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Chapter 109: Chapter 109: The bowl is cleaner than a brush.
Tong Yao felt uncomfortable under Aunt Luo’s odd gaze, but she was too busy discussing the use of the cart to dwell on it. "Aunt Luo, please don’t rush to reject this," she said. "I want to borrow your cart to earn money for my family. If I use your tools to make money, it’s only fair for me to pay rent. As the old saying goes, clear accounts make good friends. If you refuse to take rent, I’d only feel guilty using it."
Tong Yao’s words gave Aunt Luo pause, and she felt it would be wrong to refuse at this point. Renting out the unused cart would not only clear up some space but also bring in a little extra income. Aunt Luo warmed further to Tong Yao, impressed by her respectfulness.
Such a courteous, pragmatic young woman was indeed rare. If she did marry her nephew, that would truly be a blessing.
"All right, I’ll take the rent. You just say the word whenever you need help, dear. I don’t have much to do at home, just some card games with friends and knitting when I have some spare time."
Tong Yao’s eyes lit up, and she cheerfully asked, "Aunt Luo, could you possibly help me source some ready-made honeycomb briquettes? I’m not sure where to get them from. Could you get them delivered today as early as possible?"
Tong Yao had originally sourced her briquettes from He Fang’s family, but after their falling-out, the supply of briquettes dried up. Without getting some more today, she’d need to close her stall for a day.
The thought of losing tens of yuan in income made Tong Yao’s heart ache.
"Oh my," laughed Aunt Luo, "You’ve asked the right person for this. One of my relatives sells them. How many do you need? I can get him to deliver them as soon as possible."
To Tong Yao’s surprise, Aunt Luo could indeed help as she had asked merely out of hope. "Send two hundred for now! When should I expect the delivery? I’ll be ready to unload the briquettes."
"If you trust me, you can go about your business for now. Leave me the key to your front door. When my relative gets here, he can deliver the briquettes to your kitchen, and you can sort out the payment later." Tong Yao had already paid three months’ rent, and the briquettes would also be placed in her nephew’s house, so Aunt Luo wasn’t worried about the payment.
Tong Yao handed over the front door key. "Thank you so much, Aunt Luo."
"You go on with your business. I’m going to ring my relative." Aunt Luo took the key and didn’t take long before leaving to call her relative. Given Tong Yao’s urgency, she knew she couldn’t delay things.
After Aunt Luo left, Tong Yao quickly drew a couple of large buckets of water from the kitchen and wheeled them to the school gate.
Several hours passed quietly as students came and went. By late afternoon, the milk tea wasn’t selling as fast as it had on Monday. When she eventually sold out around four in the afternoon, Tong Yao packed up her stall and pushed the little cart back to the rented house. At the same time, Aunt Luo’s relative finished unloading the briquettes and was ready to leave as soon as Tong Yao returned.
After settling the payment for the briquettes, Tong Yao said goodbye to Aunt Luo, and, with Si Xiaohui, headed back to their home. As they passed He Fang’s house, she felt someone watching them from a ajacent gap in the closed door. Pretending not to notice, she moved along without returning the gaze.
"What’s going on?" He Fang asked, opening the door to look after Tong Yao once she had gone out of sight. "Where did they stash their stuff?"
After being dismissed by Tong Yao, He Fang told her husband about the situation, and they concluded that Tong Yao would soon capitulate and come to them. How could she operate without their water supply and storage space?
But they saw no sign of Tong Yao coming for water, and even Aqiang started to feel uneasy. He and He Fang took turns standing guard at their door from three in the afternoon, hoping to watch Tong Yao hauling her stuff elsewhere.
Yet the scene they had imagined of Tong Yao and Si Xiaohui lugging their stuff to their door never happened. The two of them simply walked past their house as if nothing had happened.
"What do you think?" Aqiang kicked the door and said mockingly, "They’ve already rented another place behind your back. You were naïve to be so trustful, believing they felt indebted to you."
Who would have thought that a young woman in her 20’s could be so cunning? They had really underestimated her.
"What... what do we do now?" He Fang was confused and realy didn’t have a clue. According to her plan, she should be thriving now. But instead, she’s out of a job, completely broke, and has angered Tong Yao. How long can she last on just a few dozen yuan?
While she has always wanted to start her own venture, she couldn’t summon the courage. She remembered how those men had come to bully Tong Yao, and she certainly didn’t have that kind of courage.
"You think we’re gonna die without any solution?" Aqiang scoffed, looking towards the hospital, "Tomorrow, I’ll go buy some tools. We’ll set up our own stall selling milk tea. If they’re selling for one yuan, we’ll sell for fifty cents. There’s no way people are stupid enough to pay a higher price for the same stuff."
Once they’ve chased Tong Yao away, they’ll raise their prices, making the milk tea business their own. Money won’t be a constant stress then.
A little girl thinks she can outsmart him? She doesn’t realize what he does for a living. Yes, he gambles a lot, but that doesn’t mean he’s an idiot. In fact, gambling is like a marketplace, and it requires as much thinking as any business.
Once he makes big money and becomes rich, their relatives would scramble to associate themselves with him.
"Aqiang, you’ve finally grown wise. I know I didn’t marry a dull one. People may say you’re lazy, unwilling to work hard, but, in my opinion, it’s that your abilities were never recognized. You’re meant to earn big money by doing great things!" He Fang was almost crying with excitement. It was a good thing she hadn’t listened to Tong Yao and divorced her husband. Look at him now - wasn’t he planning to run a business and earn good money?
Even Tang Sanzang had to face 81 disasters before getting the heavenly scriptures. Compared to the luxuries they would experience later on, the hardships they’ve been through were minor.
He Fang’s words made Aqiang feel on top of the world, "Go and buy two pounds of meat and two bottles of wine. We’ll cook some dishes tonight. I’m in high spirits. To celebrate the opening of our business, I’m going to invite Maotou over for a drink."
"Okay."
He Fang was ecstatic imagining the future when she would have so much money. So, she readily agreed to Aqiang’s demands. Not only did she buy two pounds of pork and wine, but she also got two pounds of stewed beef, invited her in-laws over, and cooked several dishes. They even had a more scrumptious feast than what they had on the New Year.
The cost of the feast ate up a quarter of their remaining thirty yuan. When their in-laws came and saw the food, they didn’t hide their displeasure. They berated He Fang for being a spendthrift. But when it was time to eat, they didn’t hold back at all. By the time He Fang came to the dining table, not a single morsel of the two pounds of beef or pork was left.
They ate till their bowls were sparkling clean.
