Chapter 79
Jiang Yun Zhu was a little stifled with anger. He wanted to do a forceful buy and sell? She put the hairpin on the table, bowed her head, and said nothing.
The hairpin returned to Shen Feng Ming's hand in the end.
It was a little late today. And this kind of thing happened. Jiang Yun Zhu decided to stay at home for another night and go to the county city tomorrow morning.
The night sky was thick. Suddenly there was a melodious sound of the qin piercing the silence, like the wind in the pines, or like flowing down the cliff. The sound was touching.
Everyone in the Jiang Family heard it. They all stopped what they were doing and listened quietly to the sound of the qin.
Jiang Yun Zhu naturally heard the sound of the qin. She herself didn't know how to play the qin or make paintings, but she knew how to appreciate it. The sound of the qin was wonderful. This piece was called ‘Guan Ju’; "Guan guan cry the ospreys, on the continent of the river..."
Jiang Yun Zhu’s heart was in a mess. But she was soon attracted by the sound of the qin and immersed herself in the sound of the qin.
Suddenly the music stopped and Jiang's house fell into silence.
"This is the sound of Gentleman Shen playing the qin." Mrs. Chen didn't know why, but after hearing the sound of the qin, her heart softened.
"En." Jiang Cheng embraced her and the two snuggled together.
"It's nice." Mrs. Chen said softly.
Early the next morning, Jiang Yun Zhu rode Jiang Cheng's horse carriage back to Qishanju.
Shen Feng Ming rode a horse and followed behind. Jiang Yun Zhu looked at him. There seemed to be nothing unusual. So she let him be.
"Boss." They haven't seen each other for two days. Xue Jing and the others missed Jiang Yun Zhu very much. Seeing that she was back, they enthusiastically welcomed her.
Jiang Yun Zhu looked at them and then at her own store. She was in a good mood.
Chabuliang opened for business. Jiang Yun Zhu stood behind the counter to check the accounts for the past two days.
At this moment, Qin Zhen hurried in from the outside.
"Miss Jiang, I have something to tell you." He said.
He had experienced strong winds and waves and had always been steady. But today he was so flustered... Jiang Yun Zhu suddenly had a bad feeling and asked, "What's going on?"
Qin Zhen looked around.
Jiang Yun Zhu motioned for him to follow her to the backyard.
There was a room for entertaining customers in the backyard, but ordinary people couldn’t enter.
Qin Zhen entered the room. Before he even sat down, he said, "The grain I shipped to Wuling County and Huayang County the day before yesterday were all inspected!"
"What do you mean?" Jiang Yun Zhu didn't feel like sitting down anymore.
It turned out that another batch of grain was transported from Lu Prefecture to Wuling County and Huayang County the day before yesterday. But as soon as they arrived at the gate of Lu Prefecture City, a group of soldiers came over and said that they suspected that there was illegal salt in this batch of grain and wanted to take the grain away for inspection.
It was Housekeeper Qin who escorted this batch of grain. He expressed and hinted that the grain was from Changyuan Grain Company. The Qin Family had friendship with various officials in Lu Prefecture. He even mentioned Subprefectural Magistrate He. The leader didn't budge and got people to transport all the food back to the Salt Transport Department.
This batch of grain weighed tens of thousands of jins, so it was a big deal. Traveling through the night, Housekeeper Qin found Qin Zhen.
Qin Zhen felt extremely wronged. There was no illegal salt in his food. The Department of Salt Transportation was a department that was out of reach, Qin Zhen immediately went to Subprefectural Magistrate He and told him about the incident, hoping that he could help him get the food back.
Who would have thought that Subprefectural Magistrate He would look put on the spot, saying that salt and iron were a major matter for the court. Also, the Official Ma of the Salt Transportation Department was stern and selfless. He could only do his best, but couldn’t guarantee the result.
Qin Zhen waited anxiously. Finally he got Subprefectural Magistrate He’s response, but only to see Subprefectural Magistrate He shaking his head.
