After thinking for a moment, Old Lady Li asked Jia Huan to secretly go and check. Sure enough, the owner who had promised to exchange shops was still there.
So the old lady sent her son and his family to find a place to park the mule cart and wait a while.
She then took Jiayin to a nearby teahouse, where they ordered a pot of chilled tea and a plate of snacks.
The teahouse was mostly filled with locals, as well as some people who had arranged to meet someone. The sudden appearance of this old lady, who was holding a particularly chubby and cheerful baby girl, drew a lot of attention from everyone.
Grandma Li wasn't afraid of being stared at; she nodded to anyone who looked her way.
Jiayin, swinging her chubby little legs, munched on a snack, drooling, and occasionally exclaimed in her sweet voice, "Grandma, delicious!"
She even brought the snacks closer to her grandmother, wanting her to try them.
Grandma Li would only take a bite occasionally, then she couldn't bear to eat it herself, saying it was too sweet and that she would save it for her granddaughter.
The young man, having nothing to do at the moment, couldn't resist going over to chat.
"Auntie, why are you looking after the child by yourself? Is he from outside?"
"Yes, young man, our child is studying at the academy across the street, so we came to visit." Old Mrs. Li pulled the young man down to sit and chatted with him.
There weren't many customers around, so the waiter took a break.
Jiayin offered him some snacks, but he quickly declined. Then, he gently touched Jiayin's pigtail and said with a smile, "My little sister is all grown up now. I bring her snacks every time I go back home."
"In our family, we had four boys before we finally had a daughter, and all the brothers dote on her."
The old lady fanned her granddaughter with a straw hat, not in a hurry to ask anything, but just pulled the young man aside to talk about trivial matters at home.
Soon, a customer arrived, and the young waiter got up. The old lady pulled him back, saying, "Young man, go to the back door in a bit. We'll be waiting for you there."
The waiter was puzzled, but not wanting to delay serving the customers, he hurriedly ran away.
The old lady sat for a while, holding her granddaughter, then wrapped some snacks in a handkerchief and left, walking around half a street to the back of the teahouse.
The grandmother and granddaughter sat by the wall to enjoy the cool air. Jiayin took a twig and teased the little ants on the moss.
Just then, the young waiter rushed over, "Auntie, what can I do for you...?"
The young man looked wary, but Old Lady Li quickly waved her hand and explained with a smile, "Young man, we don't mean any harm, don't be afraid. You know we have a child studying at the academy across the street, and we're just getting by, it's a bit of a struggle to make ends meet. I was thinking of finding a small shop nearby to sell some food. My husband has his eye on that wonton shop to the west of yours, but that shop..."
She lowered her voice and said, "The tables and chairs in that shop are all dusty, and it looks like no one is around. I don't dare to throw all the remaining silver from home into there. I was just thinking that you must have been on this street for a long time. Could you give me a heads-up?"
Jiayin ran up to him, tilted her little face up, tugged at the waiter's sleeve, and said in her childish voice, "Thank you, brother!"
This wasn't a big deal; everyone on the street knew about it. The young shop assistant didn't hesitate and said, "Auntie, I thought it was something serious. It's easy. The shop isn't bad, it's just been unlucky. It's changed hands four times, but business just wouldn't take off. So, nobody wants to eat there, and nobody wants to take over."
"That simple?" The old lady laughed. "The academy is right across the street, yet people still insist on these unfounded rumors."
The young shop assistant laughed, "Yes, everyone in business wants to make money, so they're even more likely to believe in stories of losing money."
Just then, someone called from inside the courtyard. The young man was about to go home, so the old lady said, "Young man, if my family takes on that business, come and have a meal then. I won't charge you."
The young man laughed even harder, "Great, ma'am, we'll slash the rent as much as possible, so you don't have to spend any more money."
After saying that, he hurriedly ran back.
Grandma Li happily took her granddaughter and went to find her son's family.
Li Laosan was worried that something had happened to his mother and niece, and he was searching everywhere when he ran into them. He then took his niece with him.
"Mother, weren't you at the teahouse? How come you disappeared in the blink of an eye?"
"Don't worry, it won't be lost. Fu Niu and I have found out the details of that shop."
"Really? Mother is amazing. I just asked the owner of a calligraphy and painting shop, but he wouldn't tell me."
The mother and daughter walked out of the alley while talking.
At this time, the academy would take its lunch break, and students would come out of the main gate in a flurry, some chatting and laughing in groups, some hurrying along with their heads down, and some carrying books, numbering two or three hundred in total.
The streets immediately became lively, with shop assistants, especially those selling food, starting to shout enthusiastically to attract customers.
Only the shop that was being sold was deserted and almost empty.
Seeing this, the old lady immediately gathered her children and grandchildren, saying, "Let's go, let's go exchange the shop."
The owner of the wonton shop, who had been feeling frustrated and envious looking at the bustling scene outside, was overjoyed when he suddenly saw five or six people come in.
But upon closer inspection, he recognized Jiayin and Jiahuan, after all, it's rare to see a girl raised as well as Jiayin.
"Oh, young man, you've finally arrived. If you had come a few days later, I wouldn't have been able to keep this shop; it would have been sold to someone else."
The boss warmly welcomed the Li family, but his words were not the truth.
Jia Huan smiled憨厚ly and replied, "It's alright, boss. We just came to rest for a bit. If you have a better buyer, feel free to sell it to someone else. After all, there's a first-come, first-served principle!"
The shop owner was embarrassed; there was no one waiting to buy anything, he was just making things up.
He quickly tried to cover it up, laughing, "You were the one who asked first that day, so you were definitely first in terms of who came first."
Jia Huan just smiled and didn't say anything. The boss guessed that he wouldn't make the decision, so he fawned over the old lady, poured her tea, and went to cook wontons.
Old Mrs. Li stopped him, "Boss, please sit down first, let's have a good talk."
The shop owner then sat down, and Old Lady Li said, "Shop owner, as you know, our child is studying across the street, and we'd like to find a shop to do some business so that it's convenient to take care of things at home."
The shopkeeper nodded repeatedly, his eyes beaming with joy. "This place is perfect. It's in a great location, with a spacious shop in the front and a large courtyard in the back, complete with its own well. It can easily accommodate five or six people. Besides, I've already lowered the rent considerably—only eighty taels for two years and nine months. Go out and ask around; you won't find anything this cheap. If I weren't in a hurry to go back to my hometown, I wouldn't be selling it at such a loss."
The old woman chuckled, shaking her straw hat, and sighed, "Boss, we did inquire, but it's not like what you said. We heard your shop is cursed, everyone who does business here loses money. I didn't believe it at first, but look at this now, other shops are scrambling to open, but yours..."
Before she could finish speaking, the boss looked extremely embarrassed as the truth he had been trying so hard to cover up was exposed.
Finally, the shop owner sighed, completely giving up on the idea of swindling a sucker. "Grandma, I didn't quite understand the situation when I took over this shop. Even with mediocre skills, business is indeed bad. Since you've come here, it means you're interested in selling. Name your price, and as long as it's not too disastrous, we'll make a deal. I'm going back to my hometown to farm; I'm not doing business anymore, it's too stressful!"
After a moment's thought, Old Lady Li gave a number, which made the boss so angry that he stood up on the spot!
Updated! 6,000 words! New readers, please give a five-star review if it's convenient, and feel free to comment and urge for more updates—I'll give you whatever you want! Thank you so much!
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