Lan Ya Mei and Aunt Guan exchanged a glance. Tie Tou bringing people to seek refuge was a timely help, especially since the shop was short of people.
Lan Yamei didn't refuse and went up to her, saying, "Thank you, thank you. If it weren't for you all being there yesterday, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to handle it all. How about this, from now on you can all work in the shop, five taels of silver each a month, and the shop will provide meals. In months when business is particularly good, I will give everyone a bonus, how does that sound?"
Five taels of silver per person, plus bonuses for good business—the seven henchmen were overjoyed. Before, collecting protection money meant less than four taels a month; though it was unearned income, they always kept it a secret from their families. Now that there was legitimate money, who wouldn't want to earn it?
The seven underlings excitedly scattered immediately, wiping tables and sweeping floors, getting busy. After all, five taels was a high salary in those days; even farming for a year wouldn't earn ten taels. The county magistrate's annual salary was only one hundred and twenty taels, so their income was equivalent to half of the county magistrate's.
Tie Tou was a little embarrassed, rubbing his two thick hands together and said, "Even if you don't pay us, we're willing to come and help every day. We're all brothers in the underworld, so paying us won't make us strangers."
Lan Yamei understood that these people were trying to curry favor with Qiu Zeyu, but one thing was one thing, and she couldn't just take advantage of them for nothing. So she said, "That's not right. We can all make money together. As long as you're willing to work hard with the shop, I guarantee you'll earn more and more in the future."
"This..." Tie Tou was still embarrassed. He had only come here to make friends with Master Qiu. Now, he was the one making money off him, and Tie Tou felt a little guilty.
"Tie Tou, just listen to Manager Lan's arrangements," Aunt Guan advised with a smile.
Tie Tou scratched the back of his head and said embarrassedly, "Okay, I'll do as you say."
The couple working in the kitchen, Er Gou and his wife, were startled to see several burly men rushing in and causing a ruckus. They grabbed knives, iron bars, and ladles and rushed out to protect the shop. Lan Ya Mei grinned and said, "Don't be nervous. These are our new employees, seven in total. You two can arrange their specific jobs."
Er Gou knew Tie Tou's reputation and kept giving Lan Ya Mei meaningful glances. Lan Ya Mei understood perfectly and said with a smile, "It's alright, a prodigal son who returns is more precious than gold, let's get to work!"
Then he turned to Tie Tou and said, "Come with me to buy groceries first!" The two went out the door and headed towards the pork market.
On the way, Tie Tou's aura was so intimidating that ordinary people kept their distance. Lan Ya Mei was sweating bullets and said to him, "Tie Tou, don't be so fierce. Smile a little, or you'll really scare customers away in the store. I'll also arrange new clothes for you as soon as possible to create a comfortable shopping atmosphere, otherwise it's quite frightening."
"Hehe, I forgot, I forgot. I'll have the brothers put their knives under the counter later. Just in case we need them later, hehe." Tie Tou chuckled憨厚ly, and quickly tucked the Moon Banquet Nine-Ring Curved Blade from his shoulder into his lower back.
Soon, the effects of the iron-headed purchasing agent became apparent; no one dared to overcharge, and everyone behaved themselves. Lan Yamei suppressed a laugh and quickly bought half a pig and two sets of offal.
Qiu Zeyu traveled all day and finally arrived at Qiu Ming Manor before dark. To his surprise, his younger brother was already home, drinking and eating meat at the table. Seeing his older brother enter, he said in a strange tone, "Oh! Our family's great hero is back."
Qiu Zeyu wasn't angry. His younger brother had never cared about family matters; he only liked to travel and enjoy life, which wasn't shameful. He sat amicably opposite his brother, poured himself a drink, took a sip, and asked with a wry smile, "Was the barbecue at the ghost market good?"
