“That’s her. She’s gotten a tan.”
Liu Wenshu had Yantai stop the carriage and jumped down himself.
Ye Wan was attending to customers. Looking at the stack of bamboo bowls, she felt a bit troubled. She would have to haul them back to wash and reuse them.
Fortunately, people in this era didn’t have all sorts of strange infectious diseases; otherwise, she really wouldn’t be able to get over this mental hurdle.
She looked up and saw a young master from a wealthy family, dressed in silk, standing before her.
“Young Master, it’s you! Care for a bowl of noodles?” Ye Wan flashed an enthusiastic smile.
A wealthy customer had arrived.
“Your family’s pears, I’ll buy them again.”
Liu Wenshu opened his fan, his words concise and to the point.
Hearing this, Ye Wan showed a regretful expression. “Young Master, my family’s old tree only bore those four pears this year. If I had more, how could I possibly not sell them to you?”
She did want to sell them, after all, this man looked rich. But she was afraid of exposing herself if she sold too many. Otherwise, she would have just sold things directly from her space and gotten rich long ago, instead of setting up a stall in this hot weather.
“Young Master, how about you try my family’s Suan La Fen? It’s a secret ancestral recipe, and it’s delicious.”
Ye Wan lifted the lid of the pot where she was cooking the noodles.
The noodles were soaking in cool water, so there was no fear of them spoiling in the heat. The hot broth was bubbling away, its fragrance assailing the nostrils.
The key to selling food was the aroma, and Ye Wan clearly had a talent for it. To be absolutely sure, she had even added a bowl of spiritual spring water to enhance the flavor.
Liu Wenshu had no interest in this kind of street food, but the scent drilled straight into his nose, and he suddenly felt a little hungry.
“I’ll have a bowl.”
It was Ye Wan’s first day running the stall, so her setup wasn’t very complete. She didn’t even have a table, only small stools—the kind so small they could barely fit one’s bottom. San Ya quickly moved one over for Liu Wenshu to sit on.
“Young Master, the food at these small stalls isn’t clean.”
Yantai had just finished parking the carriage. Seeing his master about to eat, he muttered, “Have you forgotten that candied haw seller from last time? He picked his nose and then grabbed the candied haws.”
His words were so disgusting that even Ye Wan felt a wave of nausea, let alone Liu Wenshu.
She quickly spoke up, “You can rest assured. I eat this myself, so I can’t stand it if it’s not clean.”
The vegetable seller at the next stall chimed in, “This Mistress Ye is indeed clean. I’ve been watching right here. She’s washed her hands at least ten or eight times. I haven’t seen anyone this clean on the whole street.”
He had already eaten two bowls of noodles himself and was happy to put in a good word for her.
Seeing that Ye Wan’s setup was indeed tidy, Liu Wenshu finally felt at ease. He lifted the hem of his robe and sat down.
The moment he sat, he felt how damn uncomfortable the stool was. Maybe he shouldn’t eat here after all.
Just as he was about to get up and leave, Ye Wan had already placed the bamboo bowl in his hands.
“I’ll have a bowl too. It smells quite fragrant,” Yantai said, having already sat down on his own. As a page boy, he wasn’t so particular.
“The taste really isn’t bad. I’ll try that Liang Fen too.”
Liu Wenshu was sweating profusely as he ate, fanning himself nonstop with his fan.
“It’s so hot out, but the Liang Fen isn’t cold at all. Don’t you know to put some ice under it?”
“Young Master, where would an ordinary family get ice?” Yantai was also hot, but he was doing better than his master.
The Young Master’s clothes were made of silk and were too elaborate and complex; of course he would be hot.
Liu Wenshu thought about it and agreed. He said to Ye Wan, “The taste is good. Next year, when your old pear tree bears fruit, I’ll reserve them all. You’re not allowed to sell a single one, and your own family isn’t allowed to eat them either. The price is negotiable.”
Ye Wan nodded. “Yes, yes, of course. I’ll definitely sell them all to you, Young Master.”
