Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 62

"This can't be rushed. We need to find a place and do renovations first. Only after everything is ready can we open for business."

Hong Henian asked, "Do you have the capital to rent a place? If not, I'll give you the money later."

"Yes, my dad left me some money. I just see that prices are rising very fast these days, so I want to open a storefront."

"Okay, tell me if you have any difficulties, and I'll help you solve them."

After discussing it, the three of them decided to sell out as soon as possible before coming to work, so as not to delay the business of Taifeng Restaurant.

Xu Huizhen was quite surprised that He Yuzhu had bought a bicycle, and the conversation focused on the bicycle.

He Yuzhu asked, "Can you ride?"

"I don't know how yet." Xu Huizhen opened her mouth as if she wanted to borrow a bicycle to practice, but the words didn't come out.

After all, this is a brand new bicycle. I would feel really bad if I bumped into it or scratched it, or if the paint chipped off.

He Yuzhu said, "How about I teach you to ride a bicycle when I have some time later?"

"Okay."

After Xu Huizhen was happy that you agreed, she asked, "What if you bump into something?"

"Then you'll have to buy me a bicycle."

Xu Huizhen said, "Even if you sold me, you still couldn't afford to pay for it."

"Then I'll have to sell you," He Yuzhu said with a smile.

"Pah, that's indecent," Xu Huizhen cursed, then turned to chop vegetables.

Zhang Yongqi, watching from afar, was furious. He Yuzhu had actually bought a brand new bicycle. What was most infuriating was that he had set a trap for him to work as a cold dish cook, but instead, he had been promoted from a lowly laborer to a master chef.

"I'll show you later."

Before he could finish speaking, a team of police officers rushed in.

Two of them rushed towards Zhang Yong and pinned him down instantly: "Don't move, you're under arrest."

Chapter 73 Am I going to become Brother Zhu's wife?

Two other police officers arrested Zhang Jing'an, saying, "Don't move, you're under arrest."

Everyone else stood with their hands raised, staring in astonishment at the group of police officers in white uniforms, frozen in fear.

He Yuzhu saw Tie Dan and Ye Dapeng among them. In the morning, He Yuzhu had asked Tian Zao how the enemy agent situation was progressing.

But Tianzao said there were no clues yet and they needed to wait. She also instructed He Yuzhu not to let Zhang Yong know anything.

Unexpectedly, not long after they started work, the police entered the door and arrested Zhang Yong and Zhang Jing'an.

Zhang Yong's face was very ugly, and he shouted, "Let me go! You've arrested the wrong person!"

"I've got your picture. Take him away," Tie Dan said.

Zhang Zusheng looked at his son and nephew, and it took him a while to accept the fact. He then shakily took out a pack of cigarettes and offered one to Ye Dapeng, who was leading the team.

"Sir, have you arrested the wrong people? They are both just cooks."

"These are the people we've arrested. We've already investigated, and we definitely won't arrest the wrong people." Ye Dapeng didn't want to say more. Since the two men had already been arrested, he wanted to turn around and leave.

Zhang Zusheng grew anxious and tugged at Ye Dapeng's sleeve, asking, "What crime have they committed, sir? We need an explanation."

"Isn't the charge of Zhang Jing'an having an affair with Zhang Yong's wife enough?"

After leaving those words, Ye Dapeng led his men and escorted the two brothers away from the kitchen.

Zhang Zusheng is usually energetic and conscientious, but after this disaster, his face has turned completely pale.

Standing there watching her son being taken away, she suddenly felt dizzy and collapsed to the ground.

Several apprentices rushed over to help him up, pinched his philtrum to help him recover, but his mental state was obviously much worse, so he was sent out to rest.

Everyone else gathered together to discuss it; this news was truly explosive.

It was known in private that Zhang Jing'an was a womanizer, frequently visiting the Eight Great Hutongs, and had an ambiguous relationship with a widow.

Unexpectedly, she ended up hooking up with Zhang Yong's wife. Although they weren't blood brothers, they were cousins.

He then slept with his cousin's wife.

Although Zhang Zusheng's apprentices were still around, everyone was still secretly gossiping about it.

Xu Huizhen said happily, "Brother Zhuzi, that's good. Zhang Yong bullied you so much before, but it turns out he's a bad guy. He was arrested by the police, so he must have some other problems."

Ye Dapeng only mentioned Zhang Jing'an's problems, but he didn't mention Zhang Yong's arrest at all.

