Crossing Over to Yamada Love

"Since Miss Lan has already given you the embroidered shoes, then these scraps of cloth are for you." Having understood this, Manager He couldn't say anything to his wife. He could only give them something in return.

Hmm, this shopkeeper is not bad, much better than his wife.

“Since the shopkeeper is so kind, Lanlan is not ungrateful. I’ll tell you the shoe designs. Apart from the three pairs for Madam Fang, anyone else who wants to buy shoes will have to go to the shopkeeper and his wife.” As soon as Molan finished speaking, she was met with a puzzled look from her aunt.

However, she didn't care and instead looked at Manager He with a smile.

"This, this, you can't do that." Manager He was startled and hurriedly waved his hand to decline.

"If you don't want my shoe pattern, then I won't take your fabric scraps. My grandmother taught me not to take advantage of others for nothing," Mo Lan said, feigning anger with a stern face.

“Since Miss Lan is so kind, the master will accept it. But since Miss Lan is giving us shoe patterns, we can’t keep anything from her,” Madam He hurriedly said, afraid that the shopkeeper would refuse again.

“Of course. We farmers are the most honest people.” Mo Lan held her head high, her expression quite smug.

"Shopkeeper, come closer. I'll only tell you this so no one can eavesdrop," Mo Lan whispered mysteriously to Shopkeeper He.

"Hmph." Madam He snorted and turned her face away. She was very angry, but she would let it go in order to get the shoe pattern.

Mo Lan whispered something to him, and Manager He nodded repeatedly. What she said was simple and clear, and Manager He could hear it clearly.

"Alright, I've finished speaking. Does the shopkeeper understand?" Mo Lan asked seriously.

"Shopkeeper, do you understand everything? If there's anything you don't understand, you must ask clearly." Madam He asked anxiously, afraid that her husband might not understand something.

"I'm not a child, of course I heard everything clearly. Thank you, Miss Lan." The shopkeeper first glanced at his wife with displeasure, then thanked Mo Lan.

"No need to thank me. I only told you because I think the shopkeeper is a good person. Didn't you also give me a piece of cloth?" Mo Lan smiled slyly, thinking to herself that she was the one who made the biggest profit.

“Miss Lan is so righteous at such a young age, I admire her. But there are quite a lot of scraps of cloth. I wonder how you plan to move them? Should I ask my assistant to help you?” Manager He was very enthusiastic now that he had received the shoe pattern.

"That's wonderful! You're such a kind person, shopkeeper. I'll definitely bring you my new things again next time." Mo Lan clapped her hands happily. Free labor! Why not use it? She was very excited.

"Miss Lan, you're too kind. I'll go and call the shop assistant to move them for you right away. But do you have anywhere to put them?" Manager He smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the girl's excited expression.

"Yes, yes. Don't worry, shopkeeper." Mo Lan nodded hurriedly. Then she told him the place she had arranged to meet with Old Liu.

And so, the bags of cloth scraps were moved to the place agreed upon with Old He.

As she was leaving, Mo Lan called out to Madam He, "Now that you know how to make shoe patterns, we won't help you. Several pairs need to be made; it's too rushed. We hope you won't mind."

Madam He was so angry that her chest heaved and her lips twitched. She cursed Mo Lan inwardly.

Leaving aside how angry Madam He was, let's just say that Mo Lan and the others were quite lucky. They didn't have to wait long before Old He arrived in his oxcart, which had several brown paper packages on it, the contents of which were unknown.

"Uncle Liu, you're back. Did you get things done?" Mrs. Liu greeted Old Liu.

"It's all taken care of, Changhai's family. What's this?" Old Liu looked at the several sacks on the ground, puzzled.

“This is a job the fabric shop gave us; they need my aunt to help them make some things,” Mo Lan answered first.

"Oh, the Changhai family is really capable." Old Liu's dark face broke into a smile, and he gave Liu a thumbs up.

"Grandpa Liu, look at all these bags. It won't be easy for everyone to sit down later. Why don't you take us home after we buy some things? We'll pay you extra." Mo Lan and Old Liu discussed it.

"That won't do. It's not about the money; they're all fellow villagers. I've already agreed on a time for them to be dropped off, and I can't leave before that time. Otherwise, how will they get home?" Old Liu's expression hardened as he rejected Mo Lan's suggestion.

