Chapter Forty-Eight: Buying People

Chapter 48: Buying People

Xu Yuanhang nodded, "I'm glad you like it. The Xu family also deals in porcelain. If you need any, just tell Steward Xu directly, and he’ll give you a discount."

Lin Qiuran replied, "Thank you, Second Young Master."

She thought she might consider it later. If the second floor also opened for business, it would be nice to have matching plates and bowls for banquets. Once they made more money, they could replace all the ones on the first floor too.

Xu Yuanhang said, "Now that we’re partners, there’s no need to keep saying thank you."

Lin Qiuran took his advice and didn’t mention it again. She thought of Jiang Sijie. It was said that the Jiang family in the county was related to the Jiang clan in Xuzhou. What if something happened over there... But Xu Yuanhang had taken over the Jiang family’s businesses in just a few days; he was clearly not someone who only cared about making money without being shrewd.

If the Jiang family really had any powerful backers, Xu Yuanhang must have his own as well. She didn’t need to worry about what came next, so Lin Qiuran felt a bit more at ease. She wouldn’t have to worry about the Jiang family bothering her again.

The Jiang family’s troubles had nothing to do with her, and not everyone who worked in their shops was necessarily a good person. From now on, she would run her business with a clear conscience and earn money ethically.

Xu Yuanhang was about to leave. Before going, he glanced upstairs where there was some clattering. Since it wasn't mealtime yet, it wouldn't disturb the customers. He asked, "Is the second floor being renovated?"

Lin Qiuran nodded, "Yes. The eatery’s business is doing quite well, and I thought leaving the second floor empty was a waste. It might as well be put to use. When you come next time, Second Young Master, you won’t have to squeeze downstairs."

A hint of a smile appeared in Xu Yuanhang’s eyes. He was more than willing to offer advice. "The noise might be a bit loud. It won’t affect the eatery’s business, but the neighboring shops still have to operate. I’ll have Steward Xu bring over some boxes of pastries later. Have someone deliver them to the neighbors."

Lin Qiuran nodded. Steward Xu often brought pastries home before, so she thought she could pay him for them.

Xu Yuanhang added, "Do you mind if I take a look upstairs?"

Lin Qiuran shook her head. The only time she had been to a restaurant with private rooms was with Xu Yuanhang, and aside from that, she only had some past experiences to rely on. Renovating was like crossing a river blindfolded. If Xu Yuanhang could offer some constructive suggestions, it would be for the best.

The second floor was still in the demolition phase. The wooden flooring had to be removed first; otherwise, it would be difficult to build the walls.

There was quite a bit of dust, but Xu Yuanhang still walked around. He said, "Downstairs can fit nine small tables, but up here, you can only fit four round tables at most. Make four private rooms—two bright rooms and two dark rooms."

Lin Qiuran asked, "Dark rooms?"

Xu Yuanhang explained, "As the name suggests, bright rooms are those where windows and doors can often be opened, making them spacious and well-lit. People downstairs can see guests sitting at the tables dining. Even if men and women sit together, it’s done openly."

"Dark rooms are for private discussions and need to be soundproof. If the bright rooms are full, guests can still eat here."

Some matters shouldn’t be overheard by others, so such spaces are necessary.

Xu Yuanhang said, "Make them look similar from the outside, but give them pleasant names. Don’t put small tables upstairs; it’s too easy for noise to become a problem."

Lin Qiuran had originally planned to make the private rooms roughly the same size and place two small tables upstairs for when the downstairs was crowded. But Xu Yuanhang’s point made sense. She nodded and made a mental note of it.

After looking around, Xu Yuanhang said, "When Steward Xu comes later, I’ll have him handle it."

Lin Qiuran said, "I wouldn’t want to trouble you so much."

Xu Yuanhang smiled, "He’ll just find someone to do it. He’s done this kind of work before, so it’s better than you figuring it out step by step. Besides, it’s not like you’re not paying."

Lin Qiuran was genuinely grateful this time. "Since you won’t let me thank you, then when this is done, you must honor us with your presence for a meal."

Xu Yuanhang didn’t nod but asked, "Will the menu be the same?"

Lin Qiuran said, "There will be new dishes. If it’s for a banquet, it will definitely be different from downstairs."

They could offer customized dishes, but advance notice would be required. For example, if Xu Yuanhang, who enjoyed river and seafood, were invited, such dishes would certainly be prepared. The eatery’s current menu was quite good, but for those with substantial means, trying it once might be novel, but they’d prefer more refined fare.

Delicacies from land and sea, different kinds of meat—Lin Qiuran had only cooked chicken, duck, fish, and pork so far. There were other tasty meats like rabbit and donkey that could also be used in dishes.

