Chapter 83 [VIP]

The story begins with a branch of the Zhao family joining forces with the Tibetans to rebel.

After Zhao Tianhe righteously killed a member of the Zhao family's collateral branch, all of their property was confiscated.

Of the confiscated property, Zhao Tianhe distributed some as rewards to his meritorious subordinates, with Xiao Chuan receiving the most.

Mi Yao wasn't interested in Xiao Chuan's rewards, but she couldn't resist him stuffing everything into her pocket, so she ended up with a lot of real estate for no reason.

One of these is a restaurant on the ground floor in the central area.

Knowing that restaurants in this area would have a steady stream of customers, Mi Yao immediately sent Shuang Hua over after taking over, instructing her to get the restaurant back to business as soon as possible.

Not long after Shuanghua left, she returned to the manor with a bad expression. Upon hearing her recount the shady dealings the hotel had done in the past, Mi Yao's expression also turned sour.

Women in the prefectures under Zhao Tianhe's rule had a relatively high status, and there were no prostitutes in the army. However, this was all relative; there were still red-light districts in Yizhou, and prostitution was not prohibited.

The restaurant she acquired was supposed to be a legitimate business, but the waitresses were all incredibly beautiful, and there was a mansion attached to the back of the restaurant, decorated in a way that resembled both an inn and a mansion.

After all, the inn was empty, but each of these rooms was occupied by a woman.

Knowing that the Zhao family was afraid of displeasing Zhao Tianhe, they put up a respectable restaurant facade while secretly running a prostitution business. Mi Yao was disgusted and had the restaurant and backyard completely renovated.

She didn't sell the women inside again, but asked them if they wanted to leave or stay and work for her. Of course, working for her meant being a proper tea server.

Upon hearing Mi Yao's words, some of the dozens of women were happy, while others hesitated.

"My parents are both dead and I have nowhere to go. I would like to stay and work for you, but those who know my background would probably find me disgusting and wouldn't want me to serve them tea and water."

“I do have a father and a mother, but my mother is a stepmother. They sold me into this family. Even if the madam is willing to let me go, I have nowhere to go.”

She can only sell once. There's no benefit for her to leave here; it will only help her biological father and stepmother make another fortune.

Upon hearing this, the women who were initially happy also suppressed their joy.

Most of them were sold into this place, and they have nowhere to go if they leave. But if they stay, as the first person said, Mi Yao wants to open a proper restaurant, and those proper customers know their background and will look down on them for being dirty and unwilling to let them serve them.

Thinking about it this way, even though the Zhao family members are dead and they have found a better master, they still have no way to survive.

Everyone was dejected, and the air in the room seemed to stagnate. Mi Yao even found it difficult to breathe.

"I'm telling you, if I, your employer, am not afraid of you freeloading, what are you afraid of?"

Mi Yao said, "Whether you stay or leave, I will return your indentures and not take any of your money. You can take the money to start your own business or work under my protection. However, I suggest that you don't think that men can be trusted after being bullied by men for so many years. Don't jump from one wolf den to another."

The last sentence was a reminder from Mi Yao, who thought of scholars throughout history who made their fortunes off courtesans with their silver tongues.

In any world, people laugh at poverty but not prostitution. When you have money, everyone treats you well, but when you run out of money, you become an unworthy "dirty woman".

Hearing Mi Yao's reminder, several people who originally wanted to rely on the old customers began to reconsider.

“Since you don’t mind, I’m willing to stay.”

The first woman to speak was the maid who asked the question. Just as Mi Yao said, if she, as the employer, wasn't afraid of being shortchanged, what did the servants have to be afraid of?

What's your name?

Seeing that after she said she would stay, several others followed suit and decided to stay as well, Mi Yao realized that she had a certain influence among the group and asked her a question.

"My name used to be Cherry, and before that, I was called Liu Benya."

Liu Niang lowered her head and said, "None of these are pleasant names. If Madam would be so kind as to bestow a name upon me, I would be very grateful."

