1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 241 A Girl's Blushing Face Is More Powerful Than Any Sweet Words (Part 2)

Aunt Zhao and Comrade Zhou were indeed a bit shocked, even though they had just returned to the village and given the villagers quite a bit of surprise.

Go to the city and buy another one?
Where are you going to get so much money?

"Don't be nervous, it only cost six hundred yuan," Zhou Yan said with a smile. "I mainly liked the land. We'll use the outside as a restaurant and build a small courtyard inside for us to live in. We'll use materials from the big house outside to build it, dismantling and building at the same time, so it'll be convenient to move the furniture over once it's finished."

"Oh, that's good then." Aunt Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and rolled her eyes at him: "I thought you were getting cocky, buying houses like they were lotus flowers, one after another."

"I understand the principle of doing what you can afford," Zhou Yan said with a smile, turning to walk towards the kitchen. "I'm going to prepare the ingredients. The two keys are on the counter. Mom, can you put them back on? Didn't you want to go see the house tomorrow?"

"Okay," Aunt Zhao replied, happily stringing the keys together, weighing them in her hand, and looking at Comrade Zhou, she said, "How about we take the blankets upstairs and sleep there tonight?"

"Okay, I'll go tie up the blankets now." Comrade Zhou nodded and was about to go upstairs.

"I was just kidding. There's no reason to move in before you've even moved in," Aunt Zhao said, pulling him aside and grinning from ear to ear.

Comrade Lao Zhou laughed along.

Zhou Yan came out to get an apron and happened to see this scene, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up.

She was making trouble and he was laughing.

Old Zhou has never been a disappointment for his husband.

He never asked why whenever Aunt Zhao spoke, nor did he find it troublesome.

Regardless of what others think, Aunt Zhao is happy.

There is no doubt about this.

Turning into the kitchen, Zhou Yan suddenly realized that he might sometimes be too rational, too concerned with right and wrong.

But in some relationships, right and wrong are not so important.

Even someone as skilled at playing dumb as Comrade Zhou can still keep his wife happy.

worth learning.

During dinner, Aunt Zhao mentioned that her sixth uncle was going to calculate auspicious dates for them. "Your sixth uncle said he's calculated the dates and will have Hongwei deliver them to us. When the time comes, you can cut half a pound of pig's head meat for him to take back to your sixth uncle to have with his drinks. He really likes that."

“Okay.” Zhou Yan nodded and said with a smile, “Hongwei told Zhou Jie that he wants to ride his bicycle to various towns and villages to sell the braised dishes I make.”

“Hongwei is such a reliable kid. If he wants to sell, just let him. It’ll give him another sales channel.”

“I’ll have him learn knife skills from Zhou Jie for a month first. Once he can cut braised meat properly, I’ll let him sell it.” Zhou Yan nodded with a smile: “Knife skills are still important. If you don’t cut it well, the taste will be half as bad, and even a delicious braised dish will become mediocre.”

“That’s fine too,” Aunt Zhao nodded.

After finishing his work in the evening, Zhou Yan went out and ran a lap along the riverbank with Xia Yao.

Xia Yao's stamina was indeed good; she ran faster than Uncle Lin. After running five kilometers, she was slightly sweaty, not panting heavily, and didn't need to look for walls to lean on.

"Do you often run at school?" Zhou Yan asked curiously as they stretched by the river.

Xia Yao nodded: "Yes, I run five days a week. I like the feeling of running. When I run, I feel like my mind is completely clear."

“I also think running is very stress-relieving,” Zhou Yan said with a smile. No wonder he could keep up with him so easily, running five days a week. His perseverance is extraordinary.

"Right? It's a pity that Yu Yu and Deng Hong don't like to move around much, they only run with me one day a week." Xia Yao looked up at him: "How many days a week do you run?"

“Unless I have something to do, I run for a while almost every day,” Zhou Yan said with a smile. “I can run whenever you want.”

"That's great." Xia Yao smiled brightly.

"Tomorrow is the weekend, what are your plans?"

"I should spend the whole day drawing design drafts in my dorm. I promised Minister Du I'd submit them on Monday, so I'll be busy all day tomorrow." Xia Yao looked at him: "What about you?"

"Tomorrow I'm going to Jiaozhou to host a family banquet for an old gentleman, to invite his comrades-in-arms, and also to help my brother move forward with his apprenticeship process," Zhou Yan said.

"Then I'll eat at the cafeteria tomorrow," Xia Yao said with a smile.

"I'm making braised food tomorrow morning, do you want me to save some for you?"

"Really?!" Xia Yao's eyes lit up and she nodded: "Yes! Braised vegetarian dishes are fine, I think they're perfect with rice."

"Okay, I'll bring it to the guardhouse downstairs in your dormitory at 9:30 tomorrow morning."

