The Prefect of the Capital, Lord Ji, looked at He Yunce, whose eyes were vacant, face was pale, and body was covered in sweat, as if his soul had been taken away.
He opened his mouth in surprise: "Young Master He... don't worry, this isn't a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family..."
He Yunze listened to these words in a daze, his stiff facial muscles twitching slightly. He wanted to say something polite, hoping that the Prefect of the Capital would take good care of Song Ruoan.
But when he opened his mouth, he couldn't utter a single word.
Prince Ning, standing beside the Prefect of the Capital, put his hands on his hips, looked down at him, and smiled: "I still need Lord Ji to handle this impartially."
The Prefect of the Capital shuddered and wiped his face with his handkerchief. How could he have heard the implication of "severe punishment" in the words "handle matters impartially"?
He understood what Prince Ning meant, and then waved his hand, taking away Song Ruoan, who was crying her eyes out, in full view of everyone.
But the Prefect of the Capital did not leave. He stood there looking at Song Xizhi, and then hesitantly said, "I would also like to ask Mr. Song to make a trip to the Capital Prefecture?"
Before Song Xizhi could even speak, Prince Ning naturally stepped forward, blocking Song Xizhi's path and helping him out: "Boss Song still has business to do, you can handle this yourself."
With these words, Prince Ning's attitude couldn't be clearer.
He was willing to support Song Xizhi and even the Pinxianglou restaurant behind her.
The Prefect of the Capital nodded repeatedly, then turned his gaze to He Yunze's direction: "Young Master He, as the person involved, should you also make a trip to the Capital Prefecture?"
Upon hearing this, the image of Song Ruoan weeping instantly flashed into his mind, and he instinctively wanted to escape.
So He Yunze forced a smile: "As long as Lord Ji handles this impartially, that's fine."
After saying this, he seemed to have reached his limit, clenched his fists, and hurriedly left Pinxianglou.
After a moment of silence as everyone watched his stumbling and disheveled figure fall into disarray, the crowd erupted in laughter again.
After Song Ruoan's efforts and the authoritative appraisal by Prince Ning, the items from Pinxianglou are even more precious and outstanding.
True gold fears no fire; from this day forward, the reputation of Pinxianglou will resound throughout the north and south of the country.
"Hey! I just got this incense! You took it again when I wasn't looking! Boss Song, you be the judge! This person just said he wanted to buy something from Ruo'anlou!"
"Mr. Song, the newly arrived incense is sold out. Do you have any more to restock?"
"Mr. Song, when can you bring out your prized Penglai Wonderland again so we can try it out?"
"..."
Amidst the clamor and noise, Prince Ning's bright, phoenix-shaped eyes once again turned towards Song Xizhi's direction.
Amidst the bustling crowd, he smiled and gestured for Song Xizhi to enter, his expression no longer displaying the noble and aloof demeanor of before: "It is a rare treat to finally catch a glimpse of the true face of the owner of Pinxianglou."
"May I have the honor of sharing tea with Mr. Song?"
Song Xizhi smiled and said, "Your Highness, what are you saying? Thank you so much for helping me out of that predicament. I will certainly prepare some fine tea to entertain you!"
"please!"
Prince Xiu, standing in the crowd, watched the interaction between Song Xizhi and Prince Ning, and gripped the incense in his hand tightly.
He was filled with remorse when he recalled the day that Song Xizhi and Su Mingli personally delivered incense to his door.
"He Yunce, He Yunce!" Prince Xiu gritted his teeth.
Unlike the bustling Pinxianglou, Ruoanlou, which He Yunce had opened at great expense, was deserted and rarely visited.
He Yunze returned to his empty brothel, dejected, his eyes filled with the things he had carefully prepared for Song Ruoan.
The incense shop is decorated with carvings of crabapple blossoms, which are Song Ruoan's favorite. The curtains by the windows are made of moon-shadow gauze, which is Song Ruoan's favorite. Even the counter where incense is placed is made of pear wood, which is Song Ruoan's favorite.
He Yunze felt as if his heart had been squeezed, crushed, and torn apart by a giant hand, and helpless cries escaped his throat.
His grief-stricken appearance was both pitiful and pathetic.
When the waiters in the building saw the commotion on He Yunce's side, they all panicked. They had also heard about what had happened at the Fragrant Pavilion, so they hurriedly went forward to comfort him.
"Boss, it's alright. It doesn't mean the shop has to close down. We can lower the prices and still sell to people who can't afford genuine incense."
"Yes, yes! Didn't you plan to sell a knock-off of Pinxianglou's incense all along? The price definitely can't be this high."
The master craftsmen at the incense shop found it very strange. They thought that their new owner had planned from the beginning to plagiarize the incense from the incense shop as a gimmick and selling point, so as to sell incense at a low price.
At first, they thought that finding a remedy that was almost perfect would not be easy.
But who would have thought that on the very first day of the shop's opening, his new boss would proudly sue Pinxianglou for plagiarism?
This is simply... a case of turning the tables.
Thinking about this, everyone fell silent, feeling a bit worried about their future.
The phrase "sell to people who can't afford the real thing" struck He Yunze's heart like a sharp arrow, sending a shiver down his spine.
He vigorously wiped his face, then went to the study and took out the ancient recipes that Song Ruoan had hidden, and handed them over to the incense maker at the incense shop.
"Follow this recipe and see if the result is the same as that from Pinxianglou." He Yunze was unusually calm, and his voice was somewhat cold.
The incense masters were somewhat taken aback and surprised, but they still did as He Yunze instructed.
He Yunze stood there watching them make incense, his eyes deep, neither crying nor angry, and it was impossible to know what he was thinking.
He waited calmly for a long time before the head incense maker handed the incense, made according to the recipe, to He Yunce.
The incense master shook his head: "It looks similar, but it's not the same. However, it's enough to sell cheaply to the common people."
He Yunze's hand holding the incense tightened instantly: "Can all of you tell that they look very similar?"
The incense masters nodded, and spoke in unison: "We have been making incense for many years, so we can naturally tell that this incense recipe was wrong from the beginning. It is definitely different from the original recipe, and it is impossible to make the exact same one."
These words were like the last straw that broke the camel's back, and He Yunze suddenly laughed foolishly.
He laughed so hard he almost fell over, tears streaming down his face: "Ruo'an, Ruo'an, how could you lie to me about everything?"
"I've asked you repeatedly to confirm this, but you won't tell me the truth. Song Ruoan, what kind of person are you?"
He gazed at the bustling Pinxianglou across the street, clutching the stacks of ancient recipes tightly in his hand, and suddenly walked towards Pinxianglou.
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