Rebirth of the pastoral landlady

Chapter 68 The Good Shop in the Alley

Chapter 67 Good shop in the alley

That night, Granny took out all the savings of the Sun family that she had kept in her hands for these years, a total of [-] Wen, plus a pair of sterling silver longevity locks.Everyone knew that the two liang of silver was intended to be used as a dowry for Sun Yuxia, and now they have all been given out.

The two sisters, Sun Yuxia and Sun Yubao, had all the money they had from selling tiger-toed shoes and chestnuts last time, and they hadn't warmed up much, but now they took it all at once and handed it to Jinxi.

As for Liang Yuzhong and Mrs. Sun, the couple were too ashamed to speak. They worked like cattle and horses in the Liang family these years. Except for three meals a day, they ate [-]% of their fill. There was a roof to shelter from wind and rain. Apart from a few quilts and a few sets of clothes, there is basically nothing left in my hand!
Now that Jin Xi needs money to open a shop, but they are parents, but they can't do it at all. The guilt on the couple's faces and the self-blame in their hearts are like knives stabbing their hearts fiercely.

Because of this, the idea of ​​separating from the Liang family and becoming an independent family once again took root in the hearts of Liang Yuzhong and Mrs. Sun.

Sun Erhu came to visit at night, just in time, Sun Yubao told Sun Erhu every word of Jinxi's plan full of excitement, and Sun Erhu's eyes lit up.

Immediately agreed, and promised three taels of silver.Jin Xi knew that the three liang of silver was all Sun Erhu's wealth accumulated from dealing with wolves, tigers and leopards in the mountains in the past few years.

Jin Xi did not refuse Sun Erhu's kindness, because she is not qualified to refuse now, she really needs money very much.

Combining the money brought out by everyone, and adding Jin Xi's own five taels of silver, a total of ten taels of silver was collected, plus a pair of long-life locks.

Looking at the sincere and hopeful smiling faces in the room, Jin Xi's heart warmed and at the same time, she felt the responsibilities on her shoulders suddenly became heavy.

Please believe me, every word I say today will be honored one by one in the future, I will repay the kindness you have done to me now, and I will repay you twice in the future, Jin Xi recites silently in her heart over and over again.

According to the appointment made overnight, Sun Erhu drove the carriage over the next day, Liang Yuzhong and Sun Erhu drove together, and Sun Yubao and Jin Xi sat in the carriage behind.

The reason why Liang Yuzhong was asked to go with him was because today he was going to visit the shop and bargain with the original owner of the shop. Sun Erhu and Jin Xi were still teenagers no matter what, so the presence of multiple adults would help to suppress the situation.

However, when the carriage drove to the intersection near Jinjishan Village, Liang Yuzhong sat in the carriage at the back and did not come out until he reached the town.

In this era, when houses, shops and land are bought and sold, there are tooth dealers who specialize in this kind of intermediary sales, which is equivalent to modern real estate brokers, and they have to take some of them as remuneration, and that remuneration.

Jin Xi and the others were short of money, so they had to be cautious in every corner, so they didn't plan to find these middlemen, but they searched street by street, inquiring about everyone they met.

Jin Xi and the others stopped by to pay attention to the shops in the busiest area with the most traffic and traffic in Changqiao Town. Some shops are waiting to be rented or sold, and the prices are so high that Jin Xi and the others can't afford it even if they sell everything.

The four of them searched several streets, but they couldn't find anything satisfactory. The enthusiasm they had been full of before was destroyed bit by bit by the helplessness of reality.From the time when the sun rose, until the sun rose three poles, and finally the sun was hanging above the head, when it was time to eat lunch, the town's population gradually became thinner, and no suitable shop was found yet.

"Father, why don't we go to the steamed stuffed bun shop over there to get something to fill our stomachs first? We're full and have strength, so we'll look for it in the afternoon!" Jin Xi suggested to the three men beside him.

At this time, the four of them were standing at a fork in the road. On the left, there was an alley that was somewhat similar to Magpie Bridge Alley. The road paved with bluestone slabs twisted and extended inward.

It should be a small alley similar to Queqiao Alley, a homely alley.Jin Xi looked at the alley and thought to herself, at the entrance of the alley, there are a few old ladies playing with children. Behind them, there is a steamed stuffed bun shop near the alley. There are several layers of steamers on the long table outside the shop. It was steaming outside.

"Success, let's go there for a rest first!" Liang Yuzhong said, and the four of them walked towards this inconspicuous alley by the side of the road, past the playing children and old ladies, naturally they were curious looked at.

The four of them had just stopped at the door of the shop, when the busy guys inside warmly greeted them, calling for the four of them to come in.

Jin Xi took a look at the steamed stuffed bun shop, the shop is not too big, about [-] square meters by modern measurement, the shop is very simple, just a few tables and high stools.

In the innermost corner of the shop, there was something for steaming buns. A young daughter-in-law was bending over to knead dough, with a baby wrapped in a radish bun tied to her back.

When Jin Xi and the others entered, there was only a father and son eating wontons inside.

"What do you guys want to eat?" The guy who greeted them earlier took off the rag on his shoulders, wiped the table where they were sitting symbolically, and asked with a smile.

Jin Xi looked around, and found that in this steamed stuffed bun shop, apart from this young couple, there was no other guy in sight.Presumably this young couple opened the shop, right?

