Chapter 123 The Love Token Given by Bai Zilin
Liu Ye hadn't actually looked at it; she thought the package contained only clothes. "I'll look at it when I get home tonight. Brother Bai, the customers over there are ordering noodles; you should go help them."
Bai Zilin hurried off to work. After breakfast and seeing off the last guest, Liu Ye took out steamed dumplings from her basket and placed them on the table, inviting Bai Zilin and the others to eat: "Brother Bai, you eat first. We can get back to work after you finish eating. Erdan, come and eat quickly. Go get your bowls and don't be shy."
Sun Erdan and the others all looked at Bai Zilin. Bai Zilin waved to them, and then they took their bowls and chopsticks.
Liu Ye was amazed to see that in just one night, they had become completely obedient to Bai Zilin. She looked at Bai Zilin in confusion, wondering how he had managed to subdue them.
Bai Zilin grabbed Liu Ye, pressed her down into a chair, and shoved a pair of chopsticks into her hand: "Stop looking and eat. You don't understand male friendship."
Liu Ye rolled her eyes and ate another dumpling. The big steamed dumpling was so oily and full of meat filling that it made everyone eat like they were in a battle. They ate while keeping their eyes on the dumplings in the bowl. The last dumpling was cleverly placed in Bai Zilin's bowl by Sun Erdan.
Sun Wen wiped the oil from his mouth and ate with a satisfied look on his face: "It's so delicious! I've never eaten such delicious dumplings in my life. Liu Dongjia, your cooking skills are really good."
Sun Erdan said with a pained expression, "It's delicious, but there's too much meat. If I had the meat filling for today's dumplings, I could make ten steamers of them."
Qian Dahu curled his lip and got up to pick up the table: "Why don't you say you can use it for a month? You only put a fingernail's worth each time, how could you use it for a year?"
"Hahaha, hahaha." Qian Dahu's words made the group burst into laughter.
After Bai Zilin finished eating the last dumpling, he put his chopsticks on the bowl. Liu Ye leaned close to his ear and whispered, "There's still beef at home. I'll make more for you when we get back."
Bai Zilin nodded with a smile that revealed his teeth, wishing he could hug her and kiss her a few times. This trip to the South with Young Master Zhao had broadened his horizons. Young Master Zhao not only took him out to restaurants, but also took him to a brothel at night. However, he didn't do anything. Young Master Zhao wanted to give him some girls, but he refused. He just looked around and learned about matters between men and women that he had never understood before. He realized that things could be like that...
Sun Erdan wasn't angry at all when Qian Dahu teased him. He laughed along, "Hehehe, your idea is indeed good, but let me tell you an even better way: throw a piece of meat into the well, and you can eat it for a lifetime. You can try it."
"Haha, get lost! I won't use it. You should use this great method."
Three days passed in the blink of an eye. Bai Zilin slept in the shop for three days, and nothing happened during those three days except that there were still people guarding outside the shop.
"Sun Erdan, we're leaving. We don't know when we'll come back tomorrow."
"Alright, boss." Sun Erdan saw the two off to the shop with an envious look. They were truly a match made in heaven; Bai Dong was handsome, and Liu Dong was beautiful. Sigh, he had thought Liu Dong was single... ╮(￣▽￣)╭
Once outside the town, Bai Zilin mustered his courage, took Liu Ye's hand, and led her along, saying, "Let me warm your hands... it's getting colder and colder."
Willow Leaf's small hand was held in his warm, large hand, and her heart warmed as well, her face flushing. "That's right," she said, "it looks like it's going to snow again, and the New Year is almost here. Today is the 25th of the first lunar month, just one more month until the New Year. The town is short of food right now, so there's not much to celebrate..." This man had gone to the south, and he'd become bolder, daring to hold her small hand now.
Bai Zilin, trying to make conversation, asked, "Did Wang Dani and the others cause you any trouble?" He had been busy at the noodle shop every day since he came back and hadn't had time to chat with her.
Liu Ye said casually, "She hasn't bothered me these days, but not long after you left, I almost got sold out by her and Wu Xincao. Wu Xincao is the village chief's daughter, that little brat is really bad, she's cunning and shrewish, just like her father!"
Bai Zilin stopped in shock, his face turning ashen with anger: "What! You were almost sold off? Tell me what happened!"
Liu Ye omitted the parts that couldn't be mentioned and recounted how she was sold. Bai Zilin was so angry he was about to explode: "Damn it! This is outrageous! Liu Ye, I'll avenge you in the future. I'll remember that human trafficker, Lao Ba!"
Liu Ye smiled and nodded, not taking Bai Zilin's words seriously. The two returned home in the dark. Bai Zilin didn't let Liu Ye do anything. He lit the stoves in both rooms and then took the package to Liu Ye's room. He opened the package and found many things inside: "I bought you some fabric and a silver hairpin. Do you like it? When I have more money in the future, I'll buy you a gold hairpin..."
Bai Zilin shyly handed the box to Liu Ye. This was the first time he had given a gift to a girl, and it was also a token of his love for Liu Ye, so he was a little nervous.
Liu Ye took the box and gently opened it. Inside the brocade lining, a silver plum blossom hairpin lay quietly. The five petals of the flower were layered one on top of the other, and the stamens were adorned with tiny pearls that swayed slightly in the dappled light filtering through the window. Her eyelashes trembled, and her heart felt as if it had been gently struck: "I like it. Thank you, Brother Bai. I'll bring it with me tomorrow..."
Bai Zilin was genuinely pleased to see the willow leaves, and he was also very happy. He then handed her a cloth bag: "These are seeds of southern fruits. They taste delicious to me, but I don't know if they can be grown in our north. You can plant them for fun."
Liu Ye happily opened the cloth bag and saw many seeds inside. Some of them were familiar to her, while others were unfamiliar. There were mango seeds, strawberry seeds, blueberry seeds, longan and lychee seeds, and also very, very small, individual seeds that she didn't recognize. She would know once they were planted.
Bai Zilin took out five more pieces of fabric from the package: "I noticed you like wearing light-colored clothes, so I picked out these light-colored fabrics. If you don't know how to sew, you can take them to the fabric shop and have an embroiderer make them." The silly girl didn't know how to sew; his clothes were torn and she had sewed them up like burlap sacks...
Liu Ye looked at the five pieces of fabric in her hand. The colors were indeed all her favorites: light blue, light purple, light pink, and light green. The fabric wasn't pure cotton; it felt soft and smooth to the touch, so it probably wasn't cheap. "You've only bought things for me. Why haven't you bought anything for yourself?"
Bai Zilin casually replied, "I have clothes to wear. Didn't you buy me several outfits before?"
He took out a money bag from his old clothes and handed it to Liu Ye: "This is the reward that Young Master Zhao gave me, a total of 150 taels. You can keep it."
Liu Ye took the money bag without ceremony and poured the silver onto the kang (a heated brick bed): "Didn't you say it was 50 taels? How come there's an extra 100 taels?"
Bai Zilin said smugly, "Didn't I save Young Master Zhao? He gave me an extra hundred taels of silver to thank me for saving his life. I didn't want to have too much to do with him, so I accepted it."
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