Chapter 10: Hot Noodles
Editor: Henyee Translations
"Xue, I'm fine now. Let's go home too! How much does it cost to stay here? I'm really okay!" When Bai Daliang heard this, he wanted to go home and sat up.
"Dad, the doctor said that you shouldn't move. You should stay in the hospital and get an IV drip! Listen to me and stop moving around. It didn't cost much. The treatment was less than $10 in total!" Bai Xue had no choice but to lie.
"Daliang,stop moving around! The most important thing is to treat your injuries and recover! When you're discharged from the hospital, I'll borrow an ox cart from the battalion to pick you up!" An Quanzi persuaded Bai Daliang from the side.
"I'm really…" Just as Bai Daliang was about to say that he was really fine and wanted to sit up, he felt dizzy and lay back down.
"Dad, don't move around! Just let the IV drip do its job, okay? Uncle Quanzi, watch my dad! I'm going out to buy food. I'll be back soon!" Bai Xue said as she ran. She disappeared out of sight before they could react.
An Quanzi originally wanted to refuse her kind offer and just eat when he got home. Since she had already run away, he could only stay and watch Bai Daliang as he took his IV drip.
"Quanzi, was it really less than $10?" Bai Daliang asked An Quanzi suspiciously.
"I don't know. I went to find hot water just now. Since Xue said that it was less than $10, she probably meant it! Otherwise, if Xue doesn't have any money on her, how can she buy food?" An Quanzi analyzed for him.
When Bai Daliang heard this, he felt a little better and stopped worrying about it. Since they had already paid, it would be a waste of money if he went home and did not stay in the hospital.
After Bai Xue came out of the hospital, it was already past lunchtime. The canteen was already closed, so she could only try her luck outside.
She had seen a state-owned restaurant on the way here and roughly knew the location, so she walked quickly toward it.
On the way, when there was no one around, she took out two catties of white flour and two eggs from the interspatial supermarket.
Just as she had expected, when she arrived at the state-owned restaurant, it was already past mealtime. There was only a woman in her thirties wiping the table.
She walked in with her things. The waiter only looked up and lowered his head and continued with his work.
"It's past lunchtime!"
Bai Xue knew that the waiter of this era would definitely have good reason to be cocky, so she did not take it to heart. Besides, even if she was on time, she could not afford to eat here. She only had $2.50 in cash and did not even have food stamps.
"Ma'am, can I borrow the kitchen for a while? I'll use my own food! Is that okay? I'll just use some of your seasoning. How about I give you $0.20 for it?" Actually, $0.20 was enough to eat a big bowl of plain noodles.
The waitress looked Bai Xue up and down and then looked at the things in her hand. "We can't let you do that. You can't use the kitchen!"
She looked like someone owed her a million dollars as she spoke.
"Why do you want to use the kitchen?" At this moment, a middle-aged uncle walked out of the kitchen. He was slightly plump and his face was rosy. It was obvious that he had never been hungry.
"I want to borrow the kitchen to make three bowls of noodles…" Bai Xue looked at the middle-aged man and replied.
The chef from the state-run restaurant walked out of the kitchen and narrowed his eyes. He was right. It was the smell of white flour.
He could smell the distinct fragrance of white flour from the kitchen. He walked out to take a look and saw the scene just now.
He had been a chef for half his life and was especially sensitive to the taste of food.
"Bring it in! I'll make it for you!" He seemed very nice and laid back.
The waitress who was wiping the table was stunned. Chef Wang was surprisingly accommodating. He was usually hot-tempered and scolded people all the time.
Bai Xue glanced at the shocked waitress and then looked at the middle-aged man staring at the flour in her hand. She instantly knew why the chef acted this way.
She was not afraid and followed the chef into the kitchen.
"Is that 2 catties of white flour?" Chef Wang asked as soon as he entered the kitchen.
"That's right! Uncle, I just need three bowls of noodles. If there are leftovers, you can have it!" Bai Xue said tactfully.
"No need! I wouldn't mind having some noodles though. Come, I'll help you make it!" He took the two eggs and noodles from Bai Xue and started to busy himself.
Bai Xue did not stand on the ceremony. Seeing how diligent he was, he must have something to ask of her.
After he was done cooking, three steaming bowls of meat, oil, and white noodles were ready! There was even a piece of egg on it.
Since Bai Xue only took out two eggs, Chef Wang divided the two eggs into three parts.
"The noodles are ready! There's still some noodles left…"
"Uncle, thank you for helping with the noodles. I won't take the remaining flour back! Thank you for your help today! Here is the money I promised! Please take it!" Bai Xue took out the $0.05 from Chen Qiyue and handed two coins to Chef Wang.
"I won't take the money. If you don't mind, I have a question for you!" Chef Wang looked at Bai Xue and said hesitantly.
"Uncle, ask away! I'll try my best to answer you!" Bai Xue was still in a hurry to bring the noodles back for his father to eat, so she quickly replied.
"Can you get your hands on more grain? It doesn't matter if they are coarse or fine grain!" Chef Wang whispered in Bai Xue's ear.
"Uncle, I'm just a little girl…" Before Bai Xue could reject him, Chef Wang spoke again.
"You took out two catties of white flour and eggs to make noodles and generously gave the remaining flour to others, so I'm sure you have the connections to do it! Young lady, I'm really desperate and I can pay generously! Let's calculate it according to the black market price! $1.20 for 2 catties of coarse grain, $1.50 for 5 catties of fine grain!"
Bai Xue took a deep look at Chef Wang. Seeing his eyes were filled with sincerity, she asked, "How much do you need?"
Hearing Bai Xue's question, a trace of disbelief flashed across Chef Wang's eyes. He immediately said, "I need 50 catties of grain. Do you have it?"
Bai Xue heaved a sigh of relief when she heard this. It was only 50 catties of grain, so she could easily take it from the interspatial supermarket. Moreover, she needed money now. Since this uncle wanted to give it to her at the black market price, she was in luck!
"50 catties of yellow millet at $1.50 per catty then! I'll send it to you tonight!" Bai Xue agreed readily.
The two of them spoke in low voices, afraid that someone would hear them.
"Good! That's great! I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the restaurant when it gets dark!" Chef Wang was as excited as a child.
There were not many people on the street when it was nightfall, so it was not dangerous to trade at the entrance of the state-run restaurant.
It turned out that he had a lot of siblings. Although he lived a good life as a chef in a state-owned restaurant, he was the eldest in the family. Not long ago, his parents and brothers moved over along with their families. They said that they were about to starve to death because they could not eat. He just had enough to support his wife and children. It was impossible for him to support so many people. He did have money, but the food was not easy to come by. Now, he was running out of food supplies and did not have enough space to sleep. These few days, he had been so worried that his hair had turned white.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Fortunately, he found a person who could get food and solved the current predicament. He naturally walked her out the door happily.
50 catties of yellow millet meant he could give each of his four younger brothers 10 catties each. 10 catties would go to his parents as well. After he received the food stamps for the month, he would have no problem surviving!
-- Gift
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