"Get up, go home and wash yourself properly, change into clean clothes, and then come to my house to find me."

Upon hearing that Meng Zhao was willing to take her in, Li Yunxiang was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly before turning around and hurrying home.

With help now available, Meng Zhao didn't continue to the workshop and turned back to the courtyard.

Li Yunxiang ran back home, and upon entering the courtyard, she addressed her second younger brother's wife, who was sewing shoe soles in the yard:

"Sister-in-law, I've found a job, but I need some clean clothes. Could I borrow yours for a few days?" Her clothes were tattered and worn, and she figured that if she wore them, Meng Zhao would be displeased.

Hearing what she said, Granny Fang, who was standing nearby, quickly asked, "The workshop is willing to hire you?"

Li Yunxiang shook her head. "Qing'an's wife asked me to go to her house, not the workshop."

Did she say how much money she would give you?

Li Yunxiang continued to shake her head.

"You idiot, why didn't you ask about something so important? Never mind, that girl can pay those people in the workshop so much money, she won't skimp on it. Second son's wife, go and get some clean clothes of yours."

The second daughter-in-law next to her looked unhappy, but had no choice but to turn around and get it.

Li Yunxiang timidly said from the side, "Mother, could Er Ya have something to eat tonight?"

Granny Fang got angry whenever she mentioned Li Erya, but she was somewhat mindful of Li Yunxiang's wages, and said impatiently, "I know, I know, you haven't even earned any money yet, and you're already ordering me around."

After Li Yunxiang arrived, Meng Zhao first checked her over. Although her clothes were a bit big, they were clean, her hands and face were washed, and her hair was wrapped in a cloth. Then he let her into the courtyard.

He instructed, "Don't look around or ask questions. Just do what I tell you to do."

Meng Zhao didn't ask her to do anything else. Instead, he found a corner and gave her the task that Shen Qinghe had done the day before.

At first, I watched from the side, and seeing that she was quite skilled with the knife and put in a lot of effort when chopping meat, I stopped watching her.

When Gu Shi and Aunt Feng'e returned, they looked at Meng Zhao with suspicion when they saw Li Yunxiang in the courtyard. Meng Zhao did not explain, but told them to do their work first and talk about it later.

After preparing all the dishes for the day, Meng Zhao was worried that the girls wouldn't be able to handle it all, so he called Aunt Feng'e to go out with him. He also told her that this was extra work and that she would get extra pay at the end of the month.

Aunt Feng'e was naturally delighted. It was the first time she had encountered a boss like Meng Zhao, and she marveled that she had truly followed the right person.

After Meng Zhao left, he let Li Yunxiang go home as well. When she arrived home, her family was having dinner. She was relieved to see Li Erya sitting at the table.

Contrary to her usual behavior, Granny Fang served her a bowl and invited her to sit down and eat. The rice in the bowl was mostly dry with very little broth, a privilege she only received during the busy farming season.

That night, Li Yunxiang lay in bed with her daughter, and Li Erya massaged her shoulders. "Mom, are you tired today?"

She had been chopping meat all afternoon, and her arms were sore and aching, but seeing how sensible her daughter was, she didn't feel so tired anymore. She reached out and touched Li Erya's belly.

"Did you eat your fill just now?"

Li Erya nodded. "I'm full. Before Mom came back, Grandma gave me half a steamed bun."

Li Yunxiang wiped away her tears. That's good, that's good. As long as her daughter can eat her fill, that's all that matters.

***

After arriving at the stall from yesterday, Meng Zhao and his group quickly set up their stall. Business was even better today than yesterday, and the group kept collecting money and taking skewers.

Many of the young men and women walking through the night market were carrying skewers in their hands, eating as they went.

The crowd was intrigued and immediately asked where she bought it, which attracted a new batch of customers to her stall.

Meng Zhao calculated that she made more than 1,500 skewers today. After deducting costs, she could earn about 800 coins. In addition, she earned 300 to 400 coins for lunch. She could earn more than one tael of silver a day just by setting up her stall.

It seems her shop is not far away.

Sure enough, after only three days at the night market, she found a shop through a broker.

This shop was originally a tailor shop. The owner had only one daughter who married into a neighboring county. Her parents didn't want to be too far away from their daughter, so they thought of renting a larger shop in the neighboring county and subletting the current shop.

Although the shop wasn't originally intended for food, and all the tables and chairs would have to be bought from scratch, Meng Zhao still decided to rent it.

Firstly, the street has a large flow of people, and the original shops didn't close down because they couldn't make a living; the poor business wasn't due to a bad location.

Also, the owner has a courtyard in the back alley. Although it's not connected to the front storefront and you have to go around to get there, it's quite close, making it convenient for them to do business.

Meng Zhao had also seen the courtyard; it was where the owner's family had lived before, and it was kept very clean.

Including the main hall, there are a total of seven rooms and a small kitchen. Although it is definitely not enough for them, the advantage is that the courtyard is quite spacious, where they can build a stove and a donkey shed. There is a well in the courtyard, so there is no problem with water.

Moreover, it is located at an intersection, with only one neighbor sharing a wall on the right. Meng Zhao also asked around and found out that it was a kind family, so there would be no neighborly conflicts in the future.

Although Meng Zhao was very satisfied with the shop, she didn't show it on her face. The broker who brought her there didn't know her intentions either, so he quoted her the normal price.

"Young lady, if you rent this shop alone, it will cost three taels of silver a month. If you rent it with the courtyard, it will cost six taels a month."

Meng Zhao pretended to be unable to accept it. "Six taels? That's too expensive! Last time we saw that shop, which even had a courtyard, it was only five taels of silver!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!