All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

The older siblings had different thoughts. Although they didn't invest much money, two hundred yuan was still half a year's salary for them. It was understandable that their chests would hurt if they threw it into the water.

The reason why Sister Han was so angry was actually because of the two hundred yuan. Her husband found out about it a few days ago, and the couple had a big fight.

Sure enough, as soon as she got home, her husband didn't give her a friendly look and just asked her coldly.

"She's always running to her parents' house, bringing things back, but I've never seen her bring anything back!"

Sister Han was already in a bad mood, and upon hearing these sarcastic words, she immediately shouted and cursed.

"Zhang Desheng, that's enough! You've been nagging me about this for a week now. It's not like we can't get the money back, so why are you making such a fuss all day long!"

Upon hearing his wife's words, Zhang's brother-in-law immediately lost his temper, raising his voice noticeably as he pointed at Sister Han's nose and cursed.

"You still have the nerve to argue with me? We have to borrow money for the children's tuition and living expenses. Don't you know what kind of person your brother is? He gave up a well-assigned government job to open a soup shop. I think he's just been educated and gone stupid!"

Upon hearing this, Sister Han immediately flew into a rage, baring her teeth and claws as she lunged at her husband. The room was filled with howling and screaming, waking up the child and drawing all the neighbors out to watch the commotion and try to break up the fight!

Han Chunming was currently taking a walk with Qi Siqiao on the street. If he knew that his older sister had gotten into a fight with his brother-in-law over two hundred yuan, he would never have accepted the two hundred yuan.

At that moment, not far away, Su Meng was riding her bicycle from the street corner. She saw Han Chunming holding Qi Siqiao's hand and walking on the street.

When Su Meng saw this scene, she felt a lump in her throat and her eyes stung. Pretending not to see it, she quickened her pace and rode past.

Han Chunming actually saw Su Meng pass by, but pretended not to. His ambiguous relationship with Su Meng was just a man's fantasy, but fortunately, he hadn't put those thoughts into practice yet.

Han Chunming had told Su Meng to keep the matter of him borrowing 30,000 yuan from her family a secret, otherwise her family would definitely cause a scene.

Meanwhile, in another courtyard house in Yanjing, the loud-voiced auntie named Xiuying, who had been there that morning, had just finished eating. As she cleared the dishes, she hummed a little tune, her face flushed, like that of an eighteen-year-old girl.

She's sixty-six this year, but today she looks twenty years younger than her. Her husband is three years younger than her, but he has a full head of white hair, deep wrinkles between his brows, and even age spots on his face, making him look like an eighty-year-old man.

Her daughter-in-law had just put down her chopsticks when she saw her mother-in-law looking so energetic today, and asked her with some curiosity.

"Mom, you seem to be in great spirits today! You have a good appetite!"

Upon hearing her daughter-in-law's words, the older woman paused for a moment. If she hadn't been reminded, she would have almost forgotten about her appetite. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that her appetite had indeed increased considerably today.

But her energy level was indeed much better today. It seemed that the free soup hadn't been wasted. She glanced back at her old man and saw his frail and aged appearance. She immediately made up her mind and said.

"Old man, come with me for a stroll around Qianmen Tower tomorrow morning!"

The old man, smoking a cigarette, looked up at the old woman and grumbled somewhat unhappily.

"No, my back hurts!"

The woman immediately became unhappy and raised her voice to scold him.

"I only told you to go for a walk because you're always so listless and aches and pains. There's a nourishing soup shop that opened near Qianmen Gate, and they're offering free soup right now. I think it's quite effective. You'll come with me tomorrow!"

The old man was a cadre when he was young, but he retired early due to illness. He wasn't very interested in getting free soup, so he replied with some dissatisfaction.

"They've only been eating well for a few years, and they're already thinking about drinking nourishing soup. I don't think this shop will stay open for long!"

The old woman was displeased upon hearing this. She had seen it with her own eyes and the nourishing soup was indeed miraculous. "You haven't even drunk any, so what right do you have to talk nonsense?" she said, slamming down her chopsticks and pointing her finger at the old man's nose.

"Wang Jinsheng, what are you pretending to be? How many years have you been retired? Still holding onto your petty official position? If I didn't want to live a life of widowhood, I wouldn't care whether you live or die, it's up to you whether you go or not!"

After the old lady finished speaking, she didn't bother to clean up the dishes and went back to her room, leaving behind a melancholy old man smoking a cigarette!

The old man was heartbroken. Back then, he thought she had a big bottom and would be good at bearing children, so he listened to his parents' arrangement and found such a woman from the countryside.

But to everyone's surprise, this guy was not only uneducated, but also incredibly physically resilient. At sixty-six, he not only hadn't gone through menopause, but he also needed to go every three to five days. After decades of this, his health was deteriorating day by day.

