Chapter 115 : I Like Gold Bracelets

Han Weiping was utterly baffled.  

With her hands on her hips, she snapped, “I don’t have money for a silver bracelet! You can just forget it and go wherever you please!”  

Yu Xiaopang left, his face full of grievance, glancing back mournfully every few steps as he walked away.  

Yu Xinzheng, who had just finished sweeping the yard, saw his youngest son pouting so dramatically that it almost touched the sky.  

Leaning on his broom, Yu Xinzheng asked, “What did you do to make your mom mad? Did she scold you?”  

Yu Xiaopang muttered under his breath, “I only asked Mom to buy me something.”  

Yu Xinzheng was puzzled. Normally, whatever Yu Xiaopang wanted to eat or play with, his wife would get for him without hesitation.  

“What do you want this time?” Yu Xinzheng asked. “A new toy? New clothes?”  

Yu Xiaopang shook his head. “Dad, I just want a silver bracelet for Xiaxia. Why wouldn’t Mom buy it? And why did she get so angry?”  

Yu Xinzheng scratched his head in disbelief. “What? A silver bracelet? For Shen Jinxia?”  

Yu Xiaopang nodded earnestly. “Yes, just a silver bracelet.”  

Yu Xinzheng let out two sharp “Puh” sounds, spat into his palm, and walked over to Yu Xiaopang with his broom in hand.  

“You’re asking for a silver bracelet to give to Shen’s family? Why don’t you just change your surname to Shen and officially become Shen Zheng’s son tomorrow?”  

Realizing the danger, Yu Xiaopang screamed in fear, covering his backside, and bolted like a scared rabbit.  

—

Meanwhile, Fang Xiaoluo had drawn a hopscotch grid in the yard and was playing with Shen Jinxia and Shen Haiping. They were tossing beanbags and hopping across the squares.  

Shen Jinxia, still young, couldn’t throw the beanbag very far, but she managed to land it in one of the closer squares.  

The beanbag landed in the second grid, and Shen Jinxia happily hopped and skipped over the square like a little bird, joy radiating from her face.  

“Mom! Brother! Look, I jumped here!”  

Fang Xiaoluo clapped and cheered. “Xiaxia is amazing!”  

Suddenly, Yu Xiaopang came charging in like a gust of wind, nearly colliding with the doorframe.  

Shen Zheng, who had been chopping wood nearby, caught him mid-dash with one hand.  

“Are you being chased by a ghost?” Shen Zheng asked, bemused.  

Yu Xiaopang gulped. “No, no! It’s my dad, he’s scarier than a ghost!”  

Standing in the hopscotch grid, Shen Jinxia tilted her head and asked softly, “Xiaopang, what did your dad do?”  

Shen Zheng set Yu Xiaopang down, and the boy dashed straight to Shen Jinxia.  

“My dad wants to beat me! He’s so mean!”  

Fang Xiaoluo was curious. “Why would your dad want to hit you?”  

Yu Xiaopang explained, “I just asked him and my mom to buy me a silver bracelet for Xiaxia, but they were so stingy. They refused to buy it. My dad even threatened to beat me and told me to change my last name to Shen!”  

Fang Xiaoluo couldn’t stop laughing.  

Shen Jinxia, still clueless, said, “I don’t want a silver bracelet. What would I even do with it?”  

“Huh?” Yu Xiaopang scratched his head, confused. “You don’t like silver bracelets, Xiaxia? Grandma Shen wears them all the time. She even wraps them up so carefully, like they’re super precious.”  

Shen Jinxia didn’t fully understand why her grandmother cherished those silver bracelets either.  

But she remembered her mother’s words.  

Mom had said she liked gold bracelets.  

So, of course, Shen Jinxia decided, “Then I like gold bracelets too.”  

“I don’t like silver bracelets. I like gold bracelets. Gold bracelets look good,” Shen Jinxia said seriously.

Fang Xiaoluo, overhearing their conversation, almost couldn’t stop laughing.

Yu Xiaopang suddenly seemed to have an epiphany. “Okay, I’ll go home and ask my mom for a gold bracelet. She must think a silver one isn’t good enough for you.”

Fang Xiaoluo coughed twice. “Little Fatty.”

“What’s wrong, Aunt?”

“Auntie advises you not to go home and ask for it, or you’ll get beaten,” Fang Xiaoluo said with a smile.

Yu Xiaopang looked confused. “Why?”

Fang Xiaoluo explained, “Both gold and silver are valuable. If you want to give someone a gift, it’s best to earn money and buy it yourself. That way, it shows you’re sincere.”

Yu Xiaopang seemed to grasp the idea, though not fully. Still, he understood that Fang Xiaoluo meant he should work to earn the money. “Okay, Auntie, I understand. Thank you, Auntie.”

The little boy quickly forgot about the threat of his father’s anger and happily resumed playing hopscotch with Shen Jinxia and Shen Haiping.

As Fang Xiaoluo glanced at the vegetables in the yard, she called out to Shen Haiping, “Haiping, just play for a bit more, don’t get too tired.”

“Okay,” he responded obediently.

Zheng Lanhua sat on the steps, mending socks while watching the bustle in the yard. Since the accident that took Shen Zheng’s father, she hadn’t felt this relaxed in her life.

The next morning, Fang Xiaoluo received a message from the compound’s communication room, saying that someone wanted to speak with her.

Her first thought was of Tang Jingxian.

Sure enough, when she answered the call, it was Tang Jingxian on the other end.

“Xiaoluo, may I call you that?”

“Of course,” Fang Xiaoluo replied.

Tang Jingxian said, “You still have cabbage to sell to me. Can I come see your land? Also, I want to taste what your cabbage is like.”

Fang Xiaoluo answered, “No problem. Sister Tang, when are you free?”

Tang Jingxian said, “Today or tomorrow works for me, just let me know when it’s convenient for you.”

Fang Xiaoluo thought for a moment. It was still early, and if she left for Qingshi Town now, she could catch the next bus to Jiangcheng. “How about this, Sister Tang? I’ll head out now, and we can meet in an hour at the bus stop by the entrance to Honghe Village.”

Knowing that Fang Xiaoluo was going to visit her parents’ home, Zheng Lanhua said, “Xiaoluo, take some milk powder and malted milk with you. Also, here are the apples I bought yesterday, take them with you.”

Fang Xiaoluo didn’t refuse, understanding that it was Zheng Lanhua’s way of caring for her. “Thank you, Mom.”

Shen Jinxia had already gone out to play with the other children, and Shen Haiping, who wasn’t as outgoing as his siblings, stayed at home, quietly painting.

When he heard that Fang Xiaoluo was going out, he looked over and after thinking for a while, he shyly asked, “Mom, can I… can I go with you?”

Fang Xiaoluo considered it for a moment, feeling there was no harm in it since her parents were still at home.

“Okay, if you want to come with me.”

Shen Haiping smiled, quickly packed up his things, and went outside to wait for Fang Xiaoluo.

Fang Xiaoluo looked at Shen Haiping, who appeared so obedient and eager to please. He seemed like he was afraid of doing something wrong and upsetting anyone. Although he smiled, there was an underlying caution in his demeanor.