Xu Yuanhang nodded. Lin Qiuran was skilled at cooking. Although she was still inexperienced in managing a shop, she didn’t need his advice on the menu. He said, "The eatery’s business will surely get better and better."

Lin Qiuran replied, "I’ll take your kind words as a blessing."

Not long after Xu Yuanhang left, Steward Xu arrived. He brought in several items, delivering two boxes of pastries and a spice gift set to each of the two neighboring shops. Each set contained two small bottles of Thirteen Spices and two bottles of Mushroom Seasoning. The bottles were small, but well-packaged, making them look expensive.

Lin Qiuran didn’t open the pastry boxes, planning to deliver them directly later. She wanted to pay Steward Xu for them, as buying so much herself would cost several taels of silver.

But Steward Xu waved his hands repeatedly, not daring to accept the money. "Oh, Madam Lin, you’re being too polite. Since you’re our business partner, these are things we should regularly send to your home. I’ve been too busy lately and forgot all about it. Please don’t take it to heart."

"Leave the renovation to me. I’ll give you the accounts directly later. I’ve hired people who’ve worked for the Xu family before—they’re absolutely reliable and cheaper too. If you’re not satisfied, just let me know. The only thing is, we’ll need to provide meals for the workers. They don’t need to eat the eatery’s dishes; just one meat and one vegetable dish, as long as it’s filling, will do."

Lin Qiuran nodded and entrusted the task of delivering the gifts to Shopkeeper Shi. Shopkeeper Shi was happy to do it. Besides, since the Xu family’s steward was so capable, he didn’t want to seem useless.

Shopkeeper Shi went to the two neighboring shops, said a few pleasant words, and was met with smiles. They assured him they didn’t mind the noise.

After settling the matter, Shopkeeper Shi returned. Steward Xu had already taken people upstairs, and Lin Qiuran went back to the kitchen.

Shopkeeper Shi leaned against the counter, idly pondering. It seemed there was some connection between Madam Lin and Mr. Xu, though he didn’t know the specifics. But he had a feeling the Xu family’s Second Young Master had ulterior motives—not necessarily bad intentions, but as a man himself, he knew that if there was nothing to gain, why would Xu Yuanhang come by every few days?

After all, Lin Qiuran was still young. Even though she had been married and had a child, once the child was born, matchmakers would surely come knocking.

Many people wouldn’t mind that. So what if she had a child? Lin Qiuran was perfectly capable of earning money. Probably Xu Yuanhang wouldn’t mind either—with his family’s wealth, what did it cost to raise an extra child, even if it wasn’t his?

But Lin Qiuran hadn’t given any thought to this aspect. She was busy with the shop and had been working nonstop until the end of the month.

The weather grew colder, but the eatery’s business remained steady.

The second-floor renovation was estimated to take another half month. During this time, some customers asked if they could eat upstairs. Shopkeeper Shi patiently explained, "Not yet, but it’ll be ready soon. The second floor will have private rooms. Larger groups can go upstairs to order, or you can reserve dishes a few days in advance. We also cater banquets, though we can only handle up to four tables at a time. Besides the regular menu, we can prepare dishes based on guests’ requests."

This solved the problem of Lin Qiuran being the only chef. If she went out to cater banquets, the eatery would have to close. Preparing banquets in the eatery would just mean being busier, but she wouldn’t have to run between two places. For customers, it was also more convenient—no need to prepare ingredients or clean up afterward. The environment would be quiet and undisturbed, with matching tableware and delicious food.

Large restaurants also had private rooms, but compared to them, Xiao Family Eatery offered better flavor at lower prices.

Now, even if other restaurants in the county were wary of Xiao Family Eatery growing too big, there was little they could do. Xu Yuanhang had visited, and Steward Xu came often—it wouldn’t do to offend the Xu family.

Before, some had tried to recruit Lin Qiuran to work for them, but when they heard she charged eight mace of silver per day for banquets, they backed off. At eight mace a day, and with her still running her own stall, hiring her would likely require at least ten taels of silver per month.

Moreover, most chefs in large restaurants were men, with few women. Additionally, the master-apprentice tradition was strict, and there were unwritten hierarchies among head chefs and sous-chefs. Bringing in Lin Qiuran would disrupt the existing balance, so they eventually dropped the idea.

At first, they hadn’t taken her seriously, but now that Xiao Family Eatery had carved out its niche and was doing well, it was even less likely they would try to hire Lin Qiuran.

However, some thought that since Lin Qiuran was the only chef at the eatery, even if she excelled at banquets and could make large-pot dishes taste like small stir-fries, she might struggle when there were too many customers.

Lin Qiuran had worried about this before, but not anymore.

After over half a month, Zhao Guangcai finally found two girls he thought suitable and brought them directly to the shop. One was fourteen, the other twelve—both sold by their families.

