How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 107: Red Skirt_1

Qin Jin: "The Qin family’s ancestors owned a pawnshop, and Grandma learned a bit about appraising from Grandpa. During the slack farming seasons, she often took me around, and the longest we were away from home was half a month. However, the first time I tried my hand at it, I made a bad call and suffered a loss. We were so poor that Grandma and I drank thin porridge for two months. There’s still a set of books at home, do you want to take a look?"

Li Qiao grinned, it turned out that Qin Jin’s habit of wandering far from home had been nurtured since childhood. "I’m not interested, and you shouldn’t collect anymore in the future. Most of the antiques that end up outside must be burial items, right? That’s not auspicious."

Qin Jin had no intention of collecting anymore. Being far from home, many of the items he could sell were indeed unclean, and getting caught would mean he couldn’t afford to bear the consequences.

By then, if he were put away, whenever others mentioned her, they would look down on her for having a man who had served time.

How heartbroken she would be?

The two chatted all the way to the city.

The garments in the department store were pricey, with the cheapest costing three and six, and the priciest going up to around ten.

Li Qiao was reluctant to buy: "These clothes seem a bit thick, not suitable to wear as it gets hotter, and by next year the style will be outdated. Let’s not buy them."

"We’ve come all this way; going back empty-handed would only give Grandma more to nag about."

Li Qiao: "How about we wait until we get to Beijing? The clothes there are more fashionable."

Qin Jin found this quite reasonable and accompanied Li Qiao to the skincare section, where she picked up a palette of eyeshadow to examine.

Qin Jin asked, "What’s this?"

Li Qiao: "It’s for the eyelids, it can make the eyes look more dimensional."

"So that’s what the city girls have on their eyelids, yellow and blue? I thought they were in a play."

Li Qiao nearly laughed to tears.

"Miss, are you buying or not?" The salesperson was getting impatient.

"Sorry for the trouble. My apologies." Li Qiao put down the eyeshadow and prepared to leave.

Qin Jin pointed to a red dress in the summer wear section: "How about buying a couple of summer outfits in advance? You’d definitely look good in that one."

Li Qiao preferred the dark-colored floral next to it, finding the red one with a baby collar too juvenile and the dark square neckline too revealing. Teamed with a hairband, it gave off a perfect vintage vibe.

She tried on both.

Observing from the side, Qin Jin remarked: "Both look good." He asked the salesperson, "How much are they?"

"The red one is three and ninety-eight, the dark-colored one is two and twenty."

Qin Jin paid promptly.

Li Qiao didn’t have time to stop him; could they not just get a piece of fabric and have the village tailor make one? Over six yuan could feed a family well for a month.

...

After leaving the department store, they walked past a pastry shop on the street, where Qin Jin bought a small bag of hawthorn candy. Li Qiao wanted some, but he refused, citing his bad teeth as the reason.

"You’re buying candy to share with the villagers, but isn’t this too little?"

Qin Jin smiled: "It’s not for the villagers."

At the criminal police station, Qin Jin placed the hawthorn candy on the guard’s desk: "Uncle Fan, do you recognize me? Could you please find Dr. Xun from the forensics department and tell him Li Qiao from Feng Family Village is looking for him?"

"I know you, Loser Qin, coming here often." The uncle put a piece of hawthorn candy in his mouth and scurried off to find someone.

It dawned on Li Qiao then that the candy was intended for the guard. She was impressed he knew the guard’s preferences; how thoughtful he was.

Shortly after, Xun Dong arrived with a faint smile: "Long time no see. Have you finally decided you want to work here?"

Li Qiao shook her head, offering him the morels with both hands: "These are dried morels picked from home, a gift for you to stew in soup."

"I can’t accept rewards for unmerited services," Xun Dong refused.

Li Qiao: "Alright then! I’ve been meaning to thank you for helping our Jin. I came today especially to tell you that I’ve been accepted early by Beijing University."

