Bao Zhi's eyes flickered, and she stepped forward to stand in front of Su Qinghe.
"Ah!" His foot brushed against the table leg, and he pretended to trip, falling into Su Qinghe's arms.
Once she hugged him, she would have to take responsibility for him!
"My Lady, save me!" he cried out, but a smirk played on his lips.
Just as he was about to fall on her, he saw the woman who had been sitting upright on the stool take a step back to the side.
"Hey! Your Majesty! Ah—"
With a loud thud, he crashed straight into the stool, the pain bringing tears to his eyes.
"You!" Bao Zhi got up, her face streaked with tears, and looked at Su Qinghe with a wronged expression.
"Zhi'er fell down. Why didn't you catch her? The corner of the stool is sharp. What if Zhi'er got hurt? Is this how you treat men?"
As he spoke, his tears flowed even more freely, as if Su Qinghe had committed some heinous crime against him.
"I'm sorry, Young Master Bao! Men and women shouldn't touch each other. It's one thing to be disfigured, but if it ruins your reputation, I won't be able to explain myself."
"Do you think appearance is more important, or a man's reputation?"
As she spoke, Su Qinghe even cupped her hands in a respectful gesture towards him, speaking with a serious expression.
“Of course, a man’s reputation is more important to me…” Bao Zhi replied through gritted teeth.
How could he possibly say that a man's reputation is unimportant? Wouldn't that make him a shameless playboy?
He swallowed his anger silently, wiped away his tears, and looked at Su Qinghe with an apologetic expression.
"Your Majesty is right. It was Zhi'er who was confused from the pain. I must thank Your Majesty for protecting Zhi'er's reputation." As he spoke, he bowed to Su Qinghe.
"You're too kind, young master!" Su Qinghe sat down again and began to drink her tea.
Bao Zhi stood aside, at a loss for what to do.
The tea is spilled, the pot is smashed, what else can he do?
If he falls again, even a fool would see that he did it on purpose. Even if he succeeds in getting her to marry him, she won't like him.
After thinking for a moment, he turned and went upstairs.
"Please wait a moment, Your Majesty. I'll go check if Mother has found the seal!"
"Okay!" Su Qinghe nodded in agreement.
On the third floor of Zuixianglou, Bao Wen and Bao Min were sitting on stools drinking tea.
"Mother!" Bao Zhi pushed open the door and came in.
"How is it? Did it work?" Bao Wen asked, looking at him.
"No...that woman is a blockhead!" Bao Zhi frowned and cursed.
"What an ungrateful woman! That day, her husband was there too, and her younger brother is so much better looking than her, yet she still doesn't like him!"
Bao Min looked indignant.
"Hmph!" Bao Wen snorted coldly.
"Since she doesn't want the gentle, fragrant beauty, then we'll have to resort to force!"
"If outsiders ask, just say that Su Qinghe doesn't plan to stay in Tianhe County, has entrusted the restaurant to us to manage, and has gone to other places!"
"Let's do it!"
"Yes!" Bao Min was a little excited. She preferred to take a hard line rather than send her younger brother in.
Su Qinghe was leisurely drinking tea downstairs when she heard the sound of something breaking upstairs.
Then, the door was closed from the outside, and a group of women carrying sticks rushed in.
"If the soft approach doesn't work, are you trying the hard one?" Su Qinghe clicked her tongue.
"Su Qinghe, hand over the land deed willingly, or I'll have to take action!"
Bao Wen and his family of three stood on the stairs looking down at the scene below.
"Manager Bao! Are you not going to honor the bet?" Su Qinghe stood up from her seat.
"A bet? Do you think I'm as stupid as you, offering my own restaurant as collateral for debts!" Bao Wen looked at her mockingly.
"Stop wasting time talking to her, just take action and finish her off!"
Upon receiving the order, a group of people immediately charged forward, brandishing their long sticks.
"Since Manager Bao still wants to give me money, then I won't be polite!"
Su Qinghe laughed loudly, grabbed a man's wooden stick, twisted her body in a strange arc, and snatched the stick from him.
Then, she swung the wooden stick in her hand and knocked the group of people surrounding her to the ground in a few moves.
After dealing with the group, Su Qinghe walked towards the three people standing on the stairs.
"Mother! Mother! She's coming up! What do we do!" Bao Min anxiously tugged at Bao Wen's sleeve, looking at Su Qinghe as if she were a ghost.
She wanted to escape, but there was only the path upstairs behind her, and she couldn't get out at all.
"I saw it! Do you need to tell me?"
Bao Wen slapped Bao Min on the head and cursed angrily.
"Manager Bao! What do you think is the best way to spare you from a beating?" Su Qinghe asked softly.
"Hehe, Miss Su, you flatter me!" Bao Wen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
"We were indeed wrong about this! How about this, my Zhi'er is well-behaved, sensible, gentle and virtuous, and has always been healthy. I will send her to serve you as an apology!"
As Bao Wen spoke, he pulled Bao Zhi, who was hiding behind him, out.
“Mother! Didn’t you say before that you were going to marry me off to the head of the Yang family?” Bao Zhi shook her head in a panic.
His mother actually wanted to give him away to her directly, not even the lowest-ranking Xiao Jun, just a servant!
"At this point, do you think Patriarch Yang still has a chance?" Bao Wen pulled the man to his side and whispered in his ear.
"If she beats you up, and you're disfigured or crippled for life, you won't even be able to get married, let alone become the head of the Yang family!"
“I…” Bao Zhi’s face was filled with despair.
"Manager Bao, please don't make things difficult for Young Master Bao. I'm not entirely satisfied with this answer either. Perhaps we should consider something else?" Su Qinghe interrupted the mother and son's whispers.
"Not... not satisfied?" Bao Wen looked at Su Qinghe with difficulty.
Bao Zhi breathed a sigh of relief and quickly hid behind Bao Wen again.
"What does the Queen want? Just tell me!"
"Hmm... I'm just a common man, only interested in money!" Su Qinghe said, leaning on her stick as she looked at them.
"How much does the Queen want?" Bao Wen asked tentatively.
"What does Manager Bao think?" Su Qinghe threw the question back at him.
Bao Wen pondered for a moment, then tentatively asked, "100 taels?"
This is roughly half a year's profit for their restaurant.
"You mean buy it for you alone?" Su Qinghe looked at her and nodded.
"Can!"
"Uh...no, no, I mean the three of us, mother and daughters, have a total of 100 taels!" Bao Wen explained anxiously.
"Three people for one hundred taels?" Su Qinghe glared at her, making a move to rush up and hit her.
"It seems Manager Bao still wants to loosen up his muscles!"
"Hey! No, no, no! I'm alone, just one person!"
Bao Wen was so frightened that he waved his hands and quickly backed away.
"Alright! That's 300 taels in total. Manager Bao, bring the money here, and I'll let this matter drop."
Su Qinghe decisively put away the stick and stopped just four steps away from her.
"Okay! Okay! I'll go get it right away!" Bao Wen wiped the cold sweat from his brow, turned around and hurried upstairs, followed by Bao Min and Bao Zhi.
Su Qinghe didn't follow. It was the third floor, which was quite high, and they didn't have the guts to jump.
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