Chapter 184

Uncle Yang is currently staying at Su Xiaoxiao’s house. Early in the morning, he got up and went to the shop to start working. Similarly, Bai Lan wakes up before dawn to prepare. Although today would be just like yesterday, only busy during lunchtime, they still couldn’t sleep out of excitement and cleaned the stove and tables countless times until they were as reflective as mirrors. They felt at ease only when staying at the shop.

Han Cheng had been extremely busy recently, working on a project without even taking weekends off. He got up early to have breakfast at the shop, “Three Meals, Four Seasons,” for the first time since its opening. Despite knowing the capabilities of his son and Zhuzi, he was still amazed by what he saw. Initially, when Su Xiaoxiao mentioned letting the kids handle the shop’s design, he thought it was too risky, but the results turned out to be very good.

Han Cheng looked at the playful flowers, plants, and bird eggs at the bottom and could tell at a glance whose “masterpiece” it was. There was even a potted begonia from home on the cashier’s counter, with little red packets from New Year still hanging on it. Beautiful paper-cut decorations by Fantuan adorned the windows, and various auspicious phrases written by the children were pasted on the doors. Only a mother like Su Xiaoxiao could raise such creative children and create such an innovative restaurant.

Compared to those rigid template designs, this kind of restaurant stands out among the crowd. Even if they don’t eat, everyone will still be willing to come in and sit for a while longer, and the name of their restaurant will be spread like word-of-mouth advertising. Han Cheng imagined that soon, half of the university students in the capital would come to visit. He had to admit that his wife had a real knack for business.

The kids gradually woke up and got ready to go to “Three Meals, Four Seasons” for breakfast. Even little Xiao Tangyuan got up early with her brothers. The laziest person in the house now was Su Xiaoxiao, who was reluctant to leave her warm bed in the cold weather. She even instructed Xiao Tangyuan to ask her brothers to bring breakfast back for her. She decided not to go to the shop that morning.

Since Tnagyuan didn’t get up to help Xiao Tangyuan braid her hair, The little girl dressed on her own, gave her mother a good morning kiss, and left with her hair uncombed, nearly bumping into Zhuzi, who had just finished washing up.

Little Zhuzi bent down to pick up the little girl and said, “Why did Xiao Tangyuan get up so early? Why not sleep a little longer?”

Xiao Tangyuan snuggled against her brother’s neck, sleepy, and, in a soft voice, said, “Xiao Tangyuan wants to eat Xiao Tangyuan.”

Zhuzi laughed. “There are no tangyuan at the shop. If you want to eat them, I’ll take you out to get some later.”

Xiao Tangyuan said softly, “Okay~”

Zhuzi rubbed the little girl’s soft hair, feeling his heart melt.

“Fantuan, take them to the store for breakfast. My sister wants to eat rice dumplings. I’ll take her out to eat later,” Zhuzi said to Fantuan.

Xiao Roubao immediately raised his hand and said, “Brother Zhuzi, I also want to eat rice dumplings stuffed with sesame!”

Zhuzi replied, “Then wait a bit. Once Xiao Tangyuan finishes washing up, we’ll all go together.”

Fantuan suggested, “We haven’t gone out for breakfast in a while, so let’s all go.”

Zhuzi shook his head. “You should go to the shop. Uncle Yang would worry if we didn’t show up.”

The grown-up big Fantuan doesn’t like sweets as much as the little Fantuan when he was young. Compared with dumplings, rice dumplings really prefer dumplings: “OK, Xiao Doubao and I will go first.”

Xiao Roubao, chewing his chubby fingers, blinked his big eyes and asked, “Brother Zhuzi, I want both dumplings and tangyuan. Can you bring me tangyuan after I eat my dumplings?”

Zhuzi chuckled and pinched Xiao Roubao’s face. “Sure, as long as you can eat it all.”

Xiao Roubao smiled and said, “I can eat it all, no matter how much you bring!”