Xun Dong silently took the morels: "I thought about it, and it turns out my home lacks these mushrooms. Thank you." Beijing University? The students there ought to be respected. He seamlessly continued: "Qin Jin has got himself a university student now. You can’t get into trouble in the future and bring shame to your wife, understand?"

Qin Jin: "....."

Li Qiao stifled a laugh, "Are you busy? I just saw a tea stall over there on my way here, how about we sit down for a bit?"

"Sure."

The three of them sat at the tea stall, and Qin Jin soon took over the conversation, adept at finding topics, starting with Xun Dong’s work.

Xun Dong discussed the case, opening up as he talked.

Qin Jin occasionally chimed in, promising eagerly that if there was anyone that needed to be found, he could ask his brothers to keep an eye out.

Xun Dong said, with a flash of insight, "Actually, there is." His aloof demeanor gradually changed, and he chatted with Qin Jin like friends.

After a good while, Xun Dong glanced at his watch, "I have to get back to work now, come and have a drink at my place when you have time." Saying this, he took out a pen and notebook from his pocket and wrote down his address.

"Ah, go on with your work." Qin Jin stood up to see him off.

After Xun Dong left.

Li Qiao suggested they secretly gather some materials and novels, and Qin Jin agreed, but it didn’t go as smoothly as the last time—they had just approached the spot for the private transaction when they heard someone shout to run, and they had to pretend to just be passing by and leave.

"Shall we watch a movie?" asked Qin Jin.

"Sure."

The two of them went to the cinema and watched a movie before leisurely heading home.

As they rode into the village, Li Qiao could already see Dong Lamei’s figure from afar, hands on hips and gesticulating wildly, as if berating someone.

And Old Mrs. Qin was silent, her head bowed.

Her frail figure looked all the more pitiable.

Li Qiao couldn’t hold back his anger first. The old lady was up in age; what had she done wrong to deserve such criticism? Before Qin Jin could stop the bike, Li Qiao raised his voice, "Wicked stepmother! Old witch! How dare you come to my house and bully people."

Dong Lamei turned her head with a start; hadn’t the dead old woman said that Qin Jin and Li Qiao had gone into the city?

How did they come back so quickly?

Qin Jin waited for Li Qiao to get off the bike, let go of the handlebars, allowing the bike to fall, and took long strides towards Dong Lamei.

Dong Lamei had nowhere to hide, panicking and at a loss for what to do: "Ah, Jin, I, I didn’t do anything, I just wanted to see Qiaoqiao’s acceptance letter, and your grandmother didn’t agree..." she stammered.

Qin Jin drew back his fist.

Everyone was stunned by the scene.

Old Mrs. Qin spoke up just in time, "You can’t hit her."

Qin Jin’s fist stopped an inch from Dong Lamei and held back, "Get lost!"

Dong Lamei scurried away, worried that a moment’s delay might cost her.

But Li Qiao wouldn’t let her leave: "What were you doing at our house?"

Dong Lamei explained, "I heard from Jinhua that you got the acceptance letter from Beijing University, and I wanted to come see it. Your grandmother didn’t agree, so I got angry and asked her why she was holding on to your acceptance letter. She made the excuse that the letter was locked in the cabinet, and the key was with Jin... It’s obviously a trick; how could the keys to her room be with Jin?"

In her explanation, Dong Lamei insinuated that Old Mrs. Qin was lying.

Li Qiao: "Grandma’s right. And since you can’t read, what do you need to see it for?"

Dong Lamei’s eyes flickered, "I... wanted to take it home to show Hechuan’s mother, she’s been saying that you’re bragging again, it’s making me feel bad inside."

Old Mrs. Qin: "Jin, take it out and show her."

Qin Jin was reluctant, but his grandma had spoken, so he went inside, opened the box, and took out the acceptance letter.

The large, gold-lettered, red cover of the letter, even she couldn’t recognize it all, but she knew the words for ’university.’

She reached out excitedly to take it.

Qin Jin pulled back, "That’s enough."

"I should take it back and show the villagers," Dong Lamei requested weakly.