The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 35: Drought and Famine (VI)

Downstairs, a little beggar who looked about eight or nine years old, wearing the same tattered clothes as Chen Huihong but much cleaner than her, was nimbly dodging the waiters on the first floor.

Seeing that the woman and Qin Yanxing had come down, the clerk who was chasing the little beggar stopped immediately and immediately complained and shirked responsibility: "Boss, this little beggar is sneaky and dishonest. I saw him wandering around our shop early in the morning, and he just slipped in. I knew at a glance that he was trying to steal something, but I caught him on the spot!"

Qin Yanxing shouted with a dark face: "Shut up!"

Then he immediately changed to a smiling face and looked at the woman: "Sister, look..."

The woman ignored him and went straight downstairs. She bent down and pulled out the little beggar who was hiding under the table. She said softly, "Maybe he's just hungry and wanted to come in to ask for food after smelling the fragrance."

After saying that, the woman lowered her head and said, "But it's wrong to sneak into someone else's store. The store is open for business and welcomes customers. You coming in will affect the store's business."

The little beggar said nothing.

"In my opinion, he is just young and ignorant. Just drive him out. There are many disaster victims in the city recently. I guess he fled here with his parents. He is already very pitiful."

After saying that, the woman patted the little beggar and told him to go out.

The little beggar trotted out reluctantly. After he went out, he glanced at Chen Huihong who was still sitting at the door playing the wooden horse, and glared at her with a warning look.

Chen Huihong gave the little beggar a look, didn't fight back, and continued playing the wooden horse.

Qin Yanxing saw that not only did a beggar sneak into the store, but there was also another sitting outside the store. He immediately became angry and shouted, "Hurry up and drive the one outside away."

The waiter was obviously a gossiper. He had heard the rumors about Chen Huihong circulating on the street today, so he came forward and whispered a few words. Qin Yanxing frowned, obviously not daring to provoke the crazy lady who ran away from a wealthy family, so he could only point to the black flour buns on the counter.

"Take two and ask her to leave."

The waiter hurried over to get them, picked out two of the smallest black flour buns, and stuffed them at the door to Chen Huihong: "Can you please go sit somewhere else and play?"

Chen Huihong took a look and found that it was black. She didn't take it, but still stood up consciously, patted her body and planned to sit somewhere else to savor the fragrance.

The woman came out carrying a lunch box. Chen Huihong didn't look at the road for a moment and almost bumped into the woman.

The little beggar who had already run to the street glared at Chen Huihong fiercely again.

Chen Huihong knew she was in the wrong, so she quickly said, "I'm sorry, I'll give it to you as compensation."

After saying that, he snatched the black flour cake from the waiter and stuffed it into the woman's hand.

Guy:?
Seeing this, the woman smiled, took the black flour bun, took out a handkerchief to wrap it up, and said softly: "My brother's buns really don't taste good. I will exchange them with the ones my husband and I make."

After saying that, the woman squatted down, opened the food box, took out two fist-sized white steamed buns from the top layer, which were obviously made of fine grains and slightly gray in color, and handed them to Chen Huihong.

Chen Huihong took the steamed bun in a daze. For the first time, she showed a hesitant look, with a look all over her face: Did I succeed in begging for food?
Qin Huai praised Chen Huihong's innate talent for begging. With just one sentence, the black flour buns turned into white flour.

The little beggar on the street is biting his teeth to pieces.

The woman also saw the little beggar on the street, waved to him, and the little beggar ran over quickly.

The woman handed him the black steamed bun wrapped in a handkerchief, took out a white steamed bun from the food box, and slowly closed the food box.

"Next time you beg for food, remember to beg at the door and don't go in, or you'll get beaten. Got it?"

The little beggar nodded and whispered, "Thank you."

Then he ran away.

Chen Huihong thought about it and said, "Thank you."

Then he ran away too.

The woman looked at the two people's backs as they ran in two directions, smiled, and seemed to be in a much better mood. She left with the lunch box.

Of course Qin Huai followed Chen Huihong and left. Even if he wanted to follow the little beggar, he didn't have the conditions to do so. This dream belonged to Chen Huihong, and he could only follow the owner of the dream.

Since Qin Huai entered the dream, he had rarely seen Chen Huihong eat anything other than tree bark. Chen Huihong always kept a distance from the insects and earthworms that Hui Niang dug up, and occasionally took a bite of the unknown fruits she picked up, and she didn't even taste the skin of the sweet potatoes that Zhang Po gave her.

Now the woman gave two white flour buns that obviously looked good. Chen Huihong hesitated for a moment while holding the buns, but finally couldn't resist the temptation and took a bite.