If he really died early, this thing probably wouldn't have left him a widow. Thinking about it made him feel a little melancholy. The old man took a puff of his cigarette and fell into deep thought. It seems he should go and see what this so-called nourishing soup is tomorrow. He should live one more day as long as possible!

That night, there were many family matters like those of the older woman. As the saying goes, every family has its own troubles. Men, too, have to grit their teeth and swallow their bitterness.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Haste makes waste!

Han Chunming went to the shop early the next morning. The job of making soup seemed easy, but it was actually time-consuming. The soup had to be simmered for more than five hours to be flavorful, and if it was simmered for too long, the nutritional content would be insufficient. He had to be on time for work.

So now he has to get up at three or four in the morning every day, start cooking before five, and open the shop for business before ten in the morning.

Han Chunming is also preparing to teach Taozi step by step. This job is too tiring, and he doesn't want to stay up all night every day.

Actually, he wasn't afraid of others stealing his secret recipe. He would add several special medicinal herbs an hour before each batch was ready.

Without this ingredient, it won't have any effect, and the dosage must be strictly controlled. These herbs are the real essence; others can't buy them, he prepares them all himself.

Of course, if I stop doing this job in the future, I might pass the secret recipe on to Taozi. The reason I'm not passing it on now is because Taozi is still somewhat resistant to this line of work. I'll pass it on to him when he really wants to do this job seriously!

When Han Chunming arrived at the store, Taozi was already busy.

Han Chunming was a little surprised to see Taozi arrive so early, but he didn't ask. Seeing Taozi's worried face, he knew that he must have been scolded at home again. They were all in the same boat, so he didn't say anything and let time prove everything.

Soon everyone got busy. Han Chunming worked for most of the day, and as dawn broke outside, the occasional bicycle bells of those going to work early could be heard on the street.

Just then, Han Chunming heard Meng Xiaoxing's voice from outside. He looked and saw Meng Xiaoxing standing timidly in the shop with a girl with a ponytail. When the girl saw Han Chunming, she quickly called out.

"Brother Wu!"

Han Chunming smiled and nodded.

"Little Jujube, have you had breakfast yet?"

The visitor was Meng Xiaoxing's younger sister, Meng Xiaozao. This girl was very hardworking and could also sing opera. In the original novel, she worked as a nanny for Grandpa Guan for several years and was deeply loved by him.

Meng Xiaozao quickly shook her head, then, as if remembering something, nodded again, afraid that Han Chunming would be unhappy.

Meng Xiaozao rarely visits Han Chunming's house, only once every few years. Naturally, she is not as familiar with Han Chunming as Meng Xiaoxing. She has heard that her sister earns forty yuan a month working there, which is comparable to that of urban workers. Naturally, she is worried that Han Chunming will not want her!

Seeing the child's cautious expression, Han Chunming smiled and said to Meng Xiaoxing.

"Why are you here so early? Did you start traveling in the middle of the night?"

Meng Xiaoxing wasn't as cautious as her sister; she had already figured out Han Chunming's mind and replied with a carefree smile.

“We got up at two o’clock. It’s convenient to have bicycles here. I was just worried that you’d be too busy, Wu Zi. Have you guys had breakfast yet? I’ll go buy you some!”

Han Chunming took two yuan out of his pocket, handed it to Meng Xiaoxing, and then said.

"Buy more, your brother Tao hasn't eaten either, hurry up and buy some to eat before getting back to work!"

Meng Xiaoxing nodded and quickly replied.

"okay!"

After saying that, he turned around and went out, leaving Meng Xiaozao still carrying her luggage. Han Chunming quickly told her to put her luggage in the kitchen and then told her to go and take over Taozi's work.

Meng Xiaoxing bought breakfast. Two yuan was a very good amount of money in those days. Fried dough sticks were only seven cents each. She also bought a lot of soy milk and steamed buns, and still had change.

Seeing such a lavish breakfast, Meng Xiaozhao's face lit up with sweet dimples. After breakfast, everyone quickly got to work. Meng Xiaoxing wiped the table, while Meng Xiaozhao busied herself with preparing the dishes in the kitchen. Everyone worked together with one heart and one mind, creating a lively atmosphere!

Han Chunming was stirring the soup in the earthenware pot with a ladle when he heard a commotion outside the shop. He quickly went to the kitchen and called out.

"Xiao Xing, what's all this noise?"

Hearing the call, Meng Xiaoxing rushed over and answered eagerly.

"Brother Wu, there are lots of elderly people outside waiting to drink the free soup!"

Han Chunming glanced at the time and exclaimed, "Good heavens, it's only a little before eight o'clock! My shop doesn't open until at least 9:30. There's still more than an hour to go!" He quickly called out to Meng Xiaoxing.

"Xiaoxing, quickly tell them not to crowd around yet, we won't open until after 9:30!"

