Chapter 326 Mysterious Gift
Images flickered through Bella's mind, but she didn't linger on them; they didn't seem to matter much anymore.
On the first day of the new year, as the first rays of sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains and quietly entered the room, Bella woke from her dreams. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and felt a hint of the new year's freshness. Turning to look at Anna beside her, she found Anna smiling back at her, as if both were silently anticipating the arrival of the new year.
"Happy New Year, Bella," Anna said softly, her voice warm and full of hope.
"Happy New Year, Anna," Bella replied, her heart brimming with contentment.
Bella knew that no matter how many storms and obstacles they had faced in the past year, at this moment, they were standing at a new starting point, ready to face the unknown challenges and difficulties of the future.
After a quick tidy-up, they decided to head to the grocery store to buy some ingredients for the new year. As soon as they opened the door, their eyes were drawn to two beautifully wrapped gift boxes sitting on the doorstep.
The boxes lay quietly on the ground, looking particularly eye-catching. Bella and Anna exchanged glances, a mix of surprise and curiosity in their eyes.
Upon closer inspection, they found that the boxes were from a well-known brand, exquisitely packaged with an air of elegance. Each box had a card attached, indicating they were gifts for Anna and Bella.
Seeing the gift boxes, the two were puzzled, completely unaware of who had sent these mysterious gifts. They carefully unwrapped the beautifully decorated boxes to find two scarves of the same style but different colors inside.
The scarves were soft to the touch and expensive. Anna, upon seeing the label, was so shocked that her mouth formed an 'O', "Oh my gosh, what kind of luck is this? I didn't even pray before leaving the house today, and yet we get such a generous gift. Who could have sent such expensive scarves without leaving a name? It's so mysterious."
Bella, looking thoughtful and calm, gently folded the scarves back up, carefully resealed the gift boxes, and placed them back where they were. She said lightly, "We shouldn't accept things when we don't know where they came from. So, let's just leave these scarves here. Whether someone picks them up by accident or the original sender realizes the mistake and comes to retrieve them, it has nothing to do with us. Let's just focus on our own business."
Anna, hearing this, had a moment of realization and then nodded, "Now that you mention it, I think I know who sent them. But even if I do, I still don't want the scarves. Let's just pretend this never happened."
During the New Year period, the city's usual hustle and bustle seemed to quiet down as people returned to their hometowns. Even the normally lively farmers' market was unusually deserted, with only a few people around. As the "chef" of the house, Bella naturally took on the responsibility of buying groceries for the New Year.
Bella and Anna arrived at the grocery store. Despite the sparse crowd, Bella's regular vendor was still there. The vendor was familiar with Bella.
After carefully selecting the ingredients they needed, they were about to pay when the vendor suddenly pulled out a bulging black plastic bag from behind and handed it to Bella with a smile, "It's the New Year, and you two young ladies have it tough. My son brought back some local specialties from out of town. I want you to have a taste."
Bella took the plastic bag, feeling a wave of warmth in her heart. She smiled gratefully, "You're too kind. You always take such good care of us. How can we accept this?"
The vendor waved her hand and laughed heartily, "There's no need to be shy. My son rarely comes home, and he brought back more than I can eat. It's only right to share some with you. Besides, you often support my business. Consider this a small token of my appreciation."
Bella nodded, smiling as she accepted the black plastic bag. She instinctively felt it wasn't anything particularly valuable, as the vendor was always generous, often giving them homegrown vegetables or snacks. Despite feeling a bit guilty, she accepted the gift after some polite refusal, recognizing the vendor's kind intentions.
As Bella finished paying and turned to leave, Anna suddenly stopped, frequently glancing back at the farmers' market. She frowned, her face full of confusion. "It's so strange. Everyone's packing up and leaving after we finished shopping. It's still early. Why are they closing up so soon?"
Bella, hearing this, couldn't help but look back. Indeed, the market, which had a few scattered stalls earlier, was now almost empty. Even the vendor who had just given them the gift was packing up to leave.
Bella felt a strange sensation, as if something was different about the market today, but she couldn't pinpoint what it was.
The two exchanged puzzled looks. However, since they had already bought what they needed, they didn't think much more about it and headed home. On the way back, they occasionally glanced back at the now silent market, silently wondering what was going on.
As they walked, Anna suddenly stopped and peeked into the black bag Bella was carrying. Her eyes widened in surprise as if she had discovered something incredible.
"Bella, look!" Anna pointed at the bag, her voice filled with disbelief. "This isn't just any ordinary stuff!"
Curious, Bella looked down and saw that the seemingly ordinary, even cheap-looking black plastic bag contained over four pounds of high-quality beef. The beef was vibrant red with clear marbling, clearly top-notch.
"What's going on?" Bella was stunned. She never expected the vendor's "specialty" to be such precious beef.
The two exchanged shocked and puzzled glances. They knew the vendor was generous, but she would never give away something so valuable. This beef was clearly beyond her means.
"Could it be..." Anna suddenly had a thought and whispered, "This beef was sent to us by someone else through the vendor?"
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