Divorced woman with child travels through time

Wang Xiaoer jogged along, passing through three alleys and several small buildings, winding his way until he arrived at a somewhat old and new house, where he knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Wang Jincai was at home worrying. Although he had an old house to live in, he was still poor with nothing to do.

"I am Wang Xiaoer, Lao Wang, open the door quickly."

"Coming, coming!" Wang Jincai hurriedly went to open the door.

"Xiao Wang, what brings you here?" Wang Jincai asked him happily. "Don't you have to work today?"

Wang Xiaoer said mysteriously, "Guess why I'm here? I must have something good to tell you. Do you think I don't know if you're busy at home? I've come to find you something to do, Lao Wang!"

Wang Jincai said, "Really? What's up? Come in quickly and tell me, where are they hiring? I don't see any restaurants around here hiring head chefs." As he welcomed the man in, Wang Jincai poured him water and handed it to him.

Wang Xiaoer was indeed a bit thirsty, having run such a long way. He took a sip of water and said, "Our old restaurant, which was run by Manager Wang, closed down recently. It was sold a while ago. Do you know Madam Chen? The Madam Chen who killed bad guys. She bought it and is now preparing to reopen. She's short a chef. I was thinking you're just idling at home anyway, why don't you go and try working there? Madam Chen is a great employer, you can't miss this opportunity."

Wang Jincai said happily, "That's great! I've heard that Madam Chen is a good person. Since you've said so, we definitely have to go. It's hard to find such a good employer. Let's go, let's go, let's go..." The two then went back together.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Chen Wenfang asked Chef Wang to prepare a few of his signature dishes. As expected of a master chef, Chef Wang had a few signature dishes. He made popular dishes like Dongpo soup and roasted mutton quite well. Chen Wenfang tasted them and found them delicious. So, Chen Wenfang hired him, paying him three taels of silver a month. Chef Wang was overjoyed and very happy to accept.

Chen Wenfang did the math and figured they had enough staff. Chu Yi would be in charge of collecting money, Wang Hanyang would be in charge of the front, Da Zhuang would be helping out in the kitchen, and Wang Xiaoer would be there to help out. That should be enough. If business was good, they could hire more staff later. She then ordered uniforms in the same color so that it would look nice when the business opened.

Chen Wenfang strolled around the shop. A teahouse should be quite lively, otherwise who would come to drink tea? Although she mainly sold things, she couldn't refuse guests who wanted to stay overnight. It wasn't appropriate to leave so many rooms empty. Maybe she should just turn it into an inn. She had already made the sign. Oh well, it was fine either way. She could stay there or eat. She had everything she needed, and she could just provide whatever the guests wanted.

At the end of June, Chen's Teahouse chose an auspicious day to open. In addition to its usual fried rice, donkey rolls, sachima, rice candy and other snacks, Chen Wenfang also used the chili peppers that had ripened to a ripe red to make a variety of side dishes to accompany tea and drinks. These included golden beans made from peas and orchid beans made from broad beans, spicy peanuts (available in both non-spicy and spicy varieties), spicy and sour radish strips, spicy and crispy shallots, spicy ginger strips, pickled spicy and sour green beans, and spicy and fragrant small fish. The main focus was on spiciness. She also taught Chef Wang how to make stir-fries. Adding chili peppers to stir-fries makes them quick and delicious, and makes serving dishes easier in the future. With chili peppers as a base, stir-fries will definitely be more popular.

Chen Wenfang thought that if he were to open a teahouse or restaurant, it would have to be lively to attract customers. So he added a table directly above the main table in the hall, and hired two storytellers, similar to crosstalk performers in his previous life, to come and support him. He also gave a small jar of chili sauce to everyone who came to dine or stay at the restaurant. In addition, he brewed some herbal tea because of the hot weather.

The amount of new tea received in the past two weeks was not much. Most of it was picked and given away by people delivering eggs in the countryside. This amount was certainly not enough for opening a teahouse. When Chu Yi learned that Chen Wenfang wanted to make new tea but was having trouble finding tea leaves, he was quick-witted and somehow managed to find out where to get some. He and Da Zhuang went to a tea garden and collected 200 catties of fresh tea. Chen Wenfang brought it back to Wangjiazhuang and spent three days making it into roasted tea. With the tea problem solved, the wine problem was even more convenient. The Song Dynasty Grand Restaurant had wines that were sold in special places. Chen Wenfang didn't want to go for the high-end route and just ordered some cloudy wine.

June 27th, tomorrow Chen's Teahouse will open. Everyone has been extremely busy these days, running back and forth between Wangjiazhuang and Lijiazhen. Even Aunt Liu and Chunlan have come several times. Now that Yanxia and Chahua are helping out at home, Aunt Liu and Chunlan can take turns coming.

Chen Wenfang sat down with everyone for lunch to discuss what was missing or overlooked in the store.

“Let’s all share our thoughts and see if there are any shortcomings or problems that need to be addressed. Let’s work together to find solutions,” Chen Wenfang said, biting into a steamed bun.

This was the first time Wang Jincai and Wang Xiaoer had eaten with their boss. The previous manager, Fang, was very arrogant and never ate with them. Wang Xiaoer was even more so; he would eat leftovers, but he had to take them to his bungalow in the backyard to eat, so that the customers wouldn't see him, saying it would be bad for their image. When they heard that they would be sitting at the same table as Madam Chen, they were quite surprised and made sure to confirm that everyone sat like that before they felt at ease.

Wang Erniu spoke first, "We probably need to stock up on rice and flour in the warehouse. We only have 300 jin. If it's not delivered in time, we'll run into trouble if we run out."

Chen Wenfang nodded, "Then prepare some more. We can't have less than a thousand catties. If we're short, we'll make up the difference. If we're still short, you can use the money from me."

Wang Jincai and Wang Xiaoer exchanged a glance, secretly surprised. But seeing that Chu Yi and the others seemed unfazed, they were relieved. Perhaps Madam Chen liked to hoard goods.

Chu Yi said, "Godmother, our warehouse is a bit small. After storing rice, flour, beans, and pickles, there's no room left. We need to renovate the warehouse."

Da Zhuang also said, "It is indeed a bit small. If people come here to buy goods and stay overnight, it's probably too small."

Chen Wenfang looked at Wang Erniu and said, "Brother Erniu, do you think we should find a few people to demolish the single-story house in the backyard and turn it into a two-story house, with the first floor as a warehouse and the second floor for living?"

Wang Erniu finished his steamed bun and said, "We're opening tomorrow, so there's no time to demolish now. Let's connect the warehouse with that bungalow first, or clear out a room to store things. The rest of us can live on the second floor in front for now. Uncle Liu Hai can find some people in Wangjiazhuang to build the bungalow in the back. They can knock down a section of the yard and partition it off in the middle. The materials will come in from the back. As long as the construction in the back doesn't affect the business in the front, it's fine."

Chen Wenfang looked at him with eyes full of admiration and said, "Brother Erniu's idea is really good, let's do it this way!"

Everyone felt a little awkward after being subjected to this display of affection, especially Wang Erniu, who was embarrassed by Chen Wenfang praising him in front of so many people.