Young girls always need some sweet talk and coaxing.
Fan Zhenchuan planned to find an opportunity to meet this person in real life, to see if she was as good as his mother claimed.
Aunt Li, wary of the young housekeeper causing trouble, didn’t elaborate on Xia Xiaolan’s situation. She simply dropped off two dress shirts and left. After a while, the young housekeeper Xiao Yu came out wearing pajamas and leaned into Fan Zhenchuan’s embrace.
“You said you wouldn’t marry again, Zhenchuan. Don’t abandon me.”
Fan Zhenchuan couldn’t marry Xiao Yu, not because she was his housekeeper, but because many people knew of their distant family relation. Xiao Yu also had the surname Fan – if they married, it would become the laughingstock of Hedong County.
Fan Zhenchuan had never considered marrying Xiao Yu.
The promise about not remarrying was just sweet talk to pacify Xiao Yu. Men could say anything during intimate moments; women would be foolish to believe it.
“Even if I marry, it won’t affect our relationship.”
Fan Zhenchuan patted Xiao Yu’s cheek. Given the kind of person he was, how could he possibly settle for just one woman? Remembering he had a meeting that afternoon, and since his mother had brought two new shirts, he got dressed and left.
Xiao Yu sat numbly in the chair.
Fan Zhenchuan was going to marry again – what would become of her?
She had only become his housekeeper because her family was poor. Unable to resist Fan Zhenchuan, their relationship had become intimate.
Fan Zhenchuan’s wife had died from anger, but Xiao Yu didn’t feel it was her fault.
The psychological pressure on her was immense, and now Fan Zhenchuan was getting married again… wouldn’t she just become one of his many discarded mistresses?
Liu Fang’s niece?
Xiao Yu had met Liu Fang. Aunt Li wanted to introduce Liu Fang’s daughter as Fan Zhenchuan’s wife.
Fan Zhenchuan hadn’t agreed, not because Liu Fang’s daughter was Fan Han’s classmate, but because he wasn’t interested. Xiao Yu had secretly gone to see Liang Huan – she was still childish, perhaps appealing to those student boys, but Fan Zhenchuan was a worldly middle-aged man. How could he be interested in such an immature girl?
Liang Huan’s cousin?
Xiao Yu clenched her fists.
No, Fan Zhenchuan couldn’t get married!
Neither Liu Fang’s daughter nor her niece would do.
Xia Xiaolan finally agreed to buy that watch.
Apart from food, she only gave Zhou Cheng one gift per year. While 1,200 yuan wasn’t a small amount, the things Zhou Cheng sent weren’t worthless either. Modern mainstream thinking was that boyfriends should give gifts to girlfriends, but Xia Xiaolan had always walked outside the mainstream. She was capable and didn’t mind spending her own money on gifts for Zhou Cheng.
The 1,200 yuan watch was a Rolex.
Zhou Cheng already had a Rolex; Xia Xiaolan just needed to make sure it wasn’t the same model.
Men’s watches were like women’s bags – having several different ones to alternate between was fine.
With Ma Wei helping in the shop, Li Fengmei and Liu Fen could finally take occasional breaks… Despite the busy sales promotion for belts and wallets these days, they didn’t let Xia Xiaolan help. While Ma Wei might not understand everything, she was at least hardworking.
Xia Xiaolan thought for a moment and decided to make a trip back to Anqing County.
It had been almost two months since New Year’s, and she hadn’t visited the school. She decided to go right away – having a bicycle made it convenient. When Xia Xiaolan arrived at the County First Middle School entrance, she first noticed the changes at Huang Sister’s Fast Food. The shop had expanded from one unit to two. It was around 9 AM, past the breakfast rush hour, yet every table in Huang Sister’s shop still had customers, though not full.
“Xiaolan, have you eaten?”
Huang Sister’s mother-in-law spotted Xia Xiaolan first, and the elderly woman pulled her into the shop.
Huang Sister’s entire family was grateful to Xia Xiaolan. She had given advice and taught Huang Sister how to make “covered rice” dishes. Though simple, it was the first of its kind in Anqing County. As business improved, Huang Sister’s family became more mindful of their debt to Xia Xiaolan.
While there were bad people in the world, not everyone was an ungrateful white-eyed wolf.
Especially since Huang Sister’s business had improved, and Xia Xiaolan had never tried to take advantage of her help, their relationship naturally remained harmonious and long-lasting.
“Grandmother, I ate breakfast before leaving home.”
“Even if you’ve eaten, have some more! Riding a bicycle in the early morning takes energy. Let me cook you a bowl of clear soup noodles!”
Huang Sister was working at the stove and threw noodles into the pot without waiting for an answer. Xia Xiaolan’s habits were different from others – she preferred light food for breakfast. Huang Sister remembered this, and Xia Xiaolan felt warmth in her heart. Yes, while she had taught them about “covered rice,” it wasn’t purely to help – the main purpose had been to cause trouble for ‘Zhang’s’… Though Xia Xiaolan hadn’t sought anything in return, Huang’s Sister’s thoughtfulness still made her happy.
Sitting down, Xia Xiaolan noticed that Zhang’s shop across the street was closed.
“Grandmother, what happened to Zhang’s?”
Before Huang Sister’s mother-in-law could answer, Huang Sister brought over a bowl of bone soup noodles topped with fried eggs.
“Eat first, I’ll tell you everything afterward.”
The milky-white thick soup, perfectly chewy noodles, subtle pepper flavor, two fried eggs on the side with golden yolks in a half-solid state – these were perfectly prepared soft-boiled eggs… After a few bites, Xia Xiaolan discovered another surprise beneath the noodles: half a tender, well-stewed pig’s trotter.
“Auntie, how is this light?”
Was the absence of chili enough to call it light? This was a hearty meat noodle soup.
“Just eat. Your students need proper nourishment – studying consumes too much brain power!”
There was a reason why First Middle School students loved coming to Huang Sister’s Fast Food. It started as a trend, but they soon discovered that their “covered rice” portions seemed larger than other customers. While Huang Sister appeared to serve everyone equally, she had mastered the cafeteria lady’s technique – for the same price, students got two extra pieces of meat.
When sharp-eyed customers complained, Huang Sister said the students were working hard on their studies and needed the extra meat – what was wrong with that?
This left the complaining customers red-faced with embarrassment.
Huang Sister’s actions quickly won the support of First Middle School students. Between the negative reviews of “Zhang’s” and Huang Sister’s generosity, the school’s teachers and students naturally chose Huang Sister’s Fast Food.
After Xia Xiaolan finished her bowl of noodles, Huang Sister told her about Zhang’s shop.
“It turns out your uncle and his wife opened the shop without telling their family. After New Year’s, their business declined significantly, so they fired that idle girl working there… Then the Xia family all found out who owned Zhang’s. That old woman from the Xia family is quite a troublemaker – she incited your uncle and his wife to fight… Sometimes the Xia family would come to make trouble, then the Zhang family would come help, and they had several fights at Zhang’s. Everything in the shop was smashed. I don’t think Zhang’s can continue business.”
Huang’s Sister knew the details so clearly.
Everything happened right under her nose. Zhang Cui was beaten black and blue and returned to the county with her son. Her brothers had been depending on her support, so they naturally came to defend her. The Zhang family came to settle scores with Xia Changzheng, catching him completely off guard.
He had thought too simply, believing it was just an act between husband and wife to prevent Mother Xia from moving to the city – but Xia Changzheng wasn’t the one getting beaten. He had taken too much for granted. Zhang Cui had moved to the city before Xia Changzheng, and being influenced by Xia Ziyu’s ideas every day, she was no longer the submissive country woman she used to be!