Restaurant
The sun was shining brightly on the 20th of the twelfth lunar month.
On the west street of the imperial city, Li Wan helped Xiu Zhu step down from the carriage.
As soon as she got out of the car, the sweet aroma of maltose, the steaming heat of freshly steamed buns, and the fragrance of unknown cosmetics wafted towards her. This lively atmosphere brought Li Wan a long-lost sense of comfort.
It was still early before lunch, so Li Wan took fifty taels of silver and went into a shop called "Yun Jinshang".
This was Li Wan's first time entering such a luxurious shop, and she was actually a little apprehensive. In contrast, Xiu Zhu and Xiu He were quite used to it.
The shop was filled with the scent of lilies, and various luxurious fabrics were displayed in a rosewood display cabinet.
A piece of sky-blue soft gauze shimmered like flowing water in the light, and she couldn't resist touching it, feeling the smooth, icy touch on her fingertips.
"Madam has a good eye," the shopkeeper greeted her with a smile. "This is a new fabric that arrived this spring, and it's only thirty taels a bolt."
Thirty taels! Li Wan almost cried out in surprise.
That's robbery! Only a fool would spend thirty taels to buy a bolt of cloth.
Just as she was about to withdraw her hand, Xiuhe spoke up, "Spring is just around the corner, this fabric would be perfect for making a dress for Madam."
Xiuzhu nodded in agreement, "Madam has fair skin, she'll definitely look good in that."
Li Wan smiled wryly. "It's ridiculously expensive, of course it looks good."
She raised her hand, about to say that it would be better to save the money for delicacies, but Xiuzhu thought that Li Wan meant she wanted it, and said first, "Send two bolts to the Ningyuan Marquis's residence."
Upon hearing that it was the Ningyuan Marquis's residence, the shopkeeper smiled even more obsequiously and bowed, saying, "Alright, alright, Madam, take another look. If there's anything else you like, I'll send it to your residence as well."
Li Wan couldn't bring herself to stop the shopkeeper, so she quietly called Xiuzhu and Xiuhe aside and whispered, "We only have fifty taels, and just two bolts of cloth cost sixty taels. How are we going to eat later?"
Upon hearing this, Xiuzhu and Xiuhe exchanged another glance.
When the girl married as a concubine, Zou only gave her some jewelry and clothes as dowry. She didn't give her any assets that could generate long-term income, such as estates and shops.
The young lady is not favored by her husband in the Marquis's mansion. Her current frugality is probably because she wants to save some money for herself in case she can't live with her husband and they divorce.
The two felt a pang of sadness.
Fortunately, Xiuhe had thought of this in advance, and before going out today, she made a special trip to test Steward Tianfu.
When Steward Tian heard Xiuhe mention money, he looked at her strangely and said, "The Marquis's mansion has no shortage of money. All expenses incurred by the masters when they go out can be recorded in the Marquis's mansion's account, and the accountant will settle the accounts at the end of the month."
Upon hearing this, Xiuhe felt reassured.
She held Li Wan's hands and said, "Madam, you don't need to worry about the money. As the legitimate wife of the Marquis's mansion, your food, clothing and daily necessities should be provided by the Marquis's mansion. You can buy whatever you want with peace of mind. All expenses will be recorded in the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion's account."
When Li Wan heard that she could keep accounts, her eyes lit up and she even straightened her back a bit.
If you can spend other people's money, who cares about the cost!
purchase!
And so, Li Wan began to happily wander between various shops, buying fine clothes and jewelry, cosmetics, spices and tonics...
Not for the material things, but simply to enjoy the life of the wealthy!
She only stopped when her stomach rumbled, reluctantly, and went into the best restaurant in the capital, Zuiyuelou.
Although I have bad memories of my first meeting with Xie Qi here, that doesn't matter. The most important thing is: it's expensive.
Li Wan wanted a private room and ordered all the restaurant's signature dishes without any hesitation.
The three of them were about to pick up their chopsticks when, with a loud "bang," the door to the private room was suddenly kicked open.
A woman dressed in a pink ruqun (a traditional Chinese dress) and exuding a strong fragrance of perfume stumbled in and collapsed at Li Wan's feet.
"Miss, it really is you! I just saw you going upstairs from the window and I thought I was seeing things. It really is you. Please, miss, save me."
She grabbed Li Wan's clothes and cried out.
Li Wan looked at the unfamiliar face and was about to ask who it was when Xiuzhu and Xiuhe suddenly stood up and said in unison, "Xiutao!"
Upon hearing the name Xiutao, Li Wan quickly realized that she was the maid who used to serve Jiang Feiwan.
Xiuzhu said that the Jiang family sold Xiutao because they thought she didn't serve Jiang Feiwan well enough.
But how did she end up here?
Li Wan reached out to help her up, but before she could speak, several more people rushed into the private room.
When Xiutao saw them, she panicked and hid behind Li Wan, pleading, "Please save me, Miss. I don't want to go back with them."
Seeing that there were only three women in the private room, the men who looked like servants came over without any politeness and tried to pull Xiutao away.
"presumptuous!"
Li Wan took a step back with Xiu Tao in her arms, avoiding the servant.
Xiuhe strode to Li Wan's side and scolded, "Whose servants are you, daring to run wild here?"
The servants were surprised that the three women were not afraid of them at all. Upon closer inspection, they realized that the women were dressed in expensive clothes and assumed that they came from wealthy families. They dared not be too presumptuous, so one of them stepped forward and pointed at Xiutao to explain.
“She was a maidservant that my master summoned from Chaohua Pavilion. She ran away in a fit of temper and disturbed the noble guests. We’ll take her away right away.”
