Rebirth of the Innkeeper's Wife: She's Not to Be Messed With

Chapter 13 Food Stolen

It's better to keep him under my nose than to let him go and cause trouble for others. He's not inherently evil. "Okay, work for me for three years to pay off your debt. If you perform well, I'll consider paying you a salary." Letting you leave is out of the question; the shop happens to be short of an assistant.

"Okay, I'll work hard." I agreed verbally, but inside I was miserable. However, the thought of getting paid made me feel happy. If I hadn't been broke, I wouldn't have thought of borrowing money.

My parents both despise me, and I had nowhere to go. I happened to see firecrackers going off, but the scene wasn't very lively. I guessed that I had no background or power, so I set my sights on the Phantom Inn. I heard that it was an inn run by a beautiful woman, which is why I had such evil intentions.

"Here's the contract, please sign it." I took out the prepared contract from the front desk, handed him the pen, and watched him awkwardly sign his name, Chongyang. It seems I'll have to urge him to practice his handwriting properly in the future, lest he embarrass my Phantom Inn.

Seeing that he seemed a little uncomfortable, I softened my tone and said, "Chongyang, a good name, but the characters are too ugly! Practice more in the future."

"Really? I also think my name sounds nice. I was too naughty when I was little, and just looking at characters made me sleepy, so I never practiced writing them properly." She became more and more embarrassed as she spoke! Her head was practically touching the ground!

I used to think that I should have studied hard when I was a child, at least I should have been able to write my name nicely. Unlike now, I feel ashamed when I look at my handwriting. For the first time, I feel that I should study hard.

"Chongyang, you'll be living on the first floor from now on. You can choose any room you like. You know the kitchen; you just saw it. Make whatever you want to eat yourself. My only requirement for you is to change all your bad habits from outside." My tone gradually became serious, a fresh start, a complete transformation.

"Thank you, boss lady, I promise I'll do it." Chongyang's eyes were moist, snot was bubbling from his nose, but his tone was firm.

The next day at noon, I brewed some tea, cut up some fruit, and prepared to go to the kitchen to get some snacks. I planned to lie on a chair, bask in the sun, and eat snacks. Just thinking about it made me feel very comfortable.

A lion's roar! I was furious! My potato chips, spicy strips, soda... everything was gone! Not a single thing was left. Who ate my snacks? Who was it?

When Chongyang heard my voice, he rushed to the kitchen. When he entered the kitchen, he thought he had entered a freezer. I was facing away from Chongyang, and I was radiating cold air. He didn't dare to come closer. His legs were trembling, and he leaned helplessly against the door.

I saw Chongyang was startled by me! I composed myself and said, "My snacks are gone! They must have been stolen by mice! You go ahead and do your work; there's fruit on the tea table outside, go eat some!" The mouse raised its hands, 'We're innocent!'

Who dares to steal my snacks? Don't they know I'm extremely protective of my food? The last person who stole my things is probably long gone!

"Oh! Okay." Any mouse that dares to steal the landlady's snacks must have a death wish. I'd better hurry up and leave, lest I get myself into trouble.

Chongyang sat in his chair, his eyes fixed on the kitchen, his ears listening intently. Was he imagining the landlady battling a rat?

The proprietress, holding a mousetrap, said arrogantly, "You're the one who stole my snacks. Do you think you're too old to live?"

The mouse stood with its hands on its hips, saying, "It's me. You think a little mousetrap can do anything to me?"

The little mouse will see where you run off to, and then the three hundred rounds begin... The imagination is beautiful, but reality is harsh; nothing happens in the cold and quiet.

After calmly thinking it over, Huan Yuechu realized that besides herself, only Chongyang was in the inn, and judging from Chongyang's appearance, it didn't seem like he was the one who took it. Wait, what about Wu Lai and Qi Qing? How could she have forgotten about them!

Wu Lai, Qi Qing, come out here for a moment, I need to talk to you.

"Master, what brings you here to see Qiqing?" Qiqing looked innocent and naive, her eyes filled with longing for me. Wu Lai didn't answer, her eyes flickering slightly.

"Did you two see who stole my snacks? Hmm!" You two little mice, don't you know how to wipe your mouths after eating? It's so obvious. I found it both funny and exasperating.

"Master, the snacks have been..." Before Qi Qing could finish speaking, Wu Lai covered her mouth.

Wu Lai felt a pang of guilt, but her mouth was anything but honest. "It was...it was stolen by a mouse!" The mouse claimed it was innocent, saying, "You're all blaming me. I'm just a scapegoat."

Seeing that they still wouldn't admit their mistake, I directly exposed them, "So it was eaten by mice! You two little mice, shouldn't you wipe your mouths?" I looked at them with a wicked grin, let's see how you try to deny it now.

They were both stunned! With a thud, they both fell to the ground. Qi Qing was filled with admiration, while Wu Lai doubted her own intelligence; she had been so confident just moments before, but in less than a second, she was completely exposed.

Wu Lai and Qi Qing lowered their heads, clearly disliking each other, yet they surprisingly spoke in unison, "We were wrong." After saying that, they quickly looked up at each other, then immediately lowered their heads again.

“You can tell me if you want to eat, but taking things without asking is stealing, and denying it afterwards is even more wrong. Since you took the initiative to admit your mistake, you will be punished by not eating snacks for three months.”

Qiqing doesn't understand anything yet, and it's the time for her to establish her values. We can't let Wulai lead her astray! Wulai just wanted to eat snacks, but was too embarrassed to ask, so she encouraged Qiqing to do it.

But no matter what, it's wrong. I know Wu Lai is very resentful about being trapped, but that's not a reason for him to do this.

Upon hearing that I couldn't eat snacks, Wu Lai immediately flew to my side, pleading, "Ah! No! Just one month, okay? Three months without snacks is too cruel!" Three months without snacks?! You might as well kill me! Waaah, my chocolate, my potato chips…

The snacks must be really powerful to make the proud and aloof Wu Lai act like a spoiled child! "No, give the rest of the snacks back right now."

They both wailed again, trying to be cute and plead to get the snacks, but that was absolutely impossible. They needed to be taught a lesson.

Seeing my uncompromising expression, Wu Lai and Qi Qing had no choice but to obediently hand over the snacks. I carried the snacks to the tea table.

When Chongyang saw me carrying snacks, he gave me a thumbs up and looked at me with admiration. "Boss lady, you snatched the snacks back from the mouse!" After a fierce internal battle, the boss lady finally won. The little mouse was no match for her.

My expression was slightly taken aback. I didn't expect Chongyang to say that. Isn't that like snatching something from a rat's mouth?

"Yes, what do you want to eat? Help yourself." So many snacks and only a little left, and I still have to generously share them. My heart is bleeding.

When Chongyang heard that he was allowed to take some, he immediately took his favorite snacks without hesitation, resulting in only a few bags left.

As I watched him take the snacks, I felt anxious and wanted to shout, "Hey! Take less of these, leave some for me!"