Chapter 96 Chapter 96 Eating Noodles

The autumn breeze is refreshing and cool, neither hot nor dry, just right.

At daybreak, the door of [Home Restaurant] at No. 15 Guanghua Street was already open, and the dim light shone through the glass windows onto the people sitting in front of the door.

"Open the door after picking the vegetables!" Wang Nian saw that the time was almost up, so he stood up and shook off the broken leaves on his pants: "See who will bring out the beehive stove to steam the buns."

"I'll go."

As soon as Wang Nian finished speaking, a tall figure immediately responded.

"Ever since the snowflakes came, it seems like we are all lazy as hell." Hu Wenli teased in an obviously joking tone.

Zhang Hongyan still has a clear understanding of herself, and couldn't help but admit: "They are just more diligent than us."

Wang Nian had already walked into the kitchen and looked out at the yard through the gray sky.

He Liang stepped forward to play the villain and made it clear that he would not pay a penny, and there was no reason for the father-in-law to live in his son-in-law's house for a long time.

Even if they were branded as unfilial, the return train tickets were stuffed into their hands amid Luo Cuifen's scolding.

For 5,000 yuan, Zhou Shanxiu bought back Lian Xuehua's freedom, and also made Zhou Danan's family give up the idea of ​​settling down in the city.

So Zhou Danan and his family left cleanly without asking a single question about Lian Xuehua who was still receiving treatment in the hospital.

Wang Nian was not curious about whether Zhou Jianjun had gonorrhea or not, but just suggested that Lian Xuehua could come to the restaurant to help after being discharged from the hospital.

Lian Xuehua, who was traveling far away for the first time, could now truly live for herself.

"Sister Wang Nian, I'll start steaming the buns."

In just a few months, the timid and cowardly country girl was transformed. She now had an oval face and a bright smile, and looked much prettier.

"You can go back after you finish your work."

"Sister Shan Xiu said that I only need to go back to clean the place at noon. I will come back after I wash the dishes."

The sound became farther and farther away, and the person holding the steamer had already disappeared.

In the morning, Lian Xuehua helped out in Wang Nian Restaurant. She went back to the video room to clean before nine o'clock, and then went back to the restaurant to prepare lunch.

The two salaries were enough for Lian Xuehua to live in a rented house in Anhuai. I heard that she had saved 80 yuan last month.

"How is He Liang's video studio business going?"

Wang Nian dipped his chopsticks in the bone soup in the big pot and felt that the salt was not enough, so he sprinkled two spoonfuls of snow salt.

"Business is not as good as before." Lian Xuehua walked quickly into the kitchen and answered while taking the bowl of noodles out of the cupboard and placing it next to the stove. "The video room will close after showing a movie at night, and there are fewer people coming to watch."

"You can never make enough money, but you need to take care of your health..." Wang Nian smiled meaningfully.

The meat soup is bubbling in the pot, and the aroma wafts through the cracks in the bricks to the surrounding area.

“The aroma of pork rib soup!”

A cool autumn breeze blew by, and among the crowd of people getting off the bus, an old man with gray hair snorted and sighed to his wife.

"Could it be the noodle shop that Lao Xu mentioned?" The old lady had a head full of white hair, but she looked energetic and spoke with full energy.

On the contrary, the old man with a good sense of smell had already put on a military coat, his body was slightly hunched, and he was holding a cane of unknown material in his right hand.

"It's hundreds of meters away... How could it be so far away?" The old man didn't believe it. He put one hand behind his back and pointed to the road with his cane: "Someone nearby should be stewing pork ribs."

"We have nothing better to do than to run so far just to eat a bowl of noodles." The old lady was dissatisfied with the old man's rebuttal and turned around to glare at him.

The master was still cheerful, walking slowly to the side of the road with his hands behind his back.

"I haven't been here for a few years. Guanghua Street has changed a lot..."

"If a country wants to develop, it can't just grow older like you and me. It must become newer and newer."

