Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 118

Shen Changyun played along, half-joking, “Of course! I’d make it the best restaurant in all of Shili Town, no, in all of Fengyang County! Even better than this one.”

Ying Su chuckled. “It’s good for young people to have ambition.”

Shen Changyun rubbed his nose awkwardly. “Second Sister, the way you said that…”

Ying Su smiled faintly, her handsome face taking on a peculiar brilliance. Her dark eyes swept across the entire Lark Pavilion, filled with unshakable confidence.

“I heard from Father that you’re good with numbers, and that all these years the family has relied on you selling small odds and ends to get by?” Her tone was light, as though asking casually.

Shen Changyun nodded dejectedly, looking defeated. “Second Sister, do you also think I’m useless? You’ve already partnered with people to open a shop, while I can’t achieve anything, neither in studies nor in martial arts.”

“Everyone has their strengths. You should be clear about yours. I’m planning to open a restaurant, would you be willing to be the manager?”

“What?” Shen Changyun’s mouth dropped open. He stared at his calm, composed second sister who was still eating, and burst out excitedly, “Second Sister, did I hear you right? You said you want to open a restaurant, and have me manage it?”

Compared to Ying Su’s composure, his shock was completely unrestrained.

Ying Su gave a slight nod, affirming it with her gaze.

Shen Changyun’s heart swelled with joy, so much he didn’t know how to express it. Looking at his second sister calmly eating, he forced down his excitement and asked, “Second Sister, what kind of restaurant will you open? Will it be like this Lark Pavilion?”

Her lips curved as she raised a finger and shook it. “No. Better than this.”

Shen Changyun sucked in a breath. A restaurant even better than the Lark Pavilion? And he would be the manager? It felt like a pie had fallen from the sky and landed right on the most overlooked person, him.

“Second Sister, are you… are you serious?” He still couldn’t quite believe it.

“Of course. But if you don’t want to, I can find someone else,” Ying Su replied coolly.

“No, no, no! I want to! I want to!” Shen Changyun said hastily, grinning sheepishly. “I’m just too happy, that’s all.”

“Before that, you still have a lot to learn. I’ll give you a month to study how to be a restaurant manager.” Ying Su lifted her eyes to him, speaking seriously. “I can’t teach you this, because I don’t know it myself. But I have an idea. For this month, you can work as a waiter at the best restaurants in Fengyang County. Watch, observe, and learn.”

Shen Changyun nodded earnestly, eyes fixed with determination on Ying Su. “I’ll study hard. I won’t let you down, Second Sister.”

Ying Su smiled, satisfied, and nodded.

Just then, a waiter set down a pot of tea on the table. Picking up the teacups, he said cheerfully, “Honored guests, please try our house tea!”

He poured a steaming cup, then held it out toward Ying Su, a calculating glint in his eyes.

She reached out to take it, but suddenly, the waiter’s hand shook and he cried out, “Ah, too hot!” The cup tumbled straight toward her.

Ying Su’s dark eyes sharpened. In an instant, her phoenix eyes turned cold. Calmly, she reached out, caught the cup with steady precision, and with a smooth flick of her wrist drew it in a half-circle before her. The tea settled inside without spilling a drop.

“Ah! Sis, are you burned?” Shen Changyun leapt up in alarm, reaching for the cup in her hand. But Ying Su smoothly avoided his grasp and set the cup calmly on the table.

The scalding heat was tolerable to her, though her palm was already reddened and swollen. She curled her fingers lightly into a fist, smiled, and said, “I’m fine.”

The waiter stared at her in a daze. Coming to his senses, he grimaced and rubbed his hands together nervously. “I’m terribly sorry, honored guest! The tea was too hot, please don’t hold it against me!”

Before Ying Su could speak, Shen Changyun snapped, “How could you be so careless? If that spilled on my sister and burned her, how painful would that be?”

Just then, a gentle female voice drifted over. “What’s going on? I heard a waiter spilled tea on a guest?”

The waiter turned his head and winked quickly at the newcomer. He pulled a pitiful face. “Miss, I didn’t spill any on the guest.”

The woman wore a pink dress, her face delicate as a peach blossom, it was Wu Shumei. For an instant her expression stiffened, but she quickly shifted to surprise. In a soft, tender voice, she called out, “So it’s Sister Shen! What a coincidence to meet you here.”

Ying Su turned her head, smiled faintly. “Yes, quite the coincidence.”

Shen Changyun looked Wu Shumei up and down, confused. From her refined dress, she was clearly someone of wealth. How did she know his second sister?

“Add three more dishes. Put them on my tab, and don’t charge Sister Shen,” Wu Shumei instructed the waiter.

He hurried off, nodding repeatedly.

Wu Shumei seated herself in the empty spot at the table, smiling warmly. “That day I felt an instant kinship with Sister Shen and always wished to be closer friends. But I never had the chance. Who would’ve thought we’d meet here today by chance?”

Ying Su returned a polite smile. “Miss Wu is too kind.”

Wu Shumei smiled sweetly and kept up gentle chatter. Most of the time she spoke; Ying Su only responded briefly now and then. Still, Wu Shumei couldn’t pry out a single useful word.

She had originally planned to have the waiter spill tea on Ying Su, so she could then invite her home to change clothes, thereby drawing closer to her. But to her frustration, the tea hadn’t spilled as intended.

“This young gentleman is…?” Wu Shumei asked softly.

Shen Changyun, suddenly the focus, blushed and even lightened his breathing.

“My younger brother,” Ying Su replied evenly.

Wu Shumei smiled and nodded at him. His blush deepened, as though the air itself had grown warmer.

“Sister Shen, next time you come to dine here, just give my name. Put it on my account,” Wu Shumei offered warmly.

Ying Su’s lips curved. Who would turn down free meals? She nodded with a smile.

Soon, the waiter returned with three more dishes and even a small pot of Nü’erhong wine.

Wu Shumei took the wine, poured three cups, and raised hers. “It’s a joy to make Sister Shen’s acquaintance today. I toast Sister Shen and Brother Shen.”

She then downed her cup in one swift motion. Her cheeks flushed as she looked at Ying Su, voice soft. “Sister, surely you won’t refuse to give me this honor?”