Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

When Li Xiangqian heard this, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, and then he felt a little funny. The old lady was always calm. If there was something wrong in the courtyard, she would just look at it and go over, never saying anything. If it could make her quarrel, it must be no small matter.

He put down his teacup, became interested, and asked with a smile: "You can still quarrel with others? Who can make you quarrel in person?"

The old lady snorted softly, her tone as calm as if she was talking about today's weather: "A boss."

Li Xiangqian suddenly became more curious, leaned forward and asked with interest: "What boss? The one selling things?"

The old lady nodded, peeled a peanut and put it in her mouth, saying in a light tone: "Business."

Li Xiangqian touched his chin and thought to himself. Usually, even if the old lady was a little dissatisfied with the things she bought, she would just frown and would not say a word, let alone quarrel with others. But this time, she not only quarreled, but also took the initiative to bring it up, which meant that the matter was definitely not simple.

He changed to a more comfortable sitting position, tapped his fingers on the table twice, and looked at you with a hint of teasing: "How did the boss offend you? Did he shortchange you?"

When the old lady heard this, she suddenly chuckled and shook her head, with a barely perceptible coldness in her tone: "He did give me a lot of change, but he's not a very honest person."

When Li Xiangqian heard this, he narrowed his eyes and felt that something must be wrong.

"How is it unethical?" he asked.

The old lady was silent for a moment, rubbing her fingers on the table for a moment, and then she slowly said: "You buy something and pay for it. Logically, the merchant should give you the item properly, right?"

Li nodded: "That's only natural."

The old lady sneered: "But some people don't think so."

Li Xiangqian frowned, realizing that things might be more complicated than he thought: "Then how did the boss do it?"

The old lady didn't answer immediately, but took a sip of tea, as if she was organizing her thoughts. After a while, she slowly said, "I saw something I liked, asked the price, and paid for it, but after the owner took the money, he suddenly changed his mind and said he didn't want to sell it to me."

When Li Xiangqian heard this, he immediately frowned: "He took the money but didn't sell it? Then why did he take the money?"

The old lady looked at the peanut plate on the table with a gloomy look in her eyes and said calmly, "He probably thinks that I am an old woman and can't make a fuss, so he just said a few perfunctory words and I just accepted it."

Li Xiangqian immediately sneered: "He really doesn't know you."

The old lady smiled, with an indescribable look in her eyes: "Yes, he really doesn't know me."

The more Li Xiangqian listened, the more he felt something was wrong. He had thought the old lady was just buying some vegetables and rice oil, and at most had a few arguments with some haggling vendor, but after hearing what she said, it seemed that this matter was not that simple.

He carefully recalled the old lady's expression just now and found that her eyes were very calm when she said this, but the calmer they were, the more it made people feel that there was something wrong.

He thought about it and asked tentatively: "What exactly did you buy?"

The old lady didn't answer immediately, but tilted her head slightly to look at him, with a faint smile on her lips: "What do you think it is?"

Li Xiangqian was stunned by this question, then he laughed: "Are you throwing the question back to me?"

The old lady smiled without comment, her eyes indifferent.

Li Xiangqian was even more itchy. He was not the kind of person who liked to get to the bottom of things, but the old lady's behavior was obviously intended to make him curious. He paused, then changed the angle and asked, "What happened next? Did he give you the things after you had a fight with him?"

The old lady slowly raised her eyes and said calmly: "No."

Li Xiangqian frowned even deeper.

"So you're just going to let it go?" he asked.

The old lady smiled slightly, with a meaningful light flashing in her eyes: "What do you think?"

Li Xiangqian stared at her and suddenly felt that the old lady would not let the boss go so easily. She was definitely not someone who would swallow her anger, but she was not the kind of person who would easily cause trouble. There must be other details behind this.

He pondered in his heart, his eyes moved slightly, and he suddenly asked: "So you came back empty-handed this time?"

After hearing this, the old lady raised the corners of her mouth slightly, revealing an ambiguous smile.

Li Xiangqian saw her expression and immediately knew what was going on. She must have come back for more than just a fight. She might have brought something back with her.

But what exactly did she buy? Who was the boss? What was behind this dispute?

Li Xiangqian felt a little uneasy, he knew that the matter was not over yet.

Li Xiangqian's eyes became deeper and deeper. He stared at the old lady, and a series of questions in his mind intertwined like flying fragments, but at this moment he was not in a hurry to throw them all out. He sat up straight, staring at her face, and suddenly asked: "Old lady, why did you do this? Why don't you just sue the boss or find a reason to take the things back?"

The old lady slowly put the peanuts in her hand into her mouth, as if thinking about Li Xiangqian's question. She did not rush to answer, but gently put down the plate, stood up, and slowly walked to the window, looking through the window at the branches of the old locust tree in the yard. The sunlight shone through the leaves on her back, giving her outline a faint golden edge. She stood for a long time, as if waiting for the right moment, and then slowly turned around and looked at Li Xiangqian with complicated eyes.

"Why?" The old lady repeated Li Xiangqian's words in a low voice, with some deep thought, "You are right, I should have directly pulled that boss out and let him know that I am not someone you can easily mess with. But I didn't."

Li Xiangqian was slightly stunned. Seeing that the old lady had not finished speaking, he quickly said, "If you don't tell me, no one will know what you are capable of." A strange emotion rose in his heart, as if something was quietly changing. "Did the boss do something too much?"

The old lady did not answer immediately. Her eyes began to wander and she sighed softly, as if recalling something from the past.

"Some things," she finally said, her voice becoming slow and low, "no matter how extreme they are, they don't necessarily need to be spoken about."

Li Xiangqian was stunned for a moment, feeling confused, but soon he realized that the old lady's words seemed to contain some deep meaning.

"You mean, in this matter... you know that your boss is wrong, but there is no need for you to let others know?" Li Xiangqian asked tentatively.