"Why is there still a store that performs opera?"

"That's called a video store. It lets you learn more about what young people like when you have nothing to do. You only know how to listen to opera all day long."

"I like to listen to operas. These pop songs are not good at all."

"An old-fashioned man who doesn't know how to make progress."

Whenever the old man said something, the old woman would retort, but both of them had smiles on their faces, and it was obvious that they were already accustomed to this way of getting along.

As he walked, a similarly trembling figure approached, and the eldest master instantly smiled.

"Old Xu."

"Old Li, Old Zhang." Grandpa Xu raised his head from his bulky cotton jacket and walked awkwardly towards his two old friends.

The three of them used to be neighbors living in the same military compound. They had known each other for nearly a decade and could recognize each other just by looking at their backs.

When the three of them met, it was inevitable that they would reminisce about the past.

Grandpa Xu’s real name is Xu Chenghai. After retiring from the army, he was arranged by the army to work at the Guanghua Street Sub-district Office. The other two elderly people are a couple.

The man's name is Li Maohua, and his wife is Zhang Yu, who also worked in the street office until retirement.

"Where is the noodle shop you mentioned?" After talking for a long time, Li Maohua's stomach was aching with hunger. He waved his hand to interrupt the two people and said, "At least you have to eat first before you brag."

The old couple's home is half an hour away from Guanghua Street by bus. If it weren't for the strong recommendation of an old friend, they would not come here for a year or two.

"It's just across the street. Don't you see so many people queuing?"

As Xu Chenghai raised his chin across the street, Li Maohua followed suit and looked over there, unable to help but exclaim "Oh yeah".

There was a long line in front of the light blue doors and windows.

There were students wearing red scarves, elderly people, and among them there were also a few adults carrying pots and bowls.

"It's only eight o'clock and there are so many people here?" Zhang Yu raised his hand to check the time and was a little surprised: "If you hadn't said restaurant, I would have thought it was the company cafeteria."

"The food in our company's canteen is not as delicious as others'." Xu Chenghai was confident about this.

"Then what are you waiting for? Why don't you go and queue up?"

Life became prosperous and they no longer had to worry about food and clothing. Their generation had just retired, and Li Maohua liked to think about eating and drinking when he had nothing to do.

The three of them quickened their pace and walked to the back of the team.

As soon as I stood still, I heard a few primary school students in front of me discussing whether to have steamed buns or noodles for breakfast. It seems that it is not only the elderly who like to eat and drink.

Through the glass window, I can see that there are already quite a few people eating breakfast at the tables, and most of them are elderly people.

"This is the last basket of buns. The only ones left are noodles and rice vermicelli!"

Xu Chenghai wanted to introduce the breakfast options to Li Maohua, but before he could open his mouth, he heard a loud voice coming from the restaurant.

"I can only eat noodles." Xu Chenghai sighed: "If I hadn't been waiting for you, I would have eaten it a long time ago."

"Is it sold out?" Zhang Yu poked his head into the restaurant.

"The restaurant looks ordinary, but it's very famous in Guanghua Street. Anyone with a little money at home would have eaten here."

Even though Wang Nian has only opened the restaurant for a few months, almost everyone who comes once becomes a returning customer, and its fame spreads naturally.

"Didn't you see that there were more people at noon..."

Before he could finish the second sentence, someone suddenly poked his head out of the door.

"Don't queue up, we're out of noodles and rice noodles."

After all, the new house was bought from Xu Chenghai. Hu Wenli immediately spotted three old men standing on tiptoe in the crowd and looking over here.

"Master Xu."

"Nothing?" Xu Chenghai asked, pouting like a child, his face full of unhappiness: "I even brought my old friend with me, and you guys... put me down."

Hu Wenli didn't respond, but just looked around and waved to others.

"Hurry up tomorrow, there is really nothing left today!"

The people in the queue were reluctant to leave. Fortunately, this was not the first time this had happened, so no one was angry. Instead, they shouted at Wang Nian to prepare more tomorrow.