Who knew where she would be next year? Saying nice things didn’t cost her anything.
Liu Wenshu stood up. “This flavor is really not bad. My family will probably like it too. Make a few more portions for me to take back.”
Sitting at this small stall was too uncomfortable. If it weren’t for the pears from last time, he would never have sat down.
But unexpectedly, the taste was truly excellent.
“This has to be cooked fresh to be delicious. If you take it back, it won’t be good to eat.” The noodles would turn into a clump.
In truth, she could just soak the noodles separately in cool water for him to cook again at home, but Ye Wan didn’t want to say so.
Without her unique soup base, the taste would definitely be different.
“That’s too much trouble. Forget it.” Liu Wenshu fanned himself. “I’ll hire you. You can come to my house…”
“Mother, have some water.” At her side, San Ya tugged on Ye Wan’s hand, holding up a bamboo cup.
Ye Wan happened to be thirsty. She smiled and stroked San Ya’s head. “So well-behaved.”
The water in this bamboo cup was entirely her spiritual spring water. There was another one for San Ya, which had some spiritual spring water mixed in.
Children change quickly, looking different from one day to the next. Coupled with the care Ye Wan had given her for the past few days, her hair was no longer so dry and yellow, and her face had filled out a little. Cleaned up, the child was actually quite pretty.
After drinking the water, Ye Wan asked Liu Wenshu, “Young Master, what were you saying just now?”
“Nothing. Yantai, pay up.”
Yantai promptly paid.
Sitting back in the carriage, Liu Wenshu remarked, “That woman doesn’t look married yet, and she’s about my age. I didn’t expect her child to be so big already.”
To ask a married woman to come to his home—never mind whether she would be willing, his grandmother would break his legs if she heard about it.
“Country women get married at eleven or twelve. Isn’t it normal for them to have a daughter that big?” Yantai didn’t find it strange at all.
“Young Master, shall we go to Qingfeng Lou?”
“Let’s go. I’m dying of heat.”
…
…
“Sorry, today’s noodles are all sold out. If you want some, please come early tomorrow.”
“Ah, I just followed the smell over here. How is it sold out already?”
“Uncle, if you come tomorrow, I’ll add some extra noodles for you.”
Ye Wan hadn’t expected to sell out so quickly on the first day. She hadn’t made much, and it was all gone before the hottest part of noon.
After packing up her stall, Ye Wan asked the vegetable seller next to her, “Big Brother, are you leaving now? Could you watch my cart for a bit? I’m taking my child to find her father. I’ll buy some vegetables from you when I get back.”
“Sure, little sister, don’t be a stranger. Just leave it here.”
The vegetable seller was quite enthusiastic.
Ye Wan took San Ya for a walk around the market. It was still the same old things; there was nothing new she needed to buy.
She then went to buy some more seasonings, as the ones at home were too plain. Unexpectedly, the most expensive seasoning was salt; the others weren’t that pricey.
Coming out of the shop, she ran into a peddler and saw some pretty hair ornaments, which made her want to buy one for San Ya.
When she was little, she used to love dressing up dolls, and she still had a bit of that hobby now.
Mainly, it was because San Ya was such a well-behaved child.
San Ya shook her head. “Mother, I don’t want it. You wear it.”
“It’ll look good on San Ya.” Ye Wan picked up a butterfly-shaped beaded flower. “How much is this?”
“Madam has a good eye. This is merchandise from the county town. It’s one tael of silver for a pair. If you take the pair, I can give you a discount.”
“Half a tael.”
The peddler snatched the beaded flower right out of Ye Wan’s hand.
Ye Wan: …
Embarrassed, she quickly led San Ya away, muttering awkwardly, “For haggling, we really need to bring your father along. Do you know where your father went?”
“Brother Lin, what are you thinking about?”
Lin An Yuan was lost in thought when Zhang Fuhu pulled him, and he almost failed to suppress the vicious aura in his heart, lowering his gaze.