"You've been following me?" Qiu Kongkong's eyes showed a hint of panic. His family was very strict and would never tolerate him marrying a courtesan, but after seeing Hua Yuhe once, he couldn't let go of her. This trip was also for Hua Yuhe's sake. Had his family found out? In just a moment, he quickly concealed his panic.
"No, but you must pay for your meals, don't go around in debt." Qiu Zeyu said before going to see his father.
Debt? Qiu Kongkong thought about it carefully, and her lips twitched. Could it be that skinny, dark-skinned girl who had feelings for her?
Qiu Zeyu recounted the entire process of this mission before saying to his father, "Now that each family holds two pieces, we need to hurry; the higher-ups are pressing us hard. Otherwise, should I make a trip to the Murong residence?"
The Murong family is full of experts, and Sect Leader Qiu not only didn't want his son to take any risks, but it would also be foolish to expose the relationship between the two families. Over the years, the two families have been secretly competing with each other quite a bit, but they haven't completely broken off relations yet.
Even if we take a desperate gamble and manage to obtain all four jade pendants, the secret manual is still missing. It would be better to find the manual first, destroy it immediately, and that way, the people on it will be at peace.
He then said to his son, "No, we must preserve our strength. Only then will that old dog Murong dare not make any big moves. The various factions in the martial arts world have not yet made their positions clear. We still have important things to do, so we must not act rashly."
"So what's the next step?" Qiu Zeyu respected his father, after all, this matter was of great importance, and a single misstep could shake the martial arts world.
The father and son discussed things for a long time in the room. Before leaving, Master Qiu said to his son, "Take good care of yourself at home these next few days. Your uncle's family is coming, so let's all get together."
Qiu Zeyu didn't think much of it. His uncle's family lived in Xiangyang City, and he hadn't seen them for six years. It was only right and proper for him to see them.
Qiu Kongkong, however, couldn't sit still. He ate a meal at home, took some silver, and left without saying goodbye.
Tie Tou was incredibly strong; he carried over 200 pounds of goods without seeming to struggle. Lan Ya Mei secretly admired him and asked with a smile, "Have you been trained?"
"Hehe, when you're in the world of martial arts, you're not always in control of your own destiny. Self-defense, self-defense." Iron Head, when he's not talking, looks fierce, but when he talks a lot, he reveals his honest and simple nature. "By the way, can we sell all of this half of pork today?"
"Don't worry, we'll continue with the big discounts tonight. You guys will be busy tonight." Lan Yamei was very confident in the business. However, she couldn't keep giving away peanuts and edamame tonight; the same old tricks weren't working anymore. This half-pig was the complimentary side dish for tonight. Thinking of this, Lan Yamei grinned involuntarily.
Back in the shop, I immediately saw a little boy tied to a pillar inside, struggling to run away. His face was flushed with exhaustion, and even though it was early autumn, he was covered in sweat.
Before anyone could ask, the shop assistant said, "This kid came in to steal something, and we caught him. But he's stubborn and won't say a word."
Lan Yamei first instructed everyone on how to process the pork. After everyone had finished their work, she untied the ropes binding the little boy without saying a word.
The child, with a wary look in his eyes, rushed out the door and ran away in a flash.
Aunt Guan saw everything clearly from behind the counter and complained, "If you don't teach a child properly, he'll get into trouble again. Why didn't you say anything to him and just let him go? Next time someone catches him, he won't get away so easily and will suffer."
“He’s afraid of us now, so it’s pointless to ask him. Let him be.” He walked to the counter, handed back the remaining silver, and said slyly, “Tonight, our edamame, peanuts, and drinks won’t be free. They’ll be charged at the old price. But every customer who comes in will get a free serving of crispy pork.”
"The cost is so high, are you crazy!" Aunt Guan couldn't understand it.
"Hehe, by doing what others dare not do, we can quickly build a reputation. Don't worry, we definitely won't lose money." Lan Yamei was confident. Even if the profit margin was thin, as long as there was a large customer flow, we could still make money.
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