The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 248: Do You Think I Can Ascend to the Heavens? (3)_1

Chapter 248: Chapter 248: Do You Think I Can Ascend to the Heavens? (3)_1

Pei Qin frowned in refusal, "He wants to cram into a room with me!"

Feng Bo opened his mouth, "Wendong isn’t that young anymore, how come he’s still... cramming into a room with you..."

"He’s just a few years old, a little kid!" Pei Qin said and then went off to get busy.

Feng Bo had no choice but to rent a room near their house to live in, which was convenient because of its proximity; even if they didn’t live together, being close made it easier to join them for meals.

However, in the entire east half of Taiping Town, he searched everywhere and could not find a single room for rent. With no other options, he had to look to the west and finally rented a room on the South Bank of the Bear River, where there were places open early for breakfast and tea.

In the noodle shop, Pei Qin also hired Lady Zhao, Sun Dashun’s eldest daughter-in-law, to do odd jobs and clear bowls.

When Feng Bo came over, he only helped out with odd jobs and attracting customers.

That was because Pei Qin had implemented a self-service system in the noodle shop: after paying, customers would take a number; once the noodles were ready, their number would be called, and they would carry their own food to find a place to sit and eat.

In fact, one person cleaning up bowls and wiping tables outside was enough. In the kitchen, noodles were prepared in advance; once cooked and scooped out, they were topped with various favorite sauces and set on the counter; customers would serve themselves, which even eliminated the need for a server.

After a day’s work, Feng Bo felt that he was pretty useless in the noodle shop. He couldn’t bring himself to do menial work like clearing bowls and wiping tables; the kitchen didn’t need him, and handling the money and keeping accounts had been passed on to Pei Qian.

When it was time to eat after the bustle had died down, Pei Qin said to him with a smile, "It really diminishes your talent to have you doing odd jobs in this small noodle shop. If you truly want to learn something, it’s the restaurants and teahouses in the county that you should look to!"

Chang Yonglin, who had come to the noodle shop to eat after school with Pei Wendong, immediately said, "Why not, I’ll take you to our shop to learn!"

There were fewer people eating at this time, but still a few, and when they heard what he said, they all envied Feng Bo.

But Feng Bo wasn’t aiming to be an apprentice at Chang’s house; his goal was to marry Pei Qin and take her home. If he went to the county town, he would be even farther away—how would he ever get the chance? So he just smiled and shook his head, "A real man stands tall and firm, his word as good as nine sacred tripods. Since I said I’d come to help, I must keep my word!"

"If you want to stand tall and firm, the distance between heaven and earth for you is indeed too short. All those grand words are empty—your future is what’s important! Since Yonglin has already mentioned it, you should consider it and also discuss it with your parents when you go home!" Pei Qin said, patting his shoulder like an elder, and turned to enter the kitchen again.

She still treated him like a little kid who hadn’t grown up. Feng Bo’s face changed a few shades before he steadied himself, unwilling to go to Chang’s house, so he stayed in the noodle shop. After they closed for the afternoon, he came to Pei Qin to learn how to keep accounts, "I’m not quite clear on how to calculate things, I’m thinking I need to listen more and learn more, hard work can compensate for lack of skill, I’m sure I’ll learn to do it well eventually!"

Pei Qin simply waved her hand and trudged towards home.

"You’re not much help as an assistant here, and we’re exhausted to death, haven’t even had a moment’s rest!" Pei Qian glanced at her with disapproval, closed the noodle shop, and left. The meat that Grandma Sun had cut, not for her own family but for her mother, carrying that whole bunch of stuff for them, even if she hadn’t found out, there was certainly something not good about this!

Back at home, Pei Qin sprawled onto her bamboo bed and immediately dozed off.

"Big sister! I’ll boil some water for you, do you want to wash before you sleep? It’s more refreshing!" Pei Yuan asked her softly.

Pei Qin shook her head, "No need to wash."

Seeing that she fell asleep quickly, Pei Qian pulled Pei Yuan into her room to talk, "We need to think of a way to send him off, he doesn’t have good intentions!"

"We’re all relatives, and since he’s already here without doing anything wrong, it wouldn’t be right to send him away!" Pei Yuan felt it was not quite right.