A peasant girl travels through time with a hospital, rising to become an empress.

On the afternoon of the third day after the restaurant opened, at the Liu family's old house, Liu Xiong and Liu Yan were doing their favorite thing to do every day: counting money.

Liu Xiong picked up the coins one by one with a delicate, orchid-like finger and counted them, "Thirty-eight, thirty-nine."

"Today we made a total of 839 coins, Qianqian, is that number correct?"

Nie Qianqian was still looking at her medical book when she heard this, and nodded.

Liu Yan checked the money again and carefully wrote it down in her notebook. After a period of study, Liu Yan learned some basic characters and could write numbers freely.

Nie Qianqian put down her medical book. "In three days, we sold a total of 2282 coins, which is about 2 taels and 3 mace. Tomorrow will be the end of our trial operation and the official start of business. All food prices will be restored to the original price. Mother, Uncle, the amount of food we need to prepare tonight is twice that of the previous three days."

The first three days were spent giving away free food and offering half-price deals. The amount of food prepared was not very large, which is also a tactic of scarcity marketing.

Although Liu Yan was tired, she was full of energy. "Mother will go and prepare now!"

Cleaning and boiling dozens of kilograms of braised pork and pickled cabbage requires a lot of effort, so we need to hurry.

Nie Qianqian stopped Liu Yan, "Mother, don't rush, there's something I need to discuss with you. You've seen the situation at the food stall these past two days. With so many customers, Uncle can't handle it all by himself. If he doesn't serve them well, some customers will inevitably be dissatisfied. Also, we need to prepare quite a lot of ingredients every day. Before, you were busy until midnight preparing half the amount, and now you need to double that. I'm afraid you won't be able to rest until the early hours of the morning. It's too tiring."

Liu Yan waved her hand, "Mother isn't afraid of hardship, Mother can do it."

Nie Qianqian shook her head, "I know you can grit your teeth and persevere, but it's not a long-term solution. I have an idea, which is to hire two people to help. I've noticed that Da Ma and Xiao Ma are honest and hardworking during this time of building the house, so why not hire them to help? They can help you prepare the ingredients for the next day at night and help Uncle greet guests during the day."

Liu Xiong knew Da Ma and Xiao Ma well, and immediately nodded in agreement, "These two kids are good at work, but they need help during the day. Otherwise, I'll be so busy entertaining so many guests that my head will be spinning, and I'll easily make mistakes."

After listening to Nie Qianqian and Liu Xiong's words, Liu Yan thought about it and felt that they made sense, so she did not refute them anymore.

Nie Qianqian smiled. One good thing about Liu Yan is that she listens to advice and isn't the kind of person who is stubborn and won't listen to others' suggestions.

Not hiring anyone would save some money, but it would be much more tiring for Liu Xiong and Liu Yan. Nie Qianqian agreed to let Liu Yan set up a stall because she felt that it was better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish. If she wanted Liu Yan to use her strengths to make a living selling food, she wanted her to take this step and gain experience on her own.

However, accumulating experience does not mean enduring hardship all the time; hardship is never the goal.

Once the three reached an agreement, Nie Qianqian called Da Ma and Xiao Ma over and explained the purpose of the job: "This job requires you to work both day and night, and it will be quite hard work. We will pay you more, 25 coins a day. Are you willing to do that?"

After hearing Nie Qianqian's words, Da Ma and Xiao Ma's expressions changed from bewilderment to ecstasy.

The two were planning to find jobs in the county after finishing the house, but they were surprised and delighted that Nie Qianqian was willing to hire them.

It pays 25 coins a day, a price you can't find in the county. Although the working hours are longer, it's not tiring compared to the hard labor that requires carrying heavy loads. Plus, you can learn something from Nie Qianqian.

Xiao Ma was incredibly excited. "Sister Qianqian, are you really willing to hire us?"

Nie Qianqian: "Of course."

Da Ma said with a serious face, "Of course we are willing, Sister Qianqian. Don't worry, if you are willing to give us a chance, Xiao Ma and I will definitely not slack off and will work hard!"

Nie Qianqian smiled and said, "I believe in you."

Xiao Ma's ears turned red instantly upon hearing this, and Sister Qianqian said she believed them.

Xiao Ma's fist was clenched tightly under his sleeve. Sister Qianqian believed in him, so he must not let her down.

Sister Qianqian is their family's great benefactor. She not only cured Grandma Ma's illness but also gave the two of them such a good opportunity to work.

Nie Qianqian: "In that case, put aside your house-building work and start helping my mother with the work now."

