A Young Woman's Heart

"You think these are men's socks? These pantyhose are very expensive!"

"It's only a few dollars more expensive..."

"You're really rich now, aren't you? You don't even consider a few dollars as money anymore?"

"Hehe..."

……

Chapter 129 All-you-can-eat Tofu Pudding Rice

Saturday, September 2000, 11.

The light drizzle didn't affect the roadside stalls.

The crisp autumn air carried a hint of early winter chill, adding a touch of desolation to the streets where no fallen leaves could accumulate.

"Mom, I'm going out!" Mo Xueyao hugged Su Tang to her arms and casually picked up the long-handled umbrella from the cardboard box by the door.

"Why are you going out? It's raining."

"Let's go out for a walk."

"What's the point of going out on a rainy day?" The mother was knitting a scarf for winter. "It'll just get wet again."

"No, no! I was just taking a walk, because I felt that rainy days had a special artistic feel to them!"

"Why do you need that artistic conception? You'd be better off staying home and learning more things."

"Ugh, Mom, you're so annoying!" Mo Xueyao finally lost her patience. She rolled her eyes and opened the automatic umbrella with one hand.

"Alright, if our daughter wants to go out for a stroll, let her go." The father chuckled, "Why be so strict?"

"You should just spoil her. You've already spoiled her rotten."

"No way, Xiaoyao is very obedient, isn't she?" He lit a Double Happiness cigarette, took a deep drag, and said, "Wanyan, why don't you go out for a walk with Xiaoyao?"

"She still has to study!" The mother said this deliberately for Mo Xueyao to hear.

“Okay, let’s go together.” But Li Wanyan stood up instead.

The mother immediately changed her mind: "That's fine too. It's good that Wanyan is with her. At least I feel at ease."

"It's not like we're going on a long trip," Mo Xueyao muttered, her eyelids drooping.

"Come back soon, it'll be lunchtime soon." The mother lowered her head and continued knitting.

"I'm not coming back to eat!"

"What? You're going to eat out again? That's a waste of money."

"What if I see something I like to eat and just eat it? Is it wrong to waste money once in a while?"

"Haha, it's okay, money is meant to be spent." The father flicked the ash into the ashtray. "Go on, go on, don't mind your mother, she's just too much trouble."

“Exactly!” Mo Xueyao agreed.

Li Wanyan pursed her lips and curled the corners of her mouth, opened another umbrella, and walked out of the fruit shop with Mo Xueyao.

The rain wasn't heavy; it was perfect for a walk.

Inspiration seemed to strike at any moment, but Mo Xueyao struggled for a long time and still couldn't come up with a single line of poetry.

Indeed, being able to write novels and being able to write poetry and lyrics are two completely different things.

The park was unusually quiet today, probably because of the rain.

There was only one uncle at the entrance, setting up a stall on a large handcart. The stall was covered by a large umbrella, while some tables and chairs were placed under the evergreen tree that remained lush and leafy even in winter.

"Boss, what are you selling?" Mo Xueyao walked over curiously and saw a large pot covered tightly. The stall was clean, with only some neatly arranged seasonings, as if it hadn't opened for business yet.

"Douban rice, want some?" The old man with gray hair seemed to relax his wrinkled face when he saw a customer coming in.

"Uh, how much?"

Two pieces.

"Two yuan a bowl?"

"No, it's only two yuan, all you can eat! You can have extra rice and tofu pudding!" the old man chuckled. "Do you drink alcohol? If you do, it's just one yuan more for peach blossom wine, all you can have, drink until you're satisfied!"

"Is this... a kind of buffet?" Mo Xueyao turned to look at Li Wanyan.

"There are also some side dishes, such as pickled mustard greens and minced meat, which can be added as much as you like, just don't waste them!"

"Hmm... tofu rice." Mo Xueyao had never eaten this kind of food before. She nodded and handed the other person a five-yuan bill. "Two servings of tofu rice, and one serving of peach blossom wine... Is it strong?"

"Not too strong, probably around 30 degrees, homemade!" The old man laughed heartily, took out a ten-liter mineral water bottle from under the cart, and poured the pink and clear peach blossom wine into a disposable plastic cup. "Here, take this wine, and you can have more if you need it. Feel free to sit at any of the tables and chairs over there!"

“Okay.” Mo Xueyao replied and sat down at a small folding table. The table was a bit old and would wobble if you put a little force on it.

There are still some osmanthus petals under the tree that have turned brown, now covering the soil like a winter blanket.

A grasshopper of the same color darted nimbly through the withered yellow weeds, but winter was approaching and its life was numbered.

