Only then did Xiao Mandong belatedly realize that, in her preoccupation with Shao Tingting’s situation, she had forgotten to wrap her face in a headscarf.
But Hu Liu’s words amused her despite herself. “I’ll take that as a compliment and let it go. I’m not going inside. I’ll wait here. Just bring the cotton out to me.”
“Hey… you little—”
Before he could finish, someone suddenly walked out of the courtyard and kicked Hu Liu squarely in the backside.
Hu Liu had no time to react before he went sprawling. When he looked up and saw who had kicked him, he hurriedly scrambled to his feet.
“Brother Feng, this wo—this woman came to pick up the cotton Brother Xia left for her.”
The moment Dong Feng saw Xiao Mandong, the gloom on his face instantly melted into a smile. The last few times she had come, she had kept her face wrapped in a headscarf. He had never expected her to be so strikingly beautiful.
“You’re here. What are you selling today?”
Xiao Mandong lifted the cloth covering her bamboo basket.
“Apples. Same price as before.”
Dong Feng was delighted. The gifts she had given him last time had worked exceptionally well.
“How many jin are there? I’ll take them all.”
“Sixty cents per jin. You’ll have to weigh them to find out the exact amount. I don’t know.”
It was genuinely inconvenient for her to sell things without a scale. She would have to find a way to get one as soon as possible. Scales were extremely difficult to buy these days; you needed a certificate from your work unit before you could purchase one at a department store.
Hu Liu was quick on the uptake. He immediately ran into the courtyard and soon returned with a scale. The basket weighed exactly thirty-three jin, which came to nineteen yuan and eighty cents in total.
Xiao Mandong used twenty-five soon-to-expire cotton coupons and added thirty yuan in cash to exchange for twenty jin of cotton.
Dong Feng promised to prepare another twenty jin for her in a week.
Xiao Mandong calculated that even this amount of cotton probably would not be enough. She needed to make a quilt, padded clothes, and padded trousers for her younger sister, as well as some for herself and for the family members who had been sent down to the countryside.
“Brother Dong, just prepare as much as you can. I’ll take all of it.”
“No problem.” Dong Feng agreed readily, then asked, “What about the rice and white flour you mentioned last time? When will you be able to get them?”
Xiao Mandong thought for a moment. “It may take a while. There’s something going on at home, and my relatives can’t make the trip right now.”
She might be under surveillance at any moment, so she didn’t dare make any rash moves. It would be better to wait until Sun Wenbin’s matter was settled before doing anything else. If her secret were discovered, she would certainly be taken away for research. Besides, she wasn’t short of money. To be honest, she didn’t want to take such a huge risk. Still, since she had already promised Dong Feng, she could give him a smaller amount. She couldn’t very well go back on her word.
Dong Feng didn’t have any fabric, so Xiao Mandong had no choice but to go to the supply cooperative. She needed to finish preparing Xiao Manxue’s luggage today. September was just around the corner, and the weather would gradually turn colder. Once Sun Wenbin’s problem was resolved and Xiao Manxue started school, she would be able to go up the mountain to visit her family.
Unfortunately, the weather was against her. As soon as she arrived at the supply cooperative, a fine drizzle began to fall.
Xiao Mandong quickly paid for thirty chi of fabric, folded it, and placed it in her bamboo basket. When no one was looking, she quietly transferred the fabric into her space.
She was anxious to get back, afraid that Xiao Manxue would worry if she was too late. Just as she was preparing to run through the rain, a jeep pulled up in front of her. The window rolled down, revealing Lin Guoan.
“Get in. I’ll give you a lift.”
Xiao Mandong did not stand on ceremony. She had no desire to get drenched, so she opened the door and got into the vehicle.
Lin Guoan had been on his way back to the military research institute. He had not expected to run into Xiao Mandong. He generally disliked meddling in other people’s affairs, but since this woman had saved his younger sister and his nephew, he decided to give her a ride since they were headed in the same direction.
The two of them traveled in silence. When the jeep stopped outside the guesthouse, they saw Xiao Manxue standing at the entrance, anxiously looking into the distance.
Lin Guoan told Xiao Manxue to get in as well and drove both sisters directly to the hospital.
Before getting out, Xiao Mandong suddenly turned to look at Lin Guoan. In the end, she couldn’t resist offering him a word of warning.
“Don’t judge people by appearances. Your work is very sensitive, so when you choose a wife, make sure you investigate her carefully.”
With that, she took Xiao Manxue by the hand and walked into the hospital without looking back.
Sitting in the jeep, Lin Guoan watched their retreating figures, his brows drawing together slightly. What exactly had that woman meant?
He glanced at the time. There was no time to think about it further, so he started the car and drove away.
Just as Xiao Mandong and Xiao Manxue entered the hospital, a woman came rushing out like a madwoman.
Xiao Mandong instinctively pulled Xiao Manxue back.
“Xiao Mandong, you little slut, you shameless whore! What are you trying to do? How dare you report my family? You even ruined my daughter’s life! Have you completely lost your mind?”
Li Fengmei slapped her thigh and wailed, “Do you know that your uncle has been suspended and is under investigation? He’s about to lose his job! You ungrateful, heartless wretch—how could you do something so vicious?”
Only then did Xiao Mandong get a clear look at the woman. She was Wang Yuanyuan’s biological mother—the so-called Aunt Li Fengmei.
Xiao Mandong had not expected the investigation to proceed so quickly.
“Why don’t you tell everyone what I reported? What did your husband do that could cost him his job?” Xiao Mandong asked with a smile. “Why aren’t you saying anything? Or would you like me to tell everyone?”
“Shut up… You shut up!”
Li Fengmei was furious enough to explode. She had never imagined that this wretched girl would actually dare to report her own maternal uncle.
And what she had reported was that Wang Fugui had been involved in an improper relationship with her before marriage. Did Xiao Mandong have any idea how serious the consequences could be? If the investigation proved the allegation true, not only would Wang Fugui lose his job, but his children would also be shunned and ridiculed. How would their family ever be able to face people again?
How dare this girl do such a thing?
Wang Fugui had to remain at the factory for the investigation, so he had sent her here first in the hope that Xiao Mandong would quickly write a statement retracting her accusation and tell the factory leaders that she had made the whole thing up.
“You’re truly heartless,” Li Fengmei cried. “We’re family, after all. Why are you determined to destroy us? Not only did you report your own uncle, you even drove Wang Yuanyuan into a desperate situation.”
“Write a retraction immediately and send it to your uncle’s workplace. If you wait any longer, the investigation results may come out, and by then it might be impossible to undo the damage.”
There were not many patients at this hour, and most of the people gathered to watch were doctors who were preparing to get off work.
Everyone thought it was outrageous that Xiao Mandong had reported her own uncle and shown no regard for family ties.
“Doctor Xiao, no matter what happened, he’s still your own maternal uncle. Reporting him like this was truly inappropriate.”
“That’s right. Even if you had grievances against him, you shouldn’t have taken them out on him this way. Hurry and write a letter to explain things to the factory. Having a job isn’t easy these days.”
Xiao Mandong was just about to argue back when a voice interrupted them.
“Sis!”
A familiar face appeared before her. She had never expected Li Fengmei to bring Xiao Zhenyu along as well.
