Li Lanzhen heard the news she wanted to know, paid the money, and left with two packets of brown sugar.
She decided to go and see what was going on with the shops on the east side of North Street.
As we walked and observed, it was indeed as the old shopkeeper of the general store had said.
The further east you go on North Street, the fewer people there are, and the more desolate the shops become.
The waiter stood at the door and greeted people as soon as he saw them, practically reaching out to pull each customer inside.
Li Lanzhen walked until she reached the eastern end of North Street. Feeling a bit tired, she went up to the second floor of a teahouse.
The waiters were all dozing off at the door, but when they saw Li Lanzhen come in, they were as excited as if they'd been injected with chicken blood, grinning happily.
"Auntie, please come upstairs. Would you like some tea? Would you like a few small snacks?"
Li Lanzhen smiled and said, "Bring the best tea from your teahouse and some of the best dim sum."
"Alright. Please have a seat. I'll bring you some tea right away."
She climbed the wooden steps to the second floor, chose a window near the east side of North Street, and sat down.
From this vantage point, you can see the scene on North Street to the left, and also look up to see the mountain to the east of North Street.
A short while later, the waiter brought up a tray of tea.
He approached Li Lanzhen with a big smile.
"Auntie, this pot of tea is made with our newly arrived tea leaves. The tea has a delicate aroma and is perfect for you."
These are a plate of broad beans and a plate of fennel beans, served by our teahouse. Please have a taste.
These are four of our teahouse's signature dim sum dishes. Please try them and come back if you like them.
This dish contains cloud and mud cakes.
Li Lanzhen immediately recognized it as yam cake; what a sophisticated name!
"Auntie, look, this plate is osmanthus cake, this plate is pea pastry, and this plate is love cake."
Yes, red beans grow in the south, and this is the most evocative of longing. It is indeed a dish of longing cake!
As the waiter placed the pastries on the table from the tray, he smiled and introduced the names of the pastries to Li Lianzhen.
After speaking, he held the tray in his hand and bowed slightly.
"Auntie, please enjoy your meal. If you need anything, just call me."
Seeing that he was about to leave, Li Lanzhen gave him five copper coins.
"Waiter, why is business so bad at the shops on the east side of this street? Also, what's the scene like down the mountain to the east?"
When the waiter saw that Li Lanzhen had given him five copper coins as a reward, he was overjoyed and couldn't suppress the smile on his face.
If he can take Li Lanzhen to the second floor to spend money today, he will receive a reward of three copper coins from his employer.
Unexpectedly, Li Lanzhen rewarded him with another five copper coins.
He received eight copper coins as a reward that day.
He immediately started talking.
"Auntie, our teahouse was very popular three years ago."
Even at nighttime late-night snack time, the restaurant was still packed with guests.
Business people are discussing business, chatting, and young ladies are meeting up with their girlfriends for snacks and tea. The ladies are having a get-together here…
Alas, it's a pity that business has been sluggish these past two years.
Our landlord has already bought a teahouse on South Street, and once the interior is renovated, we're preparing to move in.
Seeing the boy's furrowed brows, Li Lanzhen asked, "So, are you planning to sell or rent out this teahouse?"
"The owner said they need to sell it, otherwise they won't be able to make money."
"oh."
After Li Lanzhen finished speaking, she looked up and saw that the end of the street was bordered by a woodland at the foot of Dongshan Mountain.
"Waiter, what's going on over there? It looks like a peach or apricot grove, but it's overgrown with shrubs and completely barren."
The young man saw Li Lanzhen asking about the woodland and excitedly told her.
"Auntie, you don't know, our teahouse business was good a few years ago, all because of this peach orchard."
According to our landlord, this peach orchard covers ten acres and is called 'Ten-Mile Peach Orchard'.
Every spring when the peach blossoms bloom, people flock to the area to enjoy the spring scenery and fly kites.
Around noon, everyone comes to our teahouse to drink tea and eat snacks.
But later, that thing…
The waiter looked around, then bent down and whispered.
"That uncle, after he came, he would go on spring outings, play in the summer, and admire the autumn fruits."
He always comes here to harass other young ladies.
Those who don't discriminate between meat and vegetables have caused many deaths.
Later, this ten-mile peach orchard gradually became deserted. Look, there are more weeds and shrubs than peach trees here.
Every spring, the peach blossoms in the ten-mile peach grove are still in bloom, but fewer people come to visit.
Moreover, in recent years, wild animals from the eastern mountains have entered the peach grove and injured people.
People were even more afraid to come.
Li Lanzhen slowly sipped her tea, listening to the waiter tell her about the situation on East Street, and the more she listened, the happier she became.
This "Ten-Mile Peach Blossom Forest" must belong to Li Lanzhen, and this half-street on the east side of North Street also belongs to Li Lanzhen.
This time, the so-called warlord's thirteenth concubine caused trouble and smashed things in the shop.
She was called a concubine, but she was nothing more than a mistress.
Even someone like that could lead soldiers to swagger around, smash their own shop, and injure their own family members!
Aside from the fact that Gu Yuli is an ungrateful bastard, it's also because I'm not standing high enough and don't have enough money!
We absolutely have to buy this half of the street!
If Xuan Shen's information is true, Youzhou City will be bustling again in less than two years.
For a city to develop its economy and grow, it needs people.
With so many people migrating into Youzhou City, it's impossible for the economy not to prosper.
In addition, sweet potatoes and potatoes were both introduced from Youzhou City.
Starting this summer, Li Lanzhen planned to promote the vermicelli as well.
This will attract more people to come in.
She drank two cups of tea. She couldn't name the tea leaves, but they were indeed fragrant and elegant.
After eating two pastries, she prepared to leave.
"Waiter, thank you so much for today. I'm leaving now."
"Okay, ma'am, I'll wrap up these snacks for you to take with you."
"No need, you can have it."
"Thank you, ma'am. Take care, and please come again next time."
The waiter's mouth was stretched all the way to his ears.
My younger sister was craving the dim sum at the teahouse.
But snacks are expensive. A month's wages can only buy some brown rice, enough for a family of several people to eat half full with wild vegetables.
Where will we get the money to buy more dim sum from the teahouse?
When the teahouse was doing brisk business, the ladies, young ladies, or young masters would give him the leftover snacks, which he could take home to satisfy his sister's cravings.
Business has been bad for the past three years; where are the customers coming from?
This lady today is truly generous and kind.
Look, there are still two plates of snacks left untouched, which you gave to yourself.
So he escorted Li Lanzhen all the way down from the teahouse to the door, waving and beckoning her to come again next time.
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