Chapter 83: Osmanthus Wine
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Xiaoguo was sweeping the kitchen floor when she heard the door open. She looked out the window and saw Zhuang Zhuang’s happy little figure. This child had returned quite quickly.
“Mother!”
Before he entered the house, she could already hear his voice calling out to her.
When he was standing in front of Xiaoguo, Zhuang Zhuang said ingratiatingly, “I even told Mrs. Yang that the popcorn can’t come into moisture. It has to be stored properly!”
“Aiyo, how is our Zhuang Zhuang so smart? Mother has forgotten to remind you, but you still remember!”
Xiaoguo suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to tell Zhuang Zhuang about it. She didn’t expect him to remember. His brain was really in better shape than hers!
Zhuang Zhuang smiled sheepishly. He told Xiaoguo shyly that he was going to read and returned to his room.
Xiaoguo continued to clean the kitchen. She hadn’t cleaned the kitchen in days. Xiaoguo picked up a rag and began cleaning the kitchen.
When Xiaoguo finally put down the broom, the kitchen had become spick and span. With such a clean kitchen, one really has a greater desire to cook.
Now that Xiaoguo had free time on her hands, she went back into the house to help Zhuang Zhuang with his studying.
Recently, Xiaoguo had been accompanying Zhuang Zhuang with his studies every day. Other times, she would discuss sewing methods with Mrs. Yang while chatting with her. Life was pretty good.
One afternoon, when Xiaoguo was tutoring Zhuang Zhuang, Mrs. Yang knocked on the door and called out to her. Xiaoguo put down the book curiously and left Zhuang Zhuang to learn by himself. She walked to the door and opened it.
“Sister-in-law? Come in.”
Mrs. Yang stood outside the door happily. When she saw Xiaoguo, she waved her hands to indicate that she was not going in. She asked Xiaoguo, “Are you going to the county tomorrow?”
Xiaoguo often went to the county with her, but seeing how happy she was today, she was a little curious. “Sure. What day is it tomorrow?”
“It’s almost the mid-autumn festival.” Mrs. Yang said with a smile. “I heard from the Li family’s daughter-in-law that they went to the county today. During this time, the county market is selling all kinds of food. Let’s go and check things out tomorrow!”
It’s the Mid-Autumn Festival… Xiaoguo had almost forgotten about it. She wouldn’t mind going tomorrow. Coincidentally, there was no more meat at home. She could take the opportunity to window shop and stock up on groceries.
After deciding on a time with Mrs. Yang, Xiaoguo returned to the house and asked Zhuang Zhuang if he wanted to follow her. Zhuang Zhuang was overjoyed when he heard that and quickly agreed.
After breakfast the next morning, Xiaoguo set up the donkey cart and asked Zhuang Zhuang, to bring Mrs. Yang out after he was done packing. After the boy ran out, Xiaoguo drove the donkey cart out of the house. As the puppies had come out with her while she was leaving the house, Xiaoguo chased them back and locked the door.
When she arrived at Mrs. Yang’s house, Zhuang Zhuang was just bringing her out. Seeing that Mrs. Yang was alone, Xiaoguo said, “Mrs. Yang, it’s going to be a day of fun. Let’s bring Xiaohua and Xiaohu along!”
Mrs. Yang stopped to think. “Yes, why not.” She gave Xiaoguo a heads up and ran home, urging her two kids to get changed and go to the market together.
After a while, the three of them came out and got on the donkey cart. Xiaoguo told them to sit tight as they were going to set off.
The three children were obviously very excited. There was endless chatter between the three of them. Mrs. Yang sat beside them to look after them, while Xiaoguo sat at the front to drive the donkey cart.
When they arrived at the market, Xiaoguo took the suggestion of Mrs. Yang, and came to another street. Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, Xiaoguo felt a bit lost as she had never been to this place before.
“Sister-in-law, what do they have here?”
Xiaoguo looked at the ordinary street and felt that it was a little strange for Mrs. Yang to lead them here.
“Just go forward and turn down that alley. Can you smell anything?”
Mrs. Yang gave Xiaoguo a mysterious look.
When Xiaoguo heard this, she tried to smell the air. Yes, now that Mrs. Yang had mentioned it, she could detect the smell of pastries. And it was getting stronger as she walked towards the alley!
