Chapter 10: Did We Get a Good Deal?

Apologizing, in Liu Guifang’s eyes, was just a matter of saying a few words. Su Qinghu didn’t make a fuss or insist on holding them accountable, and even offered to compensate for the loss of her pomegranate tree. That was no different from a pie falling from the sky.

Fifty-two yuan—giving Su Qinghu five yuan as compensation was nothing she couldn’t accept.

But as soon as Dadan mentioned the coat was foreign-made, not only Liu Guifang, but even the onlookers fell silent.

How much could that cost?

A men’s round-neck shirt only cost two yuan these days, and even the most expensive children’s jackets made domestically weren’t that pricey. But this was a foreign coat…

Liu Guifang unconsciously withdrew her outstretched hand, her gaze toward Su Qinghu wavering. What if the coat was worth more than fifty-two yuan?

Su Qinghu was also surprised and looked at Dadan—she had no recollection of this coat.

Dadan didn’t look at Su Qinghu or Liu Guifang, but instead turned to the teenage girl standing next to Liu Guifang. “Aren’t you going to say something? I told you how much that coat cost.”

He’d made a point of telling her the value of the coat so she wouldn’t treat it carelessly.

Liu Guifang picked up on the implication in Dadan’s words, her heart beating faster. Could it really be as she feared—that the coat was worth more than fifty-two yuan?

The girl stayed silent, head lowered even further, her hands nervously picking at the seam of her pants.

Liu Guifang blocked Dadan’s gaze, forcing a smile. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have accused you of being a hooligan without getting the facts.” Then she patted her daughter. “Apologize.”

The girl kept her head down and mumbled, “I’m sorry.”

Seeing her daughter apologize, Liu Guifang quickly added, “I don’t want the money anymore. Let’s just consider it compensation for your son’s coat.”

With that, she grabbed her daughter and turned to leave.

“Wait!” Su Qinghu called out.

Liu Guifang stopped involuntarily and looked back at Su Qinghu, who didn’t look at her but instead asked Dadan, “Do you want the coat back, or compensation?”

“The coat,” Dadan answered without hesitation. Meeting Su Qinghu’s serious gaze, he added, “Someone once offered a hundred yuan to buy that coat.”

A hundred yuan!

The crowd collectively gasped, and the air seemed to freeze.

Liu Guifang spun around and slapped her daughter. “Do you even know what kind of person you are, taking someone else’s coat like that? A hundred yuan! Do you know how much that is? Do you know how much that could cover for our family? Do you know you’re about to pay your school fees again? Who do you think you are? Even the landlords in the old days weren’t as wasteful as you!”

Su Qinghu watched Liu Guifang slap her daughter again and again, her eyes narrowing. Then she glanced at Erdan.

So this is what the little guy meant by “pointing at the mulberry tree and cursing the locust tree”—indirectly scolding someone, right?

Erdan had been watching Liu Guifang hit her daughter with great interest. Noticing Su Qinghu’s gaze, he grinned at her.

“Excuse me—” Su Qinghu quickly searched her mind for the proper way to address a married woman in this era, then said, “Sister-in-law, stop hitting the child. I won’t feel like you’re slapping me in the face or undermining my dignity.”

Almost at the same time, Liu Guifang’s hand froze mid-air, Erdan nearly choked on his own saliva, and even the onlookers felt a sting on their faces.

Su Qinghu subtly raised her eyebrows, a smile on her red lips, and walked over to the girl. “Come on, tell… Auntie, where did you put Zhang Anyan’s coat?”

After being slapped by her own mother and stared at by so many people, the girl’s psychological defenses finally crumbled. She burst into tears and told the truth.

The girl had just started her period, and there was blood on her pants. Dadan, disgusted by the way the local hooligans were staring at her, gave her his coat to cover up. The girl thought she was dying and wanted to look pretty before she went, so she traded Dadan’s coat for a beautiful dress…

And that was when Liu Guifang came to demand an explanation.

Su Qinghu was stunned—she never expected this to be the reason. Liu Guifang was also at a loss as to whether she should keep hitting her daughter, so she just gritted her teeth and asked where the coat was.

“No need to ask,” Su Qinghu stopped her. “It’s like finding a treasure at a flea market—once it’s gone, who’s going to give it back?”

Liu Guifang wanted to argue, but Su Qinghu raised her hand to cut her off. “I’ll still pay you for the pomegranate tree. Have your father-in-law make something for me. Not too much—just something worth fifty yuan.”

“Bamboo or rattan is fine. I’ll give you the design tomorrow at noon.”

Liu Guifang breathed a sigh of relief. Bamboo and rattan were cheap, and both her husband and father-in-law could weave. With a few months’ expenses covered, she actually felt like she’d come out ahead.

She agreed readily.

Su Qinghu waved for Dadan to bring paper and pen, quickly wrote a simple agreement, and after both parties signed, each kept a copy and went their separate ways.

Back in the courtyard, Su Qinghu went to the kitchen to pour off the water from the salted cucumber strips, then set them out in the sunniest spot to dry. Only then did she turn to the little tail following her.

“What is it?” Su Qinghu asked, not turning around as she headed back to the kitchen to check the seasonings.

Erdan scratched his head. “Is she stupid? Why did she just believe my brother when he said how much the coat cost?”

Su Qinghu took out a ceramic jar, opened the lid to confirm it was sugar, scooped out a spoonful and put it in a bowl, then smiled at him. “Go ask your brother.”

Erdan immediately turned to Dadan, who pointed at the neat, tidy courtyard. “Think for yourself.”

Seeing the tacit understanding between Su Qinghu and Dadan, Erdan suddenly felt left out. He pouted and muttered, “Fine, don’t tell me. I don’t want to know anyway…”

“You have to figure it out,” Dadan said coldly. “If you can’t before dinner’s ready, you don’t get any meat.”

“How could you? Are you even my brother? I was ready to fight for you just now!” Erdan puffed up like a pufferfish. “Whenever I have good food, I always save some for you. Did you forget?”

Dadan: “I didn’t forget. But you still have to figure it out.”

Su Qinghu didn’t get involved in their squabble. She just focused on mixing the seasonings, then brought the sun-dried cucumber strips back in, put them in a big bowl, poured in the sauce, and covered it with another bowl.

When she turned around, the two boys had stopped arguing and were just staring at her—or more precisely, at the big bowl behind her.

“What is it?”

Su Qinghu glanced at the bowl but didn’t see anything unusual, so she turned back.

Dadan seemed about to say something, but Erdan jumped in first, praising the delicious smell of the cucumber and signaling his brother behind his back not to say anything.

But Su Qinghu was tall—at 1.66 meters, she could see everything the kids were up to.

She narrowed her eyes at Dadan, her look full of warning. Dadan pursed his lips and told the truth, “We don’t have any ration tickets at home. Please be careful with the ingredients when you cook.”

Just for a bowl of pickled cucumber, he’d seen her add a spoonful of sugar, plus ginger, garlic, vinegar, and sesame oil…"