Fantuan took his two younger brothers to the shop, while Zhuzi helped the little princess wash her hands and face, brush her teeth, and even style her hair into two cute braids before carrying her out.

The happiest person to have a restaurant at home is, naturally, Xiao Roubao. Both Bai Lan and Lao Yang have a special fondness for this cub. Xiao Roubao can act cute, be charming, and eat a lot. After he finished eating his meal, he could still talk, making the two chefs very happy. They make everything he wants to eat. As long as there are ingredients in the restaurant, they will always respond to his requests. Th. After the brothers had finished eating and prepared breakfast for their mother to take home, Xiao Roubao still lingered at the shop, unwilling to leave.

Fantuan didn’t feel at ease before leaving: “Aunt Lan, Uncle Yang, Mom said Xiao Roubao has a bottomless stomach. He’ll eat as much as you give him, so please control his portions and don’t spoil him too much. He won’t know when he’s full.”
Since witnessing Xiao Roubao devour twenty-five dumplings, Bai Lan and Uncle Yang have been amazed by his appetite. Xiao Tangyuan could only eat five or six dumplings in one meal, Xiao Doubao ten, and Fantuan and Zhuzi, who ate like typical growing boys, could eat twenty at most. Xiao Roubao, however, ate twenty-five and still drank all the soup, leaving nothing behind. It was an astonishing sight indeed.

Bai Lan and Uncle Yang were genuinely worried he’d overeat. But the little guy, after finishing his meal, was bouncing around without any discomfort, frequently running to the gate to see if Zhuzi had returned with the tangyuan (glutinous rice ball) he promised to give him.

On his nth trip to the gate, instead of Zhuzi, Xiao Roubao encountered two guests.

A man and a woman. The woman, who looked quite pretty and well-dressed, asked Xiao Roubao, “Little friend, is there food in here?”

Xiao Roubao tilted his head and replied, “No food, but there are dumplings. Very delicious sour soup dumplings. Do you want some?”

The woman ignored Xiao Roubao and said to the man, “Let’s just eat something here. Didn’t your brother-in-law want to open a shop too? I want to see how they do it. If we could get the old lady’s yard, we could use it as a shop. The location might be a bit off, but good wine needs no bush. If your brother-in-law’s cooking is good, customers will come regardless.”

The man said, “Keep your voice down; we’re in the neighborhood; the walls have ears.”

The woman glanced at Xiao Roubao, who looked like a chubby, stupid little boy. “That kid? If he understands what we’re saying, I’ll chop off my head and let you use it as a stool for you to sit on.”

The man seemed to agree that he was being overly cautious. After all, what could such a small child understand? Still, he lowered his voice and said, “Better safe than sorry. You don’t actually want to take back Tiantian, that burden. If Grandma refuses to sell the house and just dumps her granddaughter on you, there’s nothing you can do about it. I checked the property rights; the house has nothing to do with my former brother-in-law; it’s all in Grandma’s name. We need to play this right and not push her too hard.”

The man seemed to agree that he was being overly cautious. After all, what could such a small child understand? Still, he lowered his voice and said, “Better safe than sorry. You don’t actually want to take back Tiantian, that burden. If the old woman refuses to sell the house and just dumps her granddaughter on you, there’s nothing you can do about it. I checked the property rights; the house has nothing to do with my former brother-in-law; it’s all in Grandma’s name. We need to play this right and not push her too hard.”

The woman fumed, “A useless man is always useless, no matter what. He’s almost thirty and still has the house in his mother’s name. He’s absolutely worthless.”

The man said, “We need to strike while the iron is hot. The old woman doesn’t understand the law; we can take advantage of that and get as much as we can. Ideally, we’d get half the house. Forget about getting the whole place.”

The woman nodded. “I know. I was just saying. We need to get this done quickly. I don’t want to see your former brother-in-law again. Just thinking about him makes me sick. Back when we were sent to the countryside, I only stayed with him because he seemed honest and would help me with work. I didn’t even want to look at him otherwise.”

