Meng Yu's mouth was instantly stuffed with braised meat.
He couldn't eat, and he couldn't vomit.
They could only awkwardly grab the braised meat and nibble at it in small bites.
The sadness vanished instantly.
"People can reminisce about the past, but they can't go back. There are no 'what ifs' in this world. Your mother left early, which doesn't mean it was a bad thing. If she is reborn into a good family and lives a happy life, would you still want her to come back?"
Yan Xia's voice suddenly rang out, startling Meng Yu, who was eating braised meat.
“I don’t want to. Mother was angered to death by Father. She won’t be happy if she comes back. Manager Yan, you’re right. I want Mother to be happy. If Mother is really reincarnated, I hope she marries a good husband and not someone like my father. I also hope she has an obedient and filial child and that the family can live a happy and harmonious life together.”
Meng Yu answered her seriously.
"So what are you still sad about? You should be happy and congratulate your mother on escaping her suffering. Look at you, you've left the Meng family, aren't you living a carefree life now?"
Yan Xia had heard others mention the Meng family. Meng Yu also had a half-brother. Large families always have a lot of intrigue and backstabbing, let alone the son of the richest man in Jiangnan.
Meng Yu must have had a very miserable life before, living under the control of his stepmother at a very young age.
Afraid that he would overthink things again, Yan Xia picked up the braised meat and clinked it against the braised meat in Meng Yu's hand. "Cheers, to celebrate your successful departure from the Meng family—"
"Cheers?" Meng Yu had never heard of toasting with braised meat before.
"We can down a glass of wine, we can down a glass of tea, so why can't we down a glass of braised meat? Haha, if you want, you can celebrate even without anything in your hand. I'll eat the braised meat in one bite, but you can eat as much as you want, son—"
Yan Xia stood up, stuffed the braised meat into her mouth, and chewed it heartily.
The moon was overhead, illuminating her face.
Meng Yu was stunned. He felt a warmth fill his whole body, his sadness had long since faded, and his heart was filled with an unprecedented sense of fulfillment.
"Cheers!"
He stood up too, stuffed all the braised meat into his mouth, and like Yan Xia, both of them had bulging cheeks.
Like two little squirrels stealing food.
Their laughter and chatter floated on the river in the wind.
Half an hour later, Yan Xia was the first to disembark. The shore was right next to the back door of her house, which was one of the advantages of living by the river.
"Xia-jie, have a safe journey. I hope you arrive home safely tomorrow. Come to Jiangnan County again when you have time, and I'll treat you to a meal then!"
Meng Yu had regained consciousness. He stood on the boat with a smile and said goodbye to Yan Xia.
They also successfully changed their way of addressing her, no longer calling her Manager Yan.
Actually, Yan Xia initially wanted Meng Yu to call her Aunt Yan, but Meng Yu refused. What woman would want to be called old? So Yan Xia just let him be.
"Alright, I'll give you a good thrashing later. Okay, you should head back now. It's getting late, and your shop is far away. It's dangerous to go back too late."
Yan Xia waved to him and stood on the shore watching the boatman row away.
Just as Yan Xia was about to knock on the door, she realized that the sour rice cakes she had bought for Bao Dong were left on the boat.
I'm leaving tomorrow.
Not knowing when she would arrive, Yan Xia simply walked through the alley from the back door and onto the main street.
The old lady selling sour rice cakes should still be here by now.
The streets were still bustling with activity, just as they had been when she left.
"Grandma, give me another serving of sour rice noodle cake, with chopped sour fruit inside, no vegetables, and lots of sour rice noodles on the outside." After walking for ten minutes, I finally found the grandma who had just been selling sour rice noodle cakes.
"Hey, I'll pack it for you right away. Do you want a whole bag or half a bag? Didn't you just buy a whole bag? You finished it so quickly?" The old lady still remembered Yan Xia.
She asked enthusiastically.
"Yes, it's so delicious! Everyone in my family is fighting over it, so I came out to buy more. Auntie, I want another bag." Yan Xia told a little lie.
The old woman sitting on the ground looked to be almost seventy years old.
In ancient times, living to this age would have been considered a long life.
She looked perfectly healthy, except that she had lost most of her teeth and her hair was gray. Her voice was surprisingly strong, and her clothes were patched all over, but they were very clean. If you got a little closer, you could smell the fragrance of grass and trees.
She was a very clean and tidy older woman.
Thinking about how hard it must be for her to work late into the night to support her family at her age, Yan Xia softened her tone considerably when she spoke.
"Alright, let me pack it for you. You want extra sour rice noodles, right? I'll give you lots of them. Here, I'll also give you two pieces of rice cake. If you like it, come back to buy from me next time!"
The old lady was very generous; she sprinkled a thick layer of sour rice flour on top and gave Yan Xia two large pieces of rice cake.
“Okay, I’ll come back to buy again in the future. Here, this is the money.” Yan Xia handed over a small piece of silver.
Less than an ounce, a little more than half an ounce.
"Oh dear, six coins is enough. This is too much. I don't have change." A big bag of sour rice cakes only costs six coins. The old woman only has some loose copper coins on her. How could she possibly make change for so much money?
"Keep the change, take it all. I don't have any change on me. Alright, Auntie, I'm leaving now. You should go home soon." Yan Xia took the rice cake and left quickly.
"Oh dear, no, no, this is too much money, young lady, young lady, don't go, young lady, where are you? Oh... Thank you so much for the money, young lady, thank you so much, young lady, you will surely be rich and noble in this life and the next—" The old woman held the silver and wanted to return it to her, but in the blink of an eye, the girl who had just bought the sour rice cakes was gone. She could only excitedly thank her loudly, hoping that Yan Xia could hear her.
Fearing being targeted by thieves, the old woman tucked the silver into her bosom, and her smile widened considerably.
She wants to earn more money so that she can afford to treat her grandson's illness.
"Selling rice cakes! Vegetable rice cakes, sweet rice cakes, sour rice cakes, all kinds! Only 6 coins a bag, come and buy!" The old lady's voice couldn't penetrate the crowd, but it blended into the shouts of other vendors.
If someone were to listen carefully, they would surely hear the joy in the old lady's voice.
Yan Xia, on the other side, accidentally bumped into a man because she was walking too fast.
"Stop!" she apologized and was about to leave when the man shouted at her.
Yan Xia then raised her head and looked at him.
"It really is you! Yan! What are you doing here? And dressed like this, so dissolutely!" Chen Shouguo pointed at Yan Xia's clothes, his face flushed, and cursed angrily.
"Who the hell are you?" Yan Xia pretended not to recognize him. "And what's wrong with what I'm wearing? Am I naked? What's it to you? Are you out of your mind? Get lost."
She was accused of being promiscuous simply because she wore a top that exposed her neck. It's ridiculous. She didn't expose her breasts or her buttocks, so how could she be promiscuous?
Does she have to wear a black robe in the summer, only showing her eyes?
"You don't even recognize me? What? You've given me five children, and you still can't remember the man who slept with you? This is how your mother taught you: with your husband not here, how dare you expose your neck! Get your hair down right now! Do you believe I'll divorce you right now! Don't you know how many men on the street are staring at the back of your neck, you unfaithful, stupid woman!"
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