Shen Qing was stunned and stood there dumbfounded.
Cheng Zhiwen had already gotten up from the bed, walked up to her, raised his hand, pinched her chin, and gently lifted it.
The man lowered his head, his face looming close in front of her.
He seemed about to kiss her.
She suddenly felt that he was a stranger and annoying at this moment, and with a wave of her hand, she slapped his hand away from her chin.
He didn't continue, his gaze sharp as he looked at her: "If you don't want to sell your body, then you shouldn't have entered this room! Once you're in, it's not up to you!"
Shen Qing gritted her teeth in resentment, stared at him for a moment, then turned and rushed out of the room.
Once on the carriage, I realized I was already in tears.
Cheng Zhiwen is right. Besides her body, what else does she have that these powerful men can even glance at?
How could she possibly have the nerve to discuss this kind of business?
Is the game played by the powerful class something she, an ordinary person from the bottom of society, can participate in?
It was all her fault for overestimating herself, which led to Cheng Zhiwen's merciless mockery.
"Boss Shen, we've arrived," Old Xu called out from outside the carriage.
Shen Qing wiped away her tears and bent down to get out of the carriage.
She didn't go into the Gao family's house immediately. Standing by the car, she said to Old Xu, "Old Xu, you should go back to Boss Cheng's place."
Old Xu was taken aback and asked anxiously, "Boss Shen, what happened? Boss Cheng didn't tell me to go back!"
Shen Qing sniffed and nodded: "I know. It's just that I don't need the carriage here for the time being, so you should go back to Boss Cheng's place."
Old Xu stared at her blankly, saying nothing.
She turned and went into the Gao family home.
Madam Gao was still sitting in the main hall, as if waiting for her. She hesitated for a while before going in.
"How is it?" Gao Liu asked as she approached. "Is your fellow villager willing to help?"
She shook her head: "I don't want to do this kind of thing."
Gao Liu sat back down, lost in thought.
Shen Qing also sat down beside him, composed himself, and said calmly, "There's no money left at home. I used the last hundred taels as a deposit for duck feathers, but now because I don't have the money to pay the balance, I can't get that hundred taels back."
Madam Gao looked around the house and sighed, "If all else fails, let's just sell this house! We can pay off the debts and still have some left over!"
"The land deeds and house deeds have all been mortgaged to that Master Zhao, so they can't be sold for the time being."
We've reached a dead end.
Gao Liushi understood everything and immediately cried out, "I'm going to die! I'm going to die!"
Shen Qing silently got up and went back to her room.
I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. I dreamt that the moon had arrived, and because I had no money to pay my debts, I was dragged to court and tortured.
The board pounded down on her lower back, breaking her vertebrae and tearing her flesh apart, causing it to become inflamed, oozing pus, and covered with countless worms.
"Ah!" Shen Qing opened her eyes, sat up in shock, and was covered in sweat.
Hearing the noise, Chunju quickly opened the door and came in. She walked to the bedside, leaned down and looked at her: "Young mistress, did you have a nightmare?"
Shen Qing snapped out of her daze and reached for her lower back with both hands.
Feeling that her skin and flesh were still intact, she breathed a sigh of relief and looked out the window: "What time is it?"
"It's Chen Shi (7-9 AM)," Chunju said softly. "The old lady went out early this morning. I'll bring your breakfast to your room. You can sleep a little longer."
Where did Grandma go?
"I heard he went to borrow money from Gao's relatives."
Shen Qing sighed, "I hope she can borrow it."
She had no desire to sleep anymore and no appetite. After washing up a little, she went to the shop.
Tell the shopkeeper to take out the last bit of rayon in the warehouse and sell it to get the funds back as soon as possible.
This amount of money might be enough to support the Gao family for another month.
She didn't know what would happen a month from now.
She was at her wit's end and had no other options.
Although Gao Liu tried to borrow money, she was unable to do so.
The Gao family relatives who invested money with her the first time never received any dividends, so no one would be foolish enough to continue investing money with her.
Not to mention borrowing money.
There's an old saying: "Lend to those in urgent need, not to those who are poor."
Who would lend money to a family that is heavily indebted and already unable to repay its debts?
"Mr. Shen? Mr. Shen?"
Shen Qing snapped out of her daze and looked at the shopkeeper: "What's wrong?"
Do you remember that businessman from Tianjin from last time?
Shen Qing nodded: "I remember, why?"
“After you returned the deposit to him last time, he came to the shop.”
Shen Qing asked in surprise, "What is he doing at the shop?"
"He bought more than a dozen bolts of rayon and said his daughter really likes your fabrics. He urged you to persevere and said he would help if you encountered any difficulties..."
Shen Qing felt a warmth in her heart, both unexpected and heartwarming.
Looking at the ledger in her hand, she said regretfully, "This is the last batch of rayon. I don't think we'll ever have any more. It's a collector's item."
The shopkeeper sighed and shook his head.
Shen Qing pushed the ledger back and turned to leave.
"Mr. Shen! Please wait!"
Shen Qing paused and turned around.
The shopkeeper came out from behind the counter: "How about we take a few bolts of rayon and go to Tianjin?"
Shen Qing was puzzled.
The shopkeeper explained, "The rayon is for the daughter of a merchant from Tianjin. If he wants to help you, he will ask you if you need any assistance. After all, he left you a message last time."
Shen Qing chuckled: "They probably just said it casually."
"Let's take this gamble. If he's not interested, we can always come back. We don't have any other options right now anyway."
Shen Qing thought about it and agreed.
Since I'm just staying at home anyway, I might as well go to Tianjin and see if there are any other opportunities.
This Tianjin businessman was the only one of the three who initially placed a deposit who did not seek a loan from a money lender.
This indicates that there is sufficient funding.
Compared to those with tight funds, it's easier for Tianjin businessmen to negotiate partnerships.
Shen Qing decided to go to Tianjin immediately.
She went to the warehouse and picked out five bolts of fabric with elegant patterns to take back to the Gao family. In the afternoon, she set off for Tianjin.
Seeing the familiar carriage waiting at the Gao family's gate in the distance, she quickly walked forward.
When Old Xu saw her, he jumped off the carriage with a smile and took the five bolts of cloth from her arms: "Boss Shen, you're back. Do you need a carriage?"
"Didn't you go back to Boss Cheng's place?"
Old Xu chuckled and scratched his head: "I went back, but he sent me back again. He said if I went back to him again, he would fire me."
Shen Qing cursed Cheng Zhiwen in her heart, calling her a lunatic.
"In that case, Lao Xu, you can stay with me for now, and we'll talk about it later."
Old Xu happily replied, "Alright, Boss Shen!"
"I'm going to Tianjin soon. Get ready, I'll go in and get my things, and we'll set off as soon as I come out!"
Upon hearing this, Old Xu's expression changed, and he said softly, "Okay."
Shen Qing thought he was worried about the long and arduous journey, so she patted his shoulder reassuringly and turned to enter the Gao family home.
...
The carriage left the city gate and headed towards Tianjin.
Shen Qing looked at the seat Cheng Zhiwen often sat in opposite her, and her heart clenched.
Cheng Zhiwen was a stranger to her last night; she didn't know what he had gone through in the past few days.
Sitting by the car door, he pulled back the curtain and asked Old Xu, "Where did Boss Cheng go the other day? The one when I took my maid and the old lady to stay at the prefect's yamen for a day."
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