Baozi Xishi's Struggle

The coachman Liu Laosi was right, the Guangyuan Inn was indeed very close to the market.

The two asked where the market was as they walked. When they came out of the alley, they saw a busy street with shops on both sides.

The weather was hot and few people were walking on the road. Following the instructions of passers-by, I walked north for less than a hundred steps and saw a wooden fence with a tall shed inside. In such hot weather, looking through the fence, I could still see people walking in and out under the shed. Along the edge of the fence, not far away was the entrance to the market. When I walked in, I could see rows of stalls with colorful sunshades. The dazzling array of goods from the north and south dazzled my eyes in the sun.

Shen Yu's purpose was not this. He just stood there for a while and then pulled Li towards the entrance of the market.

There are also some small stalls near the market gate, which are food stalls carried on shoulders or pushed on carts, selling herbal tea, fruits, sour plum soup and the like.

Shen Yu looked over and saw a young woman sitting under the shade of a tree selling herbal tea. There were no customers at the moment and she was leaning against the tree, dozing off with her eyes half closed.

Shen Yu and Li walked over, stood beside the stall, fanned themselves with their hands, and looked around.

The woman saw guests coming to sit down, and she smiled and greeted them warmly, "It's so hot, please sit down and rest your feet. What would you like to drink?"

Shen Yu smiled and said, "Sister, you are so polite. Give us two bowls of herbal tea to quench our thirst."

The woman smiled and said, "Today we have excellent kumquat tea, which is sour and sweet. It quenches your thirst and relieves the heat."

Shen Yu nodded in response, and the woman deftly placed two small white porcelain bowls, picked up a black pottery jar with a spout, and poured out two bowls of golden tea with a sweet orange fragrance.

Shen Yu picked it up and took a sip. It was indeed sweet and sour and refreshing, and it quenched my thirst.

Shen Yu held the small bowl and chatted with the woman: "Sister, the herbal tea you made is very delicious. It tastes sour and sweet, and the sweetness is pure and sweet. You must have put snowflake sugar in it, not the first-class brown sugar. You are good at making herbal tea. You must have been doing it for many years."

When the woman heard someone praising her, she immediately perked up, her eyes turned into beautiful crescents, and she said with a smile: "Miss, you have a very clever tongue, you are right, there is indeed snowflake sugar in it, otherwise, how can there be such a clean tea color and such a good taste. This skill of making herbal tea is inherited from my family, my mother was very good at making herbal tea back then, she knew many tricks, but it's a pity that I only learned the basics, the herbal tea my mother made is really delicious."

Seeing that the woman was cheerful and talkative, Shen Yu asked, "Excuse me, sister, how long have you been selling herbal tea here? Judging from your skills, it should be quite long."

The woman smiled and said, "I have been here for three years. I have been here since there was a market. Unfortunately, the herbal tea business is a small business. It is only good in summer and not in winter. I just make a little money to supplement the family income."

Shen Yu asked again: "Sister, are you going to set up a stall in the morning? Are there any food stalls selling breakfast in the market in the morning? How is the business?"

The woman said, "With such a large market and so many people, there must be food stalls. People start setting up stalls as early as five o'clock in the morning. The people coming and going in this market are all caravans from the north and south. There are not many locals. They rest here and leave early in the morning. They have breakfast here at five o'clock in the morning and leave the city as soon as the city gate opens. With so many people coming and going every day, do you think business can be bad?"

Then, he smacked his lips with a hint of regret: "It's a pity that my mother-in-law is sick and bedridden, and she can't leave me alone early in the morning. Otherwise, since the weather is hot these days, I would also come to set up a stall in the morning, and I could sell more herbal tea."

Shen Yu asked again: "Are these food stalls fixed, or can anyone set them up?"

The woman asked with some confusion on her face: "Girl, why are you asking these questions? Do you want to set up a stall too? What do you want to sell?" There seemed to be some caution in her words.

Shen Yu smiled and said, "Don't worry, sister. I only sell snacks and food. I won't compete with you for business."

After hearing this, the woman's expression relaxed, and she pretended to be nonchalant and said, "Well, I'm just asking casually. It doesn't matter if you sell herbal tea. There are several herbal tea shops here, and none of them are as good as mine."

Shen Yu continued to praise the woman's cooking skills without changing his expression. Li was stunned as she listened. She had probably never seen her daughter so eloquent before and was a little overwhelmed.

The woman was very pleased with the compliments and continued, "The stalls here can be set up anywhere, as long as they don't occupy the road and don't hinder the caravans from coming in and out. The stalls are usually set up here every day, so it's not good for anyone to take up someone else's place. If the food is good, people will line up to buy it even if it's placed on the side."

Shen Yu kept the woman's words in mind and decided to come over tomorrow morning to see what the food stalls here were selling, and then decide what kind of breakfast to sell. For her, as long as she could make money quickly, setting up a stall at five in the morning was not considered hardship.

After thinking about this, he asked again, "From what you said, sister, I live nearby. I wonder if there are any houses for rent nearby."

The woman was a warm-hearted person, and since there were no guests at the moment, she asked, "Young lady, you want to rent a house? How many people are there? Who are they? How big a house do you want?"

Shen Yu replied, "My mother, my brother and my sister, a family of four, would like to settle down nearby. It doesn't matter if the house is small, as long as it can accommodate people."

The woman thought for a moment, then stood up and called out, "Mrs. Liu, come here."

A middle-aged woman stood up from behind a fruit stand not far away and responded loudly, "Sister Qi, what do you want to call me for?"

The woman still waved to Mrs. Liu to come over. Mrs. Liu saw that she really had something to do, so she came over holding a palm leaf fan to shade herself from the sun.

Mrs. Liu is of medium build, with a plump, fair and delicate face that is rosy and chubby. When she smiles, she has two dimples on the sides of her mouth. She is wearing a blue shirt with floral patterns, and looks like a Fat Ah Fu porcelain doll.

When Shen Yu saw him, he felt a little favorable towards him.

When Mrs. Qi saw Mrs. Liu coming over, she pointed at Shen Yu and her daughter and said, "You are planning to rent out your courtyard, and this girl and her family are planning to rent a house."

After hearing this, Mrs. Liu looked Shen Yu up and down and asked, "Miss, how many people live in your family? My house is a bit small, and I'm afraid it won't fit too many people."

Shen Yu bowed first and said, "Sister Liu, my family wants to rent a house. There are four of us, my mother, my brother, and my sister."

After hearing this, Mrs. Liu said, "My house is separated into a small courtyard with two main rooms. You don't have many family members, so they can live there. But my house has not been occupied for a long time. If you want to live there, you have to clean it up. If you are interested, I will take you to have a look."

Shen Yu smiled and said, "Then I'll trouble you, Mrs. Liu. Are you free now? Can you take us to see the house?"

Mrs. Liu said, "Okay, there aren't many people here right now, wait for me, I'll have someone look after the stall for me."

Having said that, he turned around and went back to his stall, said a few words to the stall owner next to him, and then turned back.

Shen Yu paid for the tea to Qi, thanked her, and followed Mrs. Liu to her courtyard to look at the house with Li.

This main street next to the market is lined with alleys on both sides, densely packed with low houses.

The courtyard that Mrs. Liu wanted to rent was not far away. Follow her around two alleys, along an alley with a big willow tree at the entrance, and you will find the fifth house.