The Wealthy Eldest Sister Rules Supreme

Zhuang Qingning stood up, already figuring out how to assure Fang Hou that everything was fine.

But as soon as she looked up, she saw Cheng Ruize following behind Fang Hou.

“Manager Cheng?” Both Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Yutian were somewhat surprised.

“Both of you, Managers Zhuang.” Cheng Ruize slightly smiled and gave a polite bow to Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Yutian.

Zhuang Yutian quickly guided them into the backyard, where he served them tea.

Since Zhuang Qingning was seeking Cheng Ruize, Zhuang Yutian guessed that she had something to discuss, so he found an excuse to leave to the shop upfront, not to disturb them.

“I heard that Manager Cheng’s spice shop has recently experienced some difficulties, so I didn’t want to bother you with insignificant matters…” Zhuang Qingning sipped her tea and said.

“It seems that Manager Zhuang already knows.” Cheng Ruize replied with an apologetic expression, “Indeed, Cheng’s spice shop has encountered some problems, because of my ineptitude, I feel very ashamed.”

“Although there were some issues, most have been resolved. I have ordered others to handle the follow-up matters. If I stayed there, it would only be to maintain appearances, as I am not particularly effective.”

“When Fang Hou delivered the message that you were here, so I decided to come over to ask if there’s anything you need.”

“Indeed, there is a matter I would like to seek Manager Cheng’s help with. May I know if that’s convenient?” said Zhuang Qingning.

“Please feel free to speak, Manager Zhuang.” Cheng Ruize raised his hand.

“Manager Cheng, I believe you know about Miao Village, which supplies sweet potato glass noodles to us.” said Zhuang Qingning, “Yesterday, when I visited the workshop in Miao Village, Aunt Zhang invited me to her home for a meal. I noticed that Aunt Zhang’s family was living in extremely poor conditions. Her two children were malnourished and her youngest son was noticeably sick.”

“Aunt Zhang is a good, hardworking person, but she has a lot of debts. Even though she works diligently, having a full meal, warm clothes, and a strong body seems unattainable for them.”

“I wanted to help them, but I worried that they might refuse outright charity. Therefore, I thought about asking for Manager Cheng’s help, as your shop often sends people to Miao Village to bring back glass noodles. I was hoping you could help me deliver some tofu to them.”

“When sending it, you don’t need to say it’s exclusively for Aunt Zhang’s family. You can simply state it’s for all the workers at the noodle workshop, so Aunt Zhang won’t suspect anything.”

“As for the tofu, it can be directly taken from my tofu workshop. You just need to estimate the number and portion for everyone. Manager Cheng, there’s just one reminder: when distributing the tofu, just say it’s from Cheng’s and it’s a gesture from your shop. Don’t mention me.”

After listening, Cheng Ruize gently nodded, “This is quite a simple task, I just have to send someone to do it.”

“However, since it’s Coach Zhuang who is paying for it, while I get the credit, it doesn’t seem fair. Therefore, I think that for all things that get Cheng’s good reputation, the capital must come from Cheng’s.”

“My workshop has sent some sweet potato glass noodles to the city recently, which received a good response. I am planning to ship more there. To do so, I need the noodle workshop to speed up their work.”

“Though they will earn more money on a bigger workload, they will inevitably feel tired too. I planned to send something to the workers at the workshop to make them feel their hard work is worthwhile. The tofu you mentioned reminded me that sending them some meat and eggs are very practical too.”

“So, Manager Zhuang, please leave all of this to me, Cheng’s will cover all the costs.”

“Since Manager Cheng has put it that way…”

Lowering her head, Zhuang Qingning quietly contemplated for a moment, “Let’s each bear our own cost. My contribution of tofu will also be part of it, and as for the rest, if Manager Cheng is willing to include some, that will be good.”

“Besides, I also have another task that I want you to assign to your staff. This task is crucial and I’m afraid you need to find a reliable person to handle it.”

“Oh?” Cheng Ruize raised an eyebrow.

After the time it took for a cup of tea, Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Yutian sent Cheng Ruize out of Cheng’s cloth shop.

“Take care, Manager Cheng.”

“Goodbye, see you.” Cheng Ruize and Fang Hou strode away.

As soon as they reached the corner, Cheng Ruize quickened his pace, hurrying towards his spice shop.

Fang Hou followed swiftly behind, musing to himself.

His boss was really strange. Even though the spice shop was busy and he didn’t have time to spare, Cheng Ruize still had the heart to care about what Zhuang Qingning needed.

But then again, his boss was really wise and foresighted, considering Zhuang Qingning to be a promising manager, he probably wanted to earn her favor for future business dealings.

As Fang Hou thought about this, he was somewhat lost in his thoughts, too distracted to watch his steps, and bumped directly into the back of Cheng Ruize’s head.

“Boss?” Fang Hou rubbed his aching forehead, hurriedly inquiring, “Did I hurt you?”

He was very surprised at the abrupt stop.

Fang Hou looked at Cheng Ruize with a little astonishment.

“In these two days, I need you to handle a task.” Cheng Ruize said pensively, “I’ve racked my brain, and I think only you can do this. If I assign it to someone else, I’m afraid it won’t work out.”

A task that only he could do?

Fang Hou felt invigorated by Cheng Ruize’s affirmation and praise, his spirits lifted greatly. He patted his chest, “Boss, I am at your command!”

—-

When Zhuang Qingning arrived at Ruyi Pavilion in town, it was just around noon.

Seeing Zhuang Qingning enter the backyard, Ma Tong, who was carrying leftover dishes from the front hall to the backyard, was overjoyed, “Miss Zhuang, you’re here.”

“I was worried you wouldn’t show up since it was getting late!”

Especially when he saw Zhang Yongchang’s face growing darker by the minute, Ma Tong didn’t dare to linger in the backyard and kept running to the front hall to evade trouble.

He initially thought he would spend the entire afternoon in trepidation, visibly upset.

But now that he saw Zhuang Qingning, Ma Tong felt the world had brightened up.

Especially thinking about being able to taste the whitish and creamy mutton soup later, he even felt joyful inside, “Good that you came, Miss Zhuang. Rest for a while and I’ll go tidy up the front.”

“We’re serving customers now, so you can go back to your work. I guess Uncle Zhang must be busy too, so I won’t disturb him. Just let him know I’ll be at the tofu shop for a bit and will be back soon.”