The maid's road to success

Everyone has been opening the shop every day to sell snacks and closing it in the afternoon to do their own things for about a month.

During that time, there were people who were jealous of their good business and sent people to cause trouble. But fortunately, the maid who bought a few pieces of rose cakes on the first day was from the family of an official in Yuzhou, and her master happened to be the eldest daughter of that family. She also knew that Wen Niang's store had been closed for a day or two because someone was causing trouble.

They sent someone to spread the word that whoever prevented their young lady from having satisfying snacks would be closed down.

Although it was very overbearing, it was effective. From then on, no one came to bother Wen Niang's shop again.

Business is getting better and better now. The cakes are sold out in less than two hours. Wen Niang and her friends closed the shop early and planned to go to the temple fair outside the city.

Many people here believe in Buddhism, and there are many temples, so there are also many temple fairs. The temple fairs are very lively, with acrobatics, people selling new things, and delicious snack stands. Everyone likes it very much.

Bihe and Wen Niang were standing at a circus stand watching a monkey show. Just as they were about to take out the copper coins from their purse to give them tips, they felt a stretch on their waist. They looked down and saw that their purse was being pulled away by a dirty little hand.

Bihe shouted quickly.

"There's a thief."

An Ning and An Ping reacted immediately and went to catch the thief, with Wen Niang and Bi He following closely behind.

There were not only two taels of loose silver in Bihe's purse, but also several rings she had bought today. She didn't expect the thief to be so bold as to steal in broad daylight.

After all, the thief was a child. An Ning and An Ping had practiced martial arts for several years, and they quickly caught up with the little thief.

When Wen Niang and Bihe came over, they saw An Ning and An Ping standing blankly at the gate of the yard without going in.

"What's wrong? Did you lose me?"

An Ning shook her head and turned away, her face showing reluctance.

"Girl, let's not pursue this. They are so pitiful."

Wen Niang walked closer and saw five or six children in the yard, huddled together nervously. The little thief who stole Bihe's purse was holding a stick and looking at them warily.

What attracted everyone were the children behind him, including a girl, only four or five years old, with white eyes, tattered clothes, and many scabbed scars on her body. She was actually blind.

There was a younger child next to them, about two or three years old, and it was obvious that he was missing an arm. The others also had injuries all over their bodies.

"Gentlemen and ladies, I stole your purses. It's my fault. If you want to punish them, please come to me. Don't make things difficult for them. They are all poor people."

The little thief was clearly just a half-grown child, with a bruised face and nose, and wearing ill-fitting, torn clothes, yet he still had to protect those children tightly behind him.

"Are you their brother?"

Wen Niang pushed An Ning away, walked closer and asked.

"Please, kindhearted people, please spare Brother Daniu. He stole the money just to feed us. Please, kindhearted people."

The blind girl pulled all the children around her, big and small, to kneel on the ground and kowtow to beg.

"We are not Big Brother Niu's biological brothers and sisters. We were picked up by Big Brother Niu. No one wanted us, but Big Brother Niu picked us up and gave us food and drink."

Another child said, crying out of breath.

"Please don't hit Brother Daniu. Xiaoliu is injured and will die if he doesn't see a doctor. That's why Brother Daniu stole the money. Please, spare Brother Daniu."

Seeing this scene, even though An Ning had experienced so much bullying, she couldn't help but feel soft-hearted.

"Mrs. Wen, forget it. I don't have much money in my pocket. Just give it to them."

Wen Niang nodded. They originally thought that he was a habitual thief, but they didn't expect that he also had his own secrets. Faced with such a group of poor children, they really had no way to continue to make things difficult for them.

"Anping, leave all the food we bought today. The child has a few worthless rings in his purse. Return them to this sister and keep the silver."

The one called Da Niu was surprised that they did not intend to pursue the matter of stealing the purse. He had stolen several times in the past few days in order to treat the injuries of his younger brothers and sisters, and was severely beaten when caught.

But he had no choice. No one was willing to hire them for work. He used to earn a few steamed buns by carrying sacks at the dock, but Xiaoliu was beaten by a group of thugs. He was covered with wounds and might die if he didn't get treatment. He had no choice but to do this.

"I did something wrong today, and I, the good people, will not pursue the matter. I, Daniu, will definitely repay your kindness in the future."

Da Niu threw the purse over to her. Wen Niang felt relieved when she saw that only a piece of silver had been taken out of it.

This child is not a bad person. On the contrary, he is kind-hearted. He picked up abandoned children and raised them, taking risks for the safety of these children.

Obviously, I am also a child.

"You are a good child. I will leave you enough money today. Don't steal again in the future. If you are caught, you will suffer."

Wen Niang also took off her own purse, and together with the two taels of silver from An Ning and An Ping, there were seven taels of silver in total, enough for them to see a doctor and get medicine, and for their recent living expenses.

"I, Daniu, will definitely repay your kindness by working like a slave."

Da Niu pulled his younger brothers and sisters behind him and kowtowed to Wen Niang and others, then left the dirty and messy alley. Wen Niang felt very uncomfortable.

