Chapter 67 Living in High Style

The little girl held in the slave trader's hands suddenly raised her head upon hearing these words, her eyes filled with astonishment.

The other two were even more excited, dropping directly to their knees and kowtowing.

They had both heard it clearly just now: this female proprietor was buying them back to work as shop assistants, and it was even a temporary labor contract!

The slave trader naturally smiled so widely that her eyes vanished into crinkles. "That's 50 wen in total."

Xie Changzhi briskly paid the money, and Cheng Yuan turned around. The three little girls cautiously emerged, timidly following behind her.

They did not speak much along the way. Cheng Yuan led them straight into the back kitchen of the shop and had Uncle Wang hand each of them a small piece of cake.

The three little girls widened their eyes in disbelief. Ever since they were born, they had never laid eyes on such exquisite pastries. Now holding the plates in their hands, they were so nervous they did not dare to move a muscle.

Cheng Yuan pondered for a moment, took a deep breath, and said, "I do not know what kind of life you led before or what you have been through, but now that you are in my shop and are my people, I will properly lay down my rules for you."

The three little girls immediately sat up straight, nodding with grave and solemn expressions.

"Mistress, please speak. We will listen very carefully," said the young girl who had just been paraded around as an example by the slave trader, her gaze bright and eager.

A faint glimmer flickered in the depths of her eyes.

"First of all, the work I assign you must be done conscientiously. No perfunctory work will be tolerated. I am neither a fool nor easily hoodwinked. If anyone wants to slack off or muddle through their days, I can send you right back immediately."

All three shook their heads instantly. Life before they were sold had been unbearable, and their days in the slave market were even worse than those of beasts of burden.

Day and night, their only prayer was to find a kind master.

Cheng Yuan's expression softened somewhat as she pointed at the cakes. "Eat these first."

The girls froze in place. Were such delicate pastries truly being bestowed upon them?

Only after confirming that Cheng Yuan was not joking did the little girls cautiously pick up their plates. Using chopsticks, they took tiny bites into their mouths, all of them simultaneously wearing expressions of shock and utter contentment.

"This cake is the main food item sold in our shop. In the future, one of your tasks will be helping to make these."

As soon as these words fell, the girls' expressions grew even more dazed.

Learn to make such exquisite cakes? Weren't they brought here to do heavy manual labor? To think they would actually be allowed to learn a craft!

Cheng Yuan chuckled lightly. "Rest assured, the core skills naturally will not be taught to you; you will merely be assisting with the chores."

Upon hearing this, the few of them actually let out sighs of relief and nodded repeatedly.

"Mistress, we will work very hard. Please don't send us back."

The girls' eyes were pure yet resilient. Cheng Yuan did not say much more, merely waving her hand to tell them to finish eating quickly, as there was still work to be done.

Fearing that Cheng Yuan might overwork herself, Xie Changzhi actively took over the teaching duties.

"Whisk it like this. You must keep whisking until foam appears."

"Do not put too many decorations. Arrange them more neatly."

"..."

Though Xie Changzhi was handsome, he was a man of few words. When Cheng Yuan was not around, he would wear a stern expression once more, causing all three children to lower their heads in dread.

Yet dread aside, not a single one of them allowed themselves to be distracted.

During the afternoon business rush, they exerted themselves to the absolute limit. There were so many orders coming in from the front that Xie Changzhi barely had time to write them all down, and the people in the back kitchen moved so fast they were mere blurs.

Even so, the three little girls' eyes remained bright and shining.

As the hour of Shen drew near, Cheng Yuan accompanied Xie Yanzhi to the academy.

Finding an honor student like Wang Jiabin was easy; one only needed to ask any passing scholar.

"Ah, Brother Wang? No problem at all, no problem. Young lady, please wait here for just a moment."

Wang Jiabin came out very quickly. Having heard that a young lady named Cheng Yuan was looking for him, the student who delivered the message had worn a teasing smile. When Wang Jiabin emerged, a faint flush dusted his cheeks.

"Yuanyuan, what brings you here to find me?"

He glanced at the unfamiliar man standing beside her.

"This is Changzhi's younger brother," Cheng Yuan briefly introduced. The two men exchanged a symbolic nod.

Cheng Yuan stated the purpose of their visit today. "I have something I wish to ask you. Might you have time to find a quiet place so we can talk properly?"

Wang Jiabin naturally agreed with a nod.

The three of them found a tavern and sat down in a corner.

Cheng Yuan beckoned to the waiter. "Three bowls of meat wontons will do. Thank you."

"Right away, honored guests."

"I have put you to trouble, Yuanyuan." A gentle smile lingered constantly on Wang Jiabin's face.

Cheng Yuan nodded slightly, signaling Xie Yanzhi to speak.

Xie Yanzhi twisted his hands together beneath the table into a knot, looking rather embarrassed. "Elder Brother Wang, I actually wanted to ask..."

About half an incense stick of time later, Wang Jiabin pursed his lips. "I can help you with this matter, but... did that fellow Jiang Yun truly agree?"

Hearing the casual moniker Wang Jiabin used for Jiang Yun, Cheng Yuan felt a mild surprise.

Seeing Xie Yanzhi nod, Wang Jiabin cast a glance at him, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

"I am naturally glad to help with this. I had previously asked Jiang Yun about it myself, but you know how stubborn his temperament is, so I did not poke my nose further into others' business."

"Rest assured, leave this matter to me. When I return, I shall go and speak properly with Jiang Yun."

Xie Yanzhi was overjoyed. He had originally expected a grueling battle requiring numerous people, never imagining that Elder Brother Wang would be so easygoing and possess such broad connections.

"Thank you for making this trip, Elder Brother Wang. Feel free to come sit at my shop when you have time; we have recently introduced some new cakes," Cheng Yuan said with a beaming smile.

Wang Jiabin scratched the back of his neck. "It's nothing. I was thinking of taking a walk after class anyway, and taking a stroll ends with a bowl of wontons—it's quite pleasant."

With his mind preoccupied, Xie Yanzhi gulped down a bowl of wontons in a daze.

"I have other matters to attend to, so you two eat slowly."

Dropping these words, Xie Yanzhi strode away in a flurry. Wang Jiabin blinked, staring down at the steaming bowl of wontons. "What business could he possibly have?"

Cheng Yuan pondered for a moment, suddenly recalling something. She let out a snort of laughter and shook her head. "It's nothing."

"You want to rent the ox cart?" Uncle Wang looked Yanzhi up and down several times. "Are you certain? Didn't you take a tumble just yesterday?"

Xie Yanzhi nodded with certainty. "I've recently taken on some odd jobs that require me to travel frequently between the county town and the village. You know me, Uncle Wang—walking would literally exhaust me to death. Uncle Wang, please lend me the ox cart, and I promise to take good care of it for you."

Uncle Wang looked toward the old ox grazing in the backyard, its tail flicking lazily back and forth. A wave of sentimentality stirred in his heart; this old companion had served him for a lifetime, yet now that he was busy working in the shop, he rarely took it out for a stroll anyway.

"Very well. Just pay whatever copper coins you deem fit. Work isn't easy, is it? Do a good job, and you're bound to amount to something!"

Uncle Wang knew that Xie Yanzhi's drive to earn money stemmed from his desire to help chubby Fan. Though idle gossip floated around the village nowadays, he preferred to trust only what his own eyes saw.

Xie Yanzhi failed to notice the older man's expression, having already dashed eagerly toward the old ox in the backyard.

"Old buddy, from now on, follow your young master and live the high life!"