This is also the focus of everyone's discussion: what exactly did Zhang Yong do to deserve being arrested?

After all, it was Zhang Jing'an who stole someone else's wife, not Zhang Yong.

"Yes, that's good now, Vanilla doesn't have to worry anymore."

After that incident, Vanilla initially thought about changing jobs, but after searching around, she couldn't find a suitable one.

Many people from rural areas are now coming to the city to find work. Although there are still many enemy agents, the country has been liberated and is now at peace. As a result, there are so many people coming to the city to work that finding a job is extremely difficult.

"Vanilla will definitely be happy. I don't have to worry anymore. I'll go tell her."

After saying that, Xu Huizhen hurriedly went out to find Xiangcao.

The kitchen was in chaos for a while, then Manager Hu came over and held a meeting to calm everyone down.

The kitchen quickly returned to normal. After all, the arrest of the two men had nothing to do with anyone else. Instead, it reduced the number of Zhang family members by three, leaving the kitchen short-staffed and everyone busy.

In addition to being in charge of cold dishes, He Yuzhu also had to help chop vegetables, making him much busier than before.

The next morning, He Yuzhu went to the wrestling arena by the moat to practice again.

Tie Dan came over and asked a question.

But Tie Dan only said that the interrogation was still in progress, and did not reveal a single word to He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu was somewhat disappointed, but he also knew that it was not appropriate for him to inquire too much due to the confidentiality agreement.

There was good news while I was at work: two temporary helpers were hired to help out, which made things easier for me.

He had initially thought it wouldn't be anything to do, but in the afternoon, his master, Hong Henian, called out to He Yuzhu and said:

"Pillar, come here for a second."

He Yuzhu dropped the chess piece in his hand and came out, saying, "What is it, Master?"

"Good news, come with me."

He Yuzhu followed him into the manager's office.

Manager Hu chatted with He Yuzhu for a while before getting down to business.

"Zhu Zi, Chef Zhang has taken a long leave, but we can't be short-staffed in the kitchen. Starting today, you'll be promoted to second chef, and your monthly salary will be 40 yuan."

In the morning, Manager Hu and his employer went to visit Zhang Zusheng, who was lying in bed sighing and complaining because he was upset by his son.

To make his reputation sound better, he also helped his nephew and son quit their jobs, so that at least it would be said that they quit voluntarily, and not that they were fired after being arrested by the police.

Moreover, Zhang Zusheng cannot go to work for the time being and needs to rest at home for a while.

This reduces the number of knife skills and stove cooks in the kitchen.

One of Zhang Zusheng's apprentices was temporarily promoted to fill the position. By the time Zhang Zusheng returned, He Yuzhu's cooking skills would be sufficient to handle the work of the second stove, and he could also start cooking.

He Yuzhu didn't expect to go from a cold dish chef to a kitchen chef so quickly, but it was a great thing, since it meant an extra 5 yuan a month in wages.

"Don't worry, shopkeeper, I will cook the dishes carefully."

Manager Hu was very satisfied with He Yuzhu's attitude and offered a few more words of encouragement before the master and apprentice came out.

On the way, some arrangements were made so that Ye Xiangqun and the newly promoted person would guard the same furnace together, and the two would cooperate with each other.

He Yuzhu then followed his master to learn cooking.

Hong Henian said, "Your foundation is too good. From now on, I will hand over all the stir-fries to you. I will only supervise a few dishes."

"Yes, I will definitely study hard."

The two returned to the kitchen, but there was no longer a place for them to play chess, so they had to go back to the cold dish stall.

Xu Huizhen asked, "Brother Zhu, where are you going?"

"I've changed jobs again, now I'm working as a stove master under my mentor."

"What? You raised my wages again?"

He Yuzhu said somewhat proudly, "Yes, it's just a small increase of 5 yuan a month."

Xu Huizhen was very happy: "That's still a lot. I only make 10 yuan a month."

At that time, there were many people but few jobs. Xu Huizhen, who did this kind of helper work, only earned 10 yuan a month. Apart from her being a young girl, the other helpers at the water station were all middle-aged women in their forties and fifties.

The money we received was the minimum wage; if we were careful with our spending, 10 yuan was enough to support two people.

After being happy, Xu Huizhen felt a little envious before asking, "What about the cold dishes?"

"It's still the same. I'll still be in the kitchen. From now on, I'll provide the seasonings, and you can cook."

"Then can you teach me?" Xu Huizhen asked somewhat nervously.