Chapter Thirty: Business
Zhang Liuyi pushed the empty cart back home, the wheels making a soft creaking sound as they rolled over the muddy yard.
In the kitchen, Auntie was holding and playing with Xiao Nan'er, while Li Xiulan was clearing away the dishes.
He carefully parked the car, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and hurried into the kitchen, his face showing a mixture of urgency and heartache.
"Auntie! Sister-in-law!" Zhang Yi's voice was a few decibels higher than usual.
"Hey, Yi'er's back?" The aunt looked up, saw her niece's expression, and asked with concern, "What's wrong? You look angry and worried about Gan'er? Is business at the docks not good?"
“It’s not that business is bad, it’s…it’s too good,” Zhang Xiaoyi shook his head, walked to the water vat, scooped up a ladle of water and gulped it down before catching his breath. He then spoke to his aunt and Li Xiulan, who was looking over.
"Sister-in-law, you didn't see it today. Those people at the dock were really... sigh!"
She paused, as if the weary figures on the dock were reappearing before her eyes, and her voice unconsciously lowered, filled with deep reluctance.
"A big pot, simmering to the brim, still wasn't enough. Many of the workers, exhausted after work, looked like they'd been pulled from the water, staring longingly as the pot emptied. Their eyes…it made me sad, and…"
Her voice softened, tinged with a sob: "I saw several men who couldn't get any, so they gave some two copper coins to share a bowl of soup. They squatted behind the pile of goods, taking turns eating the cold cornbread. That cornbread was as hard as a rock..."
As Li Xiulan listened to her sister-in-law's description, she seemed to see the heartbreaking scene as well.
She put down the rag in her hand: "Yi-jie, I'll go with you tomorrow. Our pot isn't big enough, so I'll go to Aunt Wang's house next door and borrow her biggest iron pot. I guarantee it'll be enough to make a lot of soup. All those guys can have hot soup!"
Upon hearing this, the aunt immediately slapped her thigh in agreement, her face full of heartache and understanding: "Oh dear! Those boatmen, they really have it tough. They endure wind and sun, go through water and mud, doing work that puts their lives on the line! Yi-jie, you did the right thing! They deserve a hot meal!"
Without saying a word, she immediately took Xiao Nan'er, who was babbling and playing with a wooden ball, from Li Xiulan's arms.
"Nan'er, be good and play with Grandma! Let your mother go help your aunt! More people means more help, and they can cook the soup, serve the soup, and collect the money faster!"
The aunt looked at her daughter-in-law and niece, nodded with satisfaction, and then pounded her knees with some regret: "Ah, if it weren't for my legs being so weak, hurting terribly on cloudy or rainy days, I really wanted to go and help you out! Seeing those men get a hot meal makes me feel good!" She was also a very capable worker when she was young.
The next day, just as dawn broke, Zhang Yili and Li Xiulan got busy, first setting up the stove and lighting a fire at their stall.
The pig's stomach and lungs were cleaned and blanched the day before.
The two men worked together to build a large stove and placed two borrowed iron pots, each large enough to hold half a person, on the stove.
Clear water was poured in, along with the prepared pork lungs, large chunks of pork fat, crushed ginger, whole scallion segments, and a few pork bones that Zhang had specially added to enhance the flavor. All of these were thrown into the pot at once.
Bring the fire to a boil, skim off the foam, then reduce to a simmer and cover with a heavy wooden lid.
By the time the sun was high in the sky and the docks began to bustle, Zhang Yili and Li Xiulan had already prepared the tripe and lung soup.
Two large pots were steadily placed on the makeshift earthen stove. As soon as the lids were lifted, an even richer aroma than yesterday swept through the entire dock entrance like an invisible beckoning banner.
"Miss Zhang! There are really two pots today!"
"Great! Sister-in-law Zhang is here too!"
"Quick, quick! Give me a bowl! I couldn't get one yesterday!"
The boatmen, who had been waiting for a long time, swarmed around them, their faces filled with surprise and anticipation.
Seeing that Li Xiulan was also there, he greeted her even more warmly.
Li Xiulan deftly helped collect money and hand out bowls, while Zhang Yiyu was in charge of serving soup.
The two worked together seamlessly, and their efficiency was more than double that of yesterday.
The piping hot, thick, white broth, large chunks of tender tripe and lungs, and fried tofu soaked in the broth were ladled into a large, coarse porcelain bowl, spoonful by spoonful.
