The Great Tang's King of Provisions

Chapter 16: Saying Goodbye to the Past, Embracing the Future

After buying a coffin, preparing the body for burial, and erecting a tombstone—and only after Du Xingxuan and Du Shuangshuang had wept themselves into a fit of grief until their eyes were red and swollen—Li Xuanba finally helped his two sisters, who were a sight to behold with tears streaming down their faces, to their feet. “All right! Don’t be too sad. Your Grandpa Zhuang passed away with a smile on his face. He fulfilled his wishes and didn’t suffer any pain—he truly went to the afterlife with a smile. If he knew what was happening here, he wouldn’t want you to be so distressed.” “Sniff, sniff! Brother Xuanba, is that really true?” Hearing Li Xuanba say this, Du Shuangshuang lifted her tear-streaked face, her reddened eyes fixed intently on Li Xuanba. Even Du Xingxuan, who knew Li Xuanba was lying, fixed her reddened eyes on him, hoping to hear words of comfort from his lips. Facing the sorrowful gazes of his two little sisters, Li Xuanba nodded firmly. “It’s true! Besides, if you keep crying like this and make your Grandpa Zhuang restless in the afterlife, he might not be able to be reborn.” Well, it was okay to tell a little white lie to spare the two little sisters some grief. Besides, who knows if reincarnation is even real? Otherwise, how would he have come back? After fooling Du Shuangshuang, Li Xuanba led the two girls—who were still a bit sad—to the “market” in Lantian County—that is, the trading area under the Tang Dynasty’s market system—to find… Mei Hanxue. At that moment, Mei Hanxue was caught up in yet another predicament: she was out of money because she hadn’t spent the 100 taels of silver notes Li Xuanba had given her. Mei Hanxue stood behind the counter in her shop’s main hall, with her clerk behind her and eight men who looked like small-time merchants gathered around her. At that moment, they were looking at her with somewhat guilty expressions. “Manager Mei, my family is in desperate need of money right now. Could we settle this month’s tofu bill?” “Manager Mei, my family is in desperate need of money too. Could we settle this month’s bill for the tofu?” “Manager Mei, could we settle the bill for the meat? My wife just gave birth, and I need to buy her some good things to help her recover.” Hearing the requests from these vendors delivering ingredients, Mei Hanxue clenched her teeth tightly, her expression turning cold. The inn’s accounts were always settled once a month—who would come to settle up after only eleven days? It seemed these people were once again being used as pawns by that Hong fellow. “Gentlemen, even if you wish to settle your accounts, you should come at the end of the month. Coming to settle accounts at the beginning of the month—isn’t that a bit against the rules? Besides, I only have one hundred wen on me right now, and I need to pay all eight of your shops. But I’m not sure which shop’s bill I should settle first.” “Well, well…” Hearing Mei Hanxue’s sharp retort, the eight burly men turned beet-red. Thinking of the burly, intimidating Hong Dangtou, they dared not refuse even a single cash, so they exchanged glances and pushed the tofu seller forward. “Manager Mei, Wu De’s tofu comes to exactly one hundred wen—just settle his bill!” Mei Hanxue’s eyes narrowed as she glared coldly at the eight burly men. “Are you suggesting that my Meihua Restaurant should be left without a single cash reserve? But I wonder—will you continue to deliver ingredients?” “Well, Manager Mei, you haven’t settled our accounts yet. How could we possibly continue delivering ingredients? Besides…” The men didn’t dare voice what followed those two words, “besides,” but Mei Hanxue understood the implication. A chill ran through her, and she was overcome by a sense of sorrow and despair. After the wave of sadness and despair passed, Mei Hanxue steeled herself and looked at Wu De, the tofu vendor. “What about you, Mr. Wu? I’ve just settled the bill for your tofu—will you still keep delivering it?” Once he’d collected the money, Wu De’s cheerful expression immediately gave way to a cold sneer, and he looked at Mei Hanxue with disdain. “Manager Mei, you must be joking. Since you’re out of money, why would I keep delivering tofu to you? That’s something only a fool would do.” “You…” Mei Hanxue’s delicate eyebrows shot up in