A little after five, Zhou Huaijin got off work and headed home. The first thing he did upon returning wasn’t unlocking his own door, but knocking on Xu Huiqing’s.
This neighbor was a woman living alone with her three-year-old child. If something had happened to Xu Huiqing, it could mean two lives lost. He wouldn’t feel at ease without checking on her condition first.
After an afternoon of rest, some mung bean soup, and a bottle of Huoxiang Zhengqi Water, Xu Huiqing was feeling much better.
Zhou Huaijin held groceries he’d bought on his way home from the market. “Don’t bother going out for dinner tonight. I bought some food. Living alone, I can never finish it all by myself. You’d actually be helping me out.”
Xu Huiqing was already deeply indebted to him and didn’t say much more, just resolved to treat him to more meals in the future.
Xiaoxi was awake too. Spotting the little one trailing behind Xu Huiqing, Zhou Huaijin crouched down to greet her before heading home to cook.
Dinner was again at Zhou Huaijin’s place. Enjoying his air conditioner, Xu Huiqing thought about the even hotter months of July and August ahead and realized she needed a refrigerator and an AC unit of her own.
In those days, appliances like air conditioners and refrigerators were terribly expensive, a far worse investment than buying a house or shop. Besides, the house was rented; moving bulky things like an AC and fridge later would be a huge hassle.
She had no choice but to suppress the urge to buy them and instead asked Zhou Huaijin about the pre-sale for the shopping mall under construction outside their residential compound.
As the local beat cop, Zhou Huaijin knew a thing or two about this mall.
The mall was a large-scale comprehensive market founded by the Provincial Construction Group Company and registered with the Provincial Administration for Industry and Commerce. It covered over a hundred acres and included a parking lot and other market facilities spanning more than ten thousand square meters.
He hadn’t expected Xu Huiqing, barely two days in the area, to have her eye on a shop unit still under construction. He couldn’t help but ask, “Are you thinking of buying or renting?”
“Buying!” Xu Huiqing confirmed. “Can you help me find out the shop prices? Do they require full payment or is a down payment possible? How do bank loans work for this? What are the prices for the various upstairs and downstairs units? How much for a street-facing shop on the first floor?”
The mall’s construction had just begun, not even a rough structure yet. Most people had no clue what was even being built here. Yet here was Xu Huiqing, new to town, already asking about prices and looking to buy.
Zhou Huaijin was a bit taken aback. “I’ll ask around for you later.”
Xu Huiqing nodded. She needed to figure out the shop prices, the down payment percentage, and whether the bank would approve a loan before she could know if she’d have any money left to buy a house.
Wu City.
Zhao Zongbao had been waiting for Xu Huiqing for three straight days. He’d expected her the day after, but she never showed.
Out on the outside, he would have lost his temper long ago. But inside prison, he couldn’t leave; all he could do was wait for his sisters to visit.
He was hot-tempered by nature, and the longer he waited, the more his anger festered. He had already imagined the furious storm that would greet Xu Huiqing and his sisters when they finally arrived.
Fifth Sister Zhao arrived at the Zhao Family Shop, cradling Zhao Bei in her arms, unconsciously rocking the little baby. She asked Eldest Sister Zhao, “Did Xu Huiqing really leave?”
She found it hard to believe. Xu Huiqing said she’d divorce, and she did. Said she didn’t want her son, and she simply didn’t.
She’d wanted to snatch Xu Huiqing’s son, but the ease with which Xu Huiqing had left left a bad taste in her mouth. She stood at the shop entrance, peering up and down the street as if hoping to spot Xu Huiqing. “You’d never guess it normally,” she muttered. “She looks so soft and easy to bully. But when she gets ruthless, damn, she’s really ruthless. Breaks Zongbao’s leg, gets Dad and Second Brother thrown in jail, and just up and leaves.”