"You're such a nice person." Xia Yao smiled, her eyes shining.

They parted ways downstairs at the dormitory building. Zhou Yan watched her return to her dormitory before turning back to the restaurant.

However, he suddenly remembered Uncle Lin.

Why haven't I seen him going for a run lately?

I'll have to ask next time.

Kobayashi is so sensible.

Back at the hotel, Zhou Yan couldn't resist taking out a drawing paper and sketching a floor plan.

Once a new foundation was secured, the original plans immediately changed.

A small courtyard doesn't need too many rooms; a kitchen, living room, three bedrooms, and a study are sufficient.

Furthermore, the lighting issue after being surrounded on all four sides must be considered.

If the surrounding area is filled with high-rise buildings in the future, being surrounded in the middle will feel a bit oppressive.

Zhou Yan's gaze shifted to the building next to the one on the map. Should he go back and ask if that house was for sale?

scratching his head.

Would they buy half a street just because of a small courtyard?

The view from the second floor today was fantastic, which strengthened Zhou Yan's resolve to build a two-and-a-half-story building.

Alternatively, you can solidify the foundation of the first and second floors, and then build the third floor in a couple of years when you have some spare money or when the price of steel and cement comes down.

While the courtyard is lovely, the unparalleled panoramic view from the riverside penthouse is equally stunning.

Since there are conditions, we should definitely want both.

He didn't have any grand ambitions to become the world's richest man; he just wanted to live a comfortable and fulfilling life.

Xia Yao's words today really appealed to him, and he's going to write down his needs and general ideas first, and then have a good talk with Meng Anhe later.

If he could get a top designer like her to help with the design, his house would be perfect.

Let alone treating someone to a meal.

She can use his shop as her canteen from now on, no problem.

Those two kids are quite nice, very polite, and they always bring Zhou Momo a small gift when they come to eat.

I heard that he's a picky eater, which is quite a worry for Uncle Lin.

But every time I see them come to eat, they are quite well-behaved, focusing on their food and not saying much.

He still needs to learn about interpersonal relationships and social skills.

After putting away the drawing paper, Zhou Yan took out a book from under his pillow and read for a while.

Chatting with Xia Yao, you can tell from her speech that she has read a lot of books. Her scholarly air is cultivated, not something that comes from wearing a clean white shirt.

She can join in on any topic we discuss.

In comparison, Zhou Yan only had the advantage of having glimpsed the future.

I still need to read more books.

At eleven o'clock, Zhou Yan was so sleepy that he couldn't keep his eyelids open. He pulled the light cord, the light went out, and he fell asleep the next second.

The next morning, Zhou Yan got up early to buy groceries by himself.

Sunday is a rare day off for Comrade Zhou, as he doesn't have to get up early to buy groceries.

When Zhou Yan returned from grocery shopping, he happened to run into Old Zhou, who was carrying a small bucket and a fishing rod as he went out.

"Old man, off to go fishing? Why not sleep a little longer?" Zhou Yan said casually as he pushed the cart through the door.

"Why sleep? There's only one day a week when we can catch a big fish early. I have to catch a big one today!" Old Zhou said confidently. "I baited the spot overnight! It'll definitely work today."

"Didn't Mom say we were going to look at houses today?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

"I'll take the braised meat to you later before I go up. I'll pack up and come back around nine o'clock." Old Zhou said as he walked out. Time was tight and the task was heavy, so he couldn't linger for even a moment.

Zhou Yan looked at Old Zhou, who was carrying a bamboo pole and looking very proud, and hoped that he could break the turtle's shell today.

After unloading the pig's head and beef from the car, Zhou Yan began processing the ingredients and preparing to braise the meat.

Today, my master has a banquet with 30 tables, and he needs to arrange the braised meat for him. He just happened to calculate that he would also arrange the braised meat for the two tables of guests at noon today.

We didn't order many braised vegetables today; we only prepared braised lotus root, dried tofu, and dried bean curd sticks to make a platter.

"Zhou Yan!"

It was just past seven o'clock when Zhou Ming's voice rang out from outside the door. "What brings you here so early, Brother Ming?" Zhou Yan poked his head out of the kitchen, looking at Zhou Ming with some surprise as he entered.

"Let me help you out." Zhou Ming put his light jacket on the counter, put on a vest and walked into the kitchen, smiling with a touch of naivety, "I didn't sleep well last night because I was thinking about seeing Mr. Song today."

If you care about Teacher Song this much, anything will be possible. Zhou Yan said with a smile, "My meat is already braised in the pot, so just peel some potatoes for me, two will do."

“Okay!” Zhou Ming replied, picking up a small knife and starting to peel the skin.

The family's traditional knife technique allows them to peel potatoes so thin they're like paper, slicing them off in circles until they're a single, intact strip.

