Wanjin Lady

Chapter 405 Internal strife
They were doing the same job and no one was lazy. This group of people took advantage of the fact that they had worked an extra month in the Red Mansion and acted like the boss in the Chunri Mansion, commanding them. Their treatment and status were much higher than theirs!

Chen Erjie was completely oblivious to the jealous looks on the faces of the other female workers in Chunri Lou. She spread her hands, leaned her back against the front desk, and said smugly, "It's really difficult! The wages at Honglou are high, the commissions are paid on the spot every day, and the boss is easy to talk to! But Chunri Lou's business is booming right now, and they can't do without me!"

This statement was full of boasting, and the young lady, who had long disliked them, retorted, "Since the former official has paid a high price to have you return, why don't you just go back quietly? Don't you want the whole world to know about it? So, do you want the boss to hire people to send you back with a bang?"

Someone said sarcastically, "Who knows? Maybe she's lying! She's just trying to force her employer to give her a raise."

Chen Erjie was upset. "Who lied? Just now, Miss Hongmei, the second in command of the Red Mansion, came to see us. She told us clearly that our wages would be doubled if we go back, and we could earn four or five taels of silver a month! If you don't believe me, ask Sister Qian, Luo Wuniang, and Liu!"

Someone immediately protested, "Why are you paid so much more than us for doing the same work? Since you've brought it up today, I'll just go find the shopkeeper and ask for clarification—"

"Oh no!" Chen Erjie didn't want to make things worse, so she pulled the sister aside and said, "We are all poor people who work here. What's the point in arguing with each other about trivial matters? Chunri Tower is making a fortune now, and we sisters work day and night for the boss! We work so hard and have made great contributions! Why don't we ask the boss to give us more bonuses and dividends?"

This remark also hit the mark with Sister Xie. She came out of the Red Mansion and had a falling out with it when she left. If she were asked to go back... she would feel ashamed.

Besides, anyone with a discerning eye can see that Chunri Tower is now superior to Honglou, so we have to cling to Chunri Tower!

Being able to stay in Chunrilou and at the same time force the employer to pay them by inviting them back through Honglou, that would be the best of both worlds!

"I think so too. A good woman won't serve two husbands. Why are we going back to the Red Mansion for no reason? Chunri Mansion is doing well now, and the boss is happy too. We should give her a bigger bonus this month!"

The young ladies in Chunri Tower united in demanding a wage increase, and early that morning, Chen Xiaochun and Tu Erye drove a horse-drawn carriage to invite the owners of the prominent pastry shops, wineries, and dessert shops in Bozhou City to the Red Tower.

Since it was a sugar and wine exchange event, the Red Mansion's door was closed, which was unusual. Only a small door in the corner was left for entry and exit. Visitors were also received one-on-one and taken into the backyard, making the place even more mysterious.

After Chen Xiaochun escorted the shopkeeper of Fengji into the Red Mansion, he saw Wen Wan busying around in the crowd. He stepped forward and glanced inside. "Boss, the shopkeeper of Fengji Dim Sum is the last one to come. Everyone on the invitation has arrived. I'll be waiting outside. Please let me know if you need anything."

"Okay." Wen Wan turned around, and Chen Xiaochun asked again, "May I ask what's going on here, boss? Just now, Shopkeeper Feng kept asking me about it, and I just said that the boss invited them to dinner."

Chen Xiaochun approached two points, looking worried, "Boss, are we going to deal with the Yuan family?"

Wen Wan nodded, "Spring House is getting bigger and bigger. If we continue to let it go, there will be no place for me, Wen Wan, to stay in Bozhou."

"Does the boss want to convince these shopkeepers to...join forces to deal with the Yuan family?"

Wen Wan sneered, "Since Chunri Lou is making a fortune from my milk tea, I'll make the recipe public. By then, if Chunri Lou's milk tea business doesn't catch up with other dessert shops, won't it? Just wait and see, in two days I'll run out of the ingredients for the Chunri Feast!"

"A radical solution?" Chen Xiaochun suddenly understood the crux of the matter. If every dessert shop in Bozhou City could make milk tea and everyone wanted a piece of the pie, how could Chunrilou have a place to stand? "The owner intends to use profits to tie all the shop owners to the same boat!" Chen Xiaochun smiled and cupped his hands in greeting. "In this way, the Yuan family will definitely not be a match for the owner!"

"It's just..." Chen Xiaochun looked at the figures of the various shopkeepers inside, "The Yuan family will definitely strike back. The Yuan family has no rules or regulations. If we encounter bandits like last time, the Dong family will be in even greater danger. Otherwise... please ask Lord Wei to select two capable subordinates to protect the Dong family."

"I have you and Master Tu. How can the Yuan family still disregard the law and commit murder under such circumstances?" Wen Wan smiled coldly, clearly having made a decision. "But Brother Xiaochun, you reminded me. Wait here for a moment."

Wen Wan went upstairs and returned with the account books and a wooden box. They reached a secluded spot and handed the items to Chen Xiaochun. "I don't trust anyone in the Red Mansion. If the Yuan family dares to do something shady, I'm afraid my home won't be safe either. Find a place to hide the account books. There are some gold leaves in this wooden box, just in case the Red Mansion needs them."

Chen Xiaochun only felt the thing in his hand was heavy, "Boss... do you trust me?"

Wen Wan smiled and said, "That night when the Japanese attacked the city, Brother Xiaochun risked his life to save me and my father. His love and loyalty are so profound, how could I not trust him?"

Chen Xiaochun's face was filled with excitement. "I will definitely take good care of these things! Boss, don't worry!"

—————————————————————

"Sister, Wen Wan won't be able to endure it any longer."

That night, Jia hurriedly took the account book to find the old lady and told her the business performance of Chunri Tower in the past half month. The old lady took the account book and looked at it carefully, letting Jia talk to herself.

This sister-in-law has never run a business. The owner behind Chunri Tower is more like the elder lady rather than the Jia family.

In the end, Jia Shi also figured out what was going on. She thought her elder sister was probably also hoping that Wen Wan would leave!

Indeed. Business at the Red House was getting better and better. A few days ago, Wen Wan even started not only selling Ruiguo syrup, but also helping to display other wines for free, earning praise from fellow wine merchants.

Although the wine merchants' guild in Bozhou City had not yet been formed, wine merchants gradually gathered around Wen Wan, as if they were respecting her.

This bitch...isn't she aiming for the position of president of the Liquor Merchants Guild?

The elder lady had obviously sensed the crisis and occasionally gave Jia some advice. Now she was directly looking at the account books of Chunri Tower.

"That bitch has been making a big move lately. Yesterday, she invited a bunch of pastry shops, sweet soup shops, and wine merchants from around the city to the Red Mansion, calling it a networking event. But I heard from sources that during the meeting, she had the kitchen staff make fresh milk tea and sour plum soup in front of everyone. She said it was because the sweet soups were made on site tasted fresh, but in reality, she was taking the opportunity to make the recipes public."

Jia Shi gnashed with anger whenever she mentioned this. She had finally bribed the kitchen maids in the Red Mansion to get the recipe, but now it had become a piece of waste paper. "Kill one thousand enemies, only to lose eight hundred of her own. Could it be that she wanted to drag us down with her?"