The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 123: Butterfly Effect

Before returning home to harvest the wheat, Gu Dahuan went to deliver some pastries to the Lu Family along with Qin Qingyou.

Upon their return, they brought back two of the tools Tong Huaqiong had been dreaming about.

The tool was a gear-operated beater.

It was said that Lu Chaoyang had mobilized skilled craftsmen from the local branches of their family’s business, and eventually, a craftsman from Shengjing dismantled the electric beater that Man Er had brought over and modified it into a hand-operated gear beater.

It’s undeniable that with business expansion comes numerous advantages, especially in terms of connections, which are far beyond what some merchants in Yan Guan Town can offer.

Therefore, Tong Huaqiong made a silent determination not to be satisfied with the small Yan Guan Town, and certainly not just with the pastry shop. She must explore new business opportunities and, like the Lu Family, spread her own business nationwide.

Tong Huaqiong tried using the hand-operated gear beater to whip egg whites. Although not as fast as the electric beater, it was much quicker and more labor-saving than using chopsticks or millet stalks. Moreover, the whipped egg whites were just as fluffy and stable as those beaten by an electric beater.

Tong Huaqiong was very satisfied with the performance of the hand-operated gear beater.

Indeed, there are great inventors in every era.

"How is Mr. Lu doing?" Tong Huaqiong asked Gu Dahuan.

She remembered Lu Zhaozhao’s illness.

The last time they met, she speculated that Lu Zhaoyang had symptoms of gluten intolerance and would be fine as long as he avoided wheat-based products.

She didn’t know if her conclusion was correct or not.

"Mr. Lu sent a message to thank you. He said ever since he stopped eating wheat-based foods, he hasn’t fallen ill again. This time when I saw Mr. Lu, he looked much healthier than before, and he didn’t even get out of breath while talking," Gu Dahuan said.

Upon learning of Lu Zhaoyang’s improvement, Tong Huaqiong let out a sigh of relief.

Lu Zhaoyang’s fate should change from now on.

With him alive, as the most outstanding student of Wanliu Academy, he is bound to shine in the imperial examinations, and may even achieve the top rank.

In the future, the numerous Wanliu Academy alumni in the court would not follow Gu Jingzhe but rather Lu Zhaoyang.

Furthermore, with Lu Zhaoyang’s exceptional talent, it’s only a matter of time before he becomes a prime minister after serving as a minister.

The change in Lu Zhaoyang’s fate would also bring a change in Lu Zhaozhao’s fate.

With a Champion Scholar as a brother, it’s likely that Lu Zhaozhao will become the object of marriage alliances among many high-ranking families in Shengjing, possibly even becoming a Princess Consort or General’s wife.

However, regardless of who Lu Zhaozhao ends up with, Tong Huaqiong felt it would be better than being with Gu Jingzhe.

Since Lu Zhaozhao suffered enough from love and the Gu Family in her previous life, she deserves compensation in this life.

Tong Huaqiong found herself in Tong Dajiao’s body, like a butterfly flapping its wings, changing the life trajectory of the Lu siblings.

She felt she was atoning for Tong Dajiao’s past life on her behalf.

Since she was atoning for Tong Dajiao, it wouldn’t be too much to live like a matriarch, making those ungrateful children respect her and live according to her mood, would it?

"Well, Shopkeeper, with the wheat nearing harvest, I’d like to take a few days off to harvest. You know, it’s just my parents and me at home, and I’m afraid the two of them can’t manage it all," Qin Qingyou requested hesitantly after completing the task of delivering pastries.

Originally, his parents said that since he and Qiao Yun had finally found stable work following Tong Huaqiong, they shouldn’t take leave lightly, and the two of them could handle the wheat harvest.

But Qin Qingyou, being a filial son, couldn’t bear to see his parents suffer. Plus, with quite a bit of land at home and the worry of rain, he decided to take leave from Tong Huaqiong.

Qin Qingyou’s leave request touched Tong Huaqiong’s concerns, as she had been somewhat worried over the past few days.

Wheat harvest season is a major event, in this place without machinery, everything relies on manual labor.

