Chapter 194: Chapter 190: At Ease with You

On the way back, Lin Lan and Yang Liying noticed that more people were greeting them.

Yang Liying sighed. “The news about my family buying a shop has probably been spread by the carpenters and masons.”

“Let them talk! I can’t be bothered with all this gossip anymore.”

The words reminded Lin Lan of the old saying: ’When you’re poor, no one asks after you even in a bustling city; when you’re rich, distant relatives seek you out in the remote mountains.’ ’It’s just the way of the world,’ she mused. ’People avoid the poor, but they’ll greet the wealthy from a mile away. Everyone loves to add flowers to a fine brocade, but few will deliver charcoal in a snowstorm.’

When they reached Lin Lan’s house, Yang Liying and her husband said their goodbyes and left.

Brother Yong handed a mesh bag to Lin Yuezhen. Inside were two jars of canned goods, a bag of White Rabbit candies, and some fruit.

Lin Yuezhen blushed and signed, “You’re being too kind.”

Having spent a few days out with her, Brother Yong could understand some of her sign language. “I just bought whatever I saw!”

Lin Lan found this rather amusing. She poured out the boat nails and carried them to the backyard to wash.

“I’ll help you.” Li Xiangyang grabbed a cleaver and followed her.

Wu Shufen glanced at the blushing Brother Yong, who was just sitting there. She gave Lin Yuezhen a little nudge and whispered, “Go talk to him.”

Lin Yuezhen’s face grew redder. “No need, Xiangyang is keeping him company!” With that, she picked up the gauze cloth and basket for her stall, grabbed a bucket, and headed for the well in the backyard.

Now that the weather had turned cold, the water in the ditch was too chilly. Well water was warm in the winter and cool in the summer, so Lin Lan and she usually washed things at the backyard well.

Seeing her walk toward the backyard with the bucket, Brother Yong smiled and stepped forward to take it from her. “I’ll draw the water for you!”

Wu Shufen watched the two busy couples in the backyard, her eyes crinkling into a smile that creased her whole face. She asked Lin Lan, who was washing the boat nails with Li Xiangyang, “Little Lan, how are we going to eat these boat nails once they’re clean?”

Lin Lan looked up and smiled. “How about we fry them and then braise them in soy sauce?”

Little Douzi came running back from somewhere. Seeing Lin Lan preparing the boat nails, he said quickly, “Mommy, save some for me! I like fried little fish.”

Lin Lan smiled and nodded. “Okay! Mommy will save some for you.”

Wu Shufen reached out to take Little Douzi’s hand. “My dear grandson, it’s drafty by the back door. Come back to the kitchen with Grandma.”

Little Douzi nodded, then shook his head. “Brother Dandan bought a new storybook. I just came back to check, but I’m going to go find him again.”

Wu Shufen nodded. “Alright, go play for a little while and then come back.” The grandmother and grandson went inside.

As Lin Lan washed the fish, she thought about the weather. ’It’s perfect for a hot pot table, for eating hot pot and barbecue.’ She looked up at Li Xiangyang. “Can you still get your hands on a sheet of iron?”

She recalled a novel she had read once where the female protagonist was incredibly handy. After transmigrating to ancient times, she had built a very practical barbecue table.

Li Xiangyang nodded. “I can find one. What do you need it for?”

Lin Lan took a small knife and sketched a design for a hot pot table in the dirt. “I want to make a table like this. We cut a hole in the middle of the tabletop and suspend an iron stove underneath. We can burn charcoal in the stove. In the empty space, we can put a copper basin for hot pot, or cover it with the iron sheet to have a barbecue.”

Li Xiangyang studied it for a moment. “The stove underneath will need a layer of wood to insulate it. Otherwise, people will get burned when the charcoal heats up.”

Lin Lan thought about it after hearing his suggestion. “You’re more thorough than I am!”

Li Xiangyang said, “I’ll find someone to make it for you!”

