A Young Woman's Heart

The customer seemed to be buying relatively expensive fruits, which made the shopkeeper pay more attention.

"What kind of fruit is this?" the guest asked curiously, picking up a bright red fruit that looked like a burning heart.

"This is dragon fruit."

"how much is it?"

"Fifteen yuan each."

"Oh, I'll buy one. Please put it in my fruit basket later." The man nodded.

But he didn't look very wealthy; his clothes and appearance were quite ordinary, yet he bought such expensive fruit...

Perhaps he's going to visit an important friend?

Or perhaps it's for the sake of saving face?

"Boss, these rotten ones cost one dollar and fifty cents?" the father asked, pointing to a large pile of loose bananas in a cardboard box. On top of the box was a cardboard sign with the price listed.

"It's not rotten, it's just that I'm used to it!" the shopkeeper replied. "It's already very cheap!"

Mo Xueyao couldn't help but raise her eyebrows. She saw a banana that was definitely not ripe; it must be rotten. The banana peel was almost rotten through, and there was a faint smell of rot in the air.

The father glanced at Mo Xueyao, shrugged speechlessly, and went back into the fruit shop to carefully examine the freshness of the fruit.

For items without brand names or price tags, he would ask about the price to get an idea of ​​the market situation.

The boss gradually became impatient as the father continued to question him.

"Why are you asking so many questions? What exactly do you want to buy?"

"Oh, it's nothing." The father looked nonchalant as he returned to the pile of bananas, picked up a bunch of small, plump bananas, and asked, "How much are the Emperor bananas?"

"Fifteen yuan per pound."

"Can I buy three?" the father asked.

"No..." The shopkeeper's patience seemed to be wearing thin. "These bananas are imported; you have to buy them as a whole bunch."

"Alright then, give me a bunch of regular bananas." The father picked up a bunch of bananas that were still a bit green and placed them on the electronic scale in the fruit shop.

"Three yuan and fifty cents." The shopkeeper impatiently took out the bag, flung it forcefully, and then threw the bananas in, casually placing it aside.

The father didn't say much, just paid the money casually, picked up the bag and walked out.

The bananas were placed in a basket, and Mo Xueyao sat in the back seat.

The bicycle then started moving again, wobbling and unsteady.

"Dad." After getting away from the fruit shop, Mo Xueyao finally couldn't hold back anymore, "The shop owner's service attitude is terrible! It's disgusting."

"Haha, it's alright, people like that don't last long in business."

"is it?"

"Yes." The father squeezed the bell, urging the pedestrians who had walked onto the sidewalk to return to the sidewalk. "Firstly, they have no patience in their lives and in their work, and secondly, they are too fierce."

"Too fierce" means being both arrogant and greedy.

"Then why are you still buying here?"

"Let's buy a bunch and try it. We haven't had fruit in a long time, have we?"

"It's alright, I'm not really interested in fruit..." Mo Xueyao replied against her will.

"Oh? Really?"

"Of course."

"Then you can save the bananas for your mom."

"Huh?"

"Didn't you say you didn't want to eat?"

"...Can Mom finish it all by herself? Don't waste it." Mo Xueyao said with a pout, subtly changing the subject, "Speaking of which, can cats eat bananas?"

"I don't know, but in the past, people in the countryside kept stray cats and fed them anything. They ate whatever people ate, like leftovers, rotten apples, and rotten bananas..."

"I heard that people who keep cats feed them cat food."

"Those are city people, cat food is too expensive! They can just use leftovers."

“But there needs to be meat too.” Mo Xueyao thought of Su Tang at home. “It seems like Su Tang only eats one meal a day at our house. Look how thin it is.”

"The kittens are all thin, they'll be fine when they grow up." The father said, but he slightly deviated from the route home, taking a detour halfway to the entrance of the vegetable market near his home, "to see how the vegetable prices are today."

"You go inside, I'll watch the car outside." Mo Xueyao pinched her nose. "I don't like the smell in the market, it's awful."

"That's fine, I won't lock my car, just don't leave."

"Okay—" Mo Xueyao nodded lazily, seemingly having no intention of even getting off the back of the bicycle.

At the entrance of the market, there are also some people who have set up stalls. The vegetables they sell are generally cheaper or fresher.

Because the vegetables are all grown by local farmers, unlike the vegetables in the market which are mostly wholesaled from other places.

Father was much faster at buying groceries than Mother. In just over ten minutes, he came out carrying a large bag full of small bags.

Looks like I did a big shopping trip today, bought a lot of good food.

"What did you buy?" Mo Xueyao asked curiously.

"Chicken legs, pork belly, pork intestines, and all sorts of other vegetables," the father replied, taking out several small bags from a large bag that clearly couldn't fit in the basket, hanging them on the handlebars, and only then could he barely put the large bag into the basket.

"You're gone?" Mo Xueyao asked. "Do you need me to help you carry some?"

"Wait, I'm going to buy some wine." The father wiped his hands, which were covered in vegetable leaves and juice, on his clothes and headed straight for the grain and oil shop at the entrance of the market.

