"Can you guys help me move the grain in, please?" Huang Wanzhen trotted into the house and opened the doors of the two north-facing rooms on the first floor. "Just put it inside."

Huang Dongshi, Zhao Dahua, and the others all stared with wide eyes at Chen Hanfeng and a group of strong men busying around inside and outside the house. After seven or eight men brought sacks of sacks into the room, Chen Hanfeng smiled and handed each of them two cents, "Thank you for your hard work, everyone."

"It's not hard. If you need to buy more grain, Mr. Chen, feel free to come to our Dafa Grain Store." The leading man wiped the sweat from his forehead with the towel around his neck. Huang Wanzhen quickly said politely, "You guys sit down and rest for a while. I'll have someone get some water for the guys."

The man waved his hand and walked out, "Stop working, there's still work to do in the shop. We have to hurry back. There are a lot of inspections in the concession, and we have to take a detour. It's hard to get back in time."

Huang Wanzhen gave Chen Hanfeng a look, and Chen Hanfeng hurriedly followed and saw the group off.

Mrs. Huang didn't care that she was still in a cold war with Huang Wanzhen, and kept asking what was going on.

Huang Wanzhen waved her hand. "The current situation is unstable. Although the concession is safe, food prices are bound to rise. We have a lot of employees in our store, and we promised to provide meals. I can't break my promise. I might as well buy some more food to store at home."

At this point, Huang Wanzhen turned around and instructed Chen Hanfeng who had just entered, "Ninth Master, we need to buy more oil and beans. If a war breaks out and vegetable vendors don't dare to send vegetables to the city, you can just grow bean sprouts at home."

Upon hearing this, Huang Dongshi was horrified and began to wipe away tears. "War is about to break out, why are you going back to Beijing?"

Huang Wanzhen locked the door while explaining, "I didn't say we had to fight. Besides, in all these years, when has there been peace? It's either fighting in the west or in the south. This concession is foreign territory. No one dares to break in, no matter who it is. You are the safest here. Have you forgotten? I have a sister in Beijing. I will take you to a safe place, and I have to go back to take care of her. Besides, the shop in Shanghai is not profitable, and my salary is not much. When I return to Beijing, my salary will definitely be higher than here. I have paid for the rent and the servants, and bought food for you. The rest of the money for buying groceries must be earned by yourself."

Huang Wanzhen locked the door, reached out to hold onto Mrs. Huang's arm, and walked into the hall. "I heard from Wenyin that she's arranged an important position for you in the shop, something like a manager, and your salary is up to fifteen dollars a month, but you're required to speak English. I know you're not good at English, so I interceded for you. Wenyin is my good friend after all, and she agrees that you can go there to work and learn English at the same time. It's such a good offer, do you agree?"

Huang Dong pulled the handkerchief from her waist and wiped it across her face a few times. "Promise, promise, will you really give me fifteen?"

Huang Wanzhen sighed deeply. "I've already told Wenyin I won't let you be a manager. Just an ordinary clerk will do. It was tiring enough for you at Beijing Jixiangtang before. Being a manager, wouldn't it be even more tiring? And you have to learn some ridiculous foreign language. You're so old, what will you do if you get exhausted when I'm not around?"

"Bullshit! When did I say I was tired? I'm not tired at all! Go tell the chairman, just tell him I agree." Mrs. Huang pulled Huang Wanzhen's sleeve, "Go, go, don't stay home. Go tell the chairman that if you don't settle this for me today, don't come back."

Huang Wanzhen pretended to be helpless and spread her hands. "Mom, you are putting me in a difficult position. I am just a manager and Wen Yin is the chairman. I can't control her. I can only play the emotional card with her. Let's try it."

Mrs. Huang waved her hands in disdain. "Go, go, and beg the chairman. The chairman originally liked me, but it's all your fault for whining. Otherwise, I would have been the manager of the shop long ago. You're always holding me back."

Huang Wanzhen did not lie to Huang Dongshi, thinking that it would be better for her to be busy with everyone in the shop than to stay at home and daydream. Even Zhenzhen was often taken to the shop to play by Huang Dongshi. Sidonie, who originally loved to come here, liked to go to Jixiangtang even more when she saw Huang Dongshi and Zhenzhen in the shop.

It was too painful for her to learn Chinese with Mrs. Ma. She had to memorize a few words every day, but she would forget them after a while. It was more comfortable for her to learn to speak with Zhenzhen. Mrs. Huang treated her like a child, and she never criticized her no matter how good or bad she was at learning. When she fed Zhenzhen, she would also put some into Sidonie's mouth. This made Sidonie like Mrs. Huang so much that she almost wanted to call her grandma like Zhenzhen.

Mrs. Huang's face was filled with sorrow when she mentioned Sidonie. "You left your hometown, traveled so far, and you don't even have a hometown person to talk to. Just like me, you can't get used to the food here. Look at that skinny waist of yours, we could pinch it with our hands."

Huang Wanzhen rolled her eyes as she recited. "French women consider a thin waist beautiful, and they bind their waists from a young age. Sidonie is lucky enough. Since coming to Shanghai, she hasn't bound it anymore, just like me unbinding my feet."

"You're wrong. Xiao Ni doesn't wear a belt, and her waist is thin. She's thin to begin with, with not a pound of flesh on her body. It's hard for someone like her to find a husband. It's hard for her to have children. She's young and doesn't understand these things. When she's looking for a husband and gets rejected a few times, she'll understand."

Huang Wanzhen quickly put down the book and turned to look at Mrs. Huang seriously. "Mom, please don't say such nonsense in front of others. Her father works for the French Municipal Council. We can't afford to offend him."

Mrs. Huang Dong waved her hands. "I know, I know. I'm not stupid. Her father is a high-ranking official. Our family is down and out now and we can't afford to offend an official. I'm just telling you this. I never say much outside, but that girl looks pitiful. Oh! Her family is so harsh on their daughter. Officials are not short of money, but they don't even let Xiao Ni have enough food. The child is so hungry that her eyes light up when she sees me feeding Zhenzhen. I feel really bad."

Huang Wanzhen curled her lips and rolled her eyes twice, "Mom, you've really said enough. Sidonie's eyes are originally green. It would be strange if they turned black."

This time, Mrs. Huang did not agree with Huang Wanzhen's statement. She inexplicably felt that her daughter was too stingy and did not want her to feed Sidonie. But when she thought about it, her daughter not only supported her, but also helped her elder sister to support Zhenzhen. She was already a very reasonable person. It was okay for her to be stingy with others. Once she got a salary from Jixiangtang, she could subsidize the family.

Thinking of this, Mrs. Huang Dong took out the material with a red background and peony embroidery that she had saved before and made two purses for Sidonie. She no longer fed Sidonie in front of others, but often stuffed a purse with snacks and gave it to Sidonie secretly, and let Sidonie eat it behind others' backs.

However, Huang Wanzhen didn't know about this. She took Zhao Dahua, Gao Zhixiang, and Song Wenyin, along with their maids, servants, and bodyguards, and boarded the train back to Beijing.