"Oh, then let's wait. My aunt and I are going shopping. Grandpa Liu, could you watch these sacks for us?" Mo Lan sighed, thinking to herself that old Liu was quite trustworthy. She had no choice but to settle for letting him watch the bags.

"No problem at all, you just go ahead. Leave the stuff to me." Old Liu smiled憨厚ly and patted his chest in agreement.

Mo Lan and Liu bought silk thread together first, and then she pulled Liu into a noodle shop. Originally, Liu was reluctant to come in, but seeing Mo Lan's excited appearance, she gritted her teeth and brought Mo Lan in.

Perhaps it was lunchtime, but the noodle shop was very busy. After waiting for quite a while, Mo Lan and Liu finally got an empty table.

"What would you two gentlemen like to eat?" A waiter with a towel draped over his arm asked as he wiped the table.

"What do you sell here? Tell us, waiter!"

"Alright, we sell wonton noodles, braised pork noodles, clear broth noodles, shredded pork noodles, braised meat noodles, as well as steamed buns and meat dumplings. What would you like to eat, sir?" the waiter explained in detail.

"How much is a bowl of noodles?" Mo Lan asked.

"Meat is eight coins, vegetarian is five coins," the waiter answered fluently.

"What about steamed buns and mantou?"

"A large meat bun costs two coins, two vegetarian buns cost three coins, and a steamed bun costs one coin."

"I'd like two meat buns, two vegetarian buns, and a bowl of shredded pork noodles," Mo Lan ordered after hearing the order.

"Alright, coming right away." After saying that, the waiter called out loudly, "Two meat buns, two vegetarian buns, and one bowl of shredded pork noodles." After calling out, the waiter said, "Please wait a moment, sir," and went to attend to other customers.

Mo Lan observed the constant flow of customers; it seemed this noodle shop catered to the lower middle class. Judging from their attire, few of the people entering appeared wealthy. Indeed, rich people frequented restaurants; they wouldn't frequent a place like this.

"Lanlan, you've ordered too much. We can't eat that much," Liu said softly to Molan.

"Is it a lot? It's okay, we can take the leftovers home." Mo Lan seemed unconcerned.

"Taking him back is probably no longer a problem for our main branch," Liu said in a low voice. Her face flushed slightly as she spoke.

"Hmm, Auntie isn't stupid. She actually knows that if she brings food back, the eldest son's family probably won't get any. So why do they keep letting the second son's family have it?" Mo Lan wondered to herself, but didn't reply.

Soon the noodles and steamed buns arrived. Mo Lan looked at the noodles first; they were thin noodles with a few shreds of meat and some greens floating in them. They looked just average.

Mo Lan pushed the noodles to Liu Shi, but Liu Shi pushed them back to Mo Lan and told her to eat them.

Helpless, Mo Lan picked up a noodle and tried it. The noodles were flavorful, and as if on a whim, she tasted the soup as well. It had a strong noodle flavor and wasn't very fresh. It was a bit salty.

Although this was a rare delicacy for the original Mo Lan, she only ate a few bites before putting it down.

"Auntie, please eat. Lanlan wants some steamed buns." Molan pushed the noodles towards Liu Shi, then picked up a vegetarian steamed bun and started eating. She looked so childlike.

It tasted like radish, and there was nothing in it except for scallions. After taking only one bite, Mo Lan put it down, frowned, and said it was awful.

She picked up another meat bun—hmm, pork and scallion filling—took a bite; it was quite fragrant. But after a couple more bites, it felt too rich. Mo Lan looked at the filling; it was mostly fat with very little lean meat—no wonder it smelled so good. However, it would get greasy if she ate too much. But for those of us from the lower middle class who didn't have much oil in our stomachs, it was still very delicious.

Mo Lan finished the meat bun. She was starving. She had been here for several days and her stomach was completely empty. Although the meat bun in front of her was ordinary, it was a rare delicacy for her.

*******

Thank you to Meiyan Kongkong, Alien Cabbage, Shaanbei Grey Wolf, Li Xuexiang, Leige Tianying, and Daode Yu Nishang for the peace charms. Thank you to Ziyan Zhao Yilin for the PK vote, and thank you everyone for your collections, clicks, and recommendations!