Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 83

Have a drink of water before you go

“?”

“!”

“!!!”

Mother Su’s mood could be precisely summarized as above. The moment it happened, her mind went completely blank, and it took a long time for her to process it: What?! What was going on?! Her own daughter’s romantic partner… was a woman?!

Su Ruixi had never shown the slightest inclination towards homosexuality before, had she?!

Wait, she indeed hadn’t dated any men before. Perhaps Su Ruixi hadn’t been in a relationship for so long precisely because she was actually homosexual.

Mother Su wrestled with many thoughts in her mind. Before she could even utter half a sentence, she heard her daughter speak: “Mom, she and I are definitely serious. Don’t try to persuade me; it’s no use. This kind of thing isn’t something I can control.”

“I’ve also looked into it. Homosexuality can be either congenital or acquired. It’s not a mental illness; it’s a very normal personal choice. If you discriminate against homosexuals, I’ll try my best not to see you.”

Wait, wait, wait! She hadn’t even said a word yet, how was she already on the verge of losing her daughter?! Mother Su twitched the corner of her mouth and immediately began to reply: “Sweetheart, what are you saying? How could Mommy possibly discriminate against you?” After saying this, she relaxed a little, then continued: “Actually, Mommy always thought you’d end up alone for life. Now that you have someone you like, someone to accompany you, Mommy is already very happy.”

“Regardless of whether the other person is a man or a woman, as long as you can find happiness, that’s enough for Mommy.”

Su Ruixi hummed in acknowledgment and replied, “Thanks, Mom,” then hung up the phone.

Mother Su stared at her phone’s blank screen, biting her lower lip, still feeling somewhat unwilling to accept it. As a mother, she naturally hoped Su Ruixi could be happy and joyful. She was also an open-minded person, but no matter how open-minded, suddenly hearing that her own daughter had become homosexual was still a bit hard to take.

Mother Su definitely wouldn’t blame her own daughter. After thinking it over and over, she could only blame that stranger she had never met.

“Damn it! It must be that girl who’s a bad kid, making our Xixi like this too! Wuwuwu, does this mean I’ll never have a granddaughter anymore? Wuwuwu… Grandma’s precious granddaughter!”

“Achoo!”

Sun Miao sneezed. She woke up from her afternoon nap, then drove her food truck to the wet market to buy things, incidentally picking up the ingredients for dinner.

Today, she was making dinner for Su Ruixi, so Sun Miao deliberately chose some dishes Su Ruixi liked when she was shopping. After a moment’s hesitation, she still bought a large bone, planning to make bone broth for Su Ruixi to nourish her stomach.

Besides that, soy products also help patients with stomach problems recover. Sun Miao bought a block of tofu, planning to make steamed tofu with minced meat and egg¹. Minced meat and eggs were things she’d been using constantly lately, so buying a bit more wasn’t an issue. It was also simple to make; just put it in the pot and wait for it to cook.

For a vegetable dish, she’d make steamed pumpkin, and that would be everything. She chose steamed dishes because they were easy to digest and good for patients with stomach problems.

For the meat dish, she chose relatively mild chicken. She noticed Su Ruixi quite liked the dipping sauce for changfen, so she decided to steam chicken breast, shred it by hand into chicken strips, and finally drizzle sauce over it. It would be palatable and light; Su Ruixi would definitely like it.

If Sun Miao were eating it herself, she’d probably sprinkle minced garlic and millet peppers on top, or squeeze a lemon to make lemon shredded chicken. As for Su Ruixi, she definitely couldn’t handle such strong flavors right now. If her stomach wasn’t acting up, lemon shredded chicken would also be a good choice.

Thinking about it, to stimulate her appetite, she also used a little trick.

After Sun Miao finished her shopping, she went home, first soaking the rice. During this time, she made other preparations, and only when it was about time did she start making dinner. Three dishes and a soup for Su Ruixi alone – this was already divine treatment. If she complained again… well, let her complain. What could Sun Miao do?

As she turned, Sun Miao still had to be careful not to bump into things on the floor. Her house was still a bit small. It was fine for making her own meals usually, but when there were many other things, with pots and pans of various sizes placed around, it became very difficult to move.

Besides, it was fine now when the weather wasn’t hot. If it got hotter later, these conditions would definitely be substandard. Sun Miao thought about it; she still needed to find a new place to live.

After finishing dinner, Sun Miao first put everything into the large built-in refrigerator in her food truck, then set off with the dinner, riding her little e-scooter. This was also the first time she had worn the helmet Su Ruixi gave her since returning home that day and during this period. Looking at the bouncy little flower on it, her mood finally improved.

After she put on the helmet, she couldn’t help but sigh with emotion: the helmet Su Ruixi gave her was so much better than the free ones from vendors. Not only was it breathable, but it also didn’t feel uncomfortably tight on her head. Most importantly, it was safe!

Sun Miao rode her little e-scooter, heading towards Su Ruixi’s Cuiting Yayuan. She sped along the way like lightning, but Sun Miao didn’t hum a song as she had before. Even the System found it strange: 【Host, why aren’t you singing that ‘Dear Little E-Scooter’ song anymore?】

“Don’t want to sing. You said before that my singing was terrible.”

【…I was just saying.】

Sun Miao was really good at handling the System; at least now the System didn’t dare to pester her shamelessly. She rode to the entrance of Cuiting Yayuan but didn’t see Su Ruixi waiting at the gate. Sun Miao was a bit surprised. She took out her phone; she hadn’t looked at it the whole way. Only now did she see Su Ruixi’s message.

