Although they were friends, An Jing also had her own principles regarding money: "Let’s stick to the rules."
Seeing An Jing’s insistence, Wang Youbao didn’t say much and felt it inappropriate to stuff the money into An Jing’s hands. After all, An Jing was a woman, and he was a man; there should be a distinction between the sexes. If their skin touched because of the act of passing money, it would be inappropriate. Therefore, he shoved the money fiercely into Xiao Changyi’s hands, then turned his plump body around and ran towards the courtyard gate.
He was panting with every step due to his weight, but he didn’t stop for a rest, nor did he look back, as if afraid that An Jing and Xiao Changyi would catch up and give him back those five taels of silver.
"Pfft..." An Jing couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Xiao Changyi rarely cracked a smile as well.
It wasn’t until Wang Youbao breathlessly climbed onto the carriage stopped at the courtyard gate that he turned around. While gasping for air, he bowed his hands to An Jing and Xiao Changyi: "Changyi, An Jing, I’ll be taking my leave then."
Not until Wang Youbao’s carriage was out of sight did An Jing turn around and look at Xiao Changyi with a grin: "Our first friend is quite amusing, isn’t he?"
An Jing knew Xiao Changyi had accepted Wang Youbao as a friend, so she said no more. She smiled with a meaning glance and patted Xiao Changyi on the chest: "He’s quite something, isn’t he?"
Although Xiao Changyi’s face was expressionless, he nuzzled her forehead with his in a very ingratiating gesture, looking as if he was pleading to be spared.
An Jing’s heart immediately melted, and she refrained from saying anything more about Xiao Changyi, not to mention asking anything.
No matter how influential her husband might be, he was still her husband, dedicated to her wholeheartedly.
In the afternoon, Xing Cashier from Auspicious Liquor House came by, saying that they also wanted to buy fermented tofu, and mentioned that the future supply for Mingman and Double Happiness Pubs would be his responsibility to procure.
"Our family doesn’t have any fermented tofu for now," An Jing said truthfully.
Xing Cashier seemed to have anticipated this and immediately said, "We can pre-order."
"But someone has already pre-ordered a thousand catties. We will need to finish that before we can make yours. If you think it’s okay, then pre-order."
Xing Cashier hesitated but still asked, "Is the person who ordered a thousand catties from Hundred Dishes Restaurant Proprietor Wang?"
There was no point in hiding it, as they would find out as soon as Wang Youbao sold dishes with the fermented tofu. So An Jing continued to speak the truth: "Exactly."
"Proprietor Wang is indeed always one step ahead," Xing Cashier admitted with admiration and then declared, "We want to pre-order."
"How much do you wish to pre-order?"
"Two thousand catties."
An Jing paused for two seconds before asking, "Are you sure? That’s two thousand catties. By the time we finish making it for you, the townsfolk might be tired of this kind of dish. Your pubs might not make much money selling it, and it would be a waste of fermented tofu."
Xing Cashier was surprised by An Jing’s suggestion to order less and was grateful for her consideration of their pubs, but he politely insisted, "We’ll place an order for two thousand catties." He paused before adding, "To be honest, our three proprietors have jointly opened a pub in the county. The fermented tofu we bought from you before was partially sent there to test sales, and it did very well. The two thousand catties we are ordering now will mostly go to that pub in the county, while a small portion will be left for the three pubs in the town."
In other words, it didn’t matter if the townspeople grew tired of it, as long as the county folks hadn’t had enough yet.