A Young Woman's Heart

Only when one is truly unable to bear it alone will one reveal a little of their vulnerability.

But at other times, she protects herself very well, appearing like a 'strong woman' who doesn't need anyone's care or attention.

Are you hungry?

I'm starving.

"I'll cook dinner, you watch the shop," the father said, walking to the side of the shop entrance where there was an eave, so there was no need to worry about rainwater coming in directly.

—At most, it will just drift in at an angle, blown by the wind.

Because of the rain, it was already dark when Mo Xueyao returned, and she didn't notice anything extra in this corner.

She only noticed when her father walked over.

It turned out to be a small gas cylinder and a gas stove welded to an iron frame.

On top was a brand new small iron pot with red paint on the bottom, making it look more special than the other iron pots.

"When did you buy it?" Mo Xueyao squatted down, picked up Su Tang who was lying by the door exposed to the cold wind, and asked curiously.

"We just bought it today, so we can cook at the store instead of having to buy it outside."

"That's true, every little bit helps, and if we do it ourselves, we can save at least half the money, right?"

"Almost." The father turned to Mo Xueyao and said, "Xiaoyao, bring me the vegetables I chopped from the freezer."

"Which one?"

"From the plate."

"Which plate was it from?" Mo Xueyao asked helplessly.

"All the plates, Haruka, why are you getting dumber as you grow up?"

"It's your fault for not explaining clearly," Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes. "Where do you put the plate?"

"Put it on this cardboard box. Today we'll have hot and sour shredded potatoes, Mapo tofu, and a winter melon and seaweed soup, how about that?" Father heated up the pan and then poured in plenty of oil.

"You used so much oil! It's a good thing Mom wasn't here, or you'd be dead meat," Mo Xueyao teased playfully. "Why are all the dishes vegetarian?!"

"Isn't it good to be vegetarian?"

"It's not good at all, I want to eat meat."

"Didn't you just have this at your godfather's a few days ago?"

"I want to eat it every day," Mo Xueyao joked. "Ha—isn't that a bit greedy?"

"It's alright, it's alright. It's not just a little greedy, it's extremely greedy." The father reached out and gently pinched Mo Xueyao's delicate nose, then poured in all the shredded potatoes with a 'whoosh'.

As Mo Xueyao gently stroked the candy, she was about to say something when she saw a black Hongqi sedan pull up in front of the fruit shop.

This car is no ordinary high-end vehicle. Although she really liked her godfather's Santana, she had to admit that compared to it, the Santana seemed far too rough.

Even just the paint job seems to be miles ahead of my godfather's Santana.

The key issue is that even her godfather hasn't been able to afford his own car yet.

And for such high-end cars, the price is unimaginable.

Perhaps... hundreds of thousands, millions?

"Dad, we've got a customer."

"You go."

"Go? No way... These people look like they're really rich..."

“You’re afraid now that you have money? You’re only willing to spend money if you have money,” the father said softly.

"But I'm afraid I... um... won't be able to provide adequate hospitality?"

Just as Mo Xueyao and her father were chatting away, Li Wanyan approached them with a faint smile and asked, "What would you like to buy?"

"Let's buy some fruit," the man in the lead said, glancing into the car.

"Do you need anything to buy? If it's a gift, dragon fruit or king bananas would be great," Li Wanyan enthusiastically recommended. Although she was a little inexperienced, at least she didn't stumble over her words.

"Look how amazing your classmate is! You should learn a lot from his social skills."

"No matter what, he's the class monitor. Isn't it normal for him to be good at socializing?" Mo Xueyao pouted, hiding her surprise.

Because she never expected that the class monitor, as a waiter, would be so attentive.

She doesn't usually smile much, but the smile on her face right now looked very professional.

"Hmm... how much is the fruit basket?"

"Fruit basket, this is the most high-end one, two hundred yuan each, it's a fruit flower basket."

"Dad, you'd better hurry up and go. There's a big deal coming up," Mo Xueyao urged.

"Alright, Xiaoyao, you keep cooking. Let's go earn some money for meat." The father said with a smile, wiping his hands on his trouser leg, and walked over to the guests.

Li Wanyan breathed a slight sigh of relief and handed the 'stage' over to Mo Wenli. As soon as he stepped forward, he skillfully offered a cigarette, then naturally lit one for himself, and began chatting with the man while asking about his needs.

