Wei Yao was about forty years old, dressed in a flower-patterned long robe with a round collar and a front-opening design.
He was hurriedly leading a white-bellied brown donkey and, upon seeing Shen Miao, immediately said this line without even catching his breath.
This remark not only surprised Shen Miao, but also caused the other street vendors nearby to glance over in curiosity.
The plump woman, whose surname was Mei and who was known as Mei Sanniang, stood next to Shen Miao.
Upon hearing this, she raised her eyebrows in surprise.
Wei Yao had been running a pastry shop near Jinliang Bridge for many years, and his shop’s savory pastries were famous.
Whenever someone in the neighborhood had a happy occasion, they would order pastries from his shop.
However, in recent years, many new shops had opened, introducing different kinds of pastries.
Despite the competition, Wei’s shop had a long-standing reputation for its quality and skills, so Mei Sanniang recognized him.
It was also the pastries from Wei’s shop that had been served at her own wedding!
She never expected that such a well-known shop owner would come to the bridge market to recruit someone like Shen Miao, who was just starting out.
Shen Miao had only been selling on the street for a few days, and yet she had already caught Wei Yao’s attention?
However, Mei Sanniang had to admit—Shen Miao’s skills were truly impressive.
Every day, when Shen Miao set up her stall, she would offer Mei Sanniang a steamed bun or a pancake.
Mei Sanniang always found them delicious, but her only complaint was that in the past few days, she had gained a couple of pounds from all the tasty food.
Of course, Shen Miao gave her the treats, and in return, Mei Sanniang would offer her some tea.
The two had become quite familiar with each other.
Through word of mouth, Mei Sanniang also learned about Shen Miao’s tragic past—she had lost both parents, been abandoned by her husband’s family, and was raising two younger siblings on her own.
Feeling sympathy for her, Mei Sanniang was no longer jealous when she saw Shen Miao’s business thriving.
Seeing Shen Miao’s good fortune today, Mei Sanniang quickly chimed in, “Shen Miao, this is great news! If you work at Wei’s pastry shop, you won’t have to work out here in the wind and rain anymore.”
Mei Sanniang genuinely believed that working in a shop would be a much better opportunity.
As a pastry chef at Wei’s shop, there would be steady income, no need to worry about business fluctuations, a monthly salary, and even rice and other supplies during the holidays.
Plus, Mei Sanniang planned to help Shen Miao negotiate a good salary!
However, to her surprise, Shen Miao did not seem impressed.
Instead, she gently turned down the offer, saying, “Thank you for the manager’s kind offer, but my family used to run a shop, and I have a strong desire to rebuild the family business. I’m not interested in working for someone else at the moment. So I must decline, thank you.”
Wei Yao was confused.
He had done his homework before coming and knew Shen Miao’s background and situation.
He didn’t expect her to turn him down and frowned. “Are you worried that the salary won’t be enough? I invited you because I value your skills, not because you are a woman.
I’ve already made arrangements: the other chefs at my shop earn five taels a month, and every time they sell a box of their own pastries, they get two copper coins as a bonus. You’d be paid the same as the other two chefs. How does that sound?”
Mei Sanniang’s eyes lit up at the mention of such generous pay.
Five taels a month plus bonuses!
This was a great offer!
She didn’t dare speak up herself but kept signaling Shen Miao with her eyes, encouraging her to accept.
But Shen Miao shook her head again, though she tentatively asked, “Manager Wei, did you come up with this offer because of my steamed buns? If you really value my recipe, I’m willing to sell it to you.
I’ll stop selling them at this market and let your shop be the exclusive seller. Would that be acceptable?”
Wei Yao thought for a moment but didn’t answer right away.
Instead, he slyly responded, “Why go for a quick gain like selling a recipe for just a few dozen taels? That’s a temporary profit. Why not come work at my shop, earn a steady income, and save up over time? You’ll never have to worry about food and clothing again.”
Shen Miao thought to herself, no wonder he’s a shopkeeper—he’s so shrewd and knows how to paint a grand picture.
He didn’t even address my point directly.
But this conversation did make her realize his intentions, so she shook her head politely and said, “Thank you, but I must decline.”
Wei Yao, who had personally come to invite her and offered generous terms, was a little displeased.
The surrounding vendors started whispering, and he turned to leave, saying, “Since you’re so determined, I won’t press any further. I only hope you don’t regret this decision. Goodbye.”
Mei Sanniang pounded her chest in frustration.
“Ai, Shen Miao, why did you let such a good opportunity slip away? Don’t you know who he is?”
She pointed toward the two-story building not far away, “That’s Wei’s pastry shop! Countless people wish they could work for him every year!”
Shen Miao looked over in the direction of her pointing hand and saw a grand two-story building.
It really did look impressive.
She shrugged and smiled.
“I don’t think this is a good opportunity, Mei Sanniang. If fortune were to fall from the sky, it wouldn’t be so simple. There’s a saying I’ve always found to be very true: everything in this world has its price—there’s no such thing as a free lunch.”
Mei Sanniang was stunned by this reasoning.
She walked out of the shop, grabbed Shen Miao, and asked more urgently, “But tell me, why isn’t this a good thing? Five taels a month, plus bonuses, if business goes well, you could earn ten taels or more a month! Where else can you find such an opportunity?”
Shen Miao sighed and quietly explained, “Think about it—he doesn’t want to buy my recipe, but he’s willing to pay a high salary for me. He’s sure that I can make more than just one kind of pastry.
If he hires me for five taels a month, he expects me to make ten or twenty different pastries each month, and even teach apprentices. Once the apprentices or other chefs learn, what will he do?
