Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 293: Inquiring about the Wine Shop_1

Chapter 293: Chapter 293: Inquiring about the Wine Shop_1

An awakening remark.

Upon hearing Shen Miaomiao’s words, Liao Da immediately stepped out of the room.

Xu Chou was resting in the kitchen. Hearing Liao Da calling for him, he hastily stood up.

"Master Xu, the owner is looking for you." Liao Da was polite to Xu Chou. At first, he found Xu’s appearance a bit frightening, but as time passed, he realized that Xu was a very good man.

"The owner wants me?" Xu Chou was puzzled. Had he made some sort of mistake?

"He wants to inquire about something in your village." After saying that, Liao Da led Xu Chou outside, and Xu Chou simply followed him.

Because of his walking posture, he usually stayed in the back kitchen unless he needed to use the bathroom. He didn’t like going where there were many people.

Even though everyone at the restaurant treated him kindly, he preferred to sit in a corner by himself.

Liao Da led the way. When they reached the door, he knocked and whispered, "Boss, I’ve brought Master Xu."

"Come in."

Opening the door, Liao Da didn’t go in. Seeing Wang Sheng still inside, he gestured to him, and they both left the room together.

"Owner, what do you need me for?" Seeing that neither Nanzhi nor Shen Miaomiao had cold expressions, Xu Chou felt slightly relieved.

"We wanted to ask you about something." Nanzhi said with a smile, pouring a cup of tea for Xu Chou.

Seeing the cup of tea extended before him, Xu Chou was bewildered for a moment. After a little while, he finally said, "Owner, just tell me if there’s anything you need my help with."

"Uncle Xu, we’re wondering if you’re from Niuniu Village?"

"Yes. My hometown is Niuniu Village, but the villagers don’t really know me. It was only after I went back that they found out who I was."

Xu Chou seemed a bit downcast as he spoke.

Ever since he was born, he’d been called a freak by the villagers. His mother never let him leave the house when he was small. Even when people came to buy wine, she would keep him locked in the house.

As he grew older, he often tried to sneak out. But once, he was spotted by the village kids while trying to escape at night. They started throwing stones at him, calling him a goblin.

That time he had injured his head and even sustained a big wound on his leg.

After that, his mother confined him in the house.

It wasn’t until he was fifteen or sixteen that she allowed him to go out and find work on his own.

He went back to his village several times afterwards, but it was always at night, sneaking into the village to give some stuff to his mother.

Fortunately, their house was located at the most secluded part of the village, so nobody had discovered him over these years.

It wasn’t until his mother’s death a month ago that the villagers found out. They had been discussing throwing her corpse into the river. If he hadn’t brought someone to help, he wouldn’t have even been able to keep his mother’s body.

The more he thought about it, the sadder he became, and his eyes gradually became red.

His mother was such a good person, yet she had suffered so much.

Nanzhi looked a bit hesitant. She could tell Xu Chou was not doing well and did not want to open up his old wounds.

"If you have something to ask, just ask. I have come to terms with everything now. I still have to live on my own." Xu Chou spoke firmly. Apart from the redness in his eyes, he didn’t shed a tear.

"Do you know of anyone selling wine in your village?"

Xu Chou was taken aback for a bit. As for selling wine in the village, besides his family, there was only the Li Zheng family at the village entrance.

Perhaps because of him, people in the village were somewhat repelled by his family. Even though their wine was good, mostly outsiders would buy it. The villagers always went to the Li Zhengs’ house.

Perhaps because they had tasted the sweet rewards, the Li Zhengs began to squeeze out his family. When his mother was younger, she would have arguments with Li Zheng, but as she got older, she simply stopped selling wine.

She only kept some in their cellar. She would check on it from time to time.

"Yes, but I don’t know why you’re asking this." Xu Chou was a bit conflicted.

His mother had said that the recipe for their special wine must not be revealed. That was the recipe she brought from Kyoto to Yan City. Even when someone in the village wanted to forcibly marry his mother for the sake of their wine recipe, his mother put her life on the line to resist.

He was treated well by the owner, but he didn’t know if he could trust them.

What if they had come for the wine recipe from the beginning?

Xu Chou’s expression gradually darkened.

He had seen a lot in his twenty odd years of life outside, and his strange appearance only complicated things.

As he was agonizing over this, Nanzhi also told him the truth.

"You are one of us, so we have no reason to hide anything from you. The Xun family, who has been supplying wine to our restaurant, is now unwilling to sell us their wine anymore. They claim that we are women, and selling wine to us would bring bad luck. Now, Liao Da could only buy enough wine from them for another month, which is not a long-term solution.

We have checked with the other wineries in Yan City. Either they don’t make wine as good as the Xun family’s, or they make wine that’s too expensive for us to afford.

Wang Sheng mentioned that his father had bought wine from Niuniu Village years ago. That made me think of asking you."

Nanzhi was troubled by this issue. Going to Niuniu Village was just a shot in the dark. Weren’t there often masters hiding in villages?

After such a string of bad luck, wouldn’t she finally have some good luck?

Xu Chou didn’t say much, only nodding in agreement.

He told Nanzhi to inform him if they needed to go. He could guide them.

After thanking him, Nanzhi told him to rest. Watching Xu Chou’s departing figure, Shen Miaomiao sighed.

"Sister Nanzhi, do you really think we can find it?"

"Don’t worry. If we still can’t find it, we can just buy wine from the Li family. Although it’s not as good, if we sell it a little cheaper, someone will be willing to buy. As for the better wine, we can continue to order from the Liao family. Even though it costs two taels of silver per jar, we can make up for it by selling it at a higher price."

Nanzhi’s finger hadn’t stopped stirring since the conversation started.

She was also worried. The people who came to eat at her place were mostly commoners. In the past, selling wine from the Xun family, which tasted good and was reasonably priced, attracted more and more customers.

If they changed the wine, they didn’t know if they would lose customers.

She heard from her mother that Ms. Cui, who sold cakes, was also fiddling with some roast skewers.

"Nanzhi, there’s a saying that there is always a way when you come to a mountain. Maybe we can buy good wine."

Shen Miaomiao could see that Nanzhi was very anxious, so she quickly massaged her shoulders to comfort her.

By the time the restaurant closed for the night, Nanzhi and Shen Miaomiao asked all the local restaurant workers in Yan City about the wine incident.

In addition to Niuniu Village, Lin Xiaoquan mentioned their neighboring Dawan Village. There were also two places selling wine. Even though the taste couldn’t match up to the Xun family’s, they weren’t bad either. Moreover, a jar only cost four hundred wen.

After receiving this news, Nanzhi and Shen Miaomiao were somewhat relieved. They decided to go there the next day with Lin Xiaoquan and Xu Chou to take a look. If they found something suitable, they would place an order.