There were a total of ten villagers working at the restaurant. Except for Gan Tao and another young woman surnamed Wang who did not stay at the restaurant, the others all chose to work as long-term laborers and stay at the restaurant.
Ganli arranged four rooms for them as dormitories, and then left it to them to allocate as they pleased.
Everyone was even happier. As soon as Gan Li finished speaking, they had already chosen their rooms by pulling their close friends along.
The corridor, which was originally full of people, was suddenly empty except for Gan Yingzi and another woman.
The woman glanced at Gan Yingzi, then silently picked up her luggage and stepped into the remaining empty room.
Gan Yingzi nervously rubbed the hem of her clothes, and before anyone could notice anything amiss, she pretended to be calm and followed them inside. The two shared a room.
When Granny Gan and Madam Zhao met, they looked at each other in bewilderment.
Zhao whispered, "This Zheng is known in the village for her eccentric nature. Yingzi is a young girl, at the height of her life. I'm afraid she'll feel uncomfortable living with her."
Grandma Gan agreed wholeheartedly. Gan Yingzi was just as young as her granddaughter, and she couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy for her.
She couldn't help but say to Ganli, "Otherwise, let's give her a new room. We have plenty of space here now."
Seeing that her mother had fallen for her soft-hearted nature again, Ganli said helplessly:
“Mother, you’re being too soft-hearted again. She’s here to work, not to enjoy herself. The others are already resentful that she’s taken this spot at such a young age. If we give her special treatment, what will they think?”
Besides, Zheng hasn't done anything, and by doing this it seems like we're isolating her. What will she think?
Grandma Gan was instantly brought to her senses by her daughter's words and said remorsefully, "I almost did something wrong again with good intentions!"
"It's alright, don't worry about it. I know what I'm doing," Gan Li said reassuringly.
After everyone had put away their luggage, Gan Li asked Zhao to lead them to the front kitchen to familiarize themselves with it. Everyone followed Zhao and walked forward, with Gan Yingzi at the back.
Ganli took the opportunity to call her over.
When Gan Yingzi saw that she was the only one called, she looked puzzled and uneasy, but she still obediently came over.
"Shopkeeper, what can I do for you?"
Ganli looked at the slightly timid girl in front of her, who was completely different from the flamboyant girl she had met for the first time. She felt a little emotional, but she didn't show it on her face.
She said, "Your mother came to me yesterday and asked me to give her your wages directly from now on. I refused."
Upon hearing this, Gan Yingzi immediately understood. No wonder her mother not only looked grim after returning home yesterday, but also gave her a long lecture. It turned out that the shopkeeper hadn't agreed to pay her wages!
She hadn't expected Gan Li to call her over just to discuss this matter, and she was both surprised and grateful: "Shopkeeper..."
Ganli interrupted her, her face expressionless, and said:
"I just don't like being told what to do. Whoever does the work for me, I'll pay them. From now on, I'll just give you the money. What you do with it after that is none of my business."
Gan Yingzi felt a chill run down her spine upon hearing her cold tone.
But then Ganli continued, "Some people may look cold, but they just don't like to talk. There are advantages to this. They won't cause trouble for no reason, and they are much easier to get along with than those who chatter a lot."
Remember this: be humble, be cautious, talk less and do more. As long as you do your job well, even if you're young, you don't need to be afraid of being bullied!
Gan Yingzi was stunned. When she came to her senses, she saw that Gan Li had already walked away.
Even if she were naive, she would understand that Ganli was trying to comfort herself...
She had been worried that Ganli was just putting on a show by taking her in, but now, hearing these words that even her own mother had never said, she was suddenly moved.
Could it be that I had been overthinking things and misunderstanding the shopkeeper all along?
...
As she turned around, Gan Li caught a glimpse of Gan Yingzi still standing there, looking at her with a touched expression, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
This girl used to be too sharp-tongued, but now she's too timid. She's just too young and her core is unstable.
Ganli felt a strange sense of guilt about employing child labor.
As soon as she thought that, she immediately came to her senses. This was ancient times; there was no such thing as child labor here. She had given the child a meal by doing this.
As for whether Gan Yingzi can adapt in the future, that depends on herself.
With that thought in mind, she temporarily put aside Gan Yingzi's matter and turned to find Zhao Shi, wanting to talk to her again.
Although I returned first last night and told Zhao about Gan Tao's job at the restaurant, and Zhao reluctantly agreed, saying she wouldn't hold it against Gan Tao anymore, her behavior just now clearly showed that she hadn't let it go.
She wanted to help Gan Tao, but didn't want to do something wrong by making her suffer from "workplace bullying." So she decided to go all the way and talk to Zhao again.
Zhao was in the kitchen, teaching some new helpers how to do their work. When she saw Gan Li coming over, she immediately went to greet her with a big smile.
"Hey girl, what's up?"
Ganli pulled her out the door, and only when they reached a secluded spot did she speak.
She didn't beat around the bush with Zhao, and went straight to the point:
"Sister-in-law, didn't we agree yesterday? Now that Gan Tao is here, you should act like nothing happened before and not hold a grudge against her!"
"How could I possibly give her the time of day? I'm afraid to even speak to her for fear of upsetting her..."
Zhao initially wanted to argue a bit more, but when she met Gan Li's calm yet all-knowing eyes, she couldn't hold back any longer and admitted with a bitter face:
“I did promise you yesterday, but every time I see her, I can’t help but think of her mother… Gan Tao’s mother is such a scoundrel!”
"When Quan'er wanted to marry her, what did her mother say? She said our Quan'er was poor and unworthy of her precious daughter! Now that her husband is dead, she's eagerly sending her daughter here. Who knows what she's really up to!"
As Zhao spoke, she became more and more excited, and her spittle almost sprayed onto Ganli's face.
"Sister-in-law, don't panic, listen to me."
Ganli quickly interrupted her: "I know you have a problem with Gantao Niang, but Gantao is Gantao and Gantao Niang is Gantao Niang. You can't lump them together."
Her mother wasn't much, but Gan Tao was a good girl; otherwise, you wouldn't have agreed to Quan'er's marriage to her in the first place.
She's had a tough time too, supporting the whole family on her own. We should lend her a hand whenever we can, don't you think?
Thinking of Gan Tao's usual character and situation, Zhao felt a little soft-hearted, and her expression softened somewhat.
But thinking of Gan Tao Niang, she was really worried and nervously said while holding Gan Li's hand:
"It's not that I'm unwilling to help her... it's just that with her mother's character, who knows what bad ideas she's up to! I think she brought the peaches here not just to make money."
She must have seen how well our family is doing now, and changed her mind. She sent Gan Tao here to seduce Quan'er so she can cling to our family and beg to marry into our household!
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