While the family was eating, a pot of braised pork offal was simmering on the stove. Lin Shi kept thinking about it and went to stir it from time to time to prevent it from burning.
Qiao Jiaxing ate with great satisfaction. As he returned to his room, he quietly told his elder brother, “When Mother arranges my marriage, I only have one condition—I want a wife who can cook.”
He spent his days carrying goods at the docks and had little enjoyment in life, so good food was all he looked forward to now.
Qiao Jiawang was already engaged, and thinking of Hu Qianqian made him smile unconsciously. He didn’t even hear what his younger brother said.
It wasn’t until Lin Shi came in with silk flowers that he snapped back to attention.
As a stepmother, Lin Shi had been repeatedly reminded by her own mother before marriage to treat all the children equally. Since they weren’t born from the same mother, any unfairness would lead to resentment.
She placed a silk flower on the table. “Jiawang, take this to Qianqian tomorrow. Xiahe is going to meet a potential match, and when I bought one for her, I thought Qianqian would like one too.”
Seeing the patches on his mother’s skirt, Qiao Jiawang felt warmth in his heart. Qianqian hadn’t even married into the family yet, but his mother was already thinking of her. It showed how much she cared for them.
After speaking, Lin Shi left and went to the kitchen to find her youngest daughter. She explained, “Silk flowers fade if kept too long. When it’s your turn to meet a match, I’ll buy you one too. Don’t say I’m being unfair, understand?”
They had earned more money these past few days, but it was still far from enough to buy a house. One silk flower cost sixty coins—she originally planned to buy just one but gritted her teeth and bought two.
Qiao Mianmian looked down at her mother’s worn-out shoes and calloused hands, then hugged her. “What are you saying? Do I look that petty?”
“You’ve grown up. If it were before, you would’ve cried,” Lin Shi said, feeling relieved. Even her youngest daughter had become sensible—life would surely get better.
She had already arranged with the matchmaker to take Xiahe to meet a potential suitor the next day. The man wasn’t young, so they hoped to settle the matter quickly.
While Qiao Mianmian and her mother were busy in the kitchen, at the Xu household near the alley entrance, Madam Xu had just taken her medicine. Only Xu Mingxuan remained in the room.
“We originally came to rely on your second uncle, but after arriving in Lin’an, we found out he had already moved. Your father went to look for him. It’s been a month, and not even a letter has come back.”
Madam Xu sighed. “My son, we are now just a widow and her child. Life is no longer what it used to be. Today’s incident made me realize that living among common folk, we must maintain good relationships with our neighbors. People say distant relatives are not as helpful as close neighbors—I truly understand that now.”
Xu Mingxuan nodded.
“I’m telling you this so you can let go of your prejudice. Even if you are a scholar, people like the Qiao family who earn their living through hard work deserve respect. Only with a broad mind can you go far in life.”
Seeing him nod, Madam Xu let out a long breath. “I’m fine now. Don’t worry about me. You haven’t achieved official success yet—I will take care of myself.”
Her eldest son had passed away, leaving only this one son. Having experienced the ups and downs of life, she knew she had to teach him more about human relationships. If he were to become an official someday, he must first learn how to be a good person.
“I understand, Mother. Tomorrow I’ll go to the Qiao family to buy meat,” Xu Mingxuan said. To him, interaction meant building relationships.
Madam Xu nodded. “Go study. The prefectural exam is next month. If you pass and become a xiucai, I’ll be at ease.”
To prepare for the exam, Xu Mingxuan studied diligently, reading by lamplight every night.
After closing the doors and windows for his mother, he returned to his room to study. He was determined to pass the exam this time and improve their situation.
The next morning, Xu Mingxuan went out with his servant to buy meat. He saw Qiao Mianmian selling braised pork offal and took the initiative to speak.
“Wang Chuang and the others said it’s delicious. You’re really impressive.”
Though his words were stiff, he tried his best.
“Well, I am pretty good,” Qiao Mianmian replied, accepting the compliment without modesty. There was no need to be humble—making herself happy was also a way to enjoy life.
After Xu Mingxuan left, Qiao Manchang turned to his daughter. “That Xu boy isn’t bad. I find him more agreeable now. He even said my shop sign isn’t clear and offered to rewrite it after school. Scholars really are different—so polite when they speak.”
Unfortunately, he himself wasn’t capable enough. None of his children had gone to school—they only recognized basic numbers.
Qiao Mianmian, having lived another life, could read some traditional characters. But since the original host hadn’t been educated, she could only pretend she didn’t know.
Seeing her elder brother return from delivering goods, she handed him a water flask. “Is the academy far?”
“Not really. I ran back in just fifteen minutes,” Qiao Jiawang said, drinking deeply. “I was worried you and Father would be too busy, so I hurried back to help.”
