CHAPTER 34: CHAPTER 34 TURN THE PAGE IMMEDIATELY

The next morning, Mrs. Zhen locked the door and took her children to catch the bus to Qi City.

As soon as Zhen Yu got on the bus, she began to sleep, as she gets carsick.

Having been wandering alone in the future world, she always relied on anti-motion sickness medication, but now with her mother and brother by her side, she could sleep peacefully.

In a daze, she was pulled up from her seat by her brother; after breathing in some fresh air upon alighting, Zhen Yu became fully awake.

"Sweetie~ shall we stock up on goods first, or go shopping?" Mrs. Zhen asked for Zhen Yu’s opinion, not seeing anything wrong with doing so.

Zhen Yan also looked at his sister, waiting for her to speak.

"Stock up! It’s unsafe to carry money around." Zhen Yu responded without a second thought.

"Alright! Let’s go reserve the goods first, and after lunch, we’ll hurry to go shopping."

Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t, as soon as they entered Jiefang Gate, Mrs. Zhen headed straight for the shop they had ordered from last time, with Zhen Yan and Zhen Yu silently following behind.

Boss Jia was as enthusiastic as ever, and Zhen Yu stepped forward to pick out a few styles and inquire about the prices, and then turned to whisper with Mrs. Zhen.

"Have you chosen the styles? How many pairs shall we order?" Mrs. Zhen couldn’t wait to ask her daughter.

"There’s no rush; let’s check out a few more places first," Zhen Yu said calmly.

"Aren’t we ordering from this place?" Mrs. Zhen was surprised, then composed herself and imparted her experience, "You shouldn’t keep changing your sources for goods; it’s better to have a stable supplier."

"I know." Zhen Yu replied softly, "Comparing three different places is better, to avoid getting taken advantage of for being a regular."

Mrs. Zhen was deeply touched by her daughter’s words and couldn’t help but sigh. In the past, Zhen Halong was the one handling the purchasing, and she thought it would be easy when she came today. She didn’t expect that her little girl would be more thorough than her, the mother.

Thus, she laughed it off with the shop owner and, without making any firm commitments, the trio continued wandering the wholesale market.

-

Zhen Yu had Zhen Yan lead the way, with Mrs. Zhen carrying the money nestled in between, and followed behind them herself.

She sighed internally, lamenting the inconvenience of not having quick payment methods and the hassle of carrying money.

While browsing, Mrs. Zhen suddenly exclaimed, "Ah~" halfway through her cry, she stopped, as if someone had grabbed her by the throat.

Zhen Yu immediately tensed, but seeing her mother and brother unharmed, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

She leaned in and whispered behind her mother, "What happened?"

"Just now, I thought I saw a pickpocket rifling through someone’s pocket~ then in the blink of an eye, they vanished without a trace," Mrs. Zhen said, somewhat unsure.

"Give me the bag." Zhen Yu extended her hand to her mother.

"Can you handle it?" Mrs. Zhen asked hesitantly, not quite at ease.

"Give it to me."

Maybe it was Zhen Yu’s calm demeanor and voice that oddly provided a sense of security, Mrs. Zhen handed over the bag to her daughter, suddenly feeling a load lifted off her shoulders.

The three of them continued on, asking for prices while walking. After a full round, they indeed made some gains.

The shop owner Boss Jia, who had dealt with them once before, had indeed marked up the prices for a few types of shoes, but his store indeed had a wider selection than other shops. Thus, Zhen Yu decided and turned back to haggle with him.

Back and forth, Zhen Yu became the lead negotiator, and she tied a knot in the strap of the single-shoulder nylon bag, slinging it across her chest.

Walking into crowded areas, she would cross her arms and encase her bag completely within her embrace.

-

As they were close to reaching their destination, suddenly two men turned out of the left alley and into the path where Zhen Yu and her party were, locking eyes for a moment before walking towards them face to face.

Zhen Yu became secretly vigilant, planted her feet in a firm stance, and both Mrs. Zhen and Zhen Yan cleverly followed Zhen Yu in moving closer to the stalls on their right, leaving just enough room for the two men to pass.

The taller man in front passed by Zhen Yu without incident.

However, the slightly shorter man following him suddenly reached out towards Zhen Yu’s chest. Mrs. Zhen, being tall, saw something was amiss and went to help her daughter, but was blocked by the tall man’s outstretched hand.

Zhen Yu spun around and delivered a high sweeping kick, and the man attacking her thumped to the ground with a dull sound.

Mrs. Zhen and Zhen Yan, who were tugging at each other, stopped and gaped at the scene unfolding before them.

Zhen Yu didn’t hesitate. As the tall man turned his head towards the noise, she darted behind him, using both hands and feet, grabbing his hair at the back of his head, while pushing her raised right foot hard against his back.

The man was yanked backward, his body arching in a bizarre posture, remaining stuck in place.

All this happened in the blink of an eye, with bystanders gathering around from a distance, yet none dared to come closer.

"Robbery?" asked Zhen Yu, her voice showing no fluctuation.

Shaking, the man cried out, "Aye, young lady, go easy on the hair-pulling! We brothers didn’t recognize the immensity before us and made a mistake! We admit our wrong; isn’t that enough?"

"Call the police," Zhen Yu signaled to Mrs. Zhen, who blinked but made no move.

It was then Zhen Yu remembered that mobile phones were not yet pervasive; certainly none of the three Zhen family members had one.

"Hey, hey, hey! Please don’t do that! Don’t call the cops! Spare us this once, and we swear we’ll never dare again!"

Mrs. Zhen and Zhen Yu exchanged glances, and Zhen Yu, understanding her mother’s intention, asked the man, "No revenge?"

"No, no, no! Absolutely not! We’re just locals here, and we only reached out because you looked unfamiliar! We keep our word! Just let go of me, and we can turn the page on today’s event!"

Zhen Yu didn’t let go but stopped exerting more pressure; she merely maintained her grip.

She wasn’t afraid of them; after all, they were returning home today and didn’t often come to Qi City. It’s not like these two could pursue them all the way to Laha Town.

"And him? He took a kick," Zhen Yu jerked the man’s hair, directing his gaze to his accomplice lying on the ground.

"Can, can!" The man first responded submissively, then his tone suddenly became stern, "Li Si’er! Stop f**king pretending! Get up and give your guarantee! My back is nearly broken!"

The man on the ground scrambled to his feet and sidled up to Zhen Yu with a jester’s grin, "Kind lady, please let him go! We promise no retaliation; it’s just a kick, no big deal! Besides, I was the one who struck first! My fault! Here’s an apology from your brother!"

Zhen Yu glanced at him sideways. Her experience from a previous life made her intuit that these two weren’t vicious evildoers but merely low-level thieves.

She released her grip and retreated her leg, with the tall man howling "My back, my back is broken," and both hurriedly nodding at Zhen Yu before turning tail and fleeing.

"Little sister! You just soared up there!" Zhen Yan excitedly joined his sister, his mind replaying her kick over and over, utterly cool!

"Don’t mention this when we get back," Zhen Yu warned her brother.

Zhen Yan, who was pondering how to boast about this at home, immediately retorted upon hearing this, "Why not? You’re so awesome, why can’t it be mentioned?"

Mrs. Zhen chastised her son: "Your sister is a girl; is it good for everyone to know she can fight fiercely? What about her reputation? Keep your mouth shut! If I find out you’ve been talking, I’ll break your legs!"

Reluctantly, Zhen Yan let out a "oh," still he agreed.