Fire me, and then I’ll have nothing. Five taels a month might seem like a lot, but it’s actually cheaper for him than buying my recipe!”
Mei Sanniang was at a loss for words, muttering, “But Wei Yao is known for being a kind man. He wouldn’t do something like that, would he?”
“Even the kindest person is still a businessman,” Shen Miao replied calmly.
She had run a business in her previous life and was well aware of how these things worked.
She wasn’t angry—she just lowered her head to continue packing up her things.
“Businessmen seek profit. When they see a good opportunity, even the kindest person will haggle over every coin. He’s thinking of his own shop.
After all, if the recipe doesn’t sell well, or if someone else imitates it, he’ll lose a lot of money. Of course, I’m not saying that he’s definitely planning to do that, but I don’t want to be tied down. I can’t take such a risk.”
She waved her hand at Mei Sanniang, “My hands are my most valuable asset. I don’t have anything else, so I have to be careful. If I agreed to work for Wei Yao, I’d be sacrificing my long-term prospects for short-term gain.”
In her previous life, Shen Miao’s family had been in the business of Chinese cuisine, and it was only after graduating from university that she went abroad to study Western pastries for two years.
Her grandfather nearly scolded her to death when he found out.
However, once she learned the craft, she came back and occasionally baked a batch of pastries, which her grandfather, a true gourmand, enjoyed with his tea.
So, it didn’t matter where she worked; what mattered was having solid skills.
Though it seemed hard now, once her shop was up and running, things would get better.
Shen Miao still had confidence in herself.
“You make a good point,” Mei Sanniang said, surprised.
She hadn’t expected that such a young woman would have such clear and profound thinking, and she couldn’t help but admire her.
She subconsciously glanced at the young man who had silently put down his book and stood behind his sister, Ji Ge.
He wasn’t interfering with his sister’s business but stood behind her, his back straight and tense like a taut bowstring.
Xiang Jie, meanwhile, busied herself like a little hamster, running back and forth helping Shen Miao pack up her things.
These three siblings were so interesting, especially Ji Ge.
Mei Sanniang thought of her own son, who was around the same age as Ji Ge.
She suddenly felt a deep sense of admiration and leaned closer to Shen Miao to whisper, “Shen Miao, how did you raise your brother? He’s so well-behaved and thoughtful! His character is so good; he knows how to protect you. Unlike my son, who’s a real handful!
He’s always causing trouble, and after attending a private school for just two days, the teacher kicked him out. The teacher said that during those two days, aside from running to the dining hall the fastest, he spent the rest of the time practically asleep.
After reading a couple of pages, he’d doze off, and when the teacher punished him by making him stand in the corridor facing the wall, he fell asleep while standing! His handwriting is a mess too—looks like a dog’s paw print.
No one can read it but him! The teacher was so angry, he almost had a stroke. This morning, he sent both my son and the school fees back, and if this continues, I fear I’ll have a stroke too!”
With the frustration in her voice, Mei Sanniang’s words made Shen Miao want to laugh.
But Shen Miao knew that parents often speak negatively about their own children not because they want to hear others mock them, but because they are feeling troubled and seeking some comfort.
So, Shen Miao held back her laughter and patiently replied, “Children are still young, and playing around is their nature. It shows that you are a loving mother. Otherwise, how would he have such a lively personality?
As for my brother, it’s actually not a good thing. My parents passed away, and I had no one to rely on. In poor families, children often grow up quickly because they have to take responsibility. I don’t know how I managed to raise him, but he’s learned to be sensible on his own.”
These words made Mei Sanniang pause for a moment.
Looking at Shen Miao’s delicate and graceful face, for the first time, she didn’t speak with sarcasm, but rather sighed with genuine understanding.
Thinking of her own child, she couldn’t help but feel less frustrated.
“Your words today, I’ve never heard before. But… I find myself agreeing with you completely.”
A customer arrived, and Mei Sanniang smiled as she went to the back of the stall to prepare some tea while continuing to talk to Shen Miao.
“I never thought about it this way before. When my old father was still alive, I felt like I had someone to rely on. If my husband wasn’t behaving well, I could just pack up and go back to my parents’ house to complain!
I’d see how much he could stand my father’s scolding! But after my father passed away, and when I fought with my husband, I lost the courage to do that…”
After lamenting for a while, Shen Miao had finished packing.
Ji Ge had once again been running around, helping with the things.
He had also wiped the sugar from his sister’s face without saying a word, just silently going about his task.
Mei Sanniang looked at them and sighed again, “Even in poor families, children grow up quickly. But your brother, he’s exceptional…”
After Shen Miao bid her farewell and headed home, Mei Sanniang’s envious gaze followed her, lingering long after she was out of sight.
When Shen Miao returned home, she rested briefly, then set aside the day’s distractions and quickly got to work on preparing the 150 red bean paste buns that the Xie family had ordered.
The red beans, coarse flour, sugar, and soybean oil had already been arranged with the grain shop, and the supplies had arrived the previous evening.
Shen Miao had negotiated a long-term supply deal with the shopkeeper of the “Tai Feng Grain and Rice Shop,” agreeing to buy the materials at 90% of the market price.
Grain prices in the Song Dynasty were not as stable as they were in later periods, but they had been relatively steady in recent years.
Shen Miao was a meticulous person.
She worried that if grain prices suddenly increased, she would face significant losses.
So, she asked the grain shopkeeper for details about how grain prices in Bianjing were managed and whether they fluctuated much.