Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Even Feng Yanwen herself didn’t realize when fewer matchmakers came around, and no more visitors came by.

Feng Yanwen noticed the shift in gossip, and it turned out Auntie Wang was the one who started it. Outside, she claimed Feng divorced for her child’s sake and wasn’t looking to remarry for the same reason. She even explained why Xu Meng had improved so much—hard work and the ability to focus solely on studying.

In no time, Feng Yanwen was seen as a devoted mother.

This reputation was convincing, especially since Xu Meng was out early and back late every day, with Chang Xi's mother even saying Xu Meng made Chang Xi study during breaks.

"Our Chang Xi used to be such an unfocused child, she would just watch TV during holidays. It’s all thanks to Xu Meng keeping an eye on her—she’s made huge progress this year," Chang Xi's mother beamed, clearly in high spirits lately.

In the recent mock exams, Chang Xi scored 370, her best score yet.

Of course, she couldn’t compare to Xu Meng, but at her school, it was a decent score, especially in English, where she’d improved to over 70 points. Chang Xi's mother was convinced that if her daughter kept this up, she might even get into college.

Everyone in the neighborhood knew what kind of kid Chang Xi was—smart but too playful.

"It helps to have a study buddy," someone mused, probably thinking of ways to get their own child closer to Xu Meng.

"Absolutely, and it’s also Teacher Feng’s good teaching," Chang Xi's mother chimed in, her smile unwavering. "They say ‘a wise mother moves for her child’s education’—even divorcing partly for the child’s sake. It’s not easy."

"Her ex-husband’s family didn’t deserve her. I heard her mother-in-law was really nasty."

At the mention of gossip, Chang Xi's mother quickly stopped boasting and leaned in to join the chatter…

Over the weekend, Xu Meng visited the hotpot restaurant, ignoring the death stares from the competition.

Xiang Xiang Stir-Fry had been struggling lately.

By the time the broth prep was done at five in the afternoon, they’d been working nonstop all day. They’d made enough base for about ten days.

After the free-broth promotion ended, business didn’t slow down—it only got better.

Winter was approaching, the perfect season for hotpot. Zhang Mingqing was brainstorming new menu ideas when she spotted Xu Meng and eagerly waved her over.

Once Xu Meng approached, Zhang pushed the ledger toward her. "Take a look at how much we’ve made. Count your share of the commission."

Her smug grin was nearly blinding.

The ledger recorded daily earnings, one page per day. Flipping through, Xu Meng was shocked—after the free promotion, they rarely made less than 1,500 a day, with weekends even busier. Yesterday’s earnings had surpassed 1,800.

Without even calculating costs, Zhang knew they were turning a profit.

She hadn’t invested much upfront, and she’d make it back in under three months.

Zhang’s smile never faded. She’d filed for divorce.

Once the business stabilized, she’d gained the confidence to leave her marriage without fear of hardship. Now, with a lawyer handling the case, she’d already gotten a good chunk of money from her in-laws and gathered plenty of connections. She even had proof of her husband’s affair and secret child from the affair—divorce was inevitable.

The only unresolved matters were the settlement and custody of Tuan Tuan.

The Li family, despite their preference for sons, refused to let go of Tuan Tuan, their only grandchild.

At Tuan Tuan’s sensitive age, being raised by either her grandmother or father would do her no good.

If not for meeting Feng Yanwen, Zhang Mingqing might have been too afraid to divorce.

But now divorce doesn’t seem so bad after all. Look how great Teacher Feng’s doing—so many people envy how well-behaved her kids are and how good her life is. It's not that no one wants her; she simply doesn't want to get married again!

Xu Meng did a quick estimate and exclaimed in surprise, "This month’s earnings must be close to fifty grand!"

And this was fifty grand in the '90s! She didn’t even want to guess how much Zhang Mingqing was pulling in.

Based on the current labor costs at the shop, waiters made just three hundred, assistants two seventy, and Liu Jingyuan four hundred fifty. Song Xia and Wang Jiahui made a bit more, with their base pay plus commissions totaling around seven hundred a month. Adding in her own salary as the head chef, the total labor costs barely hit six or seven grand.

Then there was rent and supplies.

No matter how you crunched the numbers, Zhang Mingqing was clearly raking it in now.

