Chapter 25: The Culinary Tycoon

Courageous Brother Le

Old Master Cai and his party quickly finished their meal and left. From the moment they got off the carriage to the time they finished eating and left, they spent less than fifteen minutes at the snack stall. It seemed as if they had come specifically for the jelly. However, the onlookers who witnessed the scene didn’t think so.

After the carriage had gone far, some regular customers of the snack stall asked Yu Qingze, “Boss Yu, did you really cure the Cai family’s second young master’s anorexia?”

Yu Qingze smiled and replied, “I provided a few recipes. According to Mi Ge’er, the Cai family’s second young master’s appetite has indeed improved a lot recently.”

The person nodded and asked again, “So, are you going to work at the Cai family? Will you be closing down the snack stall?” Earlier, Old Master Cai had invited Yu Qingze to cook at the Cai family’s residence.

Yu Qingze shook his head and said, “No, I’m just going there as a guest.”

Upon hearing this, the person sighed with a mix of regret and pity, “Working at the Cai family would be great. They treat people generously, and the servants there have the best treatment in the city. If you go, it would be quite good for you, especially since you can make the Cai family’s second young master enjoy your cooking. The Cai family wouldn’t treat you poorly.”

The surrounding people nodded in agreement.

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Yes, I was also troubled for a long time before finally deciding to open my own stall.”

The people around started discussing, some saying that going to the Cai family would be better because running a small stall was exhausting, requiring early mornings and late nights. Others said it was better to have control over their own business and not have to rely on others, as working in someone else’s home meant always having to consider their preferences.

There were arguments on both sides, and no consensus was reached.

As they continued talking, they brought up more about the Cai family.

While Yu Qingze worked, he also listened attentively to the conversations around him and managed to gather quite a bit of information.

Chang Hao returned with an empty bowl and coins, approached Yu Qingze, pulled his clothes, and motioned for him to come closer. He asked in a low voice, “Big Brother Yu, so Mi Ge’er’s master is actually the Governor’s family? And the old man just now was the Governor’s father?”

Yu Qingze nodded, glanced at Chang Hao, and asked, “Yes, are you scared?”

Chang Hao’s face reddened slightly, but he honestly nodded and said, “The Governor’s family… it’s a bit intimidating.”

For a small farmer from the countryside, even a county official, let alone someone higher in rank, like the Governor, was quite intimidating.

“Do you think Mi Ge’erand Uncle Fu are scary?” Yu Qingze asked.

Chang Hao shook his head and replied, “Mi Ge’er and Uncle Fu are both nice and kind, not scary.”

Yu Qingze asked again, “What about the old man just now, Old Master Cai? Do you think he’s scary?”

Chang Hao pondered for a moment. The old man had a kind face and a smiling expression, so he said, “He seemed friendly and not so scary.”

Yu Qingze patted his head and earnestly said to Chang Hao, “Xiao Hao, the people from the Cai family are just ordinary people, just like us. They eat, drink, and have their own joys and sorrows. Treat them as you would treat anyone else, with respect and sincerity. Interact with them as you would with others, and there’s no need to be afraid. Understand?”

Chang Hao furrowed his brow and asked, “Is that enough? Won’t they think I’m disrespectful to them?”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Yu Qingze shook his head and understood from people’s opinions about the Cai family. He said, “No, just be polite. We don’t owe them anything, nor have we done anything wrong to them. Those who truly want to be friends with you won’t mind your background, status, or wealth. If someone cares about those things, then you don’t need to be friends with them or develop a deep relationship. Understand?”

Chang Hao still had some lingering worries, but he trusted Yu Qingze, so he nodded and said, “I understand.”

“Okay, go about your tasks,” Yu Qingze ruffled the young boy’s hair again and let him go. He didn’t lecture him on the ideal of equality since it was unrealistic in ancient times, but he hoped that the young boy would have a self-assured and confident heart.

Although they spoke softly, Chang Le, who was washing dishes next to them, overheard their conversation.

He glanced at his younger brother and then deeply looked at Yu Qingze’s back, feeling a sense of resonance in his heart.

In his impression, Chang Hao had never asked him about such matters of social interaction, nor had he ever heard him ask their grandfather specifically.

Ever since Chang Hao was sensible, it seemed that he had automatically acquired the ability to read people’s expressions and moods. For those who treated them kindly and had good intentions, he would also be kind and would easily win people’s hearts with just a few words. But if someone had ill intentions towards them, he never held back with his words.

