Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 96: The Talented Little Lady Boss

Chapter 90

The Talented Little Lady Boss

Initially, Xiaolin intended to walk around and collect the scallops herself, but the young men forbade her. When she insisted, Zhou Minglu, the eldest, picked her up and placed her on a rock, pressing her shoulders down to make her sit. She could only watch as they happily collected marine animals.

They were fascinated by the strange-looking creatures, often bringing their finds to the sulking girl on the rock to ask about them. Most of what they found were clams, small fish, crabs, and shrimp, none of which she wanted.

The only girl in the group sat pouting, watching the boys roam the area with bright smiles, occasionally laughing heartily. She wanted to join in collecting the scallops, but whenever her feet were about to touch the water, one of them would catch her and scold her. She had to return to her spot, pouting so hard her lips almost touched her nose.

She had been living off the sea long before they came around! She was more familiar with this beach than any of them. Yet they treated her like a delicate girl. She used to be tougher than a wild buffalo. If she hadn’t died of illness in her past life, she could have outrun the water buffaloes in Chonburi1.

"Can you guys collect some Chanbei clams? You keep picking up all sorts of things," Xiaolin grumbled at the boys, who were gathering various creatures into a bucket in front of her. So far, no one had found any scallops. How was she supposed to make her stir-fried scallops with basil at this rate?

"I keep finding these single-shell clams everywhere. Are they edible?" Ching Lang asked the chubby girl. Xiaolin perked up at his question.

"Those are good too. Get a lot of them. And don’t forget the Chanbei clams, please, I want to eat those," Xiaolin whined. If they wouldn’t let her collect them herself, they had better get them for her.

"Alright, alright. I’ll try to find some," Ching Long said. Xiaolin had already described what Chanbei clams looked like, so he set off to find some before the little girl’s cheeks puffed out even more.

"This one?" Zhou Mingwang asked, holding up a large scallop. Xiaolin’s eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously, making her cheeks jiggle.

"Yes! It’s very tasty. If you get a lot, I’ll stir-fry them with basil and pack some for you to take home."

"Really? I’ll gather as many as I can then," Zhou Mingwang said enthusiastically, wading through the water to find more Chanbei clams. Zhou Minglu, hearing this, quickly joined his brother, eager to taste the promised dish.

"I want to eat some too. There are plenty here," Huan Luwen said to the white-skinned girl sitting on the rock.

"Then gather them up! We’ll have it for breakfast tomorrow."

"Will do!"

With the promise of delicious food, the boys diligently collected the clams Xiaolin wanted. Driven by their appetites, they almost filled the bucket with scallops and abalones.

After collecting a satisfactory amount of scallops, the small group returned to the hut to rest as lunchtime approached. The gluttonous uncles refused to let their plump little niece go home.

They remembered her craving for stir-fried Chanbei clams with basil. So, they took the bucket from the twins, cleaned and prepared the scallops because they wanted to enjoy the delicious meal their niece would make.

Chang Sen dashed out of the hut to gather basil, while Guo Lu quickly lit the stove and prepared the wok and ingredients outside. The children could only watch the scene unfold with wide eyes.

Xiaolin sighed and lay down on the hut’s porch, waiting for her uncles to finish preparing everything. She didn’t forget to shout out a reminder to cook enough rice for everyone. Realizing that the scallops might not be enough for the hungry group, including the uncles and workers drying squid.

Xiaolin then got up to check the big bucket her uncles used for the fish they caught for her to cook. Seeing it filled with mackerel, she waved her hand and called out to her uncle, Tian Yi.

"Uncle, clean and gut these fish. Then, steam them for fifteen minutes, and after that, grill them until they smell good, please. Make a lot to share with the workers too."

"Understood, little boss lady," Tian Yi replied enthusiastically, grabbing a small bucket to divide the fish and start cleaning them. With the tasks assigned, Xiaolin ran to her uncle Wu Zhong, who was cleaning the Chanbei clams.

"Just clean the Chanbei clams for now. We’ll sell the abalones at the shop," the chubby girl said, standing with her arms behind her back, watching the plump scallops being prepared. Wu Zhong looked up to see her round belly nearly touching his face.

"I want to eat stir-fried noodles with abalone, Xiaolin," Guo Lu said, feeding the fire so vigorously it nearly caught the dry grass thatched roof on fire.

