Chapter 192: Chapter 188: That’s Some Seriously Thick Skin

Wu Shufen looked at the fabric her daughter had picked out and thought it was too much. “Leave this for now, we can decide later. Zhixue and his brother should be here soon.”

Lin Lan glanced at her watch. “You’re right, they should be.”

The mother and daughter walked out of the room just in time to see Wang Zhixue and his brother entering the courtyard, carrying loads on their shoulder poles.

Wang Zhixue took a new vegetable basket from his bamboo crate. “Auntie, my mom wanted me to bring you some tofu skin and dried tofu. My dad said you can keep the basket.”

Lin Lan accepted it with a smile, looking at the glossy, turmeric-colored tofu skin inside. “Your mom’s craftsmanship is getting better and better. This tofu skin is so glossy.”

Wang Zhixue agreed that his mom was good at it. “She even has contracts with two canteens now, making deliveries to them!”

Wu Shufen smiled. “Zhixue, is the house painted yet? Once it is, you should bring Yuru over to see it.”

“It’s done,” Wang Zhixue said, blushing. “I was planning to go in the next couple of days, but business is booming before the holidays. I think I’ll go after New Year’s Day.”

Wu Shufen nodded with a smile. “That makes sense. New Year’s is just a few days away. After the rush is over, get some proper rest. Earning money is important, but so is starting a family.”

Seeing Wang Zhixue turn red as a boiled shrimp, Wang Zhilin laughed. “Grandma, my brother wants to earn a bit more money. Next year, he’s going to ask the production team to approve a plot for a foundation, so he can build a new house for the wedding.”

Wu Shufen beamed at Wang Zhilin. “Good, building a new house for the wedding is a wonderful idea!”

As she spoke, she glanced at Wang Zhilin, who was busy packing pastries nearby. ’Both brothers are quite decent,’ she thought. ’Qiaohui is about his age, but her family and looks are a bit lacking. Otherwise, I could introduce her to Zhilin. It would be a way for her to get out of that mountain hollow.’

Once the goods were packed, Wang Zhixue and his brother settled the payment, hoisted their shoulder poles, and hurried away.

Lin Lan started gathering her things to set up her stall. She hadn’t even finished hanging her baskets on her bike when Li Xiangyang arrived to get her. The two of them rode their bicycles to the Eucalyptus Forest together.

Wu Shufen went into the room and looked at the fabric Lin Lan had picked out and left on the bed. She took two pieces and put them back in a trunk, then went outside to find Lin Yuezhen, who had finished soaking some beans and was now starting to cook green beans.

“Yuezhen, let’s go to the tailor’s to have some clothes made!”

“I have clothes to wear, you don’t need to have any made for me.” Lin Yuezhen gestured at the outfit she was wearing. She hadn’t brought a single nice outfit with her when she came; everything she wore now had been made for her by Lin Lan.

“Those are for milder weather. Little Lan said this fabric is thick and perfect for the cold. Besides, you’re starting to see someone. You need to have a couple of decent outfits, especially for when you meet Brother Yong’s family.”

Lin Yuezhen smiled and held up her hands. “I don’t even know if it will work out!”

“Come on, listen to your Auntie!” Wu Shufen said, packing the fabric into a basket and firmly pulling her out the door.

Not long after they left, Xiang Hongxia arrived at Lin Lan’s front gate, carrying a grubby-looking vegetable basket. She saw the gate was locked, glanced at the handful of greens in her basket, and after a moment of shifty-eyed thought, headed toward the Eucalyptus Forest.

After walking for over half an hour, Xiang Hongxia reached the tractor path by the Eucalyptus Forest. She saw that stalls lined the field ridges along the irrigation ditch and both sides of the path.

She looked around and spotted about ten familiar faces, all members of the First Production Team. Some were selling eggs, others vegetables.

“Cuicui, you’re here selling eggs too!”

He Cuicui looked up and glanced at the vegetable basket Xiang Hongxia was carrying. Her expression was cool. “I am. Are you here to sell vegetables?”

Xiang Hongxia smiled and shook her head. “I’m looking for Lin Lan.”

He Cuicui watched her for a moment, then beckoned her closer. “Sister Xiang, let me ask you something.”

