Chapter 66, Brother Banshan, what are you doing here? ...
Xiuning County, west of the city.
Yang Xiaonu heard a commotion outside early in the morning. Although she hesitated, she still secretly opened the courtyard gate a crack.
However, she only dared to do this after moving to this safer alley.
Although I still don't dare to leave home directly.
The noise outside had been going on for quite a while. She had initially tried to pretend she hadn't heard it, but the argument just wouldn't stop and was even getting louder.
She listened for a while, but because she couldn't hear very clearly, she didn't know what was making a fuss outside.
Just then, Yang Qiaomai went to help with the cleaning and sanitation at her boss's shop before the Dragon Boat Festival, leaving only her and Tianqiao at home.
This is also why she rarely takes the initiative to check the situation.
The gate to the courtyard wasn't opened very wide, and she pressed her face against it for a while before she could make out what was happening outside.
It turned out that a farmer I didn't know had come out of the alleyway outside. He was wearing a patched-up shirt and his hair was just tied in a bun.
The shoes on her feet were originally made of coarse cloth, but they had been patched up quite a bit, probably because they had been worn for a long time.
The patched black cloth, along with the clothes he was wearing, made him look impoverished from head to toe.
Fortunately, this area was in the west of the city, where you could see people dressed even more raggedly than him.
Back when she lived in Huaihua Alley, Yang Xianu often saw through the window that there were many thin and sallow-faced children sitting on the street, who could only beg for food to survive.
However, since moving to this Plum Blossom Alley, I've rarely seen people like that anymore.
She listened intently and finally understood the reason for the argument.
A street vendor carrying steamed buns on a shoulder pole accidentally dropped a piece of bread. Two beggars who saw it quickened their pace and rushed over to snatch it.
But before it could be picked up, a passing farmer accidentally stepped on it. The steamed bun, which was originally just covered in dust, now not only had a clear footprint but was also covered in mud. It was unclear whether it was still edible.
So the two little beggars grabbed him and refused to let him leave.
He absolutely had to pay for the cake.
The man, probably not having been to the county town much before, turned bright red. After arguing for a few minutes to no avail, he tried to exchange the wild vegetable buns he was carrying for the trampled flatbread.
It was originally agreed that he would be let go with just a steamed bun.
But when he opened the cloth bag, the two little beggars saw that besides wild vegetables and cornbread, there were also several pieces of dark flour cakes inside.
They're demanding an extra two pieces of bread before they'll finally settle things.
They spoke with absolute certainty that one steamed bun wasn't enough for the two of them to share.
It was originally just a dusty steamed bun, not very big, and it was something the vendor had accidentally dropped; it was originally unclaimed.
Being bothered by these two unreasonable people, it was already a loss for me to have brought out the cornbread in the first place.
Now he wanted the other provisions in his bag, and the farmer seemed to really need them.
Upon hearing this, they were naturally unwilling to agree to further increase the price.
That's why Yang Xiaonv heard the argument getting more and more heated.
After finding out what had happened, Yang Xiaonu saw this scene and nervously moved away. Just as she was about to close the gate of the courtyard, she saw Yang Qiaomai coming over with a young man behind her.
Seeing that someone had come to her house, Yang Xiaonu quietly closed the door. After thinking for a moment, she untied the leash from the little black dog that was tied up in the yard.
Sure enough, the little black dog, who was used to going out for a walk every day, wanted to run out of the yard as soon as the leash was untied.
The barking of dogs was incessant.
Yang Qiaomai, who was about to cross the bridge, quickened her pace upon hearing the sound.
She turned around and explained to Guo Baiwen, who was following behind her, "This is the code that my sister and I agreed on. It seems that something has happened back home."
"I'll apologize to the shopkeeper first, and then I'll go take a look."
After saying that, he didn't wait for Guo Baiwen's reply and hurriedly ran ahead.
The incessant barking of the dogs caused the three people who were arguing to stop arguing at the same time.
Yang Qiaomai had already crossed the bridge by then, and from a distance, she could see several people blocking her doorway.
Thinking something had happened at home, Yang Qiaomai hurriedly ran while shouting, "What are you guys doing?!"
The beggar, who had been pestering them, tried to run away upon hearing the noise.
One of them, unable to contain his anger, grabbed the dirty steamed bun and spat it fiercely at the farmer's location.
Then he dashed away from the other end of the alley.
By the time Yang Qiaomai reached the door, the two people had completely disappeared.
Yang Xianu, who had kept her front door closed, finally dared to open it and called out, "Qiaomai—"
Before he even entered the courtyard, he heard the shopkeeper behind him exclaim in surprise at the stranger standing at the door, "Brother Banshan, what are you doing here?"
Is this person someone the shop owner knows?
Leaving aside Yang Qiaomai's surprised expression, Yang Xiaonu also felt a little embarrassed.
