Lan Qiaoqiao nodded obediently. "Okay, Mama hurry. Qiao Qiao a little hungry."
"Hungry, huh."
Lan Jin had saved breakfast, lunch, and snacks for Lan Qiaoqiao. She would eat on her own when hungry, but after a whole day, it was normal for Qiao Qiao to feel hungry.
With a thought, Lan Jin made a small cake and handed it to Lan Qiaoqiao. "This cake isn't very big. Hold it for now to fill your tummy. Mama is going out first. When I'm done, I'll come find you."
Qiao Qiao happily agreed and found a spot to sit and eat the cake.
Naturally, Nana was not forgotten. Lan Jin opened a can for Nana before leaving the space.
Outside the space, Lan Jin was busy again. At the door, she handed a large pack of banlangen to Ling Jiang, asking her to put it away first. The two then agreed to go upstairs together.
Lan Jin wasn't exactly generous with the banlangen. She could have kept it or only given a few packs. Ling Jiang would have accepted that. But there was one thing. Ling Jiang wasn't exchanging banlangen for herself but for Granny Ling.
Granny Ling was a warm-hearted woman who, knowing Lan Jin raised her child alone, she always asked Ling Jiang to come help whenever something happened at home. Granny Ling had also offered to help Lan Jin herself, but Lan Jin had no real need, so she had refused several times.
Still, she accepted Granny Ling's kindness. No matter how things might turn out later, Granny Ling was good to her now. As long as her bottom line wasn't crossed, it was right to give back a little.
That was how people got along, after all.
Besides, there really was a lot of banlangen in Lan Jin's space. She wasn't about to be stingy over one pack.
Banlangen was not limited in purchase. When she bought it, she almost bought 5 to 10 packs from every pharmacy she visited, and she bought it for two or three months straight. The stock in her space was like a small mountain.
...
At Lao Gao's house.
To divide the supplies fairly, the four sat together and sorted everything first. Water and drinks were grouped together, candies and chocolate in another pile, snacks alone, and filling foods in a separate pile.
Finally, they evenly split the sorted supplies among the four.
This method was truly fair. No one took advantage of anyone else. At the end, there were two extra candy bars left. None of the three wanted them, so they were put in Lan Jin's bag.
Lan Jin was a little stunned. "Why are you giving these to me? We split everything evenly."
The other three shook their heads. Not only did they refuse the candies, but they also took two more snack packs from their own shares and gave them to her. Ling Jiang said, "Supplies are precious, but banlangen is medicine and valuable too. We can't just drink your medicine for free."
"That's too much."
"It's not. We are the ones taking advantage here. Your banlangen is very strong. After soaking all day in the rain without hot water to wash, I'm really worried about catching a cold. If something happens, it will affect my performance." Ling Jiang said this as she tossed the remaining snacks into Lan Jin's large bag. It wasn't hard to guess what kind of "performance" she meant.
With so many supplies at home, Lan Jin didn't believe the others in the building wouldn't come trying to take them.
Since the supplies were divided, there was no need to stay at Lao Gao's house any longer. After a full day of hard work, they deserved to go home and rest.
Lao Gao said, "Before it gets dark, hurry home and get some sleep. Someone might come to break in at midnight. Be careful. Use the walkie-talkies to contact us and we'll rush to help."
"Okay. Let's deal with anything after tonight."
They left Lao Gao's house.
In the safe passage, Ling Jiang stopped and took several packs of supplies from her bag and put them into Lan Jin's bag. "These are supplies to exchange for your banlangen. It wasn't convenient upstairs. Giving them to you privately is safest."
Exchanging supplies was common, so Lan Jin did not refuse. But Ling Jiang really packed a lot.
Ling Jiang didn't think it was too much. "I worry I didn't give enough. Okay, let's hurry home. If you get tired later, rest early. I don't know the situation in the building here. Where I lived before, these people would definitely act tonight. If anything happens, call me. If it's too much, call the two upstairs. Since we are allies, this is our duty. Don't be shy."
Lan Jin nodded. She knew, but at night she didn't really need Ling Jiang. She could handle things on her own.
...
Back at home, Lan Jin brought the supplies into the space. Lan Qiao Qiao had just eaten the small cake and wasn't very hungry. Instead, after playing all day inside the space, she was exhausted.
Lan Jin boiled water in the RV. After bathing and washing, mother and daughter went to sleep.
When they woke again, it was already 10:30 at night.
Outside was completely dark, but the heavy rain continued, even stronger than during the day.
Lan Jin stood by the screen door for a while and noticed the temperature had dropped again. She hurried to the balcony, checked the thermometer, and sure enough, the outdoor temperature had fallen to 33 degrees Celsius.
With the rain dripping onto her, Lan Jin felt a slight chill. She shivered for a moment and quickly went back inside.
Sleepy Lan Qiaoqiao finally woke fully. She looked at Lan Jin, then at her little tummy and said, "Mama, no eat dinner."
Lan Jin laughed. "You little thing, waking up and wanting to eat right away. Are you awake? If you're awake, let's have dinner."
Qiao Qiao climbed off the bed by herself and followed Lan Jin to the living room. She moved a small chair and sat quietly.
It was late at night. Lan Jin didn't bring out any fancy food. Instead, she took out a boxed meal she had bought earlier but hadn't eaten yet.
The meal was well balanced with meat and vegetables, still warm and perfect to eat now. After a whole day and a nap, the mother and daughter were quite hungry. But while they happily ate, Lan Jin suddenly remembered something.
They had gone out today, but she forgot to throw away Ren Xing and Meng Ying midway.
Actually, they had stayed together all day, so there was no chance to throw them away. But she certainly couldn't keep those two in the space forever.