Chapter 251: Eating Hotpot and Mooncakes
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
When Baili Xihong took the snack from Su Binglan, he handed it to his mother. Baili Jinghua said, “I’m not hungry. You can eat it.”
She liked eating delicious food, but after having her son, she would always think of giving all the good food to him. Baili Jinghua felt her son would be happier if he ate them than if she did.
However, Baili Xihong was filial and thought of his mother. Therefore, Baili Jinghua always had to find excuses, saying she did not like that kind of food or was not hungry.
Su Binglan watched the interaction between the mother and son from the sidelines, and her heart was full of emotions. She remembered knowing a girl in the modern world that lived in poor conditions with her family.
When the girl was young, her father would catch fish from the river and cook them for the family to eat. However, the girl’s parents typically prioritized the girl ana rarely are ror cnemsewes.
The girl would eat the fish, mainly leaving bones, so her parents would eat leftover meat and drink the soup. The girl’s parents even said they liked eating fish bones to comfort her.
When the girl grew up and went to eat noodles and fish with her parents, she habitually ate fish and gave the bones to her parents. Her parents felt embarrassed at that moment.
When the family reached home, the girl’s parents told her they did not like eating fish bones and that they could not bear to eat the fish meat because they wanted her to have it.
The girl immediately started bawling, but later on, she studied and worked hard to earn money. She wanted to repay her parent’s kindness and sacrifices.
Su Binglan felt bitterness in her heart when she thought of that memory. She knew that one’s strength was limited, but she still hoped she could do as much as possible for others.
Perhaps opening a few more shops and buying land to open a factory would improve the surrounding villages’ living conditions.
Su Binglan had saved money from selling mooncakes and planned to open a hotpot shop after some time. Then she would buy land when the hotpot shop made money.
After lunch, Shen Qiuhua and Su Binglan went to the house Baili Jinghua had just bought. The house was not extensive as it only had two rooms and a
kitchen. However, there was furniture inside.
Su Binglan thought they would have to clean the house, but after entering it, she realized everything was tidy.
Madam Zhou said smilingly, “When you visited your first granduncle to buy this house, he told us to clean this place up in the morning. What do you think, Miss Baili? If anything is missing, we can talk about it.”
Madam Zhou was Su Zhengde’s wife, and she handled things smoothly and steadily.
Baili Jinghua was touched. “Thank you, Madam Zhou.”
“You’re welcome. You’re Binglan’s friend, which makes you family. Don’t worry. We look out for each other in this village, so please let us know if you need anything.
“Okay.”
Madam Zhou noticed no problems with the house and prepared to go home. However, she looked at Su Binglan and could not help but add, “My furniture store is doing very well, Binglan, so I want to thank you. I’ve always wanted to open a furniture store but never knew where to start.
“I just think that even if we buy over a big store in town, we won’t be able to fit so much furniture. Also, I don’t know if others can afford to get custom furniture since house rent is expensive, so I followed your idea.
“I did as you said and bought a small store first. I placed some miniature turniture on display there so everyone would know what they would look like before purchasing them.
“If the customers want to know more, we can bring them to our house with the oxcart to look at the specific furniture designs. We can also customize them according to size.”
The houses in Su Teng Village were cheap, and Madam Zhou’s house had an expansive backyard. She built a shed above it and displayed the furniture there.
The furniture was the same designs as Su Binglan’s drawings. The beds, dressing tables, desks, and chairs looked novel, and many had gone to order them. Since business was good, Madam Zhou was always smiling.
Su Binglan was sincerely happy for Madam Zhou. “Aunt Zhou, you were the one who could do all that. If it were anyone else, they wouldnt have understood my explanations, right?”
Madam Zhou said smilingly, “You’re just the sweetest girl, Binglan.” Madam Zhou also said a few gracious words to Shen Qiuhua.
Shen Qiuhua said, “We’re family, so there’s no need to be so gracious. Besides, your husband made some furniture for us and didn’t charge us much. We wouldn’t have gotten such good quality furniture anywhere else, especially for that price.”
She knew the furniture Su Zhengde and his three sons made were excellent, and the price was low. He probably only charged them the cost of wood and not the workmanship.
When they were chatting a while ago, Su Binglan discovered that Madam Zhou had plans to open a furniture store, so Su Binglan gave her some ideas. Madam Zhou became ecstatic and soon opened one.
Her business was booming because the furniture designs were novel and looked excellent. In addition, Su Zhengde started leading his construction team, and many hired him and his team to build houses.
Then the clients would order furniture from Madam Zhou. Madam Zhou understood that all of this was thanks to Su Binglan.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Madam Zhou left while Baili Jinghua and her son prepared to live in their new house. Su Binglan also helped to tidy up the things and removed the sheets and blankets to bask them in the sun.
Time passed quickly, and the Mooncake Festival had arrived. That afternoon, Su Wenzhe and Liu Yinyin closed their shop early and went home since there were fewer people in town. Every family celebrated the Mooncake Festival at home.
The Mooncake Festival and Chinese New Year were significant holidays there. On this day, the academies were also closed, so Su Wenzhe and Liu Yinyin did not have to pick their children up from school. The two little ones had been home since the night before.
Su Xuexuan, Su Xuehai, and Baili Xihong had gotten along very well as the trio often played together. However, Baili Jinghua was not in a hurry to send her son to school because she wanted him to play more and enjoy being a child.
Su Xuexuan and Su Xuehai liked going to the academy. They were also very sensible young children who grew up in the village. They knew that attending Blue Mountain Academy was excellent, and it made others envious.
Therefore, the two little ones cherished the days when they could study. Of course, they also wanted to play more during the holidays.
Liu Yinyin said, “Let’s buy some things before we go home. Since the Mooncake
Festival has arrived, we should cook a few more dishes tonight.”
She and her husband had earned and saved quite a lot since opening their shop, so Liu Yinyin was not so frugal now. Still, she only spent money whenever she needed to. For example, when it was a festive occasion.
Su Wenzhe said, “Have you forgotten? Binglan said we should have a hotpot tonight. She wants us to try it since she has already prepared everything.”
Liu Yinyin said, “But isn’t hotpot just a single dish? We still have to prepare a few more dishes if that’s the case. We can’t keep letting Binglan spend her money to buy things. We should chip in too.”
Su Wenzhe explained anxiously, “You don’t understand. Binglan said there are many things within the hotpot, so we can just eat whatever is inside. We also have mooncakes, so there’s no need to prepare more..”
