How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 176 - 178: Truly Poor_1

At dusk, Li Qiao finished work and immediately noticed Qin Jin under the shadow of the trees.

The dappled tree shadows fell on his youthful and spirited handsome face, his forehead damp with sweat, his breath slightly hurried, and beneath the thin fabric, his broad chest rose and fell subtly.

He had clearly just rushed to the entrance.

Her boyfriend was really handsome!

She ran over to him excitedly, "Jin, let’s go!"

Qin Jin looked down, "Are you so happy because the case was solved?"

The smile on Li Qiao’s face vanished, and she looked particularly dejected, "No."

Here’s what happened: at a large restaurant in the city, a couple of young worker sweethearts went for a meal. During the meal, the man went to the restroom. The girl wasn’t seen for a while, and, after asking a staff member to check, they found the man collapsed in the restroom with his neck pierced.

The restaurant called the police immediately, but by the time the squad arrived, the body had already been moved to the entrance.

The restroom had been cleaned as well.

They claimed they were worried the blood would seep into the tiles over time and be hard to clean, affecting their future business.

With the crime scene contaminated, no evidence could be found.

No unusual individuals could be identified in the area either.

Everyone thought it was a vendetta, but when they questioned the victim’s partner for details, they got nothing.

"I bought a train ticket for the first. No matter whether the case is solved by then or not, you have to go to school," Qin Jin said as he straddled his bicycle and gestured for Li Qiao to get on.

Li Qiao had planned on the 30th, but changing tickets was troublesome, so she silently agreed to his decision. "Okay. Where are we going?" He was heading in a direction that was not towards the courtyard house.

"Back to the countryside. The kitchen has been aired out. I’ll take you to see it," Qin Jin said.

Li Qiao hummed in acknowledgment, then brought up the case again, "The guy who was stabbed, his parents, brothers, and people close to him all say he didn’t have any enemies or love rivals. Who do you think would stab him? It can’t be without reason, right?"

"Suddenly, I remember someone who used to hang around with me a few years back. He was from Old Zhuang, loved picking fights, and if he saw a young lady alone, easy to bully, he would touch her face, snatch her coat. Even if it was a child alone on the road, he could kick them. I felt this person was no good, didn’t want him around, and he actually came at me with a knife. I still have a scar on my arm," Qin Jin showed his arm.

Li Qiao looked closely and saw a faint scar, not very noticeable. "This person must be insane." Perhaps the case was done by someone similarly seeking thrills; she should discuss it with her colleagues the next day at work.

The two chatted idly until they got home.

Li Qiao stepped into the courtyard first; the ground had been raised by about ten centimeters and was laid with stone bricks, looking very tidy.

The original kitchen shed had been converted into a spacious kitchen with two rooms.

One for cooking, the other for storage, with farming tools and woven goods neatly arranged.

Old Mrs. Qin beamed, "Qiaoqiao, what do you think of the way the room’s been fixed up?"

"Very good," Li Qiao replied with a smile. No matter how she had tried to tidy it before, the old courtyard was always a mess. Now it was much better with a proper place for storage. "Grandma, I have five grain tickets and five meat tickets for you." She took them out and handed them to Old Mrs. Qin.

Old Mrs. Qin’s face lit up with joy, "Oh, they’re national ones, my daughter-in-law is so capable!"

Yu Feng, carrying a bucket of swill out, overheard that Li Qiao had brought more grain and meat tickets, and jealousy flared up inside her. She threw the dirty water into the alley, muttering under her breath: Heartless, sending away my granddaughter, I curse you to be childless! May Loser Qin’s line end with him!

...

After dinner,

The family went out for a walk.

Li Qiao talked about resigning and reporting back to Beijing, "Grandma, it’s about two degrees colder up north than here. You’ll need to prepare a few sets of warm clothes."

Old Mrs. Qin said, "In half a month more, the crops in the fields will need to be harvested. I’ll come over after I’m finished with the busy period."

Li Qiao thought that was fine; after all, Grandma had no place to stay there, and staying in a guesthouse indefinitely would be inconvenient. She would rent a place first.

Before bed that evening, Li Qiao counted her savings in a metal box.

Old Mrs. Qin gave her two yuan every week, most of which she had saved.

Afterwards, taking care of the children, Xu Feng, her aunt by marriage, sealed twenty yuan in gratitude for her help, on top of the money from selling pine nuts, which had also been given to her by Qin Jin.

Including her own salary, she now had one hundred and five yuan and fifty cents.

Definitely wealthy in the village.

In the city, though, it’s a different story. I wonder if city rent is expensive, if it’s one of those "deposit plus three months" kind of deals. I still have to find one close to the school, with a yard too.

Then buy a bed, a mattress, quilts, pots, pans, and all sorts of household items. I bet it won’t be cheap. She sighed softly, "I’m really broke!"

Qin Jin laughed, "Broke with so much money? That’s enough to get a wife."

Li Qiao said enviously, "It’s so nice to be a man. Just a little effort and you get a woman. This woman not only carries on your family line but also takes care of your whole family. Why couldn’t I be a man?"

Qin Jin said cheekily, "What would I do if you were a man?"

Li Qiao laughed heartily, "True love transcends gender. I could still love you."

"Disgusting!" Qin Jin’s skin crawled, "If you were a man, I certainly wouldn’t want you, and don’t you love me either."

"Take it or leave it!" Li Qiao put away the money and blew out the oil lamp to rest.

....

The next day, Li Qiao discussed the case with her colleagues. They initially focused on the victim’s enemies, but now shifting direction, things seemed clearer.

Ma Ling slapped her thigh after hearing her analysis, "That makes sense, why didn’t I think of that? We can now check if any persons on file have been to the restaurant."

Xu Feng followed up, "It could also be a single person jealous of someone in a relationship. Why don’t we send a couple to the restaurant to see if they can catch a fish?"

Xun Dong said, "That would be you and Ma Ling."

Ma Ling refused, "I’m not going with him."

Xu Feng shivered with anger, "It’s not like I want to go with you. I want to change partners!"

"Enough talk," ordered Xun Dong, directing the two to dine there after dark.

They quieted down after that.

Li Qiao looked at Xu Feng and then at Ma Ling, both huffing with anger. She commented, "You two look like a couple having a fight."

Ma Ling’s face went red, "Nonsense."

Xu Feng, however, didn’t say a word.

Li Qiao mumbled, they really did look the part.

....

During the lunch break, Li Qiao dragged Ma Ling to a shopping mall to pick out gifts.

Qin Jin always used matches to light his cigarettes, so she decided to buy a lighter, but they all looked like cheap plastic. After a whole round of searching and coming up empty-handed, she thought, "Picking out gifts is really hard."

Ma Ling suggested, "How about a pair of leather shoes? My brother bought a pair of cowhide shoes with his first paycheck, saying a man isn’t respected without leather shoes."

Li Qiao found this amusing. Was there really such a saying?

She decided to take Ma Ling’s advice, heading to the shoe section to choose.

Ma Ling asked, "Aren’t you going to bring your man to try them on?"

"I know his size," Li Qiao picked a style, haggled with the salesperson, and bought a pair of size 43 shoes.

A man needs clothes to match the shoes, right?

Suits weren’t the fashion back then, and the store didn’t sell them.

She settled for a Sun Yat-sen suit.

The two items together totaled fifteen yuan and sixty-five cents.

Ma Ling said, "I really envy your man for having a wife willing to spend so much on him, half a month’s salary in one go."

In her heart, Li Qiao thought, you have no idea how many precious things my man has given me, a small token in return is nothing.

...