People in the alley: A woman dressed as a man shouldn't be foolishly filial, Zhuang Chaoying

Chapter 124 Short Shorts and Black Fishnet Stockings

Xiaoting closed her eyes tightly, gritted her teeth, picked up the bowl of dark, murky medicine, and gulped it down. The bitter taste instantly filled her mouth, making her frown involuntarily.

Just as she was about to make a vomiting gesture, Tu Nan quickly stuffed a White Rabbit candy into Xiao Ting's mouth.

The sweet taste instantly diluted the bitterness of the medicine, and Xiaoting's expression relaxed a lot.

Seeing her daughter finish taking her medicine, Zhuang Chaoying stood up and said, "Don't forget to rinse your mouth after you finish the candy."

As he spoke, he gently patted Xiaoting's shoulder, then pushed Tu Nan out of the room.

Huang Ling opened the wardrobe and carefully searched the corner. Soon she found a pack of sanitary napkins and a small pad.

Holding a sanitary napkin, she walked to Xiaoting's bedside, sat down, and gently stroked Xiaoting's long braid: "Xiaoting, Mommy keeps all the sanitary napkins here. You can take them yourself when you need them. Also, this little pad is for when I have my period, so it won't get on the mattress and be hard to wash."

Xiaoting took the sanitary napkins and small blanket and leaned against Huang Ling's chest.

She felt incredibly fortunate to have such wonderful parents and brother, and Lin Dongzhe who always appeared at crucial moments. She was completely surrounded by love.

Huang Ling stood up and helped Xiao Ting tidy up the blankets: "Go to sleep early, don't stay up late reading novels these next few days."

Xiaoting nodded her little head like a chick pecking at rice, and obediently replied, "I understand, Mom."

Tu Nan also climbed up to the attic and lay down on his bed. Soon, the sound of their even breathing filled the room.

The children were all asleep, and Zhuang Chaoying was also drowsy and about to close her eyes.

[System, set an alarm for midnight.]

The system immediately responded: [Received, host, please sleep soundly]

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[Ring ring ring! It's twelve o'clock, twelve o'clock!]

The shrill sound of the alarm clock rang in Zhuang Chaoying's mind. He was startled and opened his eyes abruptly. His hand unconsciously touched his chest, and his heart was pounding rapidly.

[You'll scare me into a mental breakdown sooner or later.]

Zhuang Chaoying sat up quietly, but just as she was about to get up, Huang Ling pulled her arm.

Huang Ling, still half-asleep, looked at Chao Ying and whispered indistinctly, "Chao Ying, the money I gave you should be enough to buy three watches. Buy one for Dong Zhe too."

Zhuang Chaoying gently patted Huang Ling's hand and lowered her voice: "I know, I would have bought it for Dongzhe even if you hadn't said anything. Go to sleep, I'll be back in a bit!"

Zhuang Chaoying gently put on her trousers and short-sleeved shirt, put on her hat, and then slowly walked out of the room, afraid of waking them.

He gently closed the door and pushed his bicycle outside.

When he reached the alley entrance, he got on his bicycle.

The night wind blew on his face, dispelling much of his drowsiness.

Zhuang Chaoying pushed her cart slowly through the black market.

A middleman named Quan was chatting enthusiastically with someone at a stall, gesturing with his hands from time to time.

Ah Quan looked up casually and saw that familiar figure. His eyes lit up: "Brother Zhuang?"

Zhuang Chaoying heard someone call her name and subconsciously turned her head. Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was Quan, who, despite his seemingly sleazy appearance, was a very loyal and trustworthy person: "Quan!"

Ah Quan nodded to the stall owner: "This is my old customer, Brother Zhuang. I'll go over and chat for a bit."

After saying that, he quickly walked over and approached Zhuang Chaoying: "Brother Zhuang, what do you want to buy today?"

Zhuang Chaoying looked around: "I want to buy three watches today. Do you have any connections? I need them, and they must be of good quality."

