NOVPUB
Chapter 100: Chapter 100 Aqiang Looking for Trouble
As usual, Master Niu delivered the fresh milk at the same time. As Tong Yao poured the milk into the pot, an enticing smell wafted through the air, and Si Xiaohui found her mouth watering.
"Sis-in-law, this milk tea smells so good."
Tong Yao replied, "Go ahead and have some if you want! There’s plenty of milk tea to go around."
It was normal for Si Xiaohui, new to milk tea, to fall for its allure. Over time she would drink so much that she’d want it less, and Tong Yao was not stingy with the tea at all.
Si Xiaohui hesitated a bit, feeling it wasn’t right to drink before the shop even opened for business.
"Here, try some." He Fang poured a cup for Si Xiaohui and chuckled, "When I first came here to help your sis-in-law sell milk tea, I was skeptical – why would people buy diluted milk? After having a taste of the tea, I didn’t think that any more. It truly is delicious – never get tired of it."
Though Tong Yao had said she could drink the milk tea freely, He Fang was careful not to take too much. Her daughter NiuNiu was already consuming it – how much would she have to drink in a single day?
At a penny a cup, two cups a day over a month would cost five-six yuan, more than the rent Tong Yao was charging – if she took too much Tong Yao might feel aggrieved and everyone would hear about it, which would be awkward – it was a matter of understanding the limit.
Now that Tong Yao had brought her sister-in-law from her husband’s side to help, she found herself wondering if it was because she felt Niuniu drank too much and wanted to replace her and her mother.
Pondering this, He Fang grew worried – without a job, how would she and her daughter make ends meet?
Si Xiaohui took a sip of the milk tea handed to her and was scalded – she yelped in pain. Quickly putting the tea on the table, she started fanning her tongue to try to cool it down.
"Sip it slowly, it’s a bit hot," said He Fang. 𝚗ovp𝚞b.𝚌om
Feeling embarrassed, Si Xiaohui felt her face go red. She stole a glance at Tong Yao and noticed that she was busy dipping the tea and hadn’t seen her, which made her feel a bit better.
She waited for the tea to be less hot, took a little sip, and as the rich milk aroma entered her palate, Si Xiaohui felt like she had discovered a great treasure. "This milk tea is amazing!"
"I know, right!" He Fang replied absently, smiling, "I too was astonished when I first had it – how could milk diluted with water taste better than the original?"
He Fang pondered, people from big cities were indeed brighter. Tong Yao whipped up this drink and was making good money. Being knowledgeable sure had its advantages.
"It might be because it contains rock sugar and black tea." Si Xiaohui said, she had never tasted anything this good before. Neither bothered about it being hot, before long, she had downed a full cup.
After drinking the milk tea, Si Xiaohui seemed full of energy and rushed to pick up any job at hand. This left He Fang unsure about what job she could take up, making her awkward. She felt increasingly unsure about her job security.
After much indecision, He Fang finally couldn’t hold back any longer. She pulled Tong Yao, busy pouring tea into the pot, aside. She stuttered, "Sis, I... I need to ask you something."
"Sister Fang, feel free to ask away," said Tong Yao, her big eyes peering at He Fang. She thought He Fang was about to ask for an advance on her salary, considering her husband had been domestically violent when he couldn’t get hold of any money the previous day.
"Sis, I..." He Fang didn’t know how to begin. After a moment’s thought, she decided to speak up, as that seemed better than keeping it bottled up. "Sis, did you bring Xiaohui here because there’s something I’m not doing right?"
The stall was not large enough to comfortably accommodate three workers. For instance, after Si Xiaohui finished all her jobs, He Fang could only stand awkwardly at a corner.
Maybe Tong Yao didn’t want to fire her right now, but with time, she might decide she couldn’t keep her. If He Fang were the boss, she too wouldn’t want redundant workers. After all, who dislikes having extra cash?
"Sister Fang, so you’re worried about that?" Tong Yao, smiling, said, "You misunderstood. I brought Xiaohui here not to replace you, but to lighten our workload, so that if I can’t make it here one day, you two wouldn’t be affected. Also, I plan to add more variety to our milk tea offerings in the future – that’s why I brought Xiaohui here: to learn the ropes."
When the stall grows bigger, it will definitely need two or three staff. Once the word gets out, the locals too will come for the milk tea. That’s how she plans to grow and expand the business. In fact, she is even contemplating opening more branches in the future.
He Fang was stunned. "So, you’re not planning to fire me?"
Did she get it all wrong?
"Absolutely not," Tong Yao reassured her.
"Oh, sis! Can’t express how grateful I am..." He Fang choked up with emotion and almost knelt down before Tong Yao. "I’m so lucky to have met you... don’t know where NiuNiu and I would be without you."
Tong Yao dreaded such emotional flare-ups. Seeing some students approaching to buy milk tea, she swiftly changed the topic, "Sister Fang, some customers are here. Let’s serve them first and talk later."
"Oh, sure, sure," He Fang said, wiping her tears, and quickly put herself back together before rushing to assist the customers.
The business went well on Monday, and with the start of school hours, students trooped in to buy milk tea before entering the school gate. Si Xiaohui and He Fang were both extremely busy but in high spirits.
This was Si Xiaohui’s first time earning money and she felt quite cheerful. On the other hand, He Fang felt at ease because her job was secure.
Yesterday when Tong Yao went to take a bath, she got her period. She woke up in the morning and feeling lazy decided to take it easy. With two others around helping, she decided to rest under the shade of a nearby tree while they worked.
School started soon and the students had gone in. Si Xiaohui and He Fang started pouring milk tea into cups during this break. Although bringing one’s own cups would save money, many students preferred drinking milk tea with a straw from the cups they provided.
As the two were busy, a pair of large feet appeared in front of the stall. Si Xiaohui looked up to see a man reaching out to grab a cup of milk tea from the table. Just as she was about to say ’a penny a cup’, He Fang suddenly shouted out.
"What are you doing here?"
Tong Yao, who was dozing off, immediately opened her eyes. She saw Aqiang and another man who looked like a short winter melon standing in front of the stall. They were a perfect pair, equally short, fat, greasy, and annoying. Calling them winter melons would be an insult to winter melons.
Aqiang glanced lazily at Tong Yao and Si Xiaohui before finally landing his gaze on He Fang. His eyes widened, "So what? I can’t be here?"
"I...I didn’t say you can’t be here..." He Fang recoiled a little, her voice dropping a few decibels. "I’m at work... don’t cause any trouble."
"I just came to see if you were really selling milk tea here. What trouble can I cause?" Aqiang handed the milk tea in his hand to the other man, after which he helped himself to another cup from the table. "Get me two straws."
"That costs a penny per cup," He Fang said, wishing she could hide all the milk tea away. It was ok when she had it for free, but when they had to buy it, it suddenly seemed very expensive to her.
