CH 45

Bonus chapter for Heemi

However, women with extensive life experience have many ways to handle things. They didn’t need Qiao Yuan to send them off the next day at all.

“I’ve made arrangements with Aunt You and Aunt Zhang from the alley. They are regulars there, and they’ll take us there later. You go ahead and do your work.”

Qiao Yuan saw that Lin Cuifen and Qiao Wangshi were wearing beautiful clothes that they didn’t usually wear, and their hair was also very neat. He couldn’t help but be happy and stuffed each of them a bag of broken silver that he had prepared in advance. “Eat well, drink well, have fun, and don’t save money.”

Qiao Wangshi tried to refuse, but was persuaded by Lin Cuifen, “Auntie, it will hurt the child’s feelings if you don’t take it.”

Qiao Wangshi looked at Qiao Yuan’s eager eyes and then looked at Lin Cuifen, who had been sincerely persuading her all along. She no longer resisted and accepted it.

Qiao Yuan waited until they left the door with laughter and smiles, and then he breathed a sigh of relief. “I hope grandma can be happy.”

“She will.” His husband had been too worried these days, and Yu Dameng felt sorry for him and gently stroked his hair.

Qiao Yuan rubbed his palm randomly, and then smiled and pounced into Yu Dameng’s arms. He regretted, “There are too many people at home, and it’s not easy to get close.”

Yu Dameng hugged his husband tightly with one hand and played with his fingers with the other. He very much agreed with his husband’s words.

They looked at each other, and Yu Dameng directly lifted him up by his hips and took him back to the room.

……

Qiao Yuan returned to Yu Qiao Ji with his face still flushed.

The big stupid bear who had become enlightened had become eager and skillful in bed. Qiao Yuan felt his legs were weak and snorted, and then he thought of Yu Dameng who was punished by him with a face full of jasmine-scented snow cream and felt it was funny.

Serves him right for not listening!

Qiao Yuan shook his head and continued his work. He had already asked Yu Dameng to inform the agency about hiring a maid for Qiao Wangshi. They would bring a suitable person to him when they found one, so he didn’t have to worry about it.

He was now making a business plan for the hotpot restaurant, and also thinking about how to sell the stoves and honeycomb coal at the big fair on the fifteenth.

Seeing him so focused, adding notes here and there, Chu Li curiously took a peek then exclaimed, “Why are all your words missing strokes?”

He had no choice, he really didn’t know how to write traditional characters!

Qiao Yuan randomly made up an excuse, “These are just shorthand for myself to understand.”

Chu Li thought it made sense and lamented, “If only the characters were really as simple as you wrote them.”

That way, he could save a lot of effort when he was punished to copy books!

Qiao Yuan: “……”

As the two were discussing, Pei Yin arrived.

Chu Li couldn’t help but tell Pei Yin about the funny thing that had just happened. There was no need to avoid it. Qiao Yu openly showed Pei Yin the simplified Chinese characters he had just written. Pei Yin accidentally saw the original sketch of the stove that Qiao Yuan had drawn and asked in surprise, “What is this? A stove?”

Qiao Yuan explained this new style of stove to Pei Yin, who was very impressed and praised, “If it could be promoted to the whole country, it would greatly benefit the people’s livelihoods.”

Chu Li was also drawn into deep thought by Pei Yin’s words and stared at the drawing.

Qiao Yuan looked at the two people in front of him and had a guess in his heart. He smiled and said, “If you two kind-hearted people have any way to promote this new type of stove throughout the country, feel free to take the drawing with you.”

“But you’ll have to ask my husband to add some details. He was the one who made the real thing based on my crude drawing.” Qiao Yuan mentioned Yu Dameng and felt a bit proud.

Pei Yin both envied their marital relationship and admired Qiao Yuan’s indifference towards fame, wealth, and money.

Chu Li expressed his gratitude in a more direct way. He hugged Qiao Yuan’s arm and rubbed it, and said, “Ah Yuan is so good.”

Ah, the soft and delicate young master being coquettish was a bit hard to handle.

In the afternoon, Qiao Yuan finished work early and went home. He saw Qiao Wangshi and several elderly ladies chatting about what they had seen and heard at the theater today, with smiles on their faces. He couldn’t help but feel happy too.

