Li Qiuhua gave her daughter a reproachful glance but smiled at the salesperson.
“Comrade, please cut seven feet each of the pink and pale yellow printed fabrics, seven feet of white seersucker, and seven feet each of the black plain cotton and twill cotton.”

“Oh, and also ten feet of plain white cotton.”

Her daughter was growing up, and it was time to sew her a couple of new undershirts.

The salesperson moved quickly, and before Li Qiuhua even finished paying with money and ration tickets, the cut fabric was already neatly packed into the basket on her back.

Then there was Xiao Weidong’s White Rabbit candy, followed by oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other essentials.

Watching her children happily pick out daily necessities, Li Qiuhua had a sudden change of heart.

She’d spent half her life living cautiously, and what had it gotten her? Her children eating coarse grain and barely any meat. Why should she hold back now?

With no resistance from her mother, Shen Zhihuan became even more unrestrained.
Malt milk, pastries, canned food—she bought whatever caught her eye. If her basket had been larger, she might have kept going.

Leaving the department store, Shen Zhihuan led Li Qiuhua and Xiao Weidong straight to the state-run restaurant.

It was lunchtime, and the restaurant was bustling with activity and noise.

After finding seats for Li Qiuhua and Xiao Weidong, Shen Zhihuan went to place the order.

Soon, three bowls of shredded pork noodles and a plate of fragrant braised pork were served.

The braised pork, with alternating layers of fat and lean meat, was clearly made from top-quality pork belly.

In these times, fatty meat was more prized than lean meat. Fat meat could be rendered into cooking oil and provided more sustenance.

The aroma rising from the shredded pork noodles and braised pork made Xiao Weidong swallow hard.

“Hurry and eat before the noodles get soggy,” Shen Zhihuan said, mixing the noodles in front of Xiao Weidong and placing several pieces of braised pork on his plate.

“Okay!” Xiao Weidong nodded enthusiastically, grabbing his chopsticks and digging in.

“Mom, you eat too!” Shen Zhihuan said as she piled more braised pork into Li Qiuhua’s bowl.

“I don’t like meat. You and Weidong eat more,” Li Qiuhua said, trying to return the braised pork to her daughter’s bowl.

“Mom…” Shen Zhihuan quickly moved her bowl away. “Our lives will only get better from now on. You don’t have to hold back anymore. Eat what you like; we can afford it now.”

As she spoke, she added more braised pork to both Li Qiuhua’s and Wei Dong’s bowls.

“Don’t just serve us. You eat too!” Li Qiuhua said with a smile, adding some meat to Shen Zhihuan’s bowl.

“Third Sister, eat more!” Xiao Weidong chirped, standing on tiptoe to place a piece of braised pork in her bowl.

“Alright, let’s all eat more!” Shen Zhihuan said with a grin, taking a bite of the braised pork.

It was just an ordinary plate of braised pork, but it filled the three of them with immense satisfaction.

After finishing their meal, Shen Zhihuan went back to the counter to pack six large pork buns for the road.

They had taken a bullock cart to get to the county, but since there was no cart for the return trip, they had to walk back.

Li Qiuhua and Xiao Weidong, who were used to hard labor, managed fine, but Shen Zhihuan—frail and unused to exertion—struggled.

Already tired from a restless night and hours of shopping, the scorching sun made her feel dizzy and weak.

They stopped to rest frequently, and by the time they reached the production team, the sun was already low in the sky.

To avoid attracting attention, the three of them took a side path by the mountain, but their luck ran out when they bumped into Li Zhaodi, who was returning from foraging for wild vegetables.

Li Qiuhua instinctively adjusted the top layer of wild greens covering the basket on her back, afraid that Li Zhaodi might see something she shouldn’t.

Li Zhaodi had a reputation for gossiping. Even baseless rumors gained traction once she spread them, and if she got wind of anything, the entire production team—and possibly the whole village—would know by the next day.

“Well, well, Zhihuan’s mom! Looks like you’ve been out buying goodies all day?” Li Zhaodi’s eyes darted to the basket on Li Qiuhua’s back.

“You really know how to joke, Zhaodi. If my family had money to buy nice things, would we still need to borrow coarse grain from the production team?” Li Qiuhua forced a smile, though her heart was racing.

In Li Zhaodi’s eyes, that was an expression of extreme shame.

After all, borrowing grain from the production team was rare, even in these hard times. Most people would rather borrow from relatives or neighbors than have their struggles publicly known.

But who would lend anything to the Shen family? They were old, sick, and weak—a sure loss for anyone foolish enough to help them.

It was only because Wang Tiezhu from her family had a kind heart that he was willing to lend the production team’s grain to there family.

Li Zhaodi gave Shen Zhihuan a disapproving look, her eyes sweeping over the exhausted girl.

“Zhihuan’s mom, I’m just saying—your girl’s old enough to work. Look at the other girls in the village. They’ve been earning work points since they were five or six.”

The disdain on Li Zhaodi’s face was palpable, as if she were one step away from calling Shen Zhihuan a useless burden.

Shen Zhihuan rolled her eyes. It’s not like we owe the production team’s grain to you. Why do you care so much?

Li Qiuhua’s face darkened. “Zhihuan’s health is weak…”

“Weak?” Li Zhaodi scoffed. “If she never sees sunlight, of course, she’s weak. Let her work the fields for ten days, and she’ll…”

“Mom, is that Aunt Gao over there? Doesn’t she live on the north side of the village? What’s she doing over here?” Shen Zhihuan interrupted, pointing toward the east.

Li Zhaodi’s face turned black.

“Zhihuan’s mom, I have to go!” she blurted before scurrying off like a startled rabbit.

Her speed was almost comical.

“You little rascal!” Li Qiuhua chuckled, playfully poking Shen Zhihuan’s forehead.

The feud between Li Zhaodi and Gao Xiuxiu was a village legend, going back decades to when Gao had an affair with Li Zhaodi’s husband. Even now, despite their separate lives, Li Zhaodi was always on edge around Gao.

Especially after Gao Xiuxiu’s husband passed away, Li Zhaodi guarded against Gao Xiuxiu as if she were guarding against a thief, fearing that Gao Xiuxiu might secretly try to seduce her mab.

Even during routine production team meetings, she kept a strict watch, afraid that the two would rekindle their old flame and get involved again.

“Serves her right for gossiping,” Shen Zhihuan said, laughing as she linked arms with her mother.

If Li Zhaodi could spread baseless rumors, why couldn’t she throw a little truth into the mix?

The original Shen Zhihuan had been bullied throughout school for her frailty and introverted nature, always retreating to the old warehouse behind the school to nurse her wounds in solitude.

It was there she once accidentally stumbled upon Wang Tiezhu and Gao Xiuxiu in a heated… altercation. Judging by their familiarity, it was clear their entanglement had lasted years.

Only someone as oblivious as Li Zhaodi would think her marriage was rock solid.