Zhang Mingqing discussed with her, "When’s your next monthly break?"

The monthly break was a full weekend off, once a month, given by the school. Right now, weekends were just one day, but since school let out early on Saturdays, it effectively meant a day and a half off. Normally, Xu Meng would spend it doing chores at home, but seeing how well the shop was doing, she wanted to pitch in on her break to take some load off weekends.

Before leaving, Zhang Mingqing handed Xu Meng a bag of packed hot pot base. "Take it home and enjoy."

Xu Meng happily accepted it.

She’d made hot pot base before, but it was never as good as the shop’s.

Not to mention the shop had bigger woks, stronger fires, and more seasonings—just the beef tallow alone was something most folks wouldn’t bother making. Lately, Xu Meng had been so busy working that she hadn't even had hot pot much. Han Jiming still came to pick her up, and when she got in the car, she gave him a small packet.

Han Jiming took the hot pot base, then drove her to Shijia Hutong. When they came out, he was carrying a large basket of goods.

"Oranges from Jiangxi—really fresh. Brought some for you to taste."

Jiangxi navel oranges were a rare yearly treat, extremely rare in the north and impossible to buy on the market. Xu Meng grabbed one and took a whiff, not even pretending to be polite. "Smells amazing."

Han Jiming smiled. "If you like them, take them first. If more come in later, I’ll drop them by your place."

Xu Meng was overjoyed and didn't hesitate, carrying the oranges into the car.

Back home, Feng Yanwen saw the large basket of oranges and scolded, "Stop running over to the Hans’ place all the time. They’re just being nice—you can’t just take everything they offer!"

It wasn't like she asked for them, and she did give them hot pot base in return!

Xu Meng stuck out her tongue and got back to tidying up. A little while later, a small head peeked in from next door.

"Zhao Xing?"

"I came to play with your Liu Jin."

"He's not home. Want to come in and sit?"

The kid from next door looked underfed.

When he didn’t find Liu Jin, he bolted without a second thought.

He nearly crashed into Feng Yanwen as she walked in with groceries.

Xu Meng waved Feng Yanwen over to help—she had just stripped the bedsheets and was about to wash them.

Feng Yanwen walked over, but as soon as she bent down, a sharp pain shot through her back.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch..."

"Where does it hurt?" Xu Meng helped her sit on a chair, but the moment Feng Yanwen touched the seat, she started crying out in pain again.

Xu Meng was inexperienced and was at a loss for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Yang Sanshu happened to pass by and steadied Feng Yanwen, guiding her into the bedroom. "Teacher Feng, are you alright?"

Feng Yanwen lay down on the bed, holding her waist. "I don’t know what’s wrong with my back—it suddenly started hurting."

Yang Sanshu had her lie face down and pressed a few spots on her back before saying, "Probably just strain. Don’t do any heavy work these days. Do you have any liniment at home?"

Xu Meng shook her head.

Yang Sanshu turned and left, returning shortly with a bottle of medicated liquor. She gave Feng Yanwen a massage—she had a knack for it. Back when her husband was in the military, he’d often come home from drills covered in aches and pains. At the time, she had lived on base with him and learned some tricks from other military wives. After the massage, she had Feng Yanwen lie face down on the bed. Before leaving, she helped Xu Meng wring the sheets dry, then took the bottle of medicated liquor home.

A short while later, an old lady’s yelling could be heard from next door.

Xu Meng couldn’t make out the dialect and didn’t pay much attention.

Feng Yanwen rested all afternoon. By dinnertime, she moved around a bit and found the pain gone. "Auntie Yang’s hands are really good. Later, take something over to thank her."

Yang Sanshu was Zhao Xing’s mother. Though the two families lived next door, they didn't interact much.

Occasionally, when Zhao Xing played at their place, she’d come looking for him.

They only knew that a big household lived next door—not locals.

A few years ago, the elderly couple had moved in from out of town and lived with them.

But the family mostly kept to themselves. Since Feng Yanwen and Xu Meng had moved in, they’d barely exchanged more than a few words with their neighbors.

At dinner, Xu Meng decided to make hotpot—a big pot of kelp, tofu skin, and potatoes stewed together—easy and hearty. She sent a bowl over to the three kids next door. Remembering Yang Sanshu’s help, Feng Yanwen said, "Bring some over for Auntie Yang too. We owe her today."