Li Wan was taken aback. Chaohua Pavilion was a famous brothel in the capital.
"This servant will not go."
Xiutao clung tightly to Li Wan's sleeve, her face streaked with tears as she pleaded, "Miss, those masters are not human; they will torture this servant to death."
Xiu Tao is Jiang Feiwan's old friend, and Li Wan needs to know more about Jiang Feiwan's past from her, so this matter must be taken care of.
Li Wan gave Xiu Tao a reassuring look.
He said to the servant, "Since this young lady has come to me for help, I feel sorry for her. Please tell your master to leave her with me, and I will pay her double her exit fee for today."
One of the servants sneered, "Our master wouldn't care about your little bit of silver. She made our master lose face today, so this can't be left unresolved."
"Who is your master? Could you make an exception?" Li Wan asked patiently.
"No leniency." A very arrogant voice rang out.
Looking at the newcomer, Li Wan saw that he was a middle-aged man dressed in gorgeous brocade clothes, with a large and fat body and a face full of wine and women.
He was followed by several men who looked like scions of prominent families; they had all come from another private room to watch the spectacle.
The small private room was instantly filled. Xiuhe gritted her teeth, blaming herself for not making her wife wear a veil today.
Upon seeing Li Wan, the fat man's angry expression turned into a grin. "I thought some blind fool was trying to steal my girl, but it turns out she's a delicate young lady."
"Hahaha." The men around him burst into laughter.
Amused, the fat man continued, "If you like Miss Tao'er, why don't you come with her to our room and have a few drinks together?"
“Yes, yes,” the surrounding men laughed and echoed.
"How dare you!"
Xiuzhu couldn't take it anymore, her face flushed red as she angrily rebuked, "Do you know who we are? How dare you be so insolent? Be careful you don't regret it!"
A man in blue walked up to the fat man and said, “This is the eldest son of the current Grand Secretary Chen, the eldest son of Chen. Who do you think you are, that you could be more powerful than Grand Secretary Chen?”
The surrounding area erupted in laughter again.
Li Wan clenched her fingers secretly. The fat man was actually the eldest son of Chairman Chen and Chief Minister Chen, who was also the elder brother of Princess Qiongying. This... was indeed not easy to deal with. It seemed that taking Xiutao away today would not be easy at all.
Xiu Tao could see that Li Wan was hesitating, and she also knew that the Jiang family was no match for the Chen family.
However, that young master Chen is ruthless. During the time she was sold to Chaohua Pavilion, several of her sisters had been tortured to death by him. Now that she has offended him, if she really falls into his hands, she will surely suffer a fate worse than death.
At this moment, the only chance of survival is to hold on tightly to Wan Gu Niang.
Thinking of this, Xiu Tao made up her mind, leaned close to Li Wan's ear, and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Miss, if you are willing to save me, I will tell you the whole truth about that night."
Inside the noisy private room, Li Wan listened to Xiu Tao's whisper and turned to look at her in confusion.
That night! Which night? What's the truth?
Looking at Xiutao's cautious expression, it's clear that this truth must be a major matter concerning Jiang Feiwan.
Li Wan was eager to know, but how to save Xiu Tao was a real problem.
The person opposite is the prime minister's son. The only way to get him to compromise is to bring in someone of even higher status.
The Jiang family is definitely out of the question, so only one person will remain.
Li Wan curled her fingers, thinking to herself that she didn't know if Xie Qi, the Minister of War, could suppress the Grand Secretary. She could only give it a try.
She stepped forward, straightened her back, and said, "My master often says that Elder Chen is a pillar of the court. You are actually Elder Chen's son. I am so disrespectful."
She thought that Young Master Chen would take the opportunity to ask who her master was, but to her surprise, the people around her who were trying to curry favor said first, "Who does your master think he is, daring to comment on the current Grand Secretary?"
Another burst of laughter followed.
The fat, big-eared young master Chen laughed the most smugly, "Who is the young lady's master? Tell us so everyone can hear whether he is 'bigger' than me."
"Ha ha……"
He laughed at the vulgar words, but halfway through his laughter, he realized that the atmosphere around him was not right.
The once noisy room fell silent almost instantly.
He subconsciously turned his head to look behind him, and when he saw the person standing at the door, his smile instantly froze, and cold sweat immediately broke out.
The arrogant young masters from the aristocratic families who had just been joining in the commotion now all had their heads bowed low, wishing they could disappear into the ground, lest that person see their faces.
The crowd automatically parted to create a wide path.
Li Wan looked up and the first thing that caught her eye was a pair of black brocade boots. The boots were embroidered with dark cloud patterns in silver thread. They stepped on the blue brick floor, silently but with a strong sense of oppression.
"Thank you, sir."
The arrogant young master Chen, who had been so cocky just moments before, now bowed respectfully, forcing a smile onto his face. As he glanced at the beautiful woman before him, a bad premonition arose within him.
Xie Qi was dressed in a dark brocade robe with subtle patterns, and a matching jade belt around his waist. His posture was as upright as a pine tree, and his powerful aura made everyone hold their breath.
He slowly walked into the room, his gaze sweeping over everyone present before finally settling on Li Wan, who was surrounded in the middle.
With each step he took, the air pressure in the room decreased, and everyone held their breath, afraid of disturbing this evil spirit.
"How was your shopping experience?"
Xie Qi stood in front of Li Wan, his voice low and steady, revealing no emotion.
Li Wan didn't know if he was angry or just asking casually, so she could only give a vague "hmm".
Upon hearing this, everyone present gasped in shock.
The "master" mentioned by this young lady was none other than Minister Xie Qi.
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