Xu Qingqing saw Lu Fenglin, Lu Chuanbai's father, squatting in front of a small goldfish stall with two kids. They were holding something and scooping around in the fish tanks.
"Dad, what are you guys up to?"
Xu Qingqing pulled Lu Chuanbai over. Bending down, she saw the four of them concentrating on scooping goldfish with spoons.
This was already the third spoon that Lu Fenglin had paid for. Before using it, he said to the others seriously,
"This is the last time. If we can't scoop one up, that's it."
Otherwise, the money they'd spent on scooping goldfish could have bought quite a few goldfish already.
"Okay!"
Xu An'an and Xu Yiyi nodded seriously in response. There was also a glint of determination in Lu Fenglin's eyes.
He didn't believe he couldn't scoop up a single goldfish!
But this time, apart from Lu Fenglin who managed to scoop up a skinny little goldfish, the spoons of the other three broke again.
Xu Yiyi and Xu An'an looked at the goldfish swimming around in the transparent plastic bottle dejectedly and pityingly.
Xu Yiyi noticed Xu An'an's unhappiness and patiently encouraged her,
"An'an, don't you think this goldfish has the same temper as you? Its eyes are so big, and it's so cute."
"Where is it like me!"
Hearing this, Xu An'an brought the transparent box close to her eyes and looked at the skinny little goldfish.
"She's so skinny and small. She's nothing like me." Xu An'an retorted instinctively.
"If you feed it more fish food, it will grow bigger. You should also set a good example and stop being picky. You should eat well."
Xu Yiyi was a very warm little boy. With just a few words, he made Xu An'an happy again. She stretched out her little finger and stirred the water in the small box.
"I'll take good care of it from now on."
"That's right."
Xu Yiyi patted Xu An'an on the shoulder. A look of relief that didn't match his young features appeared on his little face.
Seeing how Xu Yiyi always let Xu An'an have her way, Lu Fenglin was touched and wanted to pay for another goldfish for Xu Yiyi.
"Boss, could you please pack another goldfish for us..."
"No need."
Xu Qingqing, who was standing beside, stopped Lu Fenglin. A confident glint flashed in her eyes. She took out a five - yuan bill from her wallet and stuffed it into the boss's hand.
"Boss, give me a spoon."
Hearing this, Lu Fenglin wanted to stop Xu Qingqing. "Qingqing, scooping goldfish may seem easy, but it's actually quite difficult. I'd better just buy one for Yiyi."
"Dad, just watch me."
Xu Qingqing took the spoon confidently and squatted down, looking at the little fish swimming around in the fish tank.
Xu Qingqing's hands were extremely steady, precise, and dexterous from years of restoring cultural relics.
Even for tiny fragments that were invisible to the naked eye, Xu Qingqing could precisely fill the holes with small tweezers.
And scooping goldfish with a small spoon was a piece of cake for her.
Xu Qingqing held a plastic bottle in her left hand. Her speed was so fast that it left a blur in front of everyone.
By the time everyone reacted, a goldfish had already fallen into the plastic bottle in Xu Qingqing's left hand.
Although the thin paper of the small spoon in her right hand was wet, there was no sign of damage.
Xu Qingqing reached out again and scooped up another goldfish, quickly putting it into the small bottle. Her speed was so fast that everyone was dazzled.
"Mom's hand speed is so fast! She even scooped up two goldfish!"
Xu Yiyi looked at Xu Qingqing in surprise and admiration. His little face was full of adoration.
"Mom, you're so amazing!"
Xu An'an also held her breath. Her big, watery eyes were filled with admiration.
Xu Qingqing's glorious image in the hearts of the two children was elevated even further.
Xu Qingqing's eyes continued to search for a suitable goldfish. She saw the biggest goldfish crashing around in the fish tank.
A sense of challenge welled up in her heart. She reached out and scooped towards the head of the strongest goldfish.
"Mom, no! It's too strong. It will break the thin paper!"
Xu Yiyi had suffered at the hands of this goldfish before. He exclaimed and reminded Xu Qingqing.
But Xu Qingqing had already prepared a counter - move. She twisted her wrist, and the spoon that was originally meant to block the goldfish instantly turned over and shoveled the goldfish up.
Then Xu Qingqing quickly shoveled the goldfish into the bottle.
Xu Qingqing had scooped up three goldfish with one spoon, and the thin paper showed no sign of damage. This even stunned the boss.
The boss had never seen such a capable person before. He wiped the sweat from the tip of his nose.
"This young lady is really lucky. She's already scooped up three goldfish. You'd better stop while you're ahead. The paper is too thin to be used for a fourth try."
Seeing that the boss wanted Xu Qingqing to give up, Lu Fenglin said expressionlessly, "No. You said just now that as long as the paper doesn't break, we can keep scooping."
Hearing this, the boss was speechless.
He had indeed said that and couldn't refute Lu Fenglin. He could only watch as Xu Qingqing waved the spoon again to scoop for goldfish.
Xu Qingqing successfully scooped up the fourth goldfish, and as expected, the spoon broke. It was still worth it.
This time, Xu Qingqing had made up for all the losses that Lu Fenglin and the others had suffered.
Xu Yiyi and Xu An'an were overjoyed when they saw the lively goldfish in the small box. They happily hugged the box.
Xu An'an even seriously promised the skinny goldfish in her hand,
"Don't worry. Even if I have other goldfish, I'll still treat you well. I'll take you to eat well and fatten you up."
The boss heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that Xu Qingqing and the others didn't intend to scoop anymore. He waved his hand and told them to leave quickly.
If they scooped any more, he would lose money!
There were other fun things in the market. After walking a few steps, Xu Qingqing and the others came across a booth where you could shoot balloons to win prizes.
Xu An'an was holding the goldfish in her hands. When she saw the huge 1.5 - meter Winnie the Pooh bear on the booth, her attention was immediately drawn to it.
"Dad, I want that Winnie the Pooh bear."
When Lu Chuanbai saw it was a shooting competition, he immediately became interested. He had taken shooting lessons when he was a kid, and this kind of small game was a piece of cake for him.
"Boss, how many balloons do I need to shoot to get that Winnie the Pooh bear?"
Lu Chuanbai raised his eyebrows and looked at the boss. The boss patted the advertising wooden sign beside him. "It's 10 yuan for 10 shots. You need to hit 20 shots to get the big Winnie the Pooh bear."
Then the boss pointed at the palm - sized small toy. "If you can hit all 10 shots, you can only get a small toy this big."
"Okay. Give me 40 shots."
Lu Chuanbai paid the money, picked up a gun, and tried to aim. He found that the barrel of the gun was a bit crooked, but this didn't affect his performance.
Lu Chuanbai raised his eyebrows and looked at Lu Fenglin, who was standing beside with his arms crossed. There was a hint of provocation in the smile on his lips.
"Do you want to have a competition? 20 shots each. Let's see who can hit the most."
Hearing this, Lu Fenglin snorted disdainfully. He picked up the toy gun with one hand and tilted his head to aim. He noticed that there was something wrong with the sight of the toy gun.