Every time they returned from their stall, Widow Xie and the others would be stopped and asked all sorts of questions.
They'd hear sour remarks like, "How was business today? You must have made a lot of money, right?" and "The Hu Family's invited the God of Wealth over—they're about to strike it rich."
Widow Xie and Hu Liang grew so weary of the annoyance that they gradually stopped taking the main road through the village. Upon entering the village, they would take a side path, preferring a long detour to dealing with those gossips.
Passing by the West River Gully, Widow Xie pointed to a few mud-brick houses not far from the riverbank.
"That's the old Ji Family residence. You probably don't remember it. By the time you were born, the Ji family had already moved into their new house. You probably don't know this yet, but your eldest uncle's family moved in a few days ago."
