Crossing Over to Yamada Love

"I can tell you the recipes for these two dishes today, but I don't have any other recipes here, so I can't tell you those either," Mo Lan said with a sweet smile, glancing at the young man in purple.

"Why?" Before the purple-robed young master could speak, the green-robed young master coldly uttered two words.

"Because I plan to open a small shop in the future, I want to make and sell these cooking methods and dishes. If I tell you all about them, what will Lanlan sell in the future?" Mo Lan did not hide her purpose and spoke her mind earnestly.

"Oh? Young lady, you're planning to open your own shop? You've got quite the ambition. Opening a shop must be hard work. Why don't you come work as a maid in my house?" The young man in purple tempted Mo Lan with a gentle tone, but there was a hint of probing in his eyes.

"No." Without even thinking, Mo Lan replied directly. A joke about becoming someone's maid? She wasn't going to go looking for trouble!

"You actually disagree? Why? Do you know who we are?" The chubby boy looked shocked when he saw that Mo Lan had refused, and asked incredulously.

"Who is it?" Mo Lan raised her eyebrows.

"We are the Xue family! That's my fifth brother, Xue Lingfeng." He pointed to the young man in blue, then to the young man in purple, and said, "He's my seventh brother, Xue Lingyun. You, you don't know the Xue family, do you?" The chubby boy spoke with pride, but seeing that Mo Lan's expression hadn't changed, he wondered if this little girl had even heard of the Xue family.

Mo Lan was somewhat shocked. They were actually young masters from the Xue family! She knew about the Xue family. She had heard Madam He and Madam Fang mention the Xue family at the cloth shop last time, and afterwards she made a point of inquiring about them, only to find out just how extraordinary the Xue family was!

The Xue family is an aristocratic family, with many ancestors who served as officials. Several of them still hold high-ranking positions in the imperial court. Shangchang Town is the ancestral home of the Xue family, but not many people live there now. Most of them have moved to the capital, and only a few who are nostalgic have stayed behind.

Actually, the Xue family's greatest strength isn't that, but rather that a concubine from the Xue family was produced. It's said that the Xue family is highly favored by the current emperor. Therefore, the Xue family can hold their own not only in this small town of Shangchang, but also in the capital.

Of course, all of this was far removed from Mo Lan's life. All she needed to know was that the Xue family was rich and powerful, and she couldn't afford to offend them.

"I've heard of the Xue family, they seem very powerful. What does that have to do with me not wanting to be a maid?" Mo Lan looked at the chubby boy with a puzzled expression, as if she didn't understand his meaning.

"Of course it's related! You can come to my house as a maid, eat well, dress well, and receive a monthly allowance. Eventually, I can promote you to my head maid, and you won't have to work so hard selling wild vegetables anymore," the chubby boy said smugly. As he said the last sentence, he looked at Mo Lan with a face full of pity.

"I'm not going." Mo Lan first gave the chubby boy a sweet smile, and just when he thought he was about to agree, she loudly uttered those two words.

These two simple words made the chubby boy puff out his cheeks again.

"Why?" This time, it was the aloof Xue Lingfeng who spoke.

"Will becoming a maid allow me to be with my grandparents and parents every day?" Mo Lan asked.

"I can buy your whole family," the chubby boy replied generously.

"After you buy us, will you let my brothers attend private school and take the imperial examinations? Will you let my family be together every day? Will you let me run up the mountain every day? Will you let us do what we want? Most importantly, after you buy us, will you let us not be classified as lowly and remain free citizens?" Mo Lan asked one question after another.

At first, the chubby boy wanted to argue when he heard her question, but later he lowered his head. Was she talking about buying someone? Of course, buying someone would require signing a contract of servitude, and the person would have to obey the master in everything. Judging from her demands, it was as if she had invited an ancestor back to worship.

"No way! Although going to the young master's mansion would mean good food, fine clothes, and money, it would also mean becoming a lowly person and not being able to be with family. Lanlan doesn't want that. Even if life is hard with family, Lanlan's heart will still be sweet." Mo Lan's words came from the heart, her expression so sincere and captivating!

"Good!" praised Xue Lingfeng in green. He then fell silent, but picked up his chopsticks, took a handful of wild vegetables, and put them in his mouth.

"Alright then, we won't let you be a maid in our household. Where do you live? And where did you pick these vegetables?" The chubby boy stopped insisting on the maid matter and asked Mo Lan other questions instead.

"I'm from Xiaoliuzhuang. These vegetables were all picked from the mountains. They're very clean, so please feel free to eat them. If you need to buy wild vegetables again in the future, you can go to Xiaoliuzhuang to buy them," Mo Lan answered his question with a smile. She told them about her village, hoping to attract business in the future.

“Little Liu Village, huh? Fifth Brother, is this Big Liu Village the one where Auntie built her villa?” The chubby Xue Linglei frowned, feeling that the name of the village was familiar, and looked up to ask Xue Lingfeng.

"She said there are mountains there, so it should be. Why don't you ask her?" Xue Lingfeng picked up his teacup and took a sip, neither confirming nor denying.

