Chapter Fifteen: Celestial Beings Are Prone to Mistakes
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Chu’s family looked at her in confusion.
“Qing’er, what did you say? Are you not fully awake yet?”
“Who wouldn’t want to shout first thing in the morning before going to work? Ah—”
Liang Yunqing finally understood the chicken; she had to yell several times before getting out of bed, putting on a gray hemp shirt and patched cloth shoes.
When she pushed open the door and stepped into the courtyard, everything was already prepared. Li Pinghua was still counting the number of steamed dumplings.
Liang Yunqing had to admit that although Second Aunt was a bit of a shrew, a little greedy, and somewhat scheming, she was indeed a good employee.
She was even more diligent and hardworking than herself when it came to work.
“Yunqing, everything is ready. We can set off now.”
Hearing Li Pinghua’s words, Liang Yunqing fastened the money pouch at her waist, and the family set out once again in a grand procession.
After loading the goods onto the cart, Liang Mingxue took out the leftover steamed buns from yesterday and handed them to Chu’s wife.
“Take these for the road, my dear.”
Chu’s wife took them, glancing at her dark-skinned husband. Ever since hearing Liang Yunqing’s words the last time, she had become a bit firmer in her attitude toward Liang Mingxue.
Seeing him still thinking of her now softened her heart somewhat.
“Dear, remember to rest when you go back.”
“Mm.”
Liang Mingxue nodded, gave the cart a push, and then turned to leave.
Leaning against the table, Liang Yunqing watched the scene unfold. Li Pinghua sneered disdainfully. She had always looked down on Chu’s wife, seeing her as someone easily manipulated and weak.
But given their current business with Liang Yunqing, Li Pinghua restrained herself somewhat.
When they arrived in town and were about to move the table to the spot where they had set up yesterday, they found that the place was already occupied.
“Hey? Who’s the fool that took our spot?”
Li Pinghua put her hands on her hips, ready to rush over, but Liang Yunqing called out from behind,
“Second Aunt, let me take a look first.”
Liang Yunqing had anticipated this might happen yesterday but hadn’t expected it to happen so soon—only the second day of setting up, and someone had already taken their spot.
She strode over and saw that the stall was occupied by the woman who sold meat buns.
The woman looked at her approaching figure with a wary and arrogant expression, waving a fire poker and shouting,
“What do you want? What are you doing here?”
Seeing her so flustered, Liang Yunqing knew the woman had deliberately set up there.
However, since the spot didn’t belong to them, if others wanted to set up there, it was not their concern. Liang Yunqing was about to turn and find another place.
But the woman, seeing her turn away, mistook her for a pushover and immediately started shouting,
“You little girl, this street is managed by my nephew. If you want to set up a stall, you have to pay me! Otherwise—”
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She raised the fire poker and blocked Liang Yunqing’s path, continuing,
“Otherwise, I won’t allow you to set up here. Got it?”
Liang Yunqing, who hadn’t wanted to cause trouble, shook her head helplessly. Kindness invites cruelty, and gentleness invites oppression.
“Ma’am, could you please move aside? Don’t bring me bad luck so early in the morning.”
“How dare you talk like that? I’m not letting you set up today!”
The meat bun woman slammed the fire poker on the ground, her face full of rage.
She had known since yesterday that the steamed dumplings sold very well, causing her own buns to sell only one basket. Today, she absolutely could not lose her business.
Liang Yunqing looked at her disdainfully and spoke calmly,
“Ma’am, you say this street is managed by your nephew?”
“Yes!”
“I don’t understand. Our village has a gentry who manages affairs, the town has a local official, and the county has a government office. You say your nephew manages the streets in this town? So, he must be some kind of official.”
Liang Yunqing glared at the woman before her. The woman stiffened her neck and refused to yield, grabbing Liang Yunqing’s sleeve recklessly.
“My nephew is the one in charge. Let’s see how arrogant you are. You won’t be allowed to set up in the town again, got it?”
“Oh...”
Liang Yunqing didn’t rush to pull back her sleeve, her tone indifferent.
This confused the woman. Was the girl really that soft? She had already ordered her not to set up, yet she did not resist.
Liang Yunqing glanced at the meat bun stall and softly said,
“Your stall is on fire.”
“???”
The woman was stunned for a few seconds before looking toward her stall, realizing she had been so focused on the argument that she forgot to use the fire poker to reduce the flames.
The steaming basket had no water in it and had already turned black, releasing thick smoke.
Seeing the woman rush over frantically to fetch water and extinguish the flames, Liang Yunqing stood nearby, hands swaying, singing,
“At dawn, people make mistakes, stalls catch fire, der~der~der~”
Hearing the voice behind her, the woman, eyes brimming with tears, glared angrily at Liang Yunqing.
“It’s all your fault, all your fault!”
She raised the fire poker and charged again.
“You old hag, how dare you take our spot!”
Suddenly, a figure dashed out behind Liang Yunqing. It was Li Pinghua, who had rushed over, and in the next moment, the two were wrestling.
Given Li Pinghua’s previous experience with beatings, her ability to endure hits was now next level.
The fire poker blows felt like mere scratches, and soon she had the meat bun woman pinned beneath her.
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“Serves you right for being so arrogant! Serves you right for stealing business!”
The woman underneath was not to be outdone, clawing at Li Pinghua’s hair and shouting,
“You stole my business first! You came to compete with me first!”
Hearing this, Liang Yunqing stopped Li Pinghua from slapping her again and helped her up.
“Second Aunt, don’t hit her anymore. Save your strength for setting up the stall later.”
Chu’s wife, catching up and breathless, also grabbed Li Pinghua.
The woman lying on the ground looked at them with pure resentment in her eyes. She rolled over and sat up, trying to throw a tantrum, but Liang Yunqing stopped her with a single sentence,
“Make another scene and I’ll kill you.”
The moment the words left her mouth, the surroundings fell completely silent.
The meat bun woman stared at her in shock, her lips trembling slightly.
“You... you would kill someone?”
Even Li Pinghua beside her shuddered, thinking that Liang Yunqing was even fiercer than herself. While she might threaten to beat someone to death, Liang Yunqing spoke of killing outright.
Enjoying the sudden quiet, Liang Yunqing continued,
“I was just joking to lighten the mood.”
Lighten the mood? The three exchanged glances drenched in cold sweat. Liang Yunqing paid no attention to their expressions and said,
“You say we stole your business first, but yesterday I specifically set up far away from you to avoid trouble. Yet today, you not only took my spot but also demand money. How does that make sense?”
After speaking, she quietly looked at the woman sitting on the ground.
“When you set up your stall, I had no business. If you need to support your family, don’t I also need to? No one’s buying my meat buns anymore.”
Tears fell down the woman’s cheeks as she wiped them and stood up.
Liang Yunqing’s expression remained calm, her eyes void of any excess emotion, addressing the matter plainly,
“So? Stopping me from setting up won’t stop others from competing with you. You should think about how to make your meat buns special instead of just hoping no one else sets up here.”
“I... I...”
Unable to find a reply, the woman adjusted her apron, about to find an excuse to justify herself, when a small voice came from behind.
“Granny, granny.”
A little girl in a pale pink jacket walked over. She looked about three or four years old, tugging at the woman anxiously while timidly glancing at the group.
Her small face still bore traces of drool, as if she had just woken up.
“Yuanbao, why are you up? Go back quickly.”