Eldest Sister Zhao nodded in agreement beside her. “I’m telling you, it’s always the quiet ones you gotta watch out for. When they finally snap, they’re the cruelest of all. People like us, all bark and no bite—we’re the ones with the softest hearts when it really matters!”
Fifth Sister Zhao agreed. “Who could have seen that such a vicious woman was hiding under that surface?” She hugged Zhao Bei closer. “Good thing our Keke didn’t go with her. Would he have any good days ahead if he did?” She cooed at the increasingly adorable baby in her arms, who had just opened his eyes wide. “Isn’t that right, Keke? Hmm?”
With Xu Huiqing gone, she feared Eldest Sister and her husband would empty her parents’ house of all its appliances. She and Liu Shengyi had no land or fields, no jobs, and nothing but idle time. So, she had Liu Shengyi move back with her to her parents’ place to guard the family belongings.
The shop had opened for a few days now; they’d sold a few electric fans, and she’d collected all the money herself.
Eldest Sister Zhao would’ve liked to collect it too, but every last cent in her parents’ drawers had been taken by her husband for gambling. Though she had no proof, Fifth Sister Zhao was certain Eldest Sister’s couple had pocketed it. Their parents’ bedroom door had also been pried open. Even though Eldest Sister swore up and down it wasn’t them, blaming Xu Huiqing, Fifth Sister Zhao, of course, suspected Xu Huiqing, but she suspected Eldest Sister’s couple even more.
When it came to character, she’d rather trust an outsider like Xu Huiqing over her own eldest sister and her husband.
Anyway, she’d planted herself at her parents’ place and wasn’t leaving. No matter what, she couldn’t let Eldest Sister’s couple take anything else.
Eldest Sister Zhao also had a guilty conscience. Since Fifth Sister moved in, she hadn’t dared to pocket a single cent. The more guilty she acted, the more certain Fifth Sister became that her eldest sister’s couple had taken the family money, which only made her guard things more tightly.
After waiting a whole week with no sign of Xu Huiqing, Fifth Sister Zhao discussed with Liu Shengyi about registering Keke’s household registration under their own family booklet.
Liu Shengyi knew how troublesome his little brother-in-law and father-in-law could be. The father-in-law was gone now, but he was still scared of Zhao Zongbao. “Will your little brother agree to that?” he asked hesitantly.
Fifth Sister Zhao scoffed. “I’m raising his son for him, damn it! If he doesn’t agree, he can raise the kid himself!” She rolled her eyes. “You think he’s gonna be able to hold out and not remarry once he’s out? After Xu Huiqing just leaves him like that, you think he’s not gonna hate her guts? When he gets out, will he treat Keke well? And when he gets a new wife, will there even be a place for Keke in that house? Better off with us. We’ve been caring for him since he was a few days old, raised him since he was tiny. Isn’t that the same as our own flesh and blood?”
Liu Shengyi felt his heart stir.
He and Fifth Sister Zhao had been married seven or eight years and only had one daughter. His childhood friends all mocked him for having no son, for cutting off his family line. Even if he didn’t go back to the countryside, he couldn’t avoid it during New Year’s. Every time he heard it, it stung deeply.
But he still hesitated. “What about his other aunt…”
“‘Other aunt’? She ran off! What ‘other aunt’ is there? I raised Keke. He’s my son! What right does she have to come snatch him? She dares try, and I’ll fight her to the death!” The mere mention of Xu Huiqing possibly coming to take her son made Fifth Sister Zhao bristle like a fighting cock. Blustering and aggressive, she put on a ferocious show, ready to fight to the bitter end.
Liu Shengyi quickly tried to soothe her. “Don’t fly off the handle. I’m just saying. At worst, we just don’t go back to the countryside for New Year’s. We’ll go somewhere else for a few days and come back after she’s gone.”
When Fifth Sister Zhao and Liu Shengyi got married, Xu Huiqing hadn’t yet married into the family. After she did, she’d only visited Liu Shengyi’s rural hometown once, leaving almost immediately without staying long. If Xu Huiqing had to go again, she probably wouldn’t even be able to find Liu Shengyi’s family home.
