Chapter 066 Ready-made Talent

The two sisters were talking affectionately when they suddenly saw a figure behind a tree staring at them stealthily.

Xu Qingying shouted, "Who?!"

Feng'er came out from behind the tree and kowtowed to her again as soon as they met.

Xu Qingying had no choice but to pull her up hurriedly. "Why are you constantly kowtowing to me today? You don't have to express your gratitude, but what happened?"

Feng'er shed tears, like a drowning person grabbing the last straw, pulling at Xu Qingying's sleeve and refusing to let go, "Miss Xu, you are a good person. You saved my young lady once, please save my young lady again?"

Xu Meixiao poked her head out from behind Xu Qingying and asked in panic, "Did Sister Qian jump into the river again?"

"No, no, no, it's not..." Feng'er waved her hands, wiping her tears, staring at Xu Qingying, "I really shouldn't have come to disturb Miss Xu. You just fell into the water, and you definitely need to rest now..."

Xu Qingying raised her hand to stop her polite words, "No need to say more, if there's anything wrong, let's talk while we walk."

Feng'er finally showed a hint of joy on her face. She wanted to kowtow to her a few more times, but she was worried about Qian Zhenniang. She quickened her pace and went to Qian Zhenniang's tent. "My young lady is desperately seeking death. She refuses to eat or drink, refuses to change her wet clothes, and refuses to drink ginger soup. She says she would rather die of illness than burden others. I... I really have no other choice, so I came to disturb Miss Xu. Miss Xu is an immortal from heaven. She must have a way to save my young lady!"

Xu Meixiao followed in small, slow steps, looking up and explaining seriously, "My sister isn't an immortal... Feudal superstitions are a bad idea!"

"Ah..." Feng'er looked at Xu Qingying at a loss.

Xu Qingying did not comment and saw the girl from the Fang family and Xu Yinxi playing shuttlecock on the way.

The Fang family naturally looked down on the money from her soap business, and the second uncle strictly forbade the Xu family's two illegitimate sons from participating in the soap business. Consequently, the second uncle tortured the Xu family's two illegitimate sons with questions about their studies. Xu Yinxi, acting like the eldest sister, gathered with several other girls, but Xu Lezhi was the only one who liked to hang around with the Fang girls.

At this moment, Xu Lezhi was playing shuttlecock with the two sisters of the Fang family. Seeing that everyone else was busy, Xu Qingying had no choice but to capture the three girls as soldiers, "Miss Fang, please help me..."

Xu Lezhi was grabbed by her and saw the shuttlecock fall to the ground. He wanted to yell at her, but Miss Fang was here, so he could only suppress his temper and said in a delicate voice: "Sixth sister, what are you doing? Why are you fighting for no reason? How can you be so rude as a girl?"

"Stop talking nonsense. Just come with me. I'm not going to sell you out. Besides, with someone like you who likes to gossip, isn't physically active, and doesn't know the difference between grains, I don't think anyone would be willing to buy you..."

"Xu Qingying!!" Xu Lezhi's face flushed with anger. Finally, he couldn't hold it in any longer. He made a hushed gesture to Xu Meixiao and said with an adult-like demeanor, "Seventh sister, please stop making a fuss. I'm taking you to rescue the eldest daughter of the Qian family. Don't waste time."

Xu Lezhi was so angry at the sisters that he vomited blood, but Xu Qingying was so strong that she dragged them away. Even Fang Ningmo asked curiously, "What happened to Miss Qian?"

The word "again" made Feng'er blush. She didn't know why Xu Qingying wanted to bring so many people with her. Wouldn't this make everyone laugh at her young lady?

But when Feng'er thought of Miss Xu who was able to jump into the water alone to save people despite the severe cold, all those thoughts disappeared.

She had no choice but to remain silent and wait for Xu Qingying's instructions.

"You'll know when you get there."

Fang Ruyu and Xu Qingying were still brooding over their last argument, and with Xu Lezhi constantly stirring things up, although Fang Ruyu and Xu Qingying were not completely incompatible, he still looked down on her.

But today, seeing Xu Qingying risking her life to save others, I felt somewhat moved. I thought that although Xu Qingying was not well educated and a bit crude and materialistic, she was not a bad person after all.

As for blowing air to bring the dead back to life, she thought so at first, but Xu Qingying explained it clearly at the time, which made her look at him with new eyes.

So she acquiesced and followed.

It was called a tent, but in fact it was just a tent made of cloth and branches, providing a place to shelter from the wind and rain. On the road of exile, they lacked everything and the conditions were simple. They had to stay here for two or three days to make soap and then speed up their journey. Such a crude tent was better than sleeping in the wilderness.

