Finest Servant - Chapter 184

Chapter 184 The Astute Qiaoqiao

Lin Wanrong looked up to see Qiaoqiao dash down the stairs like a small bird and sprinted toward him. “Big brother, you’re back?” she exclaimed joyfully.

A hint of tears of longing shone in Qiaoqiao’s eyes. Despite not having seen each other for days, she still looked as charmingly bright as ever, though her cheeks had noticeably thinned, and her eyes twinkled with excitement.

Grasping her small hand, Lin Wanrong nodded and said with a grin, “I returned late last night. Had to deal with some matters this morning and only now found some free time. Little darling, have you missed me these past days?” He teased her by gently tickling the palm of her hand.

The restaurant was bustling with diners. Lin Wanrong shamelessly held Qiaoqiao’s hand and flirted with her, causing her to blush crimson and lower her head, unable to meet anyone’s gaze. Still, the sweetness in her heart overflowed onto her face.

Qiaoqiao led Lin Wanrong straight to the fourth floor. Upon entering, he saw old Dong and Qingshan were present, and the renowned beauty from Jinling, Luo Ning, was also there, smiling at him.

“What a gathering! Are you all here to welcome me? You’re all too kind,” Lin Wanrong laughed. Seeing Luo Ning’s amused smile, he added, “Miss Luo, it’s been a few days since we last met. How have you been?”

Luo Ning thought to herself, ‘From the moment you had that confrontation with Young Master Hou to your return from Hangzhou, it’s been merely five or six days. Do you really need such a contrived greeting?’ Smiling, she replied, “Brother Lin, I’ve been well these past few days, though surely not as exciting as you. Word of your deeds in Hangzhou has already spread throughout Jinling: your discernment of diamond, your bravery in washing your hands in boiling oil, these unheard-of exploits are almost magical. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve been turned into storybooks. I’m sure you can hear about them in restaurants and tea houses.” Covering her mouth, she giggled, “Later, Brother Lin, you must give us a good telling.” Qiaoqiao looked on, her eyes filled with admiration.

Feeling embarrassed, Lin Wanrong laughed and said, “Good deeds are seldom heard, while bad news travels fast. That’s the saying, isn’t it? Miss Luo, your dedication to public welfare, your aid to the orphaned and disabled, these are the deeds that should be praised.” Luo Ning blushed, feeling too shy to say more.

Turning to Qiaoqiao, Lin Wanrong asked, “Everyone seems to be here today, Qiaoqiao. Are you all discussing something?”

Qiaoqiao smiled sweetly, guiding him to a chair and said, “Big brother, your return is timely. Indeed, we were discussing something. Since Sister Ning had something to discuss as well, we asked her to join us.”

Lin Wanrong noticed the way Qiaoqiao spoke was still charming and coquettish, but there was a newfound maturity and competence in her. Although she was not as experienced as Xiao Yuruo, he was pleased to see her progress. Managing a restaurant was indeed a great test of one’s mettle. Qiaoqiao, from being a simple young girl, was slowly transforming into a successful business manager.

“Oh, what matter would call for our boss Qiaoqiao to summon such a meeting?” Lin Wanrong teased, his hand stealthily reaching under the table to hold Qiaoqiao’s hand.

Qiaoqiao’s face was flushed with embarrassment as she tightly held his hand. “Big brother, you are making fun of me. It is you who is the boss,” she said, her voice soft.

Luo Ning watched their playful exchange and couldn’t help but interject, “There is no need for you two to deny it. One of you is the boss, and the other is the boss’s wife, hehe.”

Lin Wanrong adjusted his hat, smiled coquettishly, and declared, “That’s how it should be. Miss Luo has voiced exactly what’s in my heart.”

Both delighted and embarrassed, Qiaoqiao glanced at Luo Ning and cooed, “Sister Ning, you’re teasing me too.” Despite her words, everyone could see the happy blush that colored her face. Everyone burst into laughter. Qiaoqiao bowed her head, her hand still tightly holding onto her big brother’s hand.

Seeing her shyness, Lin Wanrong deflected, “Qiaoqiao, let’s first talk about what you wanted to discuss this time, shall we?”

Seeing the encouraging look on Lin Wanrong’s face, Qiaoqiao nodded, tidied the hair by her ear, and said seriously, “This time, we are discussing expanding the restaurant.”

Remembering the last time this topic was discussed, Lin Wanrong was delighted. “Qiaoqiao, have you found a place?”

Seeing Qiaoqiao nod, Lin Wanrong was overjoyed, laughing, “So, our second restaurant is about to open? Qiaoqiao, you’re really capable.”

Luo Ning, watching him laugh, said, “Brother Lin, Boss Lin, you are mistaken, it’s not the second restaurant—”

Lin Wanrong was puzzled. “What do you mean by that, Miss Luo?”

Luo Ning giggled, covering her lips. “Brother Lin, how can you be clever all your life, but confused for a moment? These days, Qiaoqiao has been selecting suitable locations with me, and she has chosen two places. What is about to open is not the second, but the second and third restaurant, both at once.”

“Opening two at once, what a good omen,” Lin Wanrong looked at Qiaoqiao in surprise and delight, “Is this true, Qiaoqiao?”

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Qiaoqiao said, “Big brother, I found two places and we’ve negotiated the prices. We’re just waiting for you to decide.”

With a sweep of his hand, Lin Wanrong said, “Why wait for me? You manage the restaurant, I don’t interfere. Everything is up to my little darling.”

