Chapter 147 The neighborhood committee is incompetent; the courtyard is deserted in the early morning…
People in the tenement courtyard wake up early in the morning. Just as dawn breaks, the sounds of doors opening and closing, adults talking, and children whimpering as they are woken up can be heard...
Zhao Sulan knocked on the door and called for Mingxi to get up. She heard the voice and groggily opened her eyes.
Oh no, it's time to get up again! She felt like she had just fallen asleep!
Mingxi lingered in bed for a long time, finally mustering the courage to get up. But when she reached out and felt the cold outside the covers, she immediately pulled back in. This time, she hid her head completely under the covers, covering herself entirely, not even a single hair was exposed.
The bed was warm and cozy, and the steam almost made Mingxi close her eyes and fall asleep again. It was Zhao Sulan outside who, seeing that Mingxi hadn't come out for a while, knocked on the door again and finally woke her up.
Mingxi has woken up, but her soul has not.
She wore slippers, closed her eyes, and floated out like a ghost, picked up a washbasin, and continued to float away.
She floated to the door and opened it. A gust of cold wind blew in, and Mingxi shivered, instantly waking up.
She wrapped her cotton-padded coat tighter around herself, grimaced, and strode out to the yard to fetch water.
By the pool, Aunt He, who was filling her cup with water, was complaining: "Ugh, what kind of weather is this? It's already this cold in early December. What will it be like in the coldest days of winter? People will freeze to death!"
Aunt Ma: "That's not the case. I heard on the radio last night that this temperature drop is temporary. It'll only be cold for a couple of days, and the temperature will rise again the day after tomorrow."
"Even if it recovers, it won't recover much."
Aunt He muttered something to herself, then looked at Aunt Ma and said, "Oh, right, Old Ma, I remember you said you have a relative on your mother's side who raises rabbits. I want to buy two rabbits. Could you help me ask around?"
Aunt Ma: "What's wrong with that? Are you in a hurry? If you are, I'll go over and ask for you today. If you're not in a hurry, just wait for me to have some free time in the next couple of days and I'll go make a trip there."
Aunt He quickly waved her hand: "No rush, no rush."
She smiled and said, "It's cold, and my husband Zheng has bad knees, so I wanted to make him a pair of knee braces."
Aunt Ma: "Okay, I'll ask around for you when I have some free time in the next couple of days."
"Hey, well," Aunt He said, "Old Ma, if you don't have time, just tell me your relative's address, and I'll go by myself. I'll go directly there, saving you the trouble of making a trip."
Aunt Ma thought for a moment and said, "That works too, his house is located in..."
After Aunt Ma finished speaking, Mingxi, who had been eavesdropping, chimed in: "Aunt He, when are you going? Can you take me with you?"
Aunt He glanced at Mingxi: "Why did you buy a rabbit? To eat it?"
“Oh dear, what are you saying? I also want to get a pair of knee pads for my mom, and if possible, I'd like to get a rabbit fur scarf for both of us.”
In fact, Mingxi also wanted to arrange a rabbit fur glove for both her and Zhao Sulan.
She's wearing a woolen one now, which isn't windproof, and her hands get really cold when she rides her bike to and from get off work!
When Aunt Ma and Aunt He heard Mingxi's words, they gave Mingxi an approving look.
Zhao Sulan is a daughter who has truly lived up to expectations.
Look at Mingxi, she thinks about her mother all the time. None of those brats in her family are as considerate as Mingxi.
After complaining about her mischievous son, Aunt He looked up at Mingxi and asked curiously, "Do you know how to handle a brat?"
The sellers of rabbits definitely won't help you clean the pelts. You have to clean and process them yourself, and even tan them yourself, otherwise the rabbit pelts will be hard when dried and can't be used to make scarves.
Mingxi was dumbfounded when Aunt He asked her that question.
Do I have to tidy it up myself after buying it?
She looked at Aunt He for help: "Aunt He, you know how to tidy up, right? Could you please help me tidy up?"
Aunt He didn't hesitate at all: "Sure!"
Mingxi: "I'm not very good at handicrafts, so could you make some knee pads for me while you're at it? I'll give you two yuan for each pair of knee pads, and the same price for a scarf. Is that alright?"
A pair of knee pads costs two yuan, plus two scarves, that's six yuan.
That's quite a lot.
Aunt He's eyes lit up instantly.
It's been cold lately, so people don't like to go out. Business at the small park stalls isn't as good as before, and she was just worrying about it when Mingxi came to give her money.
She was so excited that she immediately nodded and agreed, "Okay! I'll take this job."
Mingxi chuckled twice, then pressed her advantage: "Aunt He, do you know how to make gloves? If possible, I'd like you to make a pair for me and my mom each. The fee is two yuan per pair, is that alright?"
Aunt He: "Okay, I can make gloves too. When shall we go buy rabbits? How about tonight?"
Mingxi: "Sure!"
She said, "I'll come find you when I get off work tonight."
Aunt He: "Okay, it's settled then!"
After Mingxi finished fetching the water, she carried the basin home. Zhao Sulan asked, "Why did it take you so long?"
Mingxi chuckled: "Mom, I have a surprise for you. Don't ask what it is yet, I won't tell you now even if you do."