“I understand. Names shouldn’t be chosen casually. I’ll send you new names tomorrow, and you can choose for yourselves. Of course, if you have a name in mind, you can also tell me. Your lives are different now, and you should have a new name that is different from the past.”

After Mi Yao finished speaking, several women couldn't help but cry.

When they heard Mi Yao say that she would give them indentures and their freedom, they couldn't get excited. They had been sold once before, so what freedom did they have to speak of?

But now, hearing Mi Yao say that she is willing to protect them and that they will have different lives, they have a real sense that their future will be different.

Crying seemed to be contagious; everyone in the room cried their hearts out before giving Mi Yao their answers.

Most remained, but some felt it was better to be a high-class person through physical means than to be a servant girl.

Mi Yao did not make things difficult for these people; she returned their belongings and cancelled their indentures.

Only one person was reported by Liu Niang for secretly beating and killing several maids. After Mi Yao investigated, she sent the person to the government office.

Now that the government prisons are overcrowded, after seeing the evidence presented by Mi Yao, the woman was beheaded the next day to pay for her life.

"It's like a dream. First, we got a good new master, Bag."

The one speaking was the maid who served Dan Niang. Dan Niang had been dead for two days, and she still hadn't recovered. "So much, nothing."

She still remembered that a few days ago, when the lady wanted to settle old scores with Dan Niang, Dan Niang was dismissive and didn't take the lady seriously. She even said that the lady was hypocritical and that letting them go was not out of kindness, but because she was afraid that their beauty would win over Governor Xiao.

"There was a rumor that the Spring View Pavilion was given to Governor Xiao by the military governor. Dan Niang then said she would tell him how to seduce Governor Xiao and make him her devoted subject. But I never expected..."

Liu Niang,

She went to complain to Mi Yao, but she didn't want Dan Niang to leave so easily. Dan Niang was one of the most beautiful maids in Chun Jing Lou, with a voice like a nightingale, and she knew best how to please men.

Many of the young men in the Zhao family were infatuated with her, and some even wanted to take her back to their mansions. However, Dan Niang herself refused, preferring the feeling of being admired at Chun Jing Lou.

Even if such a person has moral flaws, they can still bring huge benefits if used properly. Who knew that Mi Yao would kill them without hesitation?

"We really have a good master."

Liu Xin couldn't help but sigh.

Aside from those who were sold into the family, some of these women offended the Zhao family or were simply brought in and forced into prostitution because the Zhao family took a liking to their looks.

Even though the Zhao family's collateral branches have all died out, Mi Yao still sent the petitions to the government to seek justice for the murdered women.

"From now on, you'll be working alongside Madam?"

Liu Xin looked at Hou Min, who was standing to the side and hadn't said a word.

Besides her complaining to Mi Yao, several other women went to Mi Yao, including Hou Min.

Hou Min was the wife of an official who had offended the Zhao family. Her grandparents and relatives were still alive. They had personally delivered her to the Zhao family to appease them, so after taking revenge, she never thought of returning to the Hou family.

She had saved up some money and wanted to start her own household, but she was worried that the Hou family would keep bothering her. So she asked Mi Yao if she could work at the Ciji Hospital because she really didn't want to stay at Chun Jing Lou, even though the restaurant had been renovated.

This reminded Mi Yao, so when Shuang Hua sent them their names, she had those who stayed choose again, so that in addition to staying at the restaurant, they could also work at the Tzu Chi Hospital.

As for Hou Min, because she was literate and had learned how to manage household affairs from her mother, she was kept by Mi Yao's side.

When she didn't have many assets, she didn't realize it, but as her assets grew, Mi Yao deeply felt that she didn't have enough talent. So when management talent came to her, she naturally accepted and trained them.

“You can learn some characters in your spare time. Madam is a good person. She doesn’t care how we were treated in the past. As long as we are willing to change for the better, she is willing to give us a chance.”

After packing his bags, Hou Min addressed the group.

She went to find Mi Yao, thinking that being allowed to go to the Tzu Chi Hospital was already a favor from Mi Yao. It's only when the master assigns tasks to the servants that the servants ask the master to change jobs.

