novelraw Chapter 345 - 342: We’re All Country Folk
Chapter 345 - 342: We’re All Country Folk
Seeing the look on Lin Lan’s face, Yang Liqun knew she didn’t want anything to do with Yang Lirong anymore. She sighed. "Thank you, Lin Lan. I know you remember who’s been good to you. Otherwise, Liying and I wouldn’t have this shop or be living such a good life. What Lirong did was wrong. Just forget I said anything."
"Okay," Lin Lan agreed with a smile.
’She still felt the same way about Yang Liqun and Yang Liying. After all, when she and this body’s previous owner had been at their lowest, only they had stood by her, putting aside old grudges.’
Yang Liqun stayed for a short while before heading home. She stopped by Yang Lirong’s place first and tactfully explained that Lin Lan would no longer be supplying her with baked goods. However, seeing as she was Little Douzi’s aunt, she could continue to use the market stall.
Yang Lirong’s face fell the moment she heard this. "If she won’t sell to me, then fine! I can get my stock from the food depot just as well."
Yang Liqun saw that she was fixated only on Lin Lan’s refusal to wholesale baked goods to her, without a shred of gratitude for being allowed to keep the stall.
She sighed. "Lirong, you need to learn to see things from other people’s perspectives. Stop focusing on how others treat you and start thinking about whether your own actions are right."
Yang Lirong waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, Big Sis, I don’t get all your grand principles. The way I see it, she’s just holding a grudge because I didn’t want to fork over money for our youngest brother’s funeral. She should think about it—was it easy to save up money back then? It’s not like I have the final say in my own house."
"He was your own flesh and blood. His burial was the last chance you’d ever have to help him. But you refused, and when you finally agreed, you still had to add conditions.
You do this every time. No matter who in the family asks you for help, you just pass the buck to Yu Hui. You two are cut from the same cloth. Stop treating everyone like fools."
With that, Yang Liqun turned and walked away. As she thought about the past, her feelings toward Yang Lirong grew colder, and she resolved to stop meddling in her sister’s business from now on.
「 」
In the afternoon, Lin Lan closed the shop. She, Qiaohui, and a few others were in the backyard washing baking sheets and countertops, and steaming filter cloths in a large pot to sterilize them.
Captain Jin and a young man, each leading two mules, arrived in front of the shop. Captain Jin glanced at the note in his hand and muttered, "Jin Wei, check and see. Is this the place?"
Jin Wei glanced at the shop’s name written on the paper. "It is, Grandpa."
Captain Jin handed him the reins. "You hold the mules. I’ll go get someone."
Just as Lin Lan and her helpers finished cleaning and reached the door, they heard a knock. Someone was calling for "Boss Lin," so she hurried to open it.
Captain Jin breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Lin Lan. "Boss Lin, we’ve arrived."
Lin Lan smiled at the mud-splattered grandfather and grandson. "Welcome! You must not have eaten yet."
Captain Jin patted his satchel. "We brought some dry rations to fill our stomachs."
"The shop for local products is in the eastern part of the city. Let’s head over there to unload first." Lin Lan let Qiaohui and the others know she was leaving, then led the grandfather and grandson toward the east side of town.
Half an hour later, they reached the eastern district. Lin Lan called over Lin Guoliang and his brother, and they lifted the cellophane noodles off the pack saddles.
Captain Jin took out two bundles of noodles and said to Lin Lan, "Boss Lin, this bundle is for you. As for this one, could I trouble you to give it to Mr. Yao?"
Lin Lan readily accepted them. "Thank you! Actually, Xiuyun is coming over to eat in a little while." She pointed to the restaurant next door. "My parents’ restaurant is opening today. You should join us for a meal later."
Captain Jin quickly waved his hands in refusal. "There’s no need for a meal. We just need to find a place to stay for the night, get some fodder for our animals, and we’ll be on our way first thing tomorrow."
Lin Guoliang smiled. "Sir, it’s our grand opening. You should eat with us. The more, the merrier."