If she had known these were acquaintances of the shop owner, she should have opened the door and stopped them, no matter how scared she was.
"Eight coins? What are you doing here?" Guo Banshan originally wanted to go to the county town to find some work, but he didn't expect that things in the town would be so expensive.
He didn't bring a single copper coin with him when he went out this time.
Those who came to the city to work before said that at this time of year, it's easy to find a job in the city that pays well quickly.
Some even include meals and accommodation, so you don't need to bring any money.
Guo Banshan believed these words. On this trip to the city, besides the cloth bag of dry food and the bamboo water bottle for drinking water, the bundle on his back only contained two sets of clothes and a pair of spare socks.
As a result, after less than half a day in the city, he hadn't found any work, and he almost ran out of the dry food he had brought with him. He didn't even know where he would be able to stay for the night.
But the thought of returning to the village in such a dejected manner made him unwilling to give up, especially considering the lofty ambitions he had set out with.
Although before we went to the city, my father had said that if we were really desperate, we could try to go to Grandma Guo.
But considering how big the county town is, and that he hadn't asked about their exact location beforehand, he just mentioned it casually.
Even so, it's still a way.
Unexpectedly, before I even went to look for them, we ran into them here.
The courtyard entrance wasn't exactly a pleasant place to talk, and Yang Xiaonu was worried that the two people who had run away earlier might sneak over, so she gestured and said, "Let's all come in, have some tea, and then talk things over properly."
The high spirits he had before entering the county town were gone. In just half a day, Guo Banshan seemed to have aged two years. He had indeed walked a very long way today.
She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately followed Guo Baiwen into the courtyard.
This is a small courtyard with one entrance. Although the entrance is ordinary and inconspicuous, the doors and windows of the courtyard and several rooms are very thick. There is also a small black dog in the courtyard, which was originally eating in a bowl without looking up.
At this moment, after smelling the scent of strangers in the yard, it stopped eating, raised its head, and stared at them with a predatory look.
That must be the source of the dog barking earlier.
This place is not far from Huaihua Alley, but they are two different places with two different scenes.
Previously, the Huaihua Lane where the Yang family lived was inhabited by poor people. Everyone looked tired and numb, with a lifeless atmosphere.
The people here are much better off. Most of them can do odd jobs or work as porters. Although they may not be able to earn much money, they all have a proper livelihood and their lives are not too bad.
However, sometimes things like what just happened still happen.
Plum Blossom Alley is located in the western part of the city, and from time to time, people from other alleys would sneak over.
Yang Qiaomai kept a small black dog to guard the house in her yard because she was worried about this.
When I brought the puppy from that family, I specifically asked about its size, and they said it was a small black dog that could grow quite large as an adult.
Regardless of how powerful it is, having a body like that in the yard would make even those who want to scout out the place think twice.
Yang Qiaomai stepped forward and ruffled its head twice, instructing, "Little Black, these two are our own people, don't be aggressive towards them—"
After repeating this twice, the little black dog seemed to be certain that the two people posed no danger, and then it buried its face in its bowl and continued eating.
At this moment, Yang Xianu also came out of the kitchen carrying freshly brewed chrysanthemum tea and several rough porcelain teacups.
Xu Tianqiao, who rarely sees guests at home, hugged her leg, hiding half of her body behind her, only peeking out her head to look around at the guests in the yard.
Seeing this, Guo Banshan subconsciously eased his dejected expression and forced a faint smile at the little girl.
That was a kind of initial greeting.
Realizing that the two strangers in the house weren't scary, she slowly, gradually emerged from her hiding place without Yang Xianu's persuasion.
Although he didn't say anything, he just looked on curiously with his eyes.
Seeing this, Guo Baiwen also took out the things he had brought with him during his visit and shared some with everyone.
"These are new products that just came out in the store these past few days. I thought I'd bring them over for you to try. If you could give me some suggestions, that would be even better."
When he handed it to Guo Banshan, he paused for a moment and didn't say anything to comfort him. "Brother Banshan, have something sweet. It will make you feel better."
Upon hearing this, Guo Banshan, who had initially wanted to refuse, could only silently accept it.
"Thank you, Wenzai."
I've already accepted the desserts, so what's one more bowl of chrysanthemum tea?
Moreover, Yang Xianu also said that these chrysanthemums were dried in her own yard and were not worth much money.
While enjoying a bowl of hot tea and some sweets, Guo Banshan unconsciously turned slightly to the side and secretly wiped the corner of his eye.
Seeing this, the people in the courtyard pretended to be busy and acted as if they hadn't noticed anything.
At this moment, Yang Xiaonu quickly picked up the sweet buckwheat that she was about to go forward to take a closer look at, and at the same time, she continued to say, "Since you've come all this way, why don't you have dinner at our house tonight before you leave?"
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