Chapter 25

Fingers

"Master, no matter what, if we introduce such a slow-witted child to you, we will be in trouble with the magistrate... Ahem," Bae was dragged away by Chae, who covered his mouth.

"Ah, if Master is pleased with him, that's all that matters. What more can this person say? Master, this child has been helping in his parents' restaurant since he was young. Since you are pleased, we will return first."

It seemed Chae and the woman were somewhat acquainted, as he gave a brief explanation and hurriedly bowed, dragging Bae away.

"Chae, if you had shown me this child from the beginning, it would have saved others a lot of trouble... I really like this waiter. I will report your efforts to my brother today."

"Heavens, thank you. I'm really glad you like him."

I thanked them for showing me something interesting today and promised to inform my brother of their hard work, and Chae expressed his gratitude with a relatively satisfied look.

However, Bae, who was being dragged away by Chae, still had a puzzled expression on his face, not understanding why the woman was chosen.

Bae's reaction was understandable.

Among the children who were overflowing with good fortune, he chose a strange woman.

If the woman were beautiful, one might think I chose her because of her looks, but she was definitely not a beauty by the standards of this place.

In this era, the woman, who was still sitting there with a dazed look, unable to accept the reality, was an unattractive, plain woman.

The reason she was unattractive was, as Bae said, because she had a somewhat dull chest and slightly tanned skin.

In a previous life, she might have been a healthy, full-figured beauty, but in the Song Dynasty, where fair skin and slim figures were preferred, she was definitely not a beauty.

Moreover, the traditional clothing of Song Dynasty women consisted of a long dress with a V-neck and a top that revealed the chest, and various lengths of cardigans worn over it.

On a slim woman, it would fit tightly and sway beautifully, but on a woman with a slightly fuller chest, it would look very loose and make her appear fat.

Thus, Bae's constant remarks about her being dull were largely due to the influence of this traditional clothing.

Well, one could say the woman was born in the wrong era?

However, the woman was lucky.

Even though she was born in the wrong era and was receiving harsh criticism, I had the discerning eye to see a person's true worth beyond the era, and I was a non-discriminatory person who did not discriminate against women based on their figure.

Moreover, she had experience working in her parents' restaurant since she was young, so she was naturally the talent we needed for our inn.

After sending off Chae and Bae, I spoke to the woman, who was still sitting there in disbelief.

Without any bias.

"Come and sit here first."

"Yes? Yes! Master!"

At the command to sit, the woman sprang up like a spring and sat down nimbly opposite me.

"So, what's your name?"

"Yes, Master, this girl's name is Chujuryeon."

'A beautiful lotus? What a pretty name.'

An unbiased appreciation.

"So, your family ran a restaurant?"

"Yes, Master."

"Do you know the basics of running an inn?"

"Yes! Of course, Master."

"It might be busier and more tiring than you think?"

"If it gets busy, I can bring my younger siblings to help, so you don't have to worry. I have two younger siblings, one is fourteen and the other is fifteen."

'1+2!'

I started to like her more and more.

Unbiased conditions.

"Alright, then come to work from tomorrow."

"Really? Really?!"

"Didn't I just say so?"

"Ah, I understand. I'll work hard!"

The woman, now with a happy face, didn't know what to do.

Well, considering she wasn't selected through a hellish audition but was specially hired, it was natural for her to be happy.

After giving her a moment to celebrate, I clarified the form of address.

"From now on, call me 'innkeeper' instead of 'Master.'"

"Yes! Innkeeper!"

The woman quickly changed her form of address.

Unbiased, she seemed smart, which made me like her even more.

It seemed better than working with Cobong, Baduk, and Panda.

"So, should I call you 'waitress'?"

"No, just call me 'Chujuryeon.'"

"Alright, then go and come back when the day dawns tomorrow."

As I gestured for her to go, she didn't even think of getting up, but fidgeted with her fingers and asked cautiously.

"Um, Innkeeper, about the pay...?"

"Pay? Ah!"

Salary negotiation!

'Ha ha, I almost sent her off without negotiating the salary, thinking I was a beginner innkeeper.'

I realized my mistake and quickly put on a serious face to answer.

After all, in a hiring situation, nothing is more important than the salary, and it was rude to send her off without discussing it, even if she was undervalued.

"Oops! I'm sorry. I forgot. Yes, we need to set the salary. Well, what have you heard about it?"

"Um?!"

She was startled by my question, as if she didn't understand what I meant.

It seemed I was making mistakes left and right in my first experience hiring an employee.

