The carriage at the back was clearly much slower than the one in front. Suddenly, it stopped in front of a tea stall. A maid dressed in servant’s attire jumped down, carrying a lacquer-red food box. She took out a gold-rimmed carved tea cup from the box and bought the best tea from the stall, carefully bringing it to the front of the carriage.
"Miss, please have some tea."
A pale and delicate hand reached out from the carriage, its fragile and boneless appearance left everyone sitting and drinking tea in the stall in awe, forgetting to react.
Just a hand was so beautiful it made people unable to resist caring for it dearly.
The young lady inside the carriage took the tea cup, and after a good while, a voice finally drifted gently from inside. The voice was tender and delicate, like a butterfly flitting over flower buds, sweet to the ear.
"Has Madam’s carriage already passed by?"
"Yes, Miss, it has already gone by."
The woman in the carriage fell silent again, then said, "It’s getting late. I imagine she would stop for the night in Yecheng. We won’t rest, let’s hurry on the road, and make sure we arrive at Zhuma Town before her."
"Yes, Miss." Although the maid was worried that the Miss couldn’t withstand the strain, she said nothing. The Miss’s temperament was such; once she made a decision, no one could persuade her otherwise.
The curtain of the carriage was lifted, revealing the hand that had just appeared. The maid took the tea cup from her and with a swift turn, threw it to the ground, shattering it with a crisp sound.
Seeing the broken pieces of the fine tea cup, passersby couldn’t help but feel regretful; that cup must have been worth quite a lot of silver. Yet, the maid discarded it without batting an eyelid.
Rice Flower Fragrance wasn’t doing well these days. Lin Yuan had pondered for a long time and decided she couldn’t wait any longer; she had to take the initiative. However, her plan depended on someone she had previously offended, and it was uncertain whether she could invite that person through Jin Yuyu.
As she was considering this, Shopkeeper Liu knocked and entered.
"Boss, here are the account books from the various branches for the past month for your review."
Lin Yuan took the account books and glanced through them briefly, her previous worries vanishing as she smiled, "This month, everyone’s profits are quite good."
Shopkeeper Liu also smiled and said, "Yes, indeed, more than doubled from last month. It seems tofu is selling well in the branches, no wonder those old fellows are so envious every time they come."
Lin Yuan laughed too; before she started managing Fuman Building, she hadn’t realized the potential, but now she understood clearly. Since the introduction of tofu, not just the people of Zhuma Town but also many from neighboring towns came just for it. However, the journey was far and even the wealthy couldn’t possibly travel by carriage here every day, to say nothing of those who were dining out for business purposes. As the saying goes, distant waters cannot quench immediate thirst.
But now it was convenient with Fuman Building branches selling tofu. Anyone could dine out whenever they wanted, quickly and easily.
"Indeed, even Xiangman Building’s business has doubled," Lin Yuan specifically looked at the account book of Yecheng Xiangman Building. Because of Drunken Immortal Residence overshadowing it, Xiangman Building’s business had been average among the branches, but this time it surprisingly led them all!
Lin Yuan couldn’t help marveling at the prosperity and economic strength of Yecheng. Without Drunken Immortal Residence, Xiangman Building’s business could at least double again — how much silver would that be!
After putting down the account book, Lin Yuan handed several pages of recently written documents to Shopkeeper Liu: "This is a new menu I have drafted based on the specialties of Tea Tree Town and Tingan Town. When you send the account books later, give them this too. I have written down the ingredients and cooking steps in detail; their chefs should be able to manage."