Chapter 3 Whoever buys it owns it.

The next morning.

Cheng Cheng woke up at six o'clock. The original owner of this body had a Plum Blossom brand watch. She glanced at her wrist and saw that it was only six o'clock.

She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, lying in bed for a while before getting up.

As soon as she made a move, her baby Xiaoxiao woke up and stared at her with sleepy eyes.

"Sleep well, baby~"

Cheng Cheng gently patted her back, coaxing her to sleep a little longer.

Once Xiaoxiao was fast asleep, she quietly got up and went out.

There was still a small half-bag of millet in the cupboard. Millet porridge is nourishing, so she got up to cook some.

First, I checked the stove, replaced the honeycomb briquettes, and then simmered the golden millet in an earthenware pot on the stove until it was slowly cooked through.

After washing up, she searched for the place where she remembered hiding the money and found a small cloth bag. She poured it onto the table, revealing a stack of banknotes.

Cheng Cheng counted the money, and then added the grain coupons and small denomination bills she found in the drawer, totaling 328.62 yuan in savings.

Logically speaking, they should be living a very wealthy life. The original owner of this body also had a job at the library and received a salary every month. In addition, Zhou Yue would send back his salary and subsidies at the beginning of each month.

Cheng Cheng sat blankly in the chair, covering her forehead. She had created a huge mess while sorting through her memories, and she was feeling terrible.

"Mommy~"

Xiao Lingxiao woke up at some point, got out of bed, and quietly walked to Cheng Cheng's side.

Cheng Cheng snapped out of her daze and saw Xiao Xiao standing next to her, looking like she wanted to get closer but didn't dare. She immediately suppressed her bad mood.

A bright, full smile spread across her face as she reached out and pulled the little one into her arms, placing him on her lap.

She gently kissed the little one's forehead. "Little Xiao, did you sleep well last night?"

The little one looked at his mother with bright, sparkling eyes, his expression filled with utter disbelief!

Her face flushed with shyness, and she buried her head in Cheng Cheng's arms.

Mom kissed her!

Mom still calls her Xiaoxiao Baby, and Xiaolingxiao is overjoyed. Mom hasn't changed back yet!

She wasn't dreaming last night. Little Lingxiao hugged Cheng Cheng tightly, holding her just right. She liked it when her mother called her "Little Xiao Baby"!

The little one lifted his head from his mother's arms and met her smiling eyes, then shyly buried himself back in her arms.

Cheng Cheng smiled, rubbed the little one's head, and picked her up to take her to bed.

I dressed the little one in her clothes and shoes, then carried her outside.

"Can you brush your teeth by yourself?"

Xiao Lingxiao nodded.

Cheng Cheng squeezed out the toothpaste, put the toothbrush in the little one's hand, and watched her brush her teeth.

Little Lingxiao wasn't paying much attention while brushing his teeth. He would glance at his mother, then look down at the floor, and after a few seconds, he would look up at his mother again.

After brushing her teeth, Cheng Cheng soaked a cloth, wrung it out, and wiped the little guy's face.

Voices came from the two neighboring families. The one on the left was Sister Ma's family. Sister Ma worked at the Women's Federation, and both of her family members were employed. Sister Ma's voice was loud and clear as she called her son, Shitou, to get up and eat breakfast, warning him that if he stayed in bed any longer, he would get a spanking!

On the right is the Zhuang family. The sound seems to be coming from the kitchen; the old lady Zhuang and her daughter-in-law are arguing.

One person accused their daughter-in-law of putting too much oil in the food and scolded her for being wasteful, while the other person scolded her for eating it this way and said it was none of their business, since she paid for all the oil and salt in the house and had money to back her up!

Cheng Cheng listened intently for a while, and then saw that Xiao Xiao was following her example, quietly pricking up her ears and looking towards the right wall.

I couldn't resist running my index finger along her little nose and then leading her inside.

The millet porridge in the earthenware pot had simmered until it was soft and tender. Cheng Cheng took two towels as padding and placed the pot on the table.

I filled an aluminum kettle with water and put it on the stove to boil.

