Chef Hua
Chapter 106 - 77: Talk Reasonably

Chapter 106: Chapter 77: Talk Reasonably

"What do you mean by ’too noisy, causing discontent among the villagers’?"

Hua Xiaomai was momentarily stunned.

She had set up her stall by the river for barely twenty days, and business was initially poor. Hardly anyone came to eat noodles at night, and no significant noise was produced. As business gradually picked up, more people came, and the noise from talking and chatting might have increased slightly, but it certainly wasn’t enough to disturb the peace.

Moreover, she would pack up the stall by around midnight, when most villagers had not yet gone to bed. How could that cause ’much discontent’?

Before she could figure it out, Hua Erniang next to her exploded like a firecracker.

"What does he mean by that?" she burst out angrily, pointing randomly outside the yard as she cursed, "The stall is by the river; in front, there’s the loud rushing water, behind is a village path, and around it, a thick grove of trees. Whom could we possibly disturb? There are only three to five households nearby, all a good distance away—it seems each of them has ears that catch the wind, huh?"

Right? Hua Xiaomai silently nodded.

The riverside was damp, and few villagers chose to build their houses near it. The few who did were still quite far from the riverbank—the nearest being the scholar Wen Huaren. But seeing how eagerly he ate the noodles, he shouldn’t have any complaints about the stall’s presence, should he?

So, what exactly did that unfamiliar village chief mean by telling Jing Taihe all that?

After ranting for a while, Hua Erniang looked up at Jing Taihe and asked, "He spouts nonsense without fear of twisting his tongue, and you just let him be? Did you not defend us at all?"

Jing Taihe forced a bitter smile, "How could I not have spoken? All the things you just mentioned, I pointed them out directly, but it’s hard to argue when they cling to the word ’noisy’! He said that lately, more than one household had complained to him. As night falls, noise continuously emanates from the riverside, disturbing sleeping infants, who wake up and cry all night. If this continues, the villagers might all start to complain, therefore..."

He stopped there, shaking his head in distress.

Hua Erniang turned to look at Hua Xiaomai and then hesitated, taking her hand. "Does he want us to move our stall by telling you all this? But the most spacious place in the whole of Fire Knife Village is near that riverbank—where else could we move to?"

"He didn’t specify," Jing Taihe sighed again, "But I think he meant for us to stop this business..."

"Why?!" Hua Erniang, furious, began cursing again, "That old fool, has he lived so long he can no longer distinguish right from wrong? We run our business honestly, without cheating or stealing anyone else’s customers—why should we stop because of his single comment? Is he jealous of the money we make or what?"

As she spoke, she grew angrier, feeling that staying any longer in the courtyard was a complete waste of time and was about to go and clarify things with the village chief when Hua Xiaomai quickly held her tightly.

"Why?!" an angry Hua Erniang turned around, saying irritably, "Are you confused? If we don’t go to him now, are you planning to just accept this? I want to know who has been speaking against us, making our lives difficult!"

"We should indeed go and demand an explanation, but if you rush there in anger, we might just end up suffering more," Hau Xiaomai, though slender, had the strength of daily handling the ladle and chopping board, and held Hua Erniang so firmly she couldn’t move, "I will go and ask."

"You will go?" Hua Erniang lifted her head abruptly, "You’re not even from this village, why would he bother with you?"

"It doesn’t matter where I’m from, this is all about fairness. Fire Knife Village doesn’t have a rule against outsiders making a living, does it? I won’t quarrel with him. I’ll just talk, and if he really has a point, I would agree to his terms, wouldn’t I?"

Having said this, Hua Xiaomai patted her shoulder, signaling her not to worry too much, then turned to Jing Taihe, "Brother-in-law, I’m afraid I’ll have to disrupt your work at the forge today, please take me to the village chief’s house once more."

Jing Taihe was naturally worried as well, but seeing that she was still composed, he nodded, "No worries about my forge; at most, I lose half a day’s business. But if something goes wrong with your stall, the loss could be much bigger. Well, it’s worth another visit, but when we get there, don’t argue or yell—let’s try to speak calmly."