A family with three widows, after severing ties with relatives, she became wealthy and married into

Chapter 58 Go check the kitchen

While a disturbance was taking place outside Chuxing Restaurant, Tian Tian packed up two-pound portions of bean curd sheets from her home.

Each pack of bean curd sheets contains two desiccant packets, so they won't get damp or spoil even after days of autumn rain.

Looking at the rows of brown paper bags piled up in the shop, I estimated that there were already nearly two thousand kilograms of stock.

Given the current situation, she should have the women stop working to prevent the bean curd skin from piling up.

However, what happened at Chuxing Restaurant today made her give up that idea.

Since the bean curd sheets at Chuxing Restaurant have a problem, then... those merchants who bought the moldy bean curd sheets, especially those from Ganzhou Prefecture... should also be facing problems soon.

*

For several days in a row, people came to cause trouble in front of Chuxing Restaurant, but in the end, nothing came of it.

Most of those involved in the accidents were traveling merchants who were just passing through Baishi County and couldn't linger there for too long.

Moreover, this matter is inherently difficult to explain, and they don't really want to report it to the authorities.

However, the continuous disturbances still affected the business of Chuxing Restaurant.

As a result, the business of Fulai Restaurant suffered even more.

Early in the morning, Qian Fulai sat by the window of his room facing the street, watching the people passing by below with little interest.

"Little Niu..." Qian Fulai called out to his companion.

The young calf came closer, "Young Master..."

"Little Niu, have you noticed that there are fewer traveling merchants coming to our Baishi County these past few days?" Qian Fulai looked at the people on the street; most were ordinary people, and there were few traveling merchants to be seen.

Xiao Niu chimed in, "That's too little, it's been raining these past few days... and winter is just around the corner."

After winter sets in, roads are easily blocked by ice and snow, so even if merchants want to make money, they will reduce the number of times they go out.

In places like Hanzhou, the most remote prefecture in the northernmost part of Daqi, merchants there almost never leave their homes.

“It wouldn’t be like this at this time of year in previous years…” Qian Fulai lamented.

Xiao Niu frowned. These past few days, the young master... seemed a bit like... a girl from the red-light district... sighing and whining.

"Little Niu, our Fulai Restaurant's business won't go back to what it used to be... hanging on by a thread for a few dozen taels a day, like a hanged ghost, right?"

The calf gave an awkward laugh, "Probably not..."

"Young Master, don't worry, didn't Miss Tian tell you to relax?"

"Relax, relax!" Qian Fulai said listlessly, flicking his sleeve. "How can I relax?"

He stood up and paced back and forth, sighing, "Sigh... Fu Lai Restaurant, will it really go bankrupt in my hands, Qian Fu Lai's hands...?"

Little Niu rolled her eyes. Look at that pretentious look, just like those frivolous women.

He glanced out the window and suddenly saw Tian Tian getting off the oxcart.

"Young master, Tian Er, Miss Tian Er has arrived."

Qian Fulai went to the window and looked down.

He noticed that Tian Tian had lost her previous enthusiasm, and only when she went up the steps did he hesitantly drop a coin out the window.

The copper coin clattered to the ground, right at Tian Tian's feet.

Tian Tian picked it up, looked up, and saw Qian Fulai's mournful face.

The calf came running down the street, calling out, "Miss Tian Er, you've come!"

"Our young master has been these past few days..."

He sighed deeply, "I'm so worried I can't even eat."

"You should go and see him quickly."

Tian Tian went upstairs and arrived at the room where Qian Fulai was.

He glanced at Tian Tian, ​​then lazily lowered his eyes again, "Sigh..."

Tian Tian sat down opposite him. "What's wrong with you?"

Hearing her feigned ignorance, Qian Fulai glared at her angrily, then turned his head away, not wanting to look at her.

Tian Tian asked helplessly, "Do you still want to do business?"

Qian Fulai turned his head and said, "If no one comes, what kind of business can we do?"

Tian Tian beckoned to him.

Qian Fulai obediently came closer.

Tian Tian said, "The opportunity has arrived."

"what chance?"

Tian Tian muttered to herself...

Finally, he asked, "Do you understand?"

Qian Fulai's pupils slowly dilated. "This...will this work?"

“Of course it can be done!” Tian Tian said confidently.

Qian Fulai stood up abruptly. "Okay, I'll arrange for someone to take care of it right away."

*

Since people started causing trouble at Chuxing Restaurant, all sorts of rumors have been circulating in the county.

Some say there's a problem with the bean curd skin at Chuxing Restaurant, while others say there's a problem with the bean curd skin at both Fulai Restaurant and Chuxing Restaurant.

They even said they would report it to the authorities and have the county magistrate lead a team to inspect their kitchen.

Check if there's anything wrong with the bean curd sheets they're using.

The passing merchants, wealthy locals in Baishi County, and ordinary people alike were discussing the matter more and more intensely.

In the end, no one knows who actually reported it to the authorities.

The magistrate of Baishi County arrived at Chuxing Restaurant with his yamen runners.

This time, Tian Tian wasn't in the shop; she just stood openly in front of it, watching what was happening at Chu Xing Restaurant.

"Your Excellency, what is this?" Chu Wang had also heard the rumors.

In the past few days, he has specifically instructed the people in the kitchen to keep the kitchen clean, to ensure that the ingredients are fresh, and that the swill not be left overnight, etc.

Li Huaiyuan, the newly appointed magistrate of Baishi County, looked at the crowd of people surrounding him.

Everyone was flattering him, saying, "Lord Li, you are the magistrate of our Baishi County. You must stand up for the people."

"This Chu Xing Restaurant has made many people sick; you should investigate it thoroughly."

"That's right, let's go check the kitchen and see what the kitchen at Chu Xing Restaurant is like."

"Yes, Lord Li, you should take your men inside quickly."

Li Huaiyuan looked up at Chu Wang and said, "Chu Wang, someone has complained that the ingredients at your Chu Xing Restaurant are not fresh. I must go in and investigate."

Chu Wang didn't stop him, "Of course you can investigate if you want, sir."

"but..."

“When those merchants come to our Baishi County, they don’t just eat at our Chuxing Restaurant; they also go to Baiwei Restaurant and Fulai Restaurant.”

"Since you want to investigate, I suggest you investigate all three together."

"If there are problems, let's work together to correct them so we can better serve merchants from all over and make Baishi County more prosperous..."

"My lord, what do you think?"

Chu Wang's words persuaded Li Huaiyuan.

Indeed, as a county magistrate, he naturally needs to achieve political success.

The more merchants come to Baishi County, the better the business of the shops in the county will be, and the more taxes they will pay.

These taxes are his achievements.

Now, because of the Chuxing Restaurant incident, many traveling merchants no longer look forward to coming to Baishi County to try the bean curd skin.

Therefore, he must make changes.

Since we're going to implement rectification, we can't just rectify one company.

"Alright, then I'll investigate them one by one!" Li Huaiyuan decided immediately. "Men, investigate Chu Xing Restaurant first."

Seeing this, Chu Wang did not stop them, and even led Li Huaiyuan's men to his own kitchen...