Mr. Wen looked at them and asked, "Are these guards from the Marquis's residence?"
Li Lao Er nodded with a smile, "Yes, the other day I was looking through the roster and suddenly remembered that there are too many famous beauties here. I was afraid of attracting trouble, so I went to the Marquis's mansion and discussed it with the head steward. We temporarily invited a few helpers, and I didn't expect that they would come in so handy!"
Mr. Wen heard it clearly, but he didn't believe a single word of it.
After all, the person who kept him up half the night was waiting for this moment; it couldn't possibly have been a spur-of-the-moment decision!
Li Lao Er chuckled, ignoring what he thought, and directly instructed several guards, "Brothers, could you please ask them who these people are and what brings them here in the middle of the night?"
"Yes, Your Excellency, rest assured, we will make sure you get all the answers you need!" the head guard replied.
Then he asked Old Man Cao for an empty room and took the man in black inside...
Li Lao Er and Mr. Wen only drank a bowl of tea and ate a few pastries for a late-night snack before the results came out.
The head guard reported, "My lord, these people are guards of the Wang family. They are all carrying scissors and sickles, and they came in to destroy all the famous flowers, so that the Hundred Flowers Garden can open smoothly tomorrow."
Mr. Wen frowned, "The Wang family is really good at scheming, but the people they chose are too poor..."
The lead guard explained, "Lord Wen, you may not know this, but these people are skilled in martial arts. If we are not prepared, it would be easy for them to enter the courtyard, cause damage, and then escape unscathed."
“But this courtyard had never been guarded before, and we had been hiding in the shadows. When they came to scout ahead, they didn’t find anything and let their guard down, which is why we were able to take it down so easily.”
Li Lao Er nodded, "Thank you for your hard work. Keep a close eye on these people and make sure they don't die. Also, keep the scissors and sickles. Their master might come tomorrow, and I'll return them to their rightful owner then."
The guard understood and withdrew.
Li Lao Er instructed Cao Lao Tou, "Prepare some food for the guards. After all, they still have to keep watch for half the night. Don't let them stay up all night on an empty stomach."
"Yes, boss!" Old Cao replied immediately.
The thought of how the flowers in the yard were almost ruined made Old Man Cao break out in a cold sweat.
He was extremely grateful to the guards who protected his "precious child".
He immediately helped start the fire, had his wife roll and cook noodles, and chopped up the cured meat that his relatives had brought from their hometown, mixed it with chopped green beans, and stir-fried it into a topping.
After the guards had eaten their fill, they urged the four members of the Cao family to go to sleep, and then continued to guard the peace of the Hundred Garden.
The next morning, as soon as it was light, Old Man Cao got up, looked around the courtyard, and couldn't help but mutter curses under his breath.
"These damned things! My roses have been trampled on!"
Finally, he called his son and told him to quickly get a ladder and tidy up all the rose vines.
So when passersby walk by, they see the wall covered with bright flowers.
When the sun was high in the sky, Old Lady Li, along with Tao Hongying and Jiayin, arrived first in a horse-drawn carriage.
Today's guests are all men, so it's not really convenient for them to come.
But Jiayin was eager to join in the fun, and almost all the flowers here were made by her; how could she possibly miss the opening?!
So, Li Lao Er settled them in the west room of the main house in the backyard.
The room is spacious and even has a kang (heated brick bed), making it convenient to take a nap when you're tired.
Moreover, there was a small door leading to the side room, making it easy for the Cao family to come and go and serve.
Granny He and Shuiyun and Shuiling naturally followed as well.
Granny He stayed in the room, while Shui Ling and Shui Yun helped the Cao family mother-in-law and daughter-in-law take care of the guests' tea and snacks.
Soon, the first group of guests arrived.
It was Dean Zhou, Mr. Peng, and Mr. Tang who, along with several teachers from the academy who were not teaching that day, plus their personal pageboys, made the small courtyard lively immediately.
At the auspicious hour, Li Lao Er had Cao Lao Tou set off a string of firecrackers outside the gate to celebrate the opening, all in a very low-key and unassuming manner.
But the firecrackers, their outer shells shattered, falling like red snowflakes in front of the door and at the base of the wall, creating a unique beauty against the backdrop of the roses on the wall.
This amazed the flower lovers who arrived one after another, even before they entered the gate.
The love of beauty is universal, and the embodiment of beauty in plants is found in flowers!
Surrounded by blooming flowers, even the most hard-hearted person can't help but smile and relax.
The guests included court officials, flower-loving scholars from the new capital, teachers from the academy, and relatives and friends of the Li family, such as Old Master Liu and Liu Zhiheng.
There were all sorts of people, including the distinguished guests who received invitations and the idlers who came to join in the fun even though they didn't receive invitations; the total number was at least a hundred.
Having so many people drink tea, eat snacks, and cut the jade melon is no small undertaking.
Granny He quickly went out to help, and with the help of Zheng Feng and Zheng He, they were able to take care of everything.
Li Lao Er simply had chairs placed under the eaves, and sunshades like those in the academy's canteen were already placed throughout the courtyard.
In this way, the guests each chose to gather with their familiar friends, sit down, enjoy the breeze, eat melons, and admire the flowers—it was truly a delightful experience!
Li Lao Er let everyone wander around and take a good look at all the potted flowers in the courtyard before standing in front of the steps. He smiled and cupped his hands to everyone, saying, "Distinguished guests, my elder brother's restaurant used to display famous flowers, and many friends complained to me that they didn't have a chance to appreciate them properly."
"So, I came up with this idea and planted it full of flowers, so everyone can enjoy it to their heart's content. Will no one say we're stingy anymore? I can finally breathe a sigh of relief!"
Everyone laughed and returned the greeting with clasped hands.
Li Lao Er smiled and added, "However, this is, after all, a business, and I hope it prospers. If everyone enjoys the flowers and wants to take their favorites home to admire them anytime, they'll have to pay, and the more the better!"
This time, everyone laughed even louder.
Logically speaking, merchants are profit-driven and always have a shrewd and calculating nature, which makes them unlikable.
But Li Lao Er's frankness in putting it out there is quite admirable.
Li Lao Er pointed to a pot of blooming azaleas in front of him and said, "Everyone knows that our family is blessed with the Emperor's great favor and has a place like Suijintan, a place of great fortune, where we can live without worry about food and clothing."
"Our whole family is extremely grateful to the Emperor and Tianwu, so we often think about how to repay them with our meager strength."
"This time, with the opening of Baihuayuan, our family set a rule that half of the profits from Baihuayuan will be used for charity."
"Take this azalea as an example. If it sells for ten taels of silver, five taels will be used as capital, and the remaining five taels will be used to exchange for food, clothing, and medicine, which will be sent to the relief agency to help the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled, thus reducing the burden on the court."
"So, if you see any of the famous flowers here that you like, you don't necessarily have to buy them with silver. You can exchange them for grain, cotton, or even medicinal seedlings and roots! In short, as long as you bring out what we need, you can exchange the flowers for them..."
Served at midnight~~
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