The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 221: Public Opinion Turmoil
Since the opening of Taohua Dessert, it has always been smooth sailing, even when facing off against Crispy Food Garden, it was considered a "high-end business battle" in terms of strategy.
Gu Taohua is encountering for the first time such a crude and simple method of slandering Taohua Dessert in front of customers.
You have to admit, although Nanny Cai and Xu Zaohua’s methods are not clever, they are effective.
If not handled well, it could bring catastrophic impact to Taohua Dessert.
Xu Zaohua has always been at odds with Gu Taohua since they were young, the two often quarreled when they were in Qinghe Bay, and this time Xu Zaohua clearly came prepared.
After all, Gu Taohua is just a fourteen-year-old girl, faced with such a situation, she couldn’t help but panic a little.
She slightly regretted not overturning Xu Zaohua’s carriage early this morning.
"This nanny, you said you bought hazelnut cake from my place, but I’ve been in the shop since it opened today and didn’t see you being served." The clerk who served the little maid from the Zheng family stepped out of the shop and said loudly.
Only he could say this, after all, Gu Taohua just arrived and hadn’t seen with her own eyes whether anyone from the Zheng family entered Taohua Dessert or bought hazelnut cake.
The clerk was quite angry.
This nanny and the little maid, after failing to eat hazelnut cake for free at Taohua Dessert, resorted to slander.
Even the luxurious clothes she wore couldn’t hide this nanny’s opportunistic nature.
Who says that wealthy families don’t pay for goods, and expect things for free?
"Of course you don’t recognize me because I didn’t buy it, my family’s little maid did. My young madam had a bad stomach after eating the hazelnut cake; if she weren’t pregnant, I wouldn’t be coming to you. To put it bluntly, the child in my young madam’s belly is as precious as gold; if anything happens, even tying all of you from Taohua Dessert together won’t be enough compensation. Let your shopkeeper come out and speak."
Nanny Cai’s voice grew louder, causing passersby to stop.
Gu Taohua seized the opportunity to ask, pinpointing a loophole in Nanny Cai’s words: "This nanny, don’t worry, if it’s truly a problem from Taohua Dessert, we won’t shy away. I just want to ask, when did your little maid come to buy the hazelnut cake? How many pounds did she buy, and how much did she pay? Can you let your little maid come out for our shop clerk to recognize? If it wasn’t the hazelnut cake from Taohua Dessert, wouldn’t your young madam’s delay be for nothing?"
Nanny Cai sneered: "How many dessert shops are there in Yan Guan Town? If it wasn’t bought from yours, where else could it be? Asking my maid to come out for your clerk to recognize, what do you take my little maid for, a spectacle for your gaze?"
Gu Taohua was momentarily at a loss for words.
The clerk, facing Nanny Cai’s slander, flushed with anger and said: "The nanny is too guilty to let the little maid come and confront us, right? You just want to extort us, right?"
Nanny Cai was waiting for these words, she became increasingly spirited and said: "You brat, twisting black and white, it was your Taohua Dessert’s hazelnut cake that upset my young madam’s stomach, yet you refuse to admit it. Fellow villagers, my master is Zheng Junren from Pingchuan County. With the Zheng family’s financial resources, do I have to resort to extorting Taohua Dessert? The money leaking from my master’s fingers is enough for Taohua Dessert’s monthly revenue."
"Heartless merchants, upsetting my young madam’s stomach."
"I won’t talk to the little brat or clerk, get your shopkeeper out here, let me see what kind of rotten heart and evil seed this shopkeeper is made of to allow such bad hazelnut cakes to be sold."
Nanny Cai shouted loudly, intending to attract everyone’s attention.
She glanced inside Taohua Dessert but didn’t see He Chao.
She didn’t believe He Chao wouldn’t come out.
Her aim, besides severely damaging Taohua Dessert to avenge the Zheng family, was also to cut off He Chao’s retreat.
