Huang Cui was only twenty years old, and Yin Chun was only eighteen. In Meng Zhao's eyes, they were still little girls, but in the current environment, they were already considered old maids. The reason they hadn't married was naturally because of their figures.
Both of them had a strong appetite by nature, and with the pampering of their families who were unwilling to restrain them, they grew into robust men, much taller than most men.
Although their families were relatively well-off, they couldn't afford to eat like that, so they started working early. The two met while unloading goods at the dock, and later applied for jobs at Meng Zhao's teahouse together, becoming members of the teahouse.
Looking at the silver in her hand, Huang Cui patted her chest and said, "Don't worry, managers. With the two of us here, as long as it's not ten or eight strong men coming from the other side, we have nothing to fear!"
Yin Chun also said, "If Manager Meng hadn't said we couldn't cause trouble, I would have rushed up and beaten those little brats today to show them what we're capable of!"
Seeing how forthright the two women were, Song Wanyin found it gave her some inspiration for writing stories. She smiled and promised, "Alright, starting today, as long as you take good care of the shop, we'll provide as much food as you want!"
Hearing that they would be able to enjoy a feast in the future, the two of them immediately beamed with joy. Meng Zhao had no choice but to speak up and add, "Not everything can be eaten. You still have to follow my recipes. Also, remember to do the things I've assigned you. Don't be lazy."
Huang Cui and Yin Chun are stronger than ordinary people, largely due to their height and physique. Meng Zhao has seen that most of the flesh on their bodies is fat. They are young now, and their internal organs can barely bear it. But when they get older, this fat will only become a burden and will be bad for their health.
So Meng Zhao devised a diet plan for them and found some exercise methods to turn their fat into muscle, so that they could increase their strength without damaging their bodies.
After explaining these matters, Meng Zhao sent Huang Cui and Yin Chun to attend to their own tasks, leaving only Qin Niangzi in the private room.
Qin Niangzi lowered her head slightly, looking somewhat guilty. "Managers, what happened today was all because of me. I never expected Yang Yuan to be so despicable. Even though I have already left his house, he still won't let me go and deliberately comes to cause trouble."
Meng Zhao sighed and comforted him, "This is not entirely your fault. Those men are used to being treated well and taking advantage of everything. They can do whatever they want. Our teahouse has put up a sign that only women are allowed to enter, which breaks their usual perception. There will definitely be some narrow-minded people who come to cause trouble because they did not receive preferential treatment."
Song Wanyin nodded in agreement, "What happened today isn't serious. As long as you can see through those people's true colors and stop being deceived by them in the future, that's fine."
Madam Qin nodded heavily. "Before, they would accuse and beat me, insisting that I was the one who caused my husband's death. Although I felt wronged, I always tolerated them. But today, our teahouse was behaving properly and we didn't provoke them at all, yet they deliberately came to slander and cause trouble. Only now do I fully understand that the reason they treated me the way they did before wasn't because they were heartbroken over their husbands' passing, but because they were inherently immoral. The so-called 'husband-killing' was just an excuse for them to torment me."
After hearing this, Meng Zhao nodded with satisfaction. In her opinion, as long as Madam Qin could truly see the ugly faces of the Yang family and completely sever ties with them, then she and Song Wanyin would not have helped her in vain.
When Meng Zhao checked the accounts after the first day of business, he couldn't help but feel disappointed. Such a large teahouse had only earned two taels of silver on its opening day, which was less than the reward that Song Wanyin gave to Huang Cuiyinchun.
If all costs are deducted, there will probably be no profit at all. If this continues, let alone making money, it will be difficult to even earn back the money spent on buying and decorating the shop.
The problem stems from two issues: the main revenue comes from the lobby, while their meticulously decorated private rooms remain unoccupied, and the average price of products purchased by customers is relatively low.
Originally, the private rooms were expected to be the main source of income for the teahouse, so Meng Zhao couldn't help but worry about how to promote their private rooms.
On the second day after Mingxianglou opened, an exquisitely decorated carriage slowly stopped in front of Zhenbaoge's shop. A girl of about sixteen or seventeen years old stepped out of the carriage, her eyes carrying a hint of arrogance.
The woman walked straight into the shop, her gaze not lingering on the dazzling array of goods, but instead asking the shop assistant, "Where is your manager?"
Upon hearing this, Meng Zhao, who was inspecting the shop, politely replied, "I am the shopkeeper. Miss, is there anything I can help you with?"
The woman narrowed her eyes slightly, sizing Meng Zhao up and down, her tone scrutinizing, "Your surname is Meng?"
Although Meng Zhao had some doubts, he still smiled and nodded. Upon seeing this, the woman immediately turned her head away and gave a soft hum.
Meng Zhao was a little confused by the sudden action. He didn't think he had ever seen her before, but why did this girl seem to have a lot of grudges against him?
Despite his confusion, he still politely said, "Miss, it's an honor to have you in our shop. If you need anything, please let me know and I'll help you."
The woman looked reluctant and hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Do you have anything unique that you don't sell to customers?"
"If you buy our gift set, you can give the girl some new products that haven't been released yet to try."
"Will you sell the items that were given away?" the woman asked impatiently.
Meng Zhao paused slightly before answering truthfully, "Of course I will."
Upon hearing this, the woman immediately pursed her lips, "Isn't that the same as not saying anything at all? Even if I use it first, others can still buy it if they want."
Judging from the woman's age and demeanor, Meng Zhao roughly guessed her identity and tentatively asked, "Are you Miss Song the Third?"
Meng Zhao had previously heard Shen Qinghe mention that he had given a gift box to Song Kun, who then gave it to the Third Miss Song. The Third Miss Song found it extremely effective, and since the gift box was unique, she often showed it off to her many sisters.
However, because the Treasure Pavilion opened and the gift boxes were sold to the public, they were no longer exclusive to Miss Song. She even went to cause trouble for Song Kun because of this. Song Kun complained to Shen Qing, and Meng Zhao found out about it.
On the day the Treasure Pavilion opened, the Song family's daughters were very supportive and bought a lot of gift sets. The third daughter of the Song family deserves much credit, and Meng Zhao remembers this kindness.
Thinking of this, she asked He Jianxia to go to the backyard and bring out something, which was the double-layered skincare gift box that she had sold to Xiao Youzhi before.
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