In the afternoon, Tao Wan's mother went home and told her husband about her son and daughter-in-law's progress in their studies.

“Your son is not stupid, but he is too lazy. The saying goes that diligence can make up for lack of talent, but the opposite is also true…” The old scholar shook his head.

"Which of my sons are you referring to, Master, the eldest or the youngest?" Tao Wanniang asked, frowning. Those two brats, how dare they let her slack off!

"It is the second young master. Perhaps he is newly married and the child is still young..." the old scholar said cryptically, "but your daughter is very good. She has learned much more than her two elder brothers. If she only knows how to read, then I have nothing to teach her."

“In that case, let’s not teach anymore. I will still pay you the tuition fee as promised,” Tao Wanniang said. They had agreed on five taels of silver a month. Although she didn’t have time to teach, since some students had already learned the material and others didn’t want to learn, she decided to let it go.

"Master, come to my restaurant for dinner tonight. Consider it a farewell dinner for you."

The old scholar also felt there was no point in continuing to teach, so he readily agreed.

“I’ll tell them all too. Here, teacher, this is for you.” Tao Wanniang handed the prepared silver to the old scholar.

"Please go ahead, madam," the old scholar said calmly after putting away the money.

Tao Wanniang walked into the room where she taught her sons and the others. The boys, who were writing, all stood up when they saw her come in.

"No need to say anything, just remember that today is your last day learning to recognize and write characters. We'll invite your teacher to dinner at a restaurant tonight. Remember, a teacher for a day is a father for life. Those who do not respect their teachers are worse than pigs and dogs!"

Tao Wan's mother said with a stern face, "Then, starting tomorrow, Da Hu, Da Peng, and Hong Yu will have to go to work at the restaurant. Xiao Yun will stay home to take care of the children, and Xiao Qiao will come with me. But you are too young, and I don't want you to be working in the kitchen at such a young age."

"Mother, it's alright. I'd love to work with you!" Xiao Qiao'er quickly said.

Tao Wanniang waved her hand, signaling Xiao Qiao'er not to speak yet.

"Follow me for a while first. If you want to learn something else, that's fine too. You guys all know what to do, right?"

"I don't know!" Ling Dahu looked at Tao Wanniang, whose reading and writing skills were almost making him confused.

"Mom, we've finally made it through! I can't wait to start working at the restaurant." Ling Dahu said, bewildered. "Um... what are we supposed to do?"

"Let's go tomorrow and see. There aren't many people now, so it's a good opportunity for you to practice," Tao Wanniang said, and then prepared to go back to the restaurant.

"Mom, take care, wait for us!" Ling Dapeng was the most excited, finally he didn't have to learn to read anymore!

Tao Wanniang glanced at Ling Dapeng with a cool look. "Keep showing off. Life will teach him that being uneducated will get him a beating!"

Back at the restaurant, Tao Wan's mother tore down the notice at the door, preparing to close down once the kitchen's ingredients were sold out!

"Elder sister, that Lord Qian didn't come."

Two or three guests came over for dinner, but Qian Feng, a familiar face, was missing. Bai Yumei glanced at the door and went into the kitchen to speak with Tao Wanniang.

"If he doesn't want to come, he doesn't want to come. I get angry just thinking about what that man said. Doesn't my food deserve someone with the surname Qian? It's like I'm selling my body." Tao Wanniang said indignantly while cooking.

"Look, have your unfilial sons arrived yet?" Tao Wan's mother said casually.

Bai Yumei chuckled softly and walked out.

Three people walked in through the door. Bai Yumei saw that they had an extraordinary demeanor and looked puzzled, so she stepped forward and said, "You're here to eat, right? There are our restaurant's signature dishes on that plate. If you'd like anything else, you can order it."

It was Prince Rui and his wife who arrived. Although Xiao Yi had said that it was not appropriate for them to come, they thought it wouldn't be unreasonable to see their son's savior. If they couldn't do it openly, they could do it secretly and support the business.

