Chapter 3

To prevent her mother, Hu Aichun, from suddenly coming back and exposing her lie, Xie Huaxiang saw Bingbing, the child next door, running past her door. She hurriedly called out to him, "Bingbing, come here. Sister has something delicious for you."

The child, who had already run far away, immediately ran back. He wiped his snot with the back of his hand and looked curiously at the strange man sitting at the dining table. Xie Huaxiang rummaged through the cupboard. Fortunately, her mother's habit of storing food had not changed. She found a can of brown sugar cubes. This was what Hu Aichun used to cook for Xie Huaxiang every month.

Xie Huaxiang broke off a small piece of brown sugar and stuffed it into Bingbing's hand, "Help me find my father. Tell him that we have a guest at home and ask him to come back quickly. He will give you a piece of candy when he completes his task."

Xie Huaxiang knew Xie Yiping's attitude towards Shen Tingsheng. In her previous life, she knew that after Hu Aichun chased Shen Tingsheng away as if he was a beggar, Shen Tingsheng, who had always been an honest person, actually mustered up the courage to quarrel with his wife. Therefore, this time, she wanted him to come back before Hu Aichun. That way, her mother wouldn't treat him like a beggar and chase him away with a broom again.

The child happily licked the piece of candy in his hand and replied crisply, "Okay!"

He ran out like a gust of wind. Today was Sunday, so there was no need to go to work. Xie Yiping's activities usually didn't go beyond the area of the textile factory's staff dormitory. They either played poker in the staff cultural room or played chess under the banyan tree at the west side of the courtyard. There was nowhere else to go.

Sure enough, Xie Yiping hurried back after a while. As she entered the door, she said, "Do you have a guest at home?"

Shen Tingsheng quickly stood up and took two steps forward. He bowed respectfully and said, "Hello, Uncle Xie!"

Xie Yiping looked at him with slight astonishment, "You are?"

Shen Tingsheng quickly picked up the stack of old letters on the table and handed them over, "My name is Shen Tingsheng. I am Shen Laohuan's grandson."

Xie Yiping glanced at the handwriting on the old letters. Sure enough, it was written by her father. she excitedly held Shen Tingsheng's hands and shook them vigorously, "It's really Tingsheng. You have already grown up. I still remember that your grandfather wrote a letter to us and told us that there was a new grandpa in the family... Xiangxiang's grandfather.... your name. your name, your name. was given to you. Xiangxiang's's grandfather. your name..."

Shen's's,,,,,'s. Xie's grandfather's,'s.... Shen, his family. Grandpa.... was. Xie's to. was......

Xie Yiping did some calculations, "I remember that you are three years older than Xiangxiang. You should be 21 this year. How is your father?

Is your grandfather still alive? "

Xie Yiping's relationship with the Shen Family was not that deep. After all, they had never met. However, her father always talked about his savior at home. After hearing so much, she naturally paid more attention to him.

Shen Tingsheng's eyes dimmed, "My father and grandfather have passed away. I am living with my grandmother and younger sister now."

Xie Huaxiang looked at Shen Tingsheng with some surprise. From what he said, it seemed as if he didn't have any relatives other than his grandmother and sister. But she remembered that in her previous life, when she went back to his hometown in Yunnan with him, his uncles, cousins, and so on were a lot. As soon as he appeared, they all rushed up to him and asked about his well-being, as if they were very close.

It seemed that this was a typical case of the poor not being cared for in the downtown area, while the rich had distant relatives in the remote mountains. Although his relatives tried to curry favor with him back then, they were still bullying him now!

Thinking of this, Xie Huaxiang's heart ached for him even more. This person was so successful later on. However, when he was young, he had suffered a lot. Whenever he talked about the past, he was always so calm. However, it made people want to treat him better.

Xie Yiping gasped, "How can that be? I remember that your father is about the same age as me …" He was just thinking that he was young and energetic. When he heard the news that his peers had passed away at such a young age, he was shocked.

"Dad!"

Xie Huaxiang pushed her father. "He came from so far away. How can you let him stand and talk like this? I'll go make tea for you."

Xie Yiping finally reacted. He quickly pulled his father to the sofa. "Look at me. I only cared about talking. Come and sit down!"

Hu Aichun lived a tasteful life. The wooden sofa was padded with a soft cushion sewn with floral cloth. It was also covered with a layer of white yarn. It looked clean and classy. Shen Tingsheng looked at himself. His clothes were considered clean, but the fabric was rough and did not fit in with the exquisiteness of the house. He could not help but hesitate.