Lin Changyou chimed in with a warm invitation. "That’s right, my friend! We just moved from Shilian ourselves. Meeting like this is destiny. It’s no trouble at all, just adding another two pairs of chopsticks!"
Seeing their sincerity, Captain Jin smiled and nodded. "Well, thank you, my friend. In that case, we’ll take you up on your offer."
"No need to be so formal. We’re all travelers here."
Lin Changyou helped hang a burlap sack on the scale’s hook to weigh it. "This one’s a hundred jin, right, my friend?"
"That’s right!" Captain Jin nodded again and again. They had weighed them before leaving; the amount was correct.
There were four burlap sacks of sweet potato noodles. Inside each, the strands were of a uniform thickness, with none stuck together or broken. They felt supple and springy to the touch, free of impurities. You could even see irregular air bubbles trapped within the noodles.
Lin Changyou gave Captain Jin a thumbs-up. "My friend, these noodles you’ve made are even better than the ones we make."
"You’re too kind," Captain Jin replied, though he was secretly pleased.
Lin Lan based her price on what Captain Jin’s team received from the supply and marketing co-op for their top-grade product, then added twenty percent on top. She paid him the cash right then and there.
Captain Jin took the money, grinning from ear to ear. He handed her a slip of paper with a shopping list. "Boss Lin, could I trouble you to help us buy some grain and salt? It doesn’t need to be the best quality, just something to fill our stomachs."
"Of course. I’ll go see my friend who deals in grain right away."
Lin Lan asked Lin Changyou to take Captain Jin and his grandson into the shop. She then rode her bike over to see Li Wu, arranging for him to deliver the grain to the East City Restaurant the next morning.
By the time Lin Lan got back from Li Wu’s, Yao Xiuyun’s family and Yang Dingbang’s family had arrived, along with Yang Liying, Shuiqing, and Brother Yong.
Yao Xiuyun laughed. "I’ve already told my colleagues at the office to come to your homestyle restaurant whenever they feel too lazy to cook."
Yang Xiaoman teased with a smile, "Lazybones, I think you were just talking about yourself!"
Yao Xiuyun laughed, covering her face. "Oops! You saw right through me."
The Lin family had set out three banquet tables. The children sat at one of them, all busy with their homework.
Lin Qing and Qiaoling were in the same class. After a few days of school, he realized that despite being held back half a grade, he was still far behind his classmates. He was now earnestly asking Qiaoling for help with a math problem.
Wu Shufen, Zhang Xiuqing, Qiaohui, and the others began serving the food: fish with pickled greens, dry-fried pork intestines, pork stomach with garlic and celtuce, steamed pork belly with preserved vegetables, stir-fried pork liver with pickles, stewed pig’s trotters...
Zhang Xiuqing smiled. "Everyone, please don’t stand on ceremony! Eat up, and be sure to give us plenty of feedback."
Yao Xiuyun laughed and waved her hand. "Grandma, I’ve eaten Aunt Wu’s food many times. Her cooking is beyond reproach!"
The matriarch at the table nodded as well. "That’s right. The food is truly delicious."
Once everyone was seated, Lin Changyou raised his glass and said with immense gratitude, "Thank you, everyone. It’s only because of all your help that my family’s restaurant could open so quickly."
"Don’t be so formal, Uncle Lin."
The matriarch laughed. "We’re all family here. If you need something, just say the word. No need for such pleasantries."
Captain Jin and his grandson looked at the lavish spread on the table. ’The gap between the village and the city is just massive,’ they thought.
The men ate and drank, chatting about the current state of affairs and expressing their hopes for an ever-brighter future.
After dinner, everyone lingered to chat for a while. Xu Dong, Yang Dingbang, and Shuiqing’s group were the first to depart.
Captain Jin, Old Li, and Lin Changyou remained at the table, shooting the breeze.
Captain Jin described the situation in his production team to the other two men and asked for their advice on what to do.
Old Li said he didn’t know anything about farming, but he could offer some advice when it came to raising pigs.