Chapter One Hundred: Even the wicked meet their match

Chen Haixia had set up a small square table to sell tofu pudding and soy milk, and business was not bad.

Lu Caiqing’s face darkened at once. She strode up to Chen Haixia and said, “I scoped out this spot days ago, and I was selling bags here yesterday too. You come along today and just take it over—that doesn’t seem right, does it?”

After making change for one of her customers, Chen Haixia smiled. “There isn’t even a stall fee here. First come, first served. If you have nothing to do, don’t come over and interfere with my business.”

Lu Caiqing was so angry she clenched her teeth, but she had walked such a long way carrying her bag that she was already exhausted and desperately needed somewhere to set it down and rest.

So she glared at Chen Haixia and went looking for another spot.

Fortunately, she had come early and found a place diagonally across from Chen Haixia’s stall. It was a little worse than the one Chen Haixia had taken, but there was no better choice.

She spread out her cloth, arranged her wallets and handbags, and watched the stream of people coming and going with their groceries. Whenever she saw someone well dressed, she would call out a few times to draw attention.

Though the location was not as good as yesterday’s, she had a loud voice and knew how to target the right customers. Before long, several people had gathered around.

Lu Caiqing gave her pitch enthusiastically.

In less than half an hour, she made her first sale.

After that, some old customers from yesterday brought people over, and little by little she sold five or six more.

Seeing a crowd gather so quickly in front of Lu Caiqing’s stall, Chen Haixia felt sour inside. She made ten cents on a bowl of tofu pudding and five cents on a cup of soy milk, but Lu Caiqing’s bags were priced so high that each one earned at least fifty cents to a full yuan.

But Chen Haixia only had that little capital on hand. With ten yuan, the kind of business she could do was only this sort.

Feeling bitter, she took the money out of her pocket when no one was looking and counted it. To her surprise, she had made a profit of one yuan and fifty cents. Her mood brightened a little. She thought that if she kept selling until the market closed, she might make two yuan. Sixty yuan a month would not be any worse than having a regular job.

No wonder that shameless little wench Lu Caiqing had clung stubbornly to this place to do business and refused to go back to the countryside.

Just as she was feeling pleased with herself, a sharp voice rang out. “Chen Haixia, you actually came here?”

Chen Haixia looked up and saw Wang Xuemei. She was so frightened she nearly lost her soul.

“Are you playing us for fools?” Wang Xuexiang’s voice was loud.

Her shout made the customers who had been about to buy things freeze in place. Some people, simply because they enjoyed watching trouble, stood aside to watch the show.

Seeing this, Chen Haixia hurriedly said, “How am I playing you? I’m trying to do business now. Can you stop causing trouble here?”

Wang Xuexiang was not someone to be trifled with. “You’re a girl from the countryside. You have no friends or relatives in the capital. Don’t you know what you’re really thinking? You say you’re dating our Hu Peng, but in truth you just want to mooch off our family for food and drink and find yourself a place to stay.”

Chen Haixia said with amusement, “Sister, it was clearly you who said we could try dating first, and only then did I agree to go along. How did that become me mooching off your family for food and drink?”

“How is it not? Leaving the marriage talk aside, you could have stayed at my house and looked for work. But the moment we mentioned getting engaged, you ran off. What was that supposed to mean?” Wang Xuexiang demanded sharply.

“Since it’s called dating, isn’t the point to get to know each other? If it’s not right, why wouldn’t I leave? What man’s side in a courtship doesn’t put in something too? It was only a few meals, and you’re making such a scene. Who knows what it would be like after marriage?”

The crowd around them immediately burst into discussion.

“Exactly. It’s been so many years since the new reforms. Marriage has been freely chosen for ages now. It’s not as if you’re from the old days—just a few meals and a sack of grain, and you can trade for a daughter-in-law.”

“And this girl is neat and clean, pretty too, and she speaks like an educated person. If she thinks it’s not right and comes out to set up a stall to make a living, what’s wrong with that?”

“That’s right!” someone echoed, looking at Wang Xuexiang. “Your family doesn’t look like it’s short of the money for a few meals. To me, it just looks like you’re bullying someone from the countryside.”

Wang Xuexiang was getting furious. Her lips trembled as she looked at Chen Haixia, only to see her curl the corners of her mouth at her in the faintest, most imperceptible way.

After a long while, Wang Xuexiang could not hold back any longer and said, “What courting? Our Hu Peng said it himself: for an entire month, you never spoke more than ten sentences a day. When we weren’t around, you didn’t even pay him any attention at all.”

Chen Haixia replied, “When other people date, it’s usually the man who takes the initiative. But your precious son always wanted me to go out of my way to find things to say. I’d ask a question and he’d answer. It was precisely because he’s introverted and has a problem with his character that I wouldn’t agree to marry him.”

“You little wretch! It’s clearly your own petty mind, yet you’re slandering my son and saying there’s something wrong with his personality.” If this got out, how would they ever find another girl for him in the future? The more Wang Xuexiang thought about it, the angrier she became. She rushed forward and swept the things on Chen Haixia’s table to the ground.

Tofu pudding and soy milk spilled everywhere. Chen Haixia stared blankly. There were still at least a dozen cups left; counting the cost, she had worked for nothing today.

Seething with rage, she shoved Wang Xuexiang. “You vicious woman who goes around harming people—what exactly are you trying to do?”

“If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll tear your mouth apart.” Wang Xuexiang refused to back down. She lunged forward and seized Chen Haixia by the collar, and the two of them fell into a scuffle.

Lu Caiqing had already heard the commotion across the way. She had not expected it to blow up so quickly, but since she was busy with business, she only listened and did not go over to join the excitement.

Now all the customers in front of her had been drawn away. Seeing that only three wallets and two handbags were left, she simply packed them up as well and decided to go have a look.

By the time she had secured her things and walked over, she saw Chen Haixia pinned to the ground by Wang Xuexiang and being beaten, her hair and clothes smeared all over with tofu pudding and soy milk, utterly disheveled.

Lu Caiqing clicked her tongue twice, feeling much better inside.

What was that saying again? Evil people are kept in check by worse evil.

No one knew who called the police, but soon a police officer came and pulled the two women apart, taking them both away.

Seeing there was no more excitement to watch, the crowd scattered at once.

Taking advantage of the fact that the onlookers had not yet fully dispersed, Lu Caiqing started calling out again and laid out the remaining bags.

Because there were so many people gathered, the few items left sold out in no time.

When she got home, it was not even half past ten. Thinking her sister-in-law had gone out for the first time, had gotten up later than she had, and still had to take An’an with her, she definitely would not be back so early.

Who would have thought that as soon as she got home, she would see An’an sitting on the sofa watching television.

Lu Caiqing asked in surprise, “An’an, did your mother not go out?”

“She did?”

“Then did the bags she took sell?”

An’an nodded excitedly. “Mom brought twenty, and they all sold out at once.”

“So fast?”

“Mom sold five first, then sold all the rest to the same person. That person even said they wanted more tomorrow and told Mom to bring thirty next time, so we came back very early.”

Lu Caiqing looked at An’an, somewhat incredulous. “Did you maybe hear wrong?”

The same person bought that many?

An’an showed two little tiger teeth. “If Auntie doesn’t believe me, she can go ask my mom in the room herself.”