Chapter 109 Chapter 109 "This dried shrimp looks good...

"This dried shrimp looks good, the color is just right." She had never bought this before, but now that she saw it and the price was acceptable, she bought two pounds for her child to try.

Xia Pingzhi directly held the bag and showed it to Xia Li. Xia Li had never eaten this thing before, so she took one out to taste it and asked how much it cost.

"It's only about twenty yuan. How does it taste?" She had tasted some of the small pieces cut by the boss before, and now she wanted to see what Xia Li thought of it.

Charlie chewed the half in her mouth and nodded. "It tastes good, but it's not cheap. Aunt, you're really willing to spend money on it." After that, she stuffed the other half into her son's mouth.

"Try the dried shrimps that my aunt bought for us."

Jiang Cub didn't dislike his mother at all. He chewed the delicious food in his mouth and nodded sweetly. Because there was something inside, he mumbled, "Mom, it's delicious!"

Charlie took the bag, so she immediately gave her son another one and stuffed it into his hand. "If it's delicious, let's have another one! Mommy will put the rest away for now, and we'll eat them when we get home."

After saying that, Charlie tied up the bag and put it in the small cart she brought with her.

This small cart is actually quite safe. It only has two small wheels on one side, and the entire body is made of very strong rainproof material. It is tall and long. After putting the things in it, just tie the elastic belt at the opening, and you don’t have to worry about the things inside being taken away.

Pulling the cart with one hand and holding the child with the other, she continued to follow her aunt's footsteps. "Aunt, this thing won't break, will it? It's winter and it's going to rain, so it's going to be damp." Xia Li was a little worried. Often, such worries were inevitable. The weather here was not like back home, with hot and dry summers and cold and dry winters. It was common for things left at home to get damp.

Xia Pingzhi waved her hand. "It's okay. Just tie the bag tightly and it will last for a long time. Besides, it's just a snack. Let alone a child, if you start eating it, you'll probably finish it in two or three days."

Charlie chuckled when she heard that, her aunt also knew her quite well.

There was also a butcher's stall, crowded with people. When Charlie saw her aunt squeeze past, she was puzzled because she had seen her family buy a lot of meat a few days ago, so why was she going to the butcher's stall again?

She stood there with her child, waiting for her aunt to emerge from the crowd. Xia Pingzhi, carrying nothing in her hands, walked back and forth easily. She returned to the two of them, a beaming smile on her face, as if she had gotten a great deal. She said happily to her niece, "Luckily, I bought the meat early. You see, it's a dime and a half more expensive now. Just look, the price will probably be even different tomorrow and the day after tomorrow."

Xia Li hadn't prepared any New Year's goods, so she curiously asked her aunt, "Aunt, will the price go up again?"

My aunt nodded proudly. "Just look at it. Everyone has to buy meat now. What if we don't? Even if we don't eat it during the New Year, the guests will have to eat it too. Everyone has to buy it. It's not okay not to buy it. So it all depends on who sells the pork."

Xia Li understood that this time before the New Year is purely a seller's market.

"Aunt, do you want to buy some more potatoes and carrots?" Xia Li saw the vendor selling these and remembered that she saw there were not many of these left in the kitchen this morning.

Xia Pingzhi hummed, and then the three of them walked over. As they walked, she said, "Let's see how the carrots are. If they're good, buy some. But forget about the potatoes. Who eats potatoes during the New Year? What we have at home will do."

Xia Li thought so too. Who would serve a plate of shredded potatoes on the Chinese New Year? Although this dish was delicious and I loved it, it was not considered presentable during the Chinese New Year.

Xia Pingzhi walked to the front of the stall, picked up the carrots in front of her, looked at them, and asked the owner, "Boss, how much are these carrots per pound?"

"Thirty-five cents."

When Xia Pingzhi heard the price, she immediately put down the carrot in her hand and left without even looking at it.

Xia Li followed behind skillfully. After walking two steps, Xia Pingzhi stopped to wait for the two of them, complaining, "The things there are too expensive. Usually, I only get 20 cents a pound of carrots, but now they're 35 cents. Even the best vegetables can't be priced this high. Let's not buy any. Let's take a look ahead. If it doesn't work, we can go to the supermarket."

Both mother and son nodded, and whatever their aunt/great-aunt said was what they did.

Later, the three of them saw people selling cucumbers and tomatoes. These summer vegetables were selling very well during the Lunar New Year. Guangcheng had no shortage of wealthy people, so even if these out-of-season vegetables were expensive, people wouldn't hesitate to buy them.

Xia Pingzhi looked at the cucumbers at 1.5 yuan per pound and the tomatoes at 1.2 yuan per pound. She thought for a moment and decided to buy some. Winter was a good time to eat something refreshing. Besides, cucumbers, when served cold, were a delicious and refreshing dish.

From this perspective, it’s not too bad.

So, Xia Pingzhi picked a few pounds of both cucumbers and tomatoes, weighed them and calculated the price to be about ten yuan.

Xia Pingzhi weighed the two bags, feeling a little distressed. How much did this stuff sell for in the summer? At today's prices, how much could she possibly get? How could the vegetable farmers be so smart, growing vegetables in the summer and selling them in the winter?

When I think about the fact that my children love to eat it and it can be used to entertain guests, I feel that I haven’t lost out too much.