Even in a good place like Yuzhou, there are still cases where children are abandoned simply because they have disabilities, not to mention other places.

All four of them were sold by their families, but at least they had their own homes before they were sold. However, these children lived in an uninhabited, dilapidated house and were raised by a half-grown child.

My heart always feels sour and uncomfortable.

"Mrs. Wen, I feel so bad. They are so pitiful. Can we send them things more often?"

Wen Niang shook her head.

"Don't worry. The money we left is well spent by them. It will be enough for them to spend for a while. Let's take a look first. Don't let a wolf enter the house because of a momentary weakness."

When Wen Niang was in Gongzhou, she once heard a story that there was a neighbor next to where they lived.

My brother and sister-in-law from my mother's side were all gone, leaving two young children unattended, so that family kindly took them back to their own home to raise them.

Although he was not as careful with his own children as with his own, they had never lacked food and clothing. However, such a kind person was hated by others because he did not provide a generous betrothal gift and dowry when the two children grew up.

Later it turned out that someone was jealous of their children and poisoned the food. Fortunately, it was discovered in time and their children were not killed.

But from then on, I lost hope, reported the matter to the authorities, and cut off all contact with him.

Even though they were my aunt and uncle, they favored their own children and never treated them unfairly. However, they were hated because they did not provide betrothal gifts and dowry like they did to their own children when they got married.

Wen Niang thought that she could not raise those children as her own like that family did, nor could she guarantee to treat them with care and patience.

If the person is good, it would be fine. But if the person has bad intentions, he will make more enemies for himself.

After all, we have only been in contact for a short time today and cannot draw any conclusions yet. It is better to observe.

As the saying goes, a little kindness is repaid with a big hatred, and there is some truth to it.

Bihe was worried about the children and couldn't sleep well at night.

Wen Niang knew Bihe too well. Although she seemed unfeeling, she actually had a soft heart.

In the past at Fu Shou Tang, if she saw any little girl being bullied, she would silently help her, so this time these children were so pitiful, she would not ignore them.

But Bihe was not someone who was blindly soft-hearted. She knew very well that what Wen Niang said made sense, so she did not take any action on her own.

After all, her family treated her like that, and she only punished her second aunt who was the real culprit, and did not punish her parents and brother.

Bihe is a smart person.

I would just take An Ning to observe the children's situation from time to time, and those children were doing well.

After receiving Wen Niang's money, he took his younger brother and sister to see a doctor and get medicine, lived a cautious life at home, and never stole anything again.

I thought the days would be peaceful, but unexpectedly something unexpected happened.

Who knew that just after they finished selling the cakes, they saw Da Niu standing stealthily at the entrance of the alley.

When he saw Bihe and the others were about to close the shop, he immediately ran over and whispered.

"Someone is trying to cause trouble for you today. Babaozhai in Yuzhou is jealous of the fact that you are popular with those rich ladies, so they bribed a servant to put drugs in your cakes. The young lady of the Tongpan family in Yuzhou has sent people to arrest you."

Wen Niang pulled him aside and asked.

"Where did you hear that? Is it reliable?"

Daniu nodded and raised the osmanthus flowers in his hand.

"We originally picked fresh osmanthus flowers to repay your kindness. Halfway through the journey, we just turned the corner and saw a maid buying your cakes. Not long after she walked a little way, she opened them and sprinkled something on them. I felt something was wrong, so I followed her. I heard her talking to someone at the back door of the Tongpan Mansion about how much money she would give her after the job was done. I followed the man and saw him go to Babaozhai. I climbed over the wall into the backyard and heard that they were going to plot against you."

Wen Niang nodded and told him to leave as soon as possible and come back later.

Just as Da Niu left the alley entrance, someone from Tongpan Mansion came. It turned out to be the steward of Tongpan Mansion who came in person.

"Your cakes were adulterated with something, causing our young lady to have a rash. The magistrate has ordered you to be taken back for questioning."

Wen Niang took out a twenty-liang silver ingot from the counter and carefully put it into the butler's hand, and said without waiting for him to refuse.

"Our cakes are absolutely clean. To ensure safety, we have a count of the cakes we sell every day. For the cakes with higher prices, we keep a record of who each party sold them to. I can take out the account book for you to check. You may also ask other families if they have any problems after buying cakes."

The manager saw that the woman did not look panicked, but calmly took out the account book to show him. Sure enough, there was a record of every sale. A few new customers whose identities were unknown were also marked with the color of the clothes, characteristics, and approximate age.

"That doesn't mean you are innocent."

Wen Niang was not in a hurry and continued to lead everyone to her own kitchen to take a look.

"You all came in a hurry, and we don't know. The kitchen hasn't been cleaned yet. Why don't you go to our kitchen and see if there is anything suspicious? Besides, the Tongpan Mansion must have invited a famous doctor to diagnose it. I'm sure he knows what medicine is mixed in. You can also go to Yuzhou's pharmacy to check if we have bought those medicines."

After hearing what the woman said and looking through the kitchen himself, the steward knew that today's incident probably had little to do with them. However, the young lady had a rash and the master was angry, so he would have a hard time explaining himself if he didn't take anyone back.

