The aroma of cooking filled the house: I sent my eldest brother to become the Grand Secretary.

Chapter 285 The Stall Owner Causes Trouble 1

"Dumb...dumb..."

Dock Management Office...

"You promised that you would definitely earn enough to cover the rent in a month."

"It's only been a little over a month, and it's almost the end of the second month. I haven't even earned two taels of silver this month."

"I think it's a deliberate attempt to scam rent and deposits."

Wei Siyu sat in the chair, looking at the person opposite her with righteous indignation.

Sunlight streamed in through the window, and his position allowed him to see the flying spittle through the sunlight.

He quickly moved his chair back and opened the fan he had taken from Shen Yu'an to avoid getting hurt.

"That's right, that's right," the others echoed.

When Shen Cao walked in, she saw this scene.

Butler Wei and his men blocked the stall owners three feet away. Wei Siyu sat on a chair three feet away, using a fan to cover her face.

His eyes darted around the stall owners, but when he saw Shen Cao, it was as if he had seen a savior.

Shen Cao had changed into a light green men's outfit. After what happened before, she usually dressed as a man when she came to the dock.

Wei Siyu quickly got up and pulled Shen Cao to sit in the seat he had just been sitting in.

"Grass, you've finally arrived."

"Where is Brother Shen?" Usually, Brother Shen is the one who handles these kinds of things.

"Don't even mention it, I don't know where he went early this morning."

"Alright, I understand. Don't worry." Shen Cao comforted Wei Siyu and gestured for him to find a place to sit down.

Shen Cao had already heard the whole story from someone on her way here.

"Butler Wei, have someone bring a few more chairs. We can't let people stand and talk all the time."

After hearing Shen Cao's words, Butler Wei looked at the stall owners in front of him, who were all quite agitated, and hesitated.

“I believe that the stall owners came here to solve problems, not to tear down the management office.”

The stall owners all lowered their heads after hearing Shen Cao's words.

"Of course we're here to solve the problem," one of the stall owners said, his tone noticeably less forceful.

"Alright, Butler Wei, you can go now. We'll wait for you."

Soon, Butler Wei and his men brought over chairs, and after the troublemaking stall owners sat down, the hall became noticeably more crowded.

It looks like the management office needs to be renovated, which is why there are only a few people here; there's not enough room for everyone.

Shen Cao finally understood the importance of the conference room in her previous life.

Once the matter is resolved, she will ask Wei Siyu to expand the management office, at least by building another conference room in the back.

After the stall owners sat down, their emotions were noticeably less agitated than before.

They looked at each other, wondering what Shen Cao was up to.

"I have just heard about your needs. Rest assured, we will definitely give you an explanation for today's matter."

Shen Cao spoke loudly, "However, let me make this clear from the outset: if it's our responsibility, we'll take it; but if it's not our responsibility, I won't shirk it in the slightest."

Upon hearing Shen Cao's words, the stall owners below all felt somewhat guilty.

Especially Lai Lao Er, he started cutting corners from the third day after the business opened. It's been almost two months, and his family has only bought seasonings from Shen Cao once.

He went to the market and bought some seasonings similar to Shencao's, and mixed them in.

Except for the first three days, he used seasonings with ingredients he bought.

Starting from the fourth day, fewer and fewer people came to his stall.

The first month was fine; the surrounding stall owners were doing good business, and some people who didn't want to queue would occasionally buy some of their food.

However, starting from the second month, the business of the stall owners around his house also gradually declined.

However, he heard that the stall selling the same food as his family was doing just as well as ever.

He sells meat and egg burgers.

He never told anyone about secretly adding the ingredient, not even his wife.

Moreover, he had already used up all the ingredients he added, and he didn't believe they could know.

Anyway, he made the food according to their instructions, so if the business wasn't doing well, it was their problem.

After he figured it out, he was clearly no longer as guilty as before.

“We made the food according to the methods you taught us, so it must be your responsibility.”

He raised his voice and shouted, "Who knows if the people before were your shills, just to make sure we can't get our deposits back after a month?"

Seeing Shen Cao's sharp gaze, the tone of his words noticeably weakened.

"Since you say it's not your responsibility, that's good. As long as we investigate this matter thoroughly and find out if it's our fault, we'll acknowledge it and refund your deposit."

"However, things need to be made clear. Otherwise, if everyone comes to us whenever business is bad, wouldn't our management office just become a laughing stock all day long? Don't you think so?"

Shen Cao stared at Lai Lao Er as she spoke, her eyes seeming to see right through him.

Lai Lao Er felt a little guilty under her gaze and nodded blankly.

“Alright.” Shen Cao changed the subject, gesturing for Steward Wei to open the gate. “I’ll trouble the villagers at the gate to witness this.”

"Here are some of your needs summarized for you. Please listen to them."

After saying that, Shen Cao took out a piece of paper and began to read, "Business has plummeted, and we can't even make back our capital every day..."

"Are there any omissions among these?" Shen Cao asked after reading them aloud.

The stall owners below exchanged glances and then said, "That's all."

Shen Cao nodded, "So that means your main demand is to get your deposit back!"

Upon hearing about the refund of the deposit, the stall owners below visibly panicked.

They actually came to cause trouble just to see if they could get Shen Cao to lower the rent (including the seasonings), they didn't mean they wanted to quit.

These days, it's incredibly difficult to get a spot at this stall; who knows how many people are waiting behind them.

They don't want to give up so easily.

"Actually, we don't necessarily have to refund the deposit. If you can lower the rent a bit, we can still make a living."

"Bang!" Shen Cao slammed her hand on the table, startling everyone below.

"The rent issue was agreed upon a long time ago. If you want me to lower it for you, what about the remaining stalls?"

"Doing business is all about integrity. If you're here to ask me to lower my deposit, then you can go back. Rent is my bottom line."

Hearing Shen Cao's tough stance, several stall owners panicked. They were less likely to cut corners and could still make a little money.

Seeing that Shen Cao was young, Lai Lao Er also adopted a tough stance after hearing her words: "If you don't lower the rent, then there's nothing to talk about."

"talk?"

“You have nothing to talk about, but I have something to discuss with you.”

"Butler Wei, bring it up."

Then everyone saw Steward Wei walk in with an account book and place it on the table in front of Shen Cao.

Shen Cao glanced down at the ledger. "I'll say it again: whoever is responsible should take the blame."

"If you still think it's our responsibility, then stay here and let's have a serious talk about it."

"However, let me make this clear from the start: if it's not our responsibility, but rather your own fault, then don't blame me for turning my back on you." After saying that, she glanced at the people sitting below.