Later, she saw that she had bought some spices for stewing meat, and she also asked someone to weigh out dried hawthorn slices for one dollar. This is her secret to making stewed meat tender, and it was her neighbor, Grandma Zhong, who told her.

The three of them strolled from a little before eight in the morning until around ten. Xia Li felt like she was a bit exhausted, not to mention the little guy Jiang Zai. But when she asked the child, she was wrong. He was still quite energetic and didn't feel tired at all.

Xia Pingzhi felt like she hadn't bought everything yet, but she couldn't remember what she'd bought at the moment, so she told them to go home. They still had time, so if things didn't work out, she or Xia Li could go out and buy more in the afternoon. If that didn't work out, then they could do it tomorrow.

On the way, she asked what the people there were planning for the New Year. Then, she carefully glanced at Jiang Zai, who was eating candied haws to Xia Li's right, and added cautiously, "The children can't go back with us. And you, too."

The voice was very soft, and it was just a whisper, after all, there was a child next to them.

Charlie looked at her aunt and shook her head, "Don't worry, it won't happen."

Xia Pingzhi nodded with satisfaction. Afterwards, she asked about Jiang Dong's situation a little embarrassedly, "Is he going back?"

"Let's go back. I'm not too sure. He travels back and forth between these two places quite frequently," said Xia Li.

Jiang Zai didn't understand anything and looked up curiously, "Mom, what are you and Auntie talking about? I don't understand."

He shook the hand that his mother was holding, signaling her to pay attention to him.

Naturally, Charlie exchanged a helpless look with her aunt.

But this person couldn't stand the nagging. Just as he arrived at the entrance of the alley in front of his home, he saw a figure standing there, who looked very familiar.

Jiangzai quickly broke free from his mother's hand and ran over, shouting excitedly, "Dad!"

The little man was very excited.

Jiang Dong put down what he was holding, then bent down and caught the child as he rushed over. He couldn't help but weigh the child twice in his arms, then kissed him with his forehead.

Afterwards, Jiang Dong looked at Xia Li and Xia Pingzhi who were slowly walking towards him.

Xia Pingzhi hadn't met Jiang Dong many times, so naturally she wasn't familiar with him. She just smiled faintly and called out, "Come here!"

Jiang Dong didn't dare to be rude to Xia Li's aunt. He quickly put the child on the ground and greeted her: "Yes, I came to see the child today. Are you going to buy New Year's goods?" After that, he walked over quickly to help carry things.

Xia Li quickly said no, and refused to let him come to help. It wasn't that she was being polite, but she saw that Jiang Dong seemed to have brought something with him. In addition to what he was holding, there were also some things on the ground.

Jiang Dong understood Xia Li's intentions immediately after she gave him a look. He glanced at Xia Pingzhi and said hesitantly, "It's Chinese New Year now, right? I brought some things for the kids. How about I leave them at the door first?"

He was truly hesitant when he said this, mainly because, even though they had already met in public, he knew that his elders didn't like him. For someone they didn't like, they probably didn't want him to show up at their door often, so Jiang Dong was temporarily adopting a concession strategy, taking it slow, wanting people to get used to his presence without annoying them.

One of the points is that you cannot cross other people's boundaries. It's okay for people to come over, but it's definitely not okay to wait at the door and show off. The entrance of the alley is suitable, just find a place and wait.

Xia Li said "OK", so Jiang Dong touched his son's head, then went over and took the things he brought and put them down first.

Jiang Zai followed behind, and Xia Li didn't call him. He just let him follow if he wanted to.

Jiang Zai didn't cry or shout, but happily jumped and skipped behind his father. When Xia Pingzhi saw that the father and son had walked a little further away, she said to her niece, "I'll go back later. You can take the child and talk to them for a while."

She is not some unkind old lady.

Xia Li, however, was considerate of her aunt's emotions. Knowing that she must be feeling mixed emotions, she said coquettishly, "What's there to talk about? We don't work or live together. It's just like what they say on TV, we have nothing in common anymore. Besides, didn't you hear them say they were coming to see the kids?"

Xia Pingzhi didn't care. She glanced at her niece and said, "Alright, even if I believe what you say, I don't believe him. He's only here to see the child, right? Auntie isn't that stingy. He's brought gifts with him. Even if it's for the sake of these gifts, what else can I say? He's probably here to talk about the New Year. You guys can chat and buy something for his mother to take back. After all, she's the child's grandmother, right?"

Charlie felt that her aunt was the most considerate person in the world. She hugged her aunt's arms tightly and put her cheek against them. "Aunt, you are so kind!"

After a while, Jiang Dong came over with his little follower and helped take back the things they had bought that morning. After that, Xia Li took Jiang Zai and found a place outside to talk with him.

Jiang Dong really wanted to talk about the Lunar New Year. He planned to take the bus back tomorrow and come back on the fifth day after the Lunar New Year. He knew Xia Li and the child wouldn't be able to go back this year. Not only would Xia Li be fine, but he also didn't want his son to be burdened by the journey. Besides, there were a lot of things to do at home during the Lunar New Year holiday, and the weather was cold. Not only would the child be left unattended, but they'd also have to endure the cold. This place was much better.

So, he came over in advance to tell the child's mother and brought some clothes and food with him, as if to give them New Year's gifts.

Who knew that when he came, there was no one at home. He guessed that they might have gone out to buy New Year's goods.