Zhao Guangcai said, "They’re both used to working at home, honest and hardworking. They can handle washing and cooking without a problem. See which one you’d like."

Lin Qiuran asked, "...How much for each?"

Zhao Guangcai replied, "The younger one is ten taels, the older one eight taels. Younger children are often more expensive at that age. They’re old enough to remember things. If you hadn’t said you wanted capable workers, the younger one would be preferable. But with the deed of sale, there’s nothing to worry about."

Lin Qiuran was puzzled, but then Zhao Guangcai added, "It’s pitiful, really. Their families only got a few taels for them, all to pay for their brothers’ wedding expenses. They ran home a few times but were sent back here."

If they didn’t want to be sold, they’d run home, but the money had already been taken, and the deeds were signed. The only option was to send them back.

The older one had even been beaten up.

Lin Qiuran saw that both girls looked timid and fearful, their faces were sallow and gaunt, their bodies skinny, their hands rough, and their eyes lacked any spark.

Back home, they had hoped to work more and eat less, but their families went ahead and sold them off. Even so, they still wanted to go back—after all, those were their own parents.

Lin Qiuran felt a pang of sympathy and asked, "Where are you from?"

Zhao Guangcai said they were from out of town, definitely not from Xuzhou, so she wouldn't go looking for them.

Zhao Guangcai mentioned a place Lin Qiuran had never heard of. "Don’t worry, it’s very far. We’re also afraid of getting tangled up with their families again."

Zhao Guangcai whispered to Lin Qiuran, "But they’ve given up hope. They ran back home, clutching their parents' legs, begging not to be sent away, promising to work more and eat less or even nothing at all, but they were sent back anyway."

Zhao Guangcai didn't mention the rest—these were the less attractive ones. The prettier ones who were sold off ended up much worse off.

Lin Qiuran thought for a moment and said, "I’ll take both."

Twenty taels would be plenty for the renovations, enough to make it elegant and even buy some nice porcelain. Xu Yuanhang had taken forty-five taels as his share, and the eatery’s earnings left Lin Qiuran with sixteen taels—which was enough to buy two people.

Money wasn't an issue now. One could help at the shop, the other could mind the house. Lin Qiuran planned to teach the older one to cook, while the younger could do laundry and handle odd jobs.

The Xiao family ate well; who knew what kind of life they’d have elsewhere? Lin Qiuran had to buy help for the shop, but she couldn't bring herself to take just one.

She'd consider it fate.

When Lin Qiuran said she'd buy them, the girls still looked numb. Zhao Guangcai said, "That works. I’ve been checking on them lately—they have good temperaments. Following you is their good fortune."

Lin Qiuran thought, if they were truly lucky, they wouldn’t have been sold.

Lin Qiuran signed the documents with Zhao Guangcai. The total came to twenty taels of silver, six mace of which was Zhao Guangcai’s commission, and the rest included taxes—buying people was like buying property, requiring tax payments.

Zhao Guangcai told Lin Qiuran to come to him if she needed anything. "You can count on me to handle things."

After Zhao Guangcai left, Lin Qiuran asked, "Do you have names?"

Both girls hung their heads in silence. After a long while, the younger one spoke up: "I’m called Er Ya."

Lin Qiuran said, "Since you’re with me now, your old names won’t do. From now on, you’ll be called Lin Xia."

She turned to the older one. "You’ll be Lin Dong."

Lin Qiuran didn’t say she would treat them like family or sisters—after all, she bought them to help with work, not to live like young ladies in comfort.

Lin Qiuran asked Sun Shi to take them home to clean up. If they were going to work, they needed to be presentable.

It wouldn’t be appropriate for Xiao Dashi to take them back; Sun Shi had to do it. This showed the advantage of having more people—if the shop hadn’t hired help, there’d be no one to turn to.

There were three rooms at home, and it was too cold to sleep on the floor. Lin Qiuran asked Xiao Dashi to buy a simple bed to put in her room so they could sleep together.

She had initially considered having one sleep at the shop, but girls their age would be too scared to sleep alone. If she had one sleep with Sun Shi and left Xiao Dashi at the shop, the others would be afraid on the way home.

This was when having a man at home would’ve been useful, but the Xiao family didn’t have one.

As Sun Shi took them back, people sitting at the alley entrance asked, "Sister Sun, who are they?"

Sun Shi didn’t say they were bought servants. She said, "Distant relatives. Their family ran into trouble, so they’ll be living with us from now on."

Sun Shi knew Lin Qiuran bought them to pass on her skills—they even took Lin Qiuran’s surname. She didn’t truly see them as servants. But the Xiao family was just running a small business; they weren’t bought to be waited on. Besides, it wouldn’t sound good if word got out—people might think the Xiao family was wealthy enough to buy two maids.