Seeing more and more onlookers, some even leaving the queue, Gu Taohua became a little anxious, desperately thinking of a countermeasure.
"Taohua Dessert has never had a problem since it opened. How come it’s only today that this young madam had an upset stomach?" someone muttered in the crowd.
"That’s hard to say, just because there hasn’t been a problem doesn’t mean there isn’t one now. These shops are all the same; once they grow, they no longer put customers first. Crispy Food Garden didn’t have any issues in the first half year either, but later didn’t they mix moldy pastries with the good ones? If it hadn’t been discovered, who knows what might have happened?" An elderly man shook his head, carrying the attitude of someone who has seen through everything.
"Then how can we say this nanny isn’t framing Taohua Dessert? This nanny just said the master is the Zheng Junren from Pingchuan County; as far as I know, Crispy Food Garden’s owner is Zheng Junren’s cousin. It’s possible Zheng Junren can’t stand seeing Crispy Food Garden being absorbed by Taohua Dessert and is looking for trouble intentionally." a young man dressed like a scholar said leisurely.
"Though Crispy Food Garden and Taohua Dessert are competitors, the owner of Crispy Food Garden doesn’t have a bad relationship with Manager Tong. Crispy Food Garden went out of business on its own and proposed selling to Manager Tong. Since there’s no enmity between Crispy Food Garden and Taohua Dessert, where does Zheng Junren avenging the owner of Crispy Food Garden come from? It must be that the Eldest Young Madam of the Zheng Family had an upset stomach from eating Taohua Dessert’s hazelnut cake, and here they are." Another lady, passing by Xu Zaohua’s carriage, saw her pale face and felt sympathy in her heart.
...
Amidst the onlookers’ speculation, Gu Taohua told herself to stay calm. She must be able to resolve this turmoil.
"Assistant owner, should I go call Manager He?" the clerk quietly sought instruction from Gu Taohua.
At that moment, Manager He was guiding work in the baking room, unaware of what was happening outside.
Because under Tong Huaqiong’s requirement, Taohua Dessert stipulated that the baking room is a "sterile" environment; anyone entering the baking operation room needs to undergo a series of cleaning processes, and generally, clerks are not allowed in.
So even though the clerks outside knew Nanny Cai was causing trouble, they couldn’t inform Manager He in time.
"No need for now," Gu Taohua said.
"Dear villagers, our Taohua Dessert’s pastries, I believe you’ve bought or sampled, from the stall to the shop, never have there been incidents of upset stomachs."
Gu Taohua didn’t plan to confront Nanny Cai directly; since Nanny Cai was manipulating public opinion, why couldn’t she?
Her mother taught her to use the opponent’s loopholes to counter with magic against magic.
Always remember, sincerity is the ultimate weapon to attract customers, and when necessary, disclose the conflict between the parties for customers to judge for themselves.
Gu Taohua said loudly: "Since this nanny claims she’s a nanny from the Zheng family in Pingchuan County, let me be frank, the Young Madam Zheng, Xu Zaohua, is from our Qinghe Bay, she’s two years older than me, we’ve known each other since childhood. To be honest, Xu Zaohua and I have never gotten along, from childhood till now, we quarreled and fought countless times. The grudge isn’t as deep as a blood feud but enough to mutually detest each other."
"Since Taohua Dessert opened, how come it’s only today that Xu Zaohua has an upset stomach? I believe each of you has your own judgment."
"Since the nanny says Xu Zaohua is pregnant, and she’s carrying the posthumous child of Mr. Zheng, logically they’re quite precious. How come, when you see Xu Zaohua has an upset stomach, you didn’t rush to get a doctor but came to argue at Taohua Dessert first, aren’t you afraid that delaying time might lead to Xu Zaohua losing the child? Aren’t you afraid Zheng Junren and Mrs. Zheng will hold you accountable?"
Xu Zaohua asked Nanny Cai with a smile.
