The voice came from the cooked food shop next door.
The woman wore her hair in a wrapped bun, dressed in a blue ruqun with her sleeves rolled up using armbands, revealing plump forearms. A handkerchief was draped over her shoulder. An apron tied around her waist was splattered with oil stains.
Approaching noon, the rare sun squeezed out during the rainy season, combined with the still-damp ground, made the surroundings humid and stuffy, causing her to sweat profusely. She fanned herself vigorously with a palm fan.
"You look unfamiliar, Granny. Are you the owner of this shop? It's been empty for so many years, and now it's damp and dilapidated. I heard…"
She pressed the palm fan against her cheek and leaned closer to Wang Qiulan, lowering her voice, "It's haunted."
Though her voice wasn't loud, it still made the two sisters beside Wei Jinyun tremble, both burying themselves in her arms.
Children have always been the most fearful of tales of ghosts and monsters. Even the usually calm Wei Fuqu trembled slightly, her arm holding the bamboo basket shaking.
"Don't be afraid."
Wei Jinyun gently patted their backs. "Auntie is just joking with you. Look at her—glowing with health, plump and a natural beauty. How could a place like this possibly be haunted?"
"Just joking, just joking!"
Seeing the two little girls turn pale with fear and hearing the girl's sweet words, Zhao Xiangping immediately felt embarrassed and quickly put on a wide smile. "Just call me Auntie Zhao. We'll be neighbors from now on… This awful weather is so hot!"
She waved her palm fan vigorously.
"My surname is Wang. From now on, my grandchildren and I will live here. Thank you for your concern."
Wang Qiulan's expression was clearly not pleasant, especially with her two granddaughters still trembling in her arms. Without saying much more to Zhao Xiangping, she led the three of them into the house.
Without detailed introductions from the grandmother and grandchildren, and seeing Wei Jinyun's frail appearance, Zhao Xiangping had already imagined countless scenarios.
The old woman spoke with a Pingjiang Fu accent but seemed to have traveled from somewhere far away.
Perhaps she was driven out by her family, or perhaps her house was destroyed in a flood… Otherwise, who would come to live in this moldy house rumored to be haunted? It hadn't been repaired for over forty years.
Looking at how thin and frail they all were, they didn't seem like the type to run a business. It would be better to sell the shop for some cash.
"Quite pitiful, really."
She sighed to herself when suddenly she heard a smacking sound behind her. Turning around, she saw her seven-year-old chubby son, Meng Ge'er, clinging to the doorframe, oil dripping from his palm.
In his hand was a braised duck leg, half-eaten, his cheeks flushed red.
"How did you start eating again the moment I turned my back?"
Zhao Xiangping pretended to glare at him angrily, but her palm fan circled around and gently fanned him.
"Mother, we have customers."
Meng Ge'er immediately grinned, revealing his missing front teeth. His greasy fingers pointed toward the street corner as he mimicked Zhao Xiangping's tone, "Freshly braised duck and goose! Tender but not greasy, fragrant for miles!"
Wei Jinyun had thought the exterior of the shop was already shabby enough, but she hadn't expected the interior to be even worse.
For a house that hadn't been opened for decades, she had specifically instructed everyone to cover their mouths with handkerchiefs and hold their breath when entering. Yet, she still wrinkled her nose at the moldy smell inside.
The emptiness of the shop was unsettling.
No one knew when the roof tiles had broken, but they had allowed rainwater to leak all over the floor during the rainy season.
By the faint light filtering through the doorway, one could see murky water pooled in the uneven depressions on the ground. In the corners of the walls were piles of rotting straw mats and some water-damaged furniture.
Spider webs hung in layers, covering the roof beams.
Further inside, there was a relatively spacious courtyard connected to a kitchen that had partially collapsed. In the corner of the courtyard stood a stone well, its rim thickly covered with moss, the water within dark and bottomless.
Ascending the wooden stairs to the second floor, though there was little in the way of furnishings, the air was thick with the smell of mold.
After inspecting the entire shop, Wei Jinyun let out a soft sigh.
It truly was dilapidated—so much so that even mice would hurry back to write an Inscription of a Humble Abode after a night here.
