She choked up and couldn't speak, only wiping away tears, quickly soaking the corner of her apron.
"Silly girl, why are you crying?"
Lin Li handed over a clean handkerchief. "This is a good thing. You can manage the shop, and your wages will be three times what they are now, plus a year-end bonus. Once the business is up and running, we'll bring your husband and children to Hong Kong. It would be wonderful if the whole family could be reunited."
She paused, then added, "And in Yau Ma Tei, I bought a tenement building. I've already asked Uncle Fu to handle the paperwork, and I can move in early next month. It's close to the shops there."
Ah Zhen suddenly knelt down, her knees hitting the bluestone slab with a dull thud.
"I, Ah Zhen, could never repay your great kindness, even if I were to serve you like a cow or a horse!"
She buried her head in her handkerchief, her shoulders shaking violently.
"I will definitely manage the shop well, personally select the vegetables every day, and get up at three in the morning to cook the soup, ensuring that the 'Nanhai Pavilion' signboard shines even brighter than the Peninsula Hotel!"
Lin Li quickly helped her up, her fingertips touching her hot tears: "Get up quickly, the ground is cold."
She looked at Ah Zhen's red eyes and smiled.
"Don't rush into finding an apprentice," Lin Li said, smoothing her messy hair. "You can find one from your hometown or in a restaurant in Hong Kong. I only have one requirement: he must be of good character. It doesn't matter if his skills are lacking; I'll have Uncle Fu invite a master chef from Shunde to teach him. But if someone has a bad character, I won't accept him no matter how much money I offer."
"I know!"
Ah Zhen nodded vigorously, the red mark on the back of her hand particularly noticeable under the light. "My nephew is an apprentice at a restaurant in our hometown. He's hardworking and honest. I told him to take the train here tomorrow!"
She suddenly remembered something, turned around and dragged a tin box out from under the stove. When she opened it, several packages wrapped in brown paper were revealed inside.
“This is dried tangerine peel that my mother sent from Shunde. It’s 30 years old and makes stewed meat especially fragrant. You can take it home and soak it in water to drink.”
Lin Li looked at the brownish dried tangerine peels, which resembled curled-up little snakes, exuding a fragrance that had been accumulated over time.
She knew it would fetch a good price on the market, but Ah Zhen was willing to give it away, which warmed her heart like a little sun.
"It's time to flip the roast goose."
Lin Li pointed to the stove, where the char siu in the iron pot was already slightly burnt.
Ah Zhen then came to her senses and hurriedly turned around to flip the iron pot.
The firelight reflected on her face, making the tear stains glow slightly.
Looking at the sizzling meat strips in the wok, she suddenly felt an inexhaustible energy, and her eyes were filled with hope.
"Oh, right," Lin Li suddenly stopped at the door, "I'll have Uncle Fu take you to buy two new outfits tomorrow. You should dress presentably when you go to the shop. Put the tab on my tab."
Ah Zhen paused for a moment with the spatula in her hand, then turned around and smiled sweetly.
"good!"
She watched Lin Li's figure disappear at the end of the corridor, her moon-white cheongsam resembling a blooming magnolia flower. Suddenly, she felt that all the luck she had accumulated in her life had come from this place.
During dinner that evening, Lin Li told Lin Laosan and his two grandsons about it.
Before Lin Hu could even swallow the roast goose in his mouth, he exclaimed, "Auntie Zhen is opening a restaurant? Does that mean I can eat roast goose rice every day from now on?"
Lin Yao put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Auntie Zhen's shrimp dumplings are the best. They should be on the first page of the menu."
Lin Laosan served Lin Li a bowl of soup, his eyes smiling: "Mom, you made a good move. Ah Zhen's cooking skills are indeed impressive. I'll have the company's designer go to the shop tomorrow to take a look. The decoration style should be consistent with the hotel. How about using Suzhou embroidery screens as partitions?"
“Okay,” Lin Li scooped up a spoonful of soup, “but the kitchen must be changed according to Ah Zhen’s wishes. She said she wanted a certain size stove and a certain width of countertop, and we have to do it exactly as she said. We’re running a restaurant, and the taste is the most important thing.”
She looked towards the kitchen and could vaguely hear Ah Zhen humming a Shunde folk song.
"By the way, ask Wang Sheng to keep an eye out for houses nearby and find a place for Ah Zhen's nephew to stay, somewhere close to the shop."
The next morning, Ah Zhen came to see Lin Li wearing a newly made blue cloth jacket.
The collar and cuffs were trimmed with plain-colored piping, which she sewed herself overnight.
“Madam, my nephew says he’ll be arriving in Hong Kong the day after tomorrow,” she said, holding a cloth bag. “This is my shopping list. Take a look: the clay pot for stewing soup must be from Chaozhou, so the soup will be flavorful; the steamer must be bamboo, pine will absorb the flavors…”
Lin Li took the list. The handwriting on it was crooked but densely written, and even the choice of whether to choose "Haitian" or "Lee Kum Kee" soy sauce was marked.
She smiled and handed it to Uncle Fu: "Do as Ah Zhen says, the money will come from the hotel's reserve fund."
She looked at Ah Zhen and said, "Go to the shop today and see if there's anything you're not satisfied with. Tell the construction team to fix it immediately."
Ah Zhen took the list, her fingertips trembling slightly with excitement: "Yes! I'll go right now!"
She stopped at the door, turned back to look at Lin Li, and said, "Madam, don't worry, I will definitely make the restaurant a success and let everyone in Hong Kong know that our food is the best!"
Watching Ah Zhen's hurried departure, Lin Li suddenly felt very at ease.
Ah Zhen isn't just talking nonsense.
Her hands and sincerity not only filled the stomachs of her family, but also supported half of the Lin family's life.
Now, it's time for her to go to a wider world and shine with her own light.
Uncle Fu, who was watching from the side, suddenly sighed: "Madam, you've given them your whole heart."
Lin Li smiled and walked to the window to look at the phoenix tree in the courtyard.
"Uncle Fu, what do you think people strive for in this life? Isn't it just to see the people around them doing well? Only when Ah Zhen is well can we eat well and sleep soundly, right?"
Uncle Fu nodded and said nothing more.
His heart felt warm too.
After being with his wife, he felt that his life had a future.
Around 10 a.m., Ah Zhen returned excitedly.
She held a drawing covered in red circles in her hand, her face beaming with barely suppressed excitement.
"Madam, the shop is fantastic! Especially the location of the Cantonese restaurant. The windows facing the street offer a view of the street scene, and customers can enjoy the view while they eat. How pleasant! I've already told the construction team that we need to set up a special roast meat station in the kitchen so that customers can see the roast goose and char siu hanging as soon as they enter, and the aroma will make them want to eat!"
Seeing her beaming with joy, Lin Li felt happy too.
"If you think it's good, then it's fine. By the way, the kitchen range hood must be of good quality, otherwise the fumes will be too much and the cooks won't be able to stand it."
"I've got it!"
Ah Zhen said, "Also, I'd like to set up a small counter in the tea restaurant to sell some pastries like wife cakes and almond cookies so that customers can take them away."
“Sure,” Lin Li said. “You can arrange it as you see fit. You don’t need to ask me about everything.”
Ah Zhen nodded, then talked about some details of the shop's renovation before hurriedly leaving again.
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