The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 281 This employer is quite something.

The staff at Peach Blossom Dessert had long heard of Tong Huaqiong's fame and legendary deeds from Hong Xiaoxi.

Knowing that she was a widow from the countryside, farming in the village with a family of children, she suddenly decided to go to town to do business. She started from a roadside stall and opened Peach Blossom Dessert Shop in less than a few months, and also took over the old shop in town.

In just over half a year, they opened a branch in Fucheng.

They dared not underestimate such a boss and such a widow.

Moreover, judging from the business methods invented by the owner that He Chao and Hong Xiaoxi adopted for the store, especially the free tasting and guiding customers to choose products, they have set a precedent for all the food shops in Fucheng.

Therefore, none of these men dared to underestimate Tong Huaqiong's abilities.

Before meeting Tong Huaqiong, they had a stereotype of her, thinking she was a plain-dressed, unsmiling old woman, after all, she was a middle-aged or elderly widow.
What else could it be like?

You can guess it just by looking at the simple and honest young master, Gu Dashu.

When the person actually arrived, everyone was taken aback.

She was nothing like the widow they had imagined.

This employer is quite something!
Their widowed employer was dressed very elegantly and had a cheerful smile on her face, but once she opened her mouth, you could tell she wasn't someone to be fooled.

If He Chao hadn't introduced her, they would have thought she and her two daughters-in-law behind her were sworn sisters.

The workers expressed their loyalty to Tong Huaqiong again before going off to work.

Tong Huaqiong sighed that the advantage of opening a shop in the prefectural city was that there were many talented people in the city. This era was a period when commerce was very developed in ancient times, and hired workers could move between different shops.

Therefore, He Chao and Gu Taohua were able to hire a suitable accountant and assistant in the prefectural city in less than a week.

Unlike when Tong Huaqiong opened her first shop in Yanguan Town, where the whole family had to work as shop assistants.

"How's the baking room preparation going?" Tong Huaqiong stood up, about to go check on the baking room.

Since it's a pastry shop, the most important thing is the quality of the pastries.

The quality of pastries is determined by the baking room, of course.

He Chao said, "Everything is ready. Master Song is busy inside."

Master Song was previously the chief pastry chef at Su Shi Yuan in Yan Guan Town. He has been baking pastries since he was young. He is thoughtful and creative, and more importantly, his character is impeccable. After Su Shi Yuan was acquired by Tong Huaqiong, Master Song was still appointed as the head baker of Tao Hua Dessert Shop No. 2.

This time, I came to Fucheng with He Chao to manage the bakery.

Master Song is from Yanguan Town. He didn't want to come here because he earns a high salary there, has a family, and enjoys a comfortable life after work, drinking with old friends and playing with his grandson.

He is very resistant to the idea of ​​starting a business in Fucheng.

Tong Huaqiong offered him double the salary and promised that he only needed to stay for six months, and that he would be allowed to return to Yanguan Town once a suitable baking supervisor was found in Fucheng.

He then agreed.

When Tong Huaqiong arrived at the baking room, she heard Master Song's loud cursing.

"I've told you so many times, the temperature is high, it's high, why can't you remember?"

"Only a tiny bit of the surface is burnt, so customers can't tell."

"Bullshit! Customers can't tell the difference, but they can taste it? Let me tell you, don't treat your customers like idiots. If the temperature is a little higher, the taste will change slightly, and some customers can taste it. Don't compare our Peach Blossom Desserts to ordinary pastry shops. Every piece of our Peach Blossom Desserts that reaches our customers' mouths is just right; we can't afford to be careless."

"Also, all of you, put your masks on properly. You always complain that the masks invented by the boss are stuffy, but think about it, wouldn't it be disgusting if your saliva got into the pastries without a mask? Those are food for people, do you even eat their saliva?"

Tong Huaqiong felt incredibly warm upon hearing Master Song swear.

When he was in Yanguan Town, every time Tong Huaqiong went to the Peach Blossom Dessert Shop No. 2, she could hear Master Song scolding people with a loud voice.

Master Song's strict discipline isn't based on seniority; it stems purely from his high standards for pastry making. It must be said that under Master Song's rigorous requirements, the pastries at Peach Blossom Dessert Shop No. 2 have maintained consistently high quality, without any issues to date.

It was a very wise decision to have Master Song come to Fucheng to oversee the baking workshop.

Tong Huaqiong deserved the double salary.

Tong Huaqiong changed her clothes, wrapped her hair up, put on a homemade mask, and went into the baking room.

"Oh, the boss is here."

Master Song was kneading the dough for mooncakes when he looked up and saw Tong Huaqiong arrive. His eyes, which were partially covered by a mask, showed great excitement.

"Old Song, I feel at ease with you watching over the bakery," Tong Huaqiong said.

Master Song knew that his employer had heard his cursing.

"I'm teaching them how to make mooncakes," Master Song said, pointing to the oven inside.

There were four bakers busy in the baking room.

Upon hearing that their employer had arrived, no one moved; everyone was busy with their own tasks.

This is a rule set by Chef Song, who said that once you enter the baking room, you can't be distracted, otherwise the pastries will be ruined.

Tong Huaqiong went over to each of them and greeted them warmly.

The four bakers were wearing masks, so Tong Huaqiong couldn't see their faces clearly; she could only see four pairs of eyes.

However, this does not mean that Tong Huaqiong knew nothing about them.

On the contrary, Tong Huaqiong knew everything about each of them thanks to He Chao and Gu Taohua's reports.

Take, for example, the master baker who is dedicated to baking mooncakes. He is only twenty years old this year. He came from a poor family and started learning the craft at the age of fourteen. He worked as an apprentice in a pastry shop in the prefectural city for three years. After completing his apprenticeship, the shop continued to employ him for three more years at very low wages.

When He Chao first arrived in Fucheng to open his shop and recruit staff, he had just been fired after being refused a raise by his former employer, and other shops were hesitant to hire him. Peach Blossom Dessert Shop, being new to the area, was unconventional in its hiring practices and hired him after testing his skills.

For example, the only female baker had worked in another shop for six years, where she was only allowed to do fire-starting work and was not allowed to make pastries.

The reason given was that, as a woman, she was only suited to do menial tasks.

She has a lot of skills but can't make pastries.

It was Gu Taohua who discovered her at Taohua Desserts, allowing her to bake pastries in the kitchen just like the men.

Chen Sufen followed behind Tong Huaqiong and couldn't help but stop next to the female baker to exchange baking tips.

Upon learning that Chen Su-fen was in charge of the baking room at the Peach Blossom Dessert flagship store, the female baker's eyes lit up, and she was filled with enthusiasm.

Since the head of the main store's bakery is a woman, why can't she become the head of the bakery at Peach Blossom Dessert Fucheng Store?
Honest Chen Su-fen never expected that her experience could inspire her female colleagues.

Even though the bakery hasn't officially opened yet, baking is still in full swing, all to ensure that the bakers' skills don't become rusty.

This was also stipulated by Tong Huaqiong.

Even if the pastries go bad, or the shop assistants eat them themselves, we can't be afraid of wasting them.

Tong Huaqiong had a friendly chat with Master Song, offered encouragement and advice to the bakery staff, and then left the bakery amidst the eager gazes of the crowd.

After inspecting all the preparations for the shop, Tong Huaqiong was extremely satisfied with He Chao's work.

She was full of confidence in the opening of the shop.

"How's the promotion going for our shop?" Tong Huaqiong asked He Chao.

The so-called "hype-building" is simply releasing the news of Peach Blossom Dessert's opening in advance so that the whole city knows about it.