Chapter 55: Yearning

Early in the morning, stalls were already being set up by the docks. They set up their stall too, and with two extra pairs of hands today, everything went much faster. Taking advantage of the early hour, before many customers came to eat, Cao Xiangnan instructed Cao Gang to watch the stall while he and Wanfeng went to see Doctor Luo.

“Wanfeng, let’s go.” Cao Xiangnan, leaning on his crutches, walked to Qi Wanfeng’s side. Doctor Luo had told them to return after seven days, and their medicine at home was used up. They needed to go to see if they should get more medicine or what to do.

He also hoped his leg would recover soon, which would make many things much more convenient.

“Okay.” Qi Wanfeng carried a food box in his hand, filled with food for Doctor Luo.

The Luo Family Clinic wasn’t open yet; the front door was closed. People who arrived early were already waiting at the clinic’s entrance. Last time, Doctor Luo had told them that if there were too many people in front, they could enter through the small gate in the backyard—essentially giving them a “backdoor.”

They didn’t have much time to wait outside today, so they went through the alley to the side door of the Luo Clinic.

“Knock, knock.” “Coming, coming! Who’s knocking so early?” Someone in the courtyard had already gotten up. A young apprentice was carrying medicinal herbs from the house to dry in the yard. Hearing the knocking, he went to open the door.

“Little brother, I’m from Caojia Village. I’m here to see Doctor Luo. Has Doctor Luo gotten up yet?” Cao Xiangnan said, pulling out a small string of copper coins from his inner pocket and placing them in the boy’s hand, smiling as he spoke.

The boy accepted the coins and silently pocketed them. His expression immediately changed, a smile appearing on his face. He drew out a long “Oh,” as if just remembering, and said, “Oh, it’s you! You’ve come to see our Doctor Luo so early! Doctor Luo just got up and is practicing his boxing in the yard.”

The young apprentices studying medicine at the clinic didn’t receive a monthly salary. They got three meals a day, and Doctor Luo or his wife gave them a few coins a year to buy snacks. They didn’t have much money in their pockets.

Money makes the world go round. Don’t underestimate these little doorkeepers. To make it easier to find Doctor Luo in the future, Cao Xiangnan was willing to spend a few coins. After all, Qi Wanfeng was carrying their child; he needed to ensure a safe delivery.

Qi Wanfeng watched his husband give money to the boy without batting an eye.

In the past, his husband would return once a month, giving his wages to his mother. He never thought about getting even a single coin from his wife. But now, his husband gave him all the money in the house. To make things easier, he was also willing to spend a few coins on the doorkeeper.

His husband had changed a lot, but he preferred the husband he had now. It made him unconsciously want to get used to him and rely on him. This was his husband, someone he could depend on for life.

“Who’s here?” Doctor Luo, hearing the voices, stopped his boxing and asked.

“Doctor Luo, it’s me, Cao Xiangnan,” Cao Xiangnan quickly replied.

The boy opened the door wider. As soon as he entered, he saw Doctor Luo in the courtyard. He bowed slightly, saying apologetically, “I apologize for coming through the backyard’s side door, disturbing Doctor Luo’s boxing.”

“It’s nothing, no need to be so polite. Has the leg injury improved? Are you changing the dressing every day?” Doctor Luo had a deep impression of the man. Seeing him, his face lit up with a warm smile.

The clinic was now using Cao Xiangnan’s suggestions. The outside was well-organized. People didn’t line up outside the clinic like a long dragon; those who took a number and registered would find a place to sit and wait to be called. This way, no one would cut in line or cause trouble, which was much better than before.

“Yes, I am. The medicine is changed every day. We’ve run out of medicine at home, so I came to ask Doctor Luo if we should continue the medication or what we should do.” The medicine on his leg was changed every day. The swelling had gone down, and it didn’t hurt as much as it did at first. Cao Xiangnan hoped his leg would heal quickly and placed his hope in Doctor Luo.

“We’ll know after taking a look,” Doctor Luo said.

“Doctor Luo,” Qi Wanfeng respectfully greeted.

“Hmm, you look pretty good,” Doctor Luo glanced at Qi Wanfeng and asked, “Any discomfort in your body?”

“Thank you, Doctor Luo. Wanfeng’s body is doing very well now, with no discomfort.” Qi Wanfeng found that this pregnancy was truly better than when he was pregnant with An’an. His initial discomfort improved after some time, and he had no other symptoms.

Now that his husband’s health was getting better day by day, he didn’t have to worry about him day and night. Away from the Cao family compound and free from his mother’s scolding, their life in the small courtyard, though busy, was very good every day. As a result, his physical and mental health gradually improved.

“Well, I’ll take a look at you later too.” Doctor Luo smelled a fragrance, sniffed, and looked at the food box Qi Wanfeng was carrying, asking, “What kind of food is inside?”

“Doctor Luo, your nose is really sharp.” Cao Xiangnan smiled, saying, “We opened a food stall at the docks the day before yesterday, and we brought you a portion to try today.”

Thinking about coming to Doctor Luo’s place today, Cao Xiangnan specially bought half a catty of pork belly and braised it with spices. So, he brought pork belly for Doctor Luo, not the pig offal they sold at the stall. Although it tasted good, it wouldn’t be proper to give that as a gift.

