Chapter 4

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

Qiao Jinniang sympathized with Miss Lin, so she kept all the staff of Tasty Pavilion.

Being able to resist the temptation of Miss Lin’s ex-husband, these people must be faithful, and she didn’t change the name of Tasty Pavilion. After all, it was an old brand in Chang’an.

As for Myriad Taste, she could open it once she gained a foothold in Chang’an.

After going through all the transfer procedures with Miss Lin through the government, Qiao Jinniang handed her notes worth 50,000 taels of silver, but Miss Lin refused to take them. “This is too much. Isn’t the transfer fee just 30,000 taels of silver? Even when Tasty Pavilion was at its best, it was only worth 50,000 taels of silver.”

Qiao Jinniang said, “Tasty Pavilion is worth it.”

Looking at the extra 20,000 taels of silver notes, Miss Lin bowed to Qiao Jinniang. “Thank you.”

After returning to Tasty Pavilion, Qiao Jinniang arranged accommodation for the staff from Myriad Taste and put up a sign that the restaurant would be closed for a few days.

Qiao Jinniang sat on the table and said to the waiters. “Tasty Pavilion needs to be refurbished, so let’s refurbish the restaurant in the next few days. After that, I’ll choose a good day to reopen it.”

“Yes, Master.”

Qiao Jinniang assigned separate jobs for the staff members, negotiated and set their wages with them, and made it clear to them about the rules of the restaurant. She didn’t return to the Duke Mansion until the sun was about to set.

When she returned to the Duke Mansion, she was told the Duchess had gone to the East Palace.

“Miss, something happened to the Little Ancestor of the East Palace, which happened to concern Third Miss, so Madam could only go…”

Qiao Jinniang asked, “Little Ancestor?”

Hongling replied, “Miss, Little Ancestor is His Majesty’s grandson, the Crown Prince’s two-year-old son. His Majesty and Her Majesty are very fond of him, so everyone in Chang’an calls him ‘Little Ancestor’.”

Qiao Jinniang couldn’t help but feel a little worried. The operas she heard when she was in Lin’an often mentioned that to be in the king’s company was tantamount to living with a tiger, so offending the emperor’s grandson was no trifling matter.

…

In the East Palace.

Qiao Ruoshui was stunned. After being missing for three years, the Crown Prince came back with a child who was very adorable.

Although she wanted to become the crown princess, it didn’t mean that she would apple-polish this illegitimate child.

However, after the child saw her, he ran over crying and called her Mom, asking her to hug him.

As the daughter of Duke Anyuan, Qiao Ruoshui immediately scolded him angrily when she heard that. The little imperial grandson was so frightened by her that he kept crying.

But even so, the little imperial grandson still called Qiao Ruoshui ‘Mom’ and dragged her to stop her from leaving.

Qiao Ruoshui’s maidservant was afraid something bad would happen and hurriedly sent someone back to call the Duchess over, and a maid of the little imperial grandson also went to invite the Crown Prince over.

“Little Ancestor, don’t cry, Miss Qiao is not leaving.” His nanny hurriedly comforted him. “Miss Qiao, could you please say something to comfort him?”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Qiao Ruoshui was annoyed. “What are you talking about, you lowly servant? How can I, an unmarried woman, pretend to be his mother just to please him? This will tarnish my reputation! Do you think I’m someone you can bully…”

“Shut up!” The Duchess happened to arrive at this time. Hearing what Qiao Ruoshui said, she suddenly had a headache. Her second daughter was way too wayward and unruly.

When Qiao Ruoshui saw the Duchess, she said angrily, “Mother, you are finally here. This bad servant wants to ruin my reputation!”

The Duchess saluted the little imperial grandson, but as soon as he saw her, his big eyes blinked and he ran at her, calling her Mom.

The Duchess certainly didn’t dare to respond. “Your Highness, I’m afraid you got the wrong person…”

The little imperial grandson stretched out his chubby little hand and grabbed the Duchess’s sleeve. “Mom, Mommy.”

“The Crown Prince has arrived.”

As an imperial maid chanted, the Duchess and the crowd who was watching on the side all knelt on the ground.

The Crown Prince, dressed in an embroidered gold and black robe, picked up his son who was still crying. “My son is still too young. Duchess, Miss Qiao, I’d like to apologize in his place. You two look a bit like his mother, so he mistook you for his mother. Please forgive him for his offence.”

The Duchess didn’t dare to make the Crown Prince apologize, so she hurriedly said, “No problem, no problem.”

