Chapter 82 Contract Termination "Mother, where are Mama Cai and Sister Mei?..."
"Mother, why don't I see Mama Cai and Sister Mei?" Su Zhihan asked, turning around the shop.
Jiang's braised meat shop is thriving. Recently, several other legitimate stores have opened up to it, wanting to collaborate with them by delivering braised duck products to their shops daily for customers to enjoy with drinks.
For example, on days like today when Su Zhihan doesn't have any banquet work, she would go to the front to help out. She was so busy that she was dizzy and disoriented, and only when she had a little free time did she realize that two people were missing from the shop.
Just then, Cai's mother came in from outside.
Fearing she would be exposed, Jiang Zhenniang quickly explained, "I told Cai Mama to take Mei-jie to collect her monthly allowance."
Su Zhihan calculated the time, and it was indeed about right. However, she still had a question: "Did Mama Cai and Sister Mei go together?"
“Yes, I want Mei-jie to learn from her.” Jiang Zhenniang was blocked by Su Zhihan, so she didn’t notice that only Cai Mama had come in, and was still explaining.
"Where is Sister Mei?"
"Huh?" Jiang Zhenniang turned to the side and met Cai Mama's bitter face, only to find that Mei Jie'er had not come back with her. She was speechless for a moment.
Su Zhihan glanced at the master and servant, who were stammering for a long time and sweating profusely, and narrowed her eyes: "Speaking of which, a few days ago when I was in the shop, I heard from the customers that the pavilion stall over there hadn't been open for several days. I wonder what happened. Did Madam Cai ask about it?"
"this……"
"So you already knew?" Jiang Zhenniang asked in surprise.
"What? Me too... Mother." Su Zhihan was initially stunned, but then gradually came to her senses. She was both amused and exasperated, and said to Jiang Zhenniang, "Did you perhaps send Granny Cai to cause trouble for Granny Chen?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhenniang immediately became displeased: "What do you mean by 'making trouble'? It's as if I'm in the wrong."
“Look at that old woman Chen, she doesn’t seem like someone you hired at all. She seems to be the one who owns the place. I haven’t even scolded her to her face, but she dares to not make any business for days and doesn’t say a word. If you ask me, she’s more pretentious than the ladies in the mansion.”
"I didn't mean that, I was just too busy and forgot about it," Su Zhihan explained repeatedly when she saw Jiang Zhenniang's angry expression.
After moving, she was busy with both the shop business and the catering work, and she wished she could split herself in two. She had no extra energy to devote to anything else.
If it weren't for the fact that Madam Cai and Sister Mei weren't in the shop today, allowing her to notice immediately, Su Zhihan thought she would only find out when things got out of hand. She continued, "Since Granny Chen was the one who breached the contract first, let's use this as an opportunity to terminate the contract with her ahead of schedule."
Su Zhihan had already looked down on Granny Chen, but because of the contract, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and turn a blind eye as long as there were no problems with the other party's accounts and no deliberate attempts to take advantage of her. She just wanted to wait until the contract expired before making any further decisions.
Now that she has this opportunity, she can't wait.
Su Zhihan thought for a moment and said, "Tomorrow I will send someone to find Wei Yaren and talk to him about this."
“The contract was made with him last time, so he should be present to handle it.”
Jiang Zhenniang calmed down and smiled again: "I thought you disagreed."
"So that's why you kept it from me?"
"Hehe." Jiang Zhenniang chuckled foolishly, trying to brush it off.
Su Zhihan's smile faded: "I'm not stupid."
She emphasized, "We shouldn't take advantage of others, nor should we let others take advantage of us."
"Yes, yes, that's exactly what I'm thinking."
"It's just a coincidence." Seeing that the mother and daughter had finished their discussion, Madam Cai continued, "That old woman Zhao also had this intention today. She even told me that she would come to the shop tomorrow to talk about this matter."
"in addition."
“I saw that Granny Chen’s yard is almost all packed up, it looks like she’s moving out.” Cai Mama then relayed the information she had gathered from the neighborhood to Jiang Zhenniang, and then added, “Sister Mei went with the donkey cart that was delivering goods. I went back and asked Granny Zhao’s neighbors, and I heard that although they didn’t sell their house, they are moving recently.”
"Then Sister Hong recognized a godmother and became a disciple."
"According to the neighbors, the godmother that Sister Hong recognized was a very important person. She once visited the Chen family in a carriage with servants all around her."
"Old Lady Zhao and Old Man Chen stopped doing business and said they were going to go with her to take care of Sister Hong."
