Chapter 296 Yao Man
The next day, the third child took a break.
After finishing his reading, he leisurely went to the kitchen to eat, without having to rush back to school.
However, upon learning that his mother and the Taoist priest would be leaving on a long journey the next day, he felt a pang of reluctance.
But thinking about how her older sister was having a hard time, and how her mother was now both capable and wealthy, she thought that perhaps her mother could rescue her from her predicament.
Besides, the Taoist priest had already told Lei Yun and Wang Shouming, the two doctors, that he should go to them for help if he needed anything.
The place is relatively close to the clinic, and they've become quite familiar with it over the past two years, so there's not much to worry about.
And there's Aunt Haitang, she even cooks for him.
He also has two dogs to keep him company at night. If all else fails, he lets the dogs into the house to keep him company.
Sanwa watched as his mother baked flatbread and fried dough twists, which would last for ten days or half a month on the road without spoiling.
He went to the street and bought them two jars of honey.
The Taoist priest sat cross-legged in the pavilion in the courtyard, drinking tea at the apricot wood table, watching his junior brother busily serving the three children.
After finishing his tea, he continued meditating and didn't go anywhere except to the outhouse.
Song Chunxue found a sturdy piece of cloth to use as a bundle, and sewed pockets on both sides to prevent things from falling out.
The food, drinks, and supplies she carried along the way, along with the books she always read and the little trinkets she brought for Hongying and the children, weighed at least twenty pounds.
Even so, she still felt like she had forgotten something.
She turned around and went to the room to find a small cloth bag, which contained a change of clothes and an unused menstrual belt.
If it weren't for the fear of harming her health, she would have wanted to go through menopause sooner, since that thing is just a nuisance to her now.
She also wanted to bring some cloth for Hongying, but then she thought, wouldn't it be better to bring money and buy it when we get there?
After packing all morning, Song Chunxue felt a headache coming on as the bundle grew heavier and heavier.
When we didn't have much money, we didn't have much to bring. We just brought some food and that was fine. We weren't particular about anything. As long as we could see the children, that was enough.
Now that he has some money, he wishes he could bring Hongying some of the best things in the house.
She remembered that Hongying also loved flowers. In the past two years, she had collected a lot of flower seeds that she had never seen before, and she took some of each kind and wrapped them in paper.
Then he thought of the licorice and astragalus herbs he grew at home and wanted to show them to Hongying...
At the dinner table, Song Chunxue became increasingly agitated, and then put down her chopsticks and looked at the Taoist priest.
"Senior brother, why aren't you packing your bags? Aren't we leaving tomorrow?"
The Taoist priest held a bowl in his hand, slowly swallowed the mixed grain rice in his mouth, took a sip of tea, and then slowly looked at Song Chunxue.
“I don’t need to pack. I can just grab the cloth bag and go. There’s plenty of stuff in there.” He joked, “If I had to pack like you do, I might as well just carry the whole Taoist temple on my back so I can sleep in an unfamiliar place at night.”
"..." Song Chunxue realized that the Taoist priest was annoyed by her dawdling and wanting to bring too many things.
Seeing the conflicted look on her mother's face, Sanwa gently suggested, "Mother, you have money now. Except for some essential items, just buy everything else on the way. Anyway, there are very few things in this world that money can't buy."
The Taoist priest nodded, "Yes, Sanwa is the smartest. Most of the things your mother packed this morning were just a burden."
Sanwa silently ate his rice, putting the pickled cabbage and fermented vegetable juice into his bowl, along with some stir-fried potato shreds and stir-fried cabbage, and swallowed it all down with the rice in one gulp, just like a hamster.
Song Chunxue couldn't help but laugh out loud, "What, Sanwa, are you afraid I'll get angry if you say something like that now?"
Sanwa shook his head, "I'm afraid Mother will regret it if she goes empty-handed, since Mother wants to bring mostly things she made herself."
Song Chunxue nodded, "Then I'll pack it up again and see. If it really doesn't work, I won't bring anything. If we encounter robbers on the road, all our belongings will be stolen."
"Hey, don't jinx it. Our trip will definitely go smoothly," the Taoist priest said calmly. "But it's good to carry less heavy stuff, otherwise it'll be troublesome if we can't run."
Song Chunxue nodded, thinking that she should bring the money instead.
"How shall we get there? By donkey or by cart?"
The Taoist priest paused for a moment, then said, “If it would be easier, let’s just hitch a ride. I’m afraid the donkey will suffer with us and never return, which would upset my junior brother.”
Song Chunxue thought so too.
In the afternoon, she went to the street again, thinking of making some silver bracelets for the children. She also took some copper coins to Ren Haitang in the alley, thanking her for cooking for Sanwa.
Ren Haitang sat in the courtyard embroidering. When she learned that Song Chunxue was going out the next day, she didn't ask any questions. She just told her to bring some self-defense items when she went out, and that it was important to save her life if something happened.
They lived in the same alley and visited each other frequently. She would give her some of the nice things she bought.
Song Chunxue had never met a woman who was so natural and comfortable to be around.
Ren Haitang is not talkative or easily startled; she has a very good temper and always speaks gently and calmly.
Moreover, Ren Haitang didn't take advantage of her for nothing. She would give her something from her home in return for whatever she received, to ensure that it was a reciprocal exchange.
As for Yao Man, they had already broken up last year.
The story begins last August when Yao Man invited a Taoist priest to her home to assess the feng shui. She used some aphrodisiac spices on the priest, and the two of them drank together alone...
The senior brother almost broke the rules, and Song Chunxue, who accidentally ruined the good thing, was slapped in the face by Yao Man, who sent someone to deliver the silver she had borrowed the next day.
Song Chunxue had no intention of going to Yao Man's house to smooth things over, and immediately returned the signed contract to her.
Half a month later, Yao Man took the initiative to come to Song Chunxue's door to make peace. She spoke politely and wanted to get Song Chunxue's forgiveness.
If it were the old Song Chunxue, she would definitely have explained what happened back then to her properly.
Now she understands that a broken mirror cannot be mended, and besides, she had long seen through Yao Man's true nature as a businesswoman who was difficult to confide in.
It's better to have only nod to each other after getting to know each other than to never see each other again and have to pretend not to know each other when we meet.
"Sister Song, come in and have a cup of tea."
When Song Chunxue passed by Yao Man's tavern, she was enthusiastically pulled inside.
"Sister Song, are you still blaming me for what happened before?"
Yao Man nudged her arm. "The money I sent to your house before was returned to you. That's what you deserve. The contract wasn't broken. You were so generous to me when I was going through the toughest time. I'll remember that for the rest of my life."
"It's all my fault. I was clearly bewitched and took my anger out on you. In the end, I was too proud to admit it. Today, I apologize to you."
Song Chunxue smiled and said, "That's all in the past, why are you bringing it up again? I'm not blaming you. If it were me, I'd be even more embarrassed than you."
She took a sip of tea and looked around. The tavern was doing better and better, with a constant stream of customers.
"Sister Song, I know you're not short of money now and your life is getting better and better. You look down on the meager profits of my tavern, but after thinking it over, there's something I can only talk to you about."
Upon hearing this, Song Chunxue recalled how Yao Man's business had grown so much that she had become the leading female businesswoman in Zhuanglang County.
Two years ago, she would definitely have wanted to make a lot of money with Yao Man.
“If it’s about partnering in a business, I don’t have much ambition. But if you need to borrow money, I can lend you some,” Song Chunxue said solemnly. “I trust you.”
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