These kinds of shops could be found at the entrance of almost every market in those days, mainly selling things like rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

—There's no firewood, since city dwellers use gas.

The store has whole bags and buckets of rice, as well as loose rice.

Moreover, most people choose to buy in bulk because buying a little and eating a little at a time minimizes waste.

When Mo Xueyao was in elementary school, her mother often sent her to the grain and oil store to buy things like vegetable oil or soy sauce.

"Boss, two jin of buckwheat glutinous rice, please." My father was already quite familiar with the owner here. Before he even entered the shop, his voice had already reached out, and the owner greeted him with a smile.

"Oh, you're buying two pounds today? Are you hosting a dinner party at home?"

"Haha, no, I'll buy more to take home and eat slowly. It's too much trouble to come out and buy more later."

Did you bring the bottle?

"I didn't bring any bottles, how about I use yours? How much are they?"

"Hey, you're a regular customer, so the bottle is free." The owner waved his hand, deftly lifted a wine jar that was about knee-high in the shop, and took out a clean plastic bottle with the packaging torn off, a long red plastic spoon, and a funnel that was also red.

He simply placed the funnel over the bottle opening, then used a long red spoon to scoop up most of the liquor and pour it into the funnel, as smoothly as if he were filling a bottle with water from a tap.

After pouring in about three or four spoonfuls, the large plastic bottle was almost full.

The shopkeeper placed the bottle on the electronic scale, glanced at the numbers, then picked up the red spoon and scooped out a little bit, pouring it into the bottle.

"Exactly two pounds."

Actually, it's a little over two pounds, but you can't be that stingy in business, you can only give more, not less.

Otherwise, this business will not be successful.

The owner's skill in serving wine is the result of years of practice. He is not only quite proficient, but also decisive and efficient, without any hesitation. Just watching him do it is a pleasure.

Mo Wenli paid the money, shoved the bottle into Mo Xueyao's arms, and said, "Xiaoyao, hold on tight."

"Are you sure it's okay if you don't give me some of the food in front? You can't even hold the tap properly anymore, can you?"

"Tsk, you underestimate your old man. If you can't even handle this, what kind of man are you?" The father chuckled, lit another cigarette before getting on the bike, and leisurely rode his bicycle home amidst Mo Xueyao's discontented complaints...

……

Chapter 45 Make a Few Signature Dishes

On Saturday afternoon, even the sunlight seemed a bit lazy.

Having finished her homework, Mo Xueyao was intently teasing Su Tang, but the latter didn't pay much attention to her, or rather, no matter how she played with it, it didn't react much.

It's so well-behaved, it's like a toy cat.

Even if Mo Xueyao gently scratches Su Tang's cheek with her tail, the latter will not want to pull its tail back.

"Meow meow meow?" She poked Su Tang's little face, waiting for the latter's response.

However, the latter simply tucked its tail back gently and held its front paws to its chest, like a child hugging a blanket and wanting to sleep.

But Mo Xueyao didn't want it to fall asleep. She chuckled mischievously and blew air into its ears, making Su Tang's ears twitch until it finally couldn't stand it anymore and stood up. It shook its fur vigorously before feeling much better, and then lay down again.

The sun is shining brightly outside, and it feels a bit of a waste to stay at home.

Mo Xueyao thought for a moment, put all her homework books back into her schoolbag, and then walked out of the bedroom with Su Tang in her arms.

Her father, Mo Wenli, was squatting next to a trash can picking vegetables. The small color TV on the TV cabinet was showing Animal World. When Mo Xueyao walked over, she happened to see a cheetah chasing its prey.

"Dad, Sutang and I went downstairs to play."

"Are there any fun places to go?" Mo Wenli asked, puzzled.

"No, I just thought the weather was so nice, it would be a waste to stay at home, so I decided to just wander around."

"Okay, remember to come back before sunset." Mo Xueyao's father, who usually never nagged when she went out, suddenly became nagging. "Don't go to secluded places, and don't talk to strangers..."

"Alright, alright, alright, I'm not a three-year-old. What's wrong with you, Dad?" Mo Xueyao interrupted her father's nagging. "I'm just going for a walk around the neighborhood. I'm going downstairs now."

"Tsk, I care about you, is that not allowed? You're really ungrateful. Sigh, even my daughter isn't listening to her father anymore." The father sighed dramatically, then pulled a five-yuan bill from his pocket. "Here you go..."

"Huh? Why are you giving this to me? Is this considered pocket money? No, you never give me pocket money, and we're about to eat, so I don't need to buy snacks." Mo Xueyao looked puzzled.

"What nonsense are you thinking?" The father rolled his eyes. "Remember to buy me a pack of cigarettes when you go downstairs. The extras are yours."

"Buy Daqianmen? Or perhaps Mudan or Hongmei?" Mo Xueyao knew her father's favorite cigarettes like the back of her hand. Actually, they weren't hard to remember, since he could only afford the cheapest ones...