Ugly girl only wants to farm

Chapter 254 You're not going to wipe out my whole family, are you?

"Sister-in-law, it smells so good!" Meng Jiuxia sniffed hard.

Xu Chaoyan glanced at her and smiled, "What's wrong? Are you craving something? Wait a moment, I'll serve you some to try right away, but..."

Upon hearing her change of topic, Meng Jiuxia immediately lowered her head: "Sister-in-law, but what is it? Just say it all at once, don't keep people in suspense."

Xu Chaoyan first took a large earthenware bowl and rinsed it in the basin to prevent it from sticking, then ladled some into the bowl and prepared a soup sauce for her. She liked the spicy and numbing flavor, so she sprinkled some scallions and cilantro on top. The taste was incredibly delicious. She had originally wanted to prepare some garlic water, but all the garlic had been planted beforehand, and now the garlic sprouts were all producing garlic scapes, so she didn't have any extra.

Xu Chaoyan stopped teasing her and handed her the bowl directly: "Try it first. I just wanted to get your feedback so I can improve. This is my first time making it, and it looks quite successful. Here, have this first bowl for you to try. I'll send some to your brother and the others later. If you think it's delicious, we'll set up a stall tomorrow."

Xu Chaoyan invited everyone to gather around her house for a hot meal of cold noodles. The uncle, looking like he hadn't had enough, praised, "This girl makes some really strange and unusual dishes. She always makes things we've never seen before, but the taste is really good."

Just as the uncle reached for more food with his chopsticks, the aunt smacked him with her chopsticks and gave him a reproachful look: "You old codger, you're eating to your heart's content, but leave some for the children. You've almost finished the soup, and there are still two people at the county school who haven't eaten yet. Can you control yourself? There are still a few roasted sweet potatoes in the stove. Go and have some later."

Xu Chaoyan was used to the elderly couple's behavior. She pushed the bowl in front of him and ladled him another bowl of soup, her face beaming with smiles: "Thank you for your praise, Uncle. Since you like it, eat more. As the saying goes, jelly is just a snack; once you eat it, you'll feel full. I'm quite full now, but it doesn't really keep you full for long. Auntie, please don't blame me for finding something Uncle likes."

The old woman looked embarrassed: "The old man is like a starving ghost reincarnated. He only needs to taste a little. We need to save some for your husband. They work hard studying all day. Or I can go and make the trip for you. You can all eat slowly."

Xu Chaoyan ladled out another bowl of soup for her, prepared the sauce, and pushed it in front of her: "Auntie, you should eat more too. No rush, I'll bring it over in a bit."

She had just clearly seen that the old woman was very restrained, only eating a small bowl herself, afraid of eating too much. These elderly people are like that; they're reluctant to eat or drink much, saving the best for their sons or granddaughters. Besides, this bushel of rice can still be used two or three times.

Moon Maiden nodded to her, indicating that she shouldn't be polite, and the old woman then picked up her chopsticks and continued eating.

Xu Chaoyan and her friends arrived just in time. When they reached the entrance of the county school, they happened to run into the three of them coming out. Shen Siheng was still acting as nonchalantly as ever, standing between the two of them and chattering incessantly.

There are still quite a few stalls selling sesame cakes and wontons around the county school. Xu Chaoyan's oden was quite popular before, and several other stalls followed suit. However, their workmanship was rough and the ingredients were insufficient, which the students disliked. In the past few days, Xu Chaoyan has not set up her stall, and a few more oden stalls have appeared at the entrance of the county school, with only a few people at each stall.

She could tell from the student's sudden frown that these people had cut corners and the food was mediocre. Several students who used to frequent their business looked overjoyed when they saw them coming.

"Boss Xu, it's been a long time since I've seen you set up your stall. You've moved to a different place. The radish chunks aren't as flavorful as yours, and the greens are all mushy. If it weren't for wanting a hot meal and a bowl of hot soup, who would want to spend five coins on this stuff? You don't even have a drop of oil in it, and you can't even be bothered to add more salt."

After saying that, he threw the radish chunks into the bowl with a "plop," splashing soup all over people's faces, leaving them with a look of utter despair.

Xu Chaoyan smiled and explained to them, "These days I'm worried that everyone is getting tired of the oden I make, so I'm thinking of researching some new snacks. In addition, it's been rainy a lot lately, so it's not easy to set up a stall. I also want to take a break."