After some questioning by the chubby boy, it was confirmed that the Da Liu Zhuang that Mo Lan mentioned was the same place as the Da Liu Zhuang he was talking about.

"That's great! We're going to build a villa for your aunt by the mountain over there. Fifth Brother is in charge of supervising it. I can go with him to see you when the time comes. What's your surname? How can I find you then?" The chubby boy seemed quite excited.

He has quite a few sisters, but most of them are quiet and gentle. None of them can chat with him like Mo Lan, and none of them can make him feel so relaxed.

"Yes, my surname is Mo, and my name is Mo Lan." Mo Lan answered his question casually. At this moment, her mind was on what the little fat boy had said. His family was going to build a villa, which should be on the other side of another mountain. There was a large open space there, which looked like thousands of acres from a distance. It shouldn't belong to their family. Did that mean that other families were also going to build villas there?

Could I open a shop near there? I've been thinking about where to open my shop in the future. If it's close to home, I won't have any customers. If I open it in town, I won't have any connections in my family, so it will be very difficult to do business. Is this an opportunity given to me by God?

Excitement flashed in Mo Lan's eyes as she thought of this, and her bright eyes began to shine.

"When are you going to build the villa?" she asked without thinking, wanting to know the time so she could make preparations.

"About a month. The things should be gradually moved over in about a month, right, Fifth Brother?" The chubby boy answered every question. He even asked Xue Lingfeng about it.

Xue Lingfeng didn't answer his question. Instead, he glanced at Mo Lan, raised an eyebrow slightly, and asked, "You figured it out?"

"Yes, I've thought of something. It's a great opportunity. If it works out, I'll have to ask for your help, young master." Mo Lan readily admitted her idea. The other party wasn't the awful second wife or daughter-in-law from her family, nor was she a commoner. Lying or playing tricks would be pointless, so it was better to admit it openly and leave a good impression of honesty.

"Okay." Xue Lingfeng's answer was simple, just one word, and then there was no further movement.

"Not bad." Xue Lingyun, dressed in purple, clapped his folding fan and praised her with admiration in his eyes.

"What kind of riddles are you two talking about? I don't understand." Only the chubby boy frowned, looking a little annoyed. This girl was clearly younger than him, so how could she be talking to his two older brothers?

Mo Lan smiled slightly at the chubby boy: "Consider this mountain vegetable dish for the three gentlemen today. In the future, I will treat you to more mountain vegetables and snacks."

"Okay, are you inviting us to your house for a meal?" The chubby boy was delighted at the mention of food and was no longer upset. He asked Mo Lan with a smile.

But when he saw the joyful look on Mo Lan's face, he suddenly understood. He exclaimed, and when he saw the people at the other table looking over, he quickly lowered his voice and said, "So you're planning to open a shop where we're building our villa? That's great! We'll have a place to eat then. After we finish building our villa, there are still a few more villas to build, so you won't have to worry about not having business."

Mo Lan smiled gently. Just as she had guessed, other families were also planning to build villas. Thinking about the future, Mo Lan's eyes lit up. As long as they weren't afraid of hard work and managed things well, they would definitely be rewarded. But the second branch of the family… sigh, Mo Lan's eyes dimmed slightly, her heart filled with helplessness towards them.

Mo Lan asked the chubby boy a few more questions, such as how many craftsmen they had hired, where the craftsmen and foremen were from, etc. Seeing the chubby boy scratch his head embarrassedly, Mo Lan smiled. He wasn't in charge, so it seemed he couldn't answer her questions.

"Greetings, gentlemen. I wonder if you are satisfied with our mountain vegetables? Lanlan is young and doesn't know any better. She has bothered you for so long. Please forgive her if she has offended you in any way." Liu, who had come to pick up Molan after buying the goods, saw Molan still talking to the gentlemen when she entered the door. She stepped forward, bowed, and said softly.

"It's alright," Xue Lingfeng in blue replied casually.

“Lanlan is good, but it’s a pity she doesn’t want to be my maid.” The chubby boy chimed in, but his words startled Liu Shi, making her pale.

Liu quickly calmed herself down, bowed to the group again, said a few polite words, then took Mo Lan's hand and left the restaurant.

Mo Lan followed Liu Shi and Qiu Dajun back to Old Liu's car. Liu Shi's face was somewhat gloomy the whole way. She didn't speak to Mo Lan, but she held Mo Lan's hand tightly the whole time, as if afraid that she would get lost.

Mo Lan saw the things in the car, and there were quite a lot of them. Rice, flour, fish, meat, silk threads, and malt sugar were all bought. It seemed that Liu Shi was much better than last time. Last time, she stopped her from buying things, but this time she bought everything she needed.

Most of the items were in double portions because Mo Lan had told Liu Shi to buy two portions. She planned to have Qiu Dajun bring one portion to her maternal grandparents' house when he went back, so that they could have something nice to eat.

"Auntie, are you angry?" The oxcart moved slowly along the dirt road, and Mo Lan leaned against Liu Shi, asking her softly.