Chapter 146 - 138: Want to Eat Dumplings

Chapter 146: Chapter 138: Want to Eat Dumplings

He thought the mention of "fifty taels" would frighten Bai Zhi, but to his surprise, her eyes lit up instead. ’This building is huge! And it’s only fifty taels? My little two-story place isn’t even this big. It looks like mine won’t even cost that much.’

Bai Zhi asked the young man, "Are you the foreman?"

The young man shook his head. "I’m not the foreman, my father is. But if you want to have a house built, telling me is just as good."

Bai Zhi clapped her hands. "That’s perfect! It saves me a lot of trouble. Here’s the deal: I live in Huangtuo Village, and my name is Bai Zhi. When you’re free, bring your father to find me there. I’ll have the house drawings ready, and you two can take a look. See if you can build it. If you can, the price is negotiable."

The young man was overjoyed. The current house was nearly finished, and his father had been worrying about not having another job lined up. Most of the men they worked with were from out of town. If they didn’t get another project, they would definitely leave, and getting them all back together again would be next to impossible.

"Great, great, great! It’s a deal then. My name is Song Qingfeng. My father is a famous master builder here in Qingyuan Town. Everyone calls him Song Gong."

Bai Zhi was even more satisfied. ’To be famous in the building trade, he must be very skilled. That’s exactly what I’m looking for.’

Song Qingfeng watched her leave, seeing her climb onto an oxcart piled high with sacks of grain. An ordinary family wouldn’t buy so much at once. He became even more convinced that this girl wasn’t bluffing.

Once they were out of town, the road grew bumpy. Bai Zhi found the jolting uncomfortable, so she simply hopped off the oxcart to walk back with Hu Feng.

Seeing that Hu Feng was ignoring her, she sidled up to him with a grin. "Are you still angry?"

Hu Feng stared straight ahead, not even sparing her a sideways glance.

"Alright, I was wrong earlier. I shouldn’t have run off to a dangerous place and made you suffer with me. I’m sorry, okay?"

Hu Feng shot her a sideways glance, his expression frosty. "If ’sorry’ actually fixed things, then did I take that blow to my back for nothing?"

Bai Zhi raised an eyebrow. "Then what do you want? For me to get on my knees and beg for your forgiveness?"

Hu Feng scoffed. "No need to kneel. Even if you knelt until your knees broke, I wouldn’t get anything out of it. If you’re really sincere, then make me a delicious meal."

Bai Zhi’s gaze swept over the cloth sacks tied to the oxcart. Inside were some fresh vegetables, including a bunch of chives that Hu Feng had bought...

"You want dumplings?"

Hu Feng sighed. "I just don’t know if dumplings without meat will taste any good."

Bai Zhi chuckled. ’This guy... He’s been putting on a stern face all this time just to wheedle a meal of dumplings out of me.’

"We still have eggs. Chive and egg filling is just as delicious."

She tilted her head to look at him. The corners of his thin, cool lips were quirked into a slight smile, and the eternal ice in his eyes seemed to have thawed considerably. His smile was faint, so faint it was hard to tell if he was really smiling, but at least he no longer seemed as cold and indifferent as before.

"You look very handsome when you smile. You should smile more often." Even she was surprised by her own sudden words.

Sure enough, Hu Feng immediately pressed his lips together. The faint curve of his smile vanished in an instant, and his expression grew stern again, a hint of embarrassment flickering in his eyes.

The farther they got from town, the rougher the road became, and the oxcart slowed to a crawl. To conserve the ox’s strength while helping the cart move faster, Hu Feng and the old driver pushed from behind while Bai Zhi took on the task of pulling from the front.