Chapter 34: The Waves Are Not Over

The next day.

Su Wen Qian carefully prepared some snacks. When she asked along the way and found the bookstore, Su Shengsheng was nowhere to be found.

There were about thirty scholars sitting in the bookstore, many of them were handsome, but Mr. Ji was particularly eye-catching, and could be described as a man as beautiful as jade.

Recalling her mother's words, Su Wenqian's cheeks turned slightly red, but she didn't dare to look at her for too long.

Yunxiang and Yunyi were carefully brushing the dust off the books in a corner. The room was quiet and silent.

She walked quietly to the next room and found that the two aunts were just watching the craftsmen working. She couldn't help but mutter, "Where is the work? They are clearly trying to make things difficult for us."

But on second thought, a look of joy appeared on her face. After straightening her clothes, she walked gracefully into the bookstore holding the cakes.

Following her mother's instructions, she shyly expressed her gratitude to Master Ji.

"Thank you." Ji Yanli stood up, bowed, took it and put it aside.

Seeing him pick up the book again, Su Wenqian felt a little embarrassed.

Just as he was about to say something else, Yunxiang and Yunyi pulled him aside and said, "Don't make any noise in the bookstore."

She was unhappy and retorted, "Isn't Su Shengsheng giving a lecture here? How come she's not considered making noise?"

As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately attracted the attention of the scholars and they all frowned slightly.

Seeing Su Wen Qian turn her gaze to look at Master Ji, Yun Xiang and the others seemed to understand something and looked at her with contempt.

"If you want to embarrass yourself, go ahead and don't blame us for not stopping you."

Su Wen Qian was interrupted by the two people and remained in a stalemate for a moment. Seeing that Master Ji was already immersed in reading and the only sound in the study was the flipping of pages, she had no choice but to say goodbye and leave.

Su Wenqian went out in a depressed mood and did not pay attention. She actually went in the wrong direction.

By the time she discovered it, he had already gone further and further away.

While anxiously asking passersby, he unexpectedly ran into Su Shengsheng and Qing Ning walking into a store.

"Pawnshop." Su Wenqian came to the door and barely recognized all the words on it, but she didn't understand their meaning.

She rolled her eyes and hid outside the door to peek.

There are two long streets in Tianqian Pass.

It is a bustling and lively street, home to gold and silver jewelry shops, high-end silk shops, and music halls and red houses. It is an entertainment place for the powerful and wealthy.

The other one is a bit depressed, selling only daily necessities such as firewood, rice, oil and salt, and is the living area for the people.

The two streets are connected during the day, but only one street has no curfew at night.

Su Shengsheng walked around twice and got a general understanding of the situation of Tianqian Pass.

Most of the people here make a living by collecting ginseng or hunting.

The bustling long street is frequented by the rich and powerful, and the public security is good.

On the street where they were, except for the pharmacy, all other shops were doing little business.

The harsh climate, scarce supplies and poor employment environment have reduced people's consumption power.

However, Su Shengsheng did not gain nothing, she also found a breakthrough point...

A pawn shop is a government-run pawn shop.

Last time, Su Shengsheng mortgaged the house deed to buy eggs.

The prison officer had a very good memory and recognized her at a glance: "Miss, what are you doing this time?" In just a few days, he made a small profit.

So, he never looks down on those who are down on their luck.

Su Shengsheng handed over the deeds to the house and shop, "Please give me an estimate of the price, sir."

She originally planned to take it slow and steady, but her family was divided. If the girls did not get married, the housing problem would need to be solved urgently.

Although the bookstore business is a long-term business, if you want to completely change the current situation, you need to make the first pot of gold as soon as possible.

The supervising official took it, looked at it, and quickly gave an estimate.

The price he offered was very reasonable, even slightly high. After all, a high estimate means a high interest rate.

"Please issue the invoice, sir." Su Shengsheng did not hesitate.

Taking into account the restless factors in her family, she temporarily deposited two hundred taels of silver here with the receipt.

