Xu Ruantang glanced at him, then gently picked up Xiaobao and moved him to a different position.
Completely ignoring the old man's death stare, she bent down and gave Xiao Bao a quick kiss on his bald head.
Goodnight, sweetie.
Just as I was about to lie down, someone grabbed my hand.
Chen Ji narrowed his eyes, staring at her with a half-smile, without saying a word.
Xu Ruantang straightened up unhurriedly, a smile playing on her lips, her tone slightly raised: "What? You want a goodnight kiss too?"
After she finished speaking, she leaned in and quickly kissed Chen Jifei on the cheek, then turned around, got out of bed, turned off the light, and went to sleep.
In the darkness, Chen Ji slowly curled the corners of his lips into a smile.
Early Tuesday morning, just as Xu Ruantang was about to leave, Li Shuhe arrived at her door with a tape recorder and money.
"Aren't you going to work again today?"
Xu Ruantang had no choice but to take her home. Glancing at the table, she realized that Chen Ji had brought back soy milk and steamed buns from the cafeteria.
The soy milk was still warm, probably because I was worried she wouldn't eat breakfast.
This person never says anything about what she does; if Li Shuhe hadn't come, she wouldn't have even noticed.
As soon as Li Shuhe came in, she started fiddling with the tape recorder. "Your second aunt read an apology letter in front of the whole troupe. It's such a rare sight. Why didn't you go?"
"Yesterday?" Xu Ruantang took a sip of soy milk and handed Li Shuhe a steamed bun. "I didn't have time, although such a momentous occasion would definitely be explosive~"
Xu Ruantang's tone was playful, and Li Shuhe was amused by these unusual words.
"Don't worry, as your good friend, it's my duty to let you hear about this memorable scene."
She turned on the tape recorder and put a cassette tape in.
Soon, Jia Shuling's voice came from inside, sounding sharp and aggrieved.
Xu Ruantang: "......"
After Li Shuhe finished speaking, she asked her, "Are you really not planning to join the performing arts troupe? My dad personally spoke up for you; this opportunity is rarer than a pie falling from the sky. Don't you want to reconsider?"
Over the years, her father had never set this precedent for anyone else, and she was no exception.
Even when she cried while practicing piano after she joined the performing arts troupe at the age of ten, her father never thought of asking her to say hello.
Xu Ruantang firmly shook her head: "No, that kind of place is not suitable for me."
Li Shuhe scratched her head, thought for a moment, and then said, "Ruan Ruan, I only said these things because I really consider you a good friend. Don't overthink it."
Xu Ruantang was also curious; what could have made Li Shuhe so serious? "Tell me."
Li Shuhe looked at her, seemingly finding it difficult to speak, "Well... you know, for families like ours, even if we don't care about social status, we at least have to be progressive young people."
Especially the Chen family, you should know what kind of person that is better than I do.
If you give up this opportunity to work in the performing arts troupe, I guarantee he'll be the first to jump out and stop you, and he'll probably even start yelling at you.
Xu Ruantang blinked.
I understand. People within the system like to date other people within the system. As a daughter-in-law of the Chen family, if I have the opportunity but don't take it, I'm considered ungrateful.
Chen Lin was the first to disagree.
After chatting for a while, Li Shuhe returned to the art troupe, and Xu Ruantang also hurried to the shop.
Yesterday morning, when I took Xiaobao back to the Gao family home, Gao Baoliang was still there.
Xu Ruantang asked casually and learned that he had stayed behind specifically to resolve the matter of that family in the courtyard.
"They have admitted their mistake, paid compensation, and apologized."
Gao Baoliang smiled sheepishly, "Sister-in-law, please thank the regimental commander for me."
Xu Ruantang didn't ask them how they got that family to apologize; at a glance, you could tell they were bullies who preyed on the weak.
They must have known they couldn't win, so they simply admitted defeat.
She didn't think those people would change; they would just find someone weaker to bully.
Sure enough, when they saw her appear at the pastry shop next door, the eyes of the two men guarding the shop changed.
The man whose hand Chen Ji broke wasn't in the shop; the other two had looked in this direction countless times all morning.
Soon, a sign appeared over there: buy three honey bread rolls and get two free.
Xu Ruantang and his group have always offered a buy-nine-get-three-free deal, but now that place is offering a buy-nine-get-six-free deal, most people are going there for their discount.
Looking at the honey bread rolls that were not selling for the first time in the store, Qiu Liang, who was usually quiet, was a little anxious.
He simply took out a styrofoam box, hopped on his bicycle, and planned to sell it at the gates of nearby factories.
Xu Ruantang didn't object, and she stayed at the shop with Sister Juan.
She usually makes small cakes in the morning, limited to ten a day. Recently, as the weather has gotten hotter, these things don't keep well, so she doesn't make more.
Qiu Liang didn't return for lunch, so Xu Ruantang took on the responsibility of cooking.
There were vendors selling small crucian carp they had caught themselves at the market entrance. Sister Juan steamed rice, and Xu Ruantang made crucian carp and tofu soup, stir-fried hot and sour shredded potatoes, scallion and egg, and hot and sour cabbage.
She had learned to cook all these dishes from Chen Ji, and as soon as they were served, she stared at Sister Juan with expectant eyes.
Sister Juan took a sip of soup, then quickly frowned.
"Isn't it good?" Xu Ruantang picked up the small bowl, took a sip, and thought it was quite good!
Sister Juan smiled instantly, "Delicious, very delicious."
After leaving food for Qiu Liang, Xu Ruantang went to guard the shop again after the two finished eating.
During her free time, she tried to recall the sweets she had eaten before, as well as what her master had taught her.
It wasn't that she was thinking about how to make money; she was just craving something sweet.
These days, without air conditioning, when it gets hot, you just want to eat something icy and cool. Before, her favorite things were ice jelly, milk tea, and taro ball ice bowls.
"Comrade, do you have a big cake at home?" a female voice asked.
Xu Ruantang looked over and saw a woman in her thirties, dressed appropriately.
She replied with a smile, "We don't make them ready yet. If you want, we'll make them fresh."
The woman hesitated for a moment, then pointed to the small cakes in the shop and asked, "Can you make one exactly like this? Or could you draw some comic strips that kids like on it?"
"Yes, but you have to give me the book so I can draw from it."
The woman was skeptical. "Are you sure you can draw it exactly the same? I looked at several shops before, and the ones they made were completely different. My daughter doesn't like them at all."
After chatting for a while, Xu Ruantang learned from the woman that her daughter's birthday was coming up and her wish was for a comic book cake.
Xu Ruantang thought for a moment and said, "How about this, you give me the comic book, and if you're not satisfied with what I've made, I won't charge you?"
She looked very confident, and the woman finally softened.
"I brought it." The woman took out a comic book from her bag and handed it to Xu Ruantang. "Why don't you make a small cake first, and I'll buy it for my daughter to see? If she likes it, I'll come back and buy a bigger one."
The smaller ones require more technical skills. Xu Ruantang was reading a comic book when Qiu Liang returned.
He took the styrofoam box off the bicycle; it was empty.
Seeing that he was covered in sweat, Xu Ruantang pointed to the courtyard and said, "Brother Qiu, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Sister Juan left some food for you, come in and eat quickly."
After saying that, Xu Ruantang took out some plum juice from the freezer, poured a glass and handed it to the woman, "Please sit down, I'll make it soon."
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