"We have plenty of food today. Tomorrow, we’re having Hainanese chicken rice. In the afternoon, Father and Uncle Lei San will catch some chickens for tomorrow’s meal," Xiaolin replied. Guo Lu’s eyes sparkled at the mention of the chicken.

"Can I skip work this afternoon to catch chickens?"

"Are you planning to slack off, Uncle? I’ll hit you," Xiaolin playfully smacked Guo Lu’s arm. The young man laughed heartily.

"How many chickens can those two catch? What if it’s not enough?" Guo Lu looked at his granddaughter’s face as her cheeks started to puff up.

"If you’re stubborn, I won’t let you eat, hmph!" Xiaolin huffed, turning away and waddling back to sit with the young men on the hut’s porch.

"Why are you so mean to me,Xiaolin?" Guo Lu feigned a sad voice and made a pouty face.

"Uncle, you never listen. Stop feeding the fire so much or you’ll burn down the hut, and then you won’t have a place to nap in the afternoon,"

"I never nap in the afternoon,"

"I know it, I see it."

Caught red-handed by his niece, Guo Lu walked away to help Tian Yi clean the mackerel. Once the fish were prepared and steamed, Chang Sen returned with a large bundle of basil leaves for Xiaolin and then went off to catch fresh squid, knowing the scallops alone wouldn’t be enough to satisfy everyone. Xiaolin busied herself picking the basil leaves into a basket.

"If the tide is low again tomorrow, I’ll come to collect abalone to dry," Xiaolin said.

"In that case, I’ll check for you so you don’t waste a trip,"

Wu Zhong replied. Although he enjoyed her cooking, he didn’t want her to spend too much time at the beach, fearing she would get sunburned like the rest of them, who now only had white eyes contrasting their tanned skin.

"Then you can come at noon and take some Hainanese chicken rice back with you," she added.

"Alright. Do you want anything special for breakfast tomorrow? I can catch it for you," Wu Zhong offered.

"Hmm, I haven’t had shrimp in a while," Xiaolin said, tapping her cheek thoughtfully. She used to eat shrimp often, but lately, she had been eating mostly pork and squid.

"I’ll catch some for you. If the tide isn’t low, I’ll bring it to your house."

"Thank you, Uncle."

Xiaolin didn’t say anything else and turned her attention to the boys, noticing they had gone quiet. She found them all fast asleep, having claimed comfortable spots to rest. They must have been tired from playing in the water all morning, exploring the coconut forest, and collecting sea creatures.

Leaving the boys to their nap, the chubby girl wandered over to the drying racks for the squid. Her uncles and hired workers were diligently working, efficiently cleaning and preparing the squid since they had been doing it for months.

"Is there any problem with the work, uncle?" Xiaolin stopped to ask the workers who were busy dissecting squid.

"Problems? None at all. But we’ve been talking about getting some wood and dry grass to make a shelter for shade during the day. We haven’t had the time to do it because we don’t want to leave the work undone and make it not worth our wages."

They were paid forty brass coins a day, which was equivalent to working two days in the city, where some jobs didn’t even pay twenty brass coins. That’s why they diligently worked every day, even though employers like the Tang family rarely checked on their work.

The only time was in the morning when Tianrong came to pay them their back wages. But this morning, it was Wu Zhong who came to pay them because Tianrong was still lying in bed with his feet up on Lei San’s face.

"In that case, I’ll find someone to do it for you. Make it sturdy so that it won’t collapse during the winter when it snows," Xiaolin said.

Looking at the tanned skin of the uncles, Xiaolin worried that they would develop skin diseases from working under the scorching sun every day. Although the sun wasn’t as strong as winter approached, standing in the open all day was still quite hot.

"Thank you very much, young little boss lady," one man said.

Xiaolin smiled broadly until her eyes crinkled before walking to inspect the squid drying racks. She saw that some racks were starting to dry already. During this season, it took longer for the squid to dry compared to summer because the sun was strong only around noon.

"Xiaolin! How long do you cook the fish for?" Tian Yi shouted to his chubby granddaughter, whose bun hairstyle was peeking out from behind the squid racks.

"Uncles, during your break, please come and eat together. I’ll prepare food for everyone," Xiaolin said to the workers.

