Miao Chu

Chapter 254 Missing
After both sides introduced themselves, Song Miao heard that, just as she had thought, he was the instructor of the Xu family martial arts school and also Liang Yan's master. She quickly welcomed him into the house.

As soon as he sat down, Master Cheng, barely having time to drink his tea, eagerly asked about the food Liang Yan had brought.

"...One of them is dried pork, right? But we don't know what the other one is; many people at the martial arts school are thinking about it..."

"It's pork jerky, and the rest is shredded squid and shredded cuttlefish—we call this cuttlefish 'squid' in my family, it's grilled over charcoal with seasonings, then pounded and shredded..."

When the other party asked about the price, Song Miao said, "Squid and cuttlefish are more expensive, while dried pork is cheaper..."

She listed them one by one, adding, "Even pork jerky is only slightly cheaper than squid jerky or cuttlefish jerky. If you look at the price on its own, it's actually not cheap at all—because it uses a lot of meat and is very labor-intensive to make. Five pounds of pure meat can only produce less than two pounds of jerky. In addition, there's the need for seasoning, drying, and roasting, so the amount that can be made each day is actually not much..."

Master Cheng suddenly became anxious and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Shopkeeper Song, we're not ignorant of quality. We won't haggle with you. I've seen cooks make meat jerky in the camp before, and I know that this stuff is extremely meat-intensive. If you put in a pig or a cow, a whole bag of dried meat or jerky won't come out unless you add flour!"

He added, "There are also jerky made outside with chicken or duck meat mixed with flour, which tastes completely different from yours. It melts in your mouth after a few chews! It's all about the seasoning, which is really unappealing!"

"We train every day and can't do without meat. You can tell this is good stuff as soon as you taste it! The ingredients and seasonings are top-notch! Don't worry, young lady!"

After Master Cheng finished speaking, he took out a piece of paper covered with writing and handed it over, saying, "We asked the accountant to write down the numbers. Could you please pack them up separately according to the number of people?"

He handed over the paper, and as he spoke, he took a heavy bag off his shoulder.

"The money is all here!"

The bag was placed on the table with a loud "thump," and you could tell how full it was.

Song Miao glanced at the order form and saw that there were many items on it. Seeing the commotion on the other side, she quickly said, "No need to pay for everything, just a deposit will do. The restaurant doesn't have that much stock right now, and there are still orders ahead of us, so we have to wait in line. I don't know if you masters can wait? I'm afraid it will take two or three days even if you hurry!"

"Of course! Good things take time!" Master Cheng said, then couldn't help but ask, "Can we skip the line? Everyone's been really pushing me. If you have any orders that aren't urgent, we can add a little money..."

Song Miao hurriedly replied, "Because these dried meats and dried squid are not sold to the public, they are all ordered by regular customers who need them urgently, so it's not easy to cut in line. But don't worry, I'll speed things up and try my best to make them for our martial arts school in the next couple of days!"

As she spoke, she went to the backyard and brought out a small basket full of dried meat, shredded squid, shredded cuttlefish, and other snacks. She wrapped them in oil paper in front of Master Cheng, explaining what each item was and what it was. Finally, she gave him a small bag of amber walnuts, explaining, "Thank you all for teaching Liang Yan every day and for patronizing such a large order. While I can't easily lower the price—I have a rule here that I never lower the price—there should be some explanation..."

She handed over the small basket of things, saying, "Just a little something to give away, you can have a snack while you wait! Once it's ready, we'll deliver it to your door—who should I ask?"

"Just look for me, Cheng Zongwu." Master Cheng quickly accepted the gift. "Young lady, you're too kind! I'm almost embarrassed to accept so many gifts!"

Song Miao smiled and said, "In business, no merchant is honest. I just hope that customers will try everything in the shop and come back if they like it!"

Master Cheng immediately burst into laughter and said, "Young lady, you're really good at business. Even though it's a free gift, you give us a little of this and a little of that, and they're all flavors we've never tried before. Next time, we'll just have to buy more of everything!"

After both sides counted the money and confirmed the order quantity, Master Cheng, carrying his basket, said goodbye and left. As he walked out the door, he felt increasingly embarrassed and suddenly turned back, asking, "What else do you sell in your eatery? Do you only sell dried meat and these snacks?"

When Song Miao saw him return, she was taken aback for a moment, then said, "I usually take on some banquets and also cook at people's homes. I also set up a stall every day and deliver food—I make glutinous rice, rice rolls, meat and vegetable steamed buns, steamed rice cakes, and all kinds of drinks..."

Just by listening, Master Cheng didn't have much of a concept of glutinous rice, rice noodle rolls, and steamed rice cakes, but he knew about meat and vegetable steamed buns, so he asked about their flavors.

Song Miaoyi explained everything.

"If you want to deliver food, can you deliver to the martial arts school? How many meals can you deliver?"

The Xu Family Martial Arts School is located near Baokang Gate, neither too far nor too close, but it's conveniently located on the way to the Kyoto Prefectural Government.

