Early the next morning, Feng Qingyi went out to buy breakfast and also purchased some cookies while she was out.
In the dining room, Feng Qingci picked up a steamed bun and soy milk from the table.
"Why did you buy so many cookies?" he asked.
Feng Qingyi, munching on a fried dough stick, replied, "To sell them, of course!"
"It's not a holiday or anything. I doubt they'll sell," Feng Qingci remarked.
Feng Qingyi glared at him. "Mind your own business!"
"By the way, where's that guy? I haven't seen him," Feng Qingci inquired about Qin Yuchuan.
Feng Qingyi responded, "Where else would he be? He went home, of course."
"When did he leave? So early?" Feng Qingci asked.
Feng Qingyi explained, "He has work to do. He's very busy. He can't just stay here all day every day."
"We're all working people, except for you who's the most free. I'm leaving after breakfast too. You stay here and watch the house."
After breakfast, Feng Qingyi went to the Tea House.
The Tea House officially opened for business. There weren't many customers in the morning, so Feng Qingyi decided to teach the cook how to make cookies.
Although there was no electricity or ovens in ancient times, making things was still possible, just more troublesome and limited in quantity.
Fortunately, the Tea House wasn't busy in the morning, so everyone came to help. They divided the tasks, and the final result was quite satisfactory.
"Everyone, try some. How's the taste?" Feng Qingyi offered a plate for everyone to sample.
"The taste is good."
"I think it's a bit bland, not as sweet as yesterday's."
"Too sweet would be cloying. This is just right."
"..."
The cook responsible for making pastries at the Tea House was named Xuzhou. It was his first time trying to make cookies, and he was very interested in this method of preparation.
"Miss, besides these cookies, do you know how to make other pastries?" he asked.
Feng Qingyi replied, "We don't have enough ingredients prepared for today, and it'll be busy this afternoon, so there probably won't be time. I'll go home and prepare some essential tools to bring over, then I'll teach you more."
"You can't manage everything alone. I'll hire a few more pastry chefs in a few days so you won't be overwhelmed."
Xuzhou said, "Miss, my wife's skills are quite good. She's the one who taught me my craft. Perhaps you could see her work someday. If it's satisfactory, why not let her help out? Wages won't be an issue."
Feng Qingyi responded, "Then bring her over tomorrow. Her wages will be the same as yours. We'll raise your wages once the Tea House starts turning a profit."
"What we made today is just a trial run. Everyone can share and eat these. The ones I brought today should last for two days. After that, we'll rely on you, Master Xu."
Xu Linghe had just walked into the kitchen when she smelled the fragrance.
"Qingyi, did you teach them to make these?" she asked.
Feng Qingyi fed a piece to Xu Linghe's mouth. "Try it. How is it?"
"Why does it taste different from yesterday?" Xu Linghe inquired.
Feng Qingyi explained, "Actually, there are many flavors. Today's is almond-flavored. Yesterday I made cranberry."
"That's wonderful. I feel like eating here every day now."
Feng Qingyi said, "I'm glad you like it. Summer is coming soon. We can introduce some cold drinks then. Cold drinks are simpler to make than these pastries. I'll let you be the first to taste them when the time comes."
"Thank you in advance, Qingyi," Xu Linghe replied.
The two left the kitchen and walked into the main hall, where they found it packed with people.
Feng Qingyi whispered, "What's going on? Wasn't it empty just now?"
Xu Linghe responded, "Let's take a look and see."
Li Yi saw the two and hurried over. "Boss, they're all here to buy yesterday's pastries."
"You mean the cookies?" Feng Qingyi asked.
Li Yi nodded, "Yes, they're all here for yesterday's cookies. But this is a Tea House, not a pastry shop. Many of them are buying for their masters at home and want to take them away."
Feng Qingyi looked at Xu Linghe, "What do you think?"
"If they want to take them home, let them. We're making money either way," Xu Linghe thought simply.
Feng Qingyi turned to Li Yi, "Uncle Li, what's your opinion?"
"Boss, we're a Tea House. We mainly sell tea. Now everyone's focused on the pastries, which has turned things upside down. It might not be good for us in the long run," Li Yi shared his thoughts.
Feng Qingyi felt that both had valid points. "We can't let them leave empty-handed since they've come."
"We used the free cookies to attract customers yesterday. Let's focus on promoting them for a while. It's a way to draw people in. Later, we can shift our focus to promoting various teas. It's the same principle."
Li Yi roughly understood Feng Qingyi's meaning. "Then I'll have the waiters package them up."
"Alright, let's do that for now," Feng Qingyi nodded.
With Li Yi and others managing the Tea House, Feng Qingyi had nothing else to do, so she left with Xu Linghe.
"Qingyi, I have some good news for you. Shangguan Yi has been confined to his house by his father. He probably won't be able to come out for ten days to half a month."
Feng Qingyi asked, "Why was he confined?"
Xu Linghe explained, "I heard that yesterday he encountered his former fiancée on the street and publicly humiliated her."
"The current husband of his ex-fiancée went to his mansion last night. Apparently, they got into a big fight, and Shangguan Yi's father was so angry that he confined him."
Feng Qingyi curiously asked, "Do you know why his former fiancée broke off the engagement?"
Xu Linghe replied, "His ex-fiancée is Miss Meng. Shangguan Yi comes from a merchant family, so he was already marrying above his station. But he spent his days carousing and even harassed Miss Meng's maid."
"Later, Miss Meng discovered his scandalous affair with the maid and had someone break off the engagement. Shortly after, she married Young Master Zhou, who was from a family of equal status."
"Young Master Zhou had liked Miss Meng since childhood. After marrying her, he doted on her extremely. They had a child soon after and are living quite well now."
"Shangguan Yi, for some reason, went to provoke her again and even slandered her, accusing her of seducing him. When Young Master Zhou found out, he almost broke Shangguan Yi's legs."
"In the end, Shangguan Yi's father had to go and apologize, and only then was the matter settled. The outrageous things he's done are endless."
Feng Qingyi had previously thought he was just a playboy who neglected his duties. She didn't expect him to be so disgusting.
In this era, women valued their reputation more than their lives.
For him to slander a married woman like that... If Young Master Zhou hadn't trusted Miss Meng, it could have been a completely different story.
"That's too much!" Feng Qingyi exclaimed.
Xu Linghe continued, "And that's not all. He looks down on all the noble ladies in Shengjing, criticizing them as soon as he meets them. Now, no young lady is willing to attend any banquet where he's present."
"The fact that he's still alive is thanks to his father being the richest man. Otherwise, he would have died countless times by now."
