From Nan Hai Tao's office, Chen Lishu saw a crowd gathered around a counter on the first floor. A store clerk held up two balls of yarn, shouting, "Special price pure wool yarn, one dollar per liang, no coupons needed! Two colors available, limited supply, first come, first served!"
Yarn that didn't require coupons was a rare opportunity. With the Lunar New Year approaching, she could buy some for Rui Rui and Li Juan to knit sweaters.
Thinking of this, Chen Lishu turned and joined the queue.
After waiting for quite some time, it was finally her turn. Chen Lishu bought a total of three jin of yarn, costing thirty dollars. After making the purchase, she headed towards the small courtyard.
As soon as Chen Lishu pushed the door open, she found that besides Lin Qi, there were two other people in the room – a man and a woman. The woman was the owner of the house she had looked at behind the department store earlier.
"Sister Chen, this is Sister Liu and her brother-in-law. They've come to discuss the house," Lin Qi said simply as she entered. Although her words were brief, they conveyed a lot of information.
The fact that they had come proactively indicated that they were willing to compromise on the originally set price.
"You're back, little sister," the woman said, her previous arrogance from the first viewing gone, greeting Chen Lishu with a smile.
Observing her attitude, Chen Lishu felt even more certain.
The man who accompanied her had not spoken much since Chen Lishu entered. Instead, the woman, Sister Liu, spoke a great deal with Chen Lishu.
The gist of her conversation was how wonderful their house was, and that the lowest price was still five hundred dollars.
The man frowned and interjected, "Five hundred is definitely not possible. You can ask around; there's no price like that anywhere. It's at least five hundred and fifty, and even then, that price might not be available after the Lunar New Year when the weather warms up."
Chen Lishu found the couple's act amusing. They were clearly putting on a performance for her.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but first, I'm not in a hurry to buy the house. Second, I only have three hundred dollars. If you agree, I'll try to gather the rest, but as I said, it's four hundred at most. If not, let's not waste each other's time. I have things to do and need to leave soon."
Sister Liu's expression froze, and her husband's face turned even more sullen. His chest rose and fell rapidly, as if he were struggling to suppress his anger.
The two sides remained in a stalemate for about a minute before Sister Liu broke the silence. Smiling, she said, "Little sister, four hundred is truly an unheard-of price. If you are genuinely sincere about buying, then four hundred and fifty, and we'll go to the housing administration office to change the ownership without any further ado. If not, we won't bother you and will leave immediately."
"Four hundred and twenty, that's the most."
Sister Liu gritted her teeth. "Four hundred and forty is truly the lowest I can go. To be honest, we've already paid a deposit for another place, so we're in a hurry to sell this one. Otherwise, we wouldn't have come to you. If we weren't in a hurry, selling it for four hundred and fifty would be no problem."
Chen Lishu thought for a moment and said, "Four hundred and thirty, then. If you agree, I'll go out and get the money now."
Sister Liu and the man exchanged glances, and finally, he nodded. "We've never seen anyone as persistent as you, little sister."
Chen Lishu smiled but said nothing. In reality, it wasn't about being persistent, but rather that buying a house was like dating – whoever loved the other more tended to compromise more.
She didn't have a strong attachment to the house in the first place, so she could easily walk away.
With the deal settled, Chen Lishu pretended to go out to gather money but actually went to the savings bank to withdraw it.
Soon, both parties signed the contract. After paying the money and completing the ownership transfer at the housing administration office, they agreed to hand over the keys in two days before parting ways.
"I know no one in your family is good with needlework, so I brought you two ready-made garments. And this red envelope. Please wish your uncle a Happy New Year on my behalf."
Seeing everyone leave, Chen Lishu handed the clothes and money to Lin Qi.
Lin Qi happily accepted. "Thank you, Sister Chen."
...
At Chen Mantun's house, many people were seated. The children had been sent away by Wu Chunmei early on. Besides Chen Mantun and his wife, Chen Laotai, Zhang Chunhua and her sister, and a thin old woman were present.
"Sister-in-law, this immortal is Chunyan's mother-in-law. She's incredibly capable and has been a spirit medium for decades, treating many difficult illnesses. Your second brother's condition will surely be cured by her," Zhang Chunhua earnestly introduced to Wu Chunmei.
Wu Chunmei, inexperienced with such matters, looked at Chen Mantun, who had been running a fever since the previous night and now looked even worse. Her eyes were already red and swollen from crying.
"Mom, eldest sister-in-law, thank you both so much for this."
"We're family, there's no need to thank us," Zhang Chunhua said, then turned to the thin old woman. "Auntie, please have the great immortal examine him."
The old woman nodded, sat down, and within a short time, her body began to convulse. Soon after, when she spoke again, it was in a different voice.
...
Chen Lishu returned from town, bringing home several boxes of firecrackers for the children, along with two bags of ice cream.
Firecrackers were not common, and the children had never even tasted ice cream before. Seeing her bring them out, they swarmed around her.
"It's so cold outside. Look, you've all got runny noses." Chen Lishu took out a handkerchief and wiped Rui Rui's red, frozen nose. She said to Gu Song, Gu Zhao, and the other children, "Quick, take your little brothers inside to warm up. Besides, eating ice cream outside in this cold is not good. Go inside to eat it."
"Let's go, everyone listen to me and follow me inside!" Gu Song waved his hand, acting like a general leading a charge. The younger ones behind him followed him into the house in a flurry.
Seeing the children go inside, Chen Lishu left one bag of ice cream on the windowsill outside, intending to give it to Chen Lijuan later.
Ice cream was a rarity now, costing one jiao each, five fen more than popsicles. She had bought them when she saw them.
After taking the purchased items into the house and informing her family, Chen Lishu took the yarn and ice cream to the Chen family's house.
Before reaching the front door, she saw Chen Liyuan and the others standing at the gate from a distance. Seeing her approach, the younger ones ran a few steps to greet her.
"Why are you all standing outside in this cold weather? What if sisters Liù Mei and Qī Mei, who are still young, catch a chill?" Chen Lishu frowned, pulling the younger ones towards the courtyard.
"Eldest sister, there are people inside. Mom said they're seeing Dad, and they told us not to go in," Chen Lijuan explained, looking up.
Chen Lishu paused. "Seeing a doctor? Dad is sick?"
"Grandma and eldest aunt invited someone. They said they're inviting a spirit medium. Mom told us not to go in. Eldest sister, maybe you should wait outside for a while too," Chen Lifei added.
"Nonsense! If he's sick, he should go to the hospital. How can they be so reckless with these superstitious things? What if it delays his treatment?" Chen Lishu's expression darkened, and she walked towards the house.
In the room, Zhao Pozi's body twitched. Soon, her entire body became still. The others in the room watched in silence, knowing that the great immortal had now descended.
"Auntie, how is he?" Chen Laotai asked tentatively, looking at the motionless Zhao Pozi.
As soon as Chen Laotai finished speaking, Chen Mantun, who was lying on the kang, suddenly propped himself up halfway and vomited violently over the edge of the kang.