As expected, upon entering, he saw Qian Zhenniang lying on the ground, still wearing her wet clothes. She was shivering and shaking with cold, curled up in a ball, her face pale. A faint ray of setting sun shone through the tent. Inside, the stove was cold, and there was an extinguished fire nearby.

Seeing this, Fang Ruyu frowned and said to Feng'er, "You little girl! How could you be so sneaky and cunning when your master is freezing? You didn't even light a fire! You should be dragged away and slapped for bullying your master!"

Feng Er was about to speak when she heard Qian Zhenniang's weak voice: "Don't blame Feng Er, I was the one who put out the fire... I... I have nowhere else to go. I might as well die and not burden others..."

She scolded Feng'er again with red eyes: "You little girl, I've returned your indenture contract to you and told you to follow Miss Xu. She will definitely help you find a future. Why are you following me?! Aren't you afraid that I will kill you too one day? You insist on following me and losing your life, right?!"

Feng'er cried and rushed over, "Miss, you and I grew up together. You have no father and no mother, and so does Feng'er. If you hadn't bought Feng'er, Feng'er would have starved to death or frozen to death on the street. Although Feng'er has been wandering around with you for so many years, at least you are alive, and Feng'er can barely be considered to have a home! If you die, where can Feng'er go? In this big world, Feng'er is the only one left. What's the point of living? If you don't want to live anymore, Feng'er won't live either!"

"You girl, you're so confused, so confused! What's the point of following me? I only spent five taels of silver to buy you. You've suffered so much all these years following me, and you almost got married to a lame servant by my aunt... Why are you so stubborn and follow me..."

The master and servant cried together, which made the people who followed them very sad. Fang Ruyu said, "I was wrong. You are a loyal servant."

Xu Lezhi thought to himself, "What do you mean by 'seeking death'? Who would make such a fuss? Who are you trying to impress? If you really want to die, why not find a secluded place, find a rope, and hang yourself from a tree? Wouldn't that be quick and easy?"

It is likely that Qian Zhenniang wants to rely on their Xu family, or even their second branch.

Xu Lezhi secretly reminded himself that he must not let the second house bring trouble to Qian Zhenniang. If the first house was really blackmailed, the first house would definitely not let it go and would drag the second house to clean up the mess.

But it is absolutely impossible to let Qian Zhenniang in.

She can even kill her own parents, so there is definitely no benefit in being associated with her.

At this point, Xu Lezhi had no choice but to hold his nose and speak for the eldest wife.

Thinking of this, Xu Lezhi's face towards Qian Zhenniang was no longer in good spirits. "Miss Qian, you've made such a big scene. If you didn't know, you might think we, the Xu family, are forcing you to death. You have to explain clearly to everyone that it was you who concealed your horoscope and deceived the marriage. Isn't it reasonable for my aunt to ask for a break-up?"

Qian Zhenniang lowered her head, her face flushed and her tears streaming down her face as Xu Lezhi spoke.

Xu Lezhi didn't want to let her go just like that, and continued, "The engagement has been called off, and it's reasonable for you to stop following us. But why are you so desperate? One moment you want to jump into the river, the next you want to die of illness? Fine, if you want to die, go ahead and die. Why are you dragging my Xu family down with you?!"

Feng Er suppressed her grievances and argued for Qian Zhenniang, "Xu Qi, that horoscope was changed by my uncle, and my young lady had no idea about it!"

"Completely unaware?" Xu Lezhi's face stretched long. "She was unlucky to her parents, had no upbringing, and was neither beautiful nor charming. Yet, she suddenly landed such a good marriage. How could she not know what was going on? What do you mean by completely unaware? It's obvious that you two have conspired to harm my Xu family! Just ask yourself, which family in the world would be willing to marry a jinx like you..."

"I—" Qian Zhenniang burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably, "I know I've committed a grave sin. I have nothing to say. The worst that can happen is that I'll give you my life!"

"Humph, how much is your life worth? Do you think it's worthy of being compared with the reputation of my Xu family?"

Xu Qingying was annoyed by their noise, so she didn't say much and directly gave orders: "Miss Fang, the Qian family's daughter just saved her life. Please take Xu Lezhi out. Miss Fang, Feng'er, hold down Qian Zhenniang and help her take off her wet clothes!"

Although Fang Ruyu didn't like being ordered around, she saw that Xu Lezhi was really going too far, so she pulled Xu Lezhi out first and said, "Miss Xu Qi, don't get yourself hurt by being angry. Let Miss Qian calm down first..."

