Chapter 74 of 100

Chapter 74

10 min read2,566 words

Ahwangdusheng (Goose Yellow Bean Sprout)

...

It had been a while since I last saw my inn.

As I entered the inn guided by Gareum, it seemed that all the repairs were completed and the interior and exterior were redone, making it look spotless.

It must have been that the Zhuge family took some care, as the inn looked much more luxurious.

The chairs and dining tables had been replaced with ones that had a good finish, and the doors and windows looked entirely new.

"Manager, please come in quickly!"

"Yes, how are the younger ones doing?"

"Yes! Thanks to your care, they are doing very well."

Gareum greeted me with an excited voice.

And while guiding us inside the inn, he poured out the events of the past in a flurry.

"Manager, do you know how surprised I was? You only said you were going to the Tang family's banquet, and then the heads of the kitchen and tavern came to check the shop, and before long, people from the Tang family came and took over, or rather, inspected the inn..."

From what I gathered, the inn had been empty for a while, and it seemed that the Tang family had taken care of the inn until the Zhuge family arrived.

'The Tang family, as expected. They are reliable.'

I listened intently to Gareum's story, marveling at the Tang family's thoughtfulness.

"Then, someone came from the Zhuge family... Did you say that the manager got married to a Zhuge family lady? I couldn't believe it! And then suddenly, the cook came..."

After mentioning the cook, Gareum paused for a moment before continuing.

"Anyway, I was really overwhelmed. Hehe."

Thinking about it, Gareum had every reason to be flustered.

The inn owner said he was going to the Tang family's banquet, and then the Tang family came and said they would manage the shop, and the Zhuge family came and said the inn owner had married into the Zhuge family, so from now on, they would manage the place?

It must have felt like being a low-level employee watching gang bosses manage and hand over business territories.

It was certainly hard to believe that I had married into the Zhuge family.

It probably felt like the owner was being replaced and the business was being taken over.

I could imagine how he felt, and Gareum must have been understandably shocked.

'You must have been very surprised... But I was even more surprised, being the one who got married without knowing it...'

I felt a bit guilty, but I couldn't imagine anyone being more surprised than me.

I could only give an awkward smile in response to Gareum's words.

Then, after briefly recounting the recent events, Gareum finally noticed the presence of Zhuge Qing beside me and asked.

"Um, who is this person? Could it be...?"

"Yes, this is my wife."

"Oh, hello! Zhuge Lady!"

"Yes, nice to meet you. I'm Zhuge Qing."

Gareum, with a surprised face, greeted Zhuge Qing like a private soldier greeting his superior.

Then, my wife asked me who Gareum was.

When she first came here, Gareum wasn't around, and I was running the inn alone, so it seemed strange to her that I now had an employee.

"Old Master, who is this?"

"Oh, this is my inn's attendant, or rather, a servant. He is my person."

"Old, Old Master's person?"

"Manager, being your person... Thank you."

After the introductions, we settled down at a corner of the inn. Despite it being the start of dinner time, there were no customers, likely due to the location.

Suddenly, a sharp woman's voice came from the kitchen.

"Gareum! You should have told me a customer came! You're so slow. Did you sweep the yard? The rooms? Your brothers should be helping out, not wandering around! The previous manager left such useless children behind..."

The relentless scolding of Gareum.

I decided to address the cook, who seemed unaware that criticizing the manager in front of his fan club could be dangerous.

"Excuse me, but why are you treating the child so harshly?"

"The child is slow and makes mistakes..."

I had only worked with Gareum for a short time, but she was a diligent girl trying hard to support her two younger siblings. The idea that she was slow or made mistakes didn't make sense.

Looking at Gareum, she seemed flustered and didn't know what to do.

I decided to ask Gareum for her side of the story.

There must be a reason why someone is disliked.

"Why are you treating the child so harshly?"

"The child is slow and makes mistakes..."

I couldn't understand this. I looked at Gareum, who was just standing there, flustered.

I decided to ask her directly, but before I could, the children's voices interrupted.

"Manager?"

"It's the manager! Manager!"

The children, who had been thin and malnourished, now looked healthier. They recognized me and ran over to greet me.

"Manager! Are you back now?"

"Manager, are you really back? Right?"