Meng Xiaoxing agreed and quickly ran outside to explain.

Han Chunming shook his head helplessly and returned to the kitchen. Taozi, wearing an apron, was tidying up the bowls for serving soup. Hearing what had just happened, she immediately said irritably.

"They're so eager to come for free soup. Let's see if they'll still come when they start charging the day after tomorrow!"

Han Chunming smiled and didn't refute, continuing to stir the soup in the earthenware pot with a ladle. This was also hard work, and you really couldn't do it without patience.

Take Taozi for example. He seems very diligent, but he's clearly quite impatient.

The noise outside grew louder and louder. Han Chunming put down his work, wiped his hands, and walked into the shop.

When I arrived at the store, I looked outside and wow, there was a huge crowd of elderly men and women outside, at least thirty or forty people.

Moreover, there were quite a few onlookers, and many people were asking what was going on. Upon hearing that there was free soup, many middle-aged women who were passing by for the first time immediately joined the queue.

Looking at the time, it was only 8:30. There was still an hour before the shop opened. Han Chunming thought to himself that everyone was too enthusiastic. He was worried that something might happen, since they were all old and frail. If something went wrong, his shop would be unable to open.

Han Chunming quickly went outside the store and called out to the crowd.

"Dear elders, please don't crowd. Our shop opens at 9:30. It's still early. You can go buy your groceries or take your kids out. You can come back later. Also, I hope everyone can line up in an orderly manner. Elders and aunties can each form a separate line so we can arrange for everyone to sit down and have their soup later!"

Upon hearing Han Chunming's words, the crowd stirred, and suddenly a loud voice rang out.

"Hey boss, couldn't you have opened the shop earlier? We've been here for half an hour!"

Han Chunming looked up and saw that the speaker was a middle-aged woman who stood out from the crowd. Sure enough, it was the old acquaintance from yesterday. He immediately smiled and said to the woman.

"Auntie, it's you! How was the soup yesterday?"

The woman felt honored to see that the boss recognized her and immediately replied in a loud voice.

"It works great! If it didn't, I wouldn't have come so early today. Young boss, after drinking your soup, my appetite has improved, and I'm eating everything with gusto. I brought your grandpa along today, so you'd better give him a generous amount of soup!"

As the woman spoke, she tugged at the white-haired old man next to her. The old man was hunched over and not very tall, but he had a very arrogant air about him. He put his hands behind his back, pouted, and gave Han Chunming a cold look.

Upon seeing this, Han Chunming quickly responded with a smile.

"Okay, don't worry, ma'am, I'll definitely fill your and grandpa's bowls up. Ma'am, the reason my soup is so effective is because it has to be simmered for five hours, not a minute less. I got up at 3 a.m., and there's still an hour to go. Please bear with me. You're a familiar face, could you help keep things in order?"

The old lady was a kind-hearted person. As soon as she heard Han Chunming's words, she agreed without hesitation. Relying on her loud voice and tall stature, she immediately began to maintain order. The area outside the store quickly returned to normal. Han Chunming nodded repeatedly, thinking that this old lady was quite capable and must have worked in the police force before!

Han Chunming returned to the kitchen and continued working. When he opened the door at 9:30, there were already two long lines outside. At a glance, there were at least a hundred people, mostly elderly men and women, with many middle-aged couples mixed in. There weren't many young people, probably because everyone had to go to work.

Han Chunming felt as if he had traveled back decades and was seeing a group of elderly people receiving eggs.

At the front of the line was the loud-voiced middle-aged woman, and the second person was the white-haired old man. As soon as the middle-aged woman saw Han Chunming open the door, she immediately smiled and stepped forward, pulling Han Chunming's arm and leading him to the side. Han Chunming thought the middle-aged woman was going to say something, so he quickly followed her into the store with a smile.

Han Chunming quickly asked with a smile.

"Auntie, please speak your mind, I'm listening!"

The middle-aged woman nodded, her face beaming with a slightly embarrassed expression, and pointed to the white-haired old man who was now first in line at the door.

"Young boss, this is my husband. Don't let his white hair and older-looking appearance fool you; he's actually three years younger than me. He's old in years but young at heart, and he has a strong sex drive, but his body is too weak to last long. I'd like to ask if he should drink a stomach-nourishing and regulating soup or a kidney-strengthening and liver-protecting soup?"

Upon hearing the old woman's words, Han Chunming paused, glanced at the hunched-over white-haired old man outside, and silently murmured "Amen!"

He then unconsciously took a half step back, moving away from the older woman, and replied with a simple, honest smile.

"Auntie, I see that the old man is indeed a bit weak. I suggest that he drink the stomach-nourishing and regulating soup for a while first, and then drink the kidney-strengthening and liver-protecting soup after his body has recovered a bit!"