“What is it?” Xiang Hongxia asked, walking to her side.

He Cuicui lowered her voice. “Did Lin Lan really buy a Western-style house over in the First Team’s area?”

Xiang Hongxia nodded. “It’s true. I heard it with my own ears from Yang Meihua’s aunt. Ding Bang bought one too. He’s moving in a couple of days.” Then, she suddenly remembered Lin Lan’s dispute with the Xiong family. “I can’t talk now, I still have to find Lin Lan.”

He Cuicui watched her hurry away, a complicated mix of feelings bubbling up inside her. ’How did I never realize that little widow was so skilled at making pastries? If only I’d known sooner…’

After a rush of customers, Lin Lan began rearranging the pastries in her baskets. She noticed that since the weather had turned cold, the mung bean cakes weren’t selling as well as they had in the warmth. She could probably make fewer of them.

Sales of the kidney bean rolls, on the other hand, had actually risen a bit, and the pea cakes were also selling better. The pumpkin cakes—probably because she baked them with milk powder and eggs—had a pleasant, creamy flavor and had always sold consistently well.

Yang Liying came over with an enamel mug and handed it to her. “Lin Lan, I made some fermented rice. Take it home to cook with eggs!”

“I just finished what Grand-aunt gave me, and now you’re bringing more,” Lin Lan said, accepting it with a smile. “Did Old Miao go looking for Third Brother-in-law this afternoon?”

Yang Liying shook her head. “No. Dehai said Xiangyang already went to see him, so if Old Miao shows up, he can just go find Xiangyang. If you ask me, what’s there to be afraid of? We paid for it fair and square. This isn’t some children’s tea party.”

“Liying! Lin Lan! You both have stalls here!” Xiang Hongxia called out in an exaggerated tone.

The two women looked up. Lin Lan shot her a glance but said nothing.

Yang Liying nodded, her face expressionless. She glanced at the handful of wilted greens in her basket. “Sister-in-law Xiang, are you here to sell vegetables?”

Xiang Hongxia gave a sycophantic smile. “Not selling vegetables! I came looking for Lin Lan!”

Yang Liying turned to glance at Lin Lan, her eyes asking a silent question. ’Since when are you two so close?’

Lin Lan shrugged and looked coolly at Xiang Hongxia. “Are you here to buy pastries, Sister-in-law Xiang?” ’Yang Meihua only came this afternoon, and now this one has tracked me all the way out here,’ she thought. ’The nerve on this woman is unbelievable!’

Xiang Hongxia paid no mind to the expressions on Lin Lan’s and Yang Liying’s faces. She walked right up to Lin Lan, basket in hand, and adopted an incredibly gentle tone. “Little Lin, I actually went to your house first to bring you some vegetables. Since no one was home, I came looking for you here. You just focus on your work. I’m not busy, I can help.”

As she spoke, her eyes were glued to the baskets of pastries, and she quietly swallowed.

Lin Lan gave Xiang Hongxia a cold look and flatly refused her. “This is a small business. I can’t afford to hire help.”

“Oh, my! No need to be so formal with me!” Xiang Hongxia laughed dramatically, her smile stretching nearly to her eyebrows. “Don’t worry, Little Lin, I don’t want any pay!”

“That’s even worse. If word got out, people would accuse me of exploiting a laborer.” Lin Lan placed the enamel mug in her shoulder bag and gave her a cold stare. “Sister-in-law Xiang, you should go. I have a business to run.”

Yang Liying suppressed a smile. “That’s right, Sister-in-law Xiang. How could our Lin Lan dare ask for your help? If people found out, it would be a huge scandal.”

Xiang Hongxia just giggled. “Don’t you worry. No one will say a bad word about it. And if they do, I’ll be the one to set them straight.”

’You damn widow,’ she cursed inwardly. ’If I didn’t want to learn your craft, I wouldn’t show up even if you sent an eight-man palanquin to fetch me.’

’My mother was right,’ Lin Lan thought. ’Some people aren’t just thick-skinned—they’re completely shameless.’

She shot back without a shred of politeness, “I can handle things by myself, so why would I need you to ’help’? I’m not so bored that I’d go looking for lice to put in my hair just for something to do.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep