Everything was proceeding in an orderly manner—the land, the people, the melons—all galloping forward in a friendly and agreeable direction.
Everyone except for one person.
The busiest person at Little Lin Manor, the head cook, Auntie Liu.
After enduring for several days, she finally came to Lin Shuying in tears.
“Second Miss, I can’t do this anymore!”
Auntie Liu wept as she spoke, her nose running. “Miss Wei wants meat with every meal—braised pork, stewed knuckles, soy-braised bones—if there’s no meat, she throws down her chopsticks. Nurse Lin says it’s too greasy, wants light food—greens, tofu, plain congee. That boy A-Gua wants hearty meals—stir-fried pork with pickles, eggplant in soy sauce—says he can’t eat without heavy flavors. And those laborers—some want noodles, some want rice, some want coarse grains…”
She counted on her fingers, growing more aggrieved as she went. “It’s just me and two kitchen helpers, making three meals a day, and we have to keep coming up with new variations. Yesterday I made too little—Miss Wei said it wasn’t enough; today I made too much—the leftovers went to waste. Second Miss, please have mercy—either hire two more cooks, or… or just send me back to the main house!”
Lin Shuying looked at Auntie Liu’s reddened eyes, then at the menu spread out on the table.
It was densely covered with everyone’s dietary preferences—indeed quite a mess.
Wei Fuyu, daughter of a general, couldn’t go without meat and had a huge appetite.
Nurse Lin was getting on in years, mindful of health, and preferred light flavors.
A-Gua was in his growing years and loved heavy, oily, salty dishes.
The laborers came from all over—northerners who loved noodles, southerners who loved rice, and one from Sichuan who muttered every day about wanting spicy food.
Add Lin Shuying herself to the mix.
She wasn’t picky, but she did occasionally crave something fresh—like the tomato scrambled eggs or cucumber salad she used to eat in her past life.
But tomatoes hadn’t been introduced to this era yet.
“Auntie Liu, don’t worry,” Lin Shuying soothed her. “I’ll figure something out.”
After sending Auntie Liu off, she sat in her study, tapping her fingers lightly on the desk.
In her previous life at the agricultural research institute, the cafeteria had been self-service.
Researchers would take their trays and pick whatever they wanted, as much as they wanted—it satisfied different tastes and avoided waste.
“Miss,” A Li came in with tea and, seeing her troubled expression, asked softly, “Are you worried about the kitchen situation?”
“Yes.” Lin Shuying sighed. “With so many people, meals become a problem. You can’t please everyone.”
A Li thought for a moment, then said: “Actually, I have an idea, though… it might not be proper.”
“Tell me.”
“We could do it like the temple’s dining hall—cook all the dishes and lay them out, and let everyone serve themselves whatever they want.” A Li gestured. “Those who want meat can take meat, those who want vegetables can take vegetables, and they can take as much or as little as they like. That way Auntie Liu doesn’t have to ask everyone individually—she just cooks and lays it out.”
Lin Shuying’s brows lifted—this was basically a buffet!
“You’re clever. That format could work. But we need to refine it. No free meals—we’ll charge. For estate staff, use work-points; for outsiders, copper coins. We’ll also need to design a streamlined system—from entry to serving to checkout, all smooth and seamless.”
A Li blushed at the praise: “I was just rambling…”
“Rambling well!” Lin Shuying spread out paper and picked up her brush. “Come on, let’s plan it out together.”
— —
Three days later, the side room in Little Lin Manor’s outer courtyard, which had been used for storage, was cleared out.
Lin Shuying designed and renovated it herself: at the entrance, a counter was set up with bamboo meal tokens—work-point tokens for staff, temporary copper-token equivalents for outsiders.
Further in was a row of long tables laid out with large bowls and platters, arranged in order: “Main Courses,” “Meat Dishes,” “Vegetable Dishes,” “Soups & Stews,” and “Fruit Section.”
Each section had a small wooden sign listing the dish names and prices:
“Braised Pork, 5 wen per scoop”
“Stir-fried Seasonal Vegetables, 3 wen per scoop”
“White Rice, 2 wen per bowl”
and so on.
Upon entry, each person collected a tray.
These were specially made by a carpenter—divided into three sections, perfect for one meat dish, one vegetable, and one main course.
Then they’d walk along the long tables, tell the helper standing behind the counter what they wanted, and the helper would serve it with a standardized wooden ladle.
Finally, at the exit, they’d settle the bill based on what they’d taken.
For this “canteen,” Lin Shuying also trained the staff specifically.
“Smile warmly, move efficiently,” she told Auntie Liu and the two helpers. “Answer questions patiently but don’t chatter. Keep a steady hand when serving—say one scoop, give one scoop, no shaking.”
Auntie Liu nodded repeatedly: “Rest assured, Second Miss. I understand.”
“And hygiene is crucial,” Lin Shuying emphasized. “Tie up your hair, keep your aprons clean, wash your hands frequently. After closing each day, all utensils must be scalded with hot water.”
She also issued “work-point tokens” to everyone on the estate—bamboo slips carved with their names and serial numbers.
Each person received a base of one hundred work-points per month. Good work earned bonuses, slacking incurred deductions.
Meals were settled with work-points, with one point equal to one wen.
Wei Fuyu received her work-point token and examined it from all sides: “Can this really buy me meat?”
“Yes,” Lin Shuying said. “But Fuyu, you have a big appetite, so your base points might not be enough. If you want more meat, you’ll have to work to earn extra points.”
Wei Fuyu pounded her chest: “No problem! I’m strong—I do the work of two!”
