"Just wait."
Li Xiaolian left him with those words and turned to go into the kitchen.
Before long, she brought out a steaming bowl of noodles in clear vegetable broth, with no meat.
The noodles were hand-rolled, the broth clear, with a few greens floating in it. Simple and delicious.
Bajie lowered his head and looked at the bowl without touching his chopsticks.
Li Xiaolian sat down opposite him, took the ledger, and opened it without looking at him either.
Bajie picked up his chopsticks, lifted a mouthful of noodles, blew on them, and slurped them into his mouth.
He ate slowly, so slowly he hardly seemed himself.
He finished the noodles and washed the bowl.
Bajie walked into the courtyard.
Two workers were moving wine jars, each carrying one, stumbling as they went. The storeroom had a high threshold, and the younger worker tripped as he neared the door, sending his jar tipping sideways.
Bajie strode over, caught the bottom of the jar with one hand, and followed him into the storeroom to set it on a shelf.
The worker turned around, froze, and opened his mouth:
"Young master?"
Bajie ignored him, straightened a few crooked jars nearby, and ducked back outside. He took the jar from the other worker, then made two more trips, putting away all the remaining jars in the courtyard.
After setting down the last jar, he dusted off his hands and nodded to the two workers.
The workers stood rooted to the spot, rubbing their eyes in disbelief.
Bajie had already turned and left.
A broken stool stood in the corner, one leg snapped, propped on a brick and leaning against the wall.
He went over and turned it upside down to examine it, then found a handful of bamboo skewers and a bundle