Liu Ge’er came running over excitedly with lots of treats and toys. “Brother Yuan, mother took us to a puppet show and West Street market! She bought me so many yummy and fun things!”

Qiao Yuan smiled and patted his head, patiently listening to him as he spoke one thing after another.

The next day, the agency brought several suitable candidates for Qiao Yuan to choose from.

Qiao Yuan considered their background, speech, and personality, and finally picked a woman in her forties. Her surname was Wang, and she used to be a helper in the former county magistrate’s house. After the county magistrate was promoted, her family stayed here and didn’t go with him, so she became idle.

She was a bit chubby, but her cheerful face made people feel good, and she was very strong. Qiao Yuan thought that if Xu Xiuhua ever came to cause trouble, this woman could easily knock her down with just one hand.

Qiao Yuan was satisfied and gave her a high price of one and a half taels per month. He only had one request, which was to make Madam Qiao happy.

Aunt Wang was full of enthusiasm and eager to work, and immediately slapped her chest and promised, “You just wait and see!”

The money was not spent in vain. Aunt Wang was capable and could drive a cart. She took Qiao Wangshi and Lin Cuifen around for fun these days. Qiao Yuan noticed that Qiao Wangshi smiled more often compared to before, and she also looked more energetic. He also felt more and more relaxed in his heart.

The copper stoves for the hotpot restaurant were ready, and he had the recipe for the base in his hands. Now he just needed to hire people. Qiao Yuan posted a notice at the door and screened them one by one based on their speech, dress, work, and background. He selected six helpers, three for the kitchen, two for the waiter, and one for the accountant.

At the same time, Qiao Yuan also opened a separate takeout window for stir-fried dishes, which he entrusted to Li Xiumei. Firstly, as the weather grew colder and the river froze over, there was no longer any business at the dock. Secondly, he also had a trusted person to watch over the shop, which made him feel at ease.

Recently, Qiao Yuan had trained them based on their job roles. Currently, they eagerly waited for the opening day so that they could show off their abilities to the boss and prove that money spent on hiring them was not wasted.

On the auspicious day he carefully chose, Ten Li Fragrant Hotpot1“十里香火锅” (Ten Li Fragrant Hotpot) uses some poetic imagery related to Chinese culture: ⦁ “十里” (Ten Li) – A li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, equal to about 0.5 kilometers. So “ten li” expresses the idea of a long distance. ⦁ “香” (Fragrant) – This implies the aroma and flavors of the hotpot can travel a long distance. ⦁ Together “十里香” evokes the image of the fragrant smell of the hotpot carrying far through the air. So the name conveys the idea that this hot pot restaurant makes such delicious and aromatic hot pot that the fragrant smell travels far. opened for business.

Before the opening, the rich aroma of the soup base had been floating on the street for several days. Now, without needing promotion, many customers came in.

“Welcome, how many people are in your group? Would you like to have hotpot or stir-fry? Hotpot needs to be eaten in the restaurant for a lively atmosphere, while stir-fried dishes can be eaten in the restaurant or taken out, depending on your preference.”

“For hotpot, we currently have two flavors, mushroom clear soup and spicy oil. You can also order a split pot2鸳鸯锅 (yuānyāng guō) – split pot, a hot pot with two different broths in one pot. “Yuanyang” refers to the Mandarin duck, which has a distinct male and female appearance, hence the name for the split pot. , which has both, and can accommodate everyone’s taste at the table.”

“Stir-fry is convenient and fast. If you take it out, we’ll give you one dish for free if you bring your own utensils. If you use the shop’s utensils, you’ll have to pay a five-wen deposit, which will be returned in full when you return the utensils the next day.”

“For meat dishes, we have lamb, pork belly, crispy pork, yellow throat, fish slices, and duck blood; for vegetarian dishes, we have cabbage, potatoes, radishes, eggplants, mushrooms, and wood ear fungus. We also have various meatballs, fish balls, vegetarian balls, bean products, and noodles on this menu. If you find it troublesome, you can choose our set meals or simply ask me to order for you.”

“Dipping sauce and tea are both on the table by the south wall. You can choose according to your personal preference.”