Xie Yiping was a rough man, so he didn't notice this. He just kept asking people to sit down, but Xie Huaxiang's sharp eyes noticed it, and she felt even more distressed. Thinking about what kind of expensive sofa he hadn't sat on in her previous life, she was afraid that no one had ever treated him well. Such a proud and confident person, but at this time, he showed an embarrassed expression again and again. How could it not make people feel distressed?

Thinking of this, she quickly walked over and rolled up the white gauze and sofa cushion into a ball. "I almost forgot. My mother asked me to put these away this morning. It's going to be hot soon. How can I sit on such a thick cushion?"

Shen Tingsheng sat on the bare wooden sofa and looked much more at ease.

Xie Yiping was full of curiosity about what had happened in his hometown. He kept asking questions. Soon, the two of them were chatting in full swing.

Xie Huaxiang found the best tea leaves that her father had collected. She brewed some tea and brought it to him. "Dad, you can talk to Xiao Shen slowly. I'll go buy some groceries for my mother."

Xie Yiping waved his hand without looking up. "Go, go!"

Xie Huaxiang was still worried. He decided to give her mother a heads-up. Hu Aichun was actually a person who despised the poor and loved the rich. He looked down on people from the countryside. However, he was not a bad person. If Xie Huaxiang talked to her properly, she would be mentally prepared. Naturally, she would not embarrass Shen Tingsheng again.

There were only a handful of places near the textile factory where one could buy groceries. At most, they would be places like grain and oil stores and non-staple food stores. Xie Huaxiang searched along the main street. Sure enough, she soon saw Hu Aichun walking back happily with a basket of groceries.

Xie Huaxiang quickly walked over and held Hu Aichun's arm. "Mom, what good things did you buy?"

Hu Aichun happily flipped through the basket and showed it to her. "I bought some ribbonfish. There's chicken on sale today. I managed to grab half of it."

Their family had two working families, so they did not lack coupons. It was just that the non-staple food stores did not provide enough food. Most of the time, even if they had money and coupons, they might not be able to buy good things. They were lucky today. A batch of bare chicken just happened to arrive when they were queuing up. When it was her turn, it happened that the chicken was not sold out. She managed to buy half of it. "Do you want to eat sliced chicken or steamed mushroom chicken?"

Xie Huaxiang said, "There are guests at home. These dishes might not be enough. Why don't we go to Tong Fu Alley to buy more?

“

On the surface, the food stores only provided so much food every day. If one did not line up early, they would not be able to grab any. They would not be able to satisfy the daily needs of the citizens. Naturally, the underground black market was born.

Tong Fu Alley was such a black market. This black market had been established for a long time and was more mature. There were only things that one could not think of and nothing that could not be bought. However, the price was several times higher than outside. For example, eggs. Outside, the supply and demand cooperative only cost eight cents, but in the black market, they could be sold for four or five cents.

However, people were risking their lives to do this business. If they could not make money, who would be willing to do it?

Hu Aichun's eyes widened. "What kind of guests are here? Why do they have to go to Tong Fu Alley to buy groceries?"

Although it was called a black market, it was actually a place where everyone knew to buy expensive things. The higher-ups would turn a blind eye to it. As long as it did not cause a big commotion, they would not care. After all, even the relatives of the leaders had such needs!

Although the Xie family was considered well-off financially and could buy some delicious food every now and then, they were still ordinary people. Other than during festivals or when they had to entertain important guests, they rarely went to Tong Fu Alley to buy things.

Xie Huaxiang said seriously, "Then it must be an important guest. Our Xie family's great benefactor!"

Hu Aichun sneered, "What do you mean by 'benefactor'? There's no need to pay attention to such things in this modern society …" Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Don't tell me it's that Shen Laoshuan?

No, wait, how old is he? "

"It's not Grandfather Shen. It's his grandson. His name is Shen Tingsheng. He's about the same age as me."

Xie Huaxiang almost said that Shen Tingsheng was the one who had been betrothed to her when she was young. Fortunately, she did not say it out loud. She suddenly remembered that she should not have heard of this matter yet. In her previous life, she only found out about it after Hu Aichun chased Shen Tingsheng away and Xie Yiping quarreled with her.

She remembered this day in her previous life. Early in the morning, she went out with Tang Guiying and got to know Jung Yongcheng's group of high-ranking officials from the Municipal Party Committee. She played with them all morning and only returned home when it was almost time for lunch. As soon as she entered the house, she was surprised to find that her honest and quiet father, Xie Yiping, was quarreling with her mother.

Xie Huaxiang listened for a long time before she figured out what was going on. It turned out that the descendant of her grandfather's benefactor had come looking for her. However, because the other party was a peasant and dressed too shabbily, Hu Aichun chased him away as if he was a beggar and even gave him a good scolding.