"Zhou Yan, do you think I can successfully become your apprentice?" Zhou Ming asked Zhou Yan after peeling two potatoes.

“Brother, you’re here to help in the kitchen, not to become an apprentice. Wake up.” Zhou Yan looked at him seriously and said, “Your goal today isn’t to become an apprentice, but to make a good first impression on the girl’s parents when you meet them for the first time. If you go up and bow down to them, today will be a complete disaster.”

Zhou Ming paused for a moment, then nodded: "I understand."

"Act according to the situation, but never put Mr. Song in an awkward position in front of your comrades. There will be plenty of time in the future. If you are transferred back to No. 1 Middle School and can maintain a close relationship with Teacher Song, you will have many opportunities to get to know each other in the future." Zhou Yan comforted him with a smile, "Learning martial arts is not something that can be done overnight. You should understand this better than I do."

“You’re right, I was too impatient.” Zhou Ming nodded in deep agreement.

"How are things going between you and Teacher Song?" Zhou Yan asked curiously.

"What do you mean, how are we? We got along quite well. Teacher Song is such a good person," Zhou Ming said with a simple smile.

"Yes, yes, you can just give them a 'nice guy' card." Zhou Yan pouted, washed the lotus root, cut it into thick slices, and set it aside for later use.

"Mingming, you're here!" Zhou Momo, with three tufts of hair sticking up from her head, suddenly poked her head in from the kitchen doorway, her eyes shining with joy as she looked at Zhou Ming.

"Okay, Momo's awake." Zhou Ming smiled and walked over, picking her up and lifting her high in the air.

"Put me down! I'll show you boxing! I've learned it!" Zhou Momo said, swinging her short legs.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ming put her down on the ground, squatted down, and said with a smile, "Go ahead and hit me, let me see if you're hitting me correctly."

"what!"

"Hi!"

"I'll fight!"

Zhou Momo stood in a horse stance, throwing punch after punch, her movements precise and methodical.

Zhou Ming watched with a maternal smile. After she finished, he immediately clapped his hands and said, "Hmm! Very well done, very impressive."

"Thank you for your guidance." Zhou Momo bowed to him with her hands clasped in greeting.

Zhou Yan almost burst out laughing.

"You're welcome. Would you like me to teach you a few new moves today?" Zhou Ming asked with a smile.

"Yes, yes, yes!" The little one immediately nodded her head without the slightest hesitation. "Mingming, from today onwards, you are my master! I want to be a heroine!"

“Okay.” Zhou Ming nodded with a smile.

"Tie your hair up first, otherwise you'll just look like a crazy woman." Aunt Zhao came downstairs and grabbed Zhou, the female knight, and dragged her away.

Zhou Momo, kicking her short legs, called out to Zhou Ming, "Master! Save me~~"

“Fourth Aunt is a master of marksmanship; I can’t beat her.” Zhou Ming shrugged, indicating that he couldn’t help her.

“Then I will definitely come back—” Zhou Momo’s unwilling voice came from outside the door.

"Ming-ge, have you had breakfast yet?" Zhou Yan asked, looking at Zhou Ming.

"Not yet, I'll just buy a steamed bun later."

"Why buy steamed buns? Just eat noodles with us later." Zhou Yan smiled, took an enamel basin, scooped out two bowls of flour, and started kneading the dough.

After washing her face, Zhou Momo, with two little buns on her head, ran back excitedly and pulled Zhou Ming to teach her martial arts.

After breakfast, Zhou Yan braised the vegetables in the pot, then took them out and packed a box for Xia Yao in a lunchbox.

Half of it was dried bean curd sticks; that's her favorite food.

I also cut her a platter of half a box of braised beef and half a box of braised pig's head meat.

The braised meat was taken out and divided into portions, with the meat for the banquet packaged separately, and then placed in the bamboo basket on Old Zhou's old bicycle.

Just as the meat was packed, Comrade Zhou returned carrying a bucket and a bamboo pole.

"Daddy, did you catch any fish?!" Zhou Momo ran forward, peeked out, and exclaimed happily, "I caught one! I caught a tiny little fish, babbling away!"

Aunt Zhao said with a smile, "It seems the weather is still not good today. Is it because the air pressure is low, or the temperature is too low?"

Comrade Zhou blushed slightly and said somewhat awkwardly, "It's probably related to both."

The fisherman, who was too pressed for time to go to the market, could only go home with a blank receipt.

Zhou Yan suppressed a laugh and said, "Old man, go wash your hands and change your clothes. I'll cook the noodles for you. After you've had breakfast, I'll bring the braised meat over."

"Okay," Comrade Zhou replied.

