For a time, Zhenxiufang's popularity even surpassed that of Tianxianglou.
Third Sister was worried that Xu Yuehuai wouldn't be able to handle everything alone, so she specially sent the cleverest Anan to help. With Jiang Shichen and Jiang Qianqian volunteering, Zhenxiufang was managed in an orderly manner.
As night fell, everyone sat together, incredibly excited, chattering away nonstop.
Seeing them all grinning from ear to ear, Xu Yuehuai instructed them, "Everyone has worked hard today. Get some rest early. There will be plenty of work tomorrow. Third Sister, I'm leaving Tianxiang Tower in your care for the next few days."
"Don't worry," Third Sister assured, patting her chest.
For several days in a row, Zhenxiufang's business was booming, with a constant stream of customers coming to buy.
Everyone worked with increasing enthusiasm, and the customers who came were very satisfied, with everyone praising the work highly.
But on this day, something unpleasant happened.
"Where is the manager?" A young man suddenly entered from outside. He had a scar on his face and looked fierce, but his clothes had the character "护" (protector) on them, so he must be a guard for some family.
Seeing that the newcomers were hostile, Anan quickly pulled Jiang Shichen and Jiang Qianqian to the back, while he stepped forward to greet them: "Brother, what's wrong?"
Who knew that when the man saw that it was just a child, he looked at him with disdain, pushed him to the ground, and said viciously, "Where did this little brat come from? Hurry up and call your boss out. I have nothing to say to you."
In an instant, many people in the shop put down their pastries and ran over to see what was going on, wondering what had happened.
Xu Yuehuai also heard the commotion and quickly ran down from the second floor.
As soon as he came down, he saw Anan fall to the ground. He quickly went over to help him up and asked coldly, "What are you doing? A grown man bullying a child, do you think you're proud of that?"
"What have you done? You know perfectly well what you've done." The man was unyielding, his expression fierce and menacing.
"Wang Er, step aside and let me speak." An old, senile voice came from behind the man.
Upon hearing this, the young man immediately stepped aside, making way for the old man behind him.
"Are you the manager here?" The old man walked up to Xu Yuehuai and looked her up and down. His face was full of disbelief, so he had to confirm it again.
"I am the shopkeeper, so what?" Xu Yuehuai saw that this person was also a scholar and should be reasonable, so she naturally put away her previous sour face.
The old man, who looked like a butler, nodded and extended his right hand. Immediately, someone handed him a box of pastries, which was clearly marked with the logo of 'Zhenxiufang'.
"This is from your Zhenxiufang, right?" he said, handing it to Xu Yuehuai with an air of certainty.
Xu Yuehuai took it and glanced at it. The markings on it and the appearance of the pastries inside were indeed from her shop. She nodded and said, "That's right, these are pastries from our Zhenxiufang. But what's the problem?"
She personally oversees everything from sourcing ingredients to making the pastries at this specialty shop, so there's absolutely no way something could go wrong, and naturally, she's not afraid of their questions.
"Our young lady ate this box of pastries and has been vomiting and having diarrhea ever since; she can't even get out of bed," Wang Er, who had spoken earlier, stepped forward again, filled with righteous indignation.
"Shopkeeper, did you hear me clearly?" the steward-like man asked, not forgetting to sneer at the end, "She's just a woman after all, she doesn't know anything, what good things can she make? Such a big shop must have cost a lot, how could a woman from out of town possibly come up with so much money?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Yuehuai could hardly suppress her anger, but she still took two deep breaths and retorted, "Women all go to the battlefield to fight the enemy, how could they not produce good things? This... sir, the Tianxiang Restaurant across the street is mine. Every penny of the money I use to run this Zhenxiufang restaurant comes from Tianxiang Restaurant. It's all hard-earned money, and it's perfectly clean."
"As for your young lady's health, if it really is because of us that she has problems, I will naturally take full responsibility." She had no intention of shirking responsibility.
Moreover, only by thoroughly investigating this matter can her restaurant, Zhenxiufang, continue to operate.
"We've called a doctor in our household, and he said the problem lies with these pastries. Surely the doctor wouldn't slander you, would he?" As soon as the steward finished speaking, some customers in the Zhenxiufang restaurant dropped their pastries and ran out, looking like they were in a hurry to go back and see the doctor.
Xu Yuehua hesitated for a moment before saying, "Regardless of whether it's slander or not, I can't just listen to your side of the story. Anan, go and fetch a doctor."
Unexpectedly, Wang Er stopped Anan directly.
"No need to go. Our Ye family has already reported it to the authorities, and they'll be here soon." After saying that, the steward turned to his men and instructed, "Keep an eye on the people at Zhenxiufang and don't let them escape."
The steward, who claimed to represent the Ye family, ordered the Zhenxiufang restaurant to be surrounded, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving. Xu Yuehua frowned but had no choice but to wait quietly for the government officials to arrive.
Soon, the government sent people, accompanied by a doctor and a coroner, and even the Prefect of Jingzhao, Lord Wu, came in person.
It's clear that the government is giving the Ye family a lot of face.
"Surround this Zhenxiufang. Zhang Laosan, take some men and inspect the pastries." After instructing his men, Prefect Wu went to find the steward of the Ye family to inquire about the situation. "How is Miss Ye's health? Is she feeling any better? Let's resolve this matter today. I will definitely pay her a visit in person another day."
Seeing his attitude, Xu Yuehuai became even more curious about the origins of the Ye family.
"Lord Wu, we've already found a doctor and given them medicine, but they're still vomiting and having diarrhea. Their little faces are terribly pale." The steward said angrily, "Our master said they must be severely punished."
He was filled with righteous indignation, as if this restaurant had caused a murder case.
Fortunately, Xu Yuehuai had already seen many big scenes, so these were nothing to fear.
"Don't worry, we will definitely give you an explanation. We won't let a bad person get away with it, nor will we wrong an innocent person." Magistrate Wu immediately stated his position, then turned to Xu Yuehuai and continued to ask, "Manager Xu, are you sure these are pastries from your Zhenxiufang?"
Everything happened so fast that even Xu Yuehuai hadn't figured it all out.
However, she nodded nonetheless.
She is indeed aware of intellectual property rights, so every pastry has the Zhenxiufang mark on it. To be on the safe side, she even made a small mark on each pastry, which would be impossible to find unless you look closely.
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