Crossing Over to Yamada Love

"You...you're all bullying me! God, I don't want to live anymore..." Cui looked at the people around her, but didn't dare to move, and started her wailing again.

"Sigh." Mo Quan sighed and went back into the house with his hands behind his back.

"Alright, everyone go back to your rooms. You've all had a long day, why waste time with her?" Wang glanced at Cui, waved for everyone to go back to their rooms and rest, and ignored Cui, who was performing alone.

Mo Lan lay on the quilt and tossed and turned a couple of times.

"What's wrong, girl? Why are you making potstickers?" Wang teased her, watching the chrysanthemum tumbling around.

"I'm thinking of getting up early tomorrow morning and picking some cucumbers from our garden to take over," Mo Lan said, sharing her idea.

"Aren't there cucumbers over there? Why are you picking these from here? What are you going to do with so many cucumbers? They won't taste the same after a couple of days." Mrs. Wang didn't understand her granddaughter's meaning for a moment.

Mo Lan rolled over and lay face down on the quilt, saying, "Grandma, here's what I'm thinking: tomorrow, besides the snacks to go with the drinks, let's bring some pickled vegetables over too. If anyone buys more than two buns, we'll give them a piece of pickled vegetable. It's like giving them a free meal. After all, only a few people buy snacks to go with the drinks, but with pickled vegetables, they'll be more willing to buy our buns. Even though we lose a little money on the vegetables, I reckon that if people eat our pickled vegetables, we'll sell more buns and soup. What do you think, Grandma?"

Wang thought for a moment, nodded, and said, "This is a good idea. We'll get some pickled vegetables over tomorrow."

"Lan'er is so clever, Hai's mother. I think Lanlan is just like you. You don't know how talkative she is when she's selling steamed buns." Mo Quan hadn't gotten onto the kang yet. He was smoking his pipe on the stool by the moonlight, the sparks flickering.

“How could someone I raised not resemble me? Of course she’s good; our family needs someone like her,” Wang continued leisurely.

"Hehe." Mo Lan chuckled, then yawned. She was really sleepy and drifted off to sleep, half-covered by the blanket.

"Damn it, I have this feeling that Lan'er has become much smarter. She wasn't like this before. Look at how clever she is now." Mo Quan lay on the kang and spoke softly to Wang Shi.

"People are forced into things. Isn't Lan'er good as she is now? Whether she's stupid or clever, as long as she's our granddaughter, that's all that matters." Wang's face was hidden in the darkness, and her expression was unclear.

"That's right, our own children are all good." Mo Quan was very pleased when he mentioned these children.

"Okay, go to sleep, you've had a long day," Wang said softly.

"Mm." Mo Quan responded, and soon began to snore, leaving only Wang Shi with her eyes closed, seemingly lost in thought.

As dawn broke, Mo Lan groggily opened her eyes. Seeing that her grandparents were no longer beside her, she quickly got up, dressed, and went outside.

When she arrived at the vegetable garden, she found Qiu picking cucumbers, with a small bamboo basket placed on the ground beside her. Mo Lan was very happy; she could make cucumber pickles today. She knew how to make several kinds, but she planned to make her favorite kind now and the others later.

Seeing that the cowpeas next to her were almost sprouting, she was delighted. She should start preparing her pickles. She would pickle some when she got back, because the pickling broth gets better the longer it's pickled.

Thinking it and doing it, she went down to the field to pick chili peppers, choosing the big ones and the ones with the most leaves, pulling them down one by one. When she couldn't hold them all in her hands, she used her clothes to hold them. She didn't stop until she had picked a whole bagful.

Today, Mo Lan didn't go into town with Old Liu. Instead, she gave Old Liu some money to buy what he needed, while she stayed home and made pickled vegetables and kimchi with everyone else.

First, Mo Mei was asked to boil water, while she washed the cucumbers clean and drained the water. Then, Wang and Qiu started peeling the cucumbers, using a rotating knife to peel them, making sure the pieces weren't too small.

After you've finished peeling everything, there'll be a huge basin full. Sprinkle coarse salt into it, toss it evenly with your hands, and then leave it there to let the water drain out on its own.

As Qiu was chopping onions, tears streamed down her face. She wiped them with her sleeve and said, "This stuff stings my eyes, Lan'er, stay away."

Mo Lan really kept her distance; she was genuinely afraid of this. Seeing Liu peeling chili peppers, she didn't dare go over. She rarely cut raw chili peppers because her hands were thin-skinned, and if she didn't wash her hands immediately after cutting them, her hands would feel stringy and uncomfortable all night.

Watching Wang cut the washed and cleaned food into slices, she went over to get a basin and put them in.

After Mo Mei boiled the water, the two of them ladled the boiling water into a wooden basin and waited for it to cool down.

Everyone was busy, some kneading dough, some chopping vegetables, some mincing meat, some tending the fire, each doing their own thing.

Seeing that the water had cooled down enough, Mo Lan ladled it into the kimchi stand, added vinegar and salt in the correct proportions, and finally poured in the pickled mustard greens, onions, and chili peppers. She covered it with a lid, and it would be ready to eat in a few days. Mo Lan especially loved this kind of sour and crunchy kimchi back in her modern life; the vegetables here were uncontaminated, so she felt even more at ease eating them.

