Chapter 185: Half a Catty of Coriander Dumplings, Please

Jiang Ning ran first.

She sent a message to Tian Wenhao, then pushed her electric bike and made a getaway.

She didn’t even take her bag.

She just rode her electric bike and darted out of the No. 2 Middle School food street in a flash.

No matter how the two young men behind her called out, she ignored them.

That’s right.

It wasn’t just the one from earlier.

There was another one, walking towards her from the school gate.

This young man, whose attire was no better than the first, was carrying a bag of snacks in one hand and a gift box in the other.

He wore a seemingly friendly smile and also approached her.

Although she knew they wouldn’t dare do anything to her.

But Miss Jiang really couldn’t stand the burning gazes of those young men.

It was as if they wanted to devour her.

Are zombies out of their cages?!

Damn it!

It seems she really can’t come to No. 2 Middle School anymore.

Miss Jiang left the food street, then rode for a long time until she found a Northeastern dumpling shop.

Thinking she hadn’t eaten lunch yet, she parked her bike at the shop entrance.

Then she pushed the door open and went in.

The shop had only four white composite tables.

It was simple and tidy.

Seeing that there weren’t many customers, just a middle-aged woman sitting in the back.

Miss Jiang was a little unsure as she asked:

“Boss… can I eat here?”

The proprietress heard the voice, looked up, and saw an unexpectedly beautiful young girl, quickly greeting her.

“Yes, you can eat.”

“Little sister, take a look at what you want to eat.”

“Shepherd’s purse, celery, pork, beef.”

“If you want coriander, I have that too.”

The proprietress is quite clever.

She even makes coriander dumplings.

Is it possible she even has Houttuynia cordata filling?

Miss Jiang mumbled a little, then ordered two liang of pork and two liang of celery.

After she ordered, the proprietress went inside to get busy.

At this moment.

Miss Jiang, now seated, finally had time to calmly think about what happened at the No. 2 Middle School shop.

Let’s put the young men’s declarations of love aside for now.

Regarding Luo Chengming using his connections to cause trouble for ‘Shi Ning Ji’.

Jiang Ning’s chosen method was to rely on Li Yang’s influence in the school to counteract the connections Luo Chengming had left behind.

The effect should be obvious.

However, Miss Jiang had also instructed Li Yang.

If something can be solved with money, try not to resort to violence.

Whatever is needed, however much is needed.

She would cover all the logistical work.

Jiang Ning conveying this message to Li Yang was actually out of fear that she might act impulsively.

After all, she was in a sports school, studying combat.

She shouldn’t constantly think that training is training, and incidentally, training people too.

Just then.

The proprietress brought a bowl of dumplings, shaped like ingots and glistening white, and placed it in front of Miss Jiang.

Oh.

They look good.

Just don’t know how they taste.

“Little sister, eat.”

“Vinegar is on the side, pour it if you need, don’t be shy!”

“Okay! Thank you!”

Miss Jiang responded with a smile, took a small dish, poured some vinegar, picked up a dumpling, and dipped it.

She blew on it, then took a bite.

Hiss.

A bit hot.

Miss Jiang immediately fanned her mouth.

“Did you burn yourself, sis? Eat slowly!”

Hearing the advice.

Jiang Ning chuckled, a little awkwardly.

Then she continued eating the dumplings.

At this point, the proprietress, being naturally friendly, started a conversation:

“Little sister, how old are you, do you have a boyfriend?”

“Hiss… Sister… I’m only 17…”

Perhaps this address amused the proprietress.

She laughed very happily.

“Little sister, you Southern girls are really good.”

“Pretty and sweet-mouthed.”

“If only my daughter could be half as good as you.”

“Unfortunately, she’s just like her old mother, me.”

…

Then the proprietress, like a tomb raider, began recounting her daughter’s embarrassing stories, starting from elementary school.

Until she talked about her daughter being in high school now.

After more than ten minutes, the stories were numerous and varied, coupled with the proprietress’s vivid narration.

Miss Jiang didn’t even realize she had finished her dumplings.

If it weren’t for a phone call from her eldest cousin.

She might have sat in the shop for a while longer.

“Little sister, come often~”

“Mhm, okay.”

Jiang Ning replied with a smile, then left the shop and answered her eldest cousin’s call.

“Where are you?” her eldest cousin asked.

“Just finished eating dumplings, um, I even brought you a portion,” Jiang Ning said, looking at the empty bike basket, making things up.

“Alright then, I’ll wait for you at the Siyuan Road shop.”

Saying that, he hung up the phone.

Seeing this.

Miss Jiang immediately got off her bike, went back into the shop, and called out to the middle-aged woman reading a newspaper.

“Proprietress, another half a pound of coriander dumplings, to go.”

——————

Siyuan Road is an old street in Jiangzhou’s old town.

It runs east to west, less than two kilometers long.

It intersects with Guoqing Road from north to south.

Twenty years ago, this was the most prosperous area in Jiangzhou City.

My mother used to say that whenever there was a holiday here.

It would definitely be packed with people.

So there were many shops along the street.

All kinds of businesses.

I even heard that there used to be “vase girls” here back then.

{T/n: In Chinese, “花瓶女孩” (vase girl) refers to a woman who is beautiful but seen as lacking talent or substance. It’s often used negatively to suggest she’s just for show, not taken seriously.}

Don’t know if it’s true or not.

However.

Over more than ten years, with the completion of Times Square, the city center gradually shifted to a more modernized area.

