The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 50: Emotions Unaffected by Feelings

"I say, Miss Taohua, are there only these pastries left?"

Gu Taohua was feeling a bit down, but when she saw someone coming to buy pastries, she hid her disappointment, put on a smile, and greeted them.

"Yes, this is all that’s left, and it’ll be sold out quickly. Good thing you arrived just in time. If you take all of it, I’ll give you a discount," Gu Taohua said.

"Sure. By the way, I wanted to ask if you’ll have chestnut pastries, date pastries, and coconut pastries tomorrow?" the customer asked.

"Yes, yes, if you want some, come early tomorrow,"

Gu Taohua quickly packed the pastries, took the money, and asked, "Sir, how did you know my name is Taohua?"

The man replied, "The whole Yan Guan Town is talking about it, saying that the pastries from Taohua Dessert are delicious. Seeing your stall run by a young lady, I guessed you must be Taohua."

Initially, this man was a bit disappointed to see Taohua as a plump girl; he had imagined her as a delicate beauty, slender and charming like a peach blossom.

But Taohua’s radiant smile and cheerful demeanor instantly won him over. Her smile had the brightness of spring, and coupled with the fact that her pastries were indeed delicious, he felt his trip was worth it.

Gu Taohua laughed; she had indeed become famous in the town.

Now everyone in town knew her as Taohua.

"Well, sir, remember to come early tomorrow," Gu Taohua said excitedly.

"Sure, I remember, Miss Taohua," the man replied as he walked a few steps away, smiling, waving his fan, and looking back.

Tong Huaqiong witnessed the whole scene, a smile appearing on her lips.

Not bad, Gu Taohua exceeded her expectations. It’s remarkable for someone so young to manage her emotions so well.

No wonder she’s quite plump; turns out she has a big heart and a generous body.

In her previous life, if only Tong Dajiao had cared to guide her, she wouldn’t have ended up with Fan Tong, controlled by him, and eventually burned to death.

"Mom, we’ve sold out our pastries again today,"

Gu Taohua looked at the empty stall, dispelling her gloom from the earlier argument between Fan Tong and her mother, her tone becoming light and cheerful.

"Count how much we’ve earned today," Tong Huaqiong said, equally delighted.

"Twenty-seven taels of silver. Mom, we’ve made twenty-seven taels of silver this time,"

Gu Taohua’s hands trembled with excitement as she counted the money.

Fearful of making a mistake, she counted twice.

"Mom, there’s no mistake; it really is twenty-seven taels," Gu Taohua looked up at Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong patted the thirty taels earned from Huang Yuanwai in the morning, saying, "Including the deposit from Huang Yuanwai, it totals fifty-seven taels."

Gu Taohua was giddy with happiness.

Fifty-seven taels of silver!

Gu Taohua had never seen so much silver, and she had contributed significantly to its earning.

At this moment, Gu Taohua wanted to return to Qinghe Bay and boast about her earnings, making the other girls envious.

The other girls in the village earned money too, but their methods generally involved embroidering handkerchiefs or making knotted cords to sell at town embroidery shops, making at most a few dozen coins at a time, barely earning a few taels in a year.

Many people gossiped behind her back, saying she couldn’t handle a needle and could only eat and sleep.

Now she could finally hold her head high. She might not handle a needle, but that didn’t stop her from making good money.

"Mom, you take care of this money,"

Gu Taohua handed the silver to Tong Huaqiong, who extracted one tael and handed it to Gu Taohua, saying, "Here’s some pocket money for you; buy whatever you want."

Gu Taohua’s eyes lit up, and she asked excitedly, "Really? Can I really have money to spend by myself?"

In the past, no matter how much her mother loved her, she never gave her pocket money, arguing that a girl doesn’t need money, as the family never deprived her of food and drink.

Even when they visited town, her two brothers would accompany her, holding the purse strings.

Though they paid for anything she wanted to buy without hesitation, it was always more comfortable having her own money.

"Not just this time, but every month you’ll get pocket money," Tong Huaqiong said.