The man said, “Forget it, sis. Your former brother-in-law wasn’t that bad. But the current one is too cunning. You should be careful around him.”

The woman rolled her eyes and rubbed her hands together. “Alright, I know. I’ve known him longer than I’ve known you. If I hadn’t been sent to the countryside, we would have had kids old enough to buy soy sauce by now. What place did your former brother-in-law have? And that burden Tiantian wouldn’t exist either. Forget it, let’s go in, eat something, and get this done.”

………………..

Xiao Roubao, the “stupid” kid, had been listening the whole time. At first, he didn’t pay much attention, but when he heard them mention “Tiantian,” he perked up and listened carefully. Watching them go inside, he muttered, “No manners. They didn’t answer my question or say thank you!”

Zhuzi came back, carrying Xiao Tangyuan, who had finished eating her sesame tangyuan. From a distance, he saw Xiao Roubao standing in the cold. “Xiao Roubao, it’s so cold out here. Did you wait here the entire time? Aren’t you afraid of freezing? Come inside.”

Xiao Roubao’s eyes lit up when he saw the food box in Zhuzi’s hand. “My Tangyuan is back!”

Xiao Tangyuan, her belly full, rested her chin on Zhuzi’s shoulder, her head topped with two crooked braids. She smiled, dimples showing, and said, “Third brother, your tangyuan is here.”

Xiao Roubao laughed heartily, taking the food box from Zhuzi. “Xiao Tangyuan brought me tangyuan. It must be delicious. By the way, Brother Zhuzi, what do ‘burden’ and ‘useless’ mean?”

Zhuzi was taken aback and pinched Xiao Roubao’s ear. “Who taught you those words?”

Xiao Roubao shook his head. “Not me. Some rude uncle and aunt. They also mentioned Tiantian and something about her house.”

Zhuzi’s mind raced. “Where are they now?”

Xiao Roubao pointed inside. “In there.”

Zhuzi took Xiao Roubao’s hand. “Let’s go inside and take a look. Don’t say anything and just focus on eating your tangyuan, alright?”

Zhuzi’s worry was unnecessary. Xiao Roubao was too busy eating to talk.

Su Xiaoxiao had mentioned that they didn’t do business outside of reservations, especially not breakfast. However, Bai Lan and Uncle Yang, who had gotten up early, made extra dumplings just in case. Since Xiao Roubao had brought the guests in, accommodating a few more wouldn’t hurt.

When the three kids went inside, the two adults were already eating dumplings.

Zhuzi observed them discreetly. The woman, whom Xiao Roubao had called rude, was quite attractive, around twenty-five or twenty-six, tall and slender with fair skin, and dressed fashionably. The man looked a year or two younger and was scholarly in appearance.

However, they seemed taken aback by the restaurant’s decor, either discussing the murals or praising the food. They didn’t mention anything related to Tiantian’s family throughout their meal.

After they finished eating and paid the bill, Zhuzi asked Xiao Roubao, “Do you remember what they were talking about?”

Xiao Roubao burped, his little mind working. After a moment, he nodded. “I remember!”

Zhuzi wasn’t in a hurry to ask. He took Xiao Roubao’s hand. “Let’s go home first. Then you can tell Mom everything you heard, word for word. Can you do that?”

Xiao Roubao let out a burp; his cerebellum twirled and twirled, and after a while, he nodded and said, “Remember!”

Little Zhuzi was not too busy asking and took Xiao Roubao’s hand, saying, “Let’s go home first. Can you please tell Mom in detail about the conversation you heard without missing a word?”

This operation is a new skill for Xiao Roubao; he has never used it before.

Xiao Roubao’s head turned again. He closed his eyes and thought for a while before finally opening his eyes and nodding heavily, “Yes!”
Zhuzi held Xiao Tangyuan’s hand with one hand and Xiao Roubao’s with the other. “Aunt Lan, Uncle Yang, we have something to do at home. We’ll go back first.”