"Bring out your signature dishes, whatever you think is best," Prince Rui instructed. "Oh, by the way, your braised dishes are quite good, bring some of those too."

Bai Yumei couldn't help but glance at Prince Rui again. He even knows about braised food. She's never been here before!

"Okay, please wait a moment, sir," Bai Yumei said politely before turning to go to the kitchen.

"Big sister, Da Hu and the others didn't come, but a group of distinguished guests did. They said to bring out the signature dishes and some braised dishes as well."

"As for the braised food, those are people who have been here before, or those introduced by acquaintances. Just treat them like regular customers; there's no need to be overly enthusiastic," Tao Wanniang said. "How many people?"

“The couple, and a guard, I guess. The two were sitting, and the guard was standing straight,” Bai Yumei said, her eyes still showing curiosity.

"If it's just two people, then I understand. You can serve this dish to the previous guests first." Tao Wanniang served the freshly cooked stir-fried loofah and eggs.

"This restaurant isn't doing well. Look, even with our table, there are only three tables full," Prince Rui said in a low voice to his wife, looking around. "Yi'er's savior, we should probably do something about it."

Princess Rui watched as Bai Yumei prepared dishes for the neighboring table: stir-fried loofah with eggs, the yellow and green colors looking particularly appealing.

"Hey, bring us one of this dish too," she said to Bai Yumei.

"Okay, please wait a moment, sir," Bai Yumei replied immediately.

“The waiter is probably not Yi’er’s savior. He looks about the same age as Yi’er. Since he has grandchildren, he must be older. It seems he’s busy in the kitchen,” Princess Rui analyzed. “Let us try her cooking first. If her cooking is good, let her work in the Prince’s mansion.”

"Then let's take a look first." Prince Rui nodded. The position of cook in the Prince's mansion was one that everyone would kill to get.

Braised pork, eggplant with minced garlic, stir-fried loofah with eggs, vegetable, meatball and tofu soup, and a plate of braised dishes—soon, three dishes, a soup, a cold dish, and two bowls of rice were laid out in front of Prince Rui and his wife.

Tao Wan's mother washed her face in the kitchen and came out, just in time to see her son, daughter-in-law, and their group walking over unhurriedly.

"If someone isn't enthusiastic about eating, there's something wrong with their head," Tao Wan's mother muttered. "Luckily, I've already prepared all the dishes."

"Mom, we're here!" Ling Dapeng's loud voice boomed as soon as he entered the restaurant.

Tao Wanniang was speechless, especially since several tables of guests were looking at her. She really was her eldest son!

"Sit over there and go get the dishes from the kitchen yourself. Don't disturb the others," Tao Wan's mother said disdainfully. "You two big guys, do you think I can't see you here? What are you shouting for?"

Ling Dapeng looked somewhat embarrassed after being scolded in a low voice by Tao Wanniang, and immediately admitted his mistake in a low voice, "Mother, I understand."

"And also, let the teacher sit first. Don't you know any manners?"

Tao Wan's mother scolded, "You kids are all such a handful. Little Qiao'er, go sit down and eat your fill first."

Prince Rui and his wife confirmed that Tao Wanniang was the one who saved their son, and they also saw Tao Wanniang's son and grandchildren.

"No wonder she's called 'elder sister,' she really doesn't look old," Princess Rui said in surprise. "If I have the chance in the future, I should ask her how she can still look so young even though she has grandchildren."

“This dish is really good. If she could become a chef in the Prince’s mansion, I could eat it every day. I’ll talk to Yi’er about this later. If she doesn’t agree, the whole family can work in the Prince’s mansion. Wouldn’t that be much better than running a restaurant?” Prince Rui thought Tao Wan’s cooking skills were very impressive and whispered to Princess Rui.

The couple exchanged a glance and both thought the suggestion was excellent.