Mu Dazhong’s idea was approved by Mrs. Lin.
Calculating it, only the third branch and their second branch have a feud.
If not targeting the third branch, then who else?
"But I heard that the girl from the third branch is leaving tomorrow for a trip. I just asked Yu Si Niang, and she wouldn’t say what the purpose is. What should we do? Should we wait for them to co back or go today?" Mrs. Lin said.
Mu Dazhong turned over on the kang and began to criticize Mrs. Lin.
"Of course, wait for them to co back! Si Niang and the third brother are easy to deal with, but that slly girl from the third branch isn’t. If you don’t spill so dog’s blood or sothing, do you think she’d believe it?"
Mrs. Lin listened and felt it made sense.
Actually, it doesn’t necessarily have to be dog’s blood; chicken’s blood would do just fine. Anyway, the family has slaughtered quite a few chickens lately. If she secretly kills another one, she’ll have blood and can also secretly eat it.
"Then let’s wait, wait for the third branch to co back!"
...
...
At the crack of dawn the next day, the people invited by Mu Shuangshuang set out from Er Gui Village, heading towards Zhao Village.
By the ti they reached Zhao Village, it was just beginning to break dawn.
The Zhao family had also gotten up very early. When they saw Mu Shuangshuang and Lu Yuanfeng, their mouths couldn’t help but smile widely.
"Mu Family girl, Lu Family’s boy, you arrived really early. No one has ever been earlier than you for our village banquets over the years," Old Sir Zhao said.
"Old Sir, since we’ve taken this job, we have to do it well. Today is your son’s wedding banquet. We must show our best attitude and prepare the best banquet. If you’re satisfied, please help spread the word about us!"
Mu Shuangshuang politely chatted with the Zhao family.
Old Sir Zhao laughed heartily a few tis and nodded in agreent.
Mu Shuangshuang hadn’t asked about Lu Yuanfeng’s mother yet, as she first needed to help the Zhao family prepare the al and, in the process, gauge the Zhao family’s character.
As the saying goes, good people are hard to find. If you encounter bad people, troubles co in heaps.
The task of finding soone was urgent, but she couldn’t just ask anyone for help directly.
Mu Shuangshuang said a word to Old Sir Zhao and started preparing breakfast.
For breakfast, Mu Shuangshuang made the simplest soy milk, fried dough sticks, and stead buns.
The soybeans were soaked the night before, and the flour was brought from her ho.
The Zhao family didn’t have to worry about the als for the whole day, relying entirely on the materials and other items Mu Shuangshuang prepared.
Setting up the stove and arranging the ingredients, Mu Shuangshuang got busy without taking a mont’s rest.
Yu Si Niang helped make the buns on the side, while Lu Yuanfeng and several other laborers used a stone mill to grind the soybeans.
The flour was set to rise in the Third Branch of the Mu Family, and now it was ready, perfect for making fried dough sticks.
Mu Shuangshuang poured a fragrant half-pot of rapeseed oil into the large iron pot; it couldn’t be too much, or it would be wasteful.
Mu Shuangshuang didn’t like to reuse oil from frying dough sticks. The oil from this morning’s fry could be used for stir-frying at noon, so the next batch of dough sticks would be fried in new oil.
While waiting for the oil to heat up, she started making dough sticks on the door panel next to her. Once the oil was hot, she began dropping the dough sticks into the oil pot.
Yu Si Niang, after finishing making the buns, let them sit for a while before putting them in the pot to steam.
The pace of division of labor was much quicker than usual. Once a batch of dough sticks was fried, all the soybeans had been ground into milk. There were three large iron pots in total — two for stir-frying and one for cooking rice.
For the cooking pot, Lu Yuanfeng used it to cook the soy milk, while Yu Si Niang used another pot to steam the buns.
Finally, breakfast was ready, and the Zhao family was invited over.
They stared, wide-eyed, at the breakfast prepared.
"Mu Family girl, your speed is impressive!" This ti, Old Mrs. Zhao spoke.
It’s likely they had never seen anyone prepare such a variety of breakfast in such a short amount of ti, especially for forty-odd people.
The Zhao family’s bride was from the sa village, so the combined number of relatives from both families, plus children, was indeed a lot. Adding in nearby neighbors and close acquaintances, it certainly added up to forty or fifty people.
"Old Mrs., today we have a lot of people helping, each capable of doing work, so the speed is understandably quick! And if we’re not diligent, you wouldn’t invite us for your family’s next big event," Mu Shuangshuang said with a smile.
Old Mrs. Zhao felt that the young girl in front of her was very eloquent and treated Mu Shuangshuang with a bit more courtesy.
After talking with the Zhao family, Mu Shuangshuang handed over the breakfast to Yu Si Niang and Lu Yuanfeng, among others.
Huang Da and Huang Er had been hungry all the way, especially Huang Er, who had been clamoring for breakfast on the road. Now that the food was served, they grabbed stead buns and stuffed them into their mouths.
"You two bosses, how did you co up with this way to make money? My brother and I cracked our heads but couldn’t think of it!" Huang Er said.
Lines of black rolled across Mu Shuangshuang’s forehead. The title ’boss’ sounded like a miscreant, especially problematic if heard by outsiders, who might think she and Fengzi were up to no good.
"Huang Er, you should spare the ’boss’ title, call Shuangshuang, and you can call Fengzi as you wish. As for undertaking banquets, it’s not an easy job. When others eat, you’ll just have to watch from the side."
It’s always difficult to begin; Mu Shuangshuang tried to forewarn Huang Da and Huang Er about potential challenges.
"Shuangshuang, my brother and I aren’t afraid of hard work! Besides, it’s not like you have work every day here."
Mu Shuangshuang had hired the Huang brothers and Mu Dalang with pay, thirty coins a day, including three als.
It was less strenuous than transporting goods in town, but the wages were nearly double, and most importantly, the food was guaranteed.
You couldn’t find work like this even if you searched with a lantern; Huang Da and Huang Er didn’t find it hard at all.
"In that case, let’s just do it this way for now. If this thod proves successful in the future, I’ll find a way to hire more people, with wages only increasing, not decreasing!"
Mu Shuangshuang was soone with ideas. She’s currently organizing banquets partly to help Fengzi find his mother; once that issue is settled and her cooking skills improve further,
she could completely open a restaurant in town.
"Mom, this soy milk was made by Fengzi and the others. Try it!" Mu Shuangshuang handed the not-so-hot soy milk to Yu Si Niang.
Actually, Yu Si Niang wasn’t quite used to the scale yet, given that it was a big event.
Previously, when she helped in the back kitchen at Wealth Master Zhang’s house, she hadn’t seen many people. But this was straightforwardly cooking and preparing dishes in front of a large audience, visible if not done well.
"Shuangshuang, do you think your dad and the three kids have had breakfast?" Yu Si Niang held her soy milk bowl, trying to shift her focus with a topic.
"Mom, didn’t we ask Aunt Xiao Yun and Fourth Aunt to help take care of dad and the kids yesterday? Don’t worry; they won’t go hungry. Besides, with dad around, what are you worried about?"
Mu Shuangshuang completely understood Yu Si Niang.
Staying ho for a long ti makes you not want to go out; once out, you miss ho.
But all these situations are inevitable and will get easier with experience!
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