The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 385 - 384: The Opening of the Private Kitchen Restaurant

Chapter 385: Chapter 384: The Opening of the Private Kitchen Restaurant

"Mrs. Zhuang, since you gave me that bag, it has become my wealth. When I get old, I definitely plan to pass it on to my children, right?"

Zhuang Xueqi thought for a moment, propping her chin up, "Continue."

"But my two kids are still young, and I’m not sure if the purse will still be in good condition by the time they grow up."

"So, I figured I’d sell the purse and exchange it for something else that can hold its value, ensuring it will reach my children in the future."

Zhuang Xueqi’s curiosity was piqued, "What did you exchange it for?"

"A house, right near my place. Just saw the owner put up a ’for sale’ sign. I used the money from selling the purse and some of my own to buy it."

"Don’t you already have a house? Why buy so many houses?"

"Investment, ah. In a while, I’ll rent out the house. The rent will be at least five or six hundred a year. When the kids are older, I can take back the house as their wedding home. How great is that?"

Zhuang Xueqi snorted coldly, "You sure know how to pinch pennies."

Shen Mingzhu chuckled, "So, have you cooled down now?"

Zhuang Xueqi gave her a look and pointed to the mountain of wedding gifts on the bed, "I keep my word. There are a few nice bags in there, pick one."

"No need, Mrs. Zhuang. But, if your family has old items that are of no use, instead of letting them take up space, you might consider selling them at a reduced price. The money you get could be used for some investments and financial management."

Zhuang Xueqi stared at her as if she had heard something unbelievable.

"Shen Mingzhu, do you know that with the money in our family’s private accounts, my brother and I couldn’t spend it all in ten lifetimes? To bother for such pittance, selling junk? Are you out of your mind?"

Shen Mingzhu was not deterred by Zhuang Xueqi’s outburst, "Mrs. Zhuang, in my humble opinion, relying on oneself is better than relying on anyone else. A woman should always have her own assets, a means of advance and retreat in marriage, to remain invincible at all times."

"Of course, the Zhuang Ning families are both prestigious, and such actions could indeed bring shame to both families, so..."

Shen Mingzhu flashed a toothy grin, "It’ll be left to the poor like me to do it, then no one will gossip."

...

After returning to her guest room with empty hands, Shen Mingzhu almost punched herself in frustration.

What’s the point of being noble? A bag worth thousands or tens of thousands, only an idiot would refuse.

"Mom, what’s wrong?"

Pei Ziheng had already packed their luggage and was sitting obediently on the bed waiting for her. Seeing her frustration and hitting her head, he hurried over to see if she was okay.

"Erza, Mommy just did something foolish..."

When Pei Ziheng realized Shen Mingzhu regretted not accepting the purse Zhuang Xueqi had offered, he comforted her warmly, "Mom, just wait. When I grow up a bit, I’ll make lots and lots of money and buy you many, many bags."

Looking at her son’s beautiful and sensible face, all of Shen Mingzhu’s displeasure vanished like smoke.

"Okay, then I’ll wait for you to buy your mom her first Xiaoma."

"Yeah! Mom, what color Xiaoma do you like?"

"Mint green."

Are there mint green horses?

Pei Ziheng was skeptical, but if his mom liked it, he was determined to find one.

...

After returning to Fengcheng, Shen Mingzhu became busier than before.

Besides taking care of the food factory and the restaurant progression, she also had to make time to meet the wealthy ladies and housewives she had arranged to see on the cruise, to understand their needs for makeup design.

While Shen Mingzhu was swamped, Zhuang Xueqi came knocking at her door, bringing with her five large boxes of luxury goods.

Two boxes contained bags, one was filled with unworn clothing, another with perfumes, watches, jewelry and such, and the last box held shoes.

"You said before that you could handle this for me. Are you going to eat your words?"

Seeing Shen Mingzhu gape in astonishment, Zhuang Xueqi questioned her arrogantly.

Shen Mingzhu hurriedly shook her head, "Not at all. I just didn’t expect you to have so much stuff to deal with. It might take some time."

Zhuang Xueqi crossed her legs, "It doesn’t matter, I’m not in a hurry."

After a pause, she pointed to the big cardboard box filled with handbags and told her, "The one on top is for you, consider it your commission."

What?

A twist of fate?

Shen Mingzhu rubbed her small hands together, her face barely concealing her excitement, "Then I would be remiss not to accept it, right?"

"Thank you, Mrs. Zhuang!"

Zhuang Xueqi stood up and walked up to her.

Their inherent heights were not much different, but Zhuang Xueqi was wearing high heels, which gave her a much more imposing presence than Shen Mingzhu.

"Do the job well for me, and I won’t let you down," she said.

"Mrs. Zhuang, rest assured, I will not disappoint you," Shen Mingzhu assured.

After seeing Zhuang Xueqi off, Shen Mingzhu opened the cardboard box of handbags and took out the box on top.

It was a large LV classic tote bag in the brand’s iconic brown monogram leather.

Shen Mingzhu did not plan to sell this bag but to keep it for herself.

Being a small business owner and frequently dealing with rich young ladies and wealthy wives of the upper class, it was time for her to have some presentable accessories.

The items brought by Zhuang Xueqi were tallied up by Shen Mingzhu and Pei Yang until two in the morning, and they carefully cataloged each one.

For the next two days, Shen Mingzhu rode her little scooter all over Fengcheng, to every consignment store big and small, handling the consignment procedures for each item.

After all, these were luxury goods, and keeping them at home was asking for trouble.

From then on, Shen Mingzhu began living the life of collecting money every day.

One day she sold a bag, the next day a watch, and the day after, a necklace.

Eventually, Shen Mingzhu couldn’t keep up and switched to settling accounts every three days, and then once a week.

...

At the end of the month, the Shen Family’s private restaurant officially hung its sign and opened for business.

Private cuisine, as the name suggests, means personal and not available outside.

Shen Mingzhu’s private restaurant had a fixed menu of six dishes, one soup, one appetizer, and one staple food, but the menu changed daily and there was no advance notice—like opening a mystery box.

Therefore, customers needed to book two days in advance.

Before the official opening, Shen Mingzhu held a grand tasting party.

In addition to friends and family, there were clients who had worked with food factories, Pei Ziheng’s teachers, acquaintances from among parents of classmates, as well as wealthy young ladies and wives met on a cruise.

In short, Shen Mingzhu extended an invitation to everyone she knew.

She originally thought that if a third of them turned up, it would be quite good, but to her surprise, the turnout was very supportive, and many even brought friends along.

There were enough seats for the large crowd if everyone squeezed in, but not having enough food was a problem.

In the freezing cold, coming all the way to the outskirts of the city only to leave hungry, what kind of mood would that be?

With no other choice, Shen Mingzhu hurriedly bought three geese and five chickens from nearby villagers, cooking up a big pot of flame-cooked goose and big-plate chicken.

While the hastily prepared dishes weren’t perfect in terms of color, aroma, or taste, the feedback from the guests was surprisingly good.

Shen Mingzhu quickly understood why.

Firstly, it was something they had never had before; secondly, the ingredients were fresh and dishes cooked over a wood fire were definitely better tasting than those cooked with coal.

...

At night, while taking stock of the accounts, Jia Yuemei couldn’t help feeling relieved, "Thank goodness we didn’t pay to open this place. Look, four to five hundred spent in just one day. Who does business like that? She’s bound to lose everything sooner or later!"