Jia Huan was also happy, "These vegetables must have been bought this morning, they're still so fresh. But there's so much of it, we probably won't be able to finish it in a day or two, will we?"
Zhao Yuru quickly said, "Then let's make them into pickled vegetables. We'll be selling porridge in the future, so we'll need some pickled vegetables to go with it."
After saying that, she called to Li Laosan, "Quickly help me move the soy sauce jar outside. Why is this stuff inside? The weather is just right. It will taste better if it gets more sun."
Li Laosan and Jia Huan quickly carried the soy sauce jars out. Zhao Yuru casually flipped over a basket and was so startled by the dozen or so dead rabbits that she almost fell to the ground.
"Why are there dead rabbits here?"
Li Laosan and Jia Huan rushed in, and were also startled.
Grandma Li guessed the truth, glared at her granddaughter, and seeing her granddaughter hiding behind the door with a grin, she had no choice but to shout.
"Don't make a fuss. The boss is gone. Whatever we find is free. Don't make a scene and let the neighbors know. They'll gossip."
Zhao Yuru quickly shut her mouth and nodded repeatedly.
The tidying up brought many pleasant surprises to everyone, but it also kept them busy for the better part of an hour.
Everyone was hungry and tired, so they bought a few steamed buns outside and had lunch.
After dinner, Jiayin had a good nap in the tidied-up main room.
When I got up again, the yard was almost tidied up, and it was getting dark.
Jia Huan even started a fire in the kitchen to prepare dinner.
Zhao Yuru and the old lady wiped the front shop and the back yard clean.
Li Laosan repaired the old tables and chairs and even made two small stools.
"Fu Niu'er is awake!" Grandma Li called her granddaughter to her side, wiped her hands and face clean, and said with a smile, "Your brother is cooking. In a little while, have your third uncle pick up your eldest brother, and then we'll eat."
Jiayin wasn't hungry, but she missed her older brother.
So she sat next to her grandmother for a while, then ran to the shop entrance and sat on the threshold to look around.
The neighbors, hearing the clanging and banging that had been going on in the yard for most of the day, were all curious.
Seeing the chubby little girl sitting at the door with her chin resting on her hand, I couldn't help but tease her a few times.
"Fatty, is your shop opening tomorrow?"
Jiayin nodded and protested in her soft, sweet voice, "My name is Fu Niu'er, not Pang Ya."
The neighbors were amused, saying, "You're so chubby, calling you Fatty Girl wouldn't be wrong."
Fu Niu pouted, a little angry, "My mom and brother cook so well that I've gotten fat. My grandma said I'll get thinner when I grow up."
"Oh, then you'll be called Skinny Girl!" The neighbor was also mischievous, which made Jiayin grit her teeth in anger.
At that moment, a long, drawn-out bell suddenly rang out from the academy, and the neighbors all vanished in a flash.
Jiayin was startled, and it took her a while to remember that it was time for the academy to let out.
Sure enough, the academy gates opened quickly, and even more students poured out than at noon.
Everyone was wearing similar long gowns and had headscarves tied around their heads, making it impossible to tell who was who.
This reminded Jiayin of the time she left school in her previous life, and she felt a sense of warmth towards it.
She stood on the threshold, craning her neck to look around, trying to recognize her eldest brother.
But even with his eyes practically crossed from staring, he still got nothing.
All she could do was shout at the top of her lungs, "Grandma, come quick! I can't find my older brother!"
As a result, before the old lady could even get to the front, a student ran out from the crowd.
"Fu Niu'er, what are you doing here?"
The student was Jiaren. He hugged his younger sister with delight, asking, "Who did you come with? You didn't run away by yourself, did you?"
As soon as the old lady and Li Laosan and the others came out, they saw Jiaren and said with a smile, "We were thinking of asking your third uncle to pick you up, but you came looking for us yourself."
Jiaren was even more confused, "Grandma, what's going on here...?"
Grandma Li took her grandson's hand and was both happy and proud to see him like this.
“We’ve rented this shop. Your third uncle, third aunt, and Jia Huan will stay here to sell food and take care of you as well.”
"Grandma!" Jiaren was so excited that he wanted to say something, but his nose tingled and tears fell down his face.
The old lady panicked immediately, "What's wrong, grandson? Did someone at the academy bully you?"
"No, Grandma, I'm just so happy. My family actually came here to open a shop just for me!" Jiaren wiped away his tears and laughed again.
"Silly child, don't overthink it. It's not just for you. Having another shop means more income for our family." The old lady pulled her grandson inside. "Jia Huan has prepared the meal and is just waiting for you to eat."
Soon, the family closed the front shop and gathered in the back yard for a meal.
The previous owner left too many vegetables, so Jia Huan generously made four dishes.
Braised pork belly with green beans, braised eggplant in soy sauce, braised rabbit, and a dish of garlic-flavored cowpeas.
Served with a bowl of snow-white rice, the family of six ate with great satisfaction.
Finally, the bowls and basins were all empty, and Zhao Yuru and Jia Huan went to clean up and wash them.
Jiaren stayed with his grandmother, sister, and third uncle, chatting about trivial matters at the academy.
The academy wasn't too strict. The teachers were erudite, and their teaching style was relaxed. They also encouraged students to have extra hobbies in addition to studying.
Besides attending classes as usual, he also chose to learn the flute and swordsmanship.
Of course, the flute is the cheapest of all musical instruments and is also easy to carry.
Swordsmanship is for physical training and self-defense in critical moments.
Back when he was risking his life in the mountains, he envied his younger brother's superhuman strength more than once.
Reading books certainly has its uses, but practicing martial arts is also entirely beneficial.
The old lady listened with great interest and was extremely pleased. She instructed, "It's good to be ambitious, but don't overwork yourself. Be sure to tell your family if anything happens."
"I understand, Grandma." Jiaren nodded with a smile. "Now that my third uncle and aunt are here, my biggest headache, eating, will be solved, so I can study even harder."
"Oh, right," the old lady patted her eldest grandson's hand, "Grandma is thinking of having Gousheng from Aunt Wu's family come over to be your page, to run errands for you from time to time. What do you think?"
Jiaren hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Does the family need money?"
"No need, it's just an extra bite to eat." The old lady guessed that her grandson wanted a page, but was afraid of adding to the family's burden.
So she comforted him, saying, "Gousheng is a timid child. Aunt Wu wanted him to broaden his horizons with you. She even wanted to give our family some money, but I didn't take it."
Jiaren secretly breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
He really needed a page. He had just entered the academy and was unfamiliar with everything. The school and his residence were far apart, which was particularly inconvenient.
This morning I left a book behind and went back to my place to get it. As a result, I missed my husband's roll call and was criticized a few times. He was very embarrassed.
Having a helper would definitely make things much better.
But the tuition at the academy was already so expensive, which was already a lot of trouble for his family, and he didn't want to add any more burden to them.
He was so grateful to his grandmother that he didn't know what to say.
After exchanging a few more casual words, Jiaren was about to head back. The academy would have teaching assistants leading the study sessions that evening, so he couldn't be late.
After the old lady saw her grandson off, Jiayin started to fuss and wanted her older brother to hold her.
Jiaren hugged his chubby little sister and told her with a smile, "Don't run around. Your older brother will come over again tomorrow at noon."
"Okay, big brother, don't overwork yourself. You've lost weight." Jiayin wasn't really a child; she had already noticed the dark circles under her brother's eyes and his gaunt face.
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