But not knowing the way didn’t mean she couldn’t ask.
Later, because Fifth Sister Zhao and Liu Shengyi couldn’t produce a son, the gossip in the countryside never stopped. Their in-laws kicked them out of the family division, giving them not a single plot of land—only two hundred yuan. They were sent to the village where Liu Shengyi’s maternal grandmother lived to build a tiny house.
Back when they built that house, Xu Huiqing had even supported them with a hundred yuan. Of course, she used the Zhao family’s money for it, which got her scolded by Old Zhao for it.
Old Zhao wouldn’t give Xiaoxi a single cent, saying every penny was Zhao family money. He was just as stingy with his five daughters.
Xu Huiqing, on the other hand, was generous and open-handed.
Well, she was spending Zhao family money, so why wouldn’t she be generous?
The Zhao sisters all knew this sister-in-law of theirs was soft-hearted and easy to talk to. Whatever problem they had, they always came to Xu Huiqing, never to their parents or little brother.
Because Xu Huiqing would genuinely help them. Their parents and brother wouldn’t care if they lived or died.
After she and Liu Shengyi moved to her mother-in-law’s home village, the loss of face was so great that not a single one of her own sisters or parents ever came to visit. She and Liu Shengyi didn’t want them to, anyway. The distance to town wasn’t too far; a twenty or thirty-minute bike ride. Whenever something came up, she and Liu Shengyi would just go to her parents’ place in town.
But Xu Huiqing did at least know the name of the village brigade where they now lived. Even if Xu Huiqing had never been there, they still worried she might find her way and try to take their son. So, they planned to take Keke and hide somewhere else during the New Year’s holiday, only returning after Xu Huiqing had left. In a few years, when Keke was older, Xu Huiqing might walk right past him on the street and not even recognize him!
Fifth Sister Zhao was sonless herself and wanted to take Xu Huiqing’s son. Deep down, she had a guilty conscience about Xu Huiqing. She talked fierce, but if it actually came to a confrontation with Xu Huiqing over the boy, she wasn’t confident she’d win.
Xu Huiqing had three older brothers who were unbelievably united. Anytime anything happened, Xu Huiqing just had to call, and all her brothers and sisters-in-law would show up!
On her husband’s side, he’d long since fallen out with his own brother over the family division and land, and they’d lost contact. Her own brother, Zhao Zongbao, was even more useless. Since childhood, only the sisters ever did anything for him, charging ahead and taking the hits. Expect him to help with anything? They’d never once managed to get him to lift a finger.
As for her sisters, forget the eldest. She’d been the craftiest since they were kids. She always talked a good game, but actually helping? Impossible. She never missed a chance to take advantage.
The second sister was convicted of human trafficking with solid evidence and sentenced to eight years. Who knew when she’d get out!
She’d only been locked up a few years, and the second sister’s husband had reportedly already taken up with the village widow.
The third sister was okay, a real pushover who’d help anyone who asked. But her husband? Ask him to do something for you, and he’d run faster than a rabbit. Not only would he refuse, but he’d stop his wife from helping, too.
And the fourth sister was even less worth mentioning. Never once had she seen her step up. She always just hid silently behind the other sisters.
If it really came to a fight with Xu Huiqing, she herself was barely five feet tall. Compared to Xu Huiqing, who was over five-foot-six, she’d have to jump just to grab her hair!
Without hiding from her, what else could she do?
Besides, she had no intention of letting Keke know she wasn’t his real mother. If she got into a fight with Xu Huiqing, wouldn’t Keke find out about his origins?
She had to wait until he was raised, until he was fully bonded to her. By then, Xu Huiqing would have remarried and had new sons, no longer caring about Keke. At that point, she wouldn’t be afraid even if he learned he wasn’t her biological son!
She slapped her thigh. “That’s what we’ll do! At worst, when Zongbao gets out, we’ll take Keke and go find work out of town! All those village women go work in factories and earn money. No way I can’t do the same. What makes me worse than them?”
Fifth Sister Zhao had brought a younger brother into the family, which had given her a higher status at home than the other sisters. She’d even gone to middle school, which gave her a certain confidence and a refusal to believe she was inferior to anyone. She wasn’t afraid of competing in the outside world.
Liu Shengyi, looked down upon by everyone for lacking a son, wasn’t having an easy time in his grandmother’s village either. He’d long wanted to go out and seek his fortune. Hearing Fifth Sister Zhao’s words filled him with anticipation. “Once we’re out there,” he said, “we’ll just say Keke is our biological son. When we come back in a couple of years, who’s going to say we don’t have a son?”
Looking at Keke, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of affection. He felt more and more that this child was destined to be his own flesh and blood. The more he looked, the more precious the boy seemed, thinking how much he resembled Fifth Sister Zhao.
A son who looks like his mother—no one could say anything about that.
Except for one thing: the eyes. Both he and Fifth Sister Zhao had single eyelids. Keke had his mother’s eyes—double eyelids, big, gorgeous grape-like eyes, stunningly beautiful.
Fifth Sister Zhao grew fonder of Keke the more she looked at him. Afraid that waiting would only invite trouble, she secretly discussed with Liu Shengyi, “While Xu Huiqing is gone and Zongbao is still locked up, we need to hurry and register Keke’s household registration tomorrow.”
The couple were in instant agreement, completely forgetting what Zhao Zongbao had told them about bringing Xu Huiqing to visit him. That matter was cast to the winds.
Back in H City, Zhou Huaijin also quickly gathered information about the shop units in the mall under construction.
As the police officer in charge of this area, it was easy for him to get information. Once he confirmed the details, he came to tell Xu Huiqing.
“The mall being built is currently planned for three floors,” he said. “The first floor will have 4,200 shops. The second and third floors will each have around three to four thousand. Prices vary depending on the location. For example, the row of street-facing shops you mentioned has the highest prices. The area closest to the road leading to the kindergarten is the cheapest. Shops further inside also have different prices. It depends on which one you want.”
Xu Huiqing naturally wanted the street-facing shops. Only a fool would go for the ones near the kindergarten road. Even though that area bordered the Yinshan Community, she knew the street-facing shops would be the most popular in the future.
“Can you tell me the specific prices?”
Indeed, Xu Huiqing had asked the right person this time.
Because he was the police officer for the local station, Zhou Huaijin’s information was the most complete, and the prices he got were the absolute lowest.
Zhou Huaijin didn’t know how much money Xu Huiqing had, but he figured a girl fresh from the countryside, even if she’d been a teacher with some savings, probably had two thousand yuan at most.
He started by introducing the shops near the road to the kindergarten. “These units are mostly between twenty and thirty-eight square meters. Prices are around two hundred yuan per square meter. Even the smallest twenty-square-meter shop would cost about four thousand yuan. But I have a friend who works at a bank. I went there today to ask. As long as you have a job, official employment, and income to prove you can make regular loan payments, you can get a loan. The down payment for a shop is 50%. So, if you want to buy a shop, this area is the most suitable.”
He pointed to a spot on the floor plan he’d brought back.
Xu Huiqing, however, wasn’t looking at where he pointed. Her gaze was fixed on the street-facing section, the shops with larger areas and the highest prices. “What about the prices here?”
Zhou Huaijin looked at where her finger had landed on the floor plan and paused. The plan showed the planned area of each shop after construction. The smallest were just over thirty square meters, some large ones were forty or fifty, and a few were even connected to the second floor.
He hesitated for a moment and said, “This row of shops ranges from three hundred to four hundred yuan per square meter. Are you sure you want to buy here?”
Xu Huiqing nodded, looking at Zhou Huaijin. “I’m sure!”