Song Miao said, "It's all delivered. Except for the rice noodle rolls, which can only be made and sold on the spot, everything else can be delivered. Others have a minimum order of thirty portions, but the martial arts school isn't a regular customer, and it's on my way, so I'll deliver whatever order they place, even just one portion."

Master Cheng thought of the other masters' complaints yesterday, saying that the breakfast shop they were used to serving had been neglecting them lately. He also thought of the incident that happened in his family recently, and how his brothers took care of him, not only helping him cover his shifts but also helping him search for his sister.

Although it ultimately didn't work and the person was only saved thanks to the government, he was very grateful for everyone's kindness.

I had originally planned to treat everyone to a meal to express my gratitude, but I've been busy with things at the martial arts school lately, and my sister has only recently returned, so I need to take care of things at home and have been putting it off.

Upon hearing Song Miao mention that the restaurant also served breakfast, he immediately became interested.

There's no time to set up a feast right now, we can do that later. But we can eat breakfast, which is so cheap, first.

Tomorrow's date is already set and can't be changed, but there's always time to make it the day after tomorrow.

He asked the price and ordered a hundred steamed buns of various colors, as well as some glutinous rice and other items. He said, "Can it be delivered by the end of the day after tomorrow? I'm buying it for the other people in the martial arts school. We need to eat it during the break after our morning classes. If it's delivered late, we won't have time to eat it."

“Yes!” Song Miao immediately agreed.

Since Cheng Erniang had gone out to buy daily dried goods, Song Miao called Zhang Siniang out. The two recognized each other and agreed on a time.

After seeing Master Cheng off, Song Miao didn't rush to do anything. Instead, she asked Zhang Si Niang how she had been adjusting these past few days.

Zhang Si Niang said, "Everything is very good. I worked with you in Huazhou for two months before, so I'm familiar with the job. Now that you've come to our restaurant, you're a very easy-going person. You don't need to worry about anything. Just focus on doing your job well!"

He added, "If there's anything inconvenient, it's what my wife pointed out last time: staying in a temple is really uncomfortable. But we've already paid, so we'll grit our teeth and get our money's worth. When the time comes, I'll find a suitable place to stay nearby, even if it's a bit more expensive!"

The walls of the room were thin, and with so many people around, even a fart would attract eavesdroppers. Washing and relieving oneself were inconvenient, with seven or eight people often queuing for a single spot in the outhouse...

The disadvantages are endless.

The only advantage is that there are roofs above and ground below, providing a place to sleep that shelters you from the wind and rain.

If it weren't for having Wang Sanlang to keep her from doing anything else, she would have loved to move into the front hall of Song's restaurant and sleep on the floor as if she were on night duty!
Song Miao said, "Last time, Aunt Zhu asked someone to tell you that her mother had inquired and found a room on the street that was about to be rented out, but you would have to wait another month or so until the room became available. Then we'll let you go and take a look."

Zhang Si Niang was overjoyed.

Song Miao then said, "There's another matter. Right now, there are a lot of miscellaneous tasks at the restaurant, and a lot of breakfast orders. It's not enough for Second Sister to deliver them all by herself. Now that you're here and have gotten familiar with the place quickly, if I asked you to help with the deliveries, would you dare to accept the task right now?"

Zhang Si Niang hurriedly replied, "Madam, just go ahead and assign the tasks!"

He added, "But I've never run before, so I'm a little lacking in courage." Song Miao then said, "Second Madam will take you. Even if she's not here, you can always ask me—I've escorted people before, so don't panic! I won't make you go into battle shirtless the moment you arrive."

When Cheng Erniang returned from shopping, Song Miao called the two of them together and told them what had happened.

The former breathed a sigh of relief and said, "The orders have been piling up these past few days. It's not that I'm afraid of the work being too tiring or too much, it's just that I'm worried that the food will taste bad if it's kept out for too long—my wife specifically told me that beforehand!"

At this point, she added, "Also, yesterday Master Xu came to ask me if we would get a raise when we start working regularly. He said he's been here for a while now and is familiar with everything. He also asked if we could work full-time, and if so, would we get three meals a day like the rest of us?"

Upon hearing the question about the cart driver, Mr. Xu, Song Miao replied, "I rarely use my mule cart; the most important thing is that I get to know you more when you're delivering goods—what do you think of his driving skills?"

Zhang Si Niang had only been there a short time and rarely interacted with the coachman, Master Xu, so she remained silent.

Cheng Erniang said, "The driver is alright, but he's a bit hard to describe. Master Xu is quite eloquent and attentive, but it's not very comfortable to be around him. However, we urgently need someone, and he knows the roads best..."

"Then let's try using it again. If he keeps asking about wages, just say there's no increase."

“Tomorrow I will take Fourth Sister with me to deliver breakfast; one mule cart will be enough. But the day after tomorrow we will deliver it separately. What will we do then?” Second Sister Cheng asked.

Song Miao said to her, "Let's see if we can manage. I originally thought one driver would be enough, but for some reason, they always take longer than I expected. Let's wait and see. If it doesn't work, we'll find another one. One can work full-time, and the other half-day. We can just call drivers on the street to fill in for the next few days."

