Fu Wenwen nodded gently.
"Good, good, good..." Peng Tao laughed, slapping his thighs. Fu Wenwen saw the tears welling up in his eyes and was taken aback.
After Lin Feng and the soldiers had moved everything down, Peng Tao stepped forward and patted Lin Feng's shoulder. "Kid, take good care of your wife from now on! If you dare to treat her badly, I'll beat you."
"She's my wife, of course I'll dote on her." Lin Feng gave Peng Tao a speechless look. How could he treat his wife badly?
He wished he could give her his heart right now.
"Alright, let's go! I'll take you to report in first." Peng Tao smiled with satisfaction, slinging an arm around Lin Feng's shoulders, preparing to take him to report in.
"Sister-in-law, I'm taking this kid to report in and get acquainted with the area. I'll be back soon," Peng Tao called back to Fu Wenwen.
Fu Wenwen nodded and waved to them.
After Lin Feng left, Fu Wenwen took out her tools and began to clean the house again. Peng Tao should have had it cleaned once already, so Fu Wenwen just needed to wipe it down.
She changed the thick quilts and sheets she had brought with her, and little by little, Fu Wenwen filled her new home. However, there were still some missing pieces of furniture. Fu Wenwen decided to go out and see if there was a black market nearby.
"Lin An, do you want to go out with me? Mama will take you for a walk," Fu Wenwen asked Lin An, who was still not very interested.
Lin An nodded. This new home was nice, but he still missed his little friends.
"Hey, girl, who are you to this house?" As Fu Wenwen walked out of the door holding Lin An, the next-door neighbor poked her head out and asked Fu Wenwen curiously.
"Hello, Auntie. That was my husband just now, and this is my son, Lin An," Fu Wenwen introduced to the neighbor.
The neighbor auntie sized Fu Wenwen up for a moment and shook her head. "Girl, I'm not going to lie to you, you don't look like you've ever given birth. You can't fool this old woman's eyes."
She hadn't expected the auntie next door to immediately see through Fu Wenwen's pretense of not having given birth and doubt her identity. She was definitely not Lin An's mother, but more likely his stepmother.
"This is my Mama," Lin An said angrily, raising his voice to the neighbor.
"Oh my, then you have a great figure! It's like you've never given birth..." Upon hearing Lin An's words, the neighbor auntie quickly changed the subject.
"Auntie, I wanted to ask if there's anywhere nearby to buy vegetables? We just moved in and don't know if there are any places to buy groceries around here," Fu Wenwen asked with a smile.
"You've come too late. The food stores have been out of vegetables for a while now." The neighbor auntie glanced at Fu Wenwen. Seeing that Lin An was still young, she hesitated for a moment and then leaned closer to Fu Wenwen, whispering, "If you go out of this alley and turn right, there's an alley with a peach tree. Go down that alley, and there's a black market inside. The prices are a bit high, but you can buy anything you want."
"Really? Thank you, Auntie," Fu Wenwen said gratefully. Lin An, imitating Fu Wenwen, nodded at the auntie.
Seeing how well-behaved Lin An was, the auntie waved her hands. "It's nothing. We're neighbors from now on, you can just call me Auntie Ma."
"Then I'll go take a look. We don't have anything at home yet, so I can't host you. Once we're all settled, you should come visit us!" Fu Wenwen said to Auntie Ma, holding Lin An.
"Go on, go on!" Auntie Ma nodded and waved at Fu Wenwen.
After Fu Wenwen left with Lin An, the other families rushed to Auntie Ma's house, eager to gather information about the new arrivals.
Fu Wenwen followed Auntie Ma's directions out of the alley and looked around for the alley with the peach tree. Finally, she saw a peach tree from a house that had grown too long and extended over the alley. Fu Wenwen thought this must be the alley and entered it with Lin An.
As soon as she entered the alley, Fu Wenwen knew she had found the right place. The entire alley was filled with a familiar sense of caution and alertness. A man emerged from a side door and looked at Fu Wenwen. Fu Wenwen, holding Lin An, met his gaze.
"What do you want?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow and nodding his chin.
"Vegetables!" Fu Wenwen replied. The man nodded. "Turn right at the end of the road."
Fu Wenwen walked in with Lin An, arriving at the end of the alley and looking to the right.
She saw a small market, with tables set up on both sides of the road, displaying various items. Fu Wenwen observed people buying goods; the transactions were silent, conducted entirely through hand gestures.
At the other end of the alley, there was another intersection guarded by two rough-looking men who watched the passersby.
Fu Wenwen saw many vegetables on display, and people selling eggs. She walked over with Lin An. The stall owner was an old woman who quickly approached when she saw Fu Wenwen holding Lin An.
The old woman gestured a "six" to Fu Wenwen. Fu Wenwen thought for a moment. Seven fen per egg was two fen more expensive than the food store, which only sold them for five fen.
Fu Wenwen looked at the basket in front of her, which contained about twenty eggs. She gestured for all of them, but insisted on six fen per egg.
The old woman shook her head. Fu Wenwen frowned. The old woman pointed at the two men at the entrance and gestured a "two."
Fu Wenwen raised an eyebrow and looked at the two men at the entrance. Just then, someone who had finished their purchase was leaving, and the two men immediately surrounded them, forcing the person to hand over the money before allowing them to leave.
Fu Wenwen then realized that the "two" the old woman had gestured likely meant a twenty percent cut for the two men at the entrance.
Her basket of over twenty eggs, totaling just over a yuan, would cost them two mao?
No wonder she was selling them for seven fen each.
Fu Wenwen thought for a moment and decided not to buy for now. She picked up Lin An and prepared to leave. The old woman saw that Fu Wenwen was not buying and anxiously grabbed her.
Fu Wenwen looked at the old woman. The old woman pleaded with her to buy, saying she needed the money. Her excited demeanor was almost as if she were kneeling to beg.
Seeing the old woman like this, Fu Wenwen raised an eyebrow and nodded. She took out her wallet, pulled out one yuan and four mao, and gave it to the old woman. The old woman happily accepted the money. Seeing that Fu Wenwen had no bags to carry the eggs in, she prepared to take them to her.
Fu Wenwen watched as the old woman picked up her basket, and was momentarily stunned. Realizing the old woman intended to deliver them to her home, Fu Wenwen led the way. As soon as the two men at the alley entrance saw Fu Wenwen, their eyes lit up, and they immediately stepped forward.
"Well, well, what a beauty! What are you buying? Tell me, and I'll take you shopping." The two men greedily sized up Fu Wenwen, exchanging glances, plotting something unknown.
"This... this is today's cut. Please, young sirs, let us pass," the old woman said. Seeing the situation, she quickly shielded Fu Wenwen behind her and then stepped forward obsequiously. She produced two mao, which she had prepared in advance, and offered them to the two men. After the men accepted the money, the old woman intended to escort Fu Wenwen out of the alley.