"Shopkeeper, what delicious food do you have in this shop?" Jin Xi looked away and asked the young shopkeeper of the steamed stuffed bun shop in front of him.

"Hey, we have freshly baked thin-skinned meat stuffed buns, white flour steamed buns, wontons and water dumplings. The dumplings are filled with meat and leeks. What do you want?"

Jin Xi squinted her eyes when she heard so many reports from him. The limitations of breakfast in this area can't be compared with the modern breakfast with rich content.

"Father, Uncle, Uncle Erhu, what do you want to eat?" Jin Xi asked one by one. Before entering the shop, Jin Xi had already told the three of them that if she invited her to eat the steamed stuffed buns, no one would like to eat them. Don't rob her.
"Then get four bowls of meat-filled dumplings first, and then ten meat-filled steamed buns." Jin Xi said, looking at the other three, and seeing no objections, the shopkeeper turned around and prepared to go.Here, the woman kneading the dough had already brought four bowls of tea, put it in front of Jin Xi and the others with a smile, and turned around to knead the dough again.

The father and son finished eating the wontons quickly, and left after paying the money. There were no new customers entering the shop, and few pedestrians passed by outside the shop. The young shopkeeper sat on a high stool and rested with Liang Yuzhong Pulled up the homework.Come and go, nothing more than talking about where they are from, which village is nearby, who is the senior in the family, the harvest in the crop field, whether the business is good or not, and so on.

"Shopkeeper, I heard you said that your shop has been open in this Qingqiao Lane for a year or so, so let me ask you something!" Sun Yubao asked.

"What's the matter, little brother?"

"Are there any shops nearby that you want to rent or sell?"

"Oh, the guest officers want to set up a shop, right? This is really asking the right person, I really know that there is a place!" The young shopkeeper said.

"Really, where is that? Is it far from here? What did you do for a living?" Sun Yubao asked.

"It's not far away. My steamed stuffed bun shop is in the same alley. If you go out from here, you have to walk a few steps in. There is a sign at the door, which says Zhang Ji's grocery store!"

"Do you want to go in? Will there be customers?" Sun Yubao said. The bun shop itself is a bit out of the way. I didn't expect that there is a deeper one. It is so deep that no one can find it. Will the business be good? ?No wonder the shop was sold outside, Sun Yubao muttered to himself, so he didn't continue to ask.

Jin Xi, who was sipping dumpling soup with her head buried in her head, raised her head, squinted her eyes, and asked the young shopkeeper, "Does the shopkeeper know why Zhang Ji grocery store sells outside?"

"Do you still have to ask, how can you make money in such a remote place with few people visiting?" Sun Yubao said.

"This little brother is only half right." The young shopkeeper said: "To tell you the truth, that Zhang Ji grocery store, when we first moved here, business was really booming. Not only this Qingqiao Alley, but even the next door Everyone in the alley came to Zhang Ji to buy groceries. I don’t know why, since half a year ago, a group of servants from the yamen’s gate came and took Zhang Ji’s shopkeeper to lock up for two days, and sealed it up. After two days in the shop, the business on that note has been fading day by day, and now it is getting worse day by day."

"Thanks to Zhang Ji, when my steamed bun shop first opened, there were quite a few people who came to buy buns. Now that Zhang Ji has fallen, my steamed stuffed bun shop has also lost its vitality. Alas, I will buy buns with you. The daughter-in-law is planning to wait another two months to see if it doesn't work, she will also sell the steamed stuffed bun shop, and take the daughter-in-law back to her hometown to tend the few acres of land! The shopkeeper Zhang said that he wants to sell the shop outside, three or four It's been a month, but the location of the shop is too deep, even if the price is lowered, no one will like it!"

"A few guest officers don't want to buy that Zhangji grocery store?" The young shopkeeper looked at Liang Yuzhong and the others, and asked in surprise.

Jin Xi pursed her lips, this young shopkeeper really likes to talk.In comparison, his daughter-in-law was so silent that she could be ignored.

"Xi'er, what should we do? Shall we go over and have a look?" Liang Yuzhong asked Jinxi in a low voice, Sun Yubao and Sun Erhu both looked at Jinxi, waiting for her to make up her mind.

"Since we've all come here, we don't need to walk a few more steps, just go over and have a look!" Jin Xi said after thinking for a while.

So, under the guidance of the young shopkeeper of the bun shop, Jin Xi and the others left the bun shop and searched for it in the alley.

The alley is not too wide, and a bullock cart can easily pass by. The ground is paved with bluestone slabs, and the mottled walls on both sides are covered with ivy.

A very old alley.

Finally, about two yards away from the steamed stuffed bun shop, Jin Xi found that Zhang Ji grocery store.

On the mottled wall, there is a simple wooden door. The wooden door is not the whole wall that is fully opened in the street outside, but it is similar to the door of the main room where people live at home, and it is still half open.

The alley was deep, and the sun was shining from overhead. It was difficult to see the furnishings inside the shop through the half-open wooden door.There was a wooden plaque hanging on the door latch, the words "Zhang" on it were very vague, and one end of the wooden plaque peeled off from the wall, hanging loosely on the latch.It's really worrying that if one accidentally enters the door, he will be hit on the back of the head by a falling wooden plaque.

(End of this chapter)