Chapter 29: Waiting for the Person Who Doesn't Come

After using the oil for a day, Lin Ruanruan decided not to keep it.

Although the unscrupulous supermarket had a large price difference for redemption, the things sold to her were fairly priced.

Repeatedly using oil is bad for health, and since she was doing business, she couldn't earn dishonest money.

So, she poured the remaining half pot of oil into the stinky ditch, which made the scholar, who was still hesitating whether to pick up the things on the ground, widen his eyes again.

"It's a sin, how can you be so wasteful? There's still so much oil, why did you pour it out?"

Lin Ruanruan looked up at him when she heard this, but didn't speak.

Seeing that she ignored him and continued to tidy up her things, the scholar's tone became even more anxious.

"Miss, doing business is hard, and the world is tough. We should be more economical."

His nagging was no less than that of Tang Seng.

Lin Ruanruan rolled her eyes in her heart. Now she knew why this scholar failed; it was all because he meddled too much.

She had already thanked him, and she didn't plan to pay attention to his nagging anymore.

After tidying up her stall swiftly and packing everything that could fit into her basket, she carried the basket and the wooden bucket and left.

This morning, Bo Cheng'an had brought her here. Now, with so many things to carry on her own, she was a bit flustered.

The pedantic scholar was also flustered.

He wanted to help Lin Ruanruan but was worried that people passing by might take the things on the ground.

After picking up those things, he had no free hands to help her.

Despite all his busyness, he ended up helping with nothing, watching Lin Ruanruan finish packing and leave with a lot of things.

When he wanted to return the things, the girl didn't pay him much attention.

Feeling somewhat dejected, the scholar thought he had probably become so low that even cats and dogs despised him.

Well, who would take a failed scholar who was also jilted seriously?

Adjusting his mood, the scholar carried the things Lin Ruanruan had given him, sighed deeply, and walked back home.

Carrying a lot of things to the shabby wooden house, Lin Ruanruan suddenly realized something.

Bo Cheng'an always arrived before she finished packing to help her carry things home.

Why hadn't he shown up today? Could it be she had packed too early?

If she went back this early, would Bo Cheng'an worry if he couldn't find her?

Well, he wasn't a three-year-old child. If he couldn't find her, he would guess she had gone home.

With this thought, Lin Ruanruan quickened her pace.

Today was an important day; she needed to redeem the jade pendant from the pawnshop.

Besides, she had to prepare some good dishes for Bo Cheng'an as a thank you.

After today, she could frankly express her feelings without worrying that Bo Cheng'an would think she was using the jade pendant to blackmail him.

The wooden house was in a remote place. After sweating profusely, she finally reached it.

The shabby wooden door was ajar, with a rusty iron lock hanging symbolically on it, not locked. Lin Ruanruan knew this wasn't a sign that Bo Cheng'an was home, just that the lock was broken.

There was nothing valuable in the wooden house except some simple grains. Whether the lock was good or bad didn't matter to Bo Cheng'an.

Removing the rusty iron lock, Lin Ruanruan carried the things into the wooden house, panting heavily as she sat down.

Tired, extremely tired.

If it weren't for Bo Cheng'an living here, no fool would run back and forth between this shabby wooden house and Changping Town.

After catching her breath, she redeemed the jade pendant from the supermarket. Holding the green jade pendant, all her fatigue seemed to disappear.

Unfortunately, there were no live animals for sale in the supermarket. Otherwise, she would have prepared a sumptuous meal to celebrate today.

There was still about a pound of pork at home, which was Bo Cheng'an's favorite food. Lin Ruanruan thought for a moment and decided to use that piece of fatty and lean pork to make braised pork with preserved vegetables.

With the addition of that fragrant pot of venison and a bit of stir-fried green vegetables as a side, the meal would be a perfect combination of meat and vegetables.

Making braised pork is quite troublesome; you have to boil the meat, fry it, and then steam it.

Fortunately, she came back early today. Otherwise, if the braised pork wasn't finished, it would be dark by the time it was done.

After making the braised pork, she lit a small stove and stewed the venison on it.

She didn't know if Bo Cheng'an drank alcohol, but she was in a good mood today and wanted to have a small drink.

She picked a decent bottle of wine from the supermarket and, imitating the way wine is warmed in Daliang, heated it until it was warm. Everything was ready.

The sun had already moved to the west, and it would be dark soon.

Bo Cheng'an seemed to be unusually late today. It was already this time, and there was still no sign of him.

Lin Ruanruan was getting a bit anxious and hungry. She casually took out some snacks from the supermarket to tide her over and leaned back in her chair, eating snacks while waiting.

She ate quite a few snacks, and as the sky gradually darkened, he still hadn't returned.

Growing more anxious, she leaned against the door frame, looking down the path leading to the wooden house like a wife waiting for her husband to return.

At dusk, the path stretched on, but there was no sign of anyone.

Today was the day she had agreed to return his jade pendant. What could have delayed him so much that he still hadn't returned?

Rubbing the jade pendant in her hand, Lin Ruanruan felt a bit worried.

The man lived by hunting; could he have encountered some fierce beast?

Thinking this, she became even more anxious.

Looking around, she wondered if she should go out and look for Bo Cheng'an.

But the mountains stretched endlessly, and she had no idea where Bo Cheng'an usually hunted. Where would she even begin to search?

After much thought, it seemed wiser to stay home.

If she went out and Bo Cheng'an came back and didn't find her, wouldn't he think she had broken her promise?

Silently sitting back in the chair, Lin Ruanruan took a sip of warm wine to calm her nerves.

Too hungry, she ended up eating a bowl of rice for dinner.

The moon wasn't very bright this season. Under the hazy moonlight, Lin Ruanruan went outside several more times, but still didn't see the person she was waiting for.

That night felt especially long.

Lin Ruanruan drifted in and out of sleep countless times.

At dawn, she groggily got up to find the food left on the table untouched.

Feeling a bit heavy-hearted, she simply cooked two noodles for breakfast and waited at home for a while longer, still without seeing anyone.

After some thought, she decided to go to the market to set up her stall. With more people around, she might have a chance to inquire about any news.

Even if she couldn't find anything out, she had to at least try.