As Chang Hao grew older, Chang Le saw him donning the heavy armor of protecting himself. Every time he saw the possibility of his brother Le being bullied, he would rush in to protect him.

After all, Chang Hao was only ten years old. These principles of how to conduct oneself and interact with others were never explicitly taught to him by his grandfather. Presumably, when Chang Hao encountered problems, he also had many questions in his heart that he wanted to ask.

However, teaching methods like Yu Qingze’s were something neither he nor his grandfather would employ. If it were him and his grandfather, they would probably tell Chang Hao that they couldn’t afford to offend the Cai family, so they should be respectful and cautious, never provoking them. Instead of telling him that those people were just like them, ordinary people who experienced joys and sorrows.

Yu Qingze always had a different way of thinking, something novel yet strangely convincing. Chang Le smiled, finding comfort in the presence of Yu Qingze.

He finished washing the dishes in the basin and happily went to fetch water, carrying a bucket.

The communal well was in another alley, and as he neared the well, he suddenly saw a familiar figure turning into the alley ahead. He recognized this person as the middle-aged man who falsely accused them of having bugs in their noodles not long ago.

Seeing him in a hurry, Chang Le became curious and followed after him.

That middle-aged man was truly wicked. Last time, he had wanted to catch him, but Yu Qingze had stopped him. Now, he wondered what mischief this person was up to.

He cautiously followed behind the man and crossed the alley into another secluded one. This area was filled with residential houses and had few people around. Eventually, he saw the man entering a dilapidated courtyard.

Curiously, Chang Le pressed against the door to take a peek inside. He saw a young man in there.

The middle-aged man displayed a fawning attitude as he asked the young man, “Young Master Wang, do you have any business with me?”

Young Master Wang glanced at him and said, “Last time, you didn’t handle the matter well, and both my father and I were very dissatisfied. But considering that you’re also in a difficult situation, I’ll give you another chance to make amends.”

The middle-aged man’s face brightened, and he asked, “Please tell me what to do.”

Young Master Wang looked around, took out a paper package, and said, “You find a way to put this into the noodles of that snack stall.”

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man glanced at the paper package and asked, “What is this?”

Young Master Wang replied, “Laxatives.”

A bitter expression appeared on the middle-aged man’s face as he said, “Young Master Wang, it’s not that I don’t want to do it, but you know, last time I was caught by them, and they already know who I am. I can’t go even if I want to.”

Young Master Wang’s eyes narrowed, and he said sternly, “I didn’t ask you to go. Find someone else then. Your family has so many people; just let anyone handle the matter.”

The middle-aged man hesitated.

Young Master Wang added another threat, speaking harshly, “Does your son still want to work at the county yamen or not?!”

“He wants to, he wants to!” Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man no longer hesitated. He gritted his teeth, took the paper package, and said, “Please rest assured, Young Master Wang. I will make sure to handle the matter properly.”

“Good, make sure to find someone clever.”

“Yes, I’ll go now.”

Hearing that the middle-aged man was about to come out, Chang Le hurriedly took a few quick steps, trying to find a place to hide. However, all the back doors were closed. In the end, he had no choice but to hide in the toilet of the neighboring house.

From the gap in the door, Chang Le watched as the middle-aged man came out and walked back the same way. After a while, Young Master Wang also emerged and went in the opposite direction.

Chang Le waited for a while, then saw Young Master Wang turn the corner. He quickly came out and ran in the direction the middle-aged man had gone.

From their conversation, he understood that the middle-aged man intended to cause trouble at their snack stall. They recognized the middle-aged man, but if he found someone else to do it, they wouldn’t know who it was.

Putting laxatives in the noodles would lead to customers having diarrhea. How could their snack stall continue operating under such circumstances?

He anxiously carried the water bucket and ran frantically. Finally, in the alley where he had initially encountered the middle-aged man, he caught sight of his figure.

He followed him from a distance, all the way through two alleys and into another residential area.

Chang Le was afraid that the middle-aged man would reach his destination soon, and it would be difficult to handle the situation then. Feeling anxious, he looked around and saw no one nearby. A bold idea emerged in his mind.

He took a deep breath, mustered his courage, gently placed down the water bucket, and took out the pole. He rushed forward and struck the man’s leg with the pole.

The man let out a scream and knelt forward.

