The second watch, seeking pink.
***......****
The person in front of her was dressed in a thick fur coat, with a fur hat on his head, revealing only half of a wrinkled face, and both eyes were cloudy and full of bloodshot veins. Who was this person? Lian Manman couldn’t help but be startled. She didn’t recognize this man, but the voice seed vaguely familiar, as if she had heard it sowhere.
"Is the young lady coming back from the store? Congratulations on your prosperity, haha," the man laughed again.
"It’s Old Jin," Lian Yeye leaned in toward Lian Manman and whispered.
Ah, Lian Manman then rembered. That’s right, the person in front of her was Old Jin, the village’s moneylender who charged exorbitant interest rates. To be congratulated on prosperity by a moneylender made Lian Manman’s feelings rather complicated.
No matter who you et, you must give the proper courtesies. And the person in front of her was not soone she could afford to offend.
"Good day, Sixth Master Jin," Lian Manman bowed slightly. "Our small business sohow brings in so inco. I’ll take your good words to heart."
"Good, good," Old Jin seed very pleased. "The Lian Family produces talented individuals, especially the young ladies, every one of them is remarkable. Good."
Old Jin walked a good distance away, still laughing heartily.
"What did Old Jin co to our house for?" Lian Yeye asked suspiciously.
Lian Manman did not answer, but from Lian Yeye’s expression, it was clear that an answer wasn’t needed. Why Old Jin ca to their house didn’t need to be said.
"The twelfth lunar month is almost upon us," Lian Manman sighed.
Upon entering the Lian Family gate, the courtyard was quiet. Lian Manman and Lian Yeye then returned to the West Wing Room.
Lian Zhizhi was sitting on the kang bed sewing.
Since Lady Zhao began working in the store, Lian Zhizhi’s visits to the store had decreased. Lian Zhizhi was fourteen years old this year, not very old nor very young. According to Lady Zhang, she was already "showing her shape," which Lian Manman understood to an Lian Zhizhi had started to develop.
Lian Manman wasn’t afraid of anything at her age, but Lian Zhizhi was different. Even when Lady Zhao wasn’t around, Lian Zhizhi only worked in the kitchen area of the store; Lady Zhang never made her work outside.
Now, Lian Zhizhi spent most of her ti staying in the old house, tidying up, sewing, and also responsible for cooking dinner for the family. Lian Manman still kept track of her wages because, although Lian Zhizhi wasn’t working in the store, she had taken over all the household chores of the old house. Housework was also work, and should be compensated.
"Sister, I brought food back for you," Lian Manman placed the food container on the kang, "See if it’s still warm, if not, heat it up before eating."
"It’s cold outside, don’t stand on the floor, co sit up here on the kang," Lian Zhizhi said as she opened the lid of the food container.
Inside the food container were a dish of three oven-baked breads, a bowl of pork bone and shredded radish soup, a dish of tofu, and a dish of shredded potatoes, only missing the pickled mustard tubers.
Because the container was wrapped in cotton wadding, the food was still warm.
"No need to heat it up, just eat it like this," Lian Zhizhi said.
Lian Manman then took chopsticks and a bowl from the cabinet for Lian Zhizhi, and then took off her shoes and climbed onto the kang to sit. Lian Yeye also didn’t leave, and joined her sitting on the kang.
"Sister, did soone from the Upper Room co by just now?" Lian Manman asked.
"Did you two run into Old Jin?" Lian Zhizhi said.
"Mm-hm," Lian Manman nodded.
"Yeye had just left when Old Jin arrived," Lian Zhizhi said, sipping her soup.
"So, he stayed all the way into the evening and ate lunch in the Upper Room?" Lian Manman asked.
"Mm-hm," Lian Zhizhi nodded, "Our father even had the third uncle go to the tofu shop and buy two pieces of tofu to add dishes."
"He’s co to collect a debt," Lian Manman declared.
"The date isn’t here yet, but it’s getting close," Lian Zhizhi said, "I heard the third uncle say that he ca to give us a reminder."
"He specifically chose the ti when people were eating to co?"
"I heard that debt collectors all do this, and this is still the gentle approach. When it cos to the ti the debtor can’t pay back the money, there are many more tricks. Ordinary people can’t stand it," Lian Zhizhi said.
It seems collecting from high-interest loans is a skill unto itself; at first, one must carefully balance cordiality with force.
Lian Manman thought of the mont she encountered Old Jin, and felt very uncomfortable in her heart.
"Sister Huahua has been married for so long, why hasn’t she managed to get any money yet?" Lian Yeye frowned, "I hope she hasn’t forgotten about the debt."
"The entire family of our eldest uncle is now living in the county, and they don’t even send word back to us," Lian Zhizhi said.
"They’re not going to all stay away and make us pay their debt, are they?" Lian Yeye’s frown deepened.
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