Chapter 422: Chapter 409: The Correct Way to Open a Top-Grade Item

Zhuang Qingning laughed, “You must save some mutton soup for me later. I won’t let you guys drink everything up.”

“Don’t worry.” Ma Tong agreed with a smile.

How could they dare to drink it all?

With Zhang Yongchang’s sharp gaze that cut like a knife, they would probably get pierced with a hole with just an additional bowl.

Moreover, it was only because Zhuang Qingning came to Ruyi Pavilion that they got to drink mutton soup. If she didn’t come, they wouldn’t even dream of such a thing. Therefore, they had to properly cater to Zhuang Qingning, ensuring she would frequently visit Ruyi Pavilion.

How could they dare to drink all the mutton soup?

“Miss Zhuang, please hurry back later.” Ma Tong didn’t forget to remind Zhuang Qingning as he watched her leave, unwilling to take his gaze off her even after she had disappeared from sight.

It seemed as if Zhuang Qingning wouldn’t come back if he didn’t watch properly.

It was not until he heard Lian Rong call out for the dishes to be served from inside that Ma Tong came back to his senses. He quickly went to the back kitchen, and along the way, informed Zhang Yongchang of Zhuang Qingning’s visit.

On the other hand, Zhuang Qingning was walking towards the tofu shop.

Before she even reached the shop, someone blocked her way.

“Hey, I want to ask about something.” A chubby, middle-aged woman with a round face started speaking.

She didn’t use the polite term “please,” but directly used “hey,” indicating that she lacked manners.

Zhuang Qingning was slightly displeased and frowned, not wanting to respond.

However, the woman didn’t notice Zhuang Qingning’s distaste and continued, “I want to ask you, do you know anything about the tofu shop?”

Currently in town, the only tofu shop was Zhuang’s. Since she was asking about the tofu shop, naturally it was about Zhuang’s.

And clearly, she didn’t know who Zhuang Qingning was.

Zhuang Qingning immediately became interested and didn’t mind the woman’s rudeness anymore, replying, “What do you want to ask?”

“I know pretty much everything about Zhuang’s Tofu Shop. If you want to ask me, that would be the right person to go to.”

“Really?” The woman’s face instantly lit up in joy, and she burst into laughter.

Her two rows of teeth were yellow, which didn’t look very pleasant.

“Then I want to ask you, how long has this tofu shop been open? Looking at all the people coming and going, it must be making a lot of money, right?” The woman asked.

“What are you…” Zhuang Qingning was getting more confused as the woman began asking about the shop’s profits.

“Ah, don’t be suspicious, the couple running the shop are my brother-in-law and his wife. I am their sister-in-law, Mrs. Guo.” Mrs. Guo explained.

“It’s a vexing tale. My brother-in-law and his wife used to live in the same village as us. Normally, for blood relations, there wouldn’t be much conflict. But they were disgraceful, neglecting their elders and not taking care of them when they were sick. They even despised our family for being poor and refused to talk to us.”

“My husband couldn’t bear to see his own siblings drift apart like that. It was very distressing. He offered a few words of advice, but they became angry and ran off to the town. They opened this big shop in town, yet ignore us completely.”

“We didn’t want to kowtow to them since they were the ones in the wrong, but recently we have been having dreams about our deceased father crying. He said he couldn’t rest peacefully in the underworld due to the discord between his sons.”

“That made us restless, and we thought we should at least try to mend the relationship for our father’s sake. We sent my husband over for a visit, but when he got there, he was stooped in his tracks and told never to set foot in their house again.”

“My husband is too soft-spoken, he can’t argue with them. But this makes me really angry! How can people be like this? They’ve become so heartless from earning some silver, even going as far as to ignore their own siblings.”

“So, I wanted to find out how much money this tofu shop could actually be making, to lead a family to commit such heartless acts!”

Upon hearing this, Zhuang Qingning blinked.

Even though Mrs. Guo talked fast and wasn’t always clear, Zhuang Qingning understood everything fully.

The person in front of her was none other than who Zhang Xiangrong had mentioned previously – his second brother’s wife, Mrs. Guo.

Zhuang Qingning felt like giving a big thumbs up to Mrs. Guo.

She was short, fat, ugly, black-hearted and evil. It wasn’t easy to have all these faults concentrated in one person.

Moreover, her articulation was admirable. She could lie without missing a beat or blushing, and even make an inquiry about someone else’s assets sound so justified. An ordinary person really couldn’t do that.

This was probably the correct way to open a super troublemaker, right?

Thankfully, she knew all about Zhang Xiangrong’s family situation. If it was someone else hearing Mrs. Guo’s words, they might think that Zhang Xiangrong and his wife were truly dishonorable people.

Zhuang Qingning looked at Mrs. Guo with interest, a playful expression on her face. She feigned surprise, “Is there really such a thing?”

“Yes, isn’t it strange how appearances can be deceiving? In my opinion, these kinds of people must face karmic retribution!” Mrs. Guo continued to grumble.

“Yes, those with black hearts usually meet a miserable end.” Zhuang Qingning said softly.

Mrs. Guo didn’t catch the sarcasm in Zhuang Qingning’s words, thinking that Zhuang Qingning shared her disgust for Zhang Xiangrong’s family. She felt even happier and moved closer to Zhuang Qingning, “Exactly!”

“You seem like a sincere person and probably despise such people just as much. Can you tell me who is the manager of this tofu shop, and where does he live?”

“So that I can find the shop manager, and tell him about the actual character of my brother-in-law and his wife. This would let the shop manager know the true colors of the people he employs and weigh up the situation. This would prevent the manager from falling into a trap set by my brother-in-law and his wife in the future, out of his ignorance.”

Zhuang Qingning looked at Mrs. Guo again.

She let out a soft sigh in her heart.

She had to admit, Mrs. Guo was the quintessential super troublemaker often encountered in various fictions.

She was selfish, vicious, ruthless…

And quite unintelligent.

“Well, that is indeed the case,” Zhuang Qingning nodded.

“Right?” Mrs. Guo was even more delighted as Zhuang Qingning displayed more agreement with her words. She hurriedly asked, “Then can you tell me about the manager of Zhuang’s Tofu Shop…”

“However, as far as I know.”

Zhuang Qingning interrupted Mrs. Guo’s words.