From the Old Madam’s courtyard to Rose Courtyard, it only took a quarter of an hour journey. But today, for Mama Fang, it somehow felt a bit difficult for her to walk as usual.When they finally arrived in Rose Courtyard, Yuxi waved away all her servants and brought only Mama Fang into her room.Mama Fang took Yuxi’s hand and cried, “Miss, what will happen to you if this old servant leaves?” Her husband had died early and she had no children. She didn’t know where her relatives, those who worked in the Ning’s family, had went to. Leaving the resident and her Miss, she did not know what else she could do. She felt afraid and also confused when thinking of her future.Yuxi had already thought a lot on her way just now. If Mama Fang was released in this way, her future life would surely be sad. So, Yuxi was going to find something for Mama Fang to do. If a person had something to do, life would be much easier. Just like what she did in her previous hard life. She spend most of her time doing embroidery all day, and somehow she had felt, at that moments, time surely had flied much faster. She took Mama Fang’s hand and said, “Mama, Grandmother really wants to let you off. Maybe…this is a good thing for us.”Mama Fang’s eyes glazed over as she asked, “What did you say, Miss? Did you said it was a good thing? ”
Yuxi answered in a low voice, “Mama, you also know that I am currently in short of silvers. If you can open a shop outside, you could help provide me more money, and then, I’ll be much better off in this mansion.”Mama Fang didn’t know what else she can say to that. “But Miss, what can I do when we don’t have any money to open a shop? Where would we get the money from?” asked the nervous Mama Fang. She didn’t know a thing about opening a shop. Without any knowledge, she would completely lost the money if she actually opened one!Yuxi told Mama Fang her plan, “Mama, don’t you remember? You know how to make steamed stuffed buns and dumplings, right? I’m sure we can make money by opening a baozi shop.” Although it would be hard to find money to open one, it was still the best option for Mama Fang. If she had something busy to do, she won’t waste her time worrying about her life.Baozi (Chinese: 包子), or bao, is a type of filled bun[1] or bread-like (i.e. made with yeast) dumpling in various Chinese cuisines. There are many variations in fillings (meat or vegetarian) and preparations (usually steamed). In its bun-like aspect it is very similar to the traditional Chinese mantou (steamed bun). – WikipediaImage credit to Leah Sprague
A baozhi shop is like Chinese snack shop. It’s not only sell baozhi, Chinese steamed bun, but other kinds of Chinese snacks like mantou, rice cake etc.