Once the wheat is harvested, it needs to be threshed using a stone roller, dried, and stored. And that’s not all—after storing the wheat, there’s also maize and beans to sow.

Only when the next season’s crops are planted does the entire wheat harvest season end.

Moreover, everyone in the household needs to participate in the effort. If it suddenly rains or hails, the entire season’s harvest could be gone.

So, even the strictest shops allow their rural clerks to return home to assist in the harvest during the wheat season.

Taohua Dessert is no exception.

Most employees at the shop need to harvest their wheat.

Tong Huaqiong’s family alone has several acres of wheat fields; relying on Gu Dahuan alone would probably exhaust him without getting the job done.

It’s reasonable and necessary to give everyone time off for the wheat harvest.

In other shops in the town, clerks from the countryside are also given leave for the harvest.

Taohua Dessert can’t keep itself isolated from these practices.

However, Taohua Dessert is a newly opened business, and it needs to continue establishing its market presence. She’s worried that Crispy Food Garden might take advantage of the wheat harvest season to damage the foundation Taohua Dessert has just built.

After considering, Tong Huaqiong said to Qin Qingyou, "The wheat harvest season is indeed very important, and I’ve been thinking about this issue too. Gather everyone here; I have some things to discuss."

Understanding that Tong Huaqiong was about to hold a meeting, Qin Qingyou gathered all the shop’s clerks.

Tong Huaqiong’s main principle was that while it’s wheat harvest season, and families with wheat crops shouldn’t be delayed in harvesting, the business at the shop also needs attention.

This requires reasonable allocation of the shop’s personnel.

Qin Qingyou stated that his family could manage the harvest with just him and his parents, and for the threshing, his uncles and cousin would come to help, leaving Qiao Yun at the shop.

Liu Shan said that they didn’t need the help of the Hu Family for their wheat, so the Hu Family could stay at Taohua Dessert to continue baking pastries.

Ma Huateng’s family had no land, so they didn’t need to worry about the wheat harvest. Gu Xiaocao’s family had little land, and her parents had already told her that they didn’t need her for the harvest, allowing her to sell pastries at Taohua Dessert with peace of mind. After harvesting their two acres of wheat, they planned to help Gu Dahuan with the threshing.

Just in time, Hong Xiaoxi had also resigned from Crispy Food Garden and officially joined Taohua Dessert. As the youngest son in his family, he discussed with his older siblings and parents and wouldn’t need to return to help with the harvest.

As for Tong Huaqiong and those few ungrateful ones, Tong Huaqiong planned to stay behind to bake pastries and oversee the overall situation. Gu Taohua would stay to handle customer service, while Gu Jingzhe, being quick-witted, would stay at the shop to handle any emergencies. Gu Dahuan and his wife, along with Gu Dashu and his wife, would return home to harvest the wheat.

Tong Huaqiong recorded everyone’s situation and found that the personnel arrangement was more optimistic than expected. In fact, the core staff at the shop wouldn’t need to go home for the harvest.

Additionally, during the wheat harvest season, customer flow would certainly be less than usual, so the core personnel could fully handle the situation.

Liu Yueer didn’t quite want to go back for the wheat harvest, but she dared not defy her mother-in-law’s orders.

The Gu Family’s fields weren’t extensive, so the second couple, as long as they were as diligent as the first couple, could quickly finish the harvest. Tong Huaqiong suggested that once Gu Dashu and his wife’s fields were harvested, they should help the Liu Family, who had more wheat.

With the help of Gu Dashu and his wife, Liu Shan would also find it easier, and everyone working together would finish the tasks earlier, allowing them to return to work sooner.

Starting from tomorrow, the personnel arrangement decided today would be in effect until the wheat harvest was over.

While Tong Huaqiong was assigning the remaining tasks to the employees in the shop, Gu Baishuang arrived.

Of course, Gu Baishuang came looking for her younger brother, Gu Dahuan, to discuss something.

Tong Huaqiong didn’t pay much attention, seeing it as nothing more than the issue of their parents’ burial arrangements. She had already made her stance clear: they could do as they wished. As for that old cucumber, Old Gu, she didn’t want any part of it.

She wouldn’t even attend the ceremony. Isn’t spending that time earning money in the town more worthwhile?