After leaving the East Palace, Qiao Ruoshui was still annoyed. “I wonder which woman of unknown origin gave birth to that b*stard child…”

The Duchess raised her hand and slapped Qiao Ruoshui. “Are you crazy? If your words reach the Crown Prince, everyone in Duke Anyuan’s household will be executed because of you!”

Qiao Ruoshui covered her face and cried. “Mother, you don’t like me anymore because you got Sister back, do you?”

The Duchess warned Qiao Ruoshui. “It is a blessing for you to look like the little imperial grandson’s mother.

“Don’t you want to be the crown princess? Isn’t it a good thing that the little imperial grandson likes you?!”

“He’s just a b*stard child born by a concubine.”

Hearing it, Qiao Ruoyi on the side looked a bit unhappy.

The Duchess patted Qiao Ruoyi’s hand and said, “You have always been steady. Take care of your elder sister when you attend banquets with her.”

Qiao Ruoshui was very annoyed, which increase her ire for that little b*stard even more.

…

It pained the Queen to see the little imperial grandson constantly crying.

She asked the Crown Prince, “Haven’t the people sent to Lin’an come back?”

The Crown Prince sighed. “She’s no longer in Myriad Taste, and no one knows where the people of Myriad Taste have gone.”

The Queen finally crooned her lovely little grandson to sleep. “Then make the third daughter of Duke Anyuan your concubine first.

“As a daughter of Duke Anyuan, she is worthy of the position of the Crown Prince’s concubine. Most importantly, Tuan’er likes her.”

The Crown Prince shook his head and said, “Mother, it’s inappropriate. I’ll order all my men to search for Jinniang all over the country.”

The Queen asked, “Why didn’t you bring her back to Chang’an with you?”

The Crown Prince’s look gave the Queen the answer. “You’re really my good son. Do you think me, your kind mother, will look down on her just because she was not born in an aristocratic family?”

The Crown Prince saluted and said, “Mother, I didn’t mean that, but I was afraid that the Queen Dowager and Imperial Concubine Xian might cause troubles, so I wanted to gain an imperial decree from Father first before bringing her back, but who knew…”

The Queen sighed, “Okay, forget it. You better find her soon. I don’t want to see my little grandson cry himself hoarse again.”

Once a two-year-old child started to understand people’s words, he would cling to his mother the most.

…

Qiao Jinniang was startled awake at mid-night because she just had a nightmare of her Tuan’er being tortured by that b*stard.

Hongling and Luhe, who were guarding outside, heard her crying and hurriedly came inside, asking, “Miss, are you okay?”

Qiao Jinniang coughed. “I’m fine. What’s the time? Is my mother back?”

“It’s 11 pm, and Madam has already returned. The Crown Prince’s son mistook the Third Miss as his mother, so there was some trouble.”

Hongling poured a glass of water for Qiao Jinniang.

Qiao Jinniang took a sip of water. Even the little imperial grandson who was coddled by so many people clung to his mother this much, so how could her poor Tuan’er not miss his mother?

Qiao Jinniang had made up her mind. Once she met the duke tomorrow, she would kneel down and beg him to help find Tuan’er.

She was living a luxurious life in the Duke Mansion, but she didn’t even know if her Tuan’er would have enough to eat.

She didn’t know if that b*stard could take good care of Tuan’er.

Qiao Jinniang couldn’t fall asleep anymore and stayed awake all night.

The maids were dressing her up. Qiao Jinniang had thought that grooming on the boat was cumbersome, but she didn’t expect this to be truly cumbersome.

It was no wonder that she was given four maids. It took nearly a quarter of an hour to just comb her hair. And after that, the maids applied some hair cream on her hair and continued to comb it.

A maid at the side took a hot towel and gently applied it onto Qiao Jinniang’s face.

Two other maids poured out some hand lotion and gently smeared them on Qiao Jinniang’s hands.

Watching this, Nuomi was stunned and said, “Miss, I was too useless. I’m sorry that I took poor care of you.”

Qiao Jinniang smiled. “I liked to sleep late, so I didn’t have enough time for this. Even if you can do all these, I still want to save the time for sleep.”

Her foster parents died three years ago, and although she had the b*stard help her, she was still very busy.

After all, Myriad Taste was a very famous restaurant in South China.

Hongling also smiled and said, “Miss, you can sleep late from now on. The Duchess is so kind to you. You definitely won’t have to get up early.”

After that, she put Qiao Jinniang’s hair in a beautiful winding snake bun, inserted a golden hairpin into her hair, and helped her put on a red dress embroidered with auspicious clouds. All dressed up, Qiao Jinniang looked very elegant and charming.

“Miss, you’re so beautiful.. You’re the best looking girl in the Duke Mansion,” Luhe said fawningly.