Xiaoguo followed Mrs. Yang’s instructions and drove the donkey cart forward.
When they reached the turn, Xiaoguo followed Mrs. Yang’s instructions and steered the cart into the alley.
This time, what came into view was a spacious road. There were pastry shops on both sides of the road. This was Shangque Road.
It turned out that the fragrance of pastries came from this street.
The shops were already open for business at this time of the day. Every store had its doors wide open. All kinds of pastries were displayed on the counter. Batches of freshly baked pastries were brought out and placed on bamboo trays. There were also packs of pastries wrapped in waxed paper with their names labeled on the packaging.
The beautifully glazed pastries attracted the attention of passers-by. They couldn’t help but walk into the shop and buy something.
“Sister-in-law, I didn’t know there was such a street here?”
Xiaoguo thought that she had seen most of the county. To think that there was actually a hidden treasure here within this small alley.
“Of course! This is a famous pastry street. The pastries here are delicious. Most importantly, the range of products here are very comprehensive. Whether they are expensive or cheap, they all have their own unique flavors!”
Mrs. Yang told Xiaoguo all about her favorite shop.
As the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching, there were already shops making mooncakes. The purpose of her bringing Xiaoguo along was to buy some mooncakes.
Xiaoguo was a little surprised to hear Mrs. Yang’s words. Wasn’t the Mid-Autumn Festival more than 20 days away? Why was she in such a hurry to buy mooncakes? She could just buy them when it was nearer to the festival.
The question popped out of her mouth as she was thinking it. When Mrs. Yang heard this, she sighed and said, “It’s not an issue. I am going to buy more and keep them for the festival. Anyway, these mooncakes do not spoil easily. Actually the more important thing is…<segmen
As Mrs. Yang spoke, she kept Xiaoguo in suspense. Xiaoguo was waiting expectantly to hear the most important part. Seeing how anxious she looked, Mrs. Yang covered her mouth and chuckled. “The more important thing is that the osmanthus wine in this restaurant is only available within these few days. Once the wine is made, people will buy it and ferment it for twenty days. By then, it would be perfect for drinking on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival!”
Seeing Xiaoguo’s puzzled look, Mrs. Yang explained the situation to her seriously. Even the three children beside her were listening attentively.
Xiaoguo stopped the donkey cart and went to the shop Mrs. Yang had mentioned.
Xiaoguo came down with Zhuang Zhuang in her arms. She looked up at the plaque—Osmanthus House.
Even the shop name was related to osmanthus flowers. It seemed that the things sold by this shop were all related to osmanthus flowers.
Xiaoguo held Zhuang Zhuang’s hand and followed behind Mrs. Yang. Mrs. Yang was more familiar with this place than Xiaoguo, so she took the lead.
As soon as she entered the shop, a strong osmanthus fragrance welcomed her. Xiaoguo inhaled deeply and relished the intoxicating scent.
Even Zhuang Zhuang could smell the refreshing fragrance. He secretly grabbed Xiaoguo’s hand and whispered, “Mother, this smells so good!”
Xiaoguo nodded at Zhuang Zhuang. That’s right, it smelled really good!
The interior of the Osmanthus house was not big. The packaged snacks were stacked into a small pile on the counter. Mrs. Yang turned around and said to Xiaoguo, “Those are the Osmanthus cakes made for today’s order. Their daily orders are usually more than this, never less.”
Xiaoguo was shocked when she heard this. The cakes from this shop must taste really good! If they receive so many orders every day, their business must be booming!
On the counter, there were small and large jars of wine. The mouths of the jars were sealed with red paper. Marked on the paper were dates written with brushes and they were all today’s dates.
Xiaoguo guessed that those must be osmanthus wine. Mrs. Yang brought Xiaoguo around starting from the pastry section. Each time she saw a particular pastry, she would tell Xiaoguo its name.
“Sister-in-law, are you a regular customer of this shop?”
Seeing that Mrs. Yang could name every item, Xiaoguo guessed that she must be a regular at the shop.
Mrs. Yang smiled shyly and patted her chest and assured Xiaoguo. “Listen to me. This shop is best known for their osmanthus cakes.”
Xiaoguo asked Zhuang Zhuang to check out what he wanted. Mrs. Yang chased Xiaohua and Xiaohu away and asked them to go and choose what they wished to eat.
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