention to the Party Constitution, and the red-covered bank book – she didn’t take a close look either, just handed it over to Zhuo Feng and her husband.
But Zhuo Feng immediately returned the bank book to her, telling her to keep it safe.
Zhuo Feng didn’t explain why she didn’t keep the bank book. She simply said, "That’s other people’s money; I don’t want to use unclear funds. Xiao Xian, we must live an honest life. We keep what we should, and don’t touch what we shouldn’t take by even a penny."
No one knew how much Zhu Shijun, during his years as a factory manager and official, had embezzled. Nor did Zhuo Feng want to know how much money was in that bank book.
She just wanted to rely on her and her husband’s abilities to raise Xiao Xian well, to be a proper person, and to make sure she didn’t follow in her brother and sister-in-law’s footsteps.
"Auntie, I think we have enough clothes. As for shoes, just buy a pair. I don’t wear out shoes quickly; they last me a whole year. Why don’t we go back to the Converse counter we saw at the beginning and buy a pair of sneakers?" Xiao Xian was trying on a pair of white Nike sports shoes, but when she checked the price, it was a whopping 599 yuan, which was too expensive. It was almost half a month’s salary for an ordinary worker.
"The ones you’re wearing look good. Did you like the sneakers from before? Then let’s buy them together. Xiao Xian, you’re ten years old this year. Since you were six, your aunt hasn’t bought you any birthday presents. Let’s consider this as making up for all four years’ worth in one go." Xiao Xian was born in May, and this year’s birthday had already passed. Zhuo Feng had some money left over; her hometown was in Wenzhou, and her family circumstances were quite good. When she got married, her parents gave her money to buy a house, but Feng Xing insisted on not accepting it, so it was kept saved up.
Now, using part of it to buy clothes and dress up her niece didn’t seem excessive at all.
Zhuo Feng didn’t tell Xiao Xian that children in the city were different from those in the village – wearing the same shoes and clothes every day would get you laughed at. She didn’t want Xiao Xian to be looked down upon at school over clothes.
After buying the clothes and shoes, Zhuo Feng also got Xiao Xian all the stationery and backpacks she needed. The morning’s shopping filled the trunk of their taxi to the brim.
Lunch was sorted at a food stall under the old apartment building. Xiao Xian noticed that Zhuo Feng couldn’t cook. It seemed that at home, Feng Xing was usually the one cooking. Feng Xing would have lunch at work, and before Xiao Xian arrived, Zhuo Feng would make do with a fried egg rice or a bowl of noodles at a noodle stand.
Xiao Xian had a taste of an egg, "Auntie, why do Beijing eggs taste so bad? And also..." Xiao Xian didn’t want to say it outright, but when she brushed her teeth last night and took the first sip of water, she spat it out. The water tasted strange here, somewhat salty, but not quite.
"Does it taste earthy? It’s what city folk are accustomed to. You’ll get used to it. Those eggs are fed with feed, and the water is groundwater. Those labeled as ’home-bred’ eggs are way too expensive. If you don’t like eggs, have some ribs instead. Also, the fried Chinese toon here is quite tasty." Zhuo Feng reminisced about her few days in Ge Village, where Sister-in-law Lian had good cooking skills and the ingredients were top-notch.