Siyuan Road also gradually became known as the old town’s old street.

Nevertheless.

Although it’s an old street, there are still quite a few pedestrians and customers.

Especially the section at the entrance and exit.

Because there’s a temple nearby with decent incense offerings, it attracts many pilgrims who come to burn incense and worship Buddha.

So the foot traffic is still quite good.

And Miss Jiang’s ‘Shi Ning Ji’ is located at the head of the road.

Maintaining a distance of no more than a hundred meters from that ‘Emperor’s Chicken’ shop.

When Jiang Ning arrived at the Siyuan shop.

Her eldest cousin was talking to a renovation worker at the entrance.

As she got closer, she heard.

They were discussing the production of the light sign.

Because this is an old street.

There are many plane trees along the street.

The dense branches often block the signs of shops along the street.

So many shops don’t bother with signs.

They leave them blank, or simply add some color to maintain aesthetics.

The renovation master’s idea was also this.

Instead of hanging a sign above, make the sign into a floor-standing light box and place it on the roadside in front of the shop.

Leaving aside whether this would be aesthetically pleasing.

From the perspective of safety, as it might obstruct pedestrians if placed on the road surface.

Jiang Ning was not in favor.

So she thought for a moment, then directly interjected:

“How about making the storefront bigger?”

“And putting the piglet’s image on it too.”

“Like KFC or Golden Arches, when people see the piglet, they’ll think of our shop name.”

Hearing this.

The renovation master turned his head and looked at the beautiful young girl who had suddenly appeared, asking in confusion.

“You are?”

Meanwhile, Tian Wenhao stroked his sparsely bearded chin.

“She’s my cousin.”

“Just do as she says.”

——————

At the same time.

Inside the ‘Emperor’s Chicken’ shop.

The team leader, Pang Chunfang, was sitting by a window, head down, poking at a small calculator.

“Zero.”

“Seventy-eight plus ninety-four plus.”

“Equals one thousand four hundred and three.”

After calculating, Pang Chunfang rubbed her somewhat sore neck and recorded the number in her notebook.

Then she took out her phone and dialed a number.

A moment later.

A gentle voice came from the other end of the line.

“Chunfang, something wrong?”

“President Shang, this week’s sales are out. It’s a total of one thousand four hundred and three, which is 5% less than last week. I think…”

It took about five minutes.

After Pang Chunfang had stated all her considerations.

The voice on the other end of the phone responded indifferently.

“Hmm, once this batch of turkeys is used up, we won’t need them anymore.”

“After all, it was also to open up the market.”

Hearing this.

Pang Chunfang breathed a small sigh of relief.

As the shop manager, she was responsible for everything in the shop.

Especially when competing with others.

Thinking of this, she subconsciously lifted her gaze.

As a result, a figure not far away seemed somewhat familiar to her.

She couldn’t help but stare at that figure for a while.

Just a few glances.

She recognized that this was the girl who had visited the shop some time ago.

After all, that outstanding face was truly memorable.

However.

What made Pang Chunfang curious was why this girl was standing in front of that ‘Shi Ning Ji’ shop for so long.

And looking like she was pointing things out.

But when she focused her attention on the young man beside the girl.

The next second.

Pang Chunfang’s brows furrowed.

“President Shang, I found something…”

Immediately.

Pang Chunfang blurted out everything she had seen.

And also complained a few times about the previous self-inspection issue.

After all, the problems that girl had raised had kept their shop busy for several days.

After a while.

Finding no response from the other end of the phone, Pang Chunfang couldn’t help but ask.

“President Shang, should we do something?”

After a moment of silence.

The voice on the other end of the phone remained gentle, without any emotional fluctuation.

“No need, just do your own job well.”

“I have my own considerations for other matters.”

——————

On the other side.

Jiang Ning actually didn’t mind her whereabouts being known by the ‘Emperor’s Chicken’ people.

In fact, she deliberately lingered back and forth in front of the shop.

The main purpose was to create a smokescreen.

To let the other party know of her existence, but not know what role she played in it.

Truth mixed with falsehood, falsehood mixed with truth.

That’s essentially the idea.

Evening.

Jiang Ning and Tian Wenhao walked out of the technical school shop.

Looking at the sunset in the sky.

Miss Jiang sighed.

“Before I knew it, it’s already evening.”

“Time really flies.”

Saying that, she stretched widely.

Seeing this, Tian Wenhao smiled, revealing a row of white teeth.

“That’s how it is for bosses.”

“Another day passes before you know it.”

Yes…

Another day passed.

Jiang Ning silently agreed.

Suddenly, she remembered something.

“Cousin, I have my final exams coming up, so I might not have much time. I’ll have to trouble you to pay more attention during this period.”

“It’s fine, there’s no need to talk like that between us siblings,” Tian Wenhao replied casually.

Hearing this.

Miss Jiang chuckled, then changed the subject.

“It’s getting quite late, how about I treat you to a big meal…”

At this point, Jiang Ning seemed to remember something.

She frowned, a little disheartened.

Seeing this, Tian Wenhao thought there was something else about the shop that hadn’t been explained.

He asked in confusion.

“What’s wrong?”

Who would have thought.

Tian Wenhao’s question seemed to remind Miss Jiang of something.

She turned her head.

Brushed away her wind-blown hair.

Revealing a pretty face without makeup.

A smile that charmed all.

“Cousin, how long has it been since you last saw my mom?”

“How about we have dinner with my mom tonight?”

(End of this chapter)