"Are they relatives of the Xiao family? Did your son bring them here?" Sun Shi asked, puzzled, "My son?"

"I forgot who told me, but I heard your son came back to life again? When is he returning?"

Sun Shi replied, "Think carefully about who told you that—how is it that I don't know about this?"

Though usually good-natured, Sun Shi felt irritated now. The neighbors weren't unaware that her son was gone, so why would they make jokes about someone who's passed away? What did they mean by that?

Seeing Sun Shi’s displeasure, the person quickly distanced themselves, "I just heard others gossiping about it a few days ago. I was standing nearby and overheard a bit, but I don't know anything else. I thought it might be good news and wanted to ask you."

The talk had been going around the alley for some time, but the Xiao family was out doing business, leaving early and returning late, and didn't talk to others. If Sun Shi hadn't brought the two girls back, she wouldn't have known about it even today.

Sun Shi hadn’t thought about Xiao Xun in a long time, but hearing his name suddenly, it still hurt terribly. Xiao Xun was only nineteen—such a good age, gone just like that.

The people on the street, seeing her like this, quickly tried to comfort her. Sun Shi said, "It’s fine if you ask me, but please don’t mention it to Qiu Ran."

"Don't worry about it."

"Who would spread such heartless gossip?"

"Sister Sun, maybe you should go back to the village sometime and ask around. There’s no smoke without fire—what if there’s some truth to it?"

Lin Xia and Lin Dong exchanged glances. They had heard about the Xiao family’s situation from Zhao Guangcai. Lin Xia, being younger, comforted Sun Shi, "Aunty, please don’t be sad."

Sun Shi thought to herself, what a miserable situation. But even if Xiao Xun was gone, life in the family was still moving forward.

Sun Shi wiped her eyes, "Let’s go home. Don’t talk about this to anyone."

Lin Dong nodded, and Lin Xia added, "Don’t worry."

Sun Shi showed them where the well and firewood were and gave them the small bucket that Lin Qiuran had used before. The two left their small bundles in Lin Qiuran’s room and bathed.

After washing up, they didn’t become unrecognizably beautiful, but they looked much cleaner and neater in their new clothes. They looked much more presentable. They naturally washed their dirty clothes without Sun Shi having to tell them.

It was nice having more people around—it made the home livelier.

Once they were ready, Sun Shi took them to the shop. They had been brought over in the afternoon, so they reached the shop just in time for the evening business.

Since they weren’t needed upfront, Sun Shi took them to the back. Wan Niang knew they were there to learn cooking. She had no special connection to Lin Qiuran but was willing to share some cooking tricks as long as it didn’t interfere with her work. She even made space for them.

Lin Qiuran said to the two, "No need to rush into work today—just watch for now. Have you eaten already?"

They nodded but didn't mention that they'd only eaten two steamed buns for lunch.

Lin Qiuran didn’t press further. Lin Dong, aware she had been bought as a maid, knew she had to work hard to avoid being sold again. If the family was bad, she could only accept her fate, so she started washing vegetables.

Lin Xia, younger and more lively, helped with the fire when Wan Niang was busy.

Having worked since she was five or six, she was already quite skilled. Whether high, medium, or low, she could already handle it quite properly. Lin Qiuran was pleased; though a few years older than Tao Hua, she was clearly more capable.

The evening business was good. Just before closing, a man rushed in and asked, "Hey, can I ask you something?"

Shopkeeper Shi replied, "What is it?"

The man asked, "Does the eatery need beef?"

An old ox had died of old age in his hometown. His parents said it had worked for over a decade and wanted to give it a proper burial, but meat was meat, and the family needed money. However, selling it to butchers was too cheap—only fifteen coins per jin. They said beef from an old ox that died of age had poor texture and was hard to sell. This was true; the family had tried cooking it, and it was too tough to chew.

So the man went around to restaurants and eateries late at night, asking if they could offer a better price.

But after asking several places, they all said their chefs didn't know how to cook it—beef was uncommon, and practicing beef dishes was too difficult. Many chefs weren't skilled at preparing beef dishes, so buying it would be useless. Some were only willing to take one or two catties, which the man found too troublesome. He kept asking until he came to Xiao Family Eatery.

If even this place didn’t work out, he would just sell it to the meat vendor.

Shopkeeper Shi said, "Let me check for you."

Shopkeeper Shi called Lin Qiuran out. Lin Qiuran asked, "What's the price?"

The man replied, "If you want it separated, the meat is twenty cash per catty. If you take it with the bones included, it's twelve cash per catty—saves me the work of butchering it."

Lin Qiuran said, "I need to see the meat first."

It was almost November. Although the nights hadn’t frozen over yet, as Sun Shi said, ice would form any day now. If the meat was good, she might as well buy it.