The Xiao family has a very high status in the capital. When people mention the Xiao family, they know it is Xiao Nanfang. For such a family without any status, the house at home is naturally very luxurious.
Yan Shuhua was stunned when he saw the house for the first time, so when Fan Zhiqiang saw it, he naturally had the same feeling.
In order to look more like a city dweller today, Fan Zhiqiang wore a white coat tucked into his black trousers. His hair was slightly trimmed. Although he didn't look very handsome, it was normal for him to be eye-catching.
When Fan Zhiqiang saw the small Western-style building, he was very envious, just like a country bumpkin entering the village, he looked here and there, and he didn't expect that when he saw Yan Shuhua, he would ring the doorbell.
Could it be that the master's wife knew someone here? Fan Zhiqiang, curious, quickly approached. At this time, an old man came out. He was not the housekeeper that Yan Shuhua had seen last time. He looked to be in his sixties, with all white hair.
"Hello, is Mrs. Xiao at home?" Yan Shuhua did not write to Bai Zhishu nor tell her, but now he had no choice but to come here on his own, which might give her a big surprise.
The man replied: "My wife is away on a trip and is not at home."
"Traveling far away?" Strange, I haven't heard Bai Zhishu mention traveling far away some time ago, why is he traveling far away all of a sudden? Yan Shuhua looked at the old man in front of him who seemed to be unfriendly, and asked one more question, "When did she leave?"
"She's been gone for a few days." The old man looked at Yan Shuhua and didn't ask who she was, because he was thinking, how could there be such a relative in the family? She was obviously from the countryside, especially the boy following behind her, who was simply from the mountains and didn't match the Xiao family at all.
The Xiao family is a wealthy family, and there are many people who want to become relatives with them, so the old man did not treat Yan Shuhua very well when dealing with such a person of unknown origin. After saying that, he quickly drove Yan Shuhua away.
Yan Shuhua thought that if she told this person that she was the young lady of the Xiao family, he probably wouldn't believe it. After all, Bai Zhishu was not at home. If her identity was exposed, not only would he not believe it, but it might also attract Xiao Yanmin, so she thought it was better not to alert the enemy.
Yan Shuhua was quite disappointed. Seeing Fan Zhiqiang kept asking where this was, she was reluctant to say. Finally, she was annoyed enough and said it was his master's home.
"What... that little western-style building... is actually my master's home?" Fan Zhiqiang was obviously shocked. How could this be possible? He knew that his master was rich and that his family was well-off, but this little western-style building was not something that ordinary people could afford to live in!
Oh my god, that small Western-style building cannot be built without hundreds of thousands of dollars. Is the master's family so rich? The money Fan Zhiqiang saw was at most two or three hundred yuan. He could never have imagined that there would be so much money, and he could never have imagined that he, who had never been to any place in the countryside, could come to Beijing to see such a large Western-style building.
"You don't believe it?" Yan Shuhua felt a headache watching Fan Zhiqiang constantly imagining something... Could this kid be imagining something again? "Master's wife, you and my master are married, why... don't they recognize you?" Fan Zhiqiang remembered that the man just now didn't treat Yan Shuhua as a young lady at all.
Yan Shuhua didn't say anything. It would be useless if she talked too much. Compared with Fan Zhiqiang's talkativeness, Yan Shuhua seemed much calmer. She kept thinking about the tone and expression of the old man's words just now, and it seemed that it was not as simple as she thought.
Yan Shuhua took Fan Zhiqiang to have a meal. He originally thought it was a small stall, but he didn't expect that his master's wife took him to a restaurant, and it was a state-owned restaurant. He watched as his master's wife ordered a Xiaowa Village specialty, eel stew, and also fried some spicy vegetables.
"Master's wife, are we really going to eat in a restaurant?" Fan Zhiqiang had never been to a restaurant, let alone eaten in one, and he always felt like he was dreaming.
"Just order whatever you want to eat." Yan Shuhua originally wanted to eat something outside, but then he thought that since two people were doing business together, they couldn't just settle for anything. Taking Fan Zhiqiang to such high-end places more often might help broaden his horizons.
This really broadened my horizons.
While eating, Fan Zhiqiang was wondering how much the meal would cost. With the fifty yuan that Fan Xiaofeng gave him in his pocket, he was afraid that it would not be enough to pay for it.
After all, the master's wife brought him here from afar, so it's impossible for her to pay for the train tickets and even treat him to meals.
Yan Shuhua talked a lot about business with Fan Zhiqiang at the dinner table. In fact, doing business is not that difficult. The main thing is to be honest. The old doctor is a good person, but you can't think that you can fool people just because he is a good person. You must work harder. It takes real ability to keep your integrity for a lifetime.
After the meal, Fan Zhiqiang seemed to be reborn. His brain worked quickly and he immediately rushed to pay the bill. Yan Shuhua thought that Fan Zhiqiang was really a teachable boy. Although he was a little unsophisticated now, he could speak, had a quick mind, knew how to socialize, and would not covet other people's money. This made Yan Shuhua very satisfied.
The guesthouse would not be open if it was too late, so Yan Shuhua went to the guesthouse to book a room first. One room cost more than ten yuan, which was indeed very expensive. He was reluctant to book two rooms. After looking at the rooms, he saw that they all had two beds. In Yan Shuhua's heart, Fan Zhiqiang was a younger brother, so he thought it was okay for two people to sleep in one room.
"Master's Wife, shouldn't we go to bed now?" Fan Zhiqiang was still thinking about the clothing business. "Why don't you take me out for a stroll at night to broaden my horizons?"
"You, can't you think about something less all day long?" Yan Shuhua packed up some valuable things and put them on her body. Seeing her action, Fan Zhiqiang knew that she must go out. Could it be that his pleading worked, so she wanted to take him to do clothing business? Compared with the herbal medicine business, Fan Zhiqiang actually liked the clothing business more. What's the point of carrying that bag of herbs every day? If he can wear handsome clothes, can't he show off?
Yan Shuhua didn't have the mind to figure out what Fan Zhiqiang was thinking. She was still thinking about what happened in the afternoon.
Before getting off work, Yan Shuhua hurried to the telegraph office and sent a telegram to Xiao Jinchu, telling him that Bai Zhishu had not been at home for the past few days.