Ah Quan patted his chest confidently: "People call me Wang Anquan (meaning 'King of Safety'). In this black market, getting things done through me is the safest thing to do!"

With that, he waved his hand casually, his eyes gleaming with a hearty spirit. "Brother Zhuang, come with me!"

Zhuang Chaoying followed behind A Quan.

Occasionally, there were some noisy sounds from the surroundings, including vendors calling out their wares and buyers haggling over prices.

A short while later, they arrived at a stall.

Ah Quan stepped forward: "Ah Bang, this is Brother Zhuang, someone I trust. He wants to buy a watch, so you'd better bring out the best one."

When Abang heard that business was coming his way, his eyes lit up and a smile appeared on his face.

He quickly and deftly opened a somewhat worn-out box. "Brother Zhuang, feel free to pick any watch you like! I personally went to Guangcheng to bring these back. You wouldn't believe how worried I was on the train, afraid something might go wrong. But since you know Quan, I'll definitely give you a discount—it's a friend's price!"

As Abang spoke, he gently fiddled with the watch inside the box.

Zhuang Chaoying squatted down and looked at the watches.

My gaze was drawn to a plum blossom watch.

He gently picked up the watch and weighed it in his hand: "How much is this?"

"Brother Zhuang, you have such excellent taste!"

Abang immediately came over. "This Titoni watch has a Swiss movement, the quality is impeccable, and it looks very classy when you wear it. I'll give you a fair price, one hundred yuan."

Zhuang Chaoying nodded calmly, then silently asked the system in her mind: "System, how much will the system charge for this table?"

Eighty dollars.

Zhuang Chaoying thought to herself that the price was acceptable.

Then I saw two metal digital watches. "How much are these?"

"Brother Zhuang, this Aika digital watch is cheap, only forty yuan a piece."

Zhuang Chaoying picked up three digital watches. "I'll buy three."

Upon hearing this, Abang's smile widened even more, and he waved his hand dismissively: "Brother Zhuang, since you're so generous, just give me 110 yuan out of the 3 yuan, consider it making friends!"

Without further ado, Zhuang Chaoying took out a handkerchief from her bosom, opened it, and inside was a neat stack of banknotes.

He carefully counted out 210 items and handed them over: "Three Ecar digital watches, plus this mechanical watch, please count them."

Abang took the money, moistened his fingers with saliva, and quickly counted it.

After counting, he grinned from ear to ear. "Brother Zhuang, that's right, it's two hundred and ten yuan. The friend Quan introduced is really straightforward! If you need anything in the future, come and find me again. I have a lot of good stuff here."

Zhuang Chaoying picked up four watches and was about to put them in his pocket when Abang quickly stopped him: "Brother Zhuang, these are in boxes. Putting them in boxes will make them look more upscale."

As he spoke, he took out four watch boxes from under the stall, packed the watches one by one, and handed them to Zhuang Chaoying.

Zhuang Chaoying took the box containing the watch and put it in a mesh bag: "Thank you, Abang."

Ah Quan greeted Ah Bang and then followed Zhuang Chaoying.

He tilted his head and looked at Zhuang Chaoying. "Brother Zhuang, what do you think? Isn't my A-Quan reliable?"

Zhuang Chaoying looked at A-Quan's spiky hair, his shorts that were considered extremely daring at the time, paired with fishnet stockings that went past his calves and high heels. This peculiar outfit made Zhuang Chaoying want to laugh.

He thought to himself, "These young people in the 1980s are really crazy. Their shorts are so short."

However, putting aside his somewhat strange attire, Ah Quan is indeed very reliable when it comes to getting things done.

He nodded and said seriously, "You're reliable, Quan. I feel completely at ease dealing with you."

They continued walking through the black market, and as they passed a bookstall, Zhuang Chaoying spotted a Rubik's Cube formula book on the ground.

He stepped forward, picked up the book, and asked, "How much is this book?"

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