At this point, her eyes became even brighter. "Auntie, Xiaoyouran, have you ever thought about opening a Liufangzhai in the capital?"
Mrs. Su was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. "That's a good idea, why not?"
"Look how greedy you are!" Xiao Youran pulled Yueyue outside. "I'll take you to Youran Restaurant and we'll have a delicious meal!"
"Youran Eatery? That's the same name as yours. Is it your shop?"
"Of course!" Xiao Youran chuckled. "Next time the Princess has no appetite, just go to Youran's Eatery and buy her some of her favorite foods. Why wait for that Liufangzhai?"
"Really?!" Yueyue was overjoyed. Before leaving, she called out to Zhao Mama, "Zhao Mama, make me a few more dishes. I want crystal dumplings and taro cakes!"
Mrs. Zhao laughed and agreed, "You'll definitely get your share!"
Yueyue didn't think there was anything wrong with her taking food and gifts. After getting into the car, she realized she had forgotten to give her the little trinket she brought. She quickly took out a delicate wooden lock from her sleeve. "Take a look! This is a good thing I've been looking for in Kyoto these past few days. Not many people can take it apart!"
Xiao Youran took it and saw that it was an exquisite object, similar to a Luban lock. She played with it in her hand, but after turning it a few times, she actually managed to take it apart.
Yueyue stared in disbelief, "You...you...you..."
Out of courtesy, Xiao Youran then took out an even more exquisite stainless steel Luban lock from her sleeve and handed it to her.
Yueyue exclaimed in surprise, "So you already had this exquisite lock all along..."
"Mmm," Xiao Youran nodded, "I have quite a few more. If you like them, I'll get them for you when I get back."
"Great!" Yueyue clapped her hands and asked with a smile, "I heard you went to Princess Qingping's house to make a scene yesterday? Was that nearly life-sized red coral screen really an ornament from your old boudoir?"
Xiao Youran smiled broadly, "Of course it's true! I didn't expect you guys to hear about it so quickly!"
“Speaking of which, Princess Qingping is my cousin. My mother was too lazy to go and join in the fun yesterday, so she sent Aunt Jinxiu to deliver the congratulatory gift. Aunt Jinxiu told us when she came back. My mother was quite surprised to hear that you were actually a girl from the Yong'an Marquis's Mansion in Dingzhou.”
Xiao Youran curled her lip and said disdainfully, "What Yong'an Earl? We don't care! They all think we're dead, and they shamelessly say that the newborn baby is their eldest daughter. Why should we fawn over them and let them humiliate us?"
"You really dare to say that! We still don't know who humiliated whom yesterday!" Yueyue chuckled, playing with the exquisite lock in her hand. "You Ran, you're really something! At such a young age, you dared to single-handedly cause trouble at the Princess's mansion!"
"It's just to vent my mother's anger," Xiao Youran sighed.
Soon their carriage arrived at Youran Restaurant. It was just past Shenshi (3-5 PM), and the restaurant was quite quiet. When Sister-in-law Shen saw the young master arrive, she was very happy to greet them and wanted to take them to a private room on the second floor. Little Youran just casually picked a table against the wall and sat down in the main hall. "This is fine, no need to trouble yourself."
They were just two teenage girls, so there weren't many rules to follow.
Yueyue suddenly asked, "My cousin told me you can make something called fried dough sticks?"
"Hehehe, only Youran Restaurant can make this!" Last time she taught Zhao's mother how to make it at the old house in Sanyang Village, she never felt it tasted quite as good.
Thinking that it was late afternoon and the two girls wouldn't eat much, Sister-in-law Shen brought out two of each of the best dishes from the restaurant.
"This is delicious!" Yueyue took a bite of the fried dough stick and a sip of the savory soy milk, her eyes lighting up. "Quick, quick, just these two things, take one to my mother first! She didn't eat much for lunch, she'll definitely like this!"
Sister-in-law Shen smiled and agreed. Just as she walked away, Yueyue called out, "Wait, wait! This is delicious too! What's it called? Send some to my mother as well!"
Xiao Youran looked at her with amusement, and as a result, Yueyue ordered almost everything, saying that she wanted to send it all to the Princess.
She quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't rush! One or two different dishes a day won't get boring! You're ordering so much at once, she can't eat it all! Don't forget, Aunt Zhao is still preparing your dinner!"
It took a lot of persuasion to convince Yueyue to come down.
At this moment, several officials strode into the hall and sat down around the table in the center.
"Boss! Bring me some good food!" shouted the burly man at the head of the group.
Sister-in-law Shen quickly stepped forward and wrote down the dishes they ordered.
"Shopkeeper's wife, you'd better hurry! I'm starving!" the burly man pleaded repeatedly.
"I'll make it right away, it'll be here in a minute, sir, please wait a moment." Sister-in-law Shen quickly went to the kitchen and soon returned with two baskets of pan-fried buns. "Sir, you've worked hard. These pan-fried buns are a gift from us. Please have some to fill your stomach first!"
The burly man didn't stand on ceremony. He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece, and started chewing it heartily. "No wonder Brother Wang always says that you and your sister-in-law are all reasonable and good at business!"
Sister-in-law Shen said modestly, "Deputy Commander Wang is too kind. He hasn't been here for a while."
"It's all because of this damned natural disaster. Last year, the north suffered a severe drought, while the south was flooded, resulting in a complete crop failure on both sides! This year, it's almost June, and not a single drop of rain has fallen! The number of refugees is increasing day by day. You all would be better off staying away from the city these days!"
Xiao Youran couldn't help but prick up her ears upon hearing this.
Sister-in-law Shen nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, thank you for the reminder, sir!"
He then curtsied and went back to work at the kitchen door.
"Brother Zhang, the number of refugees gathering outside the city is increasing. We can't just turn them all away from the city; it's not a solution!"
"What else can we do?" the burly man cursed as he ate heartily. "They said they'd open the granaries and distribute grain last month! We haven't seen a single grain of rice this month! Our Military Advisor Lu has been worried sick these past two months!"
"Isn't that right? The drought is getting worse and worse in various places. The little bit of green grass that managed to grow this year has been eaten up. If the seedlings can't be saved, there's no hope for the crops. The number of refugees will definitely increase." One of the officials said in a low voice, "Yesterday there was another riot involving cannibalism. I saw it with my own eyes. The child's feet were still sticking out of the pot!"
The burly man slapped his forehead. "Don't you want to eat?! You've been patrolling outside the city since early morning, aren't you hungry yet?! This bun can't shut you up?!"
The man quickly lowered his head and ate his pan-fried bun without saying a word.
Soon, two more people stepped into the hall. Upon seeing the burly men, they unceremoniously pulled up two stools and sat down, grabbing steamed buns and stuffing them into their mouths.
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