Xiong Mei and Cheng Xiangdong had followed Qiao Man all the way to the snack street.
At first, when Xiong Mei saw the breakfast stalls leaving one after another, she was so anxious she couldn’t stop clicking her tongue. “See, what did I tell you? It’s too late now; everyone is already gone…”
Cheng Xiangdong told her not to worry and to wait and see. Eventually, they saw a young girl stop in front of Qiao Man’s stall.
As the morning progressed, Xiong Mei watched as more and more people arrived, and only then did she feel at ease.
However, she was still a bit worried. “Today might just be good luck. I wonder if there will be this many people tomorrow?”
Cheng Xiangdong stomped his feet and rubbed his growling stomach. “Hey, I say, didn’t you come out to buy buns? We’ve been standing here all morning, and I haven’t even had a sip of water. You can’t exhaust a hardworking guy like this! I haven’t even tasted what Little Qiao’s buns are like; I’m starving. Let’s hurry up and buy a couple!”
He finished speaking and tried to pull Xiong Mei along, but she grabbed him back. “Eat, eat, eat! If you eat them, how will she make any money? I’ll cook noodles for you when we get home.”
Cheng Xiangdong could only droop his head, looking back reluctantly with every step.
The two of them encountered the mother and son duo, Wang Yuwei and Li Shuo, who were engaged in a battle of wits at the entrance of the residential area.
Xiong Mei heard Wang Yuwei scolding Li Shuo for dawdling. “I still have to bring breakfast for my colleagues! With you making such a fuss, where am I supposed to buy it now?”
Xiong Mei immediately stepped forward and pointed the way for her. “Right at the entrance of the snack street, you’ll see it on your way to work. The girl who rents my house is selling them; it’s not easy for her to raise a child alone…”
After Wang Yuwei left, Cheng Xiangdong remarked with a click of his tongue, “Wife, your ‘Spring and Autumn’ style of writing is brilliant. If people knew you had a stake in this, wouldn’t they talk about you behind your back?”
Xiong Mei gave a dismissive “Hmph.” “Little Qiao won’t go around shouting about this to the whole world. If I don’t say it and you don’t say it, who will know? Besides, this business probably won’t last more than a couple of days anyway. I’m just lending a hand while I’m at it.”
Speaking of which, she thought about tomorrow’s sales and sighed. She really couldn’t stand this kind of precarious existence and felt involuntarily anxious.
Before Xiong Mei could finish sighing, she saw her rival, Qi Dongmei, whispering something to a neighbor.
Qi Dongmei was the Auntie Qi who lived above Qiao Man’s home. The two of them had been at odds since they were young.
Both had the character “Mei” in their names. Since Xiong Mei was six months older than Qi Dongmei, everyone referred to them as “Big Mei” and “Second Mei.”
Later, they had a falling out. Even though they lived in the same building, they wouldn’t speak to each other when they met. They relied on intermediaries to pass messages, which often included their respective husbands.
Cheng Xiangdong and Qi Dongmei’s husband, Zhao Jianguo, exchanged a glance and intended to walk past them. To their surprise, Xiong Mei suddenly stood behind Qi Dongmei and shouted, “Qi Dongmei, what bad things are you saying now? Your old habits are acting up again! A young girl raising a child, with no family or job, getting up early and working hard to earn a living at a stall, and you’re still badmouthing her behind her back!”
Qi Dongmei was stunned by the sudden accusation, her voice catching in her throat for a long time. It was the grandmother next to her who reacted and quickly explained, “You’ve misunderstood, Big Mei. Little Qi was telling me…”
She was interrupted by Qi Dongmei before she could finish. “Xiong Mei, did you take the wrong medicine? What I say here is none of your business! Besides, with which ear did you hear me slandering that young girl?!”
“You didn’t slander her? Then why were you clicking your tongue just now and even mentioned Little Qiao’s sister? How can your mouth be so loose, spreading people’s family business everywhere! If it weren’t for you back then, I wouldn’t have been demoted from a state-run worker to a temporary one!”
This was truly a case of old and new grudges surfacing. The people nearby immediately pulled the two of them apart.
Even so, the two of them continued to criticize each other defiantly. Xiong Mei didn’t know how to swear, so she kept bringing up their past grievances. Qi Dongmei, who was quick-tongued, threw back idioms she had learned from her grandchildren.
