To put it bluntly, those two had been cooped up at home for far too long. For the past couple of days, they had been making a fuss with her, and Lan Jin hadn't been able to find an excuse to take them out. Tomorrow, however, things would work out perfectly.
Lao Gao didn't mind. Going to the market wouldn't take long. "Alright, you two go. Xiao Huang and I will handle things here. That area's within range for the walkie-talkies, so take one with you. If anything happens, just call us and we'll come help."
"Tch, what could possibly happen at a market? You just like worrying over nothing."
And then, something happened.
On the way to the market.
Lan Jin's face was expressionless as she looked at the pair standing before her — Father and Mother Ren, tears ready to fall at will, acting so pitiful it was almost an art. Inwardly, she thought, "How have these two even survived until now without dying?"
At the same time, Father and Mother Ren were just as puzzled. A woman alone, bringing along a child, and she was still alive.
The moment both sides silently decided the other must have a lot of food stored up…
Lan Jin lost all interest in them.
But Father and Mother Ren's interest in her was enormous. They had no intention of letting her walk away.
Even though Nana had deliberately kept a good distance between them, Father Ren's eyes were already red as he said, "Xiao Lan, your mother and I have suffered so much. Surviving until now has been so hard. Luckily, we've met you. It must be tough taking care of a child on your own. Why not let us look after the child for you? We could move in together. That way, we could watch out for each other."
Lan Jin was speechless. Why didn't he just say outright that he wanted to move all her supplies into their home? She had no interest in engaging with them. Blinking her large eyes, she asked, "Who are you?"
Mother Ren's face darkened at that. "Xiao Lan, we don't do this, alright? No matter how hard things get, we're still family. We're Qiao Qiao's grandparents. How could you not recognize us?"
"At a time like this, who are you trying to lecture?" Lan Jin couldn't be bothered to waste words. "If the two of you are tired of living, good. I'll send you on your way today."
She stepped forward and kicked Mother Ren square in the chest, sending her flying. Father Ren reacted a beat late and hurried to help her up, staring at Lan Jin in disbelief. "Xiao Lan, that's your mother-in-law. How could you raise your hand against her?"
"I didn't use my hands. I used my foot. And another thing, how many times have I said it? I don't have a mother-in-law. Don't try to make yourselves relevant in front of me. Pathetic."
When Lan Jin stepped closer, Father Ren flinched back two steps to keep his distance. Still, he said, "We're only concerned about Qiao Qiao. No matter what, we're still her grandparents. That's a fact you can't deny. Even if you don't want to deal with us, you didn't need to hurt someone."
"Are you brain-damaged or something?" Or maybe she was for even talking to them. "Move. Don't block my way."
Lan Jin took the dog's leash, held her child's hand, and continued toward the market with Ling Jiang.
Father Ren, who had been thinking about following them, was stopped when Mother Ren tugged at his sleeve. "Don't. I can't get up yet. Let me rest."
He glanced at Lan Jin's retreating back, then slowly helped Mother Ren to her feet. His voice was full of resentment. "That bitch. Didn't even say a word before attacking. How bad is it?"
Mother Ren was badly hurt. Otherwise, she wouldn't still be struggling to get up. If it weren't for the layers of clothing she was wearing, the injury might have been even worse. She didn't realize it herself, though. Smiling with cold malice, she said, "I know where she lives. Since things are already out in the open, don't blame me for going to her home. As long as she's alive, we can't let her go."
In this extreme cold, survival was already hard enough.
Living was hard. Staying alive was even harder.
Father and Mother Ren were both old, and to have survived through the rainy season until now meant they'd surely endured plenty. But if they could still be alive at this point, whose hands were truly clean?
If they had chosen to stop here, Lan Jin wouldn't have cared. But if they dared to set their sights on her child, she would never show mercy.
Once the three humans and one dog had gone, Ling Jiang asked curiously, "Not dealing with them doesn't surprise me, but I don't think they'll let you off so easily."
"So what? If they push it, I'll kill them. You think I can't?" Then she added quietly, "Just not in front of the kid."
Ling Jiang nodded. "True. It's bad for the child."
Lan Jin's mouth twitched. "No, that's not it." She was more worried the child would come over and stomp on them a few times herself. After all, she had very little actual family feeling toward the Ren family.
"Forget them. Let's see if there's any medicine. If not, are you really going to trade for it at the black market?"
"Yes. But I'm worried it won't be cheap. Still, no matter how expensive it is, Grandma comes first. If I can get it, the cost doesn't matter."
But before they even saw any calcium tablets, they picked up a new piece of news. Starting next month, at the beginning of every month, the people guarding the market would bring in a truckload of supplies for residents to exchange with contribution points.
The supplies would include food, but not be limited to food. No one knew the exact items yet, so it would be a matter of trading for whatever was available at the time.
Because of this news, many people in the market were still red-eyed with excitement, discussing it endlessly. And so, by chance, Lan Jin and Ling Jiang heard it too. Although they had just brought back a large haul of supplies, it never hurt to get more.
Lan Jin said, "I bet the supplies will mostly be staple foods — instant noodles, biscuits, self-heating rice, bottled water. Just enough to keep people alive, no variety. But if we keep our own supplies at home, we can trade for different flavors."
Other than those four survival basics, Lan Jin couldn't imagine what else the higher-ups would provide. Still, she had a lot of contribution points. She could stockpile some things at home. In her view, "This trip's not a loss. At least we learned something important. That's a good thing."
"Right. Now, let's find the calcium tablets. I can't think about anything else."
With that, Ling Jiang pulled her toward the market stalls.
Sure enough, someone was trading calcium tablets for supplies.
Ling Jiang took one look and saw they were unopened. She immediately asked, "How do you want to trade for this?"
The man was startled, clearly not expecting anyone to be looking for calcium tablets at a time like this. "Calcium tablets are a semi-medical item. Price is higher. Ten packs of instant noodles."