Gu Taohua was even happier hearing this; if she had pocket money every month, she could save up to buy jewelry and cosmetics, dressing herself beautifully.

Just like the maid she saw today at Huang Yuanwai’s home.

"Mom, I’m starving; shall we go eat?" Gu Taohua whined, holding her growling stomach.

"Sure, let’s go eat," Tong Huaqiong agreed.

The two only had two steamed buns from home for lunch, barely satisfying their hunger.

Standing and serving customers didn’t feel exhausting, but now that they relaxed, they felt truly hungry, with their stomachs growling.

Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua packed up their stall carefully and went to a nearby food street to have some wontons.

Gu Taohua ordered two bowls, one for each of them, and didn’t order anything else, which slightly surprised Tong Huaqiong.

Normally, four bowls of wontons wouldn’t be enough for Gu Taohua.

"Mom, I’m going on a diet. The maid at Huang Yuanwai’s place looked so pretty in the same pink clothes, whereas I look like a wrapped stone block," Gu Taohua said while stuffing a wonton in her mouth.

Besides, seeing Fan Tong today, she was determined to lose weight, as she was two sizes bigger than him.

Tong Huaqiong supported Gu Taohua’s decision to diet; it was normal for a young girl to want to look beautiful, and for health, Taohua should lose some weight.

As soon as Tong Huaqiong started eating, Gu Taohua finished her bowl and looked expectantly at Huaqiong’s bowl.

"Go ahead and eat," Tong Huaqiong sighed, signaling for another bowl.

"Thanks, Mom, I’ll eat it," Gu Taohua picked up her chopsticks again.

One moment she was determined to diet, and the next, she gave in.

Nevertheless, compared to before, Gu Taohua had made progress. She used to eat four bowls, now only two.

After filling their bellies, like last time, Tong Huaqiong went on a shopping spree.

She bought sugar, flour, various dried fruits, red dates, eggs, and other baking ingredients, also buying five pounds of mutton, three roast chickens, and two fish for a feast at dinner.

The two returned home loaded with goods, arriving at Mr. Xu’s carriage stand and putting their things onto the carriage.

The carriage was already half full of people, and Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua climbed on and sat near the edge.

Mr. Xu had gone to buy pickles for his family, so everyone chatted and laughed while waiting for him to return before they set off.

"Aunt Tong, is Taohua Dessert your and Sister Taohua’s pastry stall?" Liu Qiaoyun asked with a smile, "The whole town is talking about it, saying there’s a pastry shop called Taohua Dessert that looks and tastes amazing. I figured Taohua Dessert must be named after Sister Taohua."

Tong Huaqiong nodded and smiled, "That’s right, Taohua Dessert is indeed ours."

"Seeing how happy you look, the business must be good; I guess you sold out?" Liu Qiaoyun asked enviously.

"Yes, we sold out," Tong Huaqiong said without reservation.

"I’ll try some next time. A colleague bought your jujube cake and said it’s even better than Crispy Food Garden’s," Liu Qiaoyun said.

Tong Huaqiong chuckled, "You’ll know when you try it next time."

Neither confirming nor denying that their pastries were better than Crispy Food Garden’s, she left a sense of mystery.

Such mystery only piqued people’s curiosity further.

As expected, others on the carriage looked at Tong Huaqiong with surprise.

Could Widow Tong really have such good skills, or was it just talk?

Crispy Food Garden was the top bakery in Yan Guan Town.

But remembering the aromas that wafted through the village every night recently, they tended to believe Huaqiong’s skills more.

Tong Huaqiong sat steadily, suggesting that instead of being curious about her pastries’ taste, they should just buy and try them. She wouldn’t mind offering a village discount.

"Mom, aren’t those Second Brother and Third Brother over there?" Gu Taohua pointed towards the street.

Tong Huaqiong followed her finger, seeing Gu Dashi and Gu Jingzhe weaving their way through the crowd, pulling a cart.

A young pig, its hooves bound, lay obediently on the flat cart. It seemed a bit more docile than it had during the day, likely having become a eunuch.