Blissful Days After Widowhood

Gu Yin rubbed Xiao Wu’an’s head, afraid of scaring the child away again.
She didn’t squat down to look at him, but asked him across the table, “Do you want to eat buns? I kept some.”

She heard Lao Liutou and the others say that this child didn’t seem to understand human language, so she didn’t expect the child to respond.

Unexpectedly, after asking, the child’s little hand shook twice eagerly.

Gu Yin smiled, bent over to get the buns, and Xiao Wu’an followed her like a small tail.

Mrs.
Wang was still behind the stall, and when she saw her young son’s attentive appearance, she smiled, “What kind of bad thing did you do, boy? You almost wrote the word ‘guilty’ on your forehead.”

Xiao Wu’an held Gu Yin’s skirt without saying a word.

“It’s nothing, just that the kid from yesterday came again.
Wu’an gave him the lard residue to eat.”

Xiao Wu’an lowered his head lower, rested his chin on his chest, waiting for his mother to hit him on the head.

But Mrs.
Wang didn’t hit him, and instead patted him on the back lightly, “Straighten your back, you didn’t do anything bad.
Why are you so dazed?!”

Xiao Wu’an looked at her in surprise, “Mother, won’t you scold me?”

“Why would I scold you? It is your snack, you can share it if you want.
Is your mother so stingy in your heart?”

Xiao Wu’an pursed his lips and then smiled.

Gu Yin took out two buns, one wrapped in paper, the other held in her hand, and placed them on the table.

Two little black hands stretched out and took the buns away.

Gu Yin couldn’t help smiling, walked away two steps and said softly, “One for you to eat now, and the other that is wrapped for you to eat later.
If you are still hungry tomorrow, come here at this time, okay?”

There was no response this time.
Gu Yin turned around and Mrs.
Wang continued to close the stall, and when she turned around again, there was no one under the table.

…

After October, the weather was cold.
In November, it was winter all of a sudden.
A few days ago, one could still see pedestrians wearing light clothes on the road.
Those days, even the coolies had to wear jackets.

Gu Yin and the others fled from their house without much stuff before, so they had to buy winter clothes at this time.

Fortunately, their stall business had been getting better in the past two months, so there was no need to worry about that small amount of money.

Of course, first of all, their cooperation with the Ge family was going good, and then after that period of time, the number of repeat customers on their stalls had increased, and the signboard had become louder – there were many stalls on the pier, except for the extreme ones like the Ge family one with a good location, their stall got famous as the “wicked mother-in-law’s stall” on the pier, and that was almost known to everyone.

Gu Yin was going to buy ready-made clothes directly, but Mrs.
Wang went to inquire about the price and dragged her away.

Afterward, she bought the cloths and sewed them.
The three of them wore new clothes, and they spent less than half a tael together.

Later, there were some cotton and rags left, and Mrs.
Wang took up the needle and thread to sew a small cotton robe.

Naturally, that was for the kid on the pier.

Since Gu Yin told him to, the child came to their stall almost every day.

Although he still hid under the table silently as usual, he was no longer frightened by them.

On the same day, there would be a return gift in the open space of their stall.
As Aunt Ge said, there were all kinds of strange things.

Lao Liutou felt very strange, saying that there were too many people on the pier sending him food, but the boy wasn’t close to anyone.
Gu Yin and the others had just come to the pier, but they were familiar with him.

Mrs.
Wang righteously said, “That’s because my daughter-in-law is good at cooking.
This little brat has a picky mouth, so he naturally recognizes good food.”

That was still true.
When the other vendors on the dock knew that the child was often there with Gu Yin, they would distribute some of the leftovers and send them over every day.

But the kid really only recognized what Gu Yin made, and he didn’t touch what others made.

Later, those people simply didn’t give him food, and directly gave the food to Mrs.
Wang and Gu Yin, so that they didn’t need to prepare another lunch after closing the stall, which was another way to help the child.

On that day, Mrs.
Wang specially brought the newly sewn cotton robe to the dock and waited for the child to come over so that she could put it on.

When it was almost noon, the child didn’t come, but Mrs.
Xu came over.
She told Mrs.
Wang that there was a new opera troupe in the town.
As soon as the chorus came out, she asked her if she would go.