Sunny day
"The morning light shines brightly on the roof beams... Huh... The birds chirp by the window, heralding a clear day..."
A night of undercurrents, Zhao Mingyan, who was completely unaware of it, slowly woke up in the morning light and the sound of birdsong, washing away the lethargy of the previous few days and feeling full of energy.
Tan Linshuang woke up before her, but didn't want to disturb her sweