When the cooked food in the space was all gone, Bling had to cook for herself.
In the sweltering heat, she didn't make anything particularly complicated; she just made a tomato soup, the kind without eggs—she hadn't had time to buy any yet.
I steamed a big pot of buns again. After they were cooked, I kept one and put the rest in my spatial storage so they wouldn't spoil easily.
Sipping the soup she had cooked, Buling sighed inwardly. She didn't have any special cooking tricks; she just threw in various seasonings. It was edible, but the taste was just so-so.
I used to enjoy the food, but lately I've become picky about it because of Grandpa Tan's cooking, and nothing tastes quite right anymore.
I still need to learn from Grandpa Tan secretly. I don't aspire to become a master chef; I just hope that I won't dislike the food I make.
After finishing her meal, with nothing else to do, she took out a whole bag of rice from her spatial storage and steamed it all. Gu County is located in the north, where people love noodles and rice is scarce; she hadn't eaten rice in a long time.
After steaming the rice, she moved a stool and sat by the door, enjoying the cool air while listening to the elderly women and men in the courtyard chatting.
Looking at Bu Ling, Aunt Tian smiled and said to Aunt Wu, "I think Bu Ling has gained a little weight recently; her face is all chubby."
Aunt Wu took a closer look and said, "Indeed, she has gained a little weight and become a little fairer."
"Aunt Tian, Aunt Wu, it's just that the atmosphere in our courtyard is so nice, and I'm in such a good mood, that's why I've gained weight!" Bu Ling said with a smile.
Aunt Wu paused, suspecting the girl was being sarcastic.
Because of the fight between Widow Liu and Granny Shen, their courtyard lost all its original buildings and the atmosphere was no longer good.
Aunt Tian was also speechless, so she changed the subject and said, "Xiao Bu, I heard you bought a lot of coal from Xiao Zhou?"
Bu Ling finally witnessed what it meant for the compound to have no secrets.
She had just finished talking with Sister Zhou, less than two hours later, Aunt Tian found out.
“Yes, I’m almost out of coal briquettes. I was thinking of asking Sister Zhou, who works at the coal mine, if I could get some coal coupons,” Bu Ling said.
"That's true, you've been using such a small amount of coal briquettes for so long, you're really frugal," Aunt Wu chimed in.
Bling gave an awkward laugh.
Could she say she wasn't being frugal, that she was just too lazy to cook?
However, this also served as a reminder to her.
There are no secrets in the compound. The older women all know exactly how many coal briquettes she uses. She can't skip cooking anymore just because she's lazy; it would be bad if she gave herself away.
The two women didn't take it to heart; it was just a casual remark, and they immediately moved on to another topic.
Bu Ling listened from the side, and when the two middle-aged women finished their conversation, she leaned closer to Aunt Tian and whispered, "Aunt Tian, do you know where there are any good traditional Chinese medicine doctors?"
"You silly girl, you can't talk about traditional Chinese medicine these days, it'll only get you into trouble," Aunt Tian whispered.
Aunt Wu knew why the girl was looking for a traditional Chinese medicine doctor, but she also whispered, "These days, traditional Chinese medicine doctors have all been sent to the countryside. We really don't have any here. If we did, people wouldn't treat patients anymore, for fear of getting themselves into trouble."
Bu Ling was very disappointed. Even locals like Aunt Tian and Aunt Wu didn't know, so how was she supposed to find out?
After chatting for a while longer, Buling felt she had almost finished eating, so she carried her stool back to her room.
Looking at her somewhat thin figure, Aunt Wu sighed inwardly. The girl was pitiful. Then, she rallied her spirits and continued chatting with Aunt Tian.
Buling had no idea what Aunt Wu was thinking. She went back into the house, took the pot off the table and put it on the floor. As she turned around, she saw the handbag on the table.
Remembering the return gift the handsome young man had mentioned, I became interested.
He opened his handbag, took out the oil paper package, unwrapped it, and was astonished.
Inside were two packets of medicinal herbs and a note.
Bling took the note
The note read
Take one dose every three days, decocted and consumed, to relieve physical symptoms. (Mulberry)
Thinking back to the day she fainted, the handsome young man's gesture of taking her pulse
So he's a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner.
This is truly a case of finding something you've been searching for without even looking for it, only to have it come to you effortlessly.
She smiled slowly. Now, she wanted to be friends with the handsome boy even more. What should she do?
She wasn't in a hurry to take the medicine; she put it in her spatial storage first. She planned to ask the handsome young man about the details when she met him. She couldn't just take the medicine randomly; her small body couldn't withstand any stress.
But the handsome young man's name is Mulberry, it sounds delicious!
She was craving mulberries. Since the apocalypse, she'd rarely eaten fruit, and now she was really craving them.
I don't know if they sell mulberries now. I'll go to the grocery store tomorrow and see if they have any. If not, I'll buy something else. Given the situation at the state-run restaurants, they probably won't have any leftovers to share for a long time, so she'll have to cook for herself.
If she's cooking for herself, she needs seasonings and other condiments, and meat and eggs are a must; she can't stand eating meat only once a month.
Bling was lost in thought in the room when a knock on the door interrupted her.
"Bling!"
"Coming, coming!" Bu Ling put the pot into her spatial dimension, opened the door, and looked at Wu Yuanyuan outside.
"Sister Yuanyuan, what's wrong?"
Wu Yuanyuan didn't answer Bu Ling's question. She went inside, plopped down on a stool, and started crying uncontrollably.
Seeing her like this, Bu Ling sighed, closed the door, sat down beside her, and silently kept her company without saying a word.
She knew why Wu Yuanyuan was acting this way; it was all because of that job. Wu's family would cause trouble every few days, and now even Wu's aunt had sided with them. Only Wu's uncle remained somewhat rational and hadn't given in.
Brother Wu is an ordinary workshop worker in the machine factory. His daily routine involves tightening screws, which is tiring and the pay is not high—only twenty-four yuan a month.
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