"But Aunties, aren't you worried? This thief trashed my place while I was out, which proves they must be very familiar with our street. Aunties, think, could it be someone you know?" Fu Wenwen looked at Auntie Qu and Auntie Hu. Auntie Qu's face changed for a moment, then she pretended to be unfazed.
Fu Wenwen saw her momentary stiffness and raised an eyebrow.
She had only tested the waters, but she hadn't expected Auntie Qu to have something to hide.
"How could that be? Everyone living around here knows each other inside and out. No, no." Auntie Hu waved her hand, convinced it couldn't be someone from their alley.
"It's hard to say! Otherwise, how could they know so clearly that as soon as I left with Xiaomei, they broke in?" Fu Wenwen reasoned. "I was already planning to report it to the police!"
"You can't report it to the police!" Auntie Qu, startled by the mention of police, couldn't help but exclaim.
"Why can't I report it?" Fu Wenwen looked at Auntie Qu, and Auntie Hu also looked at Auntie Qu. "Yeah? Why can't we report it?"
"She didn't lose anything! If you report it, the police will just scold her. This isn't even considered theft!" Auntie Qu quickly explained.
Fu Wenwen shook her head and said earnestly, "Auntie Qu, that's not how it works. They didn't steal anything because I had all the money on me. Regardless of whether they stole anything, by sneaking into my house, they are already committing a crime!"
"Exactly, you can't let people like that get away with it! I think you should report it to the police. This kind of person needs to be caught quickly. Otherwise, what if they break into my house next time and steal something?" Auntie Hu nodded. "We absolutely cannot let this kind of thief off!"
"I forgot I'm still cooking porridge at home! I'll be going back!" Auntie Qu's expression shifted. After speaking to Fu Wenwen and Auntie Hu, she hurried away.
Seeing Auntie Qu leave, Auntie Hu felt it was no fun to be alone and prepared to leave as well. "Then I'll be going back too. Little Fu, you need to be careful in the future! Lock your doors and windows well."
"Alright, thank you for your concern, Auntie." Fu Wenwen smiled.
After Auntie Hu left, Zou Xiaomei nudged Fu Wenwen, and they shared a knowing smile.
"I told you! They just wanted to come and see your misfortune!" Zou Xiaomei said. "As soon as they came in, they said you were too flashy and that's what attracted the thief."
"But Auntie Qu's reaction just now was a bit strange, did you notice?" Zou Xiaomei looked at Fu Wenwen, who nodded slightly. "I also think Auntie Qu seems to know something."
Zou Xiaomei helped Fu Wenwen string up a clothesline. After hanging all the clothes, Zou Xiaomei checked the time and prepared to go home. "I'll head back now. I'll come back later to visit."
"Don't go! Weren't you going to stay for lunch at my place?" Fu Wenwen was taken aback and quickly stopped Zou Xiaomei.
"If I don't go home for lunch, my mom will kill me!" Zou Xiaomei laughed. "If there's anything good to eat, just save some for me!"
As soon as Zou Xiaomei finished speaking, Auntie Zou's voice echoed from the alley. "Zou Xiaomei!!"
"Coming!" Zou Xiaomei quickly responded, then turned to Fu Wenwen and smiled. "See! My mom is already calling me!"
Zou Xiaomei waved goodbye to Fu Wenwen and quickly ran home.
After Fu Wenwen tidied up the house, there was a knock on the door.
"Fresh eggs, anyone want them?"
Hearing the old woman's voice, Fu Wenwen hurried to open the door. Seeing the familiar Grandma Zhang, Fu Wenwen smiled. "Grandma Zhang, you have eggs so soon?"
"I've come to thank you!" Grandma Zhang walked in with a basket of eggs and said gratefully to Fu Wenwen, "Thanks to the medicine you gave me last time, my old man's illness is cured, and he's not coughing anymore."
"As long as the person is alright, that's all that matters!" Fu Wenwen smiled.
Grandma Zhang shook her head and insisted on giving Fu Wenwen the eggs from the past two days. "These are the eggs laid in the last two days. There aren't many, but take them for now. I'll bring you more when I have them! My old man walks slowly, otherwise, he would have wanted to come and thank you personally."
"Grandma, my medicine pills are worth just two eggs! I'll buy the rest of these." Fu Wenwen said softly to Grandma Zhang.
There were about a dozen eggs in the basket, roughly twelve. Deducting two, she took out sixty cents and placed it in Grandma Zhang's hand.
Grandma Zhang resolutely pulled her hand back, refusing to accept it. "Girl, you can't look down on old folks like us. If it's a thank-you gift for you, how can I sell it? Don't be silly. If you keep being silly, I'll get angry."
"Grandma..." Fu Wenwen sighed softly.
"Your one pill saved me several yuan in medicine fees! I feel these few eggs are too little. If my old man hadn't been sick and I hadn't spent all my money before, I would have prepared a whole basket of eggs for you!" Grandma Zhang said sternly. "So, take these eggs! Don't push them on me anymore!"
"Okay, okay, don't be angry, I'll take them." Seeing Grandma Zhang getting angry, Fu Wenwen quickly appeased her.
"That's more like it." Grandma Zhang was happy and patted Fu Wenwen's hand. "My old man said I've met a benefactor, and I agree. You are a beautiful and kind-hearted girl! You will be rewarded!"
"Thank you for the compliment, Grandma." Fu Wenwen smiled.
"Girl, my old man wants to meet you. I was wondering if you..." Grandma Zhang looked at Fu Wenwen hesitantly. "It's okay if you can't, it's just that my old man... he wants to thank you personally."
"Of course, I can!" Fu Wenwen smiled.
Grandma Zhang's smile deepened. "Thank you, girl! Then tomorrow... I'll bring my old man to see you tomorrow."
"Okay!" Fu Wenwen nodded.
"Then you carry on, I'll be going now." Grandma Zhang said happily, waved goodbye to Fu Wenwen, and left with a cheerful step.
Fu Wenwen looked at the eggs in the basin, a pleased smile on her lips.
"Mom..." Lin An called out.
"What is it?" Fu Wenwen walked into the house and saw him standing at the bedroom door, rubbing his eyes, looking like he had just woken up.
"Where are the kittens?" Lin An looked around and couldn't see the cats, so he said urgently, "I don't see them."
Fu Wenwen blinked and looked around the house. Indeed, there was no sign of Xiao Xue or Xiao Hei. Fu Wenwen called out, "Xiao Hei, Xiao Xue?"
"Meow~" Xiao Xue's voice came from the second floor. Fu Wenwen carried Lin An upstairs and saw Xiao Xue and Xiao Hei lounging lazily on the small platform on the second floor, basking in the sun. Three little kittens were pouncing on Xiao Hei, playfully roughhousing...
"It seems they've adapted well!" Fu Wenwen said with a smile to Lin An.
Lin An nodded, walked over to Xiao Xue and Xiao Hei, and sat down. The kittens, as if discovering big toys, pounced on Lin An.
Lin An looked below, then suddenly turned back to Fu Wenwen and whispered, pointing to the narrow alley beside the yard, "Mom, there's a bad uncle peeking at us there..."