After just one bite, Chen Huihong's eyes lit up.

It goes without saying how delicious this steamed bun is.

Without any hesitation, Chen Huihong wolfed down the remaining steamed buns standing on the roadside, smacking her lips with relish after finishing. She glanced at the other steamed bun, hesitated for a moment, and put it in her arms.

Passersby who had heard of Chen Huihong's rumors saw how deliciously she was eating and couldn't help but sigh with their companions: "Crazy Miss is hungry."

"That steamed bun looks really good, it's made of white flour."

"It's just a white flour bun."

Chen Huihong turned a deaf ear and continued walking on the street. However, this time she seemed to have a direction, and instead of wandering aimlessly on the street, she was heading back in the direction of the remote suburbs.

Away from the bustling streets, there were more beggars and refugees, and Chen Huihong also blended in. She was no longer the well-known crazy lady on the street, but just one of the ordinary refugees.

Chen Huihong looked around, as if thinking about something. As she walked, she caught a refugee who looked relatively strong and asked, "How do I get to the porridge distribution area?"

The refugee subconsciously showed a fierce expression, but when he saw that Chen Huihong was stronger than him, he immediately pointed the way.

"That place, they say it was donated by some prince, it's the thickest, with more rotten beans and less sand."

Chen Huihong walked in the direction pointed by the refugees.

The refugees did not lie to Chen Huihong. The porridge stand there was probably indeed recognized by everyone as the best in the place. The number of refugees here was almost several times that of other places. The line was chaotic and crowded. Some people were even trampled underfoot and wailed constantly.

There were a few managers in bright and beautiful clothes at the porridge shed, but they didn't do much. They just sat with their legs crossed and drank tea leisurely. At most, they would take a look at how many beans were left and when to finish work. From time to time, they would grab a handful of sand and sprinkle it into the pot.

Chen Huihong was squeezing in the crowd. The refugees thought she was trying to cut in line, but when they saw that she was strong and had a ruddy complexion, and looked like a good fighter, no one dared to provoke her. They all endured it silently and let her squeeze in.

While squeezing together, Chen Huihong heard a familiar voice.

"Sister Chen!"

What caught my eye was Hui Niang's surprised little face.

"Have you eaten?" Chen Huihong asked concisely.

Hui Niang shook her head: "There are too many people, and I can't get in line. And..."

Hui Niang pointed at a few big men near the porridge shop and said, "When it's your turn in the queue, you have to give them half a bowl. If you don't, you'll be beaten. I don't dare to squeeze forward."

Hui Niang's physique is quite good among the refugees. If she had squeezed forward, she might have gotten some.

Seeing this, Chen Huihong grabbed Hui Niang and took her out of the crowd scrambling for porridge and came to a corner where there were not many people.

"Eat this." Chen Huihong took out the steamed bun that had been pressed into a pancake from her arms and handed it to Hui Niang. Under Hui Niang's shocked gaze, the steamed bun slowly bounced back to its previous shape.

"Wow!" Hui Niang exclaimed.

“White flour buns are really not white!”

Qin Huai:......

Hui Niang, what you are lamenting is a bit strange.

But who is this steamed bun chef? How can he be so awesome? His dough making skills are so good.

It can bounce back even after being pressed like this, what a unique skill!
Hui Niang couldn't wait to take a bite and exclaimed, "Sweet!"

“Sweeter than sugar cane!”

Hui Niang devoured the whole steamed bun in no time and asked expectantly, "Sister, have you been to the inner city?"

"went."

"Is it fun?"

"It's OK. It's quite lively and there are many people."

"I don't dare to go. They say we will be beaten if we go to the inner city like this."

"It's okay. As long as you don't go into that..." Chen Huihong thought for a while, "you won't be beaten up if you sit at the door. Someone will give you something to eat and let you leave."

Hui Niang opened her mouth wide in admiration and uttered silent amazement.

"Have you found your parents?"

"No, they may not have come to Beiping." Hui Niang said cheerfully, "Sister, do you like it here? Do you want to stay here?"

"Maybe."

"Can I continue to stay with you, sister? I didn't dare spend the seven copper coins you gave me for fear that someone would rob me. From now on, you can go around and I will go to the inner city to beg for food for you."

Chen Huihong: "...as long as you are happy."

Qin Huai felt that what Chen Huihong might really want to say was that she didn't want food.

"Sister, where are we going now?"

"I'm going to find some clothes."

"Why are you looking for clothes?"

"Because you said you would be beaten if you wore this dress into the inner city."

"elder sister……"

Qin Huai left the dream.

(End of this chapter)