After getting the voucher, Su Shengsheng and Qing Ning were looking for a suitable shop on the street, when they saw Qing rushing over with a basket of vegetables.

Zai Qing was originally left at home by Su Shengsheng to help Li with shopping.

Another reason why she withdrew all the maids today was that she wanted the ladies of the several rooms to recognize their current predicament, step out of their comfort zones, and not hinder her business.

She knew that if she suggested not letting her mother work, she would not be able to convince others.

So he stayed in Qing and told his mother to take the initiative to do the shopping when she assigned tasks to the rooms.

The family is currently struggling financially, but the women in the family are still reluctant to lower their status and will certainly not take on this humiliating job that requires haggling with the vegetable vendors.

What's more, they had no money, and the forty taels were still in the hands of their grandmother.

The fourth wife is dishonest, the second wife is slow in her work and is not someone who can bargain.

The housekeeper is deaf, blind, and slow-footed, so naturally he can't be assigned to any job.

The purchasing work is either given to the first wife or the third wife.

Therefore, when Li took the initiative to ask for purchase, the eldest lady immediately agreed.

Jiao was worried about the pressure of making a living. When she heard Li speak, she knew it was Su Shengsheng's idea and was very grateful.

She knew that Su Shengsheng was not abandoning this family.

After Li took over the task, she handed it over to Zaiqing as her daughter instructed.

Even if some people have complaints about this, when it comes to really paying, they don't have the confidence, so no one mentions it again.

Seeing that Zai Qing was running out of breath and looked worried, Su Shengsheng hurriedly asked him, "Is there something wrong at home?"

Zai Qing said breathlessly, "Miss, please go back quickly! I don't know how Miss Wu found out about you mortgaging your shop and the property deed. The old lady was furious and asked me to go find you!"

"It's bad." Qing Ning slapped her thigh, "How did people find out?"

Ning Yu also became anxious: "Miss, how about we go and redeem the deed now?"

Su Shengsheng waved her hand, "Even if I redeem it, the prison officials will have a written receipt."

Zai Qing asked with a worried look on his face, "What should we do now? Should we wait until the old lady's anger subsides before we go back?"

Su Shengsheng hadn't thought of a countermeasure yet. She never thought that the matter would be exposed in advance.

She sighed and said, "I'll know sooner or later. If I go back later, my grandmother will only be more angry."

After that, he stopped strolling and immediately rushed back with the three of them, "Let's go! You can't escape the fifteenth day if you can't escape the first day."

…

The four of them hurried back home and felt a gloomy atmosphere as soon as they entered the door.

Grandfather sat upright on the main seat, and grandmother had a blank expression.

Seeing her daughter, Mrs. Li approached her in shock and anxiety, "Sheng'er, tell me, did you really mortgage the shop?"

The Fourth Madam scoffed, "The truth is right before our eyes, yet Third Sister-in-law still doesn't believe it. Are you trying to excuse Sixth Girl? You can't deny it this time! You've played us around so hard just to pocket all the money."

Grandma's face was serious. "Sixth girl, tell me the truth. Did you really use the house deed as collateral?"

Before Su Shengsheng could reply, Su Wenqian rushed in, "How could this be false? I saw Sixth Sister walk into the pawnshop with my own eyes and beg the owner to show me her pawn ticket."

Seeing this scene, Qing Ning simply knelt down and confessed: "Old Madam, I mortgaged this shop myself. It has nothing to do with the young lady."

She had hoped that the name would still be registered under her and her brother's names, and wanted to take responsibility for all of this for Su Shengsheng.

However, how could the Fourth Madam let go of this opportunity so easily?

She immediately stood up from her seat and clapped her hands: "Listen! Everyone, listen! Even a servant dares to be so arrogant to the master! Now that you have money, you are so arrogant!"

Su Shengsheng knelt beside Qing Ning and looked at her grandparents who were sitting at the top. "This shop was mortgaged by my granddaughter."