139 Extra 2

◎The world's number one female businessman——◎

In a blink of an eye, it was the third year since Song Jinyi left.

Li He and Huo Changqing finally got married after many twists and turns. They went through the stages of proposing marriage proposal, asking for the bride's name, accepting the marriage proposal, accepting the betrothal gift, and finally reached the stage of welcoming the bride.

The day before her wedding, in Li He's boudoir, the candlelight cast its shadow on the window paper covered with wedding characters.

Xu Ruolan was helping Li He try on her wedding attire. Li He's fingertips were unconsciously twisting the hem of her skirt, and she couldn't help but sigh, "It's already this late. Will Sister Jinyi... really be unable to make it?"

Xu Ruolan tied her belt for her. "How could that be? Ah Jin has always treated you as her own sister. Now that you're getting married, it's a rare and important event in life. She will definitely rush back..."

As they were talking, a voice suddenly rose outside the house. Ru'er shouted loudly, wishing everyone could hear: "Ahe! Madam Song is back!"

Everyone in the room stood up instantly. Li He rushed to the door like a gust of wind. The moment she saw the familiar figure, her eyes reddened. She looked back at Xu Ruolan in disbelief.

She stamped her foot and said, "Is it Sister Jinyi?!"

Xu Ruolan followed out and looked at the familiar figure. She nodded with a slightly hoarse voice, "It's Ah Jin who's back."

After getting Xu Ruolan's answer, Li He finally confirmed that the scene before him was not a dream.

She quickened her pace, and the more she walked, the faster she got. When she reached the back, she ran straight over and bumped into Song Jinyi's arms like a child. The endless longing she had expressed over the years was reduced to a single word of blame the moment she opened her mouth: "I thought Sister Jinyi valued love over friendship, and had forgotten me and everyone else?

"I haven't been back for a few years..." As she spoke, her voice choked with sobs, "I was thinking that if you didn't come back for this wedding, I wouldn't recognize you as my sister!"

Song Jinyi knew she was in the wrong, so she apologized repeatedly, then wiped away the tears from her eyes, and rubbed her red nose with her fingertips: "Silly girl, your marriage is such a big deal, why wouldn't I come back?

"Even if I have to go through fire and water, I will come back to see you."

Li He snorted, "That sounds nice..."

Li He, Xu Ruolan, Zhang Yao and others surrounded Song Jinyi and talked as they walked.

Li He's apprentice Xiaoqiu followed closely behind the crowd, his eyes fixed on Song Jinyi who was chatting and laughing in the crowd.

She had long heard of the great name of this Lady Song. She heard that when Daxia and Xirong signed the treaty, according to convention, they should have sent a princess as a bride to conclude an alliance between the two countries.

The new emperor had been on the throne for only three years and had only one three-year-old daughter. After searching the harem, the only suitable match for marriage was Princess Zhaochen.

The eldest princess Zhaochen was the darling of the Grand Empress Dowager. She had not been married for many years, but the Grand Empress Dowager was reluctant to let her go and no man from any family looked down on her. She was kept in her care, but who would have thought that such a thing would happen.

When he learned that his beloved princess was about to marry into the wild land of the Western Regions, he was so anxious that he suffered a headache and almost lost his life.

At this time, Sun Guo, who had once known Lady Song and was working in the Hanlin Academy, mentioned the commendation letter of Huaiyuan City and the affairs between Song Jinyi and the King of Xirong.

As a result, His Majesty conferred the title of Princess Pingxi on Song Jinyi to establish friendly relations with the Western Rong and maintain peace on the border. As a result, the Song family, a merchant family, also rose in status and was granted a title, becoming the Earl of Yongding.

A mere merchant woman became a key figure in the peace between the two countries, which was even more exaggerated than the characters in the storybook.

What is even more exaggerated is that her business skills are as great as her wisdom, which enabled her to open up the Silk Road, consolidate business alliances, and promote economic exchanges between the two countries.

The rebellion on the Hexi border that had plagued Daxia for many years was eased significantly due to the interconnected trade routes. There had been no riots or looting eastward for three years.

The people of Hexi County remembered her kindness and passed her story on from mouth to mouth. There were even many writers and storytellers who compiled her stories, making her famous throughout the world.

Call her "the world's number one female businessman——"

Qiu'er had heard many stories about Song Jinyi since she was a child, and she had always admired him. Now, such a godlike figure was right in front of her, and she couldn't believe it!

It’s just that Song Jinyi hasn’t seen Li He and others for a long time, and she has a lot to talk about.

She was busy at the moment and couldn't get a word in.

That evening.

Zhang Yao brought back a few jars of wine and said, "This was originally a wedding gift for Li Hebei. Now that the master is here, it's a good time to open it and drink it together!"

As the night deepened, a fire burned brightly in the corner of the room. Several people sat around a couch, a low table filled with various snacks, and they were toasting each other. Needless to say, the atmosphere was lively.

Li He leaned on Song Jinyi's shoulder and asked about the Western Regions.