After preparing the kimchi, she noticed that the cucumbers had released enough water, so she went to find a net bag, washed it clean, and put the cucumber pieces inside. Then she found a wooden board, placed it on the ground, put the cucumber bag on the board, and got up to go to the front yard to fetch a large rock.

The stone was so heavy that Mo Lan couldn't straighten her back. Her face turned red as she struggled to hold it.

"Sister, let San'er help you lift it." The sharp-eyed San'er, who had been sitting and watching the adults work, spotted Mo Lan struggling and quickly stood up, calling out as he ran towards her.

"San'er, don't come, I'm afraid you'll hurt your foot," Mo Lan called out to Xiao San'er, panting heavily.

Qiu hurried over and took the stone from Mo Lan's hand, complaining, "You silly girl, why are you moving it? What if it falls on your foot?"

Mo Lan immediately felt a sense of relief, even her breathing became lighter. She ran to where the cucumbers were and called out, "Mother, put a stone on top of these cucumbers so they will release water faster."

After hearing her words, Qiu put the stone down and said softly to Mo Lan, "In the future, if there is any heavy work like this, just call for your mother. If you hurt yourself, your mother will be heartbroken."

Seeing the deep emotion in Qiu's tears, Mo Lan felt a warmth in her heart. She took Qiu's hand and rubbed it against her face, whispering, "Mother loves Lan Lan the most, and Lan Lan loves Mother too. When our family has money in the future, we'll hire a few people so that Mother won't have to work so hard."

"You silly girl, you're already drowning in debt, and you're already thinking of hiring someone to help? I'm not tired, as long as you're all okay, I'll take care of anything." Qiu touched her daughter's face, then went back to work.

After tidying up at noon, the three of them pushed the cart to the construction site of the villa.

As Mo Lan expected, Liu Erdan and his wife were already there, chatting with everyone and trying to persuade them to buy their steamed buns.

"Uncle Mo is here! I've been waiting for your car. Give me three steamed buns."

"I want two, both with ground beef."

"I'd like a beef one."

As soon as Mo Quan parked his car, a crowd swarmed around him.

"Uncles and elders, wait a minute! Let me say a few words. To thank you all for your patronage of the Mo family, today, for every two or more steamed buns you buy, you'll get a free side of pickled vegetables. It's made with pickled mustard greens and has lots of seasonings in it; it's really delicious! Please don't push. There's enough for everyone when you buy steamed buns, so come one at a time!" Mo Lan hurriedly shouted as she saw the crowd swarming forward.

"I don't want one anymore, I want two, and give me a chopstickful of pickled vegetables too!" One person who originally wanted to buy one steamed bun changed their mind and asked for two steamed buns when they heard that pickled vegetables would be given away.

Mo Quan couldn't even stop picking up steamed buns; he was constantly grabbing lettuce leaves, picking up buns, and adding pickled vegetables—he never stopped for a moment. Meanwhile, Mo Mei's soup was also going down quickly; it was chicken soup again today. Chicken soup is good for the body, so these men really appreciate it and almost all of them bought a bowl to drink.

The scene here was bustling with activity, and everyone was enjoying their meal immensely.

One straightforward man said while eating, "The Mo family is really honest. These buns are well made, and the pickled vegetables are fragrant. The pickled vegetables alone must cost a lot of money. They are truly a family that appreciates quality."

Those men who bought Erdan's buns because they were cheap felt a bit uneasy. Actually, Erdan's buns weren't bad, but they had become accustomed to Lao Mo's buns and found them unpalatable.

"Huh? Why does this bun taste so bad? The one I ate before didn't taste like this. What's going on? You're not selling the leftover buns from yesterday, are you?" A man finished one bun and noticed something was wrong with the taste when he ate another; it had a sour smell.

Hearing his words, Aunt Erdan hurriedly laughed and said, "How could that be? Brother, you're overthinking it." But her smile was extremely unnatural, revealing a hint of guilt.

"Why not! This bun clearly tastes good, so tell me what's going on!" the burly man pressed.

"Don't be angry, brother. I'll get you another steamed bun, okay?" Liu Erdan hurriedly picked up another steamed bun and handed it to the man.

"Why should we give him an extra bun? The dough and meat in a bun cost money, they don't grow on trees. If everyone gave him an extra bun like that, we'd go broke!" Aunt Erdan muttered loudly when she saw her husband's actions.

The man had initially accepted Liu Erdan's steamed buns and was thinking of letting it go, but after hearing Erdan's aunt's words, he refused to accept it anymore and shouted, "Pah! I don't want your steamed buns anymore! You need to explain yourself clearly. Why are you selling spoiled steamed buns? Isn't this cheating people?"

"How can you cheat people like this? Aren't these steamed buns? They're all made of white flour and meat, what's the difference? Why do you say that Mo Lan's steamed buns are better and mine are spoiled? Isn't this bullying?" Aunt Erdan didn't back down and argued with them. Actually, she had a problem with Mo Lan's family. Their steamed buns sold so well, but hers didn't get many customers. She was furious.