Qiaoqiao’s face flushed with surprise and joy. She quickly stole a glance at Old Dong, seeing that he seemed to have heard nothing, she relaxed. Her big brother was so bad, how could he say such affectionate words out in the open? Couldn’t he have said them in private? The more she thought about it, the hotter her face felt.

Luo Ning was used to Lin Wanrong’s outrageous remarks. Seeing his trust in Qiaoqiao, she couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, Lin Wanrong was a good scholar, had good insight, and good skills. Qiaoqiao was lucky to have such a husband.

Unfazed, Lin Wanrong laughed, “Qiaoqiao, tell us where these two places are that you’ve chosen? When will we start the renovation? I can offer some suggestions.”

Qingshan piped up, “Big brother, sister is amazing. The two places she chose, one is on the Qinhuai River and the other is in the Confucius Temple, both are renowned locations. Together, they cost twelve thousand silver taels.”

Twelve thousand taels of silver? This was quite a hefty sum. He hadn’t expected his delicate Qiaoqiao to be so capable. He had truly underestimated his little treasure. But where had she obtained such a sum? Lin Wanrong knew about the restaurant’s financial status. Although it was making money hand over fist, since its opening, it had probably earned about eight or nine thousand taels of silver. However, to buy two restaurants at once, it would surely be stretched thin.

Qiaoqiao understood his doubt and smiled, “Big brother, do you remember the method you used to buy this restaurant?” Lin Wanrong nodded, how could he forget, it was a mixture of cunning and coercion, coupled with taking out a loan.

Qiaoqiao whispered, “I used the reputation of our restaurant as collateral, negotiated with the owners of the two locations, paying half of the sum upfront, with the agreement to repay the remaining half within half a year, with monthly interest.”

So that’s how it was. This girl had immediately put into practice what she learned. It was truly endearing, Lin Wanrong mused. The last time, he had taken this place by cunning and coercion. This time, Qiaoqiao took advantage of his experience. She didn’t need to employ the same drastic measures, instead, she leveraged the greatly appreciated asset of the restaurant for financing. This maneuver was one that Lin Wanrong often used, having seen it plenty of times. Real estate developers played even dirtier games, taking something out of nothing was not a myth. But in this era, to have such courage and insight, especially for a young woman, it was really remarkable. It was such a pity that Qiaoqiao wasn’t in real estate.

Lin Wanrong was inwardly very pleased, ‘my eye for talent is truly not to be underestimated, this move of Qiaoqiao’s was brilliantly executed. In the blink of an eye, I’ve become the owner of a chain of three restaurants.’

Luo Ning gave Lin Wanrong a meaningful look, laughed and said, “I was there with Qiaoqiao when we negotiated with the two owners. When Qiaoqiao proposed this idea, the two owners didn’t dare to agree initially. Luckily, our restaurant has a very good reputation, coupled with Qiaoqiao’s willingness to use the restaurant as collateral and offer a high interest rate, they reluctantly agreed. I was extremely worried at the time. This way, we not only borrowed a large amount of debt, but the monthly interest alone was several hundred taels of silver, the pressure was immense. If things went wrong, we might even lose the restaurant. Later when Qiaoqiao said someone had successfully employed this method before, I wondered, who came up with this mad idea.”

‘That madman was me, wasn’t it?’ Lin Wanrong coughed awkwardly and asked, “Qiaoqiao, now that we’ve done this, how much silver do we have left for liquidity?”

Qiaoqiao replied, “Since you have no objections, Big brother, I will immediately sign the contracts with these two owners, paying out six thousand taels of silver first. The remaining cash, deducting the one thousand taels you promised for the poetry competition sponsorship, we’ll have about three thousand taels left.”

Speaking of the poetry competition, Lin Wanrong slapped his forehead. Ah, that was why Luo Ning had come to see him; the sponsorship money hadn’t been paid yet. Now with the opening of two new restaurants and sponsoring the poetry competition, these good deeds converging presented a golden opportunity for advertising. He had to part with that thousand taels of silver. Damn it, being a big boss and still so poor. Luckily, there was the commission from the Xiao family’s perfume and soap, otherwise, he would have been a very pitiful boss indeed.

Lin Wanrong did a quick calculation. The poetry competition was scheduled for the end of the month, still more than twenty days away. If the renovation of these two restaurants was hastened, they should be able to open before the competition. Damn, those so-called scholars and poets would cost him a thousand taels of silver, but he intended to advertise, to advertise like there was no tomorrow. The money he spent would have to be earned back from them, tenfold, even a hundredfold.

Lin Wanrong shared this idea with Qiaoqiao, who smiled sweetly and said, “Big brother, I had the same thought. The materials and artisans have already been prepared in advance, all awaiting your command.”

Having Qiaoqiao around certainly made his life as a boss easier, Lin Wanrong nodded and said, “Then let’s proceed with this plan. Also, Miss Luo, rest assured, I will not be a penny short of the thousand taels I promised you. I’ll have Qiaoqiao collect it from the accounts room for you later. But don’t forget my request, hehe, from the large paintbrushes and paper, down to every piece of toilet paper in the restroom, the emblem of my restaurant must be everywhere.”

Luo Ning blushed slightly and retorted, “Brother Lin, I have never doubted your credibility. I didn’t come today for this matter, but for another reason, which also concerns you.”

Lin Wanrong responded, “Concerns me? That’s quite strange, my name is usually only associated with silver.”

Luo Ning covered her mouth and giggled, “Brother Lin, I have some good news for you.” She pointed gracefully to the couplet hanging in the restaurant and said with a radiant smile, “Someone has managed to match your couplet.”