When Qiao Man and An’an arrived, Qi Dongmei was complaining to the people nearby with tears in her eyes: “I just had something to ask Little Qiao. I went to her place and found she wasn’t home. Only after asking this auntie did I find out she had gone out early in the morning with her child and a small cart. I thought about how my Old Zhao said the child abductor case hasn’t been solved yet, and I wanted to warn my neighbor. I just said Little Qiao’s child is so young and she needs to be more careful, and then she just started yelling at me for no reason…”
An’an looked up and asked with confusion and unease, “Auntie, are the grandmas fighting because of us?”
Qiao Man remembered An’an’s state at Liang Zhendong’s house and stroked her head. “Don’t be afraid, An’an. This isn’t Liang Zhendong’s house; no one will blame you for the fighting. Other people’s arguments are their own business and their own conflicts. Only incompetent adults blame children for the reasons they fight.”
An’an didn’t understand all the words her aunt used, but she understood the gist—her aunt was saying that in the future, no one would say things like “It’s all because of you that mom left” or “we’re only fighting because of you.” It wasn’t her fault.
An’an straightened her little body and stood closely beside Qiao Man, watching the commotion with everyone else.
After a while, Qiao Man finally understood the reason. She pulled An’an forward. “Auntie Xiong, stop fighting. Let’s go home.”
The two women hadn’t been fighting about Qiao Man for a long time; they had become more and more heated, digging up every old grievance.
Xiong Mei saw Qiao Man and An’an and choked up. For some reason, she suddenly blurted out, “Why are you back so early? Are your buns sold out?”
Qiao Man smiled. “You let Sister Wang buy them all up. I couldn’t just stand there selling an empty box, could I?”
As soon as she said that, Xiong Mei’s eyes widened. “Sold… sold out?! This early!”
At this point, Qi Dongmei stopped her fake crying, gave a sob, and said, “You really went to set up a stall?”
Qiao Man nodded and opened the insulated box. “The vegetarian ones are all sold out; there are only four meat ones left. I was thinking of your business; you and Uncle Cheng haven’t tasted them yet, so I brought them back.”
By this time, many people had gathered around them. Having been neighbors for so many years, everyone came to offer a few words of advice when they saw them fighting.
Now, seeing these two “irreconcilable” rivals actually stop fighting because of a newcomer girl was quite a novelty.
So, there was a business involved?
Xiong Mei saw so many people surrounding them, and her heart sank a bit. Now everyone knew this was her business, and she couldn’t even pretend to be a shill for Little Qiao anymore.
Just then, Qi Dongmei stared at the four buns in the box and suddenly said, “Little Qiao, sell these buns to me. I’m not afraid of them being cold; I can just heat them up at home.”
Xiong Mei was initially pained by the lost revenue from those four buns—selling one less meant she got a smaller cut! She was also annoyed that Little Qiao had been so quick to speak.
But hearing that Qi Dongmei wanted to buy them, she suddenly felt a sense of relief. She straightened her back and sneered, “I wouldn’t sell them to you even if it were to feed a dog! Cheng Xiangdong, come and take the buns!”
Thinking of the smell of buns that had wafted from downstairs that morning, Qi Dongmei swallowed her saliva and urgently protested, “Xiong Mei, are you an idiot? Why wouldn’t you make money when it’s right there! Little Qiao, if you can’t give me four, even two would be fine! Zhao Jianguo, come and help! You’re just standing there like you’re dead!”
At that, Zhao Jianguo also recalled the smell from the morning. Usually a man of few words, he actually spoke up to plead with Xiong Mei and Cheng Xiangdong: “We’re all old neighbors. It was indeed Second Mei’s impulsiveness back then that let some people know you were having a second child. But I, Zhao Jianguo, guarantee with my life that she was absolutely not the one who reported you. It’s all a misunderstanding. There has been no chance to clear it up for so many years… How about this: if you ever want to listen, my family will host a dinner, and we’ll explain everything from back then clearly. Would that be okay?”
He and Cheng Xiangdong were both veterans who had transferred to the local police station and were former colleagues; their character was trustworthy.
Hearing him speak so solemnly for once, Cheng Xiangdong whispered a few words of persuasion to Xiong Mei, and only then did she nod reluctantly.
Just as the atmosphere softened, Zhao Jianguo immediately asked with a smile, “Um, the buns…”
In the end, all four buns were sold to Qi Dongmei. Xiong Mei, holding Qi Dongmei’s 16 yuan, led Qiao Man and the others home with her head held high.
The onlookers looked at each other. Wasn’t this an old grudge between the two? How did it end up being a scramble for buns?
Are these buns really that delicious?
After Xiong Mei and the others left, the Qi Dongmei couple held the buns as if they were treasures.
Some friendly neighbors came forward, wanting to buy a bun from Qi Dongmei to taste. Qi Dongmei couldn’t refuse them all, so in the end, she could only take one bun and break off a little piece for each person.