About twenty minutes later, the man left carrying a freshly made fruit basket.

Mo Xueyao's hot and sour shredded potatoes were already cooked. Because she didn't want to disturb her father's business, she added the seasonings herself, and they were a little cold by now.

"Oh, it's done cooking?"

"It's been cooked for a while now," Mo Xueyao said, pointing to the hot and sour shredded potatoes on the plate. "But I can't guarantee how it will taste."

"Let me try," the father said, taking a bite with a chopstick and putting it in his mouth. Then his whole face scrunched up. "It's too sour!"

"Really?" Mo Xueyao also took a bite, then swallowed it while trying to remain calm. "I think it's okay."

"Then you can eat it all."

"I...I can't eat!" Mo Xueyao quickly came up with an excuse.

"Keep it up!" The father gave him a thumbs up.

"So, how much did it sell for just now?" Mo Xueyao casually changed the subject.

“Five hundred.” The father held up five fingers. “Haha… If only there were rich people like that every day.”

"So many? How much are they?" Mo Xueyao's eyes widened. "Do we have anything that expensive?"

"The price is determined on a case-by-case basis."

"Dad, didn't you say you wanted to do repeat business?" Mo Xueyao said with droopy eyelids, just as she saw her father sprinkle a handful of chili peppers into the tofu. "Hey, put less chili peppers in!"

“Didn’t you think hot and sour shredded potatoes were enough? Put more chili in this, I’ll eat it myself.” The father said with a mischievous smile. “Haha—of course I couldn’t actually slaughter a pig, I just raised the price a little, it’s all within a reasonable range. As for why it’s so expensive—because he’s buying the most expensive things.”

"Five hundred...!" Mo Xueyao exclaimed excitedly, "How much can we earn?"

"All things considered, the gross profit should be over three hundred?"

"The profit margin is so high..."

"You should speak louder, or the whole street will hear you," the father said jokingly, shaking his head.

While I was cooking, some customers came in, but they were all small businesses.

With Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan's help, things got done. Anyway, if there was any fruit whose price they didn't know, they could just ask Mo Wenli.

The dinner, though not lavish, was still quite cozy and satisfying.

My father reheated the hot and sour shredded potatoes, adding more chili peppers to balance the sourness. Plus, it was hot, so it tasted much better.

"Xiao Yao, how can you cook with such poor skills?" Her father said to Mo Xueyao, who was serving rice, as he sat at the dining table, opened a bottle of beer.

"What does that matter?"

"So who will cook when you get married?"

"I'm not getting married." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes.

"Alright then, if you're single... who's going to cook? We can't eat out every day, can we?"

"Fried rice with egg, instant noodles, fried rice cakes, fried noodles," Mo Xueyao counted on her fingers. "Is knowing these enough?"

"...Life needs some ambition, Xiaoyao!" The father took a big gulp of beer from the bottle, letting out a long, satisfying sigh. "Ah—that feels good—"

“Drinking every day,” Mo Xueyao muttered.

"What kind of man doesn't drink? A real man should eat big chunks of meat and drink big bowls of wine!"

“That’s outdated thinking,” Mo Xueyao retorted.

Li Wanyan sighed helplessly, scooped some tofu into her bowl with a spoon, and then ate it in small bites.

"By the way, can Wanyan cook?" Mo Xueyao suddenly asked, seemingly looking for a comrade-in-arms.

But unfortunately.

Li Wanyan replied, "Well... I guess I can."

What dishes can you cook? Can you make braised pork?

"I've done it a few times," Li Wanyan said modestly.

"Look, look, Xiaoyao, you should learn from your class monitor!" The father slapped the table. "Wanyan, you must teach Xiaoyao more about these things in life, so that she can be more feminine."

"I think..." Li Wanyan said, covering her mouth, "Xiaoyao is quite cute like this."

"Yes, that cuteness of children, right?"

"Cough cough!"

……

Chapter 111 Public Bathhouse

Even though she was wearing a raincoat, Mo Xueyao felt completely soaked by the time she rode home.

Too lazy to park the bicycle in the garage, I simply parked it under the awning at the entrance of the building and hurriedly ran upstairs.

"Achoo!" Mo Xueyao sneezed loudly, shivering as she pulled the key out of her pocket. After trying to align it with the keyhole for a while, she finally opened the door.