"Let's talk about it after Official Ma's inspection. Didn't you say that there is no illegal salt in your grain, so it should be fine." Subprefectural Magistrate He said.
Qin Zhen had no choice but to go back.
However, Wuling County and Huayang County cannot have its grain cut off, otherwise all previous efforts would be wasted. Fortunately, they have a lot of grain in their warehouses. This time, after discussing with the Tao family, he decided to try to transport 2,500 jins of grain away first.
This time, no one came to check the batch of grain. The grain arrived in Wuling County and Huayang County safely. But Qin Zhen couldn't let go of his concern. Passing by Qishanju, he came in to discuss with Jiang Yun Zhu to see what she thought of this matter.
Jiang Yun Zhu frowned upon hearing this. This matter wasn’t simple at all. The Department of Salt Transportation was a somewhat special department that belonged to the Ministry of Revenue. Subprefectural Magistrate He didn’t have the power to directly govern it. But the officialdom had always been a network of favors. She didn’t believe that Subprefectural Magistrate He had nothing to do with the Salt Transport Department.
Was it because Qin Zhen didn’t agree to the marriage proposal proposed by Subprefectural Magistrate He, Subprefectural Magistrate He made things difficult on purpose?
It shouldn't be. Even if the Qin Family was rich, they were merchants. If it wasn't for the recent severe disaster in Changfeng Manor, food shortage, and the improvement of the status of the Qin Family, Subprefectural Magistrate He might not choose the Qin Family as a marriage match.
What's more, Qin Zhen was experienced in handling affairs. So he would definitely handle this matter satisfactorily.
Then who was it? What was his purpose?
There was too little information. Jiang Yun Zhu couldn't figure it out.
At this time, a person walked out from Chabuliang and walked westward slowly. If anyone paid attention to him, they would notice that he had entered Chabuliang not long after Qin Zhen.
After passing two streets, the man suddenly quickened his pace and headed toward the largest inn in the west of the city.
After entering the inn, he went upstairs and knocked softly on the door.
"Come in." A clear male voice.
The man entered the door, closed the door behind his back, and knelt down before speaking, "This subordinate greets, Eldest Gentleman."
"Get up." Lin Ting An casually asked, "How was it?"
The man stood up and told what he had seen and gathered.
Lin Ting An listened while taking a sip of tea from time to time. There was nothing amiss on his face.
After the man finished speaking, he waved his hand to signal him to retreat.
"Chabuliang’s boss?" He raised his eyebrows.
"It's a newly opened teahouse in Wuling County. The owner is a miss. She has great cooking skills and even won over Cook Gao from our Manor. She won this teahouse." Behind him, a guard-like person reported. .
"Win Gao Shun? Then her skill must be good." Lin Ting An said. The voice was flat. No emotion could be heard.
The guard behind him shuddered. That Gao Shun was so bold that he even went out to compete with others in cooking without telling the Manor. Moreover, he lost...
Suddenly, Lin Ting An stood up and walked downstairs.
After walking two roads, a carriage suddenly crashed toward his side. Lin Ting An stopped in his tracks. The guard behind him grasped the sword at his waist and became vigilant.
At this moment, the carriage turned a corner and slowly slowed down. It seemed that it was a false alarm.
It was just when it turned a corner, it caught a woman. That woman directly flung to Lin Ting An.
For a moment, his arms were filled with warmth and fragrance. However Lin Ting An frowned.
The woman seemed to be frightened. Her whole body was soft and weak.
"Lin Qing." Lin Ting An said.
The guard behind him, that was, Lin Qing supported the woman with the handle of the sword and made her leave Lin Ting An's embrace without falling to the ground.
The woman was wearing a bright red dress and her waist was tight. She raised her eyes to look at Lin Ting An and said as if surprised, "Eldest Gentleman, why are you here?" Immediately, she was about to bow Lin Ting An.