【Come straight in when you arrive, Unit 11. I’m not feeling well, can’t make it out.】

Seeing this message, Sun Miao’s heart tightened, and she headed towards the electric vehicle entrance at the back gate. The back gate of Cuiting Yayuan was also quite large. Not only were pedestrians and vehicles separated, but each road was also not narrow. In ordinary residential complexes, the back gate would usually appear much smaller. When the security guard saw Sun Miao, he didn’t stop her; it seemed he already knew she was coming in.

“Isn’t this the little boss who used to sell malatang?”

“That’s me.”

The two exchanged a few simple words, and Sun Miao incidentally asked where Unit 11 was. The security guard pointed her in the direction and also said, “There are signs along the way. If you really can’t find it, just look for them. There are designated pedestrian paths on the road, make sure you don’t walk on…”

“Okay, thank you.”

Sun Miao twisted the throttle and rode inside. This was also her first time entering a villa area, and for a moment, she couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional.

These roads were truly wide.

The residential complex Sun Miao had shared an apartment in before her transmigration had quite narrow driveways, barely enough for two cars. When cars met, they had to brake and slowly maneuver to pass each other. However, their complex was already considered pretty good; old residential complexes had even narrower driveways, and cars were parked everywhere.

But comparisons are odious! The driveways in Sun Miao’s previous complex were completely overshadowed by the ones in Su Ruixi’s current complex. These driveways could easily accommodate three cars! Sun Miao rode her little e-scooter, zeng zeng zeng forward, and happened to run into someone she knew. Zhou Ling’s mother saw Sun Miao and even asked, “Little Boss Sun, long time no see!”

“Hello.”

Zhou Ling’s mother pulled her aside to chat for a few sentences: “After May 1st, I wanted to take Lingling to your place to buy some food, but now she knows it’s time to work hard, she won’t go out even if I want to take her. A few days before Gaokao, no matter what, I have to take her to your place for a bit, to lift her spirits.”

Sun Miao thought for a moment; today was June 14th, indeed not many days left until Gaokao, less than a month.

Now, the one constantly thinking about letting her daughter relax had, ironically, become Zhou Ling’s mother. Sun Miao smiled at her: “Okay, when the time comes, you all check the group chat messages, then come over.”

“Mm.”

Zhou Ling’s mother looked at Sun Miao’s electric scooter, somewhat surprised: “Little Boss Sun, how come you’re here? Did you move in here?”

Sun Miao choked for a moment. How on earth did she look like someone who could afford a house here? Sun Miao replied: “No, I’m here to deliver takeout.”

“You offer that service too?”

Sun Miao shook her head: “I only deliver for friends.”

“Oh.” That one sentence directly shattered Zhou Ling’s mother’s intention to ask, “Can you deliver to my place too?” She chatted with Sun Miao for a little while longer, then let Sun Miao leave. Sun Miao rode a few steps forward, but after a short while, a supercar appeared heading towards her. Pink and blue color scheme, with an anime character sticker on it – a standard itasha².

That car drove out for a bit, then suddenly stopped. Sun Miao heard someone call out to her: “Little Boss Sun!”

—Drat, another acquaintance.

Sun Miao squeezed the brakes, waited a moment, and someone came running over slowly. Taking a closer look, it was Hip-Hop Mei’s friend: “What are you doing here?” Sun Miao repeated what she had said earlier. The rich second-generation kid slapped his knee: “I thought you were going to set up a stall inside, scouting a location.”

“?”

Setting up a stall inside the residential complex, that wouldn’t be quite right, would it?

Sun Miao indicated she had things to do and slipped away. She suddenly felt that Unit 11 was really far, and she knew so many people, bumping into one or two every so often. After finally managing to deal with them, she searched for quite a while before finding Unit 11. She parked her scooter at the entrance and peered inside.

Su Ruixi’s big villa was really huge, complete with its own garden. The outside was enclosed by stone and wrought iron fences. The stone facade at the main gate even had a video intercom embedded in it. Sun Miao pressed the call button, and soon Su Ruixi’s voice came from inside, though Su Ruixi’s image wasn’t on the screen, just a simple blue and white looping video.

“I’ll open the gate for you, come on in.”

After she said this, Sun Miao heard a “click” from the main gate in front of her, and then the gate opened automatically. Sun Miao pushed open the gate and walked in. Su Ruixi’s home had separate entrances for people and vehicles. Sun Miao used the pedestrian gate. Just as she arrived in the courtyard, she saw the inner door open. Su Ruixi, wearing what looked like very comfortable loungewear, was holding the door open, also wearing slippers.

Originally, Sun Miao had planned to leave right after delivering the food, but Su Ruixi said, “Thank you for your hard work. You must be tired from riding all the way here, right? Would you like to rest for a bit, have a drink of water before you go?”

Sun Miao actually didn’t want to stay, but the corners of Su Ruixi’s eyes drooped, and that pitiful expression appeared again.

Wait, was Su Ruixi getting more and more skillful at using that pitiful expression? She wasn’t like this before! She was clearly a tsundere!

Seeing this expression, Sun Miao surrendered.

Couldn’t leave, absolutely couldn’t leave.

Sun Miao sighed: “Then I’ll impose.”

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