Chapter 22 Renting Meat Bones
The butcher leered at Ye Wan, finding the young woman increasingly beautiful, though her face was a bit dark. He'd never seen her before in town; if only he knew whose daughter she was…
"Cough cough cough..."
The old man finished wrapping the meat and had only taken two steps when he started coughing violently. Soon he was coughing so hard that he couldn't breathe, and his throat felt like it was being pumped by a bellows.
"Damn it, you old geezer, get the hell away from me, or you'll die in front of my stall!"
The butcher cursed and swore.
Sanya looked at Ye Wan, "Mom, can I give my water to Grandpa?"
Ye Wan nodded.
Sanya handed over her little bamboo tube, "Grandpa, have some water."
The old man didn't want to cough, but his cough was so bad that his vision blurred.
No, he can't collapse here. He has to go back and cook porridge for his wife; she's waiting for him.
Driven by his survival instinct, the old man took a sip of water. A cool sensation traveled from his throat to his stomach, instantly suppressing his cough.
The old man felt better and gratefully handed over the bamboo tube.
Ye Wan stopped Sanya, who was reaching out to take it, and said, "Grandpa, it's yours now. Go home early."
"Thank you." The old man, remembering his cough, put the bamboo tube back.
I was thinking of making a new one and paying back the money I spent on the meat along with it.
The old man coughed and left with heavy steps.
The butcher struck up a conversation, "Young lady, you're beautiful inside and out. I'll patronize your business sometime."
"Thank you so much, brother. Could you please watch the kids for a while while I move some of them to my stall?"
Ye Wan noticed an alleyway nearby, and since she had bought a lot of meat, she wanted to take the opportunity to put it into her spatial storage.
The butcher nodded. "Okay, don't worry, the little girl won't get lost if you leave her with me."
Ye Wan picked up most of the meat, put it in the basket, and left. She went into the alley and found no one there, so she put it in her spatial storage and came back.
She was worried about leaving Sanya behind.
"Young lady, why are you back so soon?"
"My man was in front, so I gave him to him. Can I have those bones, brother?"
Ye Wan pointed to several large, smooth bones under the stall, wanting to take them back to make soup base.
You could also make a bone broth noodle soup.
The butcher shook his head. "No way. There are still people who want to buy these bones. It's a small business. How would I make a profit if I gave them to you for free?"
"There's hardly any meat left, and people are still buying it?" Ye Wan asked in surprise.
The meat on top had been shaved off completely, leaving only the bone marrow inside. She thought these could be given away as a bonus.
"Hey, young lady, you don't know, there are plenty of families who can't afford meat, but they buy this bone and boil it repeatedly, so it can at least taste the meat."
"Some people also come to rent. Renting is cheaper than buying. Like that old man who bought meat earlier, he probably only had ten coins on him. If you hadn't been kind enough to give him a piece, he would have only been able to buy this bone to taste the meat."
rent?
Ye Wan was surprised for a long time upon hearing this. She picked up the remaining meat and pulled Sanya back.
She had thought Lin Anyuan was poor enough, his whole family was thin and pale, but now it seemed that he was already quite capable to be able to support his three daughters in such a world.
Ye Wan took Sanya around again and bought some vegetables from the vegetable vendor.
Lin Anyuan didn't appear at the stall until it was at its hottest.
"Sold out?"
Lin Anyuan pushed the cart away.
Ye Wan suddenly spoke up, "Lin Anyuan, let's rent a courtyard in town once we make some money. All this running back and forth will make it easier for Daya to go to work. It's just too tiring."
"Okay, you should focus on making money. I'm counting on you." Lin Anyuan said in a nonchalant tone.
Ye Wan was surprised that he wasn't sarcastic this time, and nodded, "Okay, but you have to keep your word and don't forget the three-year promise you made to me."
"You do it first, then you can ask me to do it." Lin Anyuan recalled the people he had met at Qingfeng Tower today.
Ye Wan turned to look at him, "Why should we? Shouldn't we both keep our promises?"
"Since I saved your life, I'm in charge."
"..."
...
"You're back? And you actually made a sale?"
As soon as we entered the courtyard, Er Ya was sitting under the eaves weaving baskets. She was a little surprised to see that the cart was empty.
These willow branches were previously dried in the shade; no more willow branches have been cut from the mountain recently.
"Go wash these bamboo bowls," Ye Wan ordered Er Ya without any mercy.
"Why should I?" Er Ya glared at Ye Wan.
The moment she walked in, all he knew was how to boss her around; she wasn't Ye Wan's maid.
Daya, who was standing to the side, put down her needle and thread. "I'll go brush it."
She didn't go to work today; she was busy making new clothes for her family.
"Okay, I won't let you work for free. I'll give you ten coins a day, paid monthly."
Even a small reward from a family member is enough to motivate someone to work.
"What, ten coins? Big sister, let me do it!" Er Ya came over quickly as soon as she heard that.
Ye Wan said coldly, "You have no money left."
Er Ya jumped up and down, "Why? Big Sister gets paid for her work, but I don't. Aren't you deliberately bullying me?"
"Who bullied you? I gave you a chance from the beginning. Why did you keep making excuses? It's not my fault." Ye Wan clicked her tongue twice and went into the kitchen.
Hey girl, I'd be crazy not to fix this problem of yours.
"You heartless, rotten-bellied woman, all you do is bully me. I don't even want to wash you. Anyway, all the money you earn belongs to my dad. What's so great about you?"
"Second sister, you're not allowed to curse your mother!" Sanya shouted.
"You heartless bastard, have you forgotten who raised you from infancy? Is she your mother? Don't cling to her like that, or that black-hearted woman will sell you out!"
Er Ya's cursing voice came from the courtyard.
Ye Wan hummed a little tune as she started a fire to cook, feeling happy.
Making sweet potato noodles by herself is too slow. She can hire someone to do the earlier steps. She should ask Lin Anyuan who would be a good fit.
I bought a lot of meat today to make braised pork, but it's a pity I didn't buy rice.
"Lin Anyuan, are you home?"
"Grandpa Village Chief."
Daya put down her needlework and went out to greet them, and Erya, who had been cursing, stopped.
A large group of people arrived outside the courtyard; almost everyone who was free at this time had come, led by the village chief.
When Ye Wan came out of the kitchen, she saw this scene and also saw several familiar faces.
"Did the village chief want to see me about something?"
Lin Anyuan came out from behind the house. Even though he was wearing patched clothes and carrying a hoe, the originally dilapidated yard looked much better.
"This new woman you bought instigated Zhang Erniu to break off his engagement and marry your Daya. The Li family girl from Niufen Village was so distraught that she almost caused a death." The village chief frowned, glancing at Ye Wan standing at the kitchen door as he spoke.
Ye Wan: ?
"You little bitch, it was you last time! How could you be so heartless? If we hadn't discovered it early, my Lamei would have hanged herself!" Zhang Erniu's aunt pointed at Ye Wan and cursed, her eyes filled with hatred as if she wanted to devour her.
Ye Wan felt a surge of anger and was about to speak when she heard Lin Anyuan say something.
"What does the death of your family's winter plum or winter plum have to do with her?"
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