“Fragrant, so fragrant!”
Experienced foodies knew they were good buns as soon as they saw them broken open, evident from the oil-soaked bun skin.
The buns were plump with many even pleats, the skin was thick and uniform, and the meat filling was formed into a perfect ball.
Someone suddenly remembered and asked Zhao Jianguo, “I remember you said yesterday that Little Qiao’s stewed chicken soup was exceptionally fragrant?”
So it was actually true?
…
Qiao Man and An’an had lunch at Xiong Mei’s house. Xiong Mei and Cheng Xiangdong repeatedly insisted they stay. Xiong Mei also wanted to ask about her plans for tomorrow, so Qiao Man decided to stay.
Xiong Mei glanced at Cheng Xiangdong, who nimbly went to the kitchen to cook. He said to Qiao Man with a bit of embarrassment, “Little Qiao, just make do with this. Your Uncle Cheng’s cooking is average; I’m just making some home-cooked food.”
Qiao Man, of course, had to be polite for a while before being pulled into the bedroom by Xiong Mei.
As Qiao Man and An’an counted today’s turnover, Xiong Mei paced back and forth nearby.
“This can’t go on. Are you planning to have An’an accompany you tomorrow too? Although Qi Dongmei and I don’t get along, I’ve heard about the case she mentioned. Can you manage on your own? How about… how much? How much did you say you sold today?!”
Xiong Mei hesitated and thought it over. Just as she was about to grit her teeth and offer to let An’an stay at her house, she heard An’an call out a number in a crisp voice: “3,119 yuan! Grandma, we earned three thousand yuan today!”
Despite being 62, Xiong Mei had a very sharp mind and was even better at calculations than some young people. She opened her mouth, did a quick mental calculation, and murmured, “At this rate, it seems I really could earn ten thousand in just half a month…”
Qiao Man said with a smile, “I only made about eight hundred buns today. Once I get a feel for the market and make more, it could be even sooner.”
Xiong Mei was completely speechless. She closed her mouth, exchanged a look with Qiao Man, then with An’an, and let out a shout: “Cheng Xiangdong, stop cooking! We’re going out to eat!”
Just as they were about to head out, they saw their old enemy, Qi Dongmei, actually showing up at their door.
When Qi Dongmei saw Xiong Mei, the smile on her face stiffened. Fearing she might be scolded, she hurriedly said to Qiao Man, “Little Qiao, you’ve probably heard about that case in the south of the city I mentioned earlier. The child abductor hasn’t been caught yet; it’s so dangerous! You’re a young girl, having to raise a child and take a little one with you to set up a stall—you definitely won’t be able to manage…”
Xiong Mei was wary. “What are you trying to say?”
“Little Qiao, do you take pre-orders?” Qi Dongmei coughed twice before speaking, smiling and rubbing her hands at Qiao Man. “I just did a rough inquiry. In our community alone, those people from earlier could order three to four hundred buns! Those people also said they’d ask their relatives and friends if they wanted to order. Can you… manage to make that many?”
Xiong Mei’s mouth fell open again in shock. She and Cheng Xiangdong looked at each other, both seeing the disbelief in each other’s eyes.
Qiao Man thought for a moment and agreed readily. “Sure, but is there a specific list, or should I start a WeChat group?”
Qi Dongmei’s mind worked quickly: “Let’s do this: our community is mostly older people. Those of us in our sixties can still play around with smartphones, but many in their seventies or eighties only have basic phones. Anyway, I have nothing to do this afternoon, and they’re all my old friends whom I know well. I’ll make a list for you. But first, you have to give me a menu—what kind of fillings do you have?”
Only after she finished did she realize she was too excited. She said cautiously, “If you trust me, I’ll handle this for you. I’m helping purely as a volunteer, it’s just… Little Qiao, can your business be a long-term thing?”
Most of the people buying buns with her were like her; they weren’t good at cooking and found it troublesome. Since they went to the snack street every few days to buy food anyway and were tired of it, why not buy buns!
After Qi Dongmei finished, she glanced at Xiong Mei. Seeing that Xiong Mei only looked cold but didn’t intervene or object, she was relieved.
It was certainly good to have help. In such a small area, Qiao Man wasn’t afraid that Qi Dongmei would misreport the price. She added her on WeChat and planned to draft a menu for her in the afternoon.
To her surprise, today’s lunch wouldn’t happen after all.
Just as Qi Dongmei left, Wang Yuwei happened to return: “Little Qiao, I’ve finally found you. Are you still selling buns tomorrow? What? You can pre-order?!”