Zhang Xiaohua had been to the market in Lu Town before. After all, it was the busiest time of the year and the most bustling place in a few dozen miles. Since he started to have memories, he had visited it every year. Yet, his past visits were always filled with sugar figures, pastries, and other foods; he had never thought about what it was like to be crowded. Being in a crowd used to be like a game to him as a child, and he found it fun.
But this time, standing at the north entrance of the street, looking at the crowded crowd, and the shops and stalls on the street selling all sorts of goods, trinkets, and foods, Zhang Xiaohua felt as if he wished he had more eyes.
Zhang Cai and his family moved with the crowd from the north entrance of the street, gradually moving towards the depth of the street. They would squeeze into each shop they passed by, regardless of whether it sold silk or antiques, even pausing at a pharmacy. Zhang Xiaohua and his two brothers not only looked at the goods being sold but also paid attention to the crowd around them. When would they usually see so many people in the small mountain village, especially the young girls dressed up beautifully, they captivated the young boys' eyes. Unfortunately, the three of them have ordinary looks and are plainly dressed. The girls' eyes just slipped over them, unlike them staring at the girls. Occasionally, a girl would notice their intense gaze, and naturally shy away quickly, leaving others to stare back, turning the three brothers' faces red with embarrassment. Zhang Xiaohua was just looking with a childish curiosity, but his brothers Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu were looking more towards their future. Perhaps they hoped to meet the right girl and find their happiness, but seeing that the girls mostly ignored them, it was unclear how the two brothers felt about this.
In the center of the street was a large storefront with a sign reading "Qian's Family Cloth Art". Seeing it, Zhang Cai's eyes lit up. He called to his three sons and walked in first. Standing at the door of the shop was a shop assistant. When he saw Zhang Cai coming in, he hurriedly approached and said: "Dear customer, please come in. What may I help you with?" It seemed that he didn't notice Zhang Cai's awkwardness and his not-so-new clothes.
After Zhang Cai entered the cloth art shop, he didn't go directly to the counter. Instead, he stood by the door, looking awkwardly at the many male and female customers and the busy shop assistants. He didn't know what to do until he heard the greetings of the shop assistant. Then he awkwardly said: "Well, I want to buy some clothes for the kids, and some cloth for their mother." While speaking, his three sons also came in. They rarely enter such big shops, and it's okay to just browse, but now they're really going to buy things, they didn't know what to say and acted rather timidly. The shop assistant on the other hand seemed unfazed, he greeted them with a pleasant smile and said, "Please have a look over here and see if there are any fabrics that you like."
With that said, he took them to a corner of the counter to show them the fabric displayed there. This corner of the counter has noticeably fewer people. There were two groups who came earlier, one was two young girls who were busy choosing colors, and the other was a family of three who had already picked their fabric and were being packed by an assistant. The rest of the counter that wasn't in this corner displayed colorful silks and other fine fabrics, surrounded by well-dressed people commenting and picking. It seemed that the shop assistant had good training and knew the needs of the customers. From the attire of Zhang Cai's family, he knew they needed durable fabrics rather than flashy ones.
Although the assistant was very considerate and directed Zhang Cai and his family to the correct place, Zhang Cai still looked troubled. In the past, when buying fabric, it was always his wife who made decisions. He never had to worry about which type of fabric to buy and what color to choose. This time, because his wife was at home with their grandmother, Zhang Cai was sent to buy the fabric. He didn't think much about it at the time, but once he got to the store, he didn't know what to buy. Seeing the embarrassed look on the assistant's face, Zhang Xiaolong quickly came forward and said to the assistant, "We'll take a look first and then decide, you can greet other customers."
After the shop assistant left, Zhang Cai couldn't help but regretfully say, "See how forgetful I am, I should've asked your mother what kind of fabric she wanted. Now we're going to have to go back empty-handed."
As luck would have it, one of the taller girls, who was just selecting fabric, happened to walk behind Zhang Xiaolong, picked up a navy blue piece of fabric from the counter, and heard Zhang Cai's words. She walked back to her friend aside, glanced at Zhang Xiaolong again as if discussing something, and then walked towards Zhang Cai, "Uncle, I need to discuss something with you."
Zhang Cai was puzzled and asked, "What's the matter? Young lady?"
The taller girl said: "Uncle, I was just picking out a piece of clothing for my elder brother, but he's not here. I saw that he might have a similar figure to this older brother. Can I please ask him to try it on? I heard what you said about not having any material or point of reference. In return, me and my sister can also give you some references."
Zhang Cai was overjoyed, slapped his thigh, and said: "Good, good."
So, Zhang Xiaolong acted as a clothes hanger for a while, helping the two girls try on several pieces of clothing. While Zhang Cai's wishes were well-satisfied, the two girls helped him choose the cloth and colors. The whole Zhang family liked their choices, even the shop assistant thought the girls had excellent taste. The only thing that upset Zhang Xiaolong was that by the time the shop assistant had packed the fabric, the girls had left, and he didn't even get a chance to ask them their names.