Transmigration: The Little Chef Calls The Shots-Chapter 1484 - 303, Scramble for Seats (20)

As soon as he thought of the glutton Xu Muqing in the yard, Xia Zheng couldn’t linger on the advantages he had just gained from Lin Yuan and quickly followed her downstairs.

Lin Yuan had only been gone a short while, but the backyard had already split into two large camps: one consisted of Yan Ruchun and Xu Muqing, which made up the Women’s Brigade, and the other was formed by the brothers Wei Boyu and Wei Borong, the Men’s Alliance.

The two teams faced each other with hostility, glowering at each other, and the air was tinged with the pungent smell of gunpowder. All the little maids and young lads wisely hid in the corners, peeking their heads out to watch what was unfolding here.

Smelling the scent of battle in the backyard, Xia Zheng, who had just come downstairs, thought he was back on the border fighting against Xiliang.

He bared his teeth in discontent and looked at the high table that both sides were fighting over, rendered speechless.

It’s just a table, is it worth drawing swords over?

Lin Yuan was speechless as well and facepalmed. It’s just two tables, why is there such a big fuss?

She rushed to mediate. Xu Muqing and Wei Borong were easy to deal with since they were dragged into it for no reason. The real "combatants" were Yan Ruchun and Wei Boyu.

Neither would give in to the other, both insisting on taking the tall-legged table. Even when Lin Yuan suggested having the lads bring another high table, it was no use.

"Lin Yuan, are you even a woman? If you are, stand behind me; today, this high table must be used by us women! It’s about the dignity and status of women!"

Yan Ruchun was indignantly righteous, which made Lin Yuan’s lips twitch uncontrollably. She finally understood how the usually aggrieved Xu Muqing was pulled into Yan Ruchun’s camp – apparently, not doing so meant you weren’t a woman!

On the other side, Wei Boyu used the same tactic to drag Xia Zheng into his camp.

Seeing that the crabs were about to get cold, Lin Yuan had no choice but to threaten, "Enough with the noise, the crabs are made by me and bought by Mu Qing. We two will make the decision! Women at the high table, men at the low table! Anyone who disagrees doesn’t get to eat the crabs!"

After saying that, she pulled Yan Ruchun and Xu Muqing’s hands to sit at the high table, grabbing a steamed crab and ready to enjoy her meal.

Xu Muqing had been craving food so badly, now finally able to eat, where else would she care about the height of tables? She loved spicy food best, and the first thing she picked up with her chopsticks was a spicy crab, biting into it; the delicious taste made her feel like she was floating on cloud nine.

"Brother Rong, hurry up and eat, it’s so delicious!"

Wei Borong, being beckoned by Xu Muqing and seeing her relishing the food, glanced at his elder brother with a troubled expression, then at the crabs on the table, and finally, swallowing his saliva, he scurried over and began to feast.

Truly delicious! The culinary skills of Princess Pingxi were genuinely outstanding!

He praised Lin Yuan in his heart to the skies, yet his mouth was too busy devouring the crabs to spare a moment for speech.

As for Xia Zheng, he had no preference between a high or low table; as long as there were crabs, he would be happy even squatting on the ground.

"Uh-huh, Yuanyuan’s culinary skills are indeed fantastic, just steaming some crabs and they taste so good!"

Xia Zheng was always lavish in his praise of Lin Yuan’s cooking skills.

He polished off a crab in no time and left Wei Borong, who was still battling with a crab leg, utterly astonished.

He picked up another crab, and Xia Zheng brandished it toward Wei Boyu, a sly and proud grin on his face: "Eldest Young Master Wei is indeed most considerate. How did you know this batch of crabs wouldn’t be enough for me and generously offered up your share? Thanks a lot!"

He already harbored little affection for Wei Boyu, and now with such a splendid opportunity to disparage him, he certainly wasn’t going to let it pass.

Wei Boyu, who had been earnestly grappling with a very smug Yan Ruchun over crabs, found himself unable to persist in the face of Xia Zheng deliberately goading him. His thick eyebrows furrowed, he seemed to steel himself before turning and sitting across from Xia Zheng.

After grabbing two crabs in quick succession, Wei Boyu gave a grunt: "Dream on!"

He even shot a glare at Yan Ruchun, who appeared about to comment on his lack of backbone: "A true man can bend and stretch; sitting at a low table still makes one a true man!"

Yan Ruchun curled her lips disdainfully and rolled her eyes at him.

Everyone was exceedingly satisfied with this crab feast; two large tables of crabs were nearly all gone, and in the end, Xu Muqing even packed up and took away the few left.

As for the crab roe delicacies in the small kitchen, Lin Yuan also handed those over to Xu Muqing and Yan Ruchun, leaving Wei Borong and Wei Boyu brothers drooling in envy.

It had been rumored that Lin Yuan’s culinary skills were exceedingly fine. Today, after tasting for themselves, ’fine’ was an understatement; her cooking was nothing short of exquisite!

Regrettably, there was no knowing if they would ever have the chance to savor Lin Yuan’s culinary craft again.

The more one experienced it, the more unforgettable it became; the more cherished it became, the more forgettable other meals would seem—surely tasteless as wax after sampling Lin Yuan’s cooking today.

After sending Xu Muqing and the others off, Xia Zheng returned to the General Mansion. He had to check on Lao Fan’s wounds and prepare for his audience with the Emperor the following day. This trip to Xiliang had brought him no small amount of trouble.

With Xia Zheng taking charge of Tian Hui’s carriage and the Dongtian Five Stones Powder matters, Lin Yuan finally had some peace to continue managing the tea house.

Shopkeeper Liu came back from the tea house at noon, reporting that Boss Nian had cleared out all the tables and chairs, and they could start redecorating at any time.

Lin Yuan nodded, handing the tea house layout drawings she had made over the days to Shopkeeper Liu. The crew hired was the same one that had renovated Dong Tian, comprised mostly of honest and solid-working men from nearby villages. Entrusting the tea house project to Shopkeeper Liu and these men, Lin Yuan felt quite at ease.

There was still time before she had to return home, so Lin Yuan took the opportunity to write a notice for Shopkeeper Liu to post on the door of the New Tea House.

The notice was simple: it was a recruitment ad.

Dong Tian’s young ladies were each irreplaceable, making it difficult to spare any for additional help at the tea house. Moreover, Lin Yuan planned to need quite a few working girls for the New Tea House, so it was better to recruit new staff.

As for the manager of the tea house, she didn’t plan on letting Shopkeeper Liu wear multiple hats anymore. On the one hand, Shopkeeper Liu was getting on in years with limited energy. On the other, she wanted to find a woman to oversee the tea house, ideally someone with previous experience managing one.

In these times, there were many women who were owners, but the number of women who came forward to actively manage a business was few indeed. Of course, let’s not mention places like brothels. Among the female shopkeepers in the Capital city, Lin Yuan only knew Madam Cheng of the Red Smoke Pavilion and Madam Xu of the Wu Family Textile Shop.

After giving the notice to Shopkeeper Liu, Lin Yuan took a brief rest before getting up to head home.

That night, deep into the hours, Xia Zheng was reading correspondences sent by his underlings in his room when suddenly, a shadow silently leaped through the window.

The most uptodate nove𝙡s are published on fr(e)𝒆webnov(e)l.com