Chapter 196 Buying Fish Maw
Grandma Mai kept her word and went to the organization, requesting that the finance department pay her half of Mai Dong's salary, which she would collect on time every month.
Mai Dong felt guilty towards his mother and children, so he didn't say anything, and the matter was settled.
He was kicked out by his mother and originally planned to live in the company dormitory. But perhaps he turned his feelings for Xie Ting into guilt towards Hu Zi. He felt he couldn't bear to part with the children, so he actually applied to Mai Defu to rent an empty house in the village, so he could see the two children from time to time.
The old man from Medford was shrewd and experienced; after going through all these odds and ends, how could he not guess? He could only sigh repeatedly, "Oh dear...you! You're so foolish!"
Although Hu Zi is young, Xie Ting has raised him very well, and he is a good boy who can distinguish right from wrong.
He could distinguish between Grandma Mai, Brother Ada, and Mai Dong. He could tell who was good to him and who was the villain who killed his mother.
After recovering from his illness, Tiger moved to the Mai family's house and lived with Grandma Mai and Ada.
But he would go to the base almost every day after school, still habitually doing his homework there before going home. On weekends, he would spend the whole day at the base helping out.
Qin Suisui would sometimes bring him home to play with Zanzan, but Hu Zi seemed a bit reserved in the family compound, so Qin Suisui would often bring Zanzan to the base on weekends so that the two little guys could play together.
Since Xie Ting's passing, Hu Zi has become much quieter, as if he grew up overnight.
He dug out all the valuables Xie Ting had left in the cowshed and brought them to the base, asking Qin Suisui to keep them for him. Qin Suisui was now the person he trusted most.
Qin Suisui took the items and saw that Xie Ting had left behind two yellowed handwritten manuals on traditional Chinese medicine, nineteen yuan and eighty cents, and a silver bracelet that looked like a child's bracelet, probably one that Hu Zi had worn when he was little.
With Qin Suisui and Su Yunyi's permission, Hu Zi took one of the remaining old clothes to the base and placed it on his small bed where he often napped. He also brought the others to the Mai family's house and placed them on his own bed, keeping them company as he slept every night.
From then on, Hu Zi studied even more diligently every day, and even his teacher praised him for his rapid progress.
It had been raining for several days in a row. On the day the rain stopped, Su Yunyi rushed into the family compound: "Quick, quick, Sui Sui, come with me to town to buy clothes! Yunlai's older sister is arriving tomorrow!"
"So fast? Weren't you told it would take a few more days?"
"They said the itinerary was changed at the last minute!"
"Okay, let's go!"
The two sisters hurriedly rode their bikes to town.
It's almost December, and the weather has noticeably cooled down. Sometimes I need to wear a jacket in the mornings and evenings. The older folks in the village say that the temperature drops significantly once December arrives. January is the coldest month of the year on Qiongtan Island; sometimes you might need a light jacket.
Qin Suisui also wanted to see if there was any thicker fabric so she could take it back and make some warm clothes for her family, and also make one for Hu Zi.
Su Yunyi needed the clothes urgently, but there wasn't enough time to buy fabric and make them herself, so she could only look at ready-made clothes at a department store.
Department store clothing styles are always ahead of the season.
At this moment, the wardrobe counter already has quite a few long-sleeved polyester shirts hanging on it, as well as a few jackets.
Unlike Beijing, where the weather turns completely cold at once, Qiongtan Island experiences a greater temperature difference between day and night. To be precise, the climate during this period is more accurately described as "cool" than "cold".
Therefore, in this situation, a long-sleeved shirt is the most practical choice. You can wear it alone when it's hot at noon, and add a light jacket when it gets a bit chilly in the evening or when the weather changes.
In the hot summer, the Dacron shirt, which is not popular with Qin Suisui because it is "not breathable", is perfect to wear at this time.
"Comrade, could you please bring me that sea-blue shirt?" Su Yunyi took a liking to it as soon as she arrived.
The sales clerk was quite eloquent, and judging from Su Yunyi and Qin Suisui's attire and demeanor, they didn't seem like people who couldn't afford it. She smiled and handed the sea-blue polyester shirt to Su Yunyi, praising her, "This lady has excellent taste! This is new stock that just arrived yesterday. With your serene temperament, this sea-blue color suits you perfectly. Why don't you compare it to hers!"
Of course, clothes cannot be tried on. Su Yunyi followed her advice and held the shirt in front of her to compare. It was indeed very flattering to her skin tone, and her whole demeanor appeared more gentle and graceful.
"See! I told you so! Don't worry, comrade, I've been selling clothes here for so many years and I've never made a mistake. You can't go wrong with this one!"
"Sui Sui, how is it?" Feeling a little embarrassed by the saleswoman's praise, Su Yunyi subconsciously sought Qin Sui Sui's opinion.
Qin Suisui also thought it looked good. She nodded and said, "Sister Yunyi, it really is great. This gentle style suits you very well. Brother Yunlai's older sister will definitely like you a lot!"
Her words made Su Yunyi even more embarrassed.
