CHAPTER 41: CHAPTER 41: TREATING TO A MEAL

Yun Jiao raised her voice and shouted, "San Ya—"

San Ya turned her head, and when she saw Yun Jiao, she happily tugged at Mrs. Chen’s clothes and then ran inside.

Liu Lang followed in as well, staring at Yun Jiao’s bowl of noodles on the table, licking his lips non-stop.

Mrs. Chen didn’t dare to come in, afraid of spending money.

Yun Jiao had no choice but to get up, pull her in, and press her to sit down. She said to the shopkeeper, "Three more bowls of meat sauce noodles."

Mrs. Chen hurriedly said, "No, no, no, it’s fine if they eat. I won’t eat. I brought some coarse grain pancakes."

Yun Jiao laughed, "Mother, just eat, I’m treating today."

Mrs. Chen became even more uneasy, "How could I enjoy your food."

Yun Jiao shook her head, "Mother, just eat with ease."

After a while, the noodles were served.

Liu Lang eagerly picked up the chopsticks, clamped a piece of meat sauce, and stuffed it into his mouth, grinning and baring his teeth from the heat but not caring at all.

San Ya was much better; she knew to blow on it first before eating.

Yun Jiao finished her bowl of noodles, then got up to buy a few more meat buns and settled the bill for the noodles.

Although Liu Lang was only ten years old, his appetite was big. After eating a bowl of noodles, he swallowed two meat buns.

Mrs. Chen gave him a hard pat, "Were you let out from a hunger trap? Look at you, your belly is all puffed up."

Liu Lang burped and said with a cheeky smile, "It was so delicious. Actually, I still want to eat more, but my stomach can’t hold any more."

Yun Jiao smiled with her lips pursed, "Being able to eat is a blessing."

"Just one thing, when we get home, don’t let it slip."

Liu Lang blinked in a daze, then nodded, "I got it, I won’t tell anyone."

Mrs. Chen instructed San Ya, "You too, don’t tell about eating meat sauce noodles and meat buns today."

San Ya, being sensible, nodded, "I won’t tell. If I do, grandma will scold my sister-in-law again."

As they left the restaurant, Mrs. Chen suggested going to the academy to see San Lang.

Yun Jiao shook her head, "I won’t go. I have some things to do. I’ll meet you at the city gate at the hour of Wei."

After Mrs. Chen and the others walked away, Yun Jiao strolled on the street.

Shops selling rouge and powder, or silk, held no interest for Yun Jiao.

Her father had been missing for less than half a year, and she still had enough clothes to wear, all made of fine cotton fabric.

Rouge and powder were even less necessary now that she was a widow and couldn’t use them.

After walking a bit, Yun Jiao saw a vendor selling red dates.

The local area didn’t produce red dates; given the climate and geography akin to the mid-lower reaches of the Yangtze River in a past life, these dates must have been brought from elsewhere.

Yun Jiao crouched down, weighed a few pounds of red dates to carry and continued walking.

Ahead, she saw an elderly woman sitting on the ground with a few hens tied at the feet in front of her.

Yun Jiao’s eyes lit up and bought all four hens.

Chicken meat has higher protein content than pork and is easier to digest and absorb.

The four hens cost over two hundred wen, heavy in hand.

Then Yun Jiao looked for a deserted alley, slipped into the medicine storage, and stored the red dates, four hens, and most of the silver inside.

Coming out, Yun Jiao wandered the street, buying a few more pounds of salt and pig fat.

After putting the items into the medicine storage, Yun Jiao also bought a piece of soap, a pig bristle toothbrush, and some tooth powder, which she did not put into the medicine storage.

Having bought everything she needed, Yun Jiao was about to head to the city gate to wait, when she suddenly saw Gu Mei walking towards her with a man.