“It smells very fragrant. Come, let’s try it.” Doctor Luo was very interested in the food.

Qi Wanfeng put the food box down, opened the lid, and took out the food inside. The spiced braised pork belly was fragrant, along with a few catties of river noodles.

The young apprentice brought chopsticks and bowls. Cao Xiangnan mixed a portion of the river noodles with sauce for Doctor Luo, placing it in front of him, “We’ll heat this meat up for your lunch; it’s too greasy to eat now.” Despite saying that, Cao Xiangnan still placed a piece of pork in Doctor Luo’s bowl, letting him taste it.

“What are you eating that smells so good? I smelled it from inside the house.” Doctor Luo’s wife also came out from the back, asking with a smile.

“Haha, your nose is as sharp as a dog’s.” Doctor Luo had a good relationship with his wife, beckoning her to sit down with them.

Cao Xiangnan quickly ladled a bowl of river noodles for Madam Luo and placed it in front of her.

Doctor Luo re-examined the leg injury. The swelling had gone down, and it was recovering well. Madam Luo prescribed new medicine, saying it would be healed soon. Cao Xiangnan was very happy.

After Doctor Luo examined Qi Wanfeng and said that his health was very good, Cao Xiangnan was relieved; he had been worried about Wanfeng’s health. Doctor Luo prescribed medicine for Qi Wanfeng to continue conditioning, and they left Doctor Luo’s place.

When they returned from Doctor Luo’s, there were already two customers eating at the stall. Compared to yesterday, when it took a long time to get the first customer, it was a lot better to have business as soon as they opened today.

Cao Xiangnan went to say a few words to Cao Gang, who was standing in front of the stall watching it, and then replaced him, standing in front of the stall. After the two customers left, he called out, “Sun Ji, Dapeng, come over here.”

When everyone came over, Cao Xiangnan said, “I’ll cook a bowl for you to watch. If it gets busy in the future, you can help cook the river noodles.”

While cooking the river noodles, he told them what to pay attention to. The main thing was to quickly boil the river noodles and take them out, not to soak them in the water for too long, or they would become too soft and lose their texture.

Qi Wanfeng also stood by, watching. At home, his husband had cooked river noodles several times, so he knew how to cook them. Watching his husband explain it once, he understood how to do it.

All the food at the stall was pre-made. Cooking the river noodles was about getting the amount for each bowl right. If there were many customers, they had to speed up their hands and remember what each customer ordered, not getting it wrong. The former was easier to do; the latter required some brainpower, as it was easy to get confused when there were many people.

Cao Xiangnan wanted to train two people to stand in his position. Qi Wanfeng and Sun Ji were good choices. As for Cao Gang and Cao Dapeng, they were good at serving bowls, but they needed to take their time to do this kind of work.

“Have you eaten yet?” Cao Xiangnan asked.

Seeing them shake their heads, Cao Xiangnan told Wanfeng to cook, making one bowl for each of them, and they sat down to eat breakfast. Today was Sun Ji and Cao Dapeng’s first day, and they weren’t very familiar with the things at the stall. The work wasn’t difficult; they could get the hang of it in a day or two.

“When you’re watching the stall, if there aren’t many customers at that time, you can eat something if you’re hungry. You can eat anything we sell here to your heart’s content. If you’re tired of eating our own food, you can buy something to eat from another stall. The daily food expenses will be paid by the stall,” Cao Xiangnan explained to Sun Ji and Cao Dapeng, afraid they would foolishly work on an empty stomach.

They were essentially getting two meals a day, with the last meal eaten at home.

Otherwise, eating the things they sold every day would get tiring, no matter how good they were.

“It’s… it’s so delicious! We won’t eat other people’s food; we won’t spend that money.” Cao Dapeng, eating the white, plump river noodles made from ground rice, felt that eating this was already the best thing in the world. Why would he spend money to eat other people’s food?

He had a big appetite and ate a big bowl.

Cao Xiangnan had a very important matter to deal with today. There was still some time before noon, which he could use to free himself up. Qi Wanfeng and the others could watch the stall.

“Brother Sun Ji, let’s go.” After instructing Qi Wanfeng to stay here and watch the stall, and greeting the others, Cao Xiangnan had Sun Ji pick up the food box and left with him.

Sun Ji followed Cao Xiangnan, not really knowing what he was going to do.

“We’re going to a place to find people to buy our river noodles,” Cao Xiangnan noticed Sun Ji looking at him, blinked, and said.

In the early morning streets of Fenshui Town, shops on both sides opened their doors for business. They walked on the roads paved with green bricks, and there were pedestrians on the road who had gotten up early like them. On the way, Cao Xiangnan told Sun Ji what they were going to do.

The reason he chose Sun Ji and not someone else was that he felt Sun Ji was a promising talent in this aspect. Replacing him with the slow-witted Cao Dapeng or the stern, unsmiling Cao Gang really wouldn’t be suitable. “Do you understand?” After speaking, Cao Xiangnan asked.

Sun Ji still seemed to understand and nodded, perhaps understanding roughly.