Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

It was deserted, utterly deserted.

There were no guests coming or going, only small groups of staff gathered together to drink and chat.

It's almost lunchtime!

Zhao Wan raised an eyebrow: "It must be because Shen Chengzong and his men didn't manage it properly. It's a real pity that this restaurant fell into their hands."

Shen Qing didn't feel anything was wrong. She just thought that Shen's restaurant was so deserted, and Shen's mother would definitely be sad if she saw it.

However, Shen's mother can't see it now.

"Let's go try on the clothes," Shen Qing said, taking a step forward.

Eh?

Zhao Wan was a little confused and quickly followed behind Shen Qing.

Before the two had taken more than a few steps, two people, completely covered up, suddenly rushed out from the roadside and blocked Shen Qing and Zhao Wan's way.

"Shen Qing, I'm begging you, please spare us. We've been tortured to death these past few days, we can't even leave the house. Please!"

A painful plea rang out.

Then, another female voice said, "Yes, Shen Qing, we're all family. Please stop tormenting us. We just want to live a peaceful life now."

After a long while, Shen Qing finally managed to recognize that the visitors were Shen Chengzong and his wife.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Her voice was cold, and her expression was unfriendly.

"Hey, stop playing dumb. It's just that you've been sending people to stake out our door every day. We can't even leave the house; if we do, we get a beating."

"Look at me, my face and body are covered in bruises, I can't live like this anymore!"

Shen Chengzong's wife, Zhao, ripped off the black cloth wrapped around her head and cried out in anguish.

"Oh my god!" Zhao Wan was startled.

The person in front of me had a bruised and swollen face; he didn't look human at all, he looked more like a pig's head.

Shen Chengzong, standing next to him, also pulled off the black cloth covering his head. He was in an even worse state, his face swollen beyond recognition, covered in bruises, and with clotted blood on the tip of his nose.

"Please, I beg you, I don't want anything right now, I just want to live a normal life, please tell those people to leave us alone."

"Look at Shen's Restaurant. I can't leave the house, I can't run the restaurant, and there are hardly any customers left. Can you bear to watch your father's hard-earned business be destroyed like this?"

When that pig-headed man opens his mouth, he doesn't speak human language; his words are full of moral blackmail.

It's as if Shen Qing ruined the restaurant.

Shen Qing's eyes turned cold: "I already said I don't know, get out of the way!"

"Shen Qing, do you want me to kneel down before you?" Shen Chengzong grabbed Shen Qing's sleeve and wouldn't let go.

Honestly, he couldn't live like this anymore. He was being beaten on the head all day long; who could stand that?

Just then, a voice rang out:

"Madam Shen, what a coincidence!"

"Hey? What are you two doing out here??"

Shen Qing looked up and saw Li Xiaoer.

She remembered Li Xiaoer vividly because he was her first customer when she set up her stall in ancient times.

"It is quite a coincidence." Shen Qing gave a kind smile.

As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly felt something dart away.

Looking down, she saw the two pig-headed figures that had been in front of her suddenly dart ten meters away, running away like mice seeing a cat.

"The two of them..."

Li Xiao'er scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly, "Maybe it's because I look scary..."

The Shen Chengzong couple actually ran up to Madam Shen; it seems they hadn't been beaten enough.

He needs to tell his brothers to be a little harsher next time.

Sooner or later, we'll beat Shen Chengzong into submission and make him obediently return the Shen family's property to Madam Shen!

Shen Qing wasn't stupid; he naturally guessed that the ones who taught Shen Chengzong and his wife a lesson were definitely the group of yamen runners under Xie Bantou.

"Thank you," she said with a smile.

"No need, no need. As long as Madam Shen can focus on making food, that's enough. As for the rest, we brothers will take care of it!"

Li Xiaoer thumped his chest loudly. As Shen Niangzi's first customer, he naturally had to protect and support her business.

Moreover, he was very proud that he was the first person to discover Lady Shen's culinary delights!

"I'll give you a discount next time you come to my shop," Shen Qing said with a smile.

The system is supposed to prohibit discounted sales, but that doesn't matter. She's willing to offer discounts to customers like Li Xiaoer, even if the food sold doesn't count towards the system's task completion rate.

She was truly moved by what Li Xiaoer and the others did.

From beginning to end, she didn't take Shen Chengzong and his ilk seriously, but she didn't expect that her diners would help her vent her anger, and for so long.

The purpose was simply to reassure her that she could focus on preparing the food.

Shen Qing was deeply moved, and his love for food grew even stronger.

At the same time, in this unfamiliar dynasty, she also gained a little sense of belonging.

After bidding farewell to Li Xiaoer, Shen Qing and Zhao Wan tried on clothes for more than an hour and ended up buying a lot of them.

Zhao Wan picked them all out for Shen Qing.

They bought a whole bunch of cosmetics, jewelry, and precious stones before finally returning home laden with their purchases.

Thanks to Zhao Wan's persistent efforts, she has finally obtained her family's consent and is now living next door to Shen Qing.

The two went home together, and Shen Qing invited Zhao Wan to his home for dinner, preparing to cook some home-style dishes.

However, upon arriving home, they discovered that there were strangers present.

They were a mother and daughter. The mother looked quiet and virtuous, while the daughter was not yet six years old and had two little pigtails.

At that moment, Shen's mother was talking to the little girl.

"Qing'er is back!" Upon hearing the noise, Mother Shen hurriedly stood up and groped her way forward.

The woman quickly helped Shen's mother up and said to Shen Qing, "Madam Shen, you're finally back! Today I went to your Zhiweixuan to buy the Four Delicacies Soup, but I saw a sign saying you were closed. My daughter really wanted to eat it, so I had no choice but to shamelessly come to your door."

The newcomers were none other than Wu Cixin and Li Mengmeng.

No one knew that when she went there early this morning and saw the "Closed" sign, she felt like the sky was falling.

Li Mengmeng cried and made a fuss, insisting on eating the Four Beauties Soup.

She wanted to eat it too, and after asking around for a long time, she finally found out where Shen Qing's house was located.

So, shamelessly, he went to their door, hoping to get a bowl of Four Beauties Soup.

"Sister, sister, your Four Beauties Soup smells so good! I want to eat it again! I want to eat it every day!" Li Mengmeng ran up to Shen Qing and shook her hand, acting coquettishly.

The little girl is soft and cuddly, with two little tufts of hair swaying on her head, which makes her quite adorable.

Shen Qing couldn't help but pat Li Mengmeng's little pigtails. She squatted down and said to Li Mengmeng, "We're out of Four Beauties Soup, but I can make you other delicious food."

"What do you mean there's none left? Everyone says you can make Four Delicacies Soup, and you can make so many servings. How come there's none left?" Li Mengmeng asked innocently.

Wu Cixin, who was listening nearby, hurriedly asked, "Madam Shen, what happened to the Four Delicacies Soup...?"

"I can't make the Four Beauties Soup anymore."

Why??

"We're out of ingredients."