Zhou Yan glanced at the time, put the two lunch boxes in a net bag, hung it on the handle, slung the knife over his shoulder, and then packed the prepared ingredients into the basket one by one. He told Aunt Zhao and called Zhou Ming to go out.

At 9:30, Zhou Yan arrived at the dormitory building on time, parked his car, picked up his lunchbox, and headed towards the guardhouse.

"Zhou Yan!" Xia Yao stood up from the bench in the small garden and put the drawing board in her hand aside.

"You were waiting for me?" Zhou Yan was a little surprised and stepped forward with the lunchbox.

Xia Yao nodded: "I like to come out and paint in the morning, but I was also waiting for you. I felt happy thinking that you would bring me something delicious, so I wanted to wait for you here."

Zhou Yan smiled and handed over the lunchbox: "Here you go. One box contains a mixed bag of braised vegetables, and the other box contains a combination of braised beef and braised pig's head meat."

She's always like that; she'll openly express her needs and feelings.

At once……

It will make people very happy.

"Wow, it's so heavy! Did you pack a lot of delicious food for me?" Xia Yao took the lunchbox, feeling the weight on her hand slightly, and said with a smile, "Then I'll take the food to Jingxing and Bingwen later. They'll be so happy."

"Okay, I'm off then. I'm going to Jiaozhou to cook." Zhou Yan nodded.

"Wait a minute, I'll give you the money." Xia Yao took out her wallet from her bag.

"Consider this Sunday's meal my treat. I hope you won't refuse." Zhou Yan smiled as he hopped on his bicycle. "I'm happy to bring you something delicious."

Xia Yao paused as she took the money, looked at Zhou Yan, and a blush rose on her cheeks.

The warm early winter sun shone on her face, as if coating it with a thin layer of golden gauze.

As Zhou Shuren once said: A young girl's blush is more beautiful than any sweet words.

He's starting to believe it now.

"Then I'll accept it, thank you." Xia Yao put the wallet back and said with a smile.

"Goodbye." Zhou Yan pedaled his bicycle, called out to Zhou Ming, and left.

Xia Yao watched Zhou Yan's figure disappear at the intersection before sitting down again, putting the lunchbox aside, and picking up a pencil to continue drawing sketches on the paper.

After making a few strokes, he couldn't help but glance at the lunchbox on the chair, and a smile unconsciously crept onto his lips.

Zhou Ming quickly caught up on his bike, asking with a gossipy look, "Hey, hey, hey? Zhou Yan, who's this girl? You brought her vegetables, she's not yours..., is she...?"

“Friend,” Zhou Yan said.

“Oh, I thought it was your girlfriend.” Zhou Ming nodded. “This girl seems pretty good. She looks like she’s read a lot of books. The top female student in our class used to have that kind of temperament.”

"You're quite good at judging people..." Zhou Yan casually praised, "Ming-ge really believes whatever others say."

The two rode their bicycles out of Suji and headed straight for Jiaozhou.

The vegetables were pre-processed, so all that was needed upon arrival was to cook them, and there was still plenty of time.

Halfway there, Zhou Yan saw a bicycle slowly being ridden ahead, with an old man in an old military uniform sitting on the back.

"Isn't that Hongwei and Sixth Master?" Zhou Ming said, greeting them.

"Sixth Master! Hongwei, where are you going?" Zhou Yan asked.

"Ming-ge, Zhou Yan." Zhou Hongwei squeezed the brakes, slowly bringing the bicycle to a stop. He looked at the two men and said with a simple smile, "I'm taking my grandfather to Jiaozhou for dinner. They're having a reunion of old comrades-in-arms today."

The military uniform worn by Grandpa Zhou Kang had long since faded and was patched with more than a dozen patches of various sizes, but the row of badges hanging on his chest was brand new and bright. He straightened his back and said with a smile, "It's been many years since we've had a get-together. We've been crossing off names one by one from the list. If we don't get together now, we'll have to go back to the countryside to have one."

Zhou Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Sixth Master, was it Old Master Song Changhe who organized this gathering for you?"

“That’s right!” Zhou Kang nodded, looking at Zhou Yan with some surprise: “How do you know? Zhou Yan, you know the old squad leader too?”

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Look at all the food I've packed in my basket. I'm going to prepare lunch for you guys. Today is a gathering of your old comrades. Mr. Song invited me to cook, and Ming-ge will be my assistant."

“You’re still a good kid. Your reputation has spread all the way to Jiaozhou. The old squad leader even specially invited you to come from Suji to Jiaozhou to cook. I’m sure you’ll cook something really delicious.” Zhou Kang looked at him with satisfaction. “By the way, I’ve picked a date for you. I was going to have Hongwei bring it to you later, but since we’ve run into each other today, I’ll just give it to you.”

The old man's hand trembled as he reached into his robes, pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper, and handed it to Zhou Yan.

(End of this chapter)