He leaned back and casually asked, "Did you patronize this Mala soup store often in the past? You seemed really close with the store owner."
Qiao Nian happily ate the noodles she had been craving and answered without looking up, "Not that often, but when I'm free I would come by. Aunt Chen used to work as a helper for the Qiao Family, but she stopped working for them and set up this stall.
"The vegetables and meat she serves are the freshest from the market. They're also more hygienic than the restaurants nearby."
It was the first time Ye Wangchuan heard her mention her foster family. His eyes deepened, and he was about to speak.
Suddenly, the girl sitting opposite him frowned, put down her chopsticks, and said with her jaw tightened, "You eat first, I'm heading there for a moment!"
She stood up and walked towards the tricycle.
Ye Wangchuan turned around and realized a few hooligans in ripped jeans were picking and messing up the vegetables placed neatly in the basket.
"Didn't I give you 200 yuan just the day before? You ran out of money again?" From afar, Qiao Nian heard Aunt Chen's heartbreaking and helpless voice.
Among the bunch of hooligans, a young man's pre-pubescent voice said impatiently, "That bit of money wasn't enough. Mum, I need more."
"No way!" Aunt Chen slapped away his hand that was extending toward her wallet. Protecting her wallet, she said, "This money is for your dad's hospitalization bills, you can't take it!"
The young man drew his hand back, hesitating.
His companion next to him booed. "How old are you, Chen Yuan, to still be asking for money from your mum, and dare not to take when she doesn't give it to you."
"Shut up!"
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