Wang Nian actually heard it and walked to the door holding an empty steamer.

"We must prepare more tomorrow, and take care everyone!"

After watching the diners walk away, Wang Nian smiled at Xu Chenghai and the other two and said, "Uncle Xu, why are you here so late today?"

"Is there really nothing?" Xu Chenghai just asked.

"Others definitely don't have it, but you must have it."

Xu Chenghai then smiled with satisfaction, patted his old friend on the shoulder and introduced: "I specially invited old friends to come here today to show my support, you must not let me lose face."

"Uncle and aunt, come in and wait."

The restaurant was filled with aroma, which was the same meaty aroma that Li Maohua smelled when he got off the bus, and it also seemed to be mixed with the bitter scent of slightly bitter medicinal herbs.

As Wang Niangang walked into the kitchen, a young man came to the lobby carrying a bowl.

The boy is tall and has handsome features. If it weren't for the school uniform that shows his student status, outsiders would probably think he is a young man.

"Look at this tall guy." Zhang Yu exclaimed with a smile.

She also has two grandchildren, but they are so small in size compared to others!

Xu Chenghai was very familiar with the restaurant. He looked around and found a table by the window and hung his walking stick on the back of the chair. Hearing his old friend's sigh, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Don't you even look at what other people's children eat and drink?"

Shi Shuwen seemed to have long been accustomed to having a bowl of medicinal soup every morning. He tilted his head back and drank it all up happily. Before leaving the house, he pulled out the medicinal herbs from his mouth like roots and threw them into the trash can.

"Xiao Wan, Fei Ying."

"I'm coming."

Two figures rushed out from the kitchen door, so fast that others could only see their backs.

Even so, Zhang Yu was still frightened by the size of the two children.

Wang Nian poked his head out of the kitchen and asked with a smile, "Would you like wide noodles or thin noodles, uncle or aunt?"

"Thin noodles will do."

"Three bowls of mustard tuber and shredded pork noodles?"

"No beef?"

"They're all sold out early, so we have to fry the pickled mustard tuber and shredded pork right away."

"Then let's have shredded pork noodles. Let's put more vegetables in it."

"The beauty vinegar I brewed a few days ago is ready to drink. Can I give it to you to try?"

"Pour some quickly and try it." Xu Chenghai stood up impatiently. His steps, which were trembling just now, became smooth now. He entered the kitchen in a few big strides.

"Lao Li...why do I feel like the restaurant owner looks so much like the same person?"

At this time, all the customers who bought breakfast had left, and there were only two people left in the hotel lobby. Zhang Yu's almost whispering to himself was immediately heard by Li Maohua.

"Like whom?"

"Does she look like Xuemei?"

"Lao Luo's girl?"

The memory of the girl Li Maohua that my wife mentioned has long been blurred. She only remembers that her child had a miserable life. How could she still remember what she looked like after so many years?

"Does it look alike?" Zhang Yu asked.

Li Maohua shook his head: "I think you were just daydreaming about sweeping the graves of Lao Luo's family a few days ago."

Zhang Yu slapped his forehead and felt that what Li Maohua said made sense. He must have been feeling sad after coming back from sweeping graves a few days ago and thinking too much during those days, otherwise how could he feel that two people who had nothing in common were similar.

"Old Xu will be back in a few days. Don't mention Lao Luo for no reason, or else Old Xu will feel sad."

"I understand..." Xu Yu waved her hand to interrupt her husband's nagging and leaned towards the kitchen: "I smell the aroma of noodles, let's go and take a look."

The smell of oil smoke cannot cover up the aroma rising from the pot.

Soon, another overbearing sour and sweet smell floated into the nostrils, which seemed to draw people's attention to the fragrance in an instant.

Xu Chenghai walked out holding... or should I say hugging a transparent wine bottle.

The two old friends couldn't help but feel disgusted by his grin.

How much do you have to like it to laugh like this!