She wanted to wait until Aunt He finished making the gloves and scarves before she could get them.
Seeing her mysterious look, Zhao Sulan couldn't help but laugh and said, "Okay, I won't ask. Hurry up and wash up, I'll go cook some wontons."
There were still some wontons left over from last night's cooking. Since it's cold now, the leftovers won't spoil even if left at home overnight, so Zhao Sulan didn't cook them all and planned to save them for breakfast this morning.
Mingxi washed her face, and after washing her face, she applied face cream in front of the mirror.
She doesn't usually pay much attention to skincare; she just grabs whatever's available and uses whatever she can find. If she's in a rush in the morning, she'll just slap something on her face and head out the door. But since winter started, she's become more careful.
The wind in the north of the city is fierce, and it feels like a knife on your face. If you're not careful and don't apply some oil, your skin can really crack from the wind.
Mingxi scooped out a large dollop of face cream and carefully applied it in front of the mirror, making sure to take care of every nook and cranny of her face and neck, leaving no stone unturned.
After finishing applying the coating, Zhao Sulan also cooked the wontons. She waved to Mingxi and called out, "The wontons are ready, come and eat."
Mingxi ran over excitedly, saying, "Coming, coming!"
The wontons tasted just as delicious as ever, and she even drank every last drop of the soup. After finishing a bowl of hot wontons, she felt warm and ready to head out to work on time.
Mingxi slung her bag over her shoulder, pushed her bicycle, and headed out. Just as she reached the front yard, she saw Aunt Ma push open the door and come out, looking like she was also about to go out.
Mingxi: "Is Aunt Ma going out?"
Aunt Ma: "Xiao Ming, off to work?"
Mingxi: "Um, Aunt Ma, what are you going to do?"
Aunt Ma: "Sigh, I need to go to the neighborhood office. I need to talk to them about the situation you reported last night."
"Oh!" Mingxi: "Then please be careful and drive slowly."
Aunt Ma smiled and said, "I know that. If you're in a hurry to get to work, then go ahead. Getting to work is important."
"Okay, I'll be going now. Bye-bye, Aunt Ma."
Mingxi waved to Aunt Ma, tossed her head, got on her bike, and quickly disappeared from Aunt Ma's sight.
Grandma Ma lifted her foot and headed towards the neighborhood office.
When Aunt Ma arrived at the neighborhood office, not everyone had arrived yet. A junior staff member was about to get some water when he looked up and saw Aunt Ma standing at the door.
For the people at the neighborhood office, Aunt Ma's face is quite familiar. As a representative of the residents in the alley, Aunt Ma often comes to the neighborhood office to report the situation in the alley. Whenever the neighborhood office has any notices to issue, they always ask Aunt Ma for help in disseminating the information.
So when she saw Aunt Ma, she quickly went up to her and said, "Oh, Aunt Ma, what brings you here? Is there something you need?"
Aunt Ma: "Officer Wang, I have something to tell you. There's a strange man acting suspiciously in our alley. Mingxi from our courtyard found him last night..."
Aunt Ma recounted how Mingxi discovered the man to Officer Wang. Officer Wang, thinking Aunt Ma was about to say something, listened with a serious and tense expression, only to find himself speechless.
I just saw a man at the entrance of the alley.
She sighed and said with a smile, "Aunt Ma, don't overthink it. Maybe he was just someone waiting for someone at the alley entrance. Didn't you yourself say that Comrade Mingxi didn't see what the other person looked like and can't be sure if the person standing at the alley entrance this afternoon is the same person standing at the alley entrance this evening? What if it's just a coincidence that two men happen to be waiting for someone at the alley entrance?"
"No, no!" Aunt Ma said anxiously, "Although Mingxi didn't see the man's face, the figure she saw in the afternoon was the same as the figure she saw in the evening."
Xiao Wang, the clerk, said, "That doesn't necessarily mean they're the same person."
"Besides, the internet is full of misinformation, so maybe Mingxi didn't see it clearly."
After Xiao Wang finished speaking, before Aunt Ma could object, he smiled and said, "Aunt Ma, I know you're thinking about the safety of the alley residents, but you don't need to be so paranoid."
Aunt Ma wanted to try again, but waved her hand and said, "No, no, that man is very..."
The smile on Xiao Wang's face vanished. He pursed his lips and looked at Aunt Ma expressionlessly: "Auntie, what do you mean we should do? Report to the police station and have them arrest the person directly? You didn't even see the person with your own eyes. You don't know what the person looks like, what their name is, or what they do. Even if you report to the police station, what can the officers do?"
She couldn't give her a friendly look.
The neighborhood committee is already busy these days, and for Aunt Ma to bring up such baseless accusations is, in her opinion, a bit of an overreaction.
Xiao Wang, the clerk, said, "Alright, if Aunt Ma has nothing else, you can go back now. We're busy here too..."
Aunt Ma frowned, clearly dissatisfied with Xiao Wang's perfunctory attitude. She wanted to pull Xiao Wang aside and say something more, but he had already picked up his water cup and gone out to get some water.
Helpless, Aunt Ma sighed deeply and turned to leave.
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Author's Note: This is a bit short today. I suddenly had a terrible migraine, but I managed to write 3,000 words. Normal updates tomorrow.
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