Lady Liu had long been jealous of the Hu family. Her daughter also went to the brokerage to find work, but she worked from morning till night and was constantly being penalized for various reasons. The amount she could bring home each month was pitifully small.
But that girl from the Hu family kept having good luck. Madam Liu had just overheard the argument between Granny Cai and Granny Chen in the house and knew about their feud. When Granny Cai came to her door, she immediately spilled what she knew, hoping that Granny Cai would drag Granny Chen to the government office and ruin the whole thing.
"She really found a way?" Jiang Zhenniang was displeased upon hearing this and pressed, "Do you know which family's connections she has... Oh right, we'll have to wait for Sister Mei to come back to find out."
Two cups of tea's time later, Sister Mei returned from outside. She hurriedly told the mother and daughter what she had discovered. Listening from the side, Madam Cai frowned: "Although that place is wealthy, it shouldn't be so luxurious that the mansion can afford carriages and so many servants. Is it a rented house?"
"This, I don't know either." Mei Jie'er was excited just now, but she froze on the spot upon hearing this, her head lowering further and lower: "That servant, that servant only said that this is where his wife lives, and that his wife's surname is Xu. When I asked him anything else, he refused to say anything more."
While Cai's mother was still puzzled, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Jiang Zhenniang and Su Zhihan's expressions were gradually becoming strange. She didn't press further, but instead cautiously asked, "Madam, Miss, did Mei-jie not do something good?"
"Um...no." Su Zhihan shook her head.
“It has nothing to do with Sister Mei.” Jiang Zhenniang tried hard to suppress the corners of her mouth, but couldn’t help but let the corners of her mouth curl up slightly again. Seeing that both Cai Mama and Sister Mei looked uneasy, she quickly comforted them, “Our Sister Mei did a good job. It’s all thanks to you for remembering the alley and the people that we found out.”
Upon hearing this, Sister Mei immediately raised her head.
Looking at the expressions of the mother and daughter, Cai's mother asked, "Madam and young lady, do you know each other?"
Su Zhihan nodded decisively: "Yes."
She and Jiang Zhenniang never expected that the godmother or master that Hong Jie'er had recognized was actually... Chef Xu!
…………
The next day, Wei Yaren and Granny Chen arrived at the Jiang family one after the other. Granny Chen was wearing a brand-new silk dress, her hair was combed smooth and shiny, and a gold hairpin was inserted diagonally in her hair bun. She looked different from usual and looked like a wealthy old lady.
"Jiang Niangzi, a Wei Ya person."
“Mother Chen, you…” Wei Ya was completely astonished. He never expected that the matter would turn out like this.
But after looking at Granny Chen's attire, he couldn't help but shake his head, ultimately too lazy to say anything more. After all, if Granny Chen truly wanted to apologize and make amends, she should have worn old clothes and humbled herself to offer a proper apology.
But she insisted on dressing herself up like a nouveau riche, just so she could show off her and Hong Jie'er's smugness in front of the Jiang family mother and daughter.
Wei Yaren clenched his teeth in anger, and after a long while, he finally let out a long breath. If it weren't for the fact that he was the one who handled this contract, and if this matter hadn't become public and damaged his reputation as a broker, he would have left immediately.
Jiang Zhenniang glanced at Granny Chen, then instructed Uncle Chai and Granny Cai to manage the business in the shop. She then led the two to sit down in the back room.
She and Su Zhihan went to the Marquis's residence yesterday to inquire with Granny Zhao. After verifying the matter, they had a clear understanding of what had happened. At this moment, she simply sat at the head of the table, holding her teacup and sipping it gently, without mentioning a word about the matter.
Granny Chen had come with the intention of showing off, but upon seeing this scene, she felt inexplicably uneasy.
She looked up at Jiang Zhenniang and saw that she was dressed in plain clothes and her hair was only tied in a simple bun. She no longer had the rich and respectable appearance of the past. Her tone immediately became more relaxed, and she shamelessly said, "Madam Jiang, you see that Wei Yaren is here. Let's break the contract."
Jiang Zhenniang seemed not to hear what Granny Chen said, and turned to Wei Yaren, asking softly, "Wei Yaren, does the contract signed between my daughter and Granny Chen's daughter contain any penalty clauses?"
The so-called penalty clause refers to the extra fees that the breaching party should pay when a contract is violated. For example, the extra money that Jiang Zhenniang and Su Zhihan paid when they redeemed themselves from the Marquis's mansion can also be classified as a penalty clause.
Granny Chen was holding the contract in her hand, and having already read its contents, she immediately replied, "It is clearly written in the contract that, according to this calculation, it should be thirty strings of cash."