The millet porridge was cooked until soft, tender, and sweet. Cheng Cheng ladled out two bowls and placed them on the table, steaming hot.

Seeing the little guy staring intently and swallowing, she suppressed a laugh and said, "It's hot, let it cool down in a bit."

She held the spoon and stirred Xiaoxiao's bowl of millet porridge to cool it down quickly.

"Okay, okay." She pushed the bowl in front of the little one, reminding him, "Blow on it before you eat, be careful not to burn your tongue!"

Xiao Lingxiao nodded, eagerly took the spoon, scooped up a spoonful of millet porridge, and blew on it with his cheeks puffed out.

They showed utmost reverence for the food, which made Cheng Cheng's smile gradually widen.

After breakfast, she took Xiaoxiao's hand and went out to buy groceries.

After locking the gate, I turned around and bumped into Luo Xiaojuan, the wife of the farmer next door, who was carrying a small handbag as she came out.

Cheng Cheng, holding the little one's hand, gave her a friendly smile.

The other person was stunned for a moment, then smiled back at them.

He then mounted his bicycle and walked away with a dashing air.

Looking at the two braids fluttering in the wind and the old-fashioned bicycle that was a symbol of this era, Cheng Cheng was filled with endless emotions.

She truly became the village beauty Cheng Cheng, and the little guy's strength came through her hands.

Little Lingxiao shook his mother's hand, looked up at her with his big eyes full of confusion, "Why aren't you leaving?"

Cheng Cheng snapped out of her daze and led her to the market.

Although free trade was abolished during this period, in addition to supply and marketing cooperatives and state-run department stores, there were still vegetable markets in the cities.

Otherwise, if city dwellers don't farm or grow vegetables, where will they buy them?

However, the vegetable market was under the control of the state-owned collective, and each area had its own vegetable market. She remembered that her eldest sister's mother-in-law sold vegetables in the vegetable market in the north.

The produce in the market is all purchased from the villages by the supply and marketing cooperative's branches, then distributed uniformly, and sold by designated personnel using "vegetable coupons" and "meat coupons."

Cheng Cheng took all the vegetable and meat coupons from her family with her when she went out this time.

She lives in a really good location, practically in the city center, making it convenient to go to any of the local markets, and it's not far at all.

Cheng Cheng couldn't help but sigh inwardly. The Zhou family's sincerity and care were obvious, and what they gave were all real benefits, without any pretense.

Take the house I'm living in now, for example. It was chosen for me by the Zhou family. It's located in the city center, and it's near a residential compound for government employees, making life convenient and safe.

Moreover, the house was registered under the original owner's name as a betrothal gift, and the original owner has been living here ever since returning from the capital.

The Zhou family also arranged a job for her as a librarian. The job was easy and paid, and she only had to work five days a week. The original owner of this body was often late or left early.

The job was relatively simple, involving organizing books, and most of the time there was nothing to do. This was exactly the life Cheng Cheng had always dreamed of.

Moreover, in this era, it was considered an extremely good life. Cheng Cheng really couldn't understand why the original owner of this body would be so foolish as to seek trouble for herself.

This trouble is like a time bomb in her peaceful life, ready to destroy her tranquility at any moment.

Cheng Cheng sighed almost imperceptibly, then looked down and asked the little one, "Can Xiao Xiao still walk?"

Little Lingxiao raised his head, a thin layer of sweat on his face.

Cheng Cheng took out a handkerchief from her pocket, wiped the sweat from the little one's face, and bent down to pick her up.

"Mommy will carry you now, but when we come back, Xiaoxiao will have to walk home by himself."

Little Lingxiao looked at his mother nodding, a shy smile appearing on his face. He leaned on his mother's shoulder and hugged Cheng Cheng's neck.

It's not far to the market, it takes about ten minutes. Cheng Cheng went to the market in the north area. Because there is a meat processing plant in the north area, the market usually has more meat than other markets.

Her eldest sister's family lived in the residential area near the meat processing plant. Her eldest sister's father-in-law seemed to be a manager at the meat processing plant, her brother-in-law worked in an office, and her eldest sister was also an employee at the meat processing plant.