He added, "Second Mistress, take a look first and see where each household is located. Then, find out the fastest way to deliver the goods to each household, and we'll try to find a solution."

Cheng Erniang and Zhang Siniang immediately agreed. After discussing it for a long time, they finally settled on a preliminary plan for the division of the property.

That evening, when Zhang Si Niang returned to Guangji Temple, it was already dark, and there was no one in the house.

It wasn't until late 9 PM that Wang Sanlang returned, covered in sweat.

It was so hot that he first fetched a bucket of water, found a corner to wash off the sweat, saved some soap, and then fetched some cool well water for Zhang Si Niang before taking it back to the house.

The two recounted what had happened during the day, and then Wang Sanlang asked, "Do we have any rags, old towels, or anything that we can use as a mat?"

"What do you want that for?"

"It's a back pad, the weight isn't a big problem, but it's a bit too tight."

Knowing that Wang Sanlang usually carried heavy loads without ever complaining, Zhang Si Niang took it to heart when he said this today, and said, "Let me check his back."

Wang Sanlang obediently took off his outer garment and turned his back to show her.

Zhang Si Niang gasped.

His back was covered in bruises, with many areas swollen up. The most serious were the two bruises on his right shoulder near his neck, which were swollen up to half a finger's height.

She was startled and said, "You're all wrapped up like that, why aren't you saying a word?"

She rummaged through her bundle and pulled out a bottle of oil, which she applied to his wound. She said, "Luckily, my sister-in-law specially got me a bottle of medicated oil, saying I might need it. She insisted I take it with me. I had said I wouldn't take it if I didn't need it—why is she holding it so tightly? Did the foreman bully you?"

Wang Sanlang said, “It’s not bullying. I’m new here, so I’m definitely doing the work that others have left over. It’s just that I’m unlucky. The boat I was assigned today was carrying granite from the south. Not only me, but several other newcomers were also carrying it together. What I did is nothing. One of them accidentally broke something. He said he would work for nothing for the next day and tomorrow and couldn’t afford to pay for it!”

"Sigh, I always said the laundry business was tough, but who knew the docks were even worse!"

Wang Sanlang said, "It's good enough that I have any work to do right now! Although I worked hard today, I earned quite a lot!"

As he spoke, he quickly pulled out a small pocket sewn into his trousers and said, "It's all here. I only bought two fried dough sticks for dinner, which cost ten coins, and some side dishes. For lunch..."

He recounted exactly how much money he had spent and how he had spent it, and finally said, "Count the rest of what's left."

Zhang Si Niang honestly counted them all, but the more she counted, the more she felt something was wrong. She asked, "How come it's more than half less than what you said before?"

"The foreman said that 60% would be withheld and the rest would be paid next month."

Zhang Si Niang wanted to curse.

She couldn't help but say, "That's so heartless! Doesn't that mean it will take almost two months to get the full month's wages?"

"There's no other way. I'm new here, and not every place will take me. Many places only hire experienced people." Wang Sanlang explained briefly. "It's already very good. Not every place is like Song Xiaoniangzi's place. You should work hard. Although you don't earn as much as I do now, you have a real future!"

Hearing this, Zhang Si Niang had an idea and said, "San Lang, what do you think? How about I ask my wife to let you come and work in our restaurant too?"

Wang Sanlang was taken aback and said, "I'm only good at manual labor. Things in the kitchen are very delicate. Even if I wanted to and was willing to learn, my wife wouldn't want me, would she?"

Zhang Si Niang suddenly became excited and told her about what had happened that day. She added, "From what you said, Madam, I think you'll probably need to find another driver. Even if you don't find one now, as the number of customers increases, one driver won't be enough to transport them all, so you'll definitely need to find another one. You can drive a carriage too. I've ridden in Master Xu's carriage before, and it wasn't particularly smooth. The only problem was that we didn't know the way. We should hurry up and familiarize ourselves with the route!"

Wang Sanlang shook his head again and said, "It's not good. You always think of me when something good happens, and you secretly inform her here. What will Song Xiaoniangzi think of you if she finds out? If she thinks you're only thinking about your own people and have put the restaurant business aside, then we'll be in trouble!"

These words made Zhang Si Niang hesitate, saying, "Isn't it a bit much? We're all just employees, we know each other inside and out, isn't that better?"

But she still wasn't entirely sure, so she sighed and said, "You're really working too hard. Besides, you have to buy food nearby for lunch and dinner. Everything is expensive in the capital, and you're always reluctant to eat—you're doing manual labor, you should eat more!"

Wang Sanlang quickly comforted him, saying, "What's wrong with suffering a little! I'm young, it's time for me to put in the effort and endure hardship!"

Zhang Si Niang had no choice but to find a few hemp cloths to put on his back tomorrow, but she couldn't help but say, "It's too tight, how can he work tomorrow? Why don't you rest for a day?"

Wang Sanlang was unwilling to agree, but he went to work as usual the next day.

The next morning, while it was still dark, Zhang Si Niang was already waiting at the door, but no matter how long she waited, Master Xu's mule cart did not arrive.

(End of this chapter)