The workers’ eyes lit up upon hearing this. They were fond of the little girl’s cooking and regretted that she didn’t come to the beach often. Only Wu Zhong’s group, who liked to slack off to eat at the Tang house, got to enjoy her food. The others could only envy them, as they weren’t as close to the Tang family.

Xiaolin waddled back to the little love hut with her belly bouncing. Every time she came to the beach, she felt like dancing. So, when she stopped to see her uncle Tian Yi preparing the fish for grilling, her round body started dancing beside him.

"Let it cool down a bit before grilling so the meat doesn’t get mushy. Are the clams ready, Uncle Zhong?"

"Yes, they are. Should I stir-fry them now?"

"Yes, please."

"I’ll help. I’ve already prepared the chili and garlic," Guo Lu said as he placed the pan on the stove. Once the oil heated up, he added the chili and garlic to stir-fry.

Achoo!

The pungent smell of chili and garlic made everyone sneeze once or twice. Xiaolin herself sneezed until tears flowed, but she still stood by her uncle Guo Lu’s side, supervising him until they had a plate of stir-fried clams. Next, they stir-fried the squid, which even woke up those who were napping, causing them to sneeze loudly.

"With everyone sneezing like this, it must be delicious," Tian Yi stood with his hands on his hips, watching his friends cook by the stove. He then walked over to grab a tray for his friend to scoop the basil stir-fried squid onto.

"Make sure to share the squid with the workers too. Grilled mackerel alone won’t be enough, especially since I also want to eat grilled mackerel,"

"Why do we have to steam it first?" Chang Sen, who was lying lazily next to the other young men, asked curiously.

"The meat will be tender and delicious because we steam it until it’s cooked and then just grill it over the charcoal for fragrance. If we grill it raw, it might dry out and not be appetizing,"

"Oh, I see. If it tastes good, I’ll make it next time. It’s easy to make and doesn’t need seasoning. I can handle that," Tian Yi laughed loudly.

"I’ll help grill the mackerel myself. It will cook faster. My stomach is already growling," Xiaolin said. When she saw Guo Lu taking the pan off the stove, the chubby girl picked up the grilling rack and set it on the stove, asking Uncle Chang Sen, who was just lying there waiting to eat, to remove the firewood so only the charcoal was left.

Even though Xiaolin said she wanted to help grill the fish, her uncles didn’t let their niece sit in front of the hot stove. Tian Yi and Chang Sen helped grill the fish until it was fragrant and placed them on the tray.

The delicious smell of grilled mackerel wafted through the area, even reaching the workers on their lunch break. They carried their lunch bundles to the little hut to wait for the young mistress’s cooking.

"There are plenty of fish, so take one each," Xiaolin said to the workers who lined up to get their food. She also scooped the basil stir-fried squid onto plates for them, grouping them three to a plate.

The young men could only watch the plump young mistress manage nearly twenty adult workers efficiently. Her uncles almost seemed to revere her, treating her like a precious treasure.

Despite her young age, she managed a large number of workers. The three Huan brothers were well aware that the many thriving businesses of the Tang family stemmed from this little girl.

"Brother Lang, Brother Long, I want to be as capable as Xiaolin. Should I go back and ask Father if I can come and learn from her?" Huan Luwen broke the silence, making the two older twins turn sharply to look at him, nearly straining their necks.

"No," Ching Lang said flatly.

"Why not, Brother? I want to come too," Ching Long said, his eyes sparkling with an idea.

"You can’t. You need to study, and Father is preparing for a big event. You need to stay and help,"

How could he explain that he also wanted to come here? But he was old enough to start learning from their father and couldn’t afford to play around anymore. Therefore, if he couldn’t come, neither could his younger brothers.

"But I’m not helping Uncle with work. I’ll go back and ask Father," Huan Luwen said before turning to look at the plump girl again. He admired her greatly and had decided to make her his role model. In the future, he would become a skilled merchant just like her!

The two young men from the Zhou family could only watch the siblings with wide eyes. After their mother gave birth, they too had to return to study in the capital. Even though they wished to stay and play with the chubby girl and enjoy her delicious food forever, they knew their responsibilities awaited them.

‘Chonburi’ is a province in eastern Thailand.

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