Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside-Chapter 1053: Don’t Be Too Kind-Hearted

Ms. Lu had never seen such beautiful young ladies before. The two sisters appeared gentle and approachable, their beauty was not one that incited jealousy, but instead made people want to get closer.

That Miss Luo was also attractive, always smiling with a round face that made her seem very likable.

Mrs. Cui hadn’t spoken yet when Mrs. Chen proudly interrupted, "Indeed, the girls from our families are all top-tier in looks, each prettier than the last. They understand proper conduct, respect their elders, whether they are family or outsiders, as long as they are older, they respect them and never speak a single impolite word."

These words were clear, indirectly suggesting that Xu Ling was lacking in manners, scolding Xu Ling once again.

Ms. Lu wasn’t angered; she simply noted Mrs. Chen’s tendency to hold grudges, planning to tell her daughter to avoid provoking Mrs. Chen, and if she did unintentionally, to find a way to make amends quickly to avoid being resented for a lifetime and having old scores brought up whenever there was a chance.

Third Grandma, agitated, scolded Mrs. Chen: "You’re always talking too much, can’t you cut back on your words?"

Then she turned to Ms. Lu and said, "She just has a loose tongue, always speaking without filters. Second Madam Xu, please don’t mind her."

Ms. Lu smiled and replied, "Third Aunt, you’re too polite. Little Sister-in-law Da Gui is a straightforward person, much better than those who hide their thoughts and don’t speak them. I enjoy interacting with people like her."

Mrs. Chen, quite pleased with herself upon hearing this, held Ms. Lu’s hand tightly and said, "Isn’t it a coincidence? I also like engaging with people like Second Sister-in-law Xu, who aren’t pretentious."

She pointed to the previous pages and account book, "Second Sister-in-law Xu, please take a look. If there’s anything wrong, point it out, and we’ll correct it on the spot."

Saying this, she glanced at Gu Jinli, her eyes seeming to say: Humph, I’ve found an expert to look into it right here and now. If there still isn’t an issue, then it’s you making things difficult for me on purpose.

Gu Jinli understood what Mrs. Chen meant but didn’t pay her any mind, sitting with Gu Jinxiu and the others, pretending to be well-behaved.

"Alright, let me have a look." Ms. Lu accepted the pages, hesitated for a moment, and then took a silver plate from Nanny Lu’s hand to clip the papers together before she began to read them.

This act of securing the papers with a silver plate was already different from Mrs. Chen, a farm woman.

Seeing this, Gu Jinli gave Mrs. Chen a look that said: Take the hint yourself.

Mrs. Chen was somewhat embarrassed, knowing her ways were a bit sloppy, but she vowed to improve, promising that once the shop was open, things wouldn’t be managed as chaotically, especially not making errors with the inflow and outflow of silver coins.

Ms. Lu didn’t notice the eye exchanges between Mrs. Chen and Gu Jinli, she focused sincerely on the content of the pages, and upon reading it, she was genuinely impressed by Mrs. Chen, asking: "Little Sister-in-law Da Gui, did you write all this?"

Although the paper was messy, with no stylistic merit to the handwriting, the content was indeed impressive, showing unique insights into running a shop.

Mrs. Chen laughed, "Write? I can’t even read."

She then began to praise, "I dictated it, and my husband wrote it for me. He’s been studying in private school since he was young and recognizes quite a few words. He’s quite learned, known as a child prodigy in ten miles and eight villages back home. If it weren’t for escaping famine, he might have at least become a scholar."

Oh, dear, Gu Jinli almost laughed out loud. You’re really exaggerating, Uncle Da Gui is not bookish at all, and he hasn’t been studying for more than a decade.

Even Third Grandma couldn’t take it, turning to Ms. Lu: "Don’t listen to her boasting, Da Gui did study, but he’s far from the scholar level."

Back then, Da Gui was just like Brother Wang, not fond of studying, often going to school in tears.

Mrs. Chen, displeased, said with raised eyebrows: "Third Aunt, how can you say that? My Da Gui started private school at seven, much better than ninety percent of farmer men. He’s so promising, why shouldn’t I be proud of it?"

The fact that Gu Da Gui had studied and could write was a source of pride for Mrs. Chen for many years; she would boast about it whenever there were many people, making women whose husbands didn’t even know what a letter was, envious.

Third Grandma didn’t bother arguing with her anymore.

Shortly after, Zhu Chahua brought homemade pastries and soybean milk to entertain Ms. Lu and her group and then approached Nanny Lu, saying: "Nanny has worked hard, I’ve prepared a table with refreshments in the side hall on orders, please go and enjoy some to fill your stomach."

After marrying Tong Dalai, Zhu Chahua would still come to serve Gu Jinxiu at the Gu Family, but now her job mainly involved household management, and she wouldn’t stay overnight at the Gu Family’s place, returning home by evening.

Nanny Lu was somewhat surprised, as the Gu Family, though villagers, had manners on par with wealthy families in the county, and they were also considerate enough to entertain accompanying servants, which was impressive.

"Thank you, miss," Nanny Lu thanked Zhu Chahua, then said to Ms. Lu’s two maids, "Lianzhi, Lian Ye, you go and take a break. The old lady will handle things here."

"Yes," the two maids replied softly, then followed Zhu Chahua to the side hall.

Ms. Lu was very thorough, spending a full three-quarters of an hour reviewing the four pages and account book given by Mrs. Chen before she said: "Little Sister-in-law Da Gui, the ideas you and your husband have for running the shop are quite good, but there’s one aspect that’s not very secure."

"What’s not secure? I’ve rewritten it three or four times to include everything I could think of." Mrs. Chen felt exceedingly capable, believing it was Gu Jinli deliberately making things difficult for her, causing her to rewrite so many times, wanting to use Ms. Lu to expose Gu Jinli, so the girl wouldn’t make trouble for her anymore. How did it turn out to have a real issue?

"What exactly is the problem? Quickly tell me, make sure it’s not a mistake." Mrs. Chen urged, somewhat doubting Ms. Lu’s words.

Ms. Lu replied: "In the twenty-third point written by Little Sister-in-law Da Gui, it says that leftover food in the shop, if untouched by customers, should be given to neighbors to help those having hard times. It’s a kind intention, but human nature is unpredictable. Your families’ businesses are doing well, envied by many. Opening a new shop in the prefecture will surely make some people jealous, and there’s a chance someone might bribe neighbors to harm you."

"Even if you think customers didn’t really touch the food, and it’s wasteful to throw it away, helping neighbors, once bribed, could lead to problems. If they suddenly have an incident after eating your food, having to shut down the shop is minor, getting involved with the government office is major. Leftover food should be fed to pigs or given to street beggars in the city, but not to the neighbors."

Ms. Lu explained: "Neighbors have families and clans, and if something happens, it’s a whole family or even a whole village causing trouble. Beggars, without family or household registration, even if someone bribes them to sabotage your food, if they are affected, the government won’t intervene."