As soon as Tao Wanniang said this, the private room fell silent for a moment, but then Zhao Changgui said seriously, "You are just a woman, and you are too soft-hearted. You are giving your waiter such a big advantage, isn't it because your restaurant is doing well? But have you ever thought about how much trouble this will cause to other restaurants?"
"You've broken the rules of the entire restaurant industry!" Zhao Changgui channeled all his envy of Zhaixinglou's booming business into accusations against Tao Wanniang.
Tao Wanniang's face darkened. She scoffed at Zhao Changgui, who was accusing her, and said rudely, "Who are you? Why do I sense your contempt for women? Did I eat your rice or drink your water to deserve such a accusation? Or are you just using the fact that I'm a woman to deliberately insult me?"
"Manager Tao, you're being too serious. I don't think Manager Zhao meant that. It's just that your six-day work week is indeed a bit of a new beginning," Jin Danyang immediately said, trying to smooth things over.
“Our workers are human beings! Humans need rest too. What’s wrong with you all being their bread and butter, treating your workers like animals?” Tao Wan’s mother retorted. “What’s wrong with working six days a week and resting one? I’d like to work five days a week and rest two!”
"What are we restaurant owners supposed to do now that you've done this to us?" Zhao Changgui said sternly. "Do you know that makes our restaurant staff uneasy?"
"I don't know!" Tao Wanniang said bluntly. "I'm not your servant, how would I know?"
"I heard that many of your restaurants have followed suit since our family restaurant launched a membership system. Now that our family restaurant has implemented a day off, what's wrong? Aren't you going to follow suit?"
"I'm quite curious about your purpose in coming here. Are you here just to criticize me?" Tao Wanniang glanced at the group of shopkeepers. "Even if you're dissatisfied, so what? Do you think that just by yelling at me a few times, I'll change my mind?"
Zhao Changgui was the one who stepped forward. The other managers were truly beholden to him because they were eating his food, and they also knew that the owner behind this restaurant was Princess Rui. What could they say?
"Manager Tao, putting everything else aside, I'd like to ask you something. You keep the wages the same, but the employees are doing less work. Don't you feel like you're losing out?" an older manager asked.
"It's true, if you want a horse to run fast, you have to feed it grass!" Tao Wanniang felt that these people were too harsh, making it seem like she was committing some great sin just because she wanted to rest.
"As the old saying goes, sharpening the axe won't delay the work of chopping wood. When the staff have time to rest, they will work even more diligently. In our restaurant business, whether we're open for lunch or dinner, even if we don't have to get up early, we're still tired. Only when the staff are well-rested can they have the energy to work."
"Besides, what's it to you if my restaurant takes care of its own staff? Even if your staff wanted to come, my Zhaixinglou restaurant wouldn't necessarily have to!" Tao Wanniang said, as if these people were making a fuss over nothing.
"Gentlemen, Manager Tao is the head chef of our restaurant. The kitchen can't function without her," Lu Neng said at the right moment. "Manager Tao, these managers are extremely satisfied with the dishes you've prepared!"
"Eat as much as you like. Since you're all managers, I'll give you a 20% discount." Tao Wanniang glanced at Zhao Changgui, thinking, "This guy's just jealous!"
"I'm busy in the kitchen, so I won't keep you company. Manager Lu, I'm off tomorrow, so you can handle anything yourself!" Tao Wan's mother added, "She also has a day off. Humph, you're just envious and jealous, a bunch of men."
"The manager can rest too?" As soon as Tao Wanniang left, the older manager, Xu, muttered to himself, "With the manager gone, will the restaurant staff still behave themselves?"
"I'm here!" Lu Neng chuckled. "Our Zhaixinglou restaurant is great, with two managers. We don't have to worry about one of us being in trouble and the restaurant being left unattended."
Zhao Changgui was furious; he'd been scolded by a woman. "You all just listened to her nonsense?"
“What you said makes sense. How about we let our restaurant staff take a break too?” Manager Xu nodded and said, “You imitated Zhao Changgui, a member of Zhaixinglou, so why don’t you follow suit and take a break as well?”
"You..." Zhao Changgui was annoyed and was about to say something when Luneng interrupted him.
"Gentlemen, this meal is fifty taels in total, but our Manager Tao has said he'll give you a 20% discount, so it'll be forty taels then. Someone's calling me, so I'll go over there first. Yang Song, settle the bill for these customers." Lu Neng said with a smile, calling over Yang Song, who was working as a waiter, and then left.
"Who's paying for this meal?" Jin Danyang asked quietly. He was trying not to offend anyone, but he loved money!
Zhao Changgui angrily pulled out his money. In the past, his Ziyanglou was the number one restaurant in the capital, and he would not lose face like this.
After paying the bill and leaving, Zhao Changgui walked ahead. Seeing the waiters at Zhaixinglou looking particularly energetic, he became even angrier.
Getting a job at Ziyang Tower is already a big honor for this guy, and you want to give them days off? What kind of good deal is that! Do farmers get days off? Do farmhands get days off? You're really dreaming.
Tao Wanniang didn't take the matter to heart, and since Lu Neng was from the Prince Rui's mansion, he naturally passed the matter on to the steward of the Prince Rui's mansion.
"Manager Tao has quite a broad perspective!" Prince Rui learned about this a few days later. "Perhaps because she comes from the countryside and has experienced famine, she is more considerate of her servants."
"Your Highness, those restaurants that are dissatisfied with Zhaixinglou are just jealous. No, I need to send someone to the Chamber of Commerce to smooth things over. Everything Zhaixinglou does should be promoted." Princess Rui had inquired about Zhaixinglou's profits, and she was delighted. Even if it only accounted for 40%, it would still be more profitable than the restaurants she had opened before!
“We definitely need to give that merchant guild a good talking-to. How can they not favor our Zhaixinglou?” Prince Rui nodded in agreement. “Yi’er was the one who took care of things before, right? I’ll go and ask them myself tomorrow.”
Tao Wanniang didn't expect that the rest day she created to be a lazy day would have such a big impact.
Zhaixinglou Restaurant has become increasingly famous, not because of its good food, environment, or service, but because of its holiday. As a result, foremen from all walks of life have started to advocate for the rights of ordinary people.
On her day off, Tao Wanniang first slept in until she naturally woke up, then checked on Xiao Qiao'er's homework progress, and chatted with her grandchildren. Just as she was thinking how leisurely life was, Zhou Xiaoyun came to visit!
"Mother, you must stand up for me! Ling Dapeng... he wants to take a concubine!"
Zhou Xiaoyun, sobbing, pulled Ling Zhi and knelt down in front of Tao Wanniang.
Taking a concubine! Tao Wanniang was somewhat shocked. How long had it been? How had Ling Dapeng managed to ruin his life like this? But what was Zhou Xiaoyun thinking, coming to her for help? Hadn't they already separated the family?
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