Hua Xiaomai turned around in response and imdiately saw a man in his forties standing at the gateway, of dium stature, wearing a crow-black jacket. He seed to have walked quickly as he was still breathing heavily, and sweat had ford on his forehead.
She found the man sowhat familiar yet not a resident of Fire Knife Village; she couldn’t recall where she had seen him before. Puzzled, she exchanged a glance with ng Yuhuai and walked over with formal politeness, "Uncle, are you looking for ?"
The man wiped his sweat with his sleeve and a smile appeared on his face, "My dear girl, don’t you recognize ? Last June, we t in Fuzhe County. At that ti, I was competing in making ’Three-flavor Chicken’ in front of my shop. I was about to lose, but thanks to your help with that soy sauce shredded chicken..."
"Ah, you’re Master Tan!" As soon as he ntioned that, Hua Xiaomai imdiately rembered and apologized with a smile, "Look at my mory, I couldn’t recognize you, I’m truly sorry. Is your tavern closed today? What brings you to our little village?"
"I heard people in the city talking about an opening ceremony at Sauce Garden in Fire Knife Village today with a feast in front and the owner being surnad Hua. I guessed it might have sothing to do with you and thought I’d take my chances. If Sauce Garden belongs to your family, I should at least congratulate you personally," he said.
Master Tan seed slightly uneasy as he handed over a box of pastries he was carrying to Hua Xiaomai, "There’s nothing much inside, just so fish cakes my wife made. Her cooking skills are ordinary, and this is the only thing she makes that is presentable. It’s not worth much, but if you don’t mind, take it ho and give it a try."
Hua Xiaomai quickly took the fish cakes, thanking him profusely and repeatedly saying he shouldn’t have gone to such expense. She then smilingly suggested, "It’s lovely of you to co all this way to congratulate ; why did you bring gifts? We just finished lunch, look, the dishes aren’t even cleared yet. We are preparing a banquet for tonight, so if you are free today, why not stay and try my cooking?"
"Coming to congratulate you was only proper. As for dinner, I better not," Master Tan said with a wave of his hand, smiling, "As you may know, the tavern usually does better business in the evenings. I need to head back soon, hoping to earn a fair bit tonight."
While talking, ng Yuhuai also walked over. Hua Xiaomai briefly told him how she had t Master Tan and suddenly rembered that the reason Master Tan had that contest with Mr. Huang of Dongchang Pavilion back then was to keep his tavern. Now that half a year had passed, she wondered if he still owned the tavern.
Thinking this, she asked him, and Master Tan smiled bitterly and shook his head, sighing, "Don’t bring it up. I owed him so much in silver taels that I couldn’t pay back. What choice did I have? By the end of the year, Mr. Huang took over my tavern. My family’s business, ultimately failed in my hands, despite your great efforts to help !"
"What? Surely not," Hua Xiaomai was taken aback, "then what about you now..."
She was not aware of how the tavern generally perford, but she knew well enough that since Master Tan had borrowed from Mr. Huang several tis, he must have been running at a loss. Yet, having a tavern would still an so inco; however, without even that...
"Mr. Huang of Dongchang Pavilion is sowhat respectable," Master Tan sighed again and slowly said, "He took over my tavern, not only clearing the debt between us but also gave so extra money. I have no other skills but cooking, so now, I have rented another spot in Lv’s Alley and still run my little tavern."
"Lv’s Alley?" ng Yuhuai repeated the words, though he didn’t say much, his eyebrows furrowed, and he shook his head slightly.
"What is it?" Hua Xiaomai, not very familiar with the streets of Fuzhe County, turned and asked him when she saw his expression.
"That place is sowhat secluded," ng Yuhuai carefully chose his words and glanced at Master Tan, "Are you short of cash? Otherwise, why would you rent a shop there?"
"Secluded, nothing much, young brother, you are too polite," Master Tan helplessly said with a laugh, "Let tell it straight; that area is notorious in Fuzhe County for being rowdy with all sorts of people, and hooligans often hang around there. It’s mostly poor folks living there; normally, people don’t frequent that area. But what could I do? All I had was a couple of coins. Even if I wanted to be choosy, I didn’t have the ans. Rent in Lv’s Alley is cheap, so that’s the best I could manage..."
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