In the Chaotian Palace of the capital, the eldest princess lay on her bed, her jade feet slightly raised. Beneath the bed, a man stood before her, holding her jade feet with an expression of ecstasy.
"I'm going to stay in this Chaotian Palace for a year. Can you really wait?" the princess said slowly, letting the man touch her feet.
“Your Highness, as soon as you leave Chaotian Palace, I will petition the Emperor to grant you a marriage. However, I do not understand why a person of your noble birth would choose to stay in this desolate Chaotian Palace for a year.” The man looked up, his rugged face showing a puzzled expression.
"Because I want to redeem myself for the foolishness of my youth and the wasted ten years!" The princess said, still smiling, but her palms were marked with bloodstains from her own fingernails.
"Chen Bin, you know, everyone knows, that I've wasted ten years on Ling Yunzhou." The princess's expression turned cold. "My ten years, in exchange for him remaining unmarried for a lifetime, do you think that price is enough?"
Chen Bin is the head of the Censorate, and is considered one of the Emperor's men. He has always admired the Eldest Princess, but he also knows that the Eldest Princess does not love him.
However, when the eldest princess requested to pray at Chaotian Palace, she called out to herself!
"Princess, rest assured, since Ling Yunzhou has wronged you, I will ensure that no woman ever gets close to him for the rest of his life!" Chen Bin said. "If Ling Yunzhou ever falls in love with any woman in the future, I will make sure that woman dies a violent death!"
"Fine, since he refuses to marry me, let him live a lonely life." The princess revealed a smug look. If he won't marry, someone else will.
Chaotian Palace was quiet and deserted, but Tao Wanniang's Zhaixing Tower was bustling with activity. Before the opening, everyone's etiquette had to be perfect!
Bai Yumei and Chen Liansheng were also there. Tao Wan's mother instructed Chen Liansheng to work with Luneng to record all incoming transactions. Bai Yumei had a dedicated office where the ledgers were verified by three parties to ensure their accuracy.
"Big sister, don't worry. Although I didn't pass the imperial examination, I studied when I was young, so I can do accounting." Chen Liansheng was a little excited. He didn't know what he could do for Tao Wanniang, but he was pleasantly surprised to be asked to manage the accounts with him.
"Your daily affairs will be handled by Manager Lu. Chen Liansheng, come and meet Manager Lu." Tao Wanniang would not undermine Lu Neng's position as manager; Chen Liansheng was more like Lu Neng's assistant, while also playing a supervisory role.
"Yu Mei, what about you? I've booked a room for you, come over." Tao Wanniang led Bai Yu Mei to a secluded room in the restaurant and pushed open the door.
"Big sister, what is this...?" Bai Yumei was a little puzzled. A desk, an abacus—was this for keeping accounts?
"This is where the account books are kept. There's also a metal cabinet where we'll put some money. Keep the key." The metal cabinet was still being customized, and Tao Wanniang gestured to where it would be placed, saying to Bai Yumei.
"Big sister, you trust me that much?" Bai Yumei asked in surprise. "I...I..."
“You’re with me, how could you possibly run away?” Tao Wanniang said. “The restaurant can’t hold a lot of money, so you’ll need to deposit it in my name at the money exchange. I’ll leave this matter to you.”
"Yes, don't worry, big sister, I will." Bai Yumei felt that she was carrying a great responsibility.
Tao Wanniang also explained what Wang Hongyu was to do.
"Mother, I...I don't need to light the fire anymore?" Wang Hongyu was a little surprised that she was being asked to help chop vegetables?
"I'll find another girl to tend the fire, or even an old woman will do; someone will take care of that. As for you, I know you want to learn to cook, so just come with me."
"Mother, yes, I will definitely study hard!" Wang Hongyu said excitedly. "Then... what about Xiao Qiao'er?"
"My mother has hired a female tutor for me, so I'm going to stay home and study hard from now on." Tao Wan's mother had discussed this with Xiao Qiao'er before, and Xiao Qiao'er readily accepted it. She was still young and wanted to become a more useful person.
With the family all settled, Wang Hongyu remembered what Zhou Xiaoyun had told her, and after thinking about it, she brought it up.
“Mother, Xiaoyun is almost three months pregnant now, and her pregnancy is stable, but the children are growing up too. What if she bumps into them while running around…”
"Speak up, what do you want? Do you want someone to take care of the child, or do you want someone to take care of her?" Tao Wanniang interrupted Wang Hongyu directly.
"Mother, you decide what to do!" Wang Hongyu smiled awkwardly; what could she possibly say?
“We need to hire a housekeeper to take care of the child. As for Zhou Xiaoyun, she did a lot of work when she was pregnant in Lingjia Village, so why is she so pampered now?” Tao Wanniang said with a hint of dissatisfaction.
From now on, there will be a female tutor in the house, Zhang Liang will be the housekeeper, and we'll hire a maid to look after the children and do some housework. Tao Wan's mother thought to herself, and suddenly felt that while the employer was working hard outside, the maid was enjoying a life of luxury at home. Sigh, what a world!
"Go ask Wang Fugui next door later if he has any reliable and practical servants to recommend. As the eldest sister-in-law, you and Zhou Xiaoyun should handle this matter yourselves."
“Yes, Mother, Xiaoyun will be grateful to you too,” Wang Hongyu said happily.
"Ha, do I care?" Tao Wanniang scoffed and continued with her work.
There was still some time before the restaurant opened. After giving her instructions, Tao Wanniang asked Wang Hongyu to take Xiao Qiao'er and Bai Yumei back first.
Zhou Xiaoyun, who was at the Tao family's house, was also a little irritable. She was alone in the house with a man from another family, and she felt inexplicably nervous. So she simply walked around in the main courtyard and dared not go out of the courtyard.
"Xiaoyun, Xiaoyun!" Wang Hongyu's voice was like a savior, making Zhou Xiaoyun breathe a sigh of relief.
"Sister-in-law, you're finally back!" Zhou Xiaoyun hurriedly came out of the room. When she saw Wang Hongyu, she couldn't help but glance outside the courtyard before pulling Wang Hongyu into her room.
"Sister-in-law, you have no idea how nervous I am. It's just me and Zhang Liang at home, and I have to avoid suspicion!"
"What kind of logic is this? He's just a guard, and you expect me to avoid him? Are you all going to work at the restaurant? What about me? What am I supposed to do?"
Wang Hongyu looked at the three children in the room, hugged her two children first, and then said with a smile, "Xiaoyun, I've told your mother about your situation."
"My business? What business is it of mine?" Zhou Xiaoyun didn't react for a moment.
"It's about hiring servants," Wang Hongyu said with a smile. "Mother told us to go next door to Master Wang's place and ask where there are any reliable old women. The children will be taken care of. You just need to take care of your own affairs."
Zhou Xiaoyun was caught off guard and stared blankly at Wang Hongyu for a long time before finally saying, "Mother really agreed?"
"That's right. In the future, we'll have a female tutor coming to our house to teach Qiao'er, plus a nanny to do chores. You won't feel uncomfortable then, will you?"
"Why does Qiao'er need a tutor? She's not even my biological daughter. Why is she acting like a young lady from a respectable family? She already attended classes with the tutor before. What else does she need to learn?" Zhou Xiaoyun's expression turned somewhat displeased after hearing what Wang Hongyu said.
"This... Xiaoyun, we can't say anything to Mother. Why don't we go next door and take a look?" Seeing Zhou Xiaoyun's expression, Wang Hongyu decided not to mention her mother-in-law's request for her to help in the kitchen.
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