"Thirty strings of cash?" Before Jiang Zhenniang could speak, Wei Yaren sneered and said, "Old Chen, Old Chen, you're not being truthful about that."
"When Madam Su signed the contract, there was another agreement that you would have to work for two years before she would formally pass on the recipe."
"Now that you've given up halfway, you've already learned the recipe. You should at least give us an explanation about the price of that recipe, right?"
Upon hearing this, Granny Chen was slightly taken aback. Just as she was about to say that she looked down on such vulgar things, Wei Yaren coldly interrupted, "Or perhaps, do you have the ability to make Sister Hong forget all the prescriptions she has learned?"
Granny Chen was speechless and remained silent.
Wei Yaren meticulously calculated the prices for each item with Granny Chen, based on market prices: "Many people in the market have taken a liking to these prescriptions and have expressed interest in purchasing them. They have also inquired about them with me."
"The recipe for stinky tofu is worth thirty strings of cash; the recipe for starch sausage is worth twenty-five strings of cash; and the recipe for braised tofu is worth ten strings of cash..."
The total price of all these prescriptions, large and small, amounted to over eighty strings of cash. Adding the previous compensation of thirty strings of cash, the final price was nearly one hundred and twenty strings of cash.
As the broker calculated the bill, Granny Chen's face gradually turned pale, and she was no longer the smug woman she had been. She hurriedly put on a fawning smile and said, "Brother broker, isn't this price... isn't it really a bit too expensive?"
You have no money, so what are you so arrogant about!
Wei Yaren was stunned for a moment, and almost burst into curses. He had thought that Granny Zhao had made thorough preparations for breaking the contract, but he never expected that it was just a show of power, purely for the moment!
Besides, why are you asking me this?
Wei Yaren winked and gestured to Granny Chen, signaling her to discuss the matter with Jiang Zhenniang.
Granny Chen's face was like a palette of colors, changing from green to white to red to purple. It took her a lot of effort to finally manage to say, "Madam Jiang, could you give me a discount on this money?"
Jiang Zhenniang glanced at Granny Chen, but ignored her as usual. She turned to Wei Yaren and said, "The amount of money seems a bit off, doesn't it?"
“I'll forget about them all,” Wei Yaren answered instinctively, then paused slightly, “You mean—”
Jiang Zhenniang smiled and said, "According to the laws of our dynasty, the property given to violators should be recoverable, shouldn't it?"
Upon hearing this, Granny Chen immediately understood Jiang Zhenniang's implication: she hadn't come to apologize sincerely to begin with. Now, she was furious and jumped up, saying, "What do you mean by this? My family has worked so hard for your family for so long, do you expect to get something for nothing?"
Jiang Zhenniang didn't even lift her eyelids, just quietly looked at Wei Yaren.
Wei Yaren looked rather grim. The regulation did exist, but it usually required going to the authorities for negotiation. What Jiang Zhenniang really meant was that she didn't mind going to the authorities.
Wei Yaren pulled Chen Pozi along and said with a wry smile, "Madam Jiang, let me discuss this with Chen Pozi in more detail, and I will give you an answer later."
Jiang Zhenniang readily agreed, coldly watching as Wei Yaren dragged Chen Pozi away.
Even after leaving the Jiang family's gate, Granny Chen was still full of resentment and even began to suspect that Wei Yaren might have taken bribes from Jiang Zhenniang and was therefore deliberately making things difficult for her.
Upon hearing these words, Wei Yaren was immediately enraged. He grabbed Granny Chen's arm and headed straight for the government office, shouting, "You don't believe me? Then come with me to the government office and let the officials explain the law to you!"
Seeing Wei Yaren's furious expression, Granny Chen finally began to believe him. Her face turned deathly pale, and her body trembled slightly as she stammered, "Then how much money do I have to pay..."
“I think it’s at least 150… no.”
"I think it's safer to go for 180 strings of cash."
"One hundred and eighty strings of cash!?" Upon hearing this, Granny Chen's legs went weak, and she collapsed to the ground with a thud, exclaiming, "Even if I sold my house, I wouldn't get one hundred and eighty strings of cash!"
"Go find a way to find it, go borrow it!" Wei Yaren said angrily.
“My daughter is now a member of the Marquis’s household. I’m going back to talk to Madam Jiang and see if she dares to do it again…” Old Mrs. Chen was reluctant to sell the house, but she didn’t have the money. She got up tremblingly, wanting to go back and argue with Madam Jiang.
"Go ahead and tell them," Wei Yaren said coldly, his tone sarcastic. "Or you could first ask what the punishment is for someone signing two contracts?"
Granny Chen lost all her strength again and collapsed to the ground.
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