"Even though I said that, it doesn't prove that you are innocent. Please come back with me and cooperate with the interrogation."

Wen Niang nodded and said.

"Of course, but please say a few good words to me, and don't wrong my daughter."

The manager felt very satisfied as he touched the heavy silver in his hand.

He brought Wen Niang to the Tongpan Mansion and told her about the account book that Wen Niang had just handed over and how he had checked the entire yard but found nothing.

Seeing that the magistrate was not the kind of person who would make false accusations without any basis in reason, Wen Niang thought about it and decided to speak.

"The judge must have checked it out. We have only been in Yuzhou for a short time and do not know your daughter, let alone any grudges against her to harm her and ruin her business. Today's incident must have been framed by someone. Although I don't know who is so capable as to poison the daughter and frame us, I also suspect someone in my heart."

Seeing how calm the woman was, the judge immediately became interested and let her speak first.

"My daughter has a deep impression of Tongpan's family because on the first day we opened, the maid of Tongpan's family came to buy cakes. After tasting them, the girl said she wanted to buy four squares, but our family's first day of business, buy one and get one free. After I explained to the girl, she changed her mind and said to buy three squares, and get six of each. I watched carefully at the time and saw that the girl took out a purse of money to pay, and put a small part of it into her waist belt."

Wen Niang turned to the first page of the account book and pointed to a line.

"At that time, I didn't know that she was a maid of the Tongpan Mansion. I only remembered her clothes and appearance. She was about fourteen years old, with double buns and a goose yellow long skirt. There was a wooden plaque with willow leaves carved on it hanging around her waist."

After listening to Wen Niang's description, the magistrate looked at the steward and he immediately nodded.

"She should be talking about Huan'er who is in front of the young lady."

Wen Niang continued.

"My Lord, you only need to check whether Huan'er came back saying that she bought three and gave three away, or whether she took the money for herself, and you can prove her suspicion. Although it cannot prove that Huan'er harmed me, I think we can find out the truth by starting with her."

The judge nodded and asked someone to find a seat for Wen Niang first. After a brief communication, he was sure that Wen Niang was not the murderer of his daughter.

She had no reason to harm her daughter, nor did she seem stupid. Instead, she was very calm and smart, and she listed a lot of evidence in an orderly manner to prove her innocence.

Only a cup of tea later, the steward came with his men to capture Huan'er.

"It was indeed her. We searched her and her father's house first and found ten taels of silver and a medicine bag that had not been thrown away. The doctor examined it and said that it was the powder that poisoned the young lady."

Faced with all the evidence, Huan'er immediately begged for mercy.

"Master, Master, I know I was wrong. It was the owner of Babaozhai who threatened me to do something for him with my brother's IOU. He put a little medicine in the rose cakes that the young lady eats every day. It won't endanger her life. It will only cause a rash for two days. Just close their shop. I was forced to do this. Otherwise, they would have chopped off my brother's hand."

The magistrate was obviously very angry about the fact that someone in his mansion had been bribed. Historically, big families did not dare to buy maids and servants from outside at will because of the hidden dangers.

Therefore, the servants in the mansion were mainly family-born children, but I didn’t expect such a serious thing to happen.

If you dare to prescribe medicine for your master's rash today, you may be bribed by someone to poison your master tomorrow.

Such things are opportunities for big families. They can tolerate servants' laziness, but they cannot tolerate servants' disloyalty and intentions that harm their masters.

"Huan'er had a vicious mind and colluded with outsiders to murder her master. She was beaten to death with a stick. All her family members were sold to the slave factory and she was dragged in front of everyone and beaten as a warning to others."

Wen Niang knew that it was not convenient for her to participate in the management of servants in the Tongpan Mansion, so she stood up and left.

"Today, thanks to your sharp eyes and heart, you have cleared my daughter's name. But my brother is still worried, so I have to go home."

The magistrate nodded and looked at the steward.

"I'm sorry to have made a fool of myself, young lady. The stupid people in the mansion have caused you trouble. We will compensate you."

Wen Niang shook her head and said with a smile.

"Your lady has been taking care of our business every day, which is already a great favor. If you feel that we have been wronged, please take care of our business in the future. Thank you very much, sir."

Seeing that she was so tactful, the magistrate was very satisfied, but he was still worried that Wen Niang would go out and say something wrong.

"My Lord, you invited me to come and make cakes for the young lady today. It's out of a loving father's heart. But I have a rule every day. I only sell thirty squares. If you need it in the future, you can send someone to buy it early."

These words brought a smile to the face of the Tongpan. Wen Niang was saying that she was invited by the Tongpan to make cakes for his daughter who was not convenient to go out, and there was no poisoning or collusion with outsiders.

It also showed that he would not say anything nonsense when he went out, gave the judge a way out, and found an excuse for today's incident that would look good to everyone.

"You are a smart man, and your business will only prosper in the future."

Wen Niang also understood that this was because the magistrate was very satisfied with her attitude and would definitely protect her business in the future. So today's incident was not a loss.