"marvelous!"

"I haven't seen such well-burned charcoal balls in years!"

"The charcoal powder used in recent years has generally been of poor quality, and the incense charcoal balls made from it always have a burnt smell. The ones here are considered good, but nobody in the incense shops wants to buy them."

"That's great! With your incense charcoal, my business can start to pick up again."

"I'll give you all the orders in a bit!"

Lu Qiqi hadn't expected the market for incense charcoal in Luzhou County to be so uncertain. As long as they maintained the quality of their incense charcoal balls, they wouldn't have to worry about not getting orders.

The villagers won't have to worry about getting through the winter!

Lu Qiqi smiled even more brightly, "Then I'll have to ask Manager Feng to take good care of me."

"It should be me asking you to take care of things. Once the buyer who placed the order has inspected and received the goods, I will settle the payment with you."

Feng Yi pinched Lu Qiqi's tender little face and clicked her tongue repeatedly, "Look at your delicate skin and smooth face, it's so good to be young!"

Lu Qiqi was stunned when Feng Yi suddenly pinched her cheek. After hearing Feng Yi's words, she was even more dumbfounded.

“Sister, aren’t you still young?” Lu Qiqi said.

Feng Yi tapped Lu Qiqi's nose with her index finger and said reproachfully, "Your little mouth is so sweet, I like it!"

Lu Qiqi only said "young" and before leaving, Feng Yi gave her a box of rouge.

After finishing her business, Lu Qiqi thought that Old Madam Hao's health couldn't withstand the cold in winter, so she went to the Hao residence again.

Laughter could be heard coming from the courtyard of the old lady of the Hao family.

"You little rascal! You'll get your share of food!" Old Madam Hao said with a smile, but she was actually very happy inside.

Lin Bai sat in the main hall where guests were being received, eating hibiscus cakes made by Granny Yu Ru and drinking the precious tea he had taken from Gu Chen's residence. He felt that nothing could be more delightful than this.

After finishing the hibiscus cake, Lin Bai rinsed his mouth with the Thousand Gold Tea before saying, "Does Madam know why it took us so long to come see you?"

How could the old lady not know what Lin Bai was thinking? "It was my grandson who sent you two to do things again, and you've caused the delay."

“Madam is truly insightful. The young master is exploiting us,” Lin Bai said, squatting down in front of Madam Hao and looking up at her. “Look, I’ve gotten so tanned.”

Gu Chen sat to one side, calmly watching Lin Bai act silly.

Madam Hao and Granny Yu Ru exchanged a smile. Madam Hao pinched Lin Bai's cheek hard and laughed, "It's not easy to get a tan even in winter!"

"Ouch! That hurts!" Lin Bai stood up, rubbing his face, and said with a grin, "You still only protect your grandson."

Old Madam Hao pretended to be angry and said, "All he knows is to have you come and make me happy. He never comes to see me in person. How many more years do I have left to live with this frail body?"

"Madam!" Granny Yu exclaimed, stopping Madam Hao from saying such unlucky things.

Lin Bai didn't take it to heart, "The old lady took me in as her grandson, and I come to see you every day."

"Aren't you?" said Madam Hao.

"Yes!" Lin Bai immediately replied, "Hello, Grandmother! Grandmother is in good health. Grandmother, could you give me some money to spend?"

Lin Bai's shameless antics completely dispelled Madam Hao's worries, leaving only her eyes crinkling with laughter.

"Madam, Miss Lu has come to visit," a maidservant announced.

"Quickly invite her in and bring another pot of good tea," said Granny Yuru.

Lu Qiqi was carrying a wooden box when she was invited into the old lady's courtyard.

“Grandmother, I brought you…” Lu Qiqi stepped through the door and saw Lin Bai and Gu Chen. “Grandmother has guests visiting.”

“Lin Bai, Gu Chen, you’ve met before,” said Madam Hao upon seeing the wooden box. “What good thing have you brought me this time?”

Lin Bai and Gu Chen both stood up to greet Lu Qiqi, and Lu Qiqi nodded in return, holding the wooden box.

Lu Qiqi placed the box on the small table, lifted the lid, and the dark clumps inside were clearly visible to Old Madam Hao.

Lu Qiqi said, "This is the benzoin I made, and the charcoal cakes I used. In winter, you'll feel very comfortable holding a hand warmer and smelling this fragrance."

"Yu Ru, help me put away this incense charcoal," said Madam Hao, pulling Lu Qi Qi to sit down next to her.

He patted Lu Qiqi's hand again and said, "You're so thoughtful, always thinking of me."

"My grandson is thinking of you too!" Lin Bai said immediately, afraid that his efforts for the whole day would be wasted by Lu Qiqi's arrival, otherwise he would have worked for the young master for nothing!

Madam Hao ignored Lin Bai and only talked to Lu Qiqi.

Lin Bai, like a neglected young wife, would occasionally kick Gu Chen to make him speak up.

It would be too much to ask Gu Chen to speak up and chat, so Lin Bai started to sulk with Gu Chen again.

Lu Qiqi did not stay at the Hao residence for long. After delivering the charcoal cakes, she left the Hao residence.

She also planned to visit the noodle shop, as she hadn't had time to go there since she started burning charcoal.

Lu Qiqi bought some charcoal from the village, intending to use it in the noodle shop so that customers wouldn't hesitate to eat there.

Noon had long passed, but there was still a long queue at the noodle shop.

Lu Qiqi deliberately lowered her voice and said to Zhou San, who was busy calculating the bill, "Waiter, a bowl of spicy noodles, please!"

"Okay! Two bucks a bowl of spicy noodles!" Zhou San mechanically recited the work jargon before even looking up.

When he looked up and saw Lu Qiqi, he was overjoyed. "Sister Lu, you've finally come! I thought you'd forgotten about me!"

“I’ll come see you as soon as I’m done with my work,” Lu Qiqi said.

I also heard Hu Jinfei say on Wednesday that Lu Qiqi has been busy burning and selling charcoal lately and is too busy to spare any time for anything else.

"Cook me a bowl of pork bone noodles, I'm actually a little hungry," Lu Qiqi said, rubbing her lower abdomen.

Having finally gotten a chance to shine, Wednesday was not about to let it slip by. He quickly grabbed his bamboo token and cut in line. If he knew how to cook, he would have done it himself long ago.

After finishing her noodles, Lu Qiqi flipped through the ledger from Wednesday and praised, "You've made progress. Keep it up!"

On Wednesday, Lu Qiqi's praise made him feel dizzy, just like yesterday when Liu Tong tricked him into drinking a bowl of wine. He felt completely relaxed and lightheaded.

Liu Tong and the others were busy, so Lu Qiqi simply greeted them and went to the kitchen.

The two women washing dishes in the kitchen had naturally met Lu Qiqi, the manager, before. They greeted her and continued washing the dishes.

Lu Qiqi looked at the steam rising from the sink and remembered that she hadn't made the dish soap she was planning to make yet!

Lu Qiqi immediately decided that she would put this matter on the agenda as soon as she got back!