"Sister, it’s so dark here."
Wei Fuling clung tightly to the hem of Wei Jinyun’s clothes, especially unnerved by the hollow thuds of their footsteps on the stairs and Auntie Zhao’s earlier remark outside that "this place is haunted."
"What is there to be afraid of?"
Wei Fuqu stood to the side with her arms crossed, clearing her throat in an attempt to sound composed. "If you’re scared, you can ask Grandmother for boat fare and go back to Gaochun Town by yourself."
Wei Fuling thought of the overbearing relatives, and of the day her sister fell ill, when they had already called mourners and filial daughters in advance. At that time, her sister was still holding her hand and speaking to her, yet in the courtyard, they had already begun wailing impatiently.
It made the neighbors think her sister had truly passed away.
But isn’t her sister right here, alive and well!
Suppressing her fear, she sniffled, wriggled out of Wei Jinyun’s embrace, and placed her hands on her hips. "I’m not afraid at all! From now on, I’ll stay with Grandmother and my sisters—I’ll live right here!"
Having just eaten their fill, the four of them had spent days on the boat imagining what the shop might look like. Now that it stood before them, even in its ruined state, a faint sense of determination stirred within.
But after all, it was an old house left untouched for decades, making the cleanup an arduous task.
The collapsed furnishings were heavy, and the muddy ground was slippery. Wei Jinyun couldn’t risk Grandmother straining her back just to save a few coins.
She placed their luggage in the backyard, instructing the three of them not to linger in the moldy rooms, and went out herself, heading toward the street corner.
Under the several arched bridges at the entrance of Guanqian Street near Tianqing Temple, people sat crowded together, waiting for work. It resembled a labor market of later times, with services ranging from moving and sweeping to carrying and delivering goods.
Wei Jinyun had already noticed them on her way here.
A few lean men squatting on the stone steps glanced sideways at Wei Jinyun as she inquired and gestured about prices. "Heard it’s just a small job cleaning up an old house."
Someone nearby immediately scoffed, "That kind of dusty, grimy work? Not even worth wearing out your shoe soles."
Another waved a hand dismissively, "No, no. I’m waiting for a big moving job—pays better."
Two women chewing on soybeans noticed that Wei Jinyun, with her delicate and pretty appearance, seemed unfamiliar with the area. Assuming she wouldn’t know the going rates for hiring help, they approached her to strike up a conversation.
"Aunties, please take a look. My old house has been abandoned for decades, with spider webs thick enough to use as blankets. I wanted to clean it up myself, but I simply can’t move those tables and chairs. But as you can see, my grandmother is elderly, my sisters are young, and we’re really short on funds."
Wei Jinyun took out a handkerchief, held it in her palm, and gestured toward the shop’s location with practiced ease.
A plump-faced auntie glanced in Wei Jinyun’s direction and spoke first, “Young lady, you’re not talking about the shop next to Li’s Cooked Food Shop, are you?”
“Exactly, exactly.”
Wei Jinyun quickly nodded in agreement.
“Is that your family’s shop?”
She looked Wei Jinyun over again, somewhat incredulous. “That place hasn’t been touched in who knows how many years. Cleaning it out will take a whole day. It should be at least forty wen per person.”
Wei Jinyun immediately furrowed her delicate brows and wiped away nonexistent tears with her handkerchief. “Forty wen? I just heard that the Zhang household in the east hired people to clean their courtyard the other day. It’s twice the size of my shop, and they only paid thirty-five wen per person. Besides, Auntie, you look quick and efficient. You’ll definitely finish in half a day. I’ll provide dinner. Thirty wen, okay?”
Another, thinner auntie curled her lip. “Thirty wen is too little. How long has that room been sitting? The dust makes people cough, and we still have to clean those moldy old cabinets. It’ll break our backs!”
Wei Jinyun quickly leaned closer to them, lowering her voice. “Aunties, you’re honest people, so I won’t hide it from you. I’m fixing up this place to open a small shop for my grandmother. In the future, when you come to buy things, I’ll give you an extra half liang. My grandmother and I returned to Pingjiang Fu this time to fulfill her wish of coming back to her hometown. Sigh… just thirty wen. If it’s too little, I’ll have to manage slowly by myself. At most, it’ll take a few more days, and I’ll move in with my sisters.”
