The next morning, after politely declining Sangshen's request to come along, Buling, fully armed, went to the compound to meet Wu Yuanyuan, and then they agreed to go to the market together.
The market was crowded, so the two of them didn't ride bicycles; instead, each carried a bamboo basket on their backs and went out.
As she was leaving, she ran into Aunt Lan and was met with a series of eye-rolls. Wu Yuanyuan was innocently implicated and felt utterly wronged.
"Ling, what did you do to offend Aunt Lan yesterday? She's been giving me the cold shoulder ever since last night!" Wu Yuanyuan was incredibly curious.
Bu Ling was also wronged. What did this have to do with her? It was clearly Aunt Lan who was petty. "I didn't do anything. We just couldn't agree on renting the house. Who would have thought Aunt Lan would hold such a grudge?"
"She's the one who's stingy, yet she blames me?" Bu Ling felt more wronged than Dou E: "Then tell me, this was a matter of mutual consent, is it appropriate for her to blame me?"
Wu Yuanyuan asked cautiously, "How much do you rent it to her for a month?"
"Five yuan and fifty cents, isn't that cheap enough?" Bu Ling stared intently at Wu Yuanyuan, waiting for her to give an answer.
Wu Yuanyuan: ...
"Well, it is a little bit expensive..." Seeing that Buling's smile was fading, she quickly changed her tune: "...But it's normal. You still have a lot of furniture in your room, and the heated kang bed hasn't been used for long. This price is very reasonable."
“Exactly!” Bling said with satisfaction, “I knew it. I only gave her a 50-cent discount because we’re neighbors, and she still treated me like this. Isn’t she the one who’s wrong?”
Wu Yuanyuan nodded against her conscience: "It's her fault, so your house wasn't rented out?"
"No, I rented it to Sister Xiangru. Didn't she say anything?"
"No," Wu Yuanyuan shook her head. "Is it also five yuan and fifty cents?"
"No, no, no~" Bling raised her middle finger and shook it: "I rented it for five yuan."
Wu Yuanyuan glanced sideways, puzzled.
“Sister Xiangru is a friend after all, and she’s different from Aunt Lan!” Bu Ling said confidently.
Wu Yuanyuan nodded knowingly, but she immediately asked, "What if I rent it? How much are you planning to pay?"
Bling: ....
"Seriously, lady? You're going to start comparing things like this?"
"What do you mean?" Wu Yuanyuan stubbornly insisted, "I was just asking casually."
Bling replied coldly, "Then I won't answer."
Wu Yuanyuan was speechless, a breath stuck in her throat, neither able to come up nor down. She wanted to ask, but felt she was being too dramatic; she didn't want to ask, but she was unwilling to give up!
She was conflicted the whole way, and even after getting off the bus she was still conflicted. When she arrived at the commune market, she was almost hit by a car, but luckily Bling was quick-witted and pulled her away, thus avoiding a tragedy.
"Sister Yuanyuan, watch where you're going, what are you thinking about?" Buling had long forgotten about the little question from earlier.
Upon hearing this, Wu Yuanyuan gave her a mournful look and said, "It's nothing, let's go in." With that, she grabbed Bu Ling's hand and led the way.
Following behind Wu Yuanyuan, Buling felt incredibly safe. Honestly, with Yuanyuan's fighting prowess, once the reform and opening up came around, she could definitely take down a whole bunch of old ladies when she went to the supermarket to snatch discounted eggs.
"Ling, do you want to buy eggs?"
"purchase!"
The two squeezed to the front of the egg stall, looked at the two remaining baskets of eggs, and said in unison:
"I want a basket of eggs!"
The old lady selling eggs was delighted to see the two of them: "Perfect, one basket each for you. Do you want the baskets?"
The two exchanged a glance: "We want it!"
The old lady happily handed the eggs to the two of them and accepted their money.
The two put the eggs in their baskets and continued their stroll.
"Want some pork? One yuan a pound, no coupons needed!" Wu Yuanyuan asked again.
"I don't want it anymore."
"Then wait for me here, I need to." Wu Yuanyuan instructed before charging into the encirclement.
Looking at the frenzied crowd, Bling stepped aside, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.
She idly looked around, trying to see if there was anything she liked at the nearby stalls.
Just then, someone bumped into her.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," the man quickly apologized.
Bling was an easy-going person, especially since the person who hit him was a child. He waved his hand and said, "It's okay."
Before she could finish speaking, the child darted into the crowd and disappeared.
Bling stared at the child's back with a puzzled look, then suddenly frowned. The child's back looked familiar, and his voice sounded familiar too.
In a flash, she seemed to realize something, reached for her handbag, and sure enough, there was a tear in it, and her wallet, which had been perfectly fine inside, was gone.
Anger flashed across her face as she shouted, "Thief! Stop thief!"
After shouting, she found a corner and stood still.
The wallet she kept in her handbag was meant to be a cover; it was completely empty.
But her bag was damaged and her wallet was lost—these are losses, aren't they? Especially since she suspected the thief was someone she knew.
However, with her small stature, it's not worth it. With so many enthusiastic people around, there's absolutely no need for a newbie like her.
Meanwhile, the bustling market was thrown into turmoil by Buling's shout. The enthusiastic crowd began to look around, observing who might be a thief, while those who were minding their own business instinctively reached for the spot where they kept their money.
When Wu Yuanyuan returned from buying meat, the atmosphere at the market had completely changed. Thinking of Buling's small frame, she didn't have time to think about anything else and immediately looked around for her friend.
"Sister Yuanyuan, this!" Buling waved her hand in greeting.
Wu Yuanyuan squeezed through the crowd and asked, "Ling, what's wrong?"
“There’s a thief,” Bling said succinctly.
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