The two worked quickly and promptly went home to change into clean clothes, quickly washed up, and returned to the old house to help Liu Yan and Liu Xiong clean the pig offal and cook the stew.

Seeing the bustling scene in the courtyard, Nie Qianqian breathed a sigh of relief. The food stall business had gotten off to a good start, and she would know the approximate daily income tomorrow.

She'll help out at the stall for a few more days until the business gets back on track, then she'll return to Jishetang to practice medicine, since treating patients is her original profession.

At the Nie family's old residence, Nie Wenting was passionately telling Old Madam Nie about her experiences and plans over the past few days, her words flowing freely.

Nie Wenting's expression was exaggerated. "Grandmother, you didn't see it. People in the county town probably haven't tried these country snacks before. They're all lining up to buy them!"

Grandma Nie looked doubtful. "Is there really such a good business?"

Nie Wenting: "That's right, these past few days they've sold out of food in just one morning."

“Grandmother, what do you think of my suggestion? My mother and I will also open a food stall in the West Market. This way, we can earn money for the family, support my older brother’s education, and keep an eye on my second aunt and Nie Qianqian’s movements.”

Grandma Nie's eyes darted around, still finding it hard to believe that Liu Yan, this useless woman, could actually run a food stall and do so well? Is it really that easy to make money off city people...? Are they just rich and foolish?

Nie Wenting: "Grandmother, don't we know how well my second aunt cooks? She's been cooking at home for over ten years, and her food is quite good, but my mother's cooking is just as good. How come my second aunt can do it, but my mother can't?"

There is some truth to this statement.

Liu Yan usually cooks the meals for the whole family. She is quite skilled at cooking, but Liu Chunhua is no pushover either. She cooks several of her signature dishes during holidays, some of which are even tastier than Liu Yan's.

Nie Wenting chattered on and on, and Old Mrs. Nie was somewhat persuaded. Nie Wenting and Liu Chunhua only did housework at home, so it would be better for them to go out and earn money. Nie Wenye was going to take the imperial examination next autumn and needed to save up his travel expenses in advance. She also wanted to go to the provincial capital with him.

Old Mrs. Nie narrowed her triangular eyes. "How much money do you want?"

Nie Wenting: "Five taels of silver."

Grandma Nie snorted heavily through her nose, "How much?! Five taels of silver? Are you out of your mind? You just throw around five taels of silver, do you think money grows on trees?"

After considering it over, Old Madam Nie said, "I'll give you two taels of silver. If you can do it, great; if not, that's fine too. If you don't have enough money, figure it out yourself."

Grandmother is so stingy. What can you do with 2 taels of silver?

Nie Wenting thought to herself, but didn't show it on her face. Two taels it is. She would prepare two taels of silver first, and once the business took off, her grandmother would see hope and naturally invest more money.

Grandma Nie stared at Nie Wenting and said fiercely, "If this money is lost, I'll skin you alive and tear your tendons off."

Nie Wenting shuddered, "No, Grandmother, how could my mother be inferior to my second aunt?"

Liu Yan had been treated like a slave in the Nie family, and her image as stupid and dull was deeply ingrained. Anything that Liu Yan could do, neither she nor her mother, Liu Chunhua, could possibly be incapable of doing.

Grandma Nie: "When you set up your stall in the West Market, don't forget to keep a close eye on Liu Yan and Nie Qianqian, and see how much money they can make every day!"

Nie Wenting smiled ingratiatingly, "Of course, but Grandmother, what are your plans for having me keep an eye on them?"

Grandma Nie narrowed her eyes and said quietly, "If she really is a prostitute who places orders, then let Erzhuang coax her back."

Nie Wenting: "My second aunt and second uncle have already divorced, can she come back? Besides, with Nie Qianqian around, she's not someone to be trifled with."

Grandma Nie curled her lip. "Liu Yan just can't stand Er Zhuang hitting people. If she could earn money, she wouldn't let Er Zhuang hit her anymore. Wouldn't it be better if he just stopped hitting her? If Er Zhuang could coax her a few times and give her a few nice looks, wouldn't she come back? What future can a woman who has been slept with by Er Zhuang have? As for Nie Qianqian, hmph, if her mother insists on reconciling with her father, what can she do to stop her?"

Nie Wenting: "Grandmother means that the key is to get the second aunt under control?"

Grandma Nie rolled her eyes at her: "You're a young woman who's not yet married, don't ask anymore. You'll know once you're married. There are a lot more to it than meets the eye."

Nie Wenting kept quiet, thinking that if she married a man, she wouldn't be as stupid as Liu Yan, who worked hard without complaint and was bullied to death by her husband. She would use her own methods to control her husband and live the most comfortable life.