Ruan Jianguo didn’t say a word, but the smile on his face said it all.
"..." Ruan Jiaojiao felt incredibly awkward.
"Then buy a few more, we’re not short of money. Wear them in rotation." Du Qing picked out a few more, smiling as she put Ruan Jiaojiao in front of a square mirror for her to see herself.
Ruan Jiaojiao had a giant yellow flower perched on top of her ponytail. As she moved, the flower swayed with her, and honestly, it looked quite pretty!
Ruan Jiaojiao covered her small face and groaned internally, feeling that she had been assimilated by the aesthetic standards of this era.
"Auntie, how much is this?" Ruan Chi asked as he leaned on the glass counter, seriously choosing other flowers.
"Twenty-five cents, two for fifty cents."
A pound of meat was only one yuan, so a single flower costing twenty-five cents was actually a bit expensive. However, Ruan Chi didn’t think so. He took out the money from his pocket, counted five bills and handed them to Du Qing: "Auntie, I’m buying these for my sister."
"Oh..." Du Qing was startled, then broke into a smile: "Chizi is really acting like a proper big brother, not at all like the boys in my house, who think only of buying snacks whenever they have some pocket money, never considering buying something for their sisters."
Ruan Chi blushed slightly at the praise, and he said softly, "Sister is pretty, looks good with flowers."
Du Qing laughed heartily again, while on the side, the Ruanlin Family matriarch also smiled and shook her head, not stopping him but letting him pay for the purchase. Ruan Chi chose a red and a green flower, then ran excitedly to Ruan Jiaojiao’s side: "Sister, these are for you, bought by your brother."
Ruan Jiaojiao was still admiring the flower on her head. Having heard their conversation, she now looked at the flowers Ruan Chi was offering. Her mouth twitched—do all men really think red and green are the best combination?
She took the red one from his hand but refused the green: "Jiaojiao wants the one on her head, this one, not the green one."
"Alright, we’ll not take the green one." Ruan Chi didn’t mind and turned back to return the green flower.
"Do you want to buy anything else, Sister? I will buy it for you." He had saved one yuan and fifty-eight cents, and now that he had spent fifty cents, he still had one yuan left! He patted his chest, feeling as if he was bursting with generosity.
Ruan Jiaojiao laughed at his antics and generously gave him a big kiss: "Thank you, brother, Jiaojiao doesn’t want anything else." Worried that Ruan Chi might be reluctant, she added, "We can buy next time."
"Okay!" Having received a kiss from his sister, Ruan Chi was delighted and led her back to the Ruanlin Family matriarch, then together, they watched her choose fabric.
After the Ruanlin Family matriarch bought the fabric, they also weighed out some biscuits and candies before they all returned home, thoroughly contented.
On the way back, the Ruanlin Family matriarch watched Ruan Jiaojiao trying hard to walk with her little short legs and asked Ruan Jianguo, "How much money do you have left? I think our family should buy a cycle cart too."
A cycle cart is a tricycle.
Lately, they had been borrowing from Uncle Number Two’s family. Even though they might not mind now, borrowing too often was not good. Owning one would make things much more convenient for them.
Before Ruan Jianguo could answer, the Ruanlin Family matriarch added, "If there’s not enough money, I’ll contribute."
Ruan Jianguo looked at her helplessly, no wonder Liao Zhaoji was jealous; seeing how his mother was, it was clear her favoritism knew no bounds.
"Mom, keep your money; your son can make money." Over the years, Ruan Jianguo had been working in the factory, and Shu Jiao had her own little stash. They really weren’t short of money—in fact, even after building the house, there was enough left for him to go north to find her.