Chapter 313 - 300: Good Drama
This trap that Feng Yongkang had set was thought through, and his heart was utterly ruthless.
Zhuang Qingning squatted down, her eyes filled with a cold smirk.
This smirk sent chills down the spines of the three men, causing them to feel a terrified shudder in their hearts.
“Miss Zhuang, Manager Zhuang, madam, we were really blinded this time. Please show mercy and forgive us…”
Having said this, they began bowing their heads as if pounding garlic.
“Actually, this matter is negotiable. If you can help me with something, we can consider this matter settled and I won’t seek any trouble with you.” Zhuang Qingning hinted with a half-smile.
“Please tell us, madam. As long as we can do it, even if we had to climb a mountain of knives or descend into a sea of fire, just say the word.” The lead man saw a glimmer of hope and quickly agreed.
“I don’t expect you to climb a mountain of knives or descend into a sea of fire, all I need is…”
Zhuang Qingning lowered her voice, and whispered some instructions into the man’s ear.
“Yes, yes, yes! We will do that, rest assured, madam, please wait for the news. We will arrange it tonight!” The lead man responded hastily and, as an indication of respect, bowing his head somewhat violently twice more.
“Then you should hurry off.” Zhuang Qingning stood up, turned around, and went back behind the counter.
“Yes, yes, yes.” The three men struggled to stand back up, eager to leave this place of conflict.
“Wait.” Zhuang Qingning raised her hand slightly.
“Do you have more orders, madam?” The three men quickly halted and returned, bowing and scraping.
“Clean up the mess on the floor, leave the silver on the counter, and come to report back after three days. I will return this silver to you, untouched.”
Initially, they thought Zhuang Qingning had changed her mind, but it turned out it was because of this matter. The three men quickly borrowed a broom and dustbin from Mrs. Cao and cleaned up the shop. Then they left the shop, bowing and scraping with fake smiles plastered across their faces.
“Miss Ning.”
Zhang Yongchang, leading a group of people, including Lian Rong, rushed over furiously, each of them clutching items such as rolling pins, spatulas, ready to drive away the villains who caused trouble in the tofu shop and protect Zhuang Qingning.
However, when they reached the shop’s entrance, they saw three sturdy men with swollen faces looking humble and cautious, leaving the shop gingerly, their mouths filled with words of reassurance for Zhuang Qingning.
Zhang Yongchang and the others were stunned, and they stopped in disbelief at the scene before them.
And the three men, upon seeing Zhang Yongchang and his group had come to reinforce Zhuang Qingning, their faces turned deathly pale.
They had just been beaten up and now faced a larger group of people. Wasn’t this simply inviting another beating?
If they didn’t fight back, they would get beaten up. If they did fight back and hurt someone, would the madam inside ignore it? Wouldn’t that just cause them more trouble?
The three men glanced at each other, reassuring each other with their eyes.
Then they turned around and ran as fast as lightning, pushing their way through the crowd and disappearing in an instant.
Only then did Zhang Yongchang and others snap out of their daze, and spat on the ground in disgust.
“Damn it, they got off lightly!”
But under such circumstances, seeking revenge was secondary; the key was Zhuang Qingning’s safety. Zhang Yongchang, putting his anger towards the ruffians aside, hurried into the shop.
“Miss Ning, are you alright?”
Zhang Yongchang put down the large iron spoon in his hand, grabbed Zhuang Qingning and examined her carefully from head to toe.
“I am fine. Those people didn’t have the guts to cause real trouble.” Zhuang Qingning let out a small chuckle. “As you can see, those guys already fled. Don’t worry, Uncle Zhang.”
“As long as you’re okay, that’s all that matters.” Seeing that Zhuang Qingning was indeed unharmed, and noting the orderly state of the shop, coupled with the panic-stricken retreat of the thugs, Zhang Yongchang fully relaxed. However, he was still quite furious.
“Where did these people come from, daring to cause a ruckus in broad daylight, they are really audacious!”
“Money talks, it is not that surprising.” Zhuang Qingning laughed.
“What do you mean by…”
Somebody incited them?
Zhang Yongchang frowned, thinking for a moment, and then stomped his foot in anger. “This scoundrel! His heart is deteriorating by the day, even resorting to sabotaging other businesses!”
“No, I have to talk to him!”
Ever since the incident at Fushun Tower, Zhang Yongchang intended to go and check on the situation. But Feng Yongkang interpreted his visit as mockery, threw a fit and verbally attacked him. After this incident, Zhang Yongchang had put his many years of friendship with Feng aside.
Over time, he frequently heard people saying that Feng Yongkang was expressing discontent behind their backs about Zhuang’s Tofu Shop and Ruyi Pavilion. He always added some curses, speaking with great disregard, which disgusted Zhang Yongkang.
Right now, seeing Feng Yongkang intending to cause trouble for Zhuang Qingning, Zhang Yongchang couldn’t stand by.
“Uncle Zhang.” Zhuang Qingning stopped Zhang Yongkang. “If he could be reasoned with, he wouldn’t have caused all these troubles recently. If you go and talk to him, not only will you waste your breath, but he will also be pleased to see your anger, and that will make him happy.”
“So we’re going to let him go like this?” Zhang Yongkang felt that it was difficult to swallow this resentment.
“How can that be? I’m not that kind of person…”
Zhuang Qingning broke into a giggle.
“What plan have you come up with?” Seeing Zhuang Qingning grinning like a cunning fox, Zhang Yongkang became curious.
“Uncle Zhang, just wait and enjoy the show in the coming days.”
The great performance, what kind of tableau?
Not only Zhang Yongkang, but Ma Tong and Lian Rong were all looking at each other, feeling puzzled.
The stormy squabble quickly subsided. With the absence of the troublemaking ruffians, the tofu shop returned to its usual calm and liveliness.
Customers continued to come and go, and the business was as prosperous as ever.
Zhuang Qingning busied herself in the shop until the afternoon when Zhuang Sifu arrived with a delivery and the market crowd had slightly subsided. Then she left to go home.
Upon arrival, she was warmly greeted by Zhuang Qingsui and Snowball.
“Did you practice your writing well at home today?” Zhuang Qingning patted Zhuang Qingsui’s head and casually stroked Snowball.
The little kitten had grown a bit bigger after being raised at home for a while. Perhaps because of the good food, it had even grown rounder, further fitting its name ‘Snowball.’
“I practiced hard. Here, sister, have a look.” Zhuang Qingsui presented all the day’s work to Zhuang Qingning. “These are the ones I wrote, and these are the ones Mingli wrote. Could you take a look at them, sister?”
“Hmm.”
Zhuang Qingning inspected them carefully and nodded slightly. “You have made some progress. However, your handwriting seems a bit floating. You should concentrate more when writing..”