Tofu pudding is simply tofu that hasn't been fully cooked.

If it's a little softer, it's tofu pudding; if it's a little firmer, it's tofu.

Tofu pudding is somewhere in between, with the perfect texture—smooth yet chewy, clean and refreshing, and looks very appetizing.

The essence of tofu rice lies in the dipping sauce.

It's basically a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, cilantro, etc. You can pour it directly into the tofu pudding, or you can dip a little in it and eat it.

Besides the dipping sauce, there was a small dish on the side with some minced meat and pickled vegetables. The minced meat was mainly just to give you a taste of meat...

For those who came from that era of poverty, this was already the most wonderful enjoyment in the world.

Even the rice is special; it's a mixture of white and brown rice.

Brown rice is rice that has not been fully processed. It has a thin layer of bran on top, is pale yellow in color, and has a chewier texture.

In the past, when technology was not advanced, ordinary farmers could only process rice to this extent; refined rice was something that landlords and gentry ate.

It is indeed difficult to swallow if you only eat brown rice.

However, if the two are mixed, the taste is still quite good, especially for a child who grew up in the city, the texture of this rice feels particularly fresh to her.

"How is it? Is it delicious?"

"Delicious." Mo Xueyao gave a thumbs up.

"Haha, it was good to have this kind of tofu rice back then. My dream back then was to eat tofu rice every day."

"So you just set up a small stall? Hmm... there probably aren't many customers on a rainy day, right?"

"There will be some, it's alright, it doesn't matter. Making money or not doesn't matter, the important thing is that I did something meaningful." The old man laughed, revealing two yellowed front teeth. "Young lady, try this peach blossom wine, it tastes very good, but don't drink too much, haha, it's easy to get drunk!"

"It's alright." Mo Xueyao was confident in her alcohol tolerance. Even a 52-proof glass wouldn't get her drunk, let alone a 38-proof one.

As she spoke, she tilted her head back and took a sip.

It tastes sweet, and at first it feels like drinking a beverage with a peach blossom fragrance. After a while, the taste of alcohol rises to your throat.

The taste is pretty good...

"how?"

"It tastes pretty good."

"Ha, looks like you can drink quite a bit, young lady?"

"It's alright, it's alright," Mo Xueyao said modestly with a smile.

"Back then on the battlefield, we could only capture other people's wine to drink. The most exciting thing about fighting was capturing the enemy's things. Alas, it's a pity that they destroyed everything when they retreated, so we couldn't get anything good anymore."

"Battlefield?" Mo Xueyao tilted her head and asked curiously, "Grandpa, were you ever a soldier?"

"Yes, I served in the Korean War... I was lucky enough to survive until the end of the war."

Mo Xueyao was somewhat envious, mainly because soldiers get to use guns—the allure of firearms is something few men could resist.

Even a 'fake man' like her is no exception.

"What kind of soldier were you in before, sir?"

"Me? Hey, I'm a machine gunner." The old man waved his hand. "A hero doesn't dwell on past glories, haha!"

"How many did you kill?"

"I can't count them all," the old man said with a smile, shaking his head. "You finished your wine so quickly? Would you like another glass?"

"Hmm... I'll have another one."

The light rain continued to fall, with occasional drops being blown by the wind and landing on Mo Xueyao's face.

Occasionally, people passing by the park entrance would glance in this direction, until Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan finished their meal before the second guest finally arrived.

In late autumn, moths fluttered their wet wings and landed on tree branches, while a squirrel was carrying pine cones and hiding in a tree hole, preparing for the coming harsh winter.

Winters in the south are actually much warmer than those in the north.

"Will it snow this year?" Mo Xueyao finished the last sip of peach blossom wine, resting her chin on her hand as if talking to herself, or perhaps talking to Li Wanyan.

"What is this distant hope?"

"I hope... of course it will snow. A winter without snow doesn't feel like winter at all." Although Hangzhou is located in the south, it's not particularly far south. Every two or three years, there will occasionally be a winter with snow.

Under another large tree nearby stood a woman selling candied hawthorns.

Although business is slow on rainy days, there are still some opportunities. For them, earning even a dollar or two is probably a good thing.

Many people live like this, and when she thinks about her life now, Mo Xueyao feels very satisfied.

She hoped that such days would continue, but did not expect them to get better.

Her mother always said that she lacked ambition.

However, maintaining a stable life in this society is not an easy thing.

Maintaining stability is also a form of progress; it's just that others are also moving forward, so it can make it seem as if you're not making any progress at all.

"The rain is so cold." Mo Xueyao stretched her small hand out of the umbrella, letting a few drops of rain fall into her palm.