Transmigration: From Farmer To Empress
Chapter 84: The Fearless One Arrives_1

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: The Fearless One Arrives_1

After arranging accommodations for her servants, Cai Wei returned to the restaurant with Chun Liu, diving back into their bustling work.

The business in the restaurant was thriving to the point of disbelief; table after table of patrons filled the room. The staff were so busy they barely had time to breathe. Luckily, Cai Wei had just hired a few more helping hands in the nick of time to manage the chaos.

In the kitchen, two main chefs worked fervently over the stoves while Old Haizi washed and sorted vegetables. Aunt Zhou guided four maids in skewing and rolling Hun Duns. With the addition of Auntie Liu, Zhang Bo, and his wife, the kitchen was bursting at the seams with crowded activity, making it almost impossible to move around.

Observing the packed kitchen, Cai Wei instructed those skewing and rolling Hun Duns to move to the quiet hall in the backyard to continue their work.

The spacious and quiet hall in the backyard was the perfect environment for a group to work and chat leisurely at the same time. They tucked themselves comfortably into gossipy conversations while working.

Zhang Bo and his wife were intensely grateful to Cai Wei for reuniting their family. They shared with the rest of the staff, with tears glistening in their eyes, the generous deed of their mistress. All the maids praised Cai Wei for her kind-heartedness and congratulated Liu Auntie, Zhang Bo, and Aunt Zhang for finding such a wonderful household to work for.

Aunt Zhou beamed with pride when Cai Wei was praised. Her Wei’er was indeed the embodiment of kindness and capability. Despite her young age, she was able to shoulder the responsibilities of the substantial family business, a feat no one else could match.

The group chatted about everything under the sun while working, creating a light-hearted and joyful atmosphere. Though they worked for several hours, none of them felt tired or hungry. Only when Chun Liu brought lunch did they realize it was far past noon. Large white steamed buns, a big plate of pork head meat, cold spinach salad, and fried green peppers and eggs; these were all indulgences they could only dream of during the New Year yet were free to gorge on here at will!

"Oh my, this is too...incredible!"

Liu Auntie didn’t know how to describe the plentiful luxurious lunch in front of her. She stared blankly at the dishes, too afraid to pick up her chopsticks or believe that such a lavish feast would be served to humble servants like them.

Zhang Bo and Aunt Zhang mirrored her dumbfounded expression, exchanging mute looks of disbelief at the vast range of dishes on the table.

Noticing their reaction, Chun Liu tried to suppress her giggles and said, "Miss knew that everyone has been working hard and this is a reward for all of your efforts. Miss said if everyone continues to do their best and if business in the restaurant is good and makes lots of money, then you can enjoy meals like this every day!"

"May the Lord Buddha bless us; we’re truly lucky to have found such a wonderful mistress!" Liu Auntie’s hands came together to pray and she kept bowing toward the sky.

"It’s more than just being lucky; it’s as if we’ve been struck by great fortune!"

Zhang Bo grabbed a large white bun, and asked while looking at Chun Liu and Liu Auntie, "Did you ever eat such big white buns or these dishes of meat, eggs, and vegetables even during the New Year at your previous homes?"

Liu Auntie replied, "Indeed, when I was with my previous employer, I was only served two meals a day. For breakfast, I had a corn cake mixed with coarse grains. In summer, I was fortunate enough to have a bit of cheap green vegetables. However, during winter, I could only eat pickles for several months. For dinner, I was served such thin congee that I could count the grains. I worked for over ten years and never ate a meal as good as this."

Aunt Zhang sighed, "We were even worse off than you. At least you had a solid breakfast. When our family worked for Old Master Zhou in Zhoujia Village, Old Master Zhou was very stingy. He always tried to split a single copper coin in two. We servants would fill our stomachs with bland mixed rice porridge all year round and work from dawn till dusk, almost working ourselves to death."

"After I got married, I was pregnant with four or five children, but due to poor nutrition, I couldn’t keep them, and they all died. Later, when I was pregnant with Zhu’er, my husband would go into the mountains at night to catch wild chickens and roe deer for me. We barely managed to keep Zhu’er alive, but he is still not strong, and remains sick all the time..."

Chunliu said, "Although Zhu’er looks weak, he’s not as bad as you say he is!"

Auntie Zhang said, "That’s because things got better after old Master Zhou died and the young master took charge of the family. Unfortunately, the young master is the exact opposite of Old Master Zhou in character. Old Master Zhou was so stingy he could tie his neck if he could, while the young master was so extravagant that he went into gambling. In just one year, he squandered our huge family wealth and our family had to be sold to pay off his gambling debts..."

"Ah, all are pitiful people. At least, the bitterness has turned sweet now that we have a good master!" sighed a maid who had come to serve.

Chunliu lowered her head, her heart was full of bitterness. Who could be more pitiful than her? Other people were mistreated by their masters, while she was mistreated by her own parents.

Her parents were conservative, favoring sons over daughters. She had been working for the family all day since she was a child and never received a smile from her parents. Later, to get a wife for her brother, they sold her to a dying boy as a child bride. After the boy died, she was brutally beaten by her mother-in-law and sold...

"Eat quickly, don’t dawdle! The master treats us well, and we must repay him in return. We should finish our meals quickly and work more. That would also be a way to show our gratitude to the master!" said Auntie Liu as she swallowed a large steamed bun.

Everyone agreed with a nod, picked up their chopsticks and started eating enthusiastically.

Just as they finished eating, an anxious voice of Old Haizi came from outside the window, "Is Miss home?"

Chunliu went out and said, "We just received a lot of fashionable new clothes from a newly opened clothing shop. The miss is in the backyard with her mother and siblings trying them on. Do you have something urgent in the front yard?"

Old Haizi said anxiously, "Indeed, a few men just came from the restaurant claiming to be Miss’s uncles and cousins. They are clamoring to see Miss and Madam. They have been stopped by San Dong and Young Master Jiujin. But now they are struggling with San Dong outside. What on earth should we do?"

"What? Those shameless pests have the audacity to cause trouble at our doorstep?"

Auntie Zhou who had been silently eating all this while, was infuriated to hear that Mu Zhongli and his sons came knocking. So much so that her hair was standing on end, she threw her chopsticks down, rolled up her sleeves and rushed out.

"Let’s go and see, if anyone dares to bully our miss, we’ll fight them!"

Auntie Zhang slammed the table and also rushed out.

Fearing that this might cause trouble, Chunliu quickly ran to the back room and reported the incident to Cai Wei.

Cai Wei was helping her mother and siblings try on new clothes when she heard that Mu Zhongli and his sons had come knocking. She couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh, "I haven’t had the chance to confront them yet, but they’ve come knocking. Perfect timing!"