"Oops! That's not it. So, how much do you want to be paid?"

"Um, well..."

The woman hesitated, then cautiously raised one hand and showed me three fingers.

"Um, this much?"

However, seeing my face, which seemed to say 'Really? Really?' her thumb slowly bent.

"Um, or this much?"

Her trembling fingertips, but I couldn't give her two silver coins a month.

I crossed my legs and folded my arms.

In such negotiations, crossing your legs or folding your arms is a clear sign of rejection.

The woman's eyes widened in disbelief, her hands trembled, and a tear rolled down her cheek. She seemed to have given up and folded another finger, leaving only her middle finger.

This made me feel uncomfortable.

'There shouldn't be such a gesture here...'

I couldn't help but flinch at the gesture that seemed to be cursing me for cutting her salary.

Still, one silver coin a month was a decent amount for her.

Well, considering the busy times and the fact that she had two dependents, it didn't seem too bad, and I nodded to get her to take her hand away.

Her hand fell toward me in resignation.

Her still-unfolded finger toward me made me feel strangely uncomfortable.

And, thinking she had lost the negotiation, she looked quite sad.

'Does she have a greedy nature? She doesn't seem that way...'

One silver coin a month wasn't a small amount, and I felt my unbiased good impression of her was starting to wane, but she asked again with a sad face.

"Innkeeper, I, I haven't even started working yet, but I, I'm sorry, but could I get ten days' pay in advance?"

She was asking for an advance before even starting her first day.

I frowned slightly at her request, and she suddenly knelt on the inn floor and pleaded.

"I'm sorry. I'll work hard, but my younger siblings have been hungry for three days..."

'Well, if her younger siblings are hungry, I can't just send her away...'

"Alright, if that's the case, there's nothing I can do. Work hard from tomorrow. And get up. So, ten days' pay?"

She quickly got up, bowed, and expressed her gratitude.

"Thank you. Thank you, sir!"

I searched my pockets without any bias for the welfare of my employees.

But it was impossible to have more than three hundred copper coins in my pocket.

After fidgeting with the silver coins in my pocket, I placed them on the table.

'With Chae as the guarantor, there's no risk of her running away with the money.'

"Alright, it's just a feeling. I don't have any copper coins, so just take a month's pay in advance."

"Yes, thank you! Thank... Thank... Thank... Thank...? A, a month?"

She was like a broken record when she saw the silver coins.

It seemed the salary cut I had just made was sinking in as she received her monthly wage of one silver coin.

I told her, in a tone that suggested she shouldn't be too greedy from the start, that I would gradually increase her pay.

"How can I give you three silver coins a month from the start? For now, it's a probationary period, so take one silver coin a month and work hard. It should be enough for a family of three. I'll gradually increase your pay as my business improves."

At my words, my first waitress nodded with a dazed look and then slowly headed out.

'Using people is really hard.'

***

The next day, Chujuryeon came to work with a fanatical look in her eyes and worked briskly.

"Chujuryeon, today, dust the guest rooms and air out the bedding. The sun is good."

"Yes, Innkeeper! Is there anything else you need?"

She answered loudly and worked briskly without a moment's rest.

A complete change from the day before.

Perhaps the advance pay had allowed her to feast for a few days, and she was full of energy.

However, while her briskness was good, the way she looked at me was strange.

It was as if she was looking at me like a religious leader.

I couldn't help but glance at the talisman I had stuck on the wall.

'Is the talisman too strong? It does have some side effects...'

A slight sense of unease began to rise.

After receiving the order, Chujuryeon disappeared to clean the guest rooms.

We had a brisk waitress, but our inn was still idle.

Even though we had replaced the lanterns, there were no customers due to our location.

I was dozing off in the restaurant, waiting for customers, when a group of unexpected customers flooded into the inn.

People suddenly filed in one after another.

I woke up with a start, wiped the drool from my mouth, and greeted them.

"Welcome, welcome!"

The customers who entered the inn were about ten people.

They were all wearing the same brown martial arts uniforms and had a sword each.

The characters on their chests and backs read 'Red.'

They seemed to be martial artists from the same sect.

As I wiped the drool and ran to guide them, the ten people had already taken seats at four tables and started to sit down.

They seemed to be impatient, being martial artists.

I approached them and asked.

"Shall I prepare your meal?"

The one-armed man, who seemed to be the leader, replied.

"A few more of our group will come, so wait a bit before taking the order."

The words from the one-armed customer were unbelievable.

More customers were coming.

'Could this be the power of the talisman?'

"Exactly how many more?"

Since I could only cook a