Qian Zhenniang refused and just kept resisting, "Miss Xu, please leave me alone and let me die. I'm a burden if I'm alive. Death will put an end to everything. Maybe I can be reborn as a good child in my next life..."

"That won't do. I saved your life, so I have the final say. What are you standing there for? Hurry up and do it!"

Feng Er hesitated, but could not stand Xu Qingying's momentum, "Miss, I'm sorry."

Fang Ningmo also said: "Miss Qian, don't worry, we are all girls, and we are doing this for your own good-"

Xu Qingying didn't waste any time. In a few seconds, she held Qian Zhenniang down and stripped her clothes off. She first changed her into clean clothes, and then instructed Feng'er to go to Fourth Aunt to get a bowl of rich ginger soup. She and Fang Ningmo each held one of them and forced her to drink it raw.

Qian Zhenniang was choked and coughed continuously, with ginger soup all over her face. However, the two men were very strong and she couldn't move at all. Taking advantage of this gap, Feng'er had already lit a fire, and Xu Qingying held her down to dry her hair.

Although their actions were very rough, for some reason, Qian Zhenniang's heart was soft. She just kept crying, sobbing silently at first, and then bursting into tears, as if she wanted to vent all the grievances in her life.

Xu Qingying let her go, and the three of them sat around her, waiting for her to finish crying.

Fang Ningmo wanted to say something, but Miss Qian was crying too aggrievedly, and seeing Xu Qingying's calm expression, she wisely chose to shut up.

She was just here to help.

After an unknown amount of time, Qian Zhenniang finally stopped crying. Her eyes were red, and she seemed to have just realized her own loss of composure. She said somewhat embarrassedly, "I've made a fool of myself for you two sisters."

"It's okay. Crying isn't shameful. It's just a way to vent your emotions. Besides, you've been wronged so much this time. If you keep suppressing it in your heart, it will only make you depressed. It's better to cry and let it all out."

Qian Zhenniang was so comforted that the tears that had just stopped started to flow again. She could only sniffle and said, "Thank you Miss Xu for your comfort. Oh, and thank you for saving my life."

Qian Zhenniang pretended to kneel on the ground, clasped her hands together in front of her forehead, and performed a proper salute.

Xu Qingying wanted to help him, but Fang Ningmo stopped her with a smile: "Xu Liu, the water is so cold in this autumn. You risked your life to save hers. She deserves a big bow to thank you for saving her life. You should accept this gift."

Feng Er also bowed solemnly and said, "Thank you Miss Xu for saving my daughter's life. If you need me to do anything in the future, I will go through fire and water without hesitation."

Xu Qingying seemed to be thinking about something, but she stared at Qian Zhenniang. "Feng'er said she would obey my orders, so what does Miss Qian mean? I saved your life, what are you going to do in return?"

Fang Ningmo looked at her in surprise.

Qian Zhenniang blushed, "It's a pity that I have nothing but two or three pieces of clothing. If you don't mind..."

"I despise it. I have plenty of material possessions, but I'm short of people—"

Qian Zhenniang looked at her with misty eyes, "What do you mean, young lady?"

"What I mean is that you stay alive, take your medicine properly, and save your life first. As I said before, I saved your life, and from now on you are mine. Do whatever I ask you to do as a way of repaying me for saving your life."

Fang Ningmo seemed to understand Xu Qingying's meaning and said with a smile, "Isn't this a repayment for saving my life?"

Qian Zhenniang said in confusion: "What does Miss Xu want me to do... I... I don't know anything..."

"Your parents are both businessmen, so you must be able to at least do the accounting, right?"

"This... I've been exposed to it since I was young, so I understand a little bit."

"Can you understand the account book?"

"I understand it."

"Can you read?"

"I can recognize some large characters, but I am not proficient in academic knowledge."

Xu Qingying smiled, isn't this her talent?

When her soap business grew bigger, she took the first batch of funds to Qianzhou and adapted to local conditions. Whether it was reselling agricultural products or agricultural and sideline products, she needed people who could read and manage things.

Qian Zhenniang has no father or mother and has no conflicts with anyone. With some training, she will definitely become her confidante.

The only thing is that this soft temper needs to be changed.

"Okay, that's enough. To be honest, my soap business will definitely grow bigger in the future, and I'm sure I'll need more help. You can read and do accounting, so how about helping me manage the soap business for now and then becoming my manager in the future?"

"How can I do this?" Qian Zhenniang shook her head like a rattle. "I'm a woman, how can I show my face in public and do business? What's more, I have never done these things before. If I don't do it well, won't it hurt you——"