Back to 1984: Let's Work Hard Together to Raise The Kids!-Chapter 129: Liu Ling Buys Seafood

Now that the exams are over, let’s not worry about it anymore.

Lin Qin continued with her business. The Wenjun Seafood Wholesale Store had been open in the area for nearly half a year, and its reputation had spread; neighbors nearby would come to the store whenever they wanted seafood because it was a bit cheaper than elsewhere.

One day, while Lin Qin was busy in the store with a child on her back, she saw Liu Ling parking her bicycle outside with a backpack on.

Their eyes met, and before Liu Ling could recognize Lin Qin, Lin Qin warmly called out, "What brings you here? Come on in!"

"Sister Qin! It’s really you! I didn’t even recognize you!" Liu Ling parked her bike and bounced into the store.

Seeing Lin Qin so busy, with sharp eyes, Liu Ling quickly helped out, helping customers pack and weigh their purchases.

Once the wave of customers left, Lin Qin finally had the chance to chat with Liu Ling, "What brings you here? I remember your school is on the other side."

Liu Ling chuckled and boldly explained, "Recently, folks on the street have been talking about a seafood shop opening around here, and since it’s my grandfather’s anniversary today, Granny asked me to buy some seafood."

Actually, Granny Liu had originally asked Liu Ling to come and check the prices, not expecting to run into Lin Qin, so Liu Ling didn’t mention it.

Lin Qin suddenly realized, "What does Granny want to buy?"

Liu Ling glanced around and honestly didn’t recognize these items, looking a bit embarrassed.

Lin Qin immediately understood and started introducing the seafood to her, "I have a lot of seafood here. Like ribbonfish — they’re delicious fried or grilled. Yellow croaker is great either steamed or in soy sauce, and these pomfret, squid, little octopuses are fresh this morning, as are clams... the clams are especially fresh, and so are the oysters, which are great for oyster omelets.

Buy whatever you want; I’ll give you wholesale prices, you won’t be overcharged."

Liu Ling felt both grateful and anxious, "Sister Qin, is it okay to do this? What if the boss gets mad?"

Lin Qin was startled for a moment, then burst into laughter, "Don’t worry about it; he’s my man, he wouldn’t dare to scold me!"

"What? This shop belongs to your family?" Liu Ling was dumbfounded and took a moment to grasp it. Her gaze fell on the baby boy behind Lin Qin, and she instinctively asked, "Is this Yaya’s brother?"

Lin Qin nodded and smiled, "He just turned six months, and Yaya has grown a lot too. She had a class this morning; otherwise, I’d have brought her along to meet you."

"Isn’t today Saturday? Don’t primary schools have weekends off?" Liu Ling asked, bewildered.

Lin Qin laughed even more at her expression, "There’s no school, but she has classes at the training center; she’s learning dance, piano, calligraphy, and has lots of homework, too."

Hearing this, Liu Ling couldn’t help but click her tongue.

Meanwhile, Lin Qin had packed a pound of clams, a pound of oysters, a pound of squid, and a one-pound yellow croaker.

"That’ll be five dollars for these."

Liu Ling quickly shook her head, "Sister, I may not have bought groceries before, but I’m not foolish; seafood isn’t cheap, this can’t possibly be just five dollars."

But Lin Qin insisted, taking the items out and putting them on her bike, then taking the five dollars from her hand, "Alright, Granny is in a hurry to cook, let’s leave it at that."

Liu Ling wanted to refuse, but being a timid girl, she eventually accepted with a blush.

When she got home, Granny Liu was a bit surprised to see the seafood. Just then, Li San’s mother came over to help, took a closer look, and exclaimed, "Wow! This seafood isn’t cheap! It looks like Liu Dashong has struck it rich!"

Liu Dashong is Liu Ling’s father.

Granny Liu nonchalantly carried the items to the kitchen, saying, "Struck it rich? The boy’s father worked hard his whole life, didn’t even get to enjoy his wealth before he died. Buying some good food for his memorial day makes the living feel a bit better in their hearts."

Li San’s mother knew Granny Liu shared a deep bond with her late husband, so she didn’t question it and turned to Liu Ling, asking, "Ah Ling, where did you buy all this fresh seafood?" 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"At the Wenjun Seafood Wholesale Store, Auntie. That store is run by Sister Qin and her husband." Liu Ling pondered for a moment and decided to mention it; after all, Lin Qin opened the store for business, and it could even bring in more customers for her.

Both Li San’s mother and Granny Liu were somewhat surprised.

"What’s this about? Wasn’t it said that Lin Qin married that man who was framed, those Dang people, yet they can open a store?" Li San’s mother looked skeptical.

Back in the day, the Liu family had falsely accused Lin Qin of having an affair with Chen Wenjun, later being forced to reveal their plot against Lin Qin under police pressure.

Although people sympathized with Lin Qin, being framed affected her reputation somewhat. Later, when Lin Qin married Chen Wenjun, most thought it was out of necessity, sympathizing with her still. But look at what a short time it’s been, and the two of them already opened a store!

Liu Ling disliked Li San’s mother’s condescending manner and immediately got impassioned defending Lin Qin, "Auntie, how could you say that? Now that there’s private ownership in rural areas, so what if they’re Dang people? Can’t Dang people strive for a better life?

I think Sister Qin is living much better than when she was with Liu Yongming, her style is trendy now, she carries herself well, and they even have a son. I’ve heard that Yaya is learning dance and piano now!

If they were with the Liu family, could Sister Qin and Yaya have such a good life?"

Granny Liu, seeing Li San’s mother listening in stunned surprise, echoed her granddaughter’s sentiment, "I’ve seen that guy Ah Qin remarried a few times; he used to sell fish on the street, a really industrious young man. Ah Qin is hard-working too; together, they can certainly make a thriving life."

Li San’s mother twitched her mouth, her eyes shifting, "I heard Liu Yongming introduced Liu Li to a nice prospect, and Ma Cuihua is hosting them tomorrow. Maybe Ma Cuihua will want to buy some seafood too! I’ll tell her."

With that, Li San’s mother hurried off.

Once she left, Granny Liu looked worried, then turned to Liu Ling with understanding in her eyes, "Did we take advantage of them again?"

Liu Ling stuck out her tongue, blushed, and quickly defended herself, "Grandma, believe me, I didn’t mean to, but Sister Qin insisted on it, only taking five dollars from me."

Granny Liu sighed and shook her head, mumbling to herself, though unclear what exactly she was saying.

Meanwhile, Li San’s mother, after leaving Liu Ling’s home, didn’t go directly to Ma Cuihua but instead spread the news of Lin Qin’s shop around the street.

Within the day, everyone on the street knew about Lin Qin and her daughter’s current situation.

Liu Li got the news and hurried to Wenjun Seafood Wholesale Store but found it closed. Reluctantly, she asked around the neighbors and decided to come back the next day.

The following morning, she took her time leaving around seven and went straight to the seafood wholesale store’s entrance, where she saw Lin Qin busy collecting money at the counter, her face twisted with jealousy.

Seeing the bustling store and only Lin Qin managing, Liu Li, as if possessed, went inside, wandered around, grabbed a bag of shucked oysters, and ran out.

But she hadn’t made it out yet when she was caught.

"Ah-ha! So, the madam finally caught a thief after all this waiting!"