“No need to rush. We can handle it,” Qiao Mianmian said as another customer arrived. She quickly served them. “Today is the last day of the discount. Would you like two bowls? I can give you a better price.”
“Alright, two bowls.”
After successfully selling them, she looked at the nearly empty pot and called her brother to pack up.
“There’s still some left. Why stop selling?” Qiao Jiawang asked, confused but still helped clean up.
“The market only has this much foot traffic. Our stall is already doing well, but the money we earn each day is still far from enough to buy a house. I’ll take you to some restaurants. If we can open more sales channels, we’ll earn more.”
“Foot traffic? Sales channels?” Qiao Jiawang didn’t understand.
Realizing she had used modern terms, Qiao Mianmian couldn’t explain clearly and simply pulled him along. “Just trust me. Let’s visit more restaurants—we might earn more money!”
Though he didn’t understand, Qiao Jiawang followed her lead.
Carrying their load, the siblings went from restaurant to restaurant. Each time, Qiao Mianmian asked for the manager and offered samples of their braised pork offal.
“Please try it. If you like it, I can deliver daily. You’ll have an extra dish and earn more money.”
The first manager liked it but declined, saying his tavern was too small and focused more on selling alcohol than food.
The second manager refused outright upon hearing it was pork offal.
At the third restaurant, before she could speak, a waiter tried to drive them away.
“You’ve misunderstood. We’re not selling to customers—we’re here to discuss business with your restaurant,” Qiao Mianmian said with a smile.
Her friendly tone softened the waiter’s attitude. He asked what they were selling.
She explained and served a steaming sample. The waiter liked it and went to fetch the manager.
At that moment, a customer who had just entered smelled the aroma and asked, “Is this a new dish? I’d like one!”
The manager quickly said no and brought the siblings to the back courtyard. After tasting it, he found the texture and flavor excellent—even better than their own dishes.
“How do you plan to sell it?” the manager asked, noticing that Qiao Mianmian was the decision-maker.
“We sincerely want to cooperate. At the market, we sell a bowl for fifteen coins. If you’re willing to work with us, we can supply it at eight coins per bowl for the first three days as a trial. After that, the price will be ten coins per bowl. You can set your own selling price.”
Her strategy was small profit but high volume. Restaurant customers were different from street customers. To expand her market, she needed to offer incentives first.
This restaurant was Chunxi Restaurant. It had been operating in Lin’an for years—not the largest, but still substantial, with three floors and over eighty tables.
The manager studied the siblings for a moment, impressed by the young girl’s eloquence. “Alright. Bring thirty bowls tomorrow. But if we cooperate, you can only supply us—not other restaurants.”
“Well…” Qiao Mianmian hadn’t expected that, but quickly responded, “If it’s exclusive, the price must be different. Let’s try for three days first. If it sells well, we can discuss pricing again.”
She understood his reasoning—restaurants wanted unique signature dishes—but exclusivity meant she had to raise the price to maintain profit.
“You must have been doing business since childhood,” the manager laughed and agreed.
After finalizing the deal, Qiao Mianmian happily took her brother to buy a pair of shoes for Lin Shi, then cong
Passing the meat stall, she coaxed her father into cutting a piece of lean meat.
“Don’t tell your mother it’s for you. Just say I added it because we couldn’t sell it,” Qiao Manchang said, knowing his wife’s frugality. “At most, she’ll scold me a bit.”
“It’s fine, Father. I have good news today—she won’t scold you,” Qiao Mianmian said with a grin.
Back home, they found Lin Shi and Xiahe already there. The matchmaking meeting had ended.
“Fourth Sister, how was Constable Yuan?” Qiao Mianmian asked curiously.
Embarrassed, Xiahe blushed and ran off.
Lin Shi said it went well—the man also had a good impression and would come to propose soon.
When Qiao Mianmian mentioned their partnership with Chunxi Restaurant, Lin Shi was shocked.
“That big restaurant is really willing to sell our pork offal?”
“Yes—they even paid a deposit. If it sells well, they’ll order more. With this partnership, earning two taels a day isn’t impossible!”
“One day—two taels? That’s sixty a month!” Lin Shi grew more excited as she calculated.
Then Qiao Mianmian presented the new shoes.
“They’re for you. Last year everyone got new shoes except you.”
Lin Shi was moved to tears, feeling both touched and guilty.
The grandmother encouraged her to accept them, calling it a sign of filial piety.
Qiao Mianmian smiled. “When I earn more, I’ll buy for everyone.”
The family watched as Lin Shi tried on the new shoes. Then Qiao Mianmian went back to cooking, full of energy—because life was finally looking hopeful.