Shopping

“Please cut two feet of this for me,” said Xiaoguo, who had picked a white fabric with green stripes.

The woman happily instructed someone to cut the cloth. Seeing that Xiaoguo had purchased only fabrics for children, she couldn’t help but tell her, “Our floral fabrics are pretty too. Do you want to see them?”

Since she had to wait anyway, Xiaoguo thought there was no harm in taking a look. She nodded and said, “Sure.”

The woman led Xiaoguo to the counter and pointed to several bolts of cloth hanging above. “These are the new range of dyed fabrics from our mill,” she said. “Every design comes in vibrant hues and the materials are of good quality. The yarns do not fray easily.”

Xiaoguo thought that the fabrics were really nice, and she really did need some new clothes. There were only a few pieces of garments in the cupboard, and they were all quite worn. She should make a few for herself too. Xiaoguo nodded and asked her to cut out two pieces of cloth— ordering five feet of each design. When she left the store, the basket was almost half full. Xiaoguo felt a little guilty. There were still many things that she needed to buy. How has the basket become almost full?

Without further delay, Xiaoguo proceeded to buy some vegetable seeds from a shop and went to a pork stall next. “How much are you selling the pork for?”

“Pork meat is five wen a catty, pork shoulder, seven wen a catty. Pork bone is five wen a catty and pork fat, two wen a catty.”

“I will have half a pig’s worth of meat, two pork shoulders, three pig’s trotters, five pounds of bone and ten pounds of lard.” Xiaoguo ordered a bit of everything.

The butcher began cutting the meat. While waiting for the meat, Xiaoguo looked around the stall. Under the chopping board, she noticed that there was a basin containing a pile of pig intestines. Her eyes lit up and she asked, “How much are you selling this for?”

“I can’t sell those. The smell is terrible. I’m going to throw it away.” The butcher looked at the pig intestines with disgust.

Xiaoguo was delighted to hear that. In that era, washing techniques had not been developed yet, so innards would stink no matter how much they were washed with plain water. Therefore, no one would buy intestines to eat during that time.

She was going to get a great bargain. Pig intestines were delicious. “Tell you what. Why don’t you sell it to me?”

The butcher looked at her as if she were insane. “If you want it, you can have it.”

At this moment, the meat that Xiaoguo had ordered was ready. The butcher helped Xiaoguo pack and load everything into her basket. Xiaoguo emptied the basket first before putting in the meat and intestines. With the dry stuff on top, she wouldn’t have to worry about getting the books and fabrics dirty.

Xiaoguo continued walking along the row of stalls and bought a few pairs of shoes.She also went to the grain store and bought a large bag of rice and noodles. She was almost done with her shopping. As she walked towards the entrance of the marketplace, she bumped into someone selling live poultry. Xiaoguo immediately decided to buy a few. It would be good to have meat and eggs everyday. Xiaoguo bought five chickens and two ducks right on the spot.

By now, Xiaoguo was not only carrying a full basket. She was holding on to a bunch of chickens and ducks with their legs tied up, and clutching a large grass cage that she had requested from the seller. She was going to use that to make a nest for the chickens and ducks, so they can lay eggs.

Xiaoguo walked happily towards the donkey cart. She had wanted to buy more groceries, but she realized that she couldn’t carry them all. Even with the donkey, she might have difficulty moving everything home. Xiaoguo gave up the thought. She would get more groceries the next time. She then headed home as she hummed to herself along the way.

Xiaoguo continued humming as she headed for home. She had clearly forgotten all about the ‘other space’.

Just as the sun was at its highest point in the sky, the approaching figures of Xiaoguo and the donkey cart appeared in Peach Blossom Village.

At this hour, there was no one walking around in the village, as it was almost noon and everyone was cooking at home. Xiaoguo happily drove the donkey cart home. When she got off the cart and opened the door, she saw Zhuang Zhuang and the two cows sunbathing in the courtyard. Zhuang Zhuang heard a noise and he quickly looked towards the door. “Mother!”

With a yelp, Xiaoguo caught Zhuang Zhuang in her arms as he raced towards her. “Did you eat anything this morning?”

Zhuang Zhuang replied apprehensively but truthfully, “I didn’t eat. I wanted to wait for Mom to come back and eat with me.”

Upon hearing this, Xiaoguo was a little upset. “Didn’t I tell you to eat first? I don’t even know when I’ll be back. If I don’t come back until tonight, are you going to wait for me till then?”

Although she knew that Zhuang Zhuang was very sensible, Xiaoguo still felt her heart ache for the boy. Fortunately, she came back early. If she had really come back in the evening, Zhuang Zhuang would have gone hungry until night time.

This child..

.

“Mother, Mother, please don’t be angry. I won’t do it again.” Zhuang Zhuang saw that his mother was a little angry and his voice broke into a helpless cry.

Xiaoguo squatted down and hugged Zhuang Zhuang. She explained patiently, “Zhuang Zhuang, I’m not angry. I can only put my heart at ease if you can take care of yourself. When I think about how you went hungry while waiting for me to eat, do you know how terrible I feel?”

With that, Zhuang Zhuang rubbed his head against Xiaoguo. “I understand, Mother. I’ll take care of myself.”

Xiaoguo nodded and said gratefully, “Thank you Zhuang Zhuang, for thinking of me and waiting for me to eat.”