It was already afternoon, well past lunchtime, but there were still two tables of guests drinking in Tianxiang Tower, and the soft laughter of women could be heard coming from the Bisha Pavilion on the street.

The shop assistant couldn't help but peek behind the screen, but he was stopped after only a couple of glances: "Who are you?"

Before he even entered the room, his furtive behavior was noticed by Sun Wencheng, who was resting nearby.

The waiter was stunned to see himself being stopped by a tall, handsome man dressed in a moon-white robe with a red ribbon around his waist. It turned out that the Tianxiang Pavilion really did employ handsome men.

Rumors are circulating in the city that Tianxiang Tower is a brothel that flaunts male beauty.

These handsome men, though good-looking, had no fat on them, unlike the wealthy men in the city.

Seeing the shop assistant staring at him in a daze, Sun Wencheng couldn't help but raise his hand and slap him: "I'm asking you a question, what are you looking at!"

Sun Wencheng felt a little smug when the girls stared at him, but when he was stared at by a lewd man, he would slap him.

"Ah! You've worked hard, young man. I'm here to see Manager Song!" The waiter was jolted awake by a slap and quickly responded.

Seeing that he had important business to attend to, Su Wencheng stopped pressuring him: "Come in with me, and don't look around."

The waiter hurriedly bowed his head and agreed, but his eyes couldn't help but peek into the gauze-covered wardrobe. He could only see three or four figures, nothing else, which made him very curious.

Sun Wencheng brought the man directly to Lin Tao: "Team Leader Lin, this man wants to see Miss Song."

After a cup of tea, the waiter left Tianxianglou and jogged back to Jinxilou. As soon as he entered, he rushed into the backyard, ignoring the profuse sweat pouring down his face.

"What? The woman from the military household isn't here!"

Shen Leyan's face was gloomy. He didn't know if Song Liyun was avoiding him or if she was really not in Tianxiang Tower.

But since the person hasn't arrived yet, I can't show any weakness beforehand.

Huang Changsheng, standing next to him, took a small sip of tea, smacked his lips, and found it tasteless and bland.

He casually put the teacup aside, showing no interest in this tea-drinking method that originated from Tianxianglou.

Liao Fu looked at Shen Leyan with a worried expression. He had finally managed to persuade two restaurants to help him sober up, and he was afraid that something else might happen.

"Chief Shen, what about my wine?" Liao Fu asked.

After a moment of contemplation, Shen Leyan said, "Since Manager Song is not at Tianxiang Tower, I cannot force him. However, business has been slow this month due to rising prices, so I will help you sell ten jars of wine."

He thought it would be possible to temporarily halt the sale of his own liquor and help Liao Fu sell ten jars of liquor.

On the other side, Huang Changsheng also said, "Since we're old acquaintances, I'll help you sell ten jars. Hey, Brother Liao, don't worry, as long as the war stops, I'll cover all your drinks."

Liao Fu was furious: "You only want ten jars? Tianxianglou used to order a hundred jars from me. How do you expect me to sell them? You're playing me for a fool!"

Even without Tianxianglou, these two restaurants, which are well-known in Qili County, only helped sell ten jars for themselves.

They even said they'd take over everything once the fighting stopped; they're just treating themselves like fools.

As for the war, there were Di barbarians in Qing'an Prefecture, and no war was being fought in Pingyang Prefecture. Qili County was even more distant, thousands of miles away. How could it be related to the war?

Hearing his ungrateful words, Shen Leyan's face darkened immediately: "Master Liao, you can't say that. You are a veteran in business and should know that every restaurant has its own winery. When did you say you would buy all of my wine?"

"If I were to sell all my wine to you with just a few words, what would happen to the winery I signed the contract with?"

Huang Changsheng, standing nearby, also said, "Brother Liao, don't worry. A hundred jars of wine is only a hundred taels of silver. Your family is large and wealthy, so you can afford it."

Let's store the liquor first. It's hot now, and people in the city are still drinking plum juice. Who would drink strong liquor at this time?

It's just the off-season. Just wait two more months, and once winter comes, your wine will naturally sell well.

Even if you don't drink, the alcohol will still be there.

Sigh! You're still better off than us! With meat prices rising every day, and vegetable prices not keeping pace, we're still losing money selling at a loss every day!

The prices of pork and mutton in Qili County have indeed been rising these days. Although it's not a loss as Huang Changsheng said, it has still significantly reduced profits.

Liao Fu knew he had been ripped off; he had only managed to sell twenty jars of wine in one trip. What would he do next month?

Each month, the distillery produces at least a hundred jars of wine. Just by selling a pot or two at a time, it's enough to last a year.

What to do, what to do? The only way now is to get back the Tianxianglou orders.

Just imagine how prosperous Tianxianglou is now, with truckloads of Yuzhilan wine being delivered to it, making countless other wineries envious.

well!

How could I have been so foolish as to believe Huang Changsheng and the others that Tianxianglou had no food or cooks and couldn't open!

After leaving Jingxi Tower, Liao Fu wanted to visit Tianxiang Tower, but then stopped.

Shen Leyan had just sent someone to invite the female manager, but she replied that she was not there.

If they don't even give face to the head chef, how can they possibly save face for the one whose order was rejected?

Even if you offer yourself up now, you'll still be manipulated.

He thought about it again and again, then turned back to his distillery with a dark expression.

There's nothing we can do; it's summer now, and liquor sales are indeed lower than in winter, so we can only store it for now.

Lin Tao wasn't lying; Song Liyun really wasn't at Tianxiang Tower for even a single day.

She went to work in the fields.

These past few days have been the time for harvesting spring rapeseed.

The seeds that Song Liyun had stored in the space for ten years had almost all lost their vitality after enduring the trials of time and space, except for the rapeseed which was still able to sprout.

The seeds were sown in March, and it's now mid-July.

Under Song Zhenping's wholehearted and meticulous care, more than eighty rapeseed seedlings have finally grown healthily and are now ready for harvest.

Song Zhenping could have easily handled it by himself, but Song Liyun felt that since this was her only living companion in that space, she should just come and harvest it, as a kind of welcoming ceremony.

Since they weren't going to Qili County, Song Liyun didn't have to get up early and could still eat the breakfast that Yunniang had carefully prepared at home.

As they were leaving, Song Liyun instinctively reached out to hold Xiao An's hand, but he dodged it, saying shyly, "Second Sister, I'm a man, we can't hold hands in public!"

Song Liyun was taken aback. She looked around and saw that she had walked onto the main road and that people were already walking around. She immediately smiled and said, "Good, Xiao An has grown up!"

Now, with ample nutrition, a safe and comfortable living environment, normal and healthy communication with others, and medication, Xiao An is recovering quickly in all aspects.

They have basically grown to the height of an eight or nine-year-old child, and their emotional intelligence changes every day, so the difference between them and normal children is no longer obvious.

It was a rare occasion for the three siblings to work in the fields together.

Song Zhenping carried a large basket on his back, preparing to fill it with rapeseed pods, and led Juqing horse ahead by the hand.

Song Liyun carried a basket, while Xiao An led the little dog, running in the morning light.

Spring brings a hundred flowers, autumn a bright moon, summer a cool breeze, and winter snow. If you have no worries on your mind, then every season is a good season.

The years are so peaceful and beautiful, it's intoxicating!