She coughed lightly a few times, wiped her tears again, and made as if to stand up.
The round-faced auntie sighed and quickly pulled her back. “Alright, alright. You seem like a poor soul too. Thirty wen it is, but the food has to be enough.”
Wei Jinyun immediately beamed and readily agreed. “Enough, enough. I’ll make sure you aunties eat comfortably.”
The men watching them argue spat in disgust. “Women always fight over these measly little jobs.”
No one bothered to respond to him anymore. He just continued squinting at the passersby, hoping to wait for a decent-looking employer.
The aunties ignored him, gathered their tools, and followed Wei Jinyun back to the shop.
Wei Jinyun stopped by the street corner to buy brooms, dustpans, washbasins, wooden buckets, and added a clay stove, earthenware pots, and a basket of charcoal fire. She bargained all the way and had the shop assistants help deliver everything.
The aunties were stunned. They had thought they could earn a bit more from this young lady, but they never expected someone so young to be such a skilled bargainer.
The two of them were indeed professionals at sweeping and cleaning, working with remarkable efficiency. They moved the cabinets skillfully and brought their own cleaning agent made from plant ash water and soap beans. With a wipe and a scrub, they managed to remove quite a few mold stains, earning Wei Jinyun’s constant praise.
Flattered by her compliments, the aunties felt proud. “Of course. Without good tools, how could Aunt Zhou and I have earned a batch of regular customers? If you need cleaning done again in the future, Young Lady Wei, we’ll give you a discount.”
Back and forth like this, they all became much more familiar. Wei Jinyun nodded eagerly like a chick pecking at rice.
Her younger sisters sat on stools in the yard that had been cleaned and padded with small cloths, craning their necks to watch and clamoring to help too.
Of course, she couldn't win an argument against them. Wei Jinyun tied handkerchiefs behind their heads, making two simple face masks. "Breathing in too much moldy smell will make you sick. I noticed several chairs have exposed nails, so be extra careful when moving them—don't cut your hands… Let's get to work!"
"Got it!"
The two seemed to have endless energy, diving headfirst into the room.
"Qur-jie has become much more cheerful."
Wang Qiulan finished sweeping the rotten leaves in the yard with the newly bought broom and sat down on a chair to rest. "Jinyun, you've just recovered from your illness, so you should take care of your health too."
"Alright."
Wei Jinyun stood beside her with a smile, massaging her back.
Today, the weather was favorable, and it didn't rain until late afternoon.
The stove was half-collapsed, obviously unusable for cooking. Fortunately, Wei Jinyun had bought a new clay stove in advance.
After tidying up the shop, she would have to find a mason tomorrow to repair the roof and stove, and also hire a carpenter to make some tables and chairs. The wood that had been soaked in water for decades was truly beyond use.
This way, money really didn't last long. The original owner's parents had been doing business outside and would send money back every month, but a lot had been spent on medical treatment and medicine.
Now that her parents were gone, she had to find ways to earn more money. After all, repairs would take a long time, and opening the shop wouldn't happen overnight.
Her younger sisters were clever and could be sent to school in the future. When her grandmother returned to Pingjiang Fu, she would have to visit the Wang family. As for her own health, she needed to nourish it—it really wasn't great. And then there were daily expenses for food and clothing…
Everywhere needed money.
Without a stove, stir-frying was inconvenient, so they still had noodles for dinner.
In water towns, river shrimp were plentiful.
Wei Jinyun picked out the shrimp she had bought earlier, deftly removed the shrimp veins, made butterfly cuts, and used them to simmer a rich and fragrant soup base.
"Sizzle, sizzle"—the golden shrimp heads slowly released shrimp oil, filling the entire room with the fresh aroma of shrimp.
"I'm starving."
Wei Fuling was the first to bounce out, her little face smudged with dust from who knows where, looking like a black cat that had crawled into the stove.
"Big sister, I can definitely finish a whole bowl today!"
Author's Note:
Is anyone there? [pitiful]