The yard looked good, much like the large miscellaneous yards seen on television. There was a well in the middle of the yard, so there was no need to carry water every day like in Daping Village. There were several rows of clothes drying in the yard, probably one row per household.
When Wu Yang was helping Nan Feng move things in, the other households heard the commotion and came out. They were all women and children. Some were eating, some were sifting beans, and some were just there to watch the excitement.
Nan Quanyou knew how to interact with people. Seeing so many people coming out to watch the event, he handed out the cassava he had boiled that morning, saying as he did so, “Here, everyone have a taste. It’s fresh from the countryside. Hard to get hold of in the city.”
Taking things makes one deferential. The neighbours, having received the cassava from Nan Quanyou, became friendly towards them. Some even put down their bowls to help Nan Feng move things. In no time, everything from the cart was moved inside.
The house was like a suite. Outside, there was a hall for dining and receiving guests. Inside were two bedrooms, one larger and one smaller. Since Nan Feng had more stuff, Nan Quanyou insisted on taking the smaller room and leaving the larger one for Nan Feng.
The smaller room actually faced the sunrise and had ample sunlight, which made it more suitable for living. So Nan Feng didn’t argue with Nan Quanyou and just started moving her things into the larger room.
After putting things in order, Nan Feng went to the yard to wash her hands. She then turned to Wu Yang and said, “You’ve worked hard today. I guess you haven’t eaten yet. Let’s go, it’s on me.”
Wu Yang squinted his eyes and smiled. “No, not yet. Let’s eat together then.”
Nan Feng looked at Wu Yang and joked, “Why do you seem so strange? It’s like you have a scheme.”
Wu Yang immediately made a solemn promise, “Absolutely not! I swear!”
Nan Feng was still skeptical.
The place to eat was chosen by Wu Yang. It was a high-end restaurant called “Qingfeng Tower”. It was far more upscale than Fuman Tower in the village. Nan Feng couldn’t help but worry about her wallet as they entered.
Though she was content and comfortable in Daping village, she felt out of place in this town. How could she afford such high-end food?
Nonetheless, Wu Yang happily charged in, found a table, sat down, and then waved Nan Feng and Nan Quanyou over with an innocent smile on his face.
Nan Feng thought, ’oh well, take a loss and lump it. After all, he did help. Without him, who knows when we could have finished moving.’
But as soon as they sat down, Wu Yang ordered three signature dishes. Nan Feng looked at the menu: each dish had a price indicated next to it, and the three signature dishes would cost at least a tael of silver.
Nan Feng looked at the prices and felt a wrench in her stomach.
But there was Wu Yang, encouraging them to eat, pouring tea for Nan Feng and Nan Quanyou, while they ate. Nan Feng held her cup tightly, and kept repeating to herself: money isn’t saved, it’s earned.
With that thought, Nan Feng stopped fretting and just let herself eat. While eating, she would serve food to Nan Quanyou: “Dad, try this crab. It’s different from the small ones we catch in our village.”
Nan Quanyou picked one up and started to gnaw.
Nan Feng chuckled: “Dad, you can’t just gnaw at the crab shell; you have to break it open and eat the meat inside.”
Wu Yang must not have eaten crabs before either. Upon hearing Nan Feng’s advice, he did the same, remarking to Nan Feng as he cracked the shell, “Lady…uh, I mean, Lady Nan, you know so much. Haha, you ate this before?”
Now Nan Feng got it. She’d been taken advantage of by Wu Yang. He’d never been to such places before, but now, hearing that she was offering to treat him to a meal, he brought her to such an upscale place.