“Who?!”

Seeing this, Chang Le dropped the pole and immediately approached. He covered the man’s mouth from behind to prevent him from making noise. Then he pressed him against the wall, while his other hand quickly searched the man’s pockets. Finally, he felt the paper package containing the laxatives, took it out, and put it in his own pocket.

The middle-aged man kept making muffled sounds, so Chang Le took out a handkerchief and stuffed it into his mouth. He also took off the man’s belt and tied his hands behind his back.

Finally, he kicked the man to the ground. Then, swiftly picking up his pole, he ran off, grabbing his water bucket in each hand.

He ran back to their snack stall in one breath and finally saw Yu Qingze. He breathed heavily, relieved to see him.

“Brother Le, what happened? Why did it take you so long to fetch water this time?” Yu Qingze turned around and saw Chang Le drenched in sweat, with a flushed face. However, the water bucket was empty, not carried but held in each hand. It was evident that something had happened.

“What happened? Did something occur?” Yu Qingze hurried over, looking Chang Le up and down. Seeing that he was okay, he felt slightly relieved and took out a cloth to wipe the sweat off his face.

Chang Le placed the water bucket down, took the cloth from Yu Qingze’s hand, and wiped the sweat off his face. Then he pulled Yu Qingze aside and asked him to call Chang Hao over. Only then did he carefully take out a paper package from his pocket and hand it to Yu Qingze. He then gestured and explained what had happened earlier.

Chang Hao quietly whispered the translation into Yu Qingze’s ear.

After listening, Yu Qingze looked at the paper package in his hand, his brows tightly furrowed.

That so-called Young Master Wang must be from the Wang family, and they unexpectedly refused to give up and still wanted to cause trouble.

However, just now, he noticed Boss Wang anxiously looking at him having a chat with Old Master Cai. It seemed that Boss Wang respected the patriarch of the Cai family. In this city, there should be no one who dares to offend the Cai family.

He suppose the laxative operation was originally planned by Boss Wang, but he didn’t expect Old Master Cai to suddenly arrive, and he couldn’t stop his son in time.

Regardless, they found out about their dirty deeds. Yu Qingze asked, “Did that middle-aged man see you?”

Chang Le shook his head and gestured that he didn’t see his face, but he probably saw his back.

Upon hearing this, Yu Qingze smiled and said, “That’s fine. He should recognize it’s you.” After all, there’s probably only Chang Le in the whole city who carries such a large water bucket.

Chang Hao worriedly asked, “Will my brother be okay? Will they come back to beat us up?”

Yu Qingze shook his head and said, “No, they won’t dare to come like this again. Even if they want to cause trouble, they will probably use more discreet methods.”

Chang Hao didn’t understand and asked, “Why?”

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Today, Old Master Cai came to thank us. Boss Wang saw it, so he probably wouldn’t dare to offend the Cai family.”

Chang Hao nodded, thinking for a moment, and said, “Because Brother Yu gave the recipes that cured the Second Young Master Cai, Old Master Cai is grateful to Brother Yu and invited him to their house. It means that the relationship between Brother Yu and the Cai family is good. So, that Boss Wang wouldn’t dare to offend the Cai family. If he causes trouble again, it would be considered disrespectful to the Cai family, right?”

Yu Qingze patted his head and praised, “Yes, that’s right.”

“Oh, I see!” Chang Hao was very happy. “Then we can finally set up our stall without worries!”

Yu Qingze smiled, but in the next moment, he turned serious and said to Chang Le, “Brother Le, if something like this happens again, you’re not allowed to act recklessly! If the other party notices you and starts shouting, you might end up being surrounded and beaten up, you know?”

Chang Hao also nodded seriously, agreeing with Yu Qingze, “Yes, Brother Yu is right! Brother, you’re not allowed to do such dangerous things alone next time! At least, at least, you should call Brother Yu to go with you!”

Chang Le looked at the concerned eyes of the two and nodded. In fact, he was scared too. It was the first time he did something like this, and his heart was still pounding, and his hands were trembling a little.

Yu Qingze added, “Also, don’t go to the well in that alley anymore. If we get blocked there, we won’t know what to do. Let’s use Boss Li’s well at the back and give him ten coins a day.”

The shop behind them is a store selling specialty products from the north and south. There is a well inside the shop, but if they want to fetch water from there, the owner charges them ten coins per day.

