Gu Pingsheng nodded very seriously, seemingly agreeing with Gu Yaoniang's words. He said sincerely, "Master's skills are truly exquisite."
Gu Yaoniang choked. No matter how thick-skinned she was, she dared not claim Master Zhang's great skill in aquatic porcelain as her own.
Having lost the verbal battle, she glared fiercely at Gu Pingsheng.
Seeing that his elder sister had given up, Gu Pingsheng laughed extraordinarily and made a face at Gu Yaoniang from an angle that Gu Xingzhi couldn't see.
As she had hoped, Gu Yaoniang's face twitched again, and she received a friendly glare from her sister.
He knew when to stop and quickly reverted to his obedient and sensible self.
Seeing the two siblings interacting, Gu Xingzhi witnessed a side of Gu Yaoniang that he had never seen before, and he was quite moved—the two who grew up together had such a good relationship!
When the dishes were served, Gu Pingsheng couldn't help but feel a surge of emotions.
After a hearty meal, Gu Pingsheng uttered his first kind word of the day. Of course, this was only in Gu Yaoniang's opinion.
He took a sip of the fine wine that Lu Zhaoan had given him and smacked his lips in satisfaction.
Gu Yaoniang hesitated for a moment, but still told him to drink less.
Gu Xingzhi smiled and said, "Let's ignore him for now and talk about it later."
Gu Yaoniang hesitated for a moment, and Gu Pingsheng took another sip.
The young man had rarely tasted such fine wine before, so he naturally wouldn't let the opportunity slip by. Seeing his older sister being stopped by his second uncle, he couldn't help but feel a little smug and threw her a provocative smile.
Seeing that Gu Yaoniang was about to explode, Gu Pingsheng put down his wine cup and smiled ingratiatingly, saying, "Sister! You don't know! I've been craving your cooking at home so much that I've lost weight!"
As he spoke, he raised his arm to gesture.
The boy's skin was dark and shiny from being exposed to the sun along the way.
Gu Yaoniang's expression softened slightly—the brat had finally uttered a sensible word.
But when she turned to look at the few dishes left on the table, she couldn't help but retort, "I didn't cook this, and I can see you ate quite a bit of it too."
She glanced at him sideways, and Gu Pingsheng chuckled, "Sister, this pastry tastes just like yours!"
As he spoke, he reached out with his chopsticks and picked up the last piece of shark fin cake.
Gu Xingzhi smiled and shook his head, somewhat helplessly.
"My life."
Upon hearing his second uncle call him, Gu Pingsheng quickly suppressed his playful expression and sat up straight.
Gu Xingzhi nodded inwardly. Although this child sometimes couldn't distinguish between what was important and what wasn't, he was still a polite person.
He slowly said, "I've made all the arrangements at Hualing Academy. I can send you there tomorrow."
Gu Pingsheng's shoulders suddenly slumped: "Ah? I wanted to play for a few more days!"
Seeing Gu Yaoniang glare at him again, Gu Pingsheng had no choice but to obediently reply with an "okay".
Gu Xingzhi stroked his unkempt beard, nodded, and continued, "I'll take you there tomorrow. You should pack your things too. You won't be able to go home for half a month after you get there."
Gu Pingsheng said with some frustration, "I still have to live at the academy..."
Finally, she rallied her spirits and forced a smile: "That's good! Before, I could only come home once a month, but now I can come home every two weeks. That's good!"
A genuine sense of satisfaction then rose on his face.
Gu Xingzhi was very pleased to see that his joy seemed genuine.
He made these arrangements naturally for Gu Pingsheng's future, but he was even happier that the child appreciated and was satisfied.
Gu Xingzhi turned to Yao Niang and said, "Take Pingsheng to the street later and buy some food, supplies, and clothes as well."
He looked at Gu Pingsheng's clothes. The fabric was of decent quality, but the color was a bit dark, making him look older and making the boy appear even darker and thinner.
Gu Xingzhi looked at Yao Niang with some disdain and said, "Take him to the shop and choose some fine fabrics to make some nice clothes."
Sigh, this child is alright looking, but he's too dark-skinned.
No problem, I can always recover some of my losses in Shuojing.
He secretly made up his mind that he would have to prepare a portion of the pearl powder and white fungus soup, as well as other beauty products, for this child as well as for Yao Niang and Qiao Niang.
In scholarly circles, dark-skinned boys are never as popular as handsome young men.
Tell him to be careful and use it secretly without anyone noticing.
Gu Yaoniang nodded in agreement.
When she went downstairs, Gu Yaoniang did not go straight out the door, but went to the counter and said a few words to the shopkeeper.
Gu Pingsheng saw the shopkeeper take out something that looked like an account book and make a few notes in it.
When Gu Yaoniang came over again, he casually asked, "Were you keeping accounts just now?"
Gu Yaoniang nodded: "Yes! We should put our table on my tab."
Gu Pingsheng had only asked casually, just to banter with Gu Yaoniang. He was extremely surprised, not expecting her to actually keep accounts: "Sister! Why do we need to keep accounts even when it's just family eating together?"
Who would keep a tab when eating at their own restaurant? How strange!
Gu Yaoniang smiled faintly: "What's wrong with my own family's property! How would I know how much I bought and how much I used if I didn't keep a record?"
She reached out to tap Gu Pingsheng's forehead with her finger, but Gu Pingsheng deftly dodged it.
Gu Pingsheng craned his neck and scanned the room. Jin Yu Lou was packed with guests, almost every seat was taken. He asked curiously, "Sister, how much does Jin Yu Lou make in a month?"
Are you referring to the guests in the building, or all of them?
Is there anything different?
“Of course it’s different.” Gu Yaoniang’s eyes gleamed with pride. “The number of customers in the restaurant has been increasing lately, averaging a thousand taels of silver a day. In addition, your sister and I supply pastries to another restaurant, which brings in several thousand taels of silver a month. And there’s more…”
She counted on her fingers, while Gu Pingsheng was still in shock: "Right here! Daily turnover, a thousand taels?"
That's way too much!!!
How much money would that cost?
"Sis, is this a rip-off place?"
Gu Yaoniang couldn't hold back any longer and raised her hand to give Gu Pingsheng a sharp rap on the head: "What are you thinking? Our house is already considered not expensive. Other buildings are much more expensive! How can you talk about your sister like that!"
He raised his hand again and struck Gu Pingsheng on the head.
Gu Pingsheng rubbed his head and said excitedly, "Sister! Then our family will be very rich! We can earn..."
He counted on his fingers: "A thousand taels a day, thirty days is thirty thousand taels, not to mention other income, Sister! Jin Yu Lou can earn more than thirty thousand taels of silver a month! No wonder Second Uncle is so rich!"
Gu Yaoniang rolled her eyes at him when she heard his words.
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