He Tiantian had almost finished her noodles when Niu Lili came back from outside and said, "Tiantian, my cousin has already taken the letter to deliver it and won't be back until tonight. Everyone else is busy too, so they can't take you home for the time being. You can stay with me in the dormitory here tonight, and my cousin will come to pick up the letter tomorrow so he can take you back."
A clock hung on the wall of the restaurant; it would be three o'clock in five minutes. Even if someone took He Tiantian to Qijia Village, she wouldn't be able to get back to the county town that night.
He Tiantian smiled and nodded, saying, "Thank you, Sister Lili. I'm sorry to trouble you again."
"No trouble at all, come on, there's nothing to do right now. I'll take you to the back dormitory to wash up and rest," Niu Lili said warmly, helping He Tiantian with her things.
He Tiantian followed Niu Lili through a corridor about twenty meters long to a two-story building. She said, "My dormitory and a female accountant's dormitory are upstairs. Several male cooks live downstairs, and the women's restroom is on the second floor. You can wash clothes, shower, and use the toilet there. It's very convenient..."
As Niu Lili walked, she introduced things to He Tiantian.
He Tiantian looked around and her liking for Niu Lili grew even stronger.
Such a good girl, I wonder who will get lucky in the future!
Niu Lili has her own room. There is a 1.5-meter bed in the room, a wardrobe and a desk next to it. There is a thermos and an enamel mug on the desk, and two stools next to the desk.
"Sweetie, there's hot water here, don't be shy," Niu Lili said. He Tiantian had finally caught Niu Lili's eye, and she kept trying to win her over.
He Tiantian took out two boxes of Xinghualou pastries from the package and said, "Sister Lili, these are pastries from Xinghualou, the most famous pastry shop in Nanshi. My mother asked me to bring them to you. Thank you for telling me such important news."
Niu Lili's eyes fell on the packaging box, which was exquisitely designed and featured the words "Century-old Brand." Even before tasting it, she knew it would taste delicious.
"It was just a small favor, how could I possibly accept your gift!" Niu Lili actually wanted it, but was too embarrassed to say so. In her eyes, she had merely passed a few words to He Tiantian, but to He Tiantian, these crucial pieces of information not only prevented her from being persecuted but could also potentially change her fate!
He Tiantian placed the gift on the table and said, "Sister Lili, I remember your kindness to me. If you don't accept this small gift, I'll feel bad staying here with you."
As she spoke, He Tiantian was about to grab her things and leave.
"Hey, you silly girl, I'll take it." Niu Lili quickly stopped her. "Now that you're here, how can I let you leave! Alright, I'll take these snacks. When I have something good, I'll save some for you too. Oh, right, I haven't thanked you for having my cousin bring over the dried wild rabbit. Everyone said it was delicious when I took it home."
He Tiantian was taken aback, but after a moment's thought, she guessed that Niu Dajun had given a wild rabbit to Niu Lili.
"Hehe, it's not really anything good. I caught it when I went up the mountain to cut grass. Sister Lili likes to eat it, so I'll catch a few more and bring them to you later." Anyway, the back mountain is big, and with the Snake King around, I can catch a lot.
There was nowhere to put it before, but now there is. However, every time I put it in the Snake King's barrier space, the Snake King will glare at me with his nose in anger.
Niu Lili had an idea and asked, "Sweetie, can you really catch pheasants and rabbits?"
He Tiantian nodded and said, "Yes, fresh rabbits don't keep well, so I salt and air-dry them so they can be stored for a long time."
"Sweetie, I have something to discuss with you," Niu Lili said. Thinking about how to improve her family's life and earn money, she couldn't help but ask He Tiantian for help.
"Sister Lili, just say what you want to say." He Tiantian had already guessed what Niu Lili was thinking, but she was now a naive fifteen-year-old girl and couldn't give people the impression that she was scheming.
Niu Lili works in a restaurant, but nowadays resources are scarce, and even restaurants sometimes don't have enough ingredients. Often, people order food, but the kitchen can't cook it. It's not that the chefs are bad cooks, but rather that there aren't enough ingredients.
Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice!
"It's like this, our restaurant looks impressive, but we only cook a few dishes. Sometimes when the leaders come to order, we can't even make them, and we often get scolded. If you can get meat, any kind of meat, as long as it's meat, sell it to our restaurant. You can have money or food coupons, we'll definitely treat you well." Niu Lili said with a bitter face. As a waitress, she was the first to be criticized by the leaders; the job was not easy.
Upon hearing this, He Tiantian feigned fear and said, "Sister Lili, speculation and profiteering will lead to re-education. I'm already embroiled in a lot of lawsuits, and if I'm caught speculating and profiteering again, I don't think I'm beyond saving."
Seeing He Tiantian's frightened little face, Niu Lili felt sorry for her and covered her mouth with a laugh, saying, "What are you afraid of? Don't you still have me? Just deliver the rabbit meat to my house, and I'll give you the money directly. This is all done in secret. Even if others find out, just say that you gave it to me."
He Tiantian thought for a moment and realized that Niu Lili must have someone behind her to dare to do this, otherwise Niu Lili alone could not have done it.
"Don't worry, my second aunt's husband is in charge of this restaurant, nothing will go wrong," Niu Lili said. "You're a sent-down youth, far from home, and you don't have much money, this is a shortcut for you. You don't trust my character, but don't you trust my cousin?"
When He Tiantian heard Niu Lili say this, she felt it would be unreasonable to refuse. Besides, she did need some money, not only for herself but also for her parents and Huo Yingjie.
"But I don't know how many I can catch. It depends on luck, it's hard to say," He Tiantian whispered, explaining her predicament to Niu Lili and telling her to be prepared.
“It’s alright, just catch it and process it. Have my cousin take it to the county town, and I’ll give you a good price. A dried rabbit, I’ll give you one yuan and twenty cents, which is equivalent to one jin of food coupons nationwide; a dried chicken, I’ll give you one yuan, which is equivalent to six liang of food coupons nationwide,” Niu Lili said. This price was higher than the price at the purchasing station.
He Tiantian had never sold these things before. She owed Niu Lili a favor, and decided to do this business to repay it. She said, "Okay, I trust Sister Lili. I'll go back and check the mountain. If I find any, I'll process it and send it to Sister Lili. By the way, Sister Lili, we're out of salt coupons. I can't buy salt. I'll give you the money, and you can buy some for me. Even in winter, if those things aren't processed in time, it will affect the taste."
Niu Lili smiled and waved her hand, saying, "We're a restaurant here, we have plenty of salt, no need to buy any. I'll bring you some tomorrow. Okay, you rest here, I'll go downstairs first. These pastries look pretty good, I'll keep them. I'll take one box down for the chefs in the kitchen to try, and I'll take the remaining box home tomorrow for my parents to try." (To be continued.)
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