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Wei Ruo and the others walked on and saw that a house in the alley had already collapsed, snow covering the ruins of the dwelling.
After asking the onlookers, they learned that the residents were unharmed and had already been rescued, but the house had caved in, leaving the family with no place to live. The women sat crying in the alley, while the men were trying to salvage whatever usable things they could from the rubble.
Wei Ruo watched for a while, then pulled Wei Jinyi away.
It wasn’t that she felt nothing for the family, but from the looks of it, they would at least be able to get by. Surely, there must be other families in circumstances far worse than theirs right now.
Wei Jinyi said nothing. Although he didn’t ask, he knew what Wei Ruo was thinking. On this matter, their views were likely the same.
As they continued forward, they saw ruined, collapsed houses almost every stretch of the way. Still, most of the common folk who could afford to live in the city weren’t doing too badly.
But even so, it conveyed a troubling message: if so many houses within the city had been crushed, then in the small villages outside the city, the situation must be even worse.
After walking a while longer, Wei Ruo and the others arrived at the fronts of Sibaozhai and Xu’s Braised Food Shop.
The doors of Sibaozhai were half open; there were people inside, but the shop wasn’t doing business. Xu’s Braised Food, on the other hand, was open, though its entrance was quiet and deserted, a stark contrast to the lively scene of normal days.
Anyone could guess that today, nobody would be in the mood to buy braised food.
Inside the shop, the other assistant wasn’t there—only Chen Aqing was still working busily.
When she saw Wei Ruo, delight flashed in Chen Aqing’s eyes, but upon noticing the unfamiliar man at her side, her expression quickly returned to calm.
“It’s alright, this one’s an exception. He’s my second brother, the only one in my family I can truly confide in, someone I can trust.” Wei Ruo explained to Chen Aqing.
As Wei Ruo spoke, she didn’t notice the flicker in Wei Jinyi’s gaze behind her.
The only one, someone to confide in—that was her acknowledgment of him.
“Aqing, didn’t I send you a message yesterday? I said if the snow was too heavy, you didn’t need to open the shop today. Didn’t you receive it?” Wei Ruo asked.
“I did. Don’t worry, Miss. I only prepared a very small batch today. Once in a while, one or two customers drop by. By tonight, it should be just enough to sell out,” Chen Aqing explained.
“That’s not what I meant. In such cold weather, with so few customers, and with the New Year approaching, you should take the chance to rest for a couple of days.” said Wei Ruo.
After all, working at her shop basically meant there were no real days off.
But Chen Aqing shook her head. “Miss, just let me keep working here. They say business is best during the New Year. Besides, I have nowhere else to go. If the shop closes, I won’t have anything else to do.”
Chen Aqing’s parents were still alive, but their house was not a home she could return to.
If she went back, the money she earned would likely all be taken away by her parents—and she might even suffer a beating.
“In that case, fine. But if you ever get tired, just take a few days off. It’s the New Year, after all. I don’t want to be branded as a boss who squeezes her workers dry,” Wei Ruo said with a smile.
“Don’t worry, Miss, I won’t.” Chen Aqing replied.
After giving her a few simple instructions, Wei Ruo went next door to Sibaozhai.
The door was half-shut, but Wei Ruo easily pushed it open and walked inside.
“Miss, you must be here to see our master?”
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