anger, and just as she was about to rebuke Wu De, a clear, resonant male voice rang out: “Aren’t you, this unprincipled Wu De, just a fool yourself? Turning down money when you have the chance—if you ever want to come work at my Meihua Restaurant to earn a living, we certainly won’t agree to it!” “Who’s speaking!” Hearing someone mock Wu De, the eight men turned to look in unison, failing to notice the look of both surprise and delight in Mei Hanxue’s eyes. Amid the stares of everyone in the restaurant, Li Xuanba—still looking every bit the handsome young gentleman—walked in, accompanied by Du Xingxuan and Du Shuangshuang, both dressed in plain white robes. Li Xuanba completely ignored Wu De and his group, looking at Mei Hanxue with a mix of concern and reproach. “Didn’t I give you a hundred taels of silver? Just settle their bill and send them on their way—then switch to a different supplier. That’s all it takes.” “Whoosh!” “O-o-one hundred taels of silver!” Hearing Li Xuanba say this, Wu De and his seven companions stared greedily at Mei Hanxue and Li Xuanba. One hundred taels of silver! They might not even earn that much in their entire lifetimes! Who exactly was this handsome young gentleman? To simply hand over a hundred taels of silver like that! Li Xuanba ignored Wu De and his seven companions, and Mei Hanxue paid them no mind either. Under Li Xuanba’s intense gaze, she shyly lowered her head, her heart racing, and said timidly, “That’s your money—I can’t just spend it!” Facing the bashful Mei Hanxue, Li Xuanba waved his hand grandly and declared with authority, “What do you mean ‘your money’ or ‘my money’? Once I give it to you, it’s yours! Besides, didn’t I already tell you that I’ve bought a stake in your Plum Blossom Restaurant?” As soon as Li Xuanba finished speaking, without waiting for Mei Hanxue’s reply, he glared at Wu De and the other seven with eyes as round as bronze bells and said coldly, “Apart from this Wu De, how much are the rest of you—the seven of you—still short?” “One hundred fifty-two wen.” “Two hundred wen.” “One hundred and twenty wen” Faced with Li Xuanba’s fierce glare, the seven were too frightened to speak further and meekly admitted the exact amounts they were demanding. Li Xuanba curled his lips in disdain and sneered, “Hmph! That’s barely two liang of silver in total. You actually have the nerve to come begging for such a pittance? Take your money and get out of here! Don’t ever set foot in my Plum Blossom Restaurant again!” “Clatter! Clink! Under the greedy stares of Wu De and the others, Li Xuanba reached into his robe and pulled out two guan of coins, flinging them forcefully onto the ground outside the restaurant. With a clatter, two thousand wen of copper coins scattered haphazardly across the ground; some even bounced seven or eight meters away, causing the eight men to rush over in a panic to greedily pick them up. Li Xuanba paid no attention to the eight opportunistic scoundrels scavenging for coins outside. His piercing eyes held a hint of tenderness as he gazed at Mei Hanxue, who stood gracefully before him. “Miss Mei, do you look down on me, Li Xuanba? Or do you think the money I’ve earned is dirty?” Faced with Li Xuanba’s gaze and question, Mei Hanxue’s aloof, snow-white-plum-blossom demeanor vanished instantly. Her face flushed crimson, and she stammered helplessly, “I—I—I don’t look down on you, nor do I think the money is dirty. It’s just—it’s just…” But what exactly? Mei Hanxue couldn’t bring herself to say it. She was afraid that if she accepted the money, Li Xuanba would look down on her. She was also afraid that once she used the money, Li Xuanba would truly consider their business settled! “Enough! If you hold me, Li Xuanba, in high regard, then just take the money and put it away. Consider it my investment in your Plum Blossom Restaurant. After all, your restaurant needs a man—ahem… it needs a male assistant, an assistant.” Li Xuanba had started off speaking very domineeringly, but after accidentally letting the truth slip, he awkwardly rubbed his nose and hurriedly rephrased his words. However… Mei Hanxue’s face turned even redder. With a soft squeak, she bowed her head and shyly walked into the restaurant. “Hehe!” Seeing Mei Hanxue’s bashful expression, Li Xuanba smugly raised an eyebrow. With a chuckle, he led the pouting Du Xingxuan and the curious Du Shuangshuang into the inn.