Looking at the things that filled the room, Xu Shao said to Granny Zhou, "Go and invite the owner of the largest pawnshop in the capital to come to our house and help us see how much these things are worth."
Upon hearing this, Granny Zhou quickly stopped her, saying, "Madam, you mustn't do that. If we need to deal with these things, we can just take them one by one and secretly send someone outside to pawn them. If we invite people to our home, we'll really lose face."
Xu Shao sneered and said, "Face? What face do I have left after all these years? Do you think no one in the capital will know about what I've pawned? I've long since lost all face, why would I care about losing face for this mansion?"
Granny Zhou sighed inwardly, feeling that although her mistress had come to terms with things, she had gone a bit too far. She advised, "Madam, this old servant knows that you have suffered grievances over the years, but there is still a long way to go. You can't finish everything at once. After all, you still need to leave some reputation for Xing'er and his two siblings."
Xu Shao finally let go of the matter and eventually let Xu Di take all the items with him. She knew that Xu Di had connections and could always sell these things for a good price.
Every day when Xu Di went back, he would go to Chen Zhaoci's courtyard. His sister would come over and tell him any gossip about Xu Shao's side.
Chen Zhaoci was quite surprised to hear that Xu Di had helped Xu Shao sell those antiques and trinkets for 30,000 taels of silver.
Chen Zhaoci said in surprise, "I never expected it to sell for so much money."
Xu Di said nonchalantly, "What's so special about these? They're all antiques from previous dynasties, or paintings by famous artists from various eras. My aunt spent a lot of money on them back then."
Chen Zhaoci thought about why Xu Shao had squandered her dowry, nodded, and said, "In the future, our family's daughters must be taught financial management from a young age. Don't be arrogant and treat money like dirt. You must know that making money is not easy, and it is even more difficult to protect your own wealth."
Li Yuexi is pregnant and has been three months along. Chen Zhaoci examined her and found out it's twins, but they don't know if it's two boys or two girls, or maybe a boy and a girl. After Lu Mama returned, she couldn't care about anything else and spent all her time taking care of Li Yuexi.
Xu Di still finds it hard to believe that he has accomplished all these major life events so easily: getting married and having children. He is about to become a father, and it all seems unbelievable.
Xu Di smiled and said, "Of course. By the way, Mother, Xiao Jiu's shop is opening in the next few days. Should we order some cakes and pastries to give as gifts?"
Chen Zhaoci thought of her daughter, who was always so busy that she was rarely seen these days, and nodded, saying, "Of course. I don't have anything to do tomorrow, so I'll go check on Xiao Jiu. I wonder if she's lost weight again these past few days."
Xu Zhi has been busy and worried these past few months, and she looks much thinner. Chen Zhaoci feels sorry for her, and Granny Lu feels even more sorry for her. Every day, she makes medicinal meals and has them delivered to the shop.
Xu Bai has been busy these days, helping to modify the oven and design a simple machine for whipping cream. Although it still requires manual operation, it is much more convenient than whipping by hand.
In order to make the cream cake that Xu Bai had been longing for, Xu Bai moved into the shop with him. Fortunately, the shop was designed and built by himself later. In order to make full use of the space, the houses built in the backyard were all small partitioned rooms, which Xu Bai simply occupied.
Wu Muyue felt that Xu Bai was still young, so he only gave him some homework and then sent him home to study and write on his own. It is said that Wu Muyue recently took Chen Yuyuan to a farm in the suburbs of Beijing so that Chen Yuyuan could learn about farming and agricultural activities. People should know where the food they eat comes from. Xu Bai heard that Chen Yuyuan went to the fields with the farmers to harvest crops and even got several blisters on his hands.
On the sixth day of the eighth lunar month, a day of great fortune, the pastry shop, "The Taste of the Distant Land," which had already been advertised and promoted, officially unveiled itself to the world.
Even though the store is quite large, it was packed with people early in the morning.
The shop was not registered under Xu Zhi's name, but under the name of one of Xu Zhi's stewards. This was the practice of many noble families in the capital. Businesses could be run by family members, but they could not be directly registered under the name of the head of the household.
Don't underestimate the stewards. The stewards of each household are all shrewd and have connections with each other. Xu Zhi's shop has opened, and not only have the stewards of her married sisters come over, but also some relatives and friends who have heard the news either come to join in the fun or send their stewards over. Whether it's showing their support or giving money, it's all a form of support.
Xu Zhi didn't show up; she stayed in the office in the backyard. The people selling goods in the front were some carefully trained young men and women, while the bakers in the back were the chefs whom Xu Zhi had carefully trained. The ovens hadn't stopped baking all night and continued until this morning. The most popular item was the sponge cake, which was simple to make and tasted delicious. Xu Zhi also made some other pastries based on Xu Bai and Xu Di's memories, such as ox tongue pastries and butterfly pastries, all of which were relatively simple to make.
A very large cream cake was made to showcase at today's opening ceremony. Anyone who needs one in the future can place an order. However, the price is not something that ordinary people can afford. Not only is cream not so easy to whip now, but more importantly, milk is not as easy to obtain in Beijing as it is in Liaodong. Not many people in Beijing drink milk. Xu Zhi had no other choice but to raise dairy cows on a farm in the suburbs of Beijing and deliver the milk to the shops in Beijing every day.
When building the house, a cellar was designed. Xu Zhi even spent a lot of money to buy some ice and put it in the cellar to create a low-temperature environment. After the cream was whipped, it was temporarily placed in the cellar to preserve it for a short period of time, so that the shop could have it whenever needed.
The cream cake was made on the spot. When the decorator piped the cream into small flower shapes on the cake base, the onlookers marveled. The person in charge even cut the cake into small pieces for everyone to taste, and then gave a detailed introduction to the cream cake.
Anyone with a sweet tooth can't resist the temptation of cream cake. After everyone tasted it, they remembered the flavor. The manager even asked for a small piece to take home for his mistress to try. The next day, orders for cream cakes poured into the shop like snowflakes. They simply couldn't keep up and had to put them on the back of the line, since the daily production of cream was limited.
The taste of afar immediately captured the attention of everyone in the capital upon its opening. Within days, it became the most talked-about place in the city and the most profitable cake shop. That evening, as Xu Zhi tallied the accounts, she felt both happy and afraid. She was happy because she was making money; with money in hand, there were more things she could do. But she was afraid that her shop would be targeted. The capital was the most profitable place, but also the most dangerous. If someone had designs on it, those with poor backgrounds could suffer the destruction of their families.
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