Why is there a middle-aged woman with him? And that's not his aunt!
As soon as Chen Ning spoke, everyone looked ahead. Although they were separated by an alley, they recognized Chen Ping at a glance.
I don't know what Chen Ping was saying to the woman next to him, but he was smiling so brightly.
No, it's a bit sleazy.
No wonder Chen Ning only said half of what she meant; she clearly couldn't find the right adjective.
However, that woman was older than Chen Ping and not as good-looking as Li Manying. Chen Ping shouldn't be so unambitious!
But who else could it be but a lover?
Chen An frowned. "Let's go. What he does is none of our business."
This is clearly a juicy story! Cheng Yue's gossip instincts were kicking in, but what Chen Ping did was none of their business. She couldn't very well show too much interest, could she? That would be giving Chen Ping too much face.
Any juicy gossip is bound to explode; you can't hide the truth forever. She'll just wait and see what happens.
They didn't want to pay attention, but Chen Ping insisted on beckoning them. As soon as the oxcart turned around, Chen Ping spotted them at a glance.
"Second brother, sister-in-law? What are you doing here?" Chen Ping quickly came up to them, frowning as he asked, as if he had some dissatisfaction.
Chen An didn't answer, but threw the question back, "Then what is Big Brother doing here if he's not in the shop?"
Chen Ping glanced behind him and said casually, "That lady was a customer of the shop. She ordered a set of jewelry, and I delivered it to her. Now she's heading back."
Cheng Yue said "Oh~" and then said, "This lady is dressed quite simply."
What lady would dress like that, with her clothes draped in drab gray and her head wrapped in cloth?
Chen Ping realized he had misspoke and glared at him, saying, "You're making a fuss over nothing. How many wealthy families have you ever seen? Do you even know what they wear?"
Shouting so loudly, it's as if he's afraid others won't know he's guilty.
Chen An looked displeased. "Big brother, we don't want to know what you're doing, and you don't need to come up and say anything. You've picked the wrong person to throw a tantrum at!"
Chen Ping was already feeling uneasy because he had something on his mind and had run into Chen An and the others. Now that Chen An said that, he felt even more guilty.
He feigned concern and said, "Second brother, I was just a little excited to see you in the county town, so I came to check on you."
"Look at you, you've only been to the county town a few times. You might not know the way home. You'd better hurry back and come less often. It costs two coins to enter the town, don't waste it."
Chen An and Cheng Yue glanced at him but didn't bother to pay him any attention, not even wanting to say a word. Chen Ping felt uneasy under their gazes and had no choice but to leave dejectedly.
Chen Tong said incredulously, "Uncle didn't even ask us how we got an oxcart."
"Yes, he acted like he didn't even see that we were wearing new clothes."
Normally, even if their clothes are missing a patch, my uncle can spot it immediately and ask if they've changed into new clothes. But today, he didn't ask anything at all, which is really strange.
Cheng Yue patted the two children on the shoulders and said, "That's called having a guilty conscience, like a thief with a guilty heart."
If that's the case, it would be strange if there wasn't something fishy going on. Why would they tell them to come to the county town less often? What else could it be if they're afraid they'll discover something?
Based on her years of experience watching the news, there's a high probability that there's some kind of affair going on.
She deliberately sowed discord back then; could she have been right?
But Chen Ping is taking himself too seriously. Who has nothing better to do than pay attention to him every day?
Despite the incident involving Chen Ping, it didn't affect the family's mood at all, and they happily went shopping afterwards.
Although they said they were going shopping, the children knew that their family's money was hard-earned, so none of them asked for anything.
Moreover, they have enough to eat and wear, so there's no need for them to buy anything. They've just never been to a county town before and want to experience the lively atmosphere.
Actually, they had some money; they had saved the wages their mother gave them, but the three siblings together only had a little over two hundred coins.
Last time, Mom bought them hairbands and hair accessories, but didn't buy any for herself, and they remembered it.
It must be that Mom couldn't bear to part with it.
So they've already agreed to save the money until the New Year, and then they'll buy their mother a silver hairpin.
I dare not move around now.
Cheng Yue was unaware of the three children's plans. Seeing their joyful expressions, she was thinking about what to buy.
Although there are many stalls on this street, the variety of goods is limited, just a few items.
Cheng Yue didn't think it was anything special, but in the eyes of the three children, it was an extremely rare and wonderful thing, and they couldn't take it all in.
"Mom, those are dough figurines and sugar paintings. I want to get off the bus and take a look..."
Cheng Yue was pondering when Chen Ning's joyful voice pulled her back to reality. Turning her head, she saw a group of children surrounding the stall next to her, all cheering and jumping for joy.
Cheng Yue was also infected by the enthusiasm and said with a smile, "Okay, let's go take a look. Buy whatever you like. It's on me today!"
If the child wanted gold or silver jewelry, she couldn't afford it, but she could easily afford to buy a candy picture for her.
The Chen sisters, Chen Tong and Chen Ning, shook their heads and then nodded. They had only intended to go and take a look, but since their mother said she would buy them something, they decided to go ahead and buy it.
They always say they can't bear to spend money, and Mom will have to lecture them again.
Chen Lin pulled on the reins and said, "Mother, you take your sisters and get off the cart. I'll pull the oxcart ahead and wait for you."
Although he wanted to go, his father was already on the bus.
There were many people at the dough figurine stall, so they couldn't park their oxcart there and block the road. Cheng Yue had no choice but to nod.
Not wanting to spoil the child's fun, Chen An said, "Xiao Lin, you come too. My arm isn't injured anymore, so what's there to be afraid of when we catch the train?"
Chen Lin, however, absolutely disagreed. How could he leave his sick father to drive the carriage?
Although the child was stubborn, he was also very filial. Chen An could only let Chen Lin go with him. If they continued talking, the Chen Tong and Chen Ning sisters would be too embarrassed to go.
As soon as the father and son left, Cheng Yue took her two daughters to the sugar painting stall and waited for quite a while before it was their turn.
Chen Tong asked and found out that a sugar painting cost five coins, so he decided not to buy it.
A bowl of heluo noodles only costs eight coins, and three sugar paintings can buy two bowls of heluo noodles.
Cheng Yue knew what her two daughters were thinking, so she took out fifteen coins and handed them to the stall owner, "Uncle, we'll make three."
Compared to before, the child has indeed changed a lot, but deeply ingrained ideas cannot be changed overnight.
Having grown accustomed to poverty, they are reluctant to spend money even when they have it.
The stall owner, an elderly man, said enthusiastically, "Alright, just tell me what pattern you want."
Seeing that Cheng Yue had already paid, the two sisters had no choice but to suppress their reluctance. Chen Ning happily exclaimed, "I want the rabbit!"
Chen Tong blurted out, "I want a big tiger!"
As soon as Chen Tong finished speaking, Cheng Yue recalled the large slap Chen Tong had given Li Manying across the face.
This child, could she really have taken after her maternal grandmother's family...?
There was one sugar painting left for Chen Lin. The two children didn't know what their older brother liked, so Cheng Yue said, "Let's make a big yellow ox."
Chen Ning chuckled, "Big Brother will definitely like it!"
How could he not like it? Chen Lin almost wanted to live in the cowshed. Last night, when it drizzled, he got up and checked on the cows several times, worried that they might get wet.
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