The boatmen took the bowls, and some of them couldn't wait to squat down next to the stall, take out the cold, hard flatbreads and cornbreads, soak them in the bowls, and swallow them in big gulps, letting out satisfied sighs.
Some carried their bowls to a nearby pile of goods, ate them in a few bites, wiped their mouths, and immediately threw themselves back into the arduous task of moving things.
A bowl of hot soup seemed to inject a brief burst of energy into the cold body and weary soul.
Business was indeed much better than yesterday, and the soup in the two large pots was decreasing at a visible rate.
Zhang Liuyi and Li Xiulan were busy, their foreheads were sweating, but their faces were filled with satisfied smiles.
Seeing the men holding their bowls, their faces showing a moment of relaxation and warmth, they felt that all their hard work was worthwhile.
However, this bustling scene and heartwarming atmosphere stung the eyes of another stall owner not far away.
It was a small stall selling vegetarian noodle soup. The stall owner was a woman in her forties with high cheekbones and shrewd eyes. Her surname was Wang, and she was known as "Wang Po Noodles".
Her stall was set up earlier than Zhang Yi's. In the past, due to the large flow of people at the dock, the vegetarian noodles were cheap and business was decent.
But ever since Zhang noticed that her pork belly soup stall opened, her bland vegetarian noodle soup immediately lost its appeal.
Especially today, seeing Zhang Yi's two big pots bustling with activity, while her own place was deserted with only a few old customers who couldn't bear to spend an extra penny, Wang Po's jealousy and resentment rose up as if fueled by oil.
The more she looked, the angrier she became. Her eyes darted around, scanning Zhang Yili and Li Xiulan's busy figures, and the men squatting next to their stall wolfing down their food. A wicked thought began to grow in her mind.
Granny Wang deliberately raised her voice and spoke to a vegetable vendor next to her who was also idle and peeking out to watch the commotion.
"Oh dear, Aunt Li, look over there! Tsk tsk tsk, two young wives, always hanging around these men, showing their faces in public, aren't they ashamed! Selling soup is just a pretense, I'm afraid... their real intentions aren't what they seem?"
Aunt Li, who sells vegetables, is also a gossip. Upon hearing this, she immediately understood and gave a knowing, ambiguous smile. She also lowered her voice, but deliberately made sure that everyone nearby could hear her.
"Who says otherwise! Granny Wang, look at those men, squatting next to their stall, eating so heartily? And where are their eyes wandering? Heh heh... Which of these dockworkers isn't simmering with pent-up anger? Two pretty young women offering themselves up... tsk tsk, who knows if they're being honest behind the scenes? Maybe, the soup even smells of fish!"
The two sang in harmony, their voices neither too loud nor too soft, yet like the spitting of a venomous snake, clearly reaching the ears of some onlookers, and naturally also reaching Zhang Liuyi and Li Xiulan.
Li Xiulan was easily embarrassed. Upon hearing this, her face turned deathly pale, and her hand holding the bowl trembled. She was both ashamed and angry, her lips quivering, but she didn't know how to refute it.
Zhang Yiyan instantly flew into a rage!
She suddenly raised her head, her gaze fixed on Granny Wang and Aunt Li!
She put down the long spoon, took a step forward, and spoke in a clear voice, filled with barely suppressed anger:
"Wang Po, Li Shen! Explain yourselves! What do you mean by 'showing your face in public'? What do you mean by 'unclean'? We earn our money honestly and through hard work, making and selling soup from dawn till dusk. What business is it of yours? Just because your own business is bad, you start slandering people? Throwing mud at them? Or are you dirty yourselves, so everything you see is dirty?"
Zhang Liuyi's words were resounding and carried a righteous and awe-inspiring air.
Many boatmen and vendors nearby heard this and looked over. Some frowned, while others looked at Wang Po and her companions with disdain.
Granny Wang was taken aback when she saw Zhang Xiaoyi, a young woman, dare to talk back to her in public and speak so bluntly.
But she was used to being fierce and wouldn't admit defeat. Instead, she became even more sarcastic and raised her voice sharply, with a deliberate exaggeration.
"Oh my! Listen to this, everyone, you're getting angry, aren't you? Your secret has been hit, isn't it? Still innocent? Would an innocent girl like you hang out with men all the time? Chatting and laughing with those rough guys? And letting them squat by your skirt to eat?"