The saleswoman was extremely dedicated. She glanced at Qin Suisui next to Su Yunyi, her eyes immediately lighting up. She turned around and used the clothes rack to take down the sea-green shirt next to her, handing it to Qin Suisui: "Sir, you should try this one! Your skin is fair and delicate, and this color is more vibrant than the sea-blue one. You'll definitely look good in it!"
Qin Suisui took it as instructed and tried it on herself. She felt it was good. She liked this vibrant color, and she had always had fair skin since she was a child, so she didn't care about the color of her clothes.
Seeing that Su Yunyi secretly gave her a thumbs up, she immediately made the decision.
On the salesperson's recommendation, the two sisters each bought a thin cotton knit sweater. Qin Suisui picked an off-white one, and Su Yunyi picked a light beige one. They planned to wear it over their shirts when the temperature dropped a bit in a couple of days. The round neck of the sweater, revealing the shirt collar underneath, was a very fashionable way to wear it.
After coming down from the clothing counter on the second floor, Su Yunyi, on Qin Suisui's recommendation, went downstairs to the food counter and bought two jin (approximately 1 kg) of coconut candy. Coconut candy is a specialty of Qiongtan Island, and currently there are no large-scale brands; it's usually sold in bulk and can't be bought elsewhere.
Su Yunyi originally wanted to go to the black market to buy some skincare products to give to Song Yunlai's older sister, but Qin Suisui stopped her.
Song Yunlai's eldest sister married a diplomat, so she has access to all kinds of imported skincare products and probably uses much better ones than they do.
Su Yunyi was a little anxious; it was her first time meeting her parents, and she wanted to perform better.
Qin Suisui thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, "Sister Yunyi, why don't we go to the black market and buy some fish maw? I heard that many people in Hong Kong love to eat fish maw for its beauty and health benefits, but I heard the other day that a lot of fish maw in Hong Kong is actually imported from our coastal area. Let's buy some better quality fish maw to give to you, Sister. It's a local specialty and something we can present to you."
"Sui Sui, you're so smart!"
The two hit it off immediately and rode their bikes to the black market.
The department store was closest to the East Third Alley black market, which was also the largest black market in town, so the two of them went straight there.
Coincidentally, today Sun Ruwen—or rather, Liang Qi in this context—had disguised himself slightly while at the black market, so Su Yunyi didn't recognize him as Sun Ruwen, assuming that Qin Suisui knew him and was quite familiar with him.
Qin Suisui did not explain this. Liang Qi was right. With his identity, he was actually in a certain danger outside. The fewer people who knew, the less danger there would be, whether for him or for Su Yunyi.
Liang Qi received the message and came over as soon as they reached the door.
Upon hearing that they wanted to buy better quality fish maw, Liang Qi immediately took them up to the small attic and had someone deliver the fish maw over.
There weren't many varieties of fish maw in this era, but the quality was excellent.
Liang Qi had his men bring up the golden threadfin maw and spider maw that Qin Suisui had bought last time, as well as many high-end domestic fish maws, such as red chicken beak maw, which has outstanding blood-nourishing and beauty-enhancing effects, and big ear beak maw, which can nourish the kidneys and blood, and the texture of the maw is also quite delicate. There are also some mainstream types of fish maw, such as yellow croaker maw, Beihai maw, and duck maw.
"Wow, I didn't expect there to be so many kinds!" Qin Suisui was also seeing so many varieties of fish maw for the first time, and she was dazzled by the sight.
Liang Qi smiled and said, "Take some of these home with you later. Try them and see which ones you like. I'll bring more back next time."
Qin Suisui nodded. It seemed that ever since the assassination attempt at her home, her relationship with Sun Ruwen had become inexplicably close again, as if they had returned to their childhood.
So she didn't stand on ceremony with him. She knew Sun Ruwen didn't lack money, and of course, she didn't either, but she would compensate him in other ways.
For example, Sun Ruwen would ask her for some special wound medicine or other medications every now and then. In their line of work, their identities cannot be revealed, and it is often inconvenient for them to go to the hospital when they are injured.
Qin Suisui had also advised him not to do such dangerous things anymore, but once he entered this line of work, it wasn't something he could just walk away from. Moreover, Qin Suisui knew that in the original book, the policies would become more and more relaxed later on, and free trade would be allowed, so what Sun Ruwen did might not necessarily be wrong.
Since it was a gift, it couldn't be too flashy or it might cause trouble. So Su Yunyi ultimately chose some red chicken beak glue, yellow flower glue, and Beihai glue, which were reasonably priced, of good quality, and wouldn't be too eye-catching.
Liang Qi naturally charged the cost price, and then had someone pack a little of each type of fish maw for Qin Suisui. He even got up and took two packages of Phoenix Dancong fish maw from the back cabinet. Just as he was smiling and about to say something to Qin Suisui, someone suddenly came in and whispered a few words in his ear. Liang Qi's expression quickly changed.
He shoved the tea leaves at Qin Suisui and said, "Suisui, you guys can wander around here a little longer. I have some things to do and need to go out first. If you buy too much stuff, just leave it here and I'll have someone deliver it to you."
Qin Suisui nodded: "I understand, be careful."
Liang Qi nodded and quickly followed the person out.
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