"Sure," Xu Meng replied.

It was dinnertime, and as they stepped out, the clatter of dinner tables echoed.

Just as they were talking, a ruckus broke out outside.

At first, it was faint, but soon, the cries of an old woman grew louder and louder.

Xu Meng recognized the voice and hurried outside. There, an old woman sat sprawled on the ground, ranting incoherently. Beside her stood the frightened little boy, his clothes clutched in her grip. The usually sharp kid was now frozen in fear.

The moment he saw Xu Meng, he bawled his eyes out.

The woman on the ground was none other than Granny Chen from next door.

Though they were neighbors, interactions between the two families were rare. The alley was a mixed bag of personalities, and even from the occasional gossip and the shouting matches next door, it was clear what kind of people they were.

Old Lady Chen had always been lazy and gluttonous—the definition of lazy and greedy.

Every time Xu Meng came home, she’d hear Chen yammering on while her daughter-in-law swept the streets and took care of the household. Chen, meanwhile, wouldn't lift a finger. Worse, she was a bottomless pit—rumor had it that back in the day, when the production team slaughtered a pig, her large family was allotted a whole pork knuckle and over ten pounds of meat, which she and her husband polished off in one go.

With all that free time and energy, why didn’t she ever lift a hand to help at home?

Xu Meng, in both lifetimes, had no patience for these types.

In truth, for someone in their forties or fifties, Chen was far from old. Judging by how loudly she yelled, she was clearly in excellent health.

A crowd had gathered, buzzing with gossip. Xu Meng walked over, scooped the second child into her arms, and patted his head, worried he’d been frightened.

And frightened he was—after all, he was only six. No matter how clever he usually was, being grabbed and shoved by an adult had left him utterly bewildered. Now, with an adult finally there, he lost it and cried.

"Finally, a grown-up’s here. You're his sister, right? This old woman says the child pushed her and she fell."

The speaker was likely a passerby. This alley was a shortcut, and many people took this route at this hour.

The second child immediately shouted, "I didn't push her! She was creeping around our doorstep, and when I called out to her, she fell. Not my fault!"

This kid’s always been quick-witted, speaking more coherently than kids his age. Shaking off his scare, he now explained things clearly.

The third child chimed in, "She fell on her own. She was hanging around our place."

Xu Meng asked, "There’s no old lady in our family. What were you doing lurking around our door?"

In a place like this, packed with diverse residents, thefts and quarrels were common, especially during the holidays.

Old Lady Chen howled, "Don’t deny it! You reckless little brat, knocking over an old woman like me! You’re nothing but bad news, motherless brat! How dare you! You hurt me—you’ll pay for my medical bills!"

Her eyes lit up as she added, "And compensation for my suffering!"

This family had it too good, and Old Lady Chen had long been envious.

Xu Meng patted the second child’s shoulder. "Tell the truth. Did you push her? I know you’re a good kid. If it was an accident, we’ll fix it. But if it wasn’t you—hmm."

She wasn’t one to be bullied.

Some bystanders, playing the good Samaritan, muttered, "Enough arguing. Just take her to the clinic. The poor old woman might be seriously hurt."

...All talk, no action.

Others said, "It doesn’t look bad. Help her up and see if she can walk."

...The more reasonable ones.

Respecting your elders was the rule, and Old Lady Chen’s theatrics swayed the crowd. Xu Meng was stuck—taking her to the hospital meant footing the bill and endless disputes, but not taking her risked real injury.

The onlookers egged them on, insisting Old Lady Chen be sent to the hospital.

She hammed it up, wailing like she was dying.

"What’s going on?" Feng Yanwen’s soft voice broke through the noise.

Old Lady Chen turned it up a notch, clutching her back and howling, "I’m finished! My back’s broken! If I’m crippled, you’ll be stuck with me forever!"

The crowd grew louder. "These kids are wild! Blasting firecrackers nonstop—I knew something like this would happen!"

Another added, "That second one’s the worst, always causing trouble..."

Old Lady Chen seized the moment. "It was his firecrackers that scared me!"

The second kid turned red with frustration.

One accuser he could handle, but against so many, he stood no chance.