The student, holding the bowl of soup, choked and swallowed a mouthful with his eyes closed. "Sigh. It's pitifully bland with no salt. Today I did see a few specks of oil, but it's still very tasteless. I'm telling you, Mr. Xu, why don't you rent a shop near the county school? That way, you can set up your stall no matter the weather. It would be much more convenient for us to support your business."

He had only made the suggestion casually, but Xu Chaoyan took it to heart. She had originally planned to rent a shop and do some other business in the future. She could make a living from this small stall, but she also needed to plan for the long term.

What this person said made sense; finding a shop near the county school would save them the trouble of running back and forth. At least the students could stay indoors and avoid the wind and rain, especially during the rainy season. Everyone was shivering with cold, so they went out to find food, holding up their oil-paper umbrellas.

She once asked Meng Jiu about the food at the county school. She heard that it was just coarse flour buns stir-fried with cabbage leaves, with the occasional bit of fatty meat. They could eat white flour once in a month, and the food expenses were quite high. So no one was happy to eat it. The food expenses were skimmed off by others, and no one was happy eating it.

Seeing Xu Chaoyan's thoughtful expression, Yueniang chimed in, "Sister, you didn't actually take that scholar's words to heart, did you? Renting a shop near the county school isn't easy. We're already doing well just to keep our little stall afloat. Everything takes time. Besides, if business isn't good after renting the shop, we won't even break even. And the competition is fierce right now. Look at what we do, those scoundrels just copy us."

Xu Chaoyan nodded: "I do have this idea, but I haven't put it into action yet. I plan to discuss it with you later when I have saved enough money. Since this student has brought it up, we might as well consider it."

"What are you considering?" At this moment, Shen Siheng's voice broke in. He stared at Xu Chaoyan with a curious look and kept asking questions until he got to the bottom of it. He even asked how many seeds the gourd had.

"You've arrived! I brought you some food today, so please try it while it's hot."

Meng Jiuhe led Xu Chaoyan and the others to a corner where an elderly couple sold wontons. They borrowed a table and chairs from them, as they usually got along well with them.

The hot pot that Xu Chaoyan had prepared was still steaming hot when she arrived.

As soon as Shen Siheng smelled the enticing aroma, he couldn't resist reaching for the earthenware pot, only to hear a "hiss" sound.

"Ouch, my goodness, it's so hot!" He almost jumped up and quickly touched his ears.

"It really hurts so much, sister-in-law, you are so capable. You came all the way from home and the soup is still piping hot. You must have had a hard journey. Brother Meng is so lucky to have met you. Today I have to trouble you to have a meal with me again. Sigh."

He didn't need to say anything; everyone understood that no one was coming to bring him food. He usually ate at street stalls, and he was a big spender, so he was probably out of money again.

As Zhang Xuyang handed him a bowl and chopsticks, he asked casually.

"Your family didn't fight again, did they? Didn't your mother bring you food before? Did your father and older brother go off to relax again? There has to be at least one waiter in the restaurant. I really don't understand why your family, Shen Siheng, who owns a restaurant, would look down on us country bumpkins."

As Shen Siheng took the bowl, he took a small sip of the soup and looked quite pleased with himself: "Sister-in-law, you must say this soup is really delicious, and the vegetables have a sour taste that is very appetizing. I could eat a whole bowl of this."

Xu Chaoyan continued to serve them soup: "This is a new snack I developed called hot cold noodles. It's a very simple, coarse dish, but I'm afraid you might not be used to it."

While Xu Chaoyan was talking to him, Zhang Xuyang had already scooped a bowl over, and upon seeing it, Xu Chaoyan immediately started arguing with him for it.

"Old Zhang, leave some for me."

"Brother-in-law, I've brought you your food."

Zhang Rongrong's voice suddenly rang out, and everyone turned to look at her.

Shen Siheng looked at her in surprise, his mouth agape. It took him a while to react: "Sister-in-law, why did you come to bring me food? Where's my mother? Did you beat her so badly that she's bedridden? Did you kill my whole family? Am I next?"

His eyes scanned the food box back and forth.

Zhang Rongrong put the food box on the table and slapped him on the forehead without any politeness: "All you do all day is think nonsense. You don't even know how to give your sister-in-law any face in front of your friends."

While complaining, Shen Siheng made room for his sister-in-law. He wasn't angry about being slapped. When his sister-in-law married him, he was still a teenager. The two got along well: "Isn't this like the sun rising in the west? I've never seen you bring me food before. I'm a little unaccustomed to it. The first thing that comes to my mind is probably, 'Won't you wipe out my whole family?' After all, you said you would kill my whole family."