Chef Hua
Chapter 129 - 88 Under the Watchful Eyes (Part 2)_2

Chapter 129: Chapter 88 Under the Watchful Eyes (Part 2)_2

As she spoke, she lifted her hand to rub her eyes, "Just today, she specially made almond tofu, thinking it would be good for your illness, and sent me to your house to invite you over for a meal... My sister is honest, thinking she had few friends since she was new here, so she treated you with all her heart. It’s one thing not to appreciate it, but how can you set a trap for her to fall into? By acting that way in front of others, doesn’t it wrongly tarnish my sister’s reputation? Can you truly be at peace with that?"

Normally, she was used to being outspoken and was not afraid of gossip, so she covered her face and began to cry. At first, it was just a pretense of sobbing, but as she spoke, she genuinely began to feel sad, and tears fell like broken pearls, hurriedly twisting her head to wipe them away.

Guan Rong was both anxious and scared, unable to refute, and wanted to reach out and pull on Hua’s sleeve, her hand stretched halfway but ultimately she dared not, and could only repeat in a soft voice, "Sister Jing, I didn’t mean it that way, how could I... I truly didn’t..."

At the table, on the riverbank, the murmuring of the crowd buzzed and rolled over, everyone pointing and whispering among themselves. Though the voices were not loud, the many fragmented sounds gathered together and crashed into her ears.

"Just being greedy, seeing that the Hua girl’s stall was making money, she wanted to scrape together a few copper coins..."

"Humph, seeing that she wouldn’t get any favors from her, she pretends to be pitiful and blackens others’ names, shameless..."

Chun Xi and La Mei exchanged a smile, tugging at the still weeping Hua’s sleeve, and blinked at her.

With them two around, and adding the onlookers at the riverbank, by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, everyone in Fire Knife Village would have a clear understanding of the whole affair. By then, even if Guan Rong grew mouths all over her body, she probably wouldn’t be able to clear her name!

Hua Xiaomai quietly listened to the crowd’s gossip for a while, even had the time to cook two bowls of noodles, seeing the crowd getting more and more excited, showing no signs of stopping, she put down the work in her hands and walked over to Guan Rong.

Guan Rong clutched her chest, her face red as if burning, gasping heavily, looking like she was about to faint any minute. Seeing this, Hua Xiaomai hurriedly pushed the almond tofu closer to her and said in a deep voice, "Are you feeling unwell again? Hurry and have a few bites, this tofu is moist and smooth, it’ll make you feel better immediately."

That single sentence blocked any pathway Guan Rong might have taken to feign fainting.

Guan Rong couldn’t stand it any longer, she broke free from La Mei’s grasp, stood up, and quickly ran out. The goal had been achieved, and La Mei didn’t see the need to keep holding her back anymore, letting her go, chuckling sardonically and rolling her eyes behind her back.

Guan Rong ran quickly, disappearing from view in no time. Hua Xiaomai watched the direction in which she left and pursed her lips.

To say playing the sympathy card, ten of her were no match for Guan Rong, and she could only use this most direct method to at least pull herself out of this quagmire.

...

La Mei and Chun Xi brought so many people today to bolster their cause, each of them ordered a bowl of noodles, but they were too engrossed in the conversation to eat. Hua Xiaomai naturally refused to take their money, and additionally cooked several more bowls, serving them steaming hot and even adding an extra dish of smoked tofu for each as a thanks for their righteous support.

Even long after Guan Rong had left, people were still discussing animatedly, so excited they even forgot to go home. The stall closed later than usual that night, and by the time the crowd finally dispersed and the riverbank was empty, it was the end of the late night hour.

Hua and her mother quickly and efficiently packed up the stall, pushing their cart towards the west side of the village. Just as they were about to pass by Grandfather Pan’s house, Guan Rong suddenly ran out from the roadside.

Her mother was startled by the sudden appearance, but upon recognizing her, her face immediately fell, "What else do you want? You look so fine, but why do you act so vilely?"

Guan Rong warily glanced at her, lowered her head, and spoke softly, "Sister Jing, I would like to speak a few words with Xiaomai."

"What else do you want to say, you..." her mother was about to jump in anger but was stopped by Hua Xiaomai.

"Sister, you go ahead, I’ll be right back." After saying this, she pulled Guan Rong aside, "What’s the matter?"

Her mother cursed and walked away. Guan Rong looked down at her own feet and stammered, then suddenly said softly, "I’m not stupid."

Of course, you’re not dumb, you’re very shrewd, aren’t you? As clever as you, even if you guessed today’s occurrence wasn’t a coincidence, it’s not surprising at all!

Hua Xiaomai couldn’t help but laugh, tilting her head, "So?"

Guan Rong looked up at her, "Xiaomai, we’ve known each other for some time now. When you first came to the village, everyone spoke ill of you, and if it wasn’t for my intervention, would your days have been so smooth? Today, you brought all these people, and insulted me in and out of your words, you..."

Ha! Hua Xiaomai almost laughed out loud.

This person really... never mentions what she has done herself, avoids the main point, and yet has the audacity to come and accuse me?

"When I first came to the village, huh? You didn’t remind me, I would have forgotten." Hua Xiaomai’s mouth curved, "These past few days, my sister heard quite a few new things in the village, two of which came out of Mrs. Li’s mouth, coincidentally, both involving you. Do you need me to remind you of one? Like the time we went to the County to sell bamboo shoots, and you supposedly felt unwell all of a sudden, was that why you really took their family’s ox cart back to the village?"

Guan Rong’s eyes widened suddenly, "I..."

Hua Xiaomai waved her hand to indicate that she needn’t say anything, "Some things, it’s enough that we understand them, why must we discuss them one by one?"

"You... you mean to break off relations with me, not to deal with me anymore?" Guan Rong trembled slightly, timidly said. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)