??698: Chapter 697 Impression
698: Chapter 697 Impression
“You should know that our alley might not look like much, but it’s in a great location.
Once you step out of the alley, right across the street is the busiest street in Jing County where you can buy anything cheaply.
Not to ntion, if you pass through our alley and keep going, it’s the way to the Academy.”
“A lot of scholars want to rent houses in our alley for studying, finding a place as suitable as ours is probably hard…”
Madam Gu was a straightforward person who, once she started talking, was like beans pouring out of a bamboo tube and wouldn’t stop.
Wang Yongzhu listened and felt even more satisfied with her understanding; the forr Boss Tian indeed had so foresight, this house was indeed well-located.
Convenient, not to ntion quiet.
Madam Gu went on to say that there are probably many scholars renting on this street; the learning atmosphere is good, which is perfect for Song Chongjin to study.
After exchanging a few words with Madam Gu and clarifying that the house was purchased, not rented, Madam Gu’s attitude beca even warr.
She held on to Wang Yongzhu’s hand, asking if she needed to go shopping, and if she knew where to go — she insisted on taking her.
Wang Yongzhu had no choice but to say that having just moved, there was nothing at ho yet, so she planned to buy so food to bring back and buy cooking utensils in the afternoon.
Madam Gu clapped her hands with a slap: “Then you’ve found the right person, just follow .
I’m also going out to buy pancakes for the little devils at ho, co with .
There’s a street nearby that sells street food, it’s clean, tastes good, and the prices are cheap.”
Leading the way, Madam Gu took Wang Yongzhu through two intersections to an alley.
Before even entering, they could sll the various fragrances of stir-frying, boiling, and frying, which made Wang Yongzhu swallow her saliva several tis.
Following Madam Gu into the alley, Wang Yongzhu was almost dazzled by the sight: there were steaming buns, plump and white stead buns, and various deep-fried sweet pastries glowing golden brown.
Not to ntion the various stalls along the road, like the wonton stall, where tiny, delicate wontons were dropped into boiling water and quickly turned transparent, revealing the tender at filling inside.
Scooped up swiftly into a big bowl, the bottom layered with savory dried shrimp, finely chopped green onions, then topped with a spoonful of chicken broth.
The round, translucent wontons rolled and bobbed in the chicken broth, with bright green onions interspersed throughout, truly making one’s mouth water.
It was just a pity that as she was still in mourning, she could only look on longingly.
Wang Yongzhu shafully slurped up her saliva, forced herself to look away, and checked out other stalls.
There was spicy soup, roasted ats, and an assortnt of pancakes, with the air filled with these tantalizing scents mingling together, which stimulated the appetite imnsely.
Wang Yongzhu barely managed to restrain her cravings and bought a bunch of vegetarian-filled buns, four or five at buns, so stead buns, pancakes, two bowls of sweet tofu pudding, and a large bowl of Egg soup noodles.
Seeing her buy so much, Madam Gu enthusiastically helped carry the bags to the entrance.
Wang Yongzhu hurriedly stuffed a few buns into Madam Gu’s hands, “Thank you, Madam Gu, if it weren’t for your guidance today, I wouldn’t have known where to buy these.
Our family is in mourning, these buns are for the ladies at your ho to taste; I won’t co to bother you.”
Madam Gu declined a couple of tis, but seeing Wang Yongzhu was sincerely offering them, she accepted graciously.
Previously, when she saw Wang Yongzhu buying at buns, she had wondered why a widow in mourning would eat at, but now she understood that they were bought for her children, as gifts of thanks.
To think that this young lady appeared to handle things with such maturity, aware of her family’s mourning, she had avoided impropriety from the start.
Madam Gu’s first impression of Wang Yongzhu was favorable.
Not to ntion anything else, their family had lived there for several decades, and all the neighbors in the vicinity were well-acquainted with them.
The previous owner of this courtyard, surnad Tian, was a rchant.
He seed amiable but was not serious; instead of staying with his proper wife, he always mingled with disreputable won.
Later, it was heard that the rchant Tian’s business failed, and he sold the house and returned to his hotown.
Then it was only seen that a well-known middleman from Jing County ca to tidy up the house and then rented it out.
The new neighbors who bought the house had not yet been seen by them.
After the New Year, however, there was so activity in the courtyard, as if soone was living there.
Since they kept their door closed every day, it was not good to intrude.
After a couple of days, the courtyard was empty again, and no one knew when they left.
Unexpectedly, people had finally arrived, and it was the hoowner, who would be their neighbor from then on.
Madam Gu then took the ti to observe carefully.
Despite her blunt appearance and seeming willingness to talk about everything, she was also able to distinguish right from wrong.
The new neighbors, although she saw only a young girl, had a clear gaze and a generous deanor.
Especially when they went to that snack street, where an average girl her size would want to try sothing new, Madam Gu noticed that although the girl seed very eager to eat, she mostly bought vegetarian food, and eggs counted as semi-vegetarian.
No household observing mourning was known to prohibit even eggs.
Even those few at buns were purchased as gifts for her own family.
Such a well-mannered young girl likely indicated that the adults at ho were also very polite.
Madam Gu entered her own courtyard, feeling delighted with the buns.
Wang Yongzhu entered the courtyard with food in hand; it had already been mostly put in order.
Seeing Wang Yongzhu return, Old Granny Zhang and Song Chongjin had washed their hands and were sitting in the courtyard, eating on clean stone stools.
The courtyard had indeed been a focus of attention for the forr Boss Tian.
Who knows whether it was to show culture or refinent, but he had planted a grape trellis in the courtyard, under which stood a square stone table surrounded by four round stone stools.
It was thought that co sumrti, sitting under the grape trellis on those stools, enjoying the cool air and appreciating the moon, would be a delightful experience.
Old Granny Zhang saw that everything on the table was vegetarian, save for a bowl of egg soup with noodles, and could not help saying, “Now that we have no outsiders in our house, why still be so hard on yourself?
Look at you, Yongzhu, you’ve lost weight, and your eyes have grown larger.
And Chongjin, you need to study, how can you only eat vegetarian food?
Won’t your body beco worn out?
After the funeral period passes, you can start eating a little at.”
Wang Yongzhu, however, felt that this was pretty good.
Everyone gains weight during the New Year, and this year, especially, the celebration was particularly lavish, with an overindulgence in greasy foods; it was better now to cleanse the stomach.
Still, Old Granny Zhang was concerned for her and Song Chongjin, and she imdiately agreed, bringing the bowl of soup noodles to Old Granny Zhang, “Mother, eat this, it’s warm and comforting.”
Old Granny Zhang refused to eat it: “I am an old lady now, why do I need to eat an egg?
Keep it for you two to nourish yourselves.”
Wang Yongzhu quickly grabbed a bowl of sweet beancurd: “I’ve been craving this for a long ti, mom, don’t fight
for it.”
Song Chongjin silently took away the leftover bowl of sweet beancurd and started nibbling on the buns.
Old Granny Zhang, having no other option, began to eat the egg soup noodles.
As the warm soup filled her stomach, her eyes beca a little moist.
This kind of scene where a family sits together, each yielding to the others, Old Granny Zhang had once fantasized about.
Yet, it had been worn away in the noisy and contentious days of her past life.
She never expected, in her lifeti, to enjoy such peaceful and easy monts.
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