The crisp sound of bicycle bells rang all the way out of the wholesale market.
Zhou Qiqi first went to the state-run restaurant.
The glistening braised pork and vibrant stir-fried vegetables in the glass display case were incredibly tempting. She deftly pulled out her money and packed two lunchboxes, carefully hanging them on the handlebars of her bicycle, and headed straight for Li Ping's stall at the wholesale market.
It was lunchtime, and there weren't many people at the stall.
Li Ping and Zhao Damei were eating around a small square table. There were five dishes on the table, a mix of meat and vegetables, which looked quite plentiful.
Li Ping, with her sharp eyes, spotted Zhou Qiqi coming in. She put down her chopsticks, patted her slightly protruding belly, and laughed.
"Oh my savior! You've finally arrived! Quick, bring it to the table! Guoqiang's gone crazy again today, he brought over three dishes at once. He's so busy at the factory that he hasn't had a single bite, he just piled them all on us! Da Mei and I are so worried looking at this table full of food!"
Zhao Damei, standing next to her, blushed and buried her head in her rice, not saying a word.
Li Ping's mother, carrying a bowl, had just come out from behind when she saw this and greeted them with a smile:
"Qiqi's here? Perfect timing! Haven't eaten yet? Sit down, I'll get you some rice!"
He turned to leave as he spoke.
Zhou Qiqi quickly picked up the lunchbox in her hand: "Wait, Auntie, I also brought some vegetables!"
"Why bring anything!"
Li Ping forcefully pushed her onto the bench.
"Save those two dishes for this afternoon! Look at this place, if we don't help eat, they'll all end up in the slop bucket! Guoqiang is treating Da Mei like a pig!"
As she spoke, she deliberately winked at Zhao Damei.
Zhao Damei blushed even more and muttered softly, "Sister Ping... you shouldn't have accepted it..."
"Hey! I was so busy just now, he dropped everything and left, I couldn't even catch up with him!"
Li Ping picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into her mouth.
"Alright, as long as someone's eating, that's fine. Qiqi, hurry up and pick up your chopsticks. This braised fish is another of Guoqiang's specialties. Don't you love fish the most? Eat up! Otherwise, it'll get cold and fishy!"
Zhou Qiqi smiled, picked up her chopsticks, and didn't stand on ceremony.
At the dinner table, Li Ping's mouth never stopped. One moment she was complaining that Zhang Guoqiang was serving her too much food and that she was getting fat, and the next she was praising how delicious the food was.
Zhao Damei just ate in silence, only occasionally blushing and scolding Li Ping when Li Ping teased her too much.
Zhao Damei ate quickly, and was the first to put down her bowl and get up to go to the back of the stall.
A moment later, they brought out a square, light-colored wooden picture frame with smooth edges and simple mortise and tenon joints at the four corners. It looked quite decent.
"Sister Qiqi, here you go, it's all done."
This is the "serious business" that Zhou Qiqi was talking about.
Zhuo Guangming's birthday is tomorrow, and Zhouzhou painted a picture as a gift. Zhou Qiqi wanted it to be more formal, so she asked her father-in-law, Zhao Damei, to make a frame for it.
Zhao Damei handed the picture frame to Zhou Qiqi, a little embarrassed.
“My father-in-law said the wood you provided is good, but his craftsmanship is rough, so he told you not to complain.”
Zhou Qiqi took it and examined it carefully.
The frame size was just right for Zhouzhou's whimsical painting, and the simple wood color made the colors in the painting even brighter.
Like paintings, they represent the most primitive and childlike beauty.
"This is rough? It's very well done! Da Mei, please thank your father-in-law for me, I'll thank him again later!"
She stroked the smooth edge of the wooden frame with satisfaction.
After taking the picture frame, Zhou Qiqi chatted with Li Ping and Zhao Damei for a few more minutes before saying goodbye and leaving.
She hopped on her bike, with a bag of groceries and a picture frame hanging on the handlebars, and headed to the newly opened vegetable market in the city.
Before we even got close, we could hear a lot of noise.
The new vegetable market has a good location and neat stalls. Although the morning rush hour has passed, there are still quite a few people buying vegetables and cooking at noon.
Zhou Qiqi pushed her cart and squeezed in, finally finding Deng Cuixiang's stall in a spot further inside.
There were two or three people picking through the pickles in front of the stall.
Deng Cuixiang was so busy that sweat beaded on her forehead as she deftly sold, collected money, and gave change.
After the group dispersed, she wiped the sweat from her brow, saw Zhou Qiqi, and her eyes lit up: "Qiqi? What brings you here?"
"Just passing by and stopping by to see you."
Zhou Qiqi propped up her bicycle and looked around. "There are quite a lot of people here."
"What's so special about this!"
Deng Cuixiang grabbed the towel around her neck and wiped her sweat again.
"It was incredibly crowded early in the morning! I couldn't possibly handle it all by myself."
As she spoke, she bent down and pulled out a hard, dry steamed bun and a jar of pickles from under the stall.
Zhou Qiqi frowned: "You're going to eat this? That won't do!"
She quickly took the lunchbox hanging on the handlebars.
"Here you go, I just bought it, it's still warm, eat it quickly! I'll watch the stall for you."
When Deng Cuixiang saw the glistening braised pork and vibrant green vegetables in the lunchbox, her mouth watered, but she declined.
"Oh, I'll just have the steamed bun. You can keep it for yourself..."
"Just eat it!"
Without a word, Zhou Qiqi shoved the lunchbox into her hand, and then handed her the lunchbox containing the rice as well.
"Hurry up, while it's hot! You work so hard to earn money, and it all goes to support the kids. You're just eating steamed buns and pickled vegetables. What's the point? If you ruin your health, will the kids appreciate you? The kids have their own paths to follow. You need to take care of yourself!"
Deng Cuixiang set up a stall because of her two sons, especially her eldest son Xianghai, who is very talented and attends expensive math classes.
Holding the warm lunchbox, Deng Cuixiang looked at the substantial meat and vegetables inside, and her eyes welled up with tears.
She stopped refusing, squatted down against the wall behind the stall, opened her lunchbox, and began to eat heartily.
"Mmm...it smells so good...much better than pickled vegetables..."
She spoke indistinctly, eating quickly and hurriedly.
"Now you know how delicious it is, right?"
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com