Rise of the Street Vendor: From Tragedy to Triumph

Chapter 2

As the burdens on the Tan family grew heavier each day, Tan, the cook, began to consider finding a husband for his daughter, Tan Wan. First, if Tan Wan could marry well, she wouldn't have to stay at home and share in their hardships. Secondly, an extra son-in-law would mean that the Tan family would have in-laws to lend them a hand.

Unexpectedly, those scholars who had previously proposed marriage, upon seeing the Tan family's decline, all lost heart and no longer mentioned it, which annoyed Mrs. Qin to the point that she angrily banged on the table:

"I knew from the start that these pale-faced scholars were no good, all aiming to climb higher!"

There were even some shameless hooligans, greedy for Tan Wan’s beauty, who came smiling and laughing to Tan's face:

"Tan, don't expect a dowry, I'll just marry your girl tomorrow."

The cook couldn't tolerate such disrespectful people speaking so freely about Wan. He immediately changed his expression and chased them away. But the hooligan was not easily intimidated and jeered:

"If it weren't for your attractive girl, who would want an extra disabled brother-in-law! It’s nothing but a laughing stock! Better to act quickly while your sister-in-law is still young, give birth to a capable son, and forget about your disabled one early, then your two girls won't have to worry about getting married!"

Tan, the cook, turned red with anger. The hooligan slipped away laughing and even left behind a comment:

"Or is it that you, Tan Baili, are impotent? If so, send your wife to me. I guarantee she’ll be pregnant with a big fat boy in three days!"

These words were utterly vile, and the cook was shaking with rage. He had yet to take two steps when he was struck straight facedown.

In his efforts to treat Tan Yi’s leg, the cook had been working himself ragged for most of the year, and his overworked body could no longer bear the strain. He was hit with a stroke from his anger and frustration.

"Just take good care of yourself."

After taking his pulse, Doctor Zhang this time didn't charge a consultation fee and left a prescription. But all of the Tan family's silver was used to treat Tan Yi's leg; where could they get extra money to buy medicine for the cook?

When Tan Wan heard that her father fell sick because of her, she wiped away her tears and secretly turned all of her dowry that Mrs. Qin had prepared for her into silver coins. This caused Mrs. Qin to wail:

"Oh dear, why did you have to touch your dowry! Who would want to propose to our family now!"

Mrs. Qin, holding the silver coins, had tears swirling in her eyes. She didn't know whether to scold or praise her daughter. Stamping her foot in frustration, she wished she could skin that scoundrel alive!

Listening to her mother's angry curses, Qin Wan was silent, thinking in her heart that if she never married in her lifetime, then staying by her parents' side to serve them would be acceptable.

The chief cook had fallen, and there was no one in the family capable of taking his place. The cost of living in town was high, about two or three times that in the village. With a heavy heart at the sight of her silver rapidly depleting, Mrs. Qin had no choice but to close the restaurant. She used the remaining money to get medicine for her husband. Before the New Year, she rented a mule cart to take the whole family back to their old house in Yun Yao village.

But they were not expecting that during the winter, the cook had caught a cold. Combining new illness with old, he didn't have time to settle things before he quietly slipped away on a snowy night one week ago.

The villagers who had received kindness from the Qins voluntarily helped the Qin mother and daughter with the funeral arrangements. They played the funeral music, carried the coffin, mourned, and performed the funeral rites. The funeral feast lasted three days.

Qin Wan had always shared a deep bond with her father, so suddenly facing such a blow, she was unable to accept it. On the day of the burial, she fainted and fell while chasing her father's coffin. After she woke up, her body was taken over by a different spirit.

Now having to cope with an impoverished family with a paralyzed younger brother, Qin Wan, who had just become a top-tier chef after a lot of struggle, found it hard to accept this. Would she have to start all over again?

"Puchi!" A noise made by the lamp going out disrupted her deep thoughts, and Qin Wan came back to her senses.

The mourning light that was said to guide the deceased to their next life must burn for three days and three nights. Qin Wan got up, dressed and trimmed the wick. She then filled the lamp with more oil and lay back down. In the dim light, Qin Wan's thoughtful and slightly furrowed eyebrows occasionally appeared in the flickering shadows. Soon the strain of all these thoughts made her fall deep asleep.

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