Chapter 181 Shen Zheng Takes Me to Yihonglou
Magistrate Shen stood on the steps outside his study and saw his son approaching from afar.
It had been more than half a month since they last saw each other, and he could clearly feel that his son had gained a lot of weight; his cheeks were fuller and his shoulders were broader.
My gaze shifted and I saw Zhao Ergou. The young man was dressed in new clothes and looked quite handsome.
For some reason, seeing the Zhao family's young man made Magistrate Shen feel a little guilty.
"father!"
Shen Zheng walked over quickly.
“The matchmaker Huang you found said she’d give Aunt Zhao three days to think it over before proposing marriage. You should tell her not to go.” He said quickly, “Aunt Zhao and I have already agreed to become godparents. I can still call Aunt Zhao ‘Mom’.”
Magistrate Shen frowned.
He pondered and said, "I don't agree with the idea of adopting a godparent."
"Huh?" Shen Zheng stared, "Why don't you agree? Why don't you agree?"
Magistrate Shen spoke slowly: "I came to propose marriage not only because I want to find you a stepmother, but also because my Shen family needs a mistress. Zhao Chengshi is intelligent and prudent, and I admire her very much."
"In other words, the magistrate wants to marry my mother because he admires her," Zhao Ergou said boldly and neither humbly nor arrogantly. "Admiration is not the same as liking, nor is it the basis for marriage. The magistrate admires intelligent and prudent people, and I believe there are many women in Ping'an Town who meet his criteria."
Shen Zheng snorted and said, "Dad, let me tell you a cruel fact. Based on my observations during my stay in Dahe Village, at least half of the hundreds of men in the village admire Aunt Zhao. According to you, does that mean all of them can send someone to Aunt Zhao's house to propose marriage?"
"Nonsense!"
Magistrate Shen glared at him.
It was clearly this bastard who brought up this matter. It would have been fine if he hadn't mentioned it, but as soon as he mentioned it, he started thinking about the possibility of this matter.
For the past two weeks, he had been thinking about it for a long time and found it increasingly feasible. So he went to a temple and talked to the old lady alone for a long time, finally persuading her. He then immediately found a matchmaker to propose marriage. In his opinion, this should be a piece of cake.
Unexpectedly, yesterday the matchmaker, Huang, told him, looking dejected, that Zhao Chengshi had rejected the marriage proposal.
"Once I finish what I'm doing, I will personally go to see Zhao Chengshi," Magistrate Shen said slowly. "I will show Zhao Chengshi my sincerity."
Zhao Ergou wanted to say something, but he held back in the end.
He remembered his elder brother's words: "Mother has the right to choose."
Even if she wanted to refuse, it should be her mother who explained it to Magistrate Shen herself, not her son who stood in the middle.
He said, "I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Shen Zheng patted Magistrate Shen on the shoulder: "Father, as your son, I can only support you unconditionally."
If Dad really marries Aunt Zhao, then Aunt Zhao will be his stepmother.
Even if his father fails, he can still call her godmother.
In short, he can attack or defend, so he won't suffer any loss no matter what.
Shen Zheng and Zhao Ergou boarded an oxcart and headed to Hekou Town together.
The braised food business has not expanded yet; currently, we only deliver to Jixiang Restaurant and Zuixianlou Restaurant.
Jixiang Restaurant is the only one in the area, and thirty to forty catties a day is just right; any more and it won't sell.
Zuixianlou restaurants are all over Huzhou. They had previously requested at least 300 jin of braised food a day. Today, they delivered more than 100 jin. Zhao Ergou thought that Manager Yang would accept it without hesitation.
"Brother Zhao, this is really unfortunate. The delivery carts for Zuixianlou went to Huzhou today," Manager Yang said, quite annoyed. "The bowls and plates in the shop all need to be replaced, and both carts went to Huzhou to transport the plates. They just left, and they probably won't be back until tonight... I would like to have your braised food, but I don't have the manpower to deliver it to the other Zuixianlou restaurants..."
The weather isn't cool, so the braised food won't taste as fresh if left overnight, which will affect Zuixianlou's reputation.
Zhao Ergou was even more annoyed: "This is my fault. I should have come and told Manager Yang yesterday that it's okay, the braised food sells well, and I'll try it in other places."
Manager Yang was reluctant to let these braised dishes be taken to other restaurants, but he really had no choice. Not every family had a carriage, and those that did wouldn't be willing to lend him one to transport the braised dishes. He could only sigh and say, "I'll keep sixty catties today. I'm really sorry."
Zhao Ergou still had about 80 or 90 jin of braised food in his basket.
He wasn't worried at all about not being able to sell his braised food. He could just set up a stall by the roadside and sell out in about an hour.
Or we could partner with restaurants; about 80 or 90 kilograms would be sold in four teahouses or taverns...
“Come on, I’ll take you somewhere.” Shen Zheng revealed a mysterious smile. “Look, Zuixianlou has two floors and is considered the largest restaurant in Hekou Town. There’s another building over there with three floors, which is even bigger than Zuixianlou and has more people. It can have nearly a hundred customers a day, and one family can eat all eighty or ninety catties of your braised food.”
Zhao Ergou was skeptical: "I come to Hekou Town every day, how come I've never heard of a restaurant bigger than Zuixianlou?"
Shen Zheng led the way, saying, "You'll find out when we get there."
This road is the main street of Hekou County, lined with restaurants, noodle shops, grain stores, money exchanges, pawnshops... you name it.
When you reach the end of the main street, turn right and you'll see another wide street lined with many fine houses. In broad daylight, while other places are bustling with people, this side is very quiet.
Zhao Ergou asked curiously, "Where is this?"
“Do you remember the Yihonglou I mentioned before?” Shen Zheng pointed to the tallest building in front of them. “See that? That’s the Yihonglou, the largest brothel in Hekou Town. It’s a place where all the rich men in Hekou Town love to go, where there’s revelry every night.”
"A brothel!" Zhao Ergou took a few steps back. "My mother told me not to come to places like this."
"Look at you, so pathetic. Even in broad daylight, brothels don't serve customers, okay? What's there to be afraid of?" Shen Zheng's eyes were full of contempt. "We're here to talk business, we're legitimate businessmen. You think a plate of braised food at Zuixianlou is expensive, even at several hundred coins? Do you know how much it costs here? A dish of food and a pot of wine start at least two taels of silver. That's why people say Yihonglou is a den of iniquity for men."
Zhao Ergou was dumbfounded.
“Your braised food costs 65 coins a pound at Zuixianlou, but here I estimate it will be 80 or 90 coins.” Shen Zheng put his arm around his shoulder. “Stand up straight, open your shoulders, and lift your head. We need to act like we come here often, so we can’t let people look down on us.”
Zhao Ergou silently repeated "calm down" to himself more than a dozen times, and then he really calmed down.
He shook off Shen Zheng's hand, followed him up the steps, and entered the lobby of Yihonglou.
The hall was large, with more than a dozen tables. On the tables were leftovers from last night. The food on the plates was plentiful, all meat dishes, but they were basically untouched. The old woman cleaning up the mess simply poured the uneaten food into a wooden bucket. Zhao Ergou felt a little sorry for the wasted food. In Dahe Village, many people never ate meat in their entire lives, but here, this meat was being discarded at will.
The old woman, seeing the two, said in a rough voice, "The girls are all asleep now, come back tonight."
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