Before, Chang Le didn’t want to spend those ten coins, so they would go to the public well in the alley behind to fetch water. Yu Qingze couldn’t convince him otherwise, so he reluctantly went along with him. But now, with this incident, going to the alley behind is absolutely out of the question. It’s less populated, and if they were really blocked by that middle-aged man and his men, it would be more trouble than it’s worth.

Chang Le felt a little sorry about it, but he understood the gravity of the situation and nodded in agreement.

Seeing Chang Le nod, Yu Qingze finally felt relieved. He was afraid that Chang Le wouldn’t want to part with those ten coins.

Looking at Chang Le’s flushed face, Yu Qingze reached out and tucked a small strand of hair behind his ear, softly asking, “Were you scared just now?”

Chang Le was momentarily stunned by Yu Qingze’s action. His face grew even redder, and he couldn’t dare to look at anyone. He simply nodded gently.

Chang Hao blinked, covering his mouth to stifle a laugh, and quietly retreated. There were still many things waiting for him at their stall.

Yu Qingze gently patted Chang Le’s head and sighed softly, “Silly child, remember to call me next time instead of going alone. I worry about you, you know?”

Silly child?

Chang Le was taken aback by the endearment, but the affectionate tone made his ears turn completely red. So, so endearing…

And Yu Qingze said he was worried about him. Although the large palm on his head was gentle, his scalp felt hot, so hot that Chang Le felt like he was on fire.

He quickly nodded and hurried back to the stall, scooping a ladle of water and drinking it, making a gurgling sound. After finishing, he splashed some water onto his face, trying to cool down.

Lower the temperature a bit!

Yu Qingze couldn’t help but smile indulgently at the sight, then turned around and went into the specialty store to discuss the water situation with Boss Li.

The next day, after closing their stall, Yu Qingze and the others went to a grain and oil store in the eastern part of the city to buy flour. Based on Yu Qingze’s previous investigation, this store had the best quality and reasonably priced flour, so they had been buying from here all along.

As they reached the entrance of the grain and oil store, they heard an argument going on inside.

Yu Qingze asked Chang Le and Chang Hao to wait at the entrance while he curiously walked in. To his surprise, the ones arguing were none other than Boss Wang and Boss Liu.

The argument seemed to have been going on for a while, and the owner of the store stood helplessly on the side.

“This was clearly the one I spotted first. Let go of it already!” Boss Wang exclaimed angrily, pressing his hand against a bag of flour.

Boss Liu narrowed his eyes and retorted, “My hand was already on it. You’re telling me you spotted it first? Fatty Wang, don’t bully others just because you have an advantage!”

“Bully others? So what if I bully others? Are you saying you don’t bully others? Don’t think I don’t know that you rely on being the brother-in-law of the Cai family’s young master. You never look at people with a straight gaze and you’re not even afraid of being disrespectful!” Boss Wang snapped.

Boss Liu snorted and replied, “Who needs your straight gaze? I’m afraid you’ll blind my eyes!”

“You old codger, let go already!”

“You fatso, do you have any sense of reason? I got hold of it first!”

…

Yu Qingze raised an eyebrow and walked into the store. He lifted his chin and asked the owner, “What’s going on?”

The owner shook his head helplessly and said, “They’ve been at odds for a long time. They argue about everything.”

Yu Qingze glanced at the two of them, his mind flashing with a thought. He chuckled lightly and turned to the owner, saying, “By the way, have the two bags of flour I ordered arrived?”

“They have, they have. I’ve been waiting for you,” the owner replied.

Accompanied by the owner, Yu Qingze went inside to get the flour, while the two men continued their argument.

Yu Qingze loaded the two bags of flour onto the cart and happily headed home.

Seeing him smiling all the way, Chang Hao couldn’t help but ask, “Brother Yu, what are you smiling about? You’re so happy. Share it with us, let us be happy too.”

Yu Qingze chuckled and replied, “It’s nothing. I just thought of something amusing.”

Upon hearing that it was something amusing, Chang Hao’s interest immediately piqued. “What amusing thing?”

Yu Qingze said, “I can’t tell you right now.”

Chang Hao’s excitement quickly deflated. Whenever Yu Qingze said he couldn’t tell him something, he knew he wouldn’t be told.

Teasing him and not telling him, it was really annoying!

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

Thingyan: Brace for the next chapter (˵ •̀ ᴗ – ˵ )