Lin Ting An's face darkened. He scanned the woman up and down again, feeling that she seemed familiar.
"Maidservant Jiang Yun Xiu is the servant maid of the Manor's kitchen. This time I came to visit relatives and happened to pass by here. Thank you, Eldest Gentleman for saving me just now." Jiang Yun Xiu said eloquently. As she said that, she curtsied. That twist of her waist was like a spring willow in March.
To be honest, Jiang Yun Xiu looked pretty. But her desire to climb into bed was obvious.
Lin Ting An was the eldest son of the Marquis Anping Manor. He was proficient in all aspects of literature and martial arts. He was half of the ruler in the Marquis Anping Manor. There were too many women like her in the Manor.
Lin Ting An ignored her completely and continued on.
"Eldest Gentleman." Jiang Yun Xiu called softly, with some grievances and anxiety. If it was a man with a soft heart, he might be stopped by her call.
"Go back and tell the housekeeper. He knows what to do." Lin Ting An only stated.
"En." Lin Qing agreed.
When hearing this sentence, Jiang Yun Xiu’s face was as pale as paper. Wassn't she pretty enough? The man's heart was as strong as iron! No, she must not be kicked out of the manor. She almost tore the handkerchief in her hand.
Soon, Lin Ting An came to Chabuliang.
He stopped and looked at the three large characters on the plaque for half an hour.
Lin Qing saw those three characters too. He didn't know much about calligraphy, but he felt that those three characters were well written. Looking at them, he sensed the mountains and seas feel. He didn't know who wrote them.
Inside Chabuliang, Jiang Yun Zhu had already sent Qin Zhen away. At this moment, she was standing behind the counter in a daze, thinking about what Qin Zhen said.
"Did something happen?" Shen Feng Ming came in from the back, habitually standing behind the counter with Jiang Yun Zhu.
Jiang Yun Zhu regained consciousness and shook her head.
Shen Feng Ming didn't ask any more questions. Just stood there.
Jiang Yun Zhu looked at him before picking up the account book again and checked the accounts of the previous two days. She missed Xie Zhen a little bit. This matter was handled by him before.
"Do you want me to look at it for you?" Shen Feng Ming asked.
Jiang Yun Zhu paused. No, he shouldn't be so nice to her. She was afraid that she would fall in love. And Chief Shen, wasn't he rumored to be not close to women?
Suddenly, Jiang Yun Zhu remembered that night when he stood in the cold wind. He said he never thought of getting married before. He said his father and mother had been arguing all the time. He was tired of that kind of quarrel...
At this moment, a warm feeling came from her fingertips. Jiang Yun Zhu looked down and saw that Shen Feng Ming was about to take the ledger in her hand when his fingers touched her fingertips.
Jiang Yun Zhu quickly withdrew her hand and decided that it was better to make things clear.
"Gentleman Shen, I have no intention of marrying a wealthy family. I want to be an idler." Jiang Yun Zhu stated. She felt she had said enough.
"En." Shen Feng Ming responded and looked through the ledger.
Jiang Yun Zhu was dumbfounded. Did he understand what she was talking about?
"I, I want to find someone who has the same goals as me to marry." Jiang Yun Zhu decided to make it clear that they weren't suitable. She wanted to spend her days idle. He was the Commander of Qilin Guards. She didn't know qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting. While the Shen Family was a family of poetry and calligraphy in Xia Dynasty.
Shen Feng Ming raised his head.
At this moment, Lin Ting An brought Lin Qing in from the outside.
He saw Jiang Yun Zhu at a glance and his expression was slightly startled.
Jiang Yun Zhu saw him and stood there in shock. She didn't expect to see him here.
The two looked at each other.
Shen Feng Ming happened to see this scene. His eyes were dark.
Someone is smelling a pot of vinegar right now. I hope Feng Ming tells Yun Zhu what's on his mind. Thank you for the chapter!
ReplyDeleteSigh, ice block is so stingy with his words.
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