At this moment, Xia Chunmei continued, "Today, Sister Tian and her daughters were beaten, all because of my ignorant second sister. It was her who stirred up trouble. To express my apology, Zhaodi, you will come with me to help with the kitchen from now on."

Upon hearing that Zhao Di could go along to work as a cook, the Xia Deng family's eyes lit up with envy.

Tian Cuiya and Zhao Di were even more incredulous that such a good thing could happen to them!

"Chunmei, you've got so many people in the kitchen, isn't that enough?" asked Zhou, who lived next door to Xia Dengshi. She wanted to go too, "Zhaodi is too young to do much work. How about I, Auntie?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Dengshi glared and angrily said, "Zhou Aihua, have you no shame? If anyone should go, it should be me!"

After saying that, he looked at Xia Chunmei with a smile: "Chunmei..."

"I only want Zhaodi!"

“Zhao Di is too young…”

"If you think she can't do it, then keep her at home. I don't think you can handle the rest of your family." Xia Chunmei's words were very direct and blunt.

Xia Dengshi was also somewhat embarrassed by what she was being said, and asked, "How is the payment calculated?"

“She was young, had limited skills, and was a novice. She was paid five coins for each job she did.”

Xia Dengshi felt that the amount of money was a bit small.

Although the people who worked as cooks under Xia Chunmei kept quiet and didn't say how much they were paid, Xia Dengshi knew that a day's work would definitely earn more than five coins!

When Xia Chunmei saw her like this, she knew that she thought the money was too little, so she said, "If you think it's too little, then forget it. In fact, we don't lack manpower right now."

There are now six people working with Xia Chunmei in the kitchen, not counting Xia Qiumei. Most of the banquets are simplified versions of the whole fish banquet, and they don't make longevity peach buns, so it's not as busy as when they were preparing banquets for the Wang family. The few of them can handle it all.

“Five coins it is, but you have to hand the money over to me,” Xia Dengshi said.

"That's no problem, but let me make this clear beforehand: if she gets injured, or isn't getting enough to eat, or isn't strong enough to work, I won't use her."

Xia Dengshi often treated them harshly. It was common for Zhao Di and her sisters to be beaten and go hungry. After Xia Chunmei said this, Xia Dengshi would definitely have some concerns and would treat Zhao Di better in the future. At least she wouldn't beat her or deliberately starve her, since she was still hoping that Zhao Di could earn money for her.

"Chunmei, do you still need people?" Zhou Aihua asked, unwilling to give up.

"We already have enough people, we don't need them for now. Even Zhao Di, I kicked Qiu Mei out so that she could have a place."

A team that organizes banquets like this usually only needs seven or eight people, but now with Xia Chunmei herself, there are eight of them. In a couple of days, Xia Hongfen will come to learn the craft and will also help out with some work, so there are nine of them in total.

"What do you mean by kicking Xia Qiumei out?"

Xia Qiumei also stopped crying, with a sense of foreboding.

"What I mean is that I won't take her with me when I cook in the future. Everyone has to take responsibility for their mistakes. She caused Zhao Di and her daughters to be beaten, so she should make amends for that!"

Xia Qiumei stared at Xia Chunmei in astonishment, then burst into tears, crying, "No, I want to go! Waaah..."

"I won't take you. We'll talk about it when you really realize you were wrong."

"Are you really my older sister? Why are you siding with outsiders? I'm your younger sister!" Xia Qiumei roared.

"If you weren't my sister, do you think I would care about you? You can be ugly, you can be poor, you can be incompetent, but you absolutely cannot be morally corrupt!"

She came here to complain, which not only put Xia Chunmei, the older sister, in an unjust position, but also caused Tian Cuiya and her daughter to be beaten, making their already difficult lives even worse. The key point is that what she did did not benefit her at all.

This is a classic case of harming others without benefiting oneself!

Xia Chunmei would never tolerate her.

Given Xia Qiumei's character, Xia Chunmei has now decided to keep things from her as much as possible in the future, especially regarding finances.

Xia Qiumei was furious. Suddenly, her eyes turned fierce, and she rushed towards Zhao Di...

Xia Chunmei reacted quickly and grabbed Xia Qiumei: "You actually want to hit Zhaodi!"

Xia Chunmei was furious and slapped Xia Qiumei's buttocks twice.

Xia Qiumei wailed and struggled violently, shouting, "You're siding with outsiders! You're not my older sister! I don't have an older sister like you!"

Upon hearing this, Xia Mingshi said sternly, "Qiu Mei, if it weren't for your eldest sister, would you be in this situation today? You mustn't say such things; they're too hurtful. Quickly apologize to your eldest sister."

"I never thought I raised such an ungrateful child! Fine, very well!" Xia Chunmei was very angry. "Is there no older sister like you? Then we'll live separately from now on. I've provided everything in the house. Starting tomorrow, you'll have to fend for yourself. The food in the house has nothing to do with you. You'll have to figure out how to make a living on your own."

"Why shouldn't I get a share of the things in the house? I get paid every time I help with the cooking!"

"You've helped organize ten banquets so far, and your wages aren't even enough to buy the cotton-padded coat you're wearing!"

Xia Qiumei suddenly felt a little less confident: "Then...then I'll go fishing."

“Fishing, huh? Have you been eating air all this time?” Xia Chunmei said. “Since you’re so good at it, start fishing tomorrow to make a living. I want to see just how capable you are.”

Xia Mingshi said, "Qiu Mei, quickly apologize to your eldest sister! With the few fish you caught, how long can they last? Your eldest sister has to work hard to earn money to support you all, and she also has to be wary of the wolves eyeing her from the outside world. Otherwise, your clothes would have been stolen long ago. Everything you sisters wear, eat, and use, wasn't it all earned by her? What you said is too hurtful. You should apologize right now!"

Chen Jinlian also said, "If it weren't for your sister's skill, you wouldn't be able to eat so well and have such a good complexion. Qiu Mei, you should have a conscience."

Since Xia Chunmei started fishing and cooking, all of her sisters have visibly gained weight and their complexions have become rosy.

Xia Qiumei, in particular, has been working in the kitchen and eating well and full. Her chin used to be so sharp it could kill someone, but now it's become rounder.