Song Jinyi picked out a few interesting things to tell them, saying that the snow in the desert was like a brown cake base covered with a thin layer of frosting.

When trade was at its busiest, the camel caravans in the desert were so densely packed that they didn't look like they were going to do business, but rather to attack Yuedu.

She spoke with great emotion, and Zhang Yao and others who were listening below couldn't help laughing.

Song Jinyi had been talking for most of the day and was getting tired. She changed the subject to Xu Ruolan, "How has Sister Ruolan been doing in Yunzhou these past few years? I heard from Ah He that Sister Ruolan has been tinkering with a lot of new things."

"There's nothing new about it." Xu Ruolan modestly said, "It's just that I wanted to go to Tongzhou in the southeast last year and try to open a franchise store there.

"When we got there, we discovered a special kind of fruit. Its skin was green and looked like wood chips, but when you peeled it open, you could seep out a nearly transparent liquid.

The most amazing thing is that the liquid has a light milky taste and tastes sweet when you drink it.

Song Jinyi listened to her carefully and roughly guessed what it was.

Not only did she not point it out, but she pretended to be curious and urged Xu Ruolan to continue.

"When I saw that the fruit tasted good, I thought of your recipe of combining milk and tea, so I tried them all."

Zhang Jinfei added, "That fruit is truly magical. Whether it's mixed with tea or fruit, it has a unique flavor. The master immediately made the decision, contacted the peddler, and had it delivered to Yunzhou.

"Then we decided on the new product and called in the franchise store owners..."

In addition to these, many other things were said.

After three rounds of drinks, the night gradually deepened, and the house was still brightly lit. The tall red candle was dripping tears, and it would not stop until every last drop had shed.

Zhang Yao drank quite a bit, then she put her arm around Song Jinyi's waist, rested her head on her shoulder, and whispered in her ear, "Master, can you stay here this time?"

Song Jinyi's shoulders stiffened and she didn't respond.

Zhang Yao rubbed her cheek with her head, as if she wanted an answer.

Li He glanced at them, not knowing what they were talking about, so he came over and asked.

Zhang Yao glanced at Song Jinyi and smiled knowingly, "If the bride doesn't go to bed at this hour, she won't be able to get up tomorrow~"

"Okay, when I wasn't paying attention, you guys secretly said bad things about me--" After saying that, Li He pounced on Zhang Yao like a tiger pouncing on its prey and started playing with her.

This night was really outrageous.

I almost missed the auspicious time to get married the next day.

According to Li He's later account, she did not oversleep, but Zhang Yao overslept and did not wake her up in time, and Xu Ruolan was too serious and was a step slow in dressing up.

Even Qiu'er, Ru'er and Zhang Jinfei were blamed, saying that there were so many people but none of them was useful.

As for Song Jinyi——"I'm just thankful she can come. I don't expect her to do anything."

Huo Changqing, the groom, was unable to speak a few words to his bride for three days, but he knew how rare such days were, so he never restrained Li He and let her play around.

We stayed like this for two or three days.

Li He had a general feeling about what was going on, and on that day, he called a painter who was good at drawing figures to paint for everyone.

No one objected.

Song Jinyi naturally sat in the middle of the first row. She was wearing a bean green brocade dress. Next to her on the left was Li He, wearing a lake blue long gown, and on the right was Xu Ruolan, wearing a moon-white short-collared gown.

Standing in the second row in order are: Ruer, Qiuer, Zhang Yao, and Zhang Jinfei.

Standing in the last row were: Cui Xiuxiu, Li Wen, Wang Cui and several young ladies from Juxing Tower and Xilou.

After they sat down, the painter looked at them and was at a loss as to where to start.

The characters he usually painted were single people, occasionally just one person, but rarely a group of people.

Especially the ladies before him, with their completely different personalities and unique looks. Some are as bright and cheerful as peonies, some are as gentle and delicate as jasmine, and some are as quiet and reliable as camellias.

Very different styles, how to paint together.

He held the pen in the air and looked at it for a while. Suddenly, he felt something and began to write. A single flower certainly has its own beauty, but different flowers put together, in contrast, appear more vivid.

After the painting was completed, the artist copied two copies of it according to Li He's request.

One was given to Song Jinyi to take back to the Western Regions.

One was left for Li He to remind him of the person.

Another one was given to Xu Ruolan.

A few days later, Xu Ruolan and Zhang Jinfei bid farewell to Li He and returned to Yunzhou.

Song Jinyi also set off back to Yuedu.

The huge courtyard was no longer bustling. Li He leaned on Huo Changqing's shoulder, looked at the lonely crabapple tree in the yard, and said softly, "One tree is too lonely. Let's plant another crabapple tree next spring?"

This year's flowers are more beautiful than last year's. [1]

It’s a pity that the flowers will be better next year, but who will share them with me?

【Author’s words】

After working so hard to finish it, the collections dropped one by one. I am about to lose my little pearls. Why did all my readers run away? Swallow, how can I live without you? [Breaking down crying]