Thinking of her older sister, Cheng Cheng couldn't help but sigh again, as if she had used up all the anger she had in her life in the past two days.

The original owner rarely went to the market before; her older sister usually brought vegetables over every few days. Last time, the original owner had a big fight with her older sister, which hurt her feelings.

It's been almost a month since I last visited the original owner of this body and my little niece.

I wonder if I'll run into her older sister's mother-in-law at the market?

Cheng Cheng carried the little one and pushed into the crowd. The vegetable market was bustling with noise and people were packed together. There were so many people coming to buy vegetables!

This was the first time she had ever experienced such a scene, and she was completely dumbfounded!

While she was still in a daze, she and her baby Xiaoxiao were pushed aside.

A burly middle-aged woman stood in the original spot, shouting loudly, "Brother Wang, give me two jin of pork belly, more fat than lean!"

Cheng Cheng was stunned for a few seconds before quickly reacting, and saw that the pork belly she had her eye on was chopped off in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, I couldn't care less about being reserved or polite. Once inside the market, I realized that this place required grabbing and shouting loudly. If I was quiet, I'd just have to wait to pick up rotten vegetable leaves.

That's not right either; we might not even be able to get rotten vegetable leaves!

Cheng Cheng hugged the little one tightly and used all her strength to squeeze next to the middle-aged woman, without questioning why the woman had pushed her aside.

Since it was pointless to argue, he quickly opened his mouth and said loudly, "Uncle Wang, I'll take all the rest of the pork belly!"

The shout was loud enough that the middle-aged woman turned around and glanced at her. The middle-aged man named Wang Er responded and skillfully weighed the meat.

The middle-aged man who arrived late had a face full of regret. Cheng Cheng saw this and quickly handed him the money and the meat ticket, glad that she had called out in time!

She bought the rest of the pork belly; the stall had sold out of meat, leaving only some offal.

Cheng Cheng found the pig offal too difficult to handle, so she carried the little one and the pork belly and hurried to the next stall.

"Xiaoxiao, in a moment, cover your ears and hug your mother tightly."

Cheng Cheng whispered some instructions to the little guy, and then she seemed like a different person. When she saw that there were still ribs on a meat stall, she quickly squeezed over.

Holding Xiaoxiao in her left arm and carrying a piece of pork belly in her right, she pushed her way through the crowd and squeezed to the very front.

They have completely embodied the opposite of the saying "Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you."

"Uncle, I'll take all these ribs! Could you please weigh them for me?"

Someone behind them complained, and seeing that it was a young, unfamiliar girl, they spoke up directly: "Young lady, if you buy all the ribs by yourself, what are the rest of us supposed to buy?"

As soon as someone spoke up, others immediately chimed in: "Exactly! Exactly! How can you do that!"

Cheng Cheng smiled broadly, "I'm so sorry everyone, my child is weak, look how thin he is, his face is all pale. I just wanted to eat something to help him get some nutrition. I'm so sorry everyone! Please forgive me!"

Cheng Cheng was very polite, saying sorry but not giving in at all, and quickly handed over the money and meat tickets.

I got three and a half pounds of pork ribs!

Carrying ribs and pork belly, and holding her baby Xiaoxiao, she squeezed through the crowd.

She didn't feel apologetic at all, just like when the older woman pushed her aside and snatched her pork belly. In the market, the rule is that the first to act wins.

She has money and tickets; whoever buys them gets to keep them!

Besides, the market is open every day. If we miss a meal of meat today, we can buy more tomorrow. So Cheng Cheng didn't feel guilty at all. Carrying the meat, she took the little guy and headed to the next stall.

At the west corner, at a stall selling braised food, Liu Xiulian wondered if she was seeing things. She thought she saw Xiaoping's sister at the market.

He disappeared into the crowd in a flash. Liu Xiulian tried to recognize him again, but after searching for a long time, she still couldn't find him.

A note from the author:

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Tasks completed for today. See you tomorrow night at 9 PM!