Sorry, it's been a month without updates. I have been having a lot of things on my schedule that I just recently cleared away. I will do my best to keep on uploading the chapters, please bear with me thank you. Please read, enjoy and leave a review.
Li Yichen's restaurant,
The colleague who gossiped and spread rumors, Zhu LingLing, ordered more dishes for herself and her other colleagues. She came as an intern before being promoted to being a worker. So naturally, she earned more money compared to Gu Mingye and other interns. Her colleagues praised her and called her sweet names, Zhu Lingling was full of pride. She didn't mind spending this bit of money as long as it would bring the intended result. She smiled and told them, "eat, eat, before the meals get cold."
They nodded, the noise decreasing until sounds of eating and cutlery against bowls was heard.
Li Yichen praised this colleague innerly but he wasn't new to this kind of thing. He knew there was someone she wanted to impress and he hoped it goes well for her. He left the plating area and went to the kitchen to look at the eggs he had soaked in tea since morning. What if he found out it was for him to have an impressive memory of her? Haha.
Wang Shulan smiled at the crowd eating and was also serving those who came in. After some time, the meal was finished. She took the empty flasks to the kitchen and kept them for washing. Li Yichen put on his gloves and began washing the flasks , the plates and the pots. He was extremely happy with himself. He wanted to do this forever. He no longer wanted to be a doctor. Laughs out loud. In his sweet mood, he began humming a sweet song that got popular in 2019.
...
Happy that she had gotten a help and that she always sold out her meals, Shen Anran began humming a sweet song she had heard and liked in 2019. She stirred the marinaded eggs and covered back the pot still humming. She assisted her mom then in packing up and soon enough they had closed their stall, waiting till the next day.
It was exactly 7 o'clock in the evening that they had arrived at their house in the village. Some villagers who saw them greeted them with mockery while some avoided greeting them. Shen Anran felt that another rumor must have been spread around the village. Liu Meilan thought it was about the fact of them acting as prostitutes in the city county. Her heart dropped while Shen Anran couldn't care less, rumors were just rumors. After dropping their bags, Liu Meilan went to the kitchen to set up the fireplace to bring water to a boil while Shen Anran thought of the dishes she would add to the tea eggs she would serve tomorrow. She scribbled them down and noted some things she will get tomorrow. After some while, they heard a knock on the courtyard door.
"Mom, don't worry, I will attend to it, " she said shouting to her mom who was in the kitchen. She replied by saying, "okay, okay."
Thus, Shen Anran went to see who was knocking, after confirming who stood behind the door she opened it to see the village leader and some other women behind him, looking at them with disapproving eyes. Shen Anran was confused and a little tinge of fear entered her, but she braved up. She let them in and the women exclaimed at the new furniture the mother and daughter duo had kept in place for welcoming visitors. In those days, mother and daughter only had a rickety stool which they placed against the wall for balance but now, making a bit of money, they bought furniture and kept them to make the space look good. They had also filled in the patches on the floor they stood on. Soon enough whispers flowed, "so it's true." "Shameless what people do for money." "Hmm, what a disgrace to our village." "They must leave before they ruin our daughters." Every word against them. Shen Anran remained silent looking at them, casually nibbling at her finger nails, her back to the wall. She ignored those rumors, it is only fools who refute rumors because the more you tried to explain, the more they believe you are lying. After a while of their talks, they quitened down. The village leader didn't make any attempt to stop them, rather he was happy, wearing a smug smile.
When Liu Meilan lost her husband, this village leader was among those who made it unbearable for Liu Meilan all because she had refused to engage in some frivolities with him. He didn't give her enough grain seed measurements, he cut her land by some mus and he also prohibited them from fetching water from the village stream thus that was why they had dug the well in the courtyard. Liu Meilan had gone out to beg for help and some kind individuals helped her out. They only had minor issues during the period where water usually got low in the well, still, Shen Anran who was usually timid, do brave the darkness to get water from the village stream, before dawn, she had filled the whole containers. The present Shen Anran hated this man in front of her as she recalled this memory, how much have this kind woman endured? Her heart tore.
Liu Meilan came out after hearing the voices, her heart broke and she almost broke down in tears but she controlled herself because she didn't want her daughter to be like her, she wanted her daughter to be brave, and she wanted her daughter to maintain this current version of herself. She pretended, straightened her back, after all she was innocent, she knew nothing about the rumors. She walked towards them, glanced at them and asked them what brought them to her place by this time of the night.
"Shameless!" One woman said out loud. The others nodded.
The village leader spoke, "Madam Shen, it had to come to our notice that you and your daughter are misleading our daughters." He cleared his throat as if trying to say something nice, "we've come here to know why you and your daughter," he said pointing to Shen Anran, "chose to do something this dirty."
Shen Anran smiled disgustingly. She kept quiet waiting for her mother to speak. "From where do this accusations come from? Where did you hear such news? Have you ever seen us do such things you mentioned now?"
The village women were taken aback by Liu Meilan's questions and braveness. Liu Meilan was always cowardly, she took every insult and punishment with calm. This version of herself was new. But still, how did they hear such news, have they ever seen the mother and daughter do such things?
"There is no smoke without fire," the village chief reiterated, the women agreed, nodding their heads, "as these news keep spreading that means it has a fact somewhere," he said matter of fact, feeling smug. Liu Meilan had turned down his advances so many times, he couldn't wait to show her more wickedness, it gave him joy.
"Really?" Shen Anran spoke up.
"Anran'er," Liu Meilan called not wanting her daughter to be involved.
But Shen Anran ignored her, "if I spread a rumor saying that you and Zheng ShanShan has something dirty going on between you and her, and it spreads, does it mean it's true?" Shen Anran had just come across this memory, she had caught her once best friend and this village chief in an unspeakable position, it was only Zheng ShanShan that saw her though and since then, Shen Anran had promised not to let a word out but remembering it, she spoke it out. Let all of their names be soiled.
The women at the back gasped with this juicy news while the village chief face, reiterated between black and white. "Stop it, it's no true, " he shouted, pointing hard at Shen Anran who scoffed.
"Really? But there's no smoke without fire for me to say this that means I have proof, do you have proof of any of us doing such dirty things? Or do you just enjoy taunting my mother because she refused to be with you unlike Zheng ShanSahan?" The women gasped, for her to keep saying this, that means it's true.
"Alright, alright, it's not true, " the village leader raised his hands up as if admitting defeat. He wondered how Shen Anran knew this things. He would ask Zheng ShanShan tomorrow. "Tell us how you got this things and what you are doing everyday at the county."
"What does this piece of information have to do with you?" Liu Meilan asked teary eyed, her voice almost shaking.
The chief just stared at her, saying nothing while the women waited for them to defend themselves.
"You want to know what we do at the city county right? We work at restaurants as cooks and cleaners. We earn salary four times a week and we now use it to improve our lives. When we were here at home what did any of you give us? You cut our seed supply, you reduced our lands by some mus and you prohibited us from fetching water from the stream, what have you given us to improve our lives? Now that we get something doing to improve our lives you all came here to look down on us, come here to insult us la, all of you are wicked," Shen Anran looked at them, sternly. They subconsciously shivered, she continued, "there's no smoke without fire right, why not investigate your village leader and find out how he does the ruining you accuse us of."
With that she used a big stick and chased them away. After they ran away, she closed the door and stared at her mother, "we will put this house in order and leave to the city to live there coming home only on weekends. It will be easier for us," with that she held her already shaky mother and they went in to calm themselves, afterwards, they each took their bath, respectively. Deep down, Shen Anran was planning for more bigger things.