But Mi Yao was better than she thought. She came to this place simply because she was literate and knew how to do accounts. Mi Yao wanted her to stay by her side, not caring at all what others said.

With employers like these, how could they possibly not survive if they were willing to live well?

Hearing Hou Min's words, everyone present nodded. Meeting Mi Yao was their greatest stroke of luck, and if they didn't cherish it, they would be just as foolish as Dan Niang.

After a month of renovations, Chunjinglou was renamed Xiangxuelou and reopened.

Because the business that used to operate in this place was disgusting, Mi Yao didn't plan to open a restaurant or inn after reopening it. Instead, she changed it into a multi-functional shop that only catered to female customers.

The first floor sells finished jewelry and skincare products, while the second floor is a place for women to drink tea and eat snacks.

After obtaining the consent of the other ladies in the mutual aid society, Mi Yao hung up a sign on the first floor, designating it as the mutual aid society's meeting tea room.

Just as Yu Xiu and Shuang Hua said, there is an inexhaustible treasure trove within Mi Yao, so the special feature of Xiangxue Tower this time is still to be unearthed from Mi Yao.

She brought out all her skincare methods and products, as well as the jewelry designs she came up with, and even the fresh desserts she developed with the chefs.

Mi Yao's face is her trademark. As long as you say that the floral water and perfume sold in the building are for Mi Yao's personal use, no one cares what Xiangxue Tower did in the past.

Furthermore, the dim sum at Xiangxuelou was truly exceptional. Within a few days, Mi Yao opened a dim sum shop next to Xiangxuelou that did not offer dine-in service but only offered takeout.

A month later, after a flurry of activity, Mi Yao gave herself two days off to express her gratitude to the Mutual Aid Association for their help from Tzu Chi Hospital to Xiangxuelou Restaurant. She specially prepared a banquet to get together with the women from the Mutual Aid Association.

Xiao Chuan thought that Mi Yao had finally stopped and that the two of them would have a chance to talk properly, but who knew that she would have to have a gathering with outsiders again.

If he didn't know Mi Yao's personality so well, and knew that she wouldn't go out of her way to avoid him, he would have thought that Mi Yao was shyly avoiding him because she was afraid of his burning feelings.

After escorting Mi Yao to Xiangxue Tower, Xiao Chuan stood at the door, gazing at her with lingering reluctance.

"When you leave, send someone to let me know, and I will come to pick you up."

Mi Yao went from being unaccustomed to Xiao Chuan's persistent pestering to now being able to handle it with ease.

Seeing the undisguised emotions in his eyes, Mi Yao hummed in response. After turning around and entering the room, she heard Qi Niang say that Xiao Chuan was still in the same spot. Mi Yao paused for a moment, realizing that she had overestimated herself. She could only cope with the changes in Xiao Chuan over the past month, far from being able to handle them with ease.

It would be fine if he acted shamelessly in private, but right now he seems to have completely abandoned any sense of shame and doesn't care if anyone knows he's going to great lengths to please her.

Yes, it's about ingratiating yourself.

As a man who had never pursued a woman and even thought that women were of little use and not worth his time, Xiao Chuan began to learn how to make Mi Yao happy after hearing her say that if you like someone, you should make her happy.

Knowing that the Tzu Chi Hospital and Xiangxue Tower were both things Mi Yao wanted to do, he had no intention of doing it for her. He simply gave Pu Qing to her. Apart from that, he wanted to kiss her every day like crazy, and he longed to look at her. Every night, lying on the bed, he would not cross the line without her consent.

In this respect, Mi Yao really thought Xiao Chuan was very impressive. Every morning when she saw Niu Zi standing tall and unyielding, and the burning passion in his eyes, she felt that he was about to explode.

But he endured it for more than a month, not even arguing with her on the first and fifteenth of the month.

It made her feel like he was torturing her.

After all, once her body got used to certain things, being stared at by Xiao Chuan's gaze every day made her feel hot and ready, even if she didn't want it in her heart. If it weren't for work that could distract her, she probably would have jumped on Xiao Chuan and gone all out.