Chapter 121: Chapter 121: A chance encounter
The holiday season always passes quickly. At the second store, it was almost the Lunar New Year before Mei Yiliang and the others had just begun to put things back in order.
Over the past three months, the four families that Feng Zhenchang and the others took to the provincial capital have all had a good income and saved between one and two thousand yuan. So on this day of the New Year's Eve, the four families that buy chestnuts no longer do business, and the five families that go into the city make an appointment to go to the goods fair together.
This fair is the third time it has been held, and it is still not indoors, but in a square by the river.
Once there, the atmosphere of the New Year was all around. There were red arches at the four entrances. Once inside, there were steel frames with large tents on the square, covered with sky-blue tarpaulins. The passages between the tents were not narrow, at least two lanes wide. At this time, the place was full of people. Under the big red banners of each tent, there were crowds of people, and the atmosphere was lively.
Dong Mingge said, 'The people in the city have no different New Year than us, they also go shopping for New Year goods.'
Haha, it's true, nowadays city people usually go shopping for New Year goods as a family, unlike later generations, at similar fairs, young people are too lazy to come, and it's mostly the elderly.
Everyone acts separately, just not buying anything, to feel the atmosphere, and to have something to talk about back at home.
The city has all kinds of hidden benefits, especially for non-staple foods and clothes, which are actually cheaper than in the town. Even if everyone is used to saving, they still come out with quite a lot in their hands.
When it was time to leave, a few housewives in the group felt a little regretful, 'Why did we buy so much?'
Haha, this is the magic of the trade fair, it can arouse your desire to buy.
Early the next morning, carrying big bags and small bags, everyone set off for home with joy in their hearts.
Huang Chengzhong also had a comfortable New Year. After some manoeuvring, he finally transferred to the town forestry station before the New Year. When he was in the countryside, he always felt a bit insecure. The township had already been abolished and merged, and at any time a document might come down that the forestry station would also be disbanded. Finally, he arrived in the town, which made him feel a lot more at ease.
When he was happy, he agreed to Huang Jingping's request and let her stay in the town a few days before the New Year, taking her younger sister with her to play for a few days.
She didn't really like going shopping, but these past two days she had been taking her younger sister out everywhere, especially every afternoon since the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month. She would take her sister from one end of the street to the other, but they never bought anything.
On the afternoon of the day before the Chinese New Year, she took her younger sister out again. As usual, she didn't look at anything much, just people.
Her younger sister, who was in primary school, was a bit more outgoing. After a few days of just following her sister around in the crowds, she had already become impatient. At this time, she saw a stall with all kinds of colourful sweets, and she couldn't help but stop in her tracks. Huang Jingping looked around for a while, sighed, and weighed a few taels of sweets for her younger sister. 'It's the day before the Chinese New Year, why haven't you come back yet?'
On the 25th of this month, after lunch, Huang Jingping went out on the street again, wandering aimlessly among the crowd. She went to the bus stop at the end of the street and looked around, but to no avail. She suspected that she had already missed it. As she was about to go home, she suddenly heard someone calling her. She turned around and saw Wang Changning standing up from beside the flower bed. Oh, it seems to be today!
She walked over and asked knowingly, 'Why are you here alone, waiting for the bus? Where are you going?'
'No, where can I go? My parents and sister are coming back from the provincial capital today and will be here in the afternoon. I'm fine on my own, so I'll just wait for them here.' There weren't many people here, and it was a bit more open, so the wind was stronger. Wang Changning rubbed his hands together as he spoke.
'What time will they arrive? Why don't you go and sit with my dad?'
'Around 3 or 4 o'clock, it'll be soon. It's fine, don't worry.'
'That's still two or three hours. Go and visit my dad, you can leave an hour early.' Huang Jingping invited him.
Huang Chengzhong understood that if nothing unexpected happened, he would be in this position in the town until retirement, so he had the idea of taking root in the town. This time, he was still assigned to a dormitory with only one room. He planned to bring his wife to the town to do some small business, so he rented a private house. If things developed well, he planned to buy a piece of land in the town and build a house.