"Who knows if you were touching hands or giving each other a knowing look when you were taking the money? Humph! What are you pretending to be so righteous for! I bet your soup stall is just a front! You know perfectly well what you're up to behind the scenes!"
"You...you're spouting nonsense!" Zhang Xiaoli was so angry that he was trembling all over, pointing at Wang Po, his fingers shaking.
Although she was bold and capable, she was momentarily speechless in the face of such vulgar and shameless slander that specifically attacked a woman's reputation. She felt a huge sense of humiliation and anger stuck in her chest.
Li Xiulan was so angry that tears welled up in her eyes, and she bit her lip tightly.
Seeing Zhang Yixin speechless with anger and Li Xiulan on the verge of tears, Wang Po thought she had gained the upper hand and became even more smug. With her hands on her hips, she spat and spewed vulgarities.
Wang Po's foul language abruptly stopped, turning into a terrified scream.
A large, iron-like hand, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, suddenly reached out from behind and grabbed the wrist that Wang Po was pointing at Zhang Xiaoyi's.
The force was so great that it seemed to crush her wrist bones!
Granny Wang winced in pain and looked back in terror.
A tall and imposing figure had appeared behind her, standing like an iron tower!
The newcomer was dressed in a crisp, dark brown constable's uniform, with a broadsword at his waist. His face was as cold and stern as ice, and his deep eyes were burning with terrifying rage as he stared intently at her.
The man who came was Xiong Zixiang, who had just patrolled the shore!
He clearly heard Wang Po's last few extremely vicious slanders.
"What...what are you doing? Officer Xiong! Let me go!" When Granny Wang saw who it was, she was terrified and screamed in a fierce but weak voice, struggling desperately.
Xiong Zixiang remained unmoved, tightening his grip on her wrist even more, causing Wang Po to scream like a pig being slaughtered in pain.
He didn't even glance at Wang Po's face, contorted with pain and fear. His cold gaze swept over the surrounding, trembling crowd, and finally...
"What are you doing? I heard someone on the dock spewing filth and slandering my fiancée, Xiong Zixiang's future wife!"
He paused, his gaze sweeping like a blade over Aunt Li, who was pale with fright, and the onlookers around them.
"Listen up, all of you! The girl Zhang is looking after is my betrothed, Xiong Zixiang! She's the younger sister of Zhang Liuji, a registered carpenter! She's an honest and upright young woman! She sells soup at this dock, earning her money cleanly through her own abilities! Anyone who dares to spew filth, slander her, or spread rumors..."
Xiong Zixiang shoved Wang Po, who was in so much pain she was about to faint, forward, causing her to stagger and almost fall. Then, with a clang, he pulled half of the broadsword from his waist.
The gleaming blade reflected a blinding, cold light in the sunlight.
"Don't blame me if this blade doesn't discriminate!"
The entire entrance to the dock fell into a deathly silence.
The only sounds were the lapping of the river against the bank and Granny Wang's sobs of pain and fear.
Without even glancing at Granny Wang, who was slumped on the ground, and Aunt Li, who was trembling like a leaf, Xiong Zixiang sheathed his knife, turned around, and strode over to Zhang Liuyi.
The once icy gaze instantly softened with tenderness and affection when it met Zhang Xiaoli's slightly reddened eyes and tightly pursed lips.
He didn't say anything more, but simply reached out and gently grasped Zhang Xiaoli's somewhat cold hand.
The warmth from his palm instantly soothed Zhang Xiaoyi. She felt a surge of heat rush up from her wrist, which he was holding, and it broke down her defenses.
My cheeks, the back of my ears, and even my neck were burning uncontrollably!
My heart was pounding wildly in my chest, as if it wanted to break free and jump out.
She even forgot to break free, just standing there blankly, letting his broad, warm palms envelop hers, feeling the slight abrasion from the calluses on his fingertips from years of holding a knife and practicing martial arts.
All the surrounding noise seemed to disappear; the wind at the dock, the fishy smell of the river, and the gazes of the crowd all became blurred.
In her world, only the man before her, as reliable as a mountain, and his words remained.
"I am her man!"
These words, like the hottest brand, were deeply etched into Zhang Xiaoyi's heart.
The vague feelings she had previously had because of him now converged into a surging warm current, completely overwhelming her.
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