When she had collected several items, she tucked the clothes and shoes under her armpits and confidently squeezed out of the crowd.

People thought she was chasing after someone to deliver clothes.

She squeezed through the crowd, ran back to the Zhang family home, wrapped a cotton-padded jacket, two pairs of cotton-padded trousers, and four pairs of shoes in a cloth, stuffed them into the closet, and locked it with a padlock.

At noon, Landlord Wang set up four tables in the courtyard, two for men and two for women, to invite the yamen runners and neighbors who had helped him that day to eat.

The landlord, Wang, was quite hospitable, placing six large platters of hearty dishes on each table, steaming hot, and providing plenty of steamed buns.

Yin Jin'an put on a mask and told Jiu Tian to put on a mask as well.

"Come on, let's go out and take a look." Yin Jin'an let Jiu Tian ride on her shoulders and carried him downstairs.

Jiutian found it particularly interesting: "Second Uncle, are we going to be heroes?"

"Yes, let's go, let's go on an incognito trip with Second Master."

The two, one big and one small, went downstairs. Ma Chenyang wanted to follow, but Yin Jin'an refused.

The two went outside, where a long queue still stretched out for supplies, with people waiting anxiously.

The woman with two children was still waiting outside. All three of them had new cotton-padded clothes, but they didn't dare to sit anywhere for fear of getting their new clothes dirty.

As Yin Jin'an passed by the three of them, she heard the girl, who looked about five years old, say in a tearful voice, "Mommy, I'm hungry."

The woman said, "Little girl, wait a little longer, we'll leave once we get the shoes."

"But we've been waiting all afternoon."

"Let's wait a little longer..."

"Mommy, I'm hungry, boohoo," the little girl cried.

Jiutian patted Yin Jin'an on the shoulder: "Second Uncle, shall we send them some food?"

“They have already received food and clothing; there are too many poor people to give them all our sympathy.”

He told Jiutian that he could help them get their shoes and tell them to go home early.

Having carried the burden for nine days, he stood beside the woman. The woman nervously pulled her two children behind her back and asked anxiously, "What...what do you want to do?"

"Are you from this county?"

"no."

"It's under Magistrate Wang's jurisdiction. When did it arrive?"

"Morning."

What else do you need?

"The child's two pairs of shoes."

Yin Jin'an, carrying Jiutian on his back, said to the woman, "Come here, I'll have someone find you some shoes."

He said to Ma Chenyang, who was waiting by the door, "Go, get their shoes and let them go."

Ma Chenyang said "Okay" and went over to tell Da Bao that he would help the two children get their shoes.

Da Bao asked the woman her name, and she gave him her name. Da Bao said, "Your clothes, shoes, and food have already been taken. You cannot take them again."

The woman said urgently, "No, I didn't take their shoes. Look, they're still barefoot!"

The two children weren't barefoot, but they were wearing cloth shoes with several holes and patches, and their socks were old cloth of indeterminate color.

Da Bao frowned and said, "Sister-in-law, look, I have a record here. You've already taken your clothes and shoes."

The woman couldn't help but cry out in distress, "I really didn't take it. I set off with my two children in the middle of the night, and when we got here it was still dark. I couldn't possibly lie. Look how cold they are."

Da Bao said with difficulty, "Sister-in-law, you came so early, why didn't you say anything if you didn't get it? It's been a whole afternoon, how can we explain it now? Although we are making a donation, we know exactly what we need and what we've given you."

The woman was sobbing uncontrollably: "I really didn't take it... The woman in the red coat helped us get it. The child's clothes were a bit small, so I asked her to change, but she went to get clothes for someone else first. We still haven't received the shoes..."

Da Bao hesitated and said, "Then wait a moment, I'll go and report to the master."

Yin Jin'an and Jiu Tian watched from behind. Jiu Tian said, "Second Uncle, that woman wasn't lying. I saw the mother and her two children from the window a long time ago."

Yin Jin'an whispered a few words to Ma Chenyang, and Ma Chenyang called out to Da Bao: "Da Bao, my master said to get them a new set. You can re-register, and the money will be under our master's name."

Da Bao thought to himself, "Isn't your master just a richly dressed young master and a few days old? Don't even mention one set, he could have ten sets."

He and Ma Chenyang immediately picked out another set of clothes for the woman and her family of four.

He specially chose clothes for the two children that were a year older than them. After they were chosen, Ma Chenyang carefully tied them up with rope and gave them a hot steamed bun wrapped in lotus leaves.

The woman was so excited that she wanted to kneel down.

Ma Chenyang said, "Hey, Auntie, please don't kneel down to me. My master is the Brocade-Clad Young Master and the Nine Heavens Little Master. This extra set for you was also given to you by my master. If you want to express your gratitude, then wish my master a long and healthy life."

The woman looked up at the sky and kowtowed, praying that the heavens would bless the young man in brocade robes and the little Taoist priest from the Nine Heavens with long lives.

Jiutian smiled, revealing eight bright white teeth.

Suddenly an old man hurried over and excitedly rattled off a string of words.

Da Bao said, "Don't rush, tell me slowly."

The old man said, "I only got a cotton-padded coat and cotton-padded shoes. Everyone else got cotton-padded trousers, but I didn't."

"Sir, who brought this to you?"

“The woman in the red coat, look, she’s right here.” He pointed to a spot.

Da Bao's face fell; it was another woman in a red coat.