“Mhm!” Lin Lan nodded, a sudden idea striking her. “After it’s made, take a look. If it seems viable, then after the black market by the clothing factory shuts down, we can find someone to renovate the building inside.”

“Once private restaurants are allowed, we could open a hot pot place there and sell barbecue in the courtyard.”

Li Xiangyang looked at her, pleasantly surprised. “That’s a great idea! I was just thinking that the residence would be useless once the black market closes.”

In those days, you couldn’t always get the food you wanted, even if you had money. He remembered the various eateries on the streets from his childhood; the ones that tasted good did very good business.

“Lin Lan always has a plan,” Brother Yong said, looking at Li Xiangyang. “If we opened a hotel like you mentioned, we’d have to spend money renovating the whole place.”

Seeing their excited expressions, Lin Lan remembered that the reforms weren’t always a smooth ride. Otherwise, the “Fool’s Sunflower Seeds” incident wouldn’t have happened.

“Don’t be in such a hurry to get started. Think about it. After being closed off for so many years, what if there’s a reversal? The first ones to stick their necks out will probably be the ones to suffer.”

Li Xiangyang agreed with her. “You have a point. Not everyone wants the government to loosen its grip.” ’Like the people who manage the black market at Dongzikou,’ he thought. ’They don’t want things to open up.’

Brother Yong nodded and said to Li Xiangyang, “No matter what, I’m with you!”

Li Xiangyang shot him a look. “You’re not going back to the Civil Defense Team? What are you going to do following me?”

Brother Yong shook his head repeatedly. “Go back for what? I’m just a temp, and I’m not very educated. Back there, I’d only make about ten yuan a month. I earn a lot more with you.” After a pause, Brother Yong continued, “Shuiqing told me the same thing. Going back to the Civil Defense Team just means running errands. It’s much freer with you!”

Li Xiangyang rolled his eyes. “I can’t be bothered with you guys. Giving up an iron rice bowl to follow a butcher like me… what kind of future is that?”

Lin Lan was confused by their conversation. “Brother Yong, you’re in the Civil Defense Team too? Then why are you working security at your black market?”

Li Xiangyang laughed. “It’s like this: I’m watching over that black market for the higher-ups. This guy here was sent by them to supervise me.”

Brother Yong chuckled. “When I left the army, I was assigned to the Civil Defense Team and sent to watch Xiangyang. Then I was corrupted by his pork intestines and offal.”

“Get outta here!” Li Xiangyang laughed and gave him a playful kick. “How did I corrupt you? You’re just a glutton, alright! I never made you guys do a single illegal thing!”

Brother Yong smiled and nodded. “If we were really doing anything illegal, we would’ve been caught long ago.”

Lin Lan and Lin Yuezhen looked at them curiously. “What’s this about pork intestines and offal?”

Brother Yong laughed. “Things were much harder a few years ago than they are now. People’s stomachs were empty, no fat in their diets. Just the smell of something savory would make you drool a mile. Uncle Li’s offal was especially delicious, and Xiangyang learned the skill from him. The father and son were always making it and bringing it to us. After eating it so much, we were corrupted by him.”

Lin Yuezhen watched the two of them and smiled, pressing her lips together.

“Hahaha! Corrupted by pork offal! That’s a first in history!” Lin Lan couldn’t stop laughing. “What about Brother Shuiqing and Zhigang?”

Brother Yong explained, “Brother Shuiqing is a veteran, too. He’s from the east side of the city. His wife has asthma, and they have three kids: the oldest son is in middle school, their daughter is in fifth grade, and the youngest son is in third. Times are really tough for their family, so Xiangyang has helped him out a lot. Zhigang is an orphan. We caught him stealing at the black market one time.”

“Later, we found out he was an orphan and that he only stole because he had no other choice. Xiangyang gave him a full meal, and then he shamelessly insisted on staying to help.”

Lin Lan smiled at Li Xiangyang. “Zhigang has good judgment!”

Receiving his beloved’s approval, a smile slowly spread from Li Xiangyang’s eyes, radiating genuine happiness and delight.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep