Wu Shiren's lips twitched. He glanced at Chen Qingqing from head to toe, then gave a cold smile.
"Who do we have here? It's Qing'er! I didn't expect you to grow into such a beautiful young lady after all these years. Don't keep spouting nonsense about me. Let me tell you, I used to be from Nanshan Village too. In terms of seniority, you should call me Uncle!"
"Who do you think you are, uncle? You don't even deserve to be called one."
"How dare you talk like that, kid? I'm Wu Baoan's cousin, and your grandma is my great-aunt. Tell me, why am I not worthy of you calling me 'Uncle'?"
Chen Qingqing scoffed disdainfully, "Since you know our two families are related, why are you still making things difficult for my older brother?"
Wu Shiren was dissatisfied and sneered, "How am I making things difficult for him? It's just doing some work. Every apprentice goes through this. Why are you making such a fuss?"
"I'm being nosy. Is this how you treat people?" Chen Qingqing rolled her eyes and questioned loudly without any politeness, "My older brother is almost working himself to death. He's always busy, and you're still not satisfied. You start cursing right away. Do you have no humanity?"
Wu Shih-ren put on a roguish expression and chuckled.
“I provide him with food and lodging, and let him learn a trade from me. You still dare to say I’m inhumane? Fine, then get out of here right now. I won’t force you to stay.”
Chen Qingqing raised her eyebrows, "You clearly treat my older brother like a handyman, and you still dare to say that you want him to learn a trade from you. If you don't want to spend money to hire someone, just say so. Don't make yourself out to be some great philanthropist."
"Nonsense."
Wu Shiren's face turned pale with anger, feeling as if she had seen through his true thoughts.
When Chen Feng said he wanted to learn cooking from him, he casually agreed. But learning to cook isn't something everyone can do well.
The Chen family has only ever known how to endure hardship and toil for generations. Even when they finally produce a scholar, he is only a half-baked one, unable to even pass the county-level imperial examination. He looks down on them from the bottom of his heart.
But when Chen Feng actually started learning to cook, he panicked.
When he was an apprentice, it would take him ten days to half a month to master the amount of oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar in a dish, but this kid can learn it in one go.
He was incredibly jealous. If things continued like this, wouldn't he be able to start his own business in a year or two? That wouldn't do. He was just a country bumpkin; how could he learn things so quickly...?
From then on, Wu Shih-jen never let him work with the chefs again, nor allowed him to be taught by any master chef.
The purpose of making him do the hardest and most tiring work in the kitchen is to make him realize that he is not good enough and voluntarily give up going home.
But I never expected this kid to have so much stamina. Not only did he not go home, but he also worked hard.
And so, Wu Shih-ren dismissed all the kitchen helpers.
He was secretly delighted. He was getting free labor by providing food and lodging without paying anyone. It seemed like a great deal.
My thoughts were exposed by this little brat, and I felt a burning sensation on my face.
He roared furiously, "Chen Feng, since your sister is standing up for you, you should go home with her. I don't want to be accused of mistreating my apprentice."
Chen Qingqing didn't want to indulge his bad habit, so she took Chen Feng's hand.
"Brother, come home with me, let's quit working for him."
"Little sister, stop fooling around, brother isn't going home."
Chen Feng broke free from Chen Qingqing and apologized to Wu Shiren in a humble voice, "Shopkeeper, my little sister is ignorant and made you angry. Please be magnanimous and don't take it to heart. I won't leave."
Wu Shiren raised his chin, his face full of smugness, and said, "You're a smart kid. If you don't want to leave, hurry up and get to work. Can't you see the fire in the stove is about to go out?"
"Yes, boss, I'll go get to work right away." Chen Feng waved to Chen Qingqing. "Little sister, listen to your brother and wait for me at the door."
Chen Qingqing was speechless. What kind of spell had Wu Shiren cast on her older brother that made him so willing to do all the work for him?
No, Chen Feng is a tall man of 1.8 meters, and he looks energetic. He is not stupid. He couldn't stand the fact that his parents favored the third wife, so he chose to become an apprentice at Qingfeng Restaurant.
Such a unique man cannot be controlled by others; if he wants to leave, no one can stop him.
If he chose to stay, there must be someone or something he cares about here.
Thinking of this, Chen Qingqing felt a chill of fear. Could it be that he also wanted to become a live-in son-in-law?
No, no, as the saying goes, "I'd rather starve than work for a relative, and I'd rather be poor than till my father-in-law's field." I absolutely cannot watch my elder brother become a live-in son-in-law.
She spoke up to stop him, saying, "Brother, this kind of person is too ruthless. It's not worth risking your life for him."
"Stop talking, I'm not going home with you," Chen Feng said firmly.
Seeing his insistence, Chen Qingqing nodded helplessly, "Brother, take it easy on yourself, don't overwork yourself."
Before Chen Feng could speak, Wu Shiren yelled again, "Are you ever going to stop? Get over here and get to work! You're so stupid and clueless, you're driving me crazy!"
"Coming right away." Chen Feng hurriedly ran over and got to work.
"elder brother."
Chen Qingqing was speechless. She couldn't understand why her silly older brother was so obedient. Did he really want to become Wu Shiren's live-in son-in-law?
I feel like something's not right, but I can't quite put my finger on it.
Wu Shiren showed no restraint and immediately started cursing, "Chen Feng, you blind fool, hurry up and finish picking these vegetables, there are still a lot of dishes and chopsticks waiting to be washed!"
"Dad, are you ever going to stop? You're bullying Chen Feng again." As soon as she finished speaking, Wu Cuihua lifted the curtain at the back of the kitchen and walked in.
Upon seeing his daughter, Wu Shiren immediately put on a smiling face. "Cuihua, what are you doing in the kitchen? Go to the front and greet the guests."
Upon hearing this, Chen Qingqing suddenly remembered the line, "Cuihua, bring the sauerkraut..."
She tried hard to suppress her laughter, carefully observing Wu Cuihua. She saw that Wu Cuihua was wearing a dark green dress, with big, bright eyes and a faint smile on her fair face.
Seeing this, Chen Qingqing became even more certain of her thoughts: her older brother wanted to become a live-in son-in-law.
Wu Cuihua smiled and said, "Dad, I've told you so many times to hire a few more helpers, but you just wouldn't listen. Chen Feng is doing the work of three people; how can he possibly manage?"
"Oh my goodness, what are you saying? We're just a small business, how can we hire so many idle people? That would cost so much money!"
Wu Cuihua glanced at Chen Feng, who was covered in sweat from his busy work, and a look of heartache appeared in her eyes.
From the day Chen Feng came to the shop as an apprentice, seeing his hard work, perseverance, and integrity, Wu Cuihua gradually developed feelings for him.
But her father didn't treat Chen Feng like a human being at all. He made him do all the hard and tiring work, and even then, he was still not satisfied and would start cursing at people as soon as he opened his mouth.
She couldn't disobey her father in front of so many people, so she could only gently persuade him.
"Father, there's no way to earn all the money in the world. You can't treat Chen Feng like a slave just to save a few bucks!"
......
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