Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu were only able to taste some of Ye Xiaoxian’s cooking in the past but now they had finally got the chance to come to the restaurant and have as much as they wanted, so they could not restrain themselves from eating like hungry wolves.
Xun Wenda also said, “See, didn’t I tell you guys that the food here is delicious? I can’t believe that you never came before. What a waste.”
Another man called Dong also said, “The food here is really good. Xiao Tieshu, Xiao Tongshu, this meal is on you then. Thanks.”
Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu seldom went for food in a restaurant but last time they were treated by Dong so they had to return the favor this time.
The prices of the food here was listed clearly. There was a row of bamboo cards with the price of each dish. They did the math and figured that it would cost more than five hundred coins for this meal.
They then assumed that Li Hongmei would not charge them for this meal, so they could not only save this amount of money but also return Dong’s favor.
They did not finish eating until the sun had set. Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu were so full that they held their stomachs, which felt ready to burst, and prepared to leave.
However, Li Hongmei came over and said, “Elder and third brothers, have you enjoyed your meal? It’s five hundred and thirty coins in total and I’ll round it down to five hundred for you. Which of you is going to pay?”
After Li Hongmei finished talking Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu looked at each other.
Xiao Tieshu said, “I’m treating everyone this time so the meal is on me.”
He was giving Li Hongmei a hint, implying that as it was on him she should just leave it.
However, Li Hongmei said, “Well then, elder brother, it’s five hundred coins in total. Please pay here.”
Xun Wenda could not help reminding Li Hongmei, “Mrs. Owner, isn’t he your brother-in-law? You’re family and you actually charge him?”
Li Hongmei smiled. “It’s hard to do business these days so even among family we must settle the accounts clearly or we’ll suffer a loss. Also, it’s not just one or two coins but five hundred.”
“They don’t come here that often and it’s actually the first time they’ve come. They are here to treat their friends to a meal yet you are asking them to pay for it. Aren’t you being too indifferent with your relatives? Why don’t you just take it as them coming to your house for a meal? You’re their in-laws and just cooked several dishes for them, so is it appropriate for you to charge them for food?”
Li Hongmei’s mouth twitched as she’d almost lost the argument to this guy, Xun Wenda, but it only took a moment for her to come back to her senses. “If it was during new year or other festivals then of course you would be welcome to have a meal at our home, but this is the restaurant and we’re doing business, so every diner needs to pay for their food. Elder and third brother, if you’d like to drop in sometimes, just let us know and we’ll welcome you heartily.”
Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu did not bring enough money as, normally, they would only twenty coins at most, so how could they find five hundred coins to pay Li Hongmei?
What Li Hongmei said had really made them feel small and eager to find a hole to crawl into.
In order to keep up appearances Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu could only discuss it with Li Hongmei. “Fine, we’ll certainly pay for the food but I have to pay on credit. What do you say if we pay for it later, maybe in a few days?”
“Just give me as much as you have for now. You can’t have none with you, can you?” asked Li Hongmei.
If they did not bring any money in the first place then why would they have come for food? Was it that they did not plan on pay from the beginning?
Xiao Tongshu was terribly embarrassed and could only respond, “Sister-in-law, you’re a bit too pushy with this. It’s not like we won’t pay for it. We said we’ll pay in a few days. It’s mainly because we forgot to bring our wallets, so could we pay you next time we come?”
Li Hongmei said, “Fine, but you have to sign an IOU. Elder and third brothers, I know it doesn’t sound nice but I have to make it clear that it’s okay for you to owe us some money, but we have a rule here, anyone who signs an IOU must pay their previous debt off as soon as they return and they have no chance of signing another IOU in the future.
They actually did not have such a rule and Li Hongmei had just made it up.
Seeing Li Hongmei finally soften up a little, Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu did not wish to stay there anymore. After they signed the IOU they left the restaurant as quickly as they could.
The moment they left, Li Hongmei immediately asked little Five to clean their table up.
They had ordered quite a few dishes with some leftovers on the table, so they seemed to be really stuffed and would not return in the near future.
She also doubted whether they would pay their debt. If they couldn’t there was only her rotten luck to blame.
After Xiao Tieshu and the others left, Xun Wenda picked his big teeth while swearing, “Xiao Tieshu, Xiao Tongshu, your relationship with the second household really does seem quite bad. You not only had to sign an IOU but have to pay for it without a discount. They really made no gesture of goodwill towards you whatsoever, bah!”
Xun Wenda spat out a bit of meat that was stuck between his teeth. Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu pulled gloomy faces and felt extremely upset.
When they were in the restaurant just now Li Hongmei had urged and questioned them, giving them no way out and making them lose all their face.
Dong even began to rub it in. “Humph, there was no man in the second household a few years ago, right? It was you who supported them in the past but now they’ve lived apart, being so cocky and arrogant. If I were you I would have beaten her up already.”
Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu’s anger was inflamed even more. Xiao Tongshu then said, “Exactly, before Baoshan came back they didn’t have a single laborer to make money and they used to be supported by us. Now that they are a bit better-off with a restaurant opened up they even ask us to pay for our meal there. We all saw how sister-in-law just behaved, as if they’ve rather cut themselves off from the rest of the family. I really feel so unfairly treated and hard done by.”
Xiao Tieshu could not say a word from the anger, feeling that the whole second household were ungrateful pigs.
Xun Wenda added. “To those ungrateful people, I don’t think you need to be nice to them. Didn’t Xiao Baoshan ask those handymen to take care of their restaurant? You know what, why don’t we secretly cause them some trouble and ask those handymen to leave them alone. I’d rather that their restaurant is in trouble every single day.”
After Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu arrived home, except for Old Mr. Xiao the rest of the family were all waiting for them to have dinner. It was already late autumn and the meal tended to get cold and had already been reheated twice.
The two of them had already had dinner, besides they were not in the mood, so they asked the rest of the family to eat by themselves while they were merely sitting there sulking.
Wong Mudan could tell that they were unhappy, so she asked, “What happened to you? Is there anything wrong at work?”
There could be some major cases in the government office. Every time there was a crime and they were as yet to find the criminal they would look upset when they got home.
The head of the government office was a hot-tempered lord and he would let out his anger on his attendants whenever he could not solve a case. Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu were not quick-witted or smooth-tongued, so not to the lord’s liking, and also their coworkers were much more cunning and would use the two brothers as scapegoats every time there was an incident, which resulted in the two brothers getting most of the critisism.
Xiao Tongshu said in a grumpy tone, “It’s not to do with work but with the second household.”
“The second household? What, about Li Hongmei and the others?” asked Wong Mudan.
