Chapter 311: 304: Sold Out
Chapter 311: Chapter 304: Sold Out
Of course, she didn’t forget that she also needed to buy some “goubuli” baozi for Lin Yile.
The place that sold the baozi was not far from here, barely a ten-minute walk.
Beijing at this time was already an international metropolis, but compared to what it would become in ten years, it was still hard to imagine that this was what Beijing had once looked like.
The streetlights cast amber shadows, with buses and private cars weaving around them. Yet the streets were noticeably quiet, the pedestrians’ attire lacked diversity, the buildings on either side of the road were not as tall, and there were fewer people.
At night, Beijing was still a quiet city.
The development of a city in a year was astonishing, let alone over ten years.
And indeed, a lot could change in ten years.
She arrived at the baozi shop, which had a long line already. The authentic Tianjin “goubuli” baozi, while she didn’t find it particularly appealing, was something Lin Yile was extremely fond of, and he could eat any amount she got him.
She stepped forward, took out some loose change from her pocket, and bought two baskets of baozi to take home. But then she wondered if she should buy more in case Ting Yuan and the others showed up. One basket surely wouldn’t be enough: each of them could easily finish a basket by themselves. In the end, she decided to buy four baskets to take home.
As she turned to leave, she bumped into someone.
“I’m sorry,” she quickly apologized.
“No problem,” the man’s voice held the coolness of a summer breeze. She looked up and was startled but also met a pair of eyes that twinkled like stars. They were the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen, bright like the starry sky now. Yet later on, she would no longer find the starry sky beautiful. At this moment, the most beautiful starry sky she had ever seen was in this man’s eyes.
The man gave her a smile, “Could you let me through, please?” he pointed at the path ahead, “I’d like to buy baozi.”
Tang Yuxin quickly made way and started walking ahead against the wind. She quickened her pace, letting the cool summer night breeze gradually dissipate the heat on her face. But was it really only heat? Could it be that her face simply couldn’t turn red?
When she returned to the school, it wasn’t even eight o’clock yet. The moment she opened the door to her dorm, the baozi she was holding disappeared out of her hands.
“See, I told you she would bring us baozi. This is more than enough for us. I’ve been starving for several hours just waiting for these. Look at how pitiful I am… ” she pointed at her face, then sucked in her cheeks, “I’ve starved myself thin.”
“I think you’ve gotten fatter,” Ting Yuan had already snatched a basket from Lin Yile and started eating. Tang Yuxin had bought four baskets, enough for one each, which was both filling and satisfying.
“No, you’re the one who’s gotten fatter,” Lin Yile said cheerily, taking a bite of baozi, “My mom said I’ve lost weight.”
“My mom also said I’ve lost weight,” Ting Yuan pinched the flesh on her stomach, “she said the school food is really good and it’s made me some sturdy, so I must have lost weight. Of course…” she stroked her face, “I’ve also gotten paler.”
“Tang Yuxin, Yuxin…” Ting Yuan put down her baozi and quickly ran over to Tang Yuxin, “Where is my skincare water? Did you bring it for me?”
“Yes,” Tang Yuxin didn’t eat her baozi. She dragged over her suitcase from the side, opened it, took out two bottles of skincare water, and handed one each to Ting Yuan and Song Qingtong.
Ting Yuan, treating the bottle like a treasure, hid it under her pillow. Then she picked up her half-eaten baozi and resumed eating.
Tang Yuxin also picked up a baozi and began to eat it bite by bite. But she couldn’t help but think of the vast, star-studded sky, which seemed to be reflected in that man’s eyes.
That night, all but one of them, Sun Yumeng, were in the dorm. Without Sun Yumeng, the air in the dorm felt fresher. The school no longer enforced a lights-out time, so they chatted until late. Most of the conversation revolved around Tang Yuxin’s less than two-year-old brother, her biological sibling.
Tang Yuxin also missed Little Fatty. She wondered if he would cry when he woke up and couldn’t find his sister. She was scared to see Little Fatty cry, so she didn’t tell him she would be leaving and left stealthily while he was still asleep.
Drowsy, Tang Yuxin fell asleep. When she opened her eyes again, it was daylight.
So she was thinking about going over to the courtyard house to clean up, aiming to finish as soon as possible so she could move in on the weekend.
Therefore, that day, when the others suggested going shopping, Tang Yuxin didn’t go.
She went straight to the courtyard house and cleared all the weeds in the yard by herself. Thankfully, she grew up in the countryside and had done some farm work when she was little. So weed pulling was not difficult for her.
It took her the whole day to completely weed the yard. From then on, she planned to come over once a week. She regarded this as her labor. After all, she had nothing else to do on weekends.
After locking up the house, she decided to go back. But before she left, she thought about going to the alley and buying a few baskets of baozi as well.
As she thought about this, she headed in that direction.
She walked briskly for fear that the baozi would sell out. After all, the baozi from that shop sold out really fast.
Fortunately, when she arrived, there were still a few baskets left. She counted – there were exactly four baskets, enough for them to eat. And, there was no one else in line behind her. So she decided to buy them all at once, which would also allow the shop to close early.
“Give me all four baskets, ” she took the money out of her bag, just about to pay, when a hand reached out from the side, holding some loose change, “Boss, give me two baskets of baozi.”
“Sorry, we’re all sold out.”
The baozi shop owner pointed at Tang Yuxin, “The young lady bought all of them. We’ve already packed up. Come back tomorrow.”
Tang Yuxin took the baozi, about to leave, when that person quickly stepped in front of her.
“Could you please spare me two baskets? I’ll pay double.”
Tang Yuxin lifted her head, only to see a familiar face.
“It’s you. What a coincidence,”, the man smiled.
Tang Yuxin lowered her lashes, looked down at the baozi in her hand, and admitted, “Yes, indeed, it is quite a coincidence.”
“Do you want some?” She divided two baskets from hers and placed them in front of the man.
“Thank you,” the man received the baozi and took out a hundred yuan bill from his pocket.