The helpers in the shop were uniformed, and their patience and enthusiasm made people feel good. The dishes were served quickly, and as soon as you ordered the pot base, the helpers would bring it to you and cook it for you.

The rich and overpowering aroma made people swallow their saliva. Most people would order two flavors at a time – the spicy one to stimulate the appetite for rice, and the clear soup to relieve the spiciness with its fresh fragrance, hitting the taste buds directly. While eating this time, one would already be thinking of the next time.

Groups of three to five good friends, ordering several meat dishes and vegetable dishes to go with noodles, could finish a meal for just over three hundred wen. Ten Li Fragrant Hotpot Restaurant has become a popular spot in Yunshui County in the early winter.

Every day after the shop opened, it was soon full of customers, with profits of three to five taels of silver per day.

Aunt Wang took Qiao Wangshi to the shop for three days in a row. Qiao Wangshi saw the crowds of customers spending money like water and was shocked.

Qiao Yuan also finally laid his cards on the table and had a good talk with Madam Qiao that night. “Grandma, have you seen these days? Your grandson can take good care of you without relying on anyone.”

“But Dameng and my mother-in-law are sincere to you.” Qiao Yuan squatted down, held Madam Qiao’s hand, and said earnestly, “Grandma, don’t go back to that home again. If my parents in heaven are here, they wouldn’t want you to do that.”

After some hesitation, Qiao Wangshi finally nodded with tears in his eyes.

Qiao Yuan felt a big stone in his heart fall and hoped that Qiao Wangshi could live a good life in her old age.

Ever since the hotpot restaurant opened, Qiao Yuan had wanted to invite Chu Li and Pei Yin to have a hot pot at Yu Qiao Ji, but unfortunately, Pei Yin happened to fall ill during that time.

This time, Qiao Yuan had some free time, and Pei Yin’s illness had finally improved. Qiao Yuan then organized this hotpot meal.

“You’ve just recovered, so you should eat the clear soup today. Ah Li and I will eat the spicy one, don’t be greedy.” Pei Yin was elegant and scholarly, and every time Qiao Yuan talked to him, he was also influenced by his refined manner of speaking and would unconsciously speak more elegantly.

Chu Li stared at Pei Yin, with a look of “I’m watching you, be careful!”

Pei Yin’s gloomy face had a bit of a smile because of his two friends, and smelling the delicious and rich aroma, he also had a rare appetite.

He raised his hand and picked up the chopsticks, and he found a plate of green and tender vegetables on the table. He was surprised, “How come there are such crisp and fresh vegetables in winter?”

Qiao Yuan explained with a smile, “I planted them a few days ago. The iron shop at home has a fire every day, so I cleared a room and made a fire wall and planted some vegetables. There’s not much, just for eating something fresh in winter.”

Pei Yin thought it made sense. The reason why vegetables didn’t grow in winter was simply because it’s too cold. If the temperature was controlled, and it was suitable for the growth of vegetables, they could certainly grow some. But the cost was too high, and if it was promoted, it would encourage extravagance.

Chu Li saw Pei Yin in a daze, and couldn’t help but ask, “Ah Yin, did you think of another good idea to make money?”

He turned to Qiao Yuan and complained, “Every time someone mentions something new and interesting, Ah Yin immediately thinks about how to make money from it.”

“But,” Chu Li’s words took a big turn, “Ah Yin doesn’t use the money he earns for himself, he supports the soldiers at the border, he is the little brother I admire the most in this world!”

“You’re second!” Chu Li looked at Qiao Yuan and quickly added.

Qiao Yuan had some guesses about the identities of these two people. He thought for a moment and didn’t ask any more questions. Instead, he changed the subject and said, “It takes time to train people for the pastry shop, but what about hotpot? As long as you have the base ingredients, you can start cooking in just one or two days.”

Pei Yin was moved and was about to discuss details with Qiao Yuan.

But the little servant outside suddenly came in, and reported, “Young master, the master is here.”

The cup in Pei Yin’s hand fell to the ground with a clang.

I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. If you want to show your support, you can buy me a coffee. It would make my day! For every five coffees I get, I will release a bonus chapter.