They glanced nervously at the cook, suggesting they had been on the receiving end of her temper.

"Yes, how have you been, kids?"

"Manager, are you going to live with us now?"

'If only. I still have to serve as a bondservant for a while longer.'

I had to tell the children the harsh reality.

"I still have some business to attend to, so I'm not back permanently. I just stopped by for a while."

The children, disappointed, started to glance nervously at the cook again. I decided to ask the cook to prepare dinner so I could talk to the children.

To remove the cook from the scene.

"Let's talk about the details later. Please prepare dinner. Gareum and the children will join us, so please prepare accordingly."

The cook, seemingly relieved that the conversation was over, wiped her forehead and quickly fled to the kitchen.

"Yes, I understand. I'll bring the food out soon."

After the cook disappeared, I asked the children directly.

"Does the cook bully you? What's going on? Tell me, your manager."

The children didn't answer but looked at Gareum.

I reassured them and asked again.

"I'll make sure the cook doesn't mistreat you. Don't worry, tell me what happened."

After a long silence, I took out some sugared animal candies I had bought from the market and offered them to the children.

These candies, called sugared animal candies, were a type of sweet made by melting sugar and pouring it into molds shaped like animals, similar to gummy bears in this era.

They came in various shapes like dogs, deer, tigers, and cranes.

Giving sugared animal candies to children in this era?

It was like a guaranteed win in the fan club.

I gave a deer and a tiger to each child, and their mouths opened automatically as they began to spill the truth.

"The cook really hates Gareum."

"Yeah. She's so frustrated that she can't eat Gareum. She's like a lion from Hedong!"

The children were referring to the "lion from Hedong," a term derived from a poem by Su Dongpo. When Su Dongpo was demoted to Huangzhou, he visited a friend named Longqiu Jushi, whose wife was known for her fierce temper. Su Dongpo wrote a poem mocking his friend's helplessness in the face of his wife's anger.

"Longqiu Jushi is truly pitiful. He talks about emptiness and existence all night.

Suddenly, he hears the roar of the lion from Hedong, and his walking stick falls from his hand, his mind lost."

'Su Dongpo, that guy...'

Su Dongpo was indeed a remarkable figure, ahead of his time.

But to use a poem to mock a friend's wife, and for the children to know about it, it was quite a successful diss.

Anyway, if she hated Gareum, what was the reason?

"Why does she hate Gareum? What's the reason?"

"It's because Gareum... slurp..."

Just as the children were about to reveal the reason while sucking on the candies, the cook started bringing out the food.

'What timing...'

"Oh, I'm sorry for the wait. Gareum, can you help me serve the food?"

The cook asked in a gentle, affectionate voice. Gareum, who had been watching the children, quickly ran over to help.

The food the cook prepared included Ahwangdusheng (Goose Yellow Bean Sprout), dumplings, and stir-fried mung bean sprouts.

The names sounded fancy, but in reality, it was just seasoned bean sprouts and stir-fried mung bean sprouts.

The seasoned bean sprouts, in particular, tasted exactly like the ones I had eaten in Korea in my previous life.

Bean sprouts started being used as food ingredients during the Song Dynasty.

Since they were relatively new, and there was a vegetarian trend in the Song Dynasty, it seemed the cook was trying to serve trendy dishes.

-Crunch

As I tasted the seasoned bean sprouts, I noticed that Gareum and the children were just watching.

"Come, let's all eat."

"But, Manager..."

I encouraged the children to eat, and they soon started. I also urged Gareum, who was hesitating.

"Gareum, you should eat too."

"Yes, Manager."

However, Gareum picked up her chopsticks reluctantly, put some stir-fried mung bean sprouts in her mouth, and after a few chews, suddenly started to gag.

"Ugh... Ugh..."

"Hey, Gareum, are you feeling unwell? Why are you gagging?"

As I checked on Gareum, I heard gasps of shock from my bodyguards and wife.

"Wh-what?!"

"Could it be...?"

"Old Master?!"

'Why? What? What is it?'

"Huh?!"

'Are you guys thinking something strange?'

I felt a gaze full of suspicion, as if I was being accused of something unjustly.

"Um, what is it?"

"Manager, are you...?"

"Old Master, are you...?"

"Manager, are you...?"