The day before, Lin Shuying had organized an internal trial run.
At dinner time, over thirty people from the estate lined up and filed into the canteen.
First was Forester Chen.
The old man took his tray, first got a bowl of rice, then hesitated between the braised pork and the steamed fish.
“Old Chen, hurry up!” the laborer behind him urged. “We’re waiting!”
Forester Chen steeled himself: “I’ll take both! One scoop of braised pork, one scoop of steamed fish!”
The kitchen helper ladled the food swiftly.
Forester Chen carried his loaded tray to the checkout counter, where A Li clicked her abacus: “Rice two points, braised pork five points, steamed fish five points—total twelve points.”
Forester Chen handed over his work-point token, and A Li made a note with a charcoal pencil.
Next was Wei Fuyu.
The girl made a beeline for the meat section and ordered in one breath: braised pork, soy-braised bones, and stewed knuckles—only one scoop of stir-fried greens for vegetables. For her main course, she grabbed three large steamed buns.
At checkout, A Li’s eyelid twitched: “Miss Wei, this meal… twenty-eight points.”
“Worth it!” Wei Fuyu carried her tray, piled high like a small mountain, and found her seat with satisfaction.
Nurse Lin chose plain congee, tofu with greens, and a small dish of pickled vegetables—only seven points.
A-Gua had rice, stir-fried pork with pickles, and minced pork with eggplant—twelve points.
The laborers took what they liked—some noodles, some flatbreads—each wearing a look of novel delight.
Lin Shuying also got herself a serving: rice, stir-fried greens, and a small portion of cucumber salad.
The trial run results were satisfactory.
Auntie Liu tallied the leftovers—there were almost none.
Since everyone chose for themselves and took according to their appetite, they ate cleanly.
The kitchen’s workload also lightened—no more asking everyone individually; they just cooked the dishes and laid them out.
“The only trouble is checkout,” A Li said. “We have to record each person one by one.”
“That’s easy.” Lin Shuying thought for a moment. “From now on, staff can just swipe their work-point tokens. I’ll have the carpenter make a board with grooves—slide the token across, mark it with charcoal, quick and simple.”
— —
The next day, Little Lin Manor’s “Self-Service Canteen” officially opened.
To attract the first batch of outside customers, Lin Shuying had A-Gua spread the word in nearby villages: “For the first three days, all dishes are half-price, and a bowl of mung bean soup comes free.”
Once word spread, people actually came.
The first to arrive was Old Wang, who delivered firewood to the estate.
He walked into the canteen with a mix of doubt and curiosity, and when he saw the row of steaming food basins, his eyes went wide.
“I—I can really serve myself?” he asked.
“Yes,” Auntie Liu said, standing behind the braised pork basin with a smile. “Brother, whatever you want—help yourself.”
Old Wang swallowed, then took a bowl of rice, a scoop of braised pork, and a scoop of stir-fried greens.
At checkout, the original ten-point price came to only five wen at half-price. He carried his tray to the long table, picked up a piece of braised pork, and put it in his mouth—his eyes instantly went round.
Rich but not greasy, melting in the mouth, with a deep savory fragrance.
“Th-this is better than the restaurants in the city!” he exclaimed.
The other villagers who had come with him, upon hearing this, also got servings to taste.
In no time, the canteen filled with exclamations of praise.
“How are these greens so tender? And they’ve got a sweet taste too!”
“This fish is so fresh! No fishy smell at all!”
“And the rice is fragrant too—this year’s new crop, right?”
Lin Shuying stood in the corner, watching the bustling canteen, a smile curling at the corners of her mouth.
The vegetables and fruits grown on the estate had all been mildly optimized with her Wood Spirit Root.
Though the adjustments were subtle, their taste and nutritional value were noticeably superior to ordinary crops.
Combined with Auntie Liu’s excellent cooking, it was hard for anything not to be delicious.
On the first day at noon, the canteen served over twenty outside visitors.
By evening, word had spread—on the second day, over fifty came.
By the third day, there was actually a queue forming at the canteen entrance.
A Li was run off her feet, but her eyes sparkled.
She had a natural knack for numbers—quick and accurate with calculations, and she could remember regular customers’ preferences.
“Uncle Wang loves fish, Auntie Li doesn’t eat spicy food, Brother Zhang has a big appetite…” She reported while keeping accounts. “Miss, at this rate, just from outside customers, we could make three to four taels of silver a day.”
Lin Shuying raised an eyebrow and looked over: “That much?”
“And this is still at half-price. Once we return to full price, it’ll probably reach five to six taels a day. Also, a lot of people are asking if they can come every day.”
Lin Shuying pondered for a moment: “Then let’s open it to the public officially. Set a price list, operate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Also, introduce a ‘monthly meal package’—five hundred wen a month, one meal per day, with free choice of dishes.”
A Li scribbled it down quickly: “That’s great! People will definitely go for it.”
“And also,” Lin Shuying thought and added a few more points, “change the menu every seven days. Have Auntie Liu experiment with new dishes. Use whatever the estate produces—for example, since the watermelons are almost ripe, we can make stir-fried pork with watermelon rind, or cold watermelon rind salad.”
A Li’s eyes lit up: “Watermelon rind is edible?”
“Yes—it clears heat and relieves summer heat, and it’s delicious.” Lin Shuying smiled, her eyes curving. “When the grapes are ready later, we can make wine and dried raisins too. In short, we’ll make the most of everything the estate produces.”
A Li nodded repeatedly, full of drive.
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