Huang Chengzhong was not at home. He had a lot of social engagements the year before and had just started his new job. At this time, he had a lot of people to visit, so only his youngest daughter was at home alone, listening to music and reading a novel around the fire.
Huang Jingping and Wang Changning actually didn't have much to talk about, so as they chatted, they talked about Feng Yiping again. 'He did really well on this exam, again ranking first in his year and second in the county. He was less than three points away from first place, which is a real shame.'
'Yes, it's the third time he's been second in the whole county.' Wang Changning said, smiling a little. Feng Yiping had gone up to him before the results were announced to ask for his report card, and he had asked with a smile, "Will you still be second?" Feng Yiping had muttered something at the time, sounding like "eternal second place" or something.
Next, Huang Jingping asked some questions indirectly, all about Feng Yiping. Her meaning was clear to Wang Changning, and he was a little relieved. It was good that Xiao Zhijie and Zhang Qiuling were on good terms now, otherwise it would have been quite a problem.
Finally, Huang Jingping asked a seemingly casual question, 'His family is in the provincial capital, so Feng Yiping won't transfer to another school, will he?'
'No,' she said. This was a question Wang Changning had also asked, and Feng Yiping had answered him categorically at the time.
'Oh, that's good, then the teachers won't have to worry,' Huang Jingping said happily.
So, women are born actors.
It was almost four o'clock when Wang Changning finally waited at the bus stop for the group of people returning from the provincial capital. Feng Yiping, carrying a large bag, was the first to get off the bus and smiled at him, saying, 'What, such a big person, still missing your mother?'
Mei Qiuping patted him on the head from behind, 'Why, can't I?'
Feng Yuxuan gloated beside her, "Good hit!'
Wang Chang'an also got off the bus. "Brother,' Wang Changning ran over, then watched as his parents got off the bus. 'Mom,' he went over to take a bag from her hand. What his mother said was the same as what Mei Qiuping had said when she saw Feng Yiping: 'You've grown taller again, and you're still so skinny.'
The adults walked in front, and the two of them walked and talked, but soon fell behind. Wang Changning gave Feng Yiping his report card and told him his ranking in the county again. Feng Yiping was annoyed. This was the second time he had come in second, and when would the teachers at Liangjiahe Middle School be able to participate in marking the papers?
When they reached the fruit stall area, Wang Changning nudged Feng Yiping. He glanced over and saw Huang Jingping wearing a semi-long, maroon-coloured woolen jacket, a blue silk scarf around her neck, a yellow woolen hat in her hand, and leading a little girl with two pigtails as she strolled past the stalls.
Feng Yiping thought, what a coincidence, we meet again this year, 'Huang Jingping!' he shouted.
Huang Jingping turned her head and also looked surprised at the coincidence. 'Feng Yiping, what are you... just back?'
'Yes, just arrived. And you? Doing your New Year's shopping?'
Wang Changning winked at Feng Yiping from the side, 'Didn't you just say you had a gift for her? Isn't this perfect?'
Feng Yiping was taken aback. There was no such thing. But then he understood. He took out a set of exercise books from Huanggang High School from his bag, plus an electronic watch, 'I bought them while I was wandering around the provincial capital. I was going to give them to you when the new semester starts, but now it's perfect.'
'This is your younger sister, right? Here, this pen is for you,' Feng Yiping said to the little girl holding Huang Jingping's hand.
'You shouldn't have,' Huang Jingping declined, but Wang Changning persuaded her, 'It's his way of showing his feelings. You should take it since he bought it!'
Just then, someone called out to them from the front to hurry up, so Feng Yiping shoved the things into her hands and said, 'My parents are calling me, I'll go first.' fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
As they walked away in the crowd, Huang Jingping said to her sister, 'Can I have the pen?'
'No,'
'I'll trade you something!'
'No!'
'How about I buy you something delicious?'
The two walking in front of them were also arguing, "You don't have any of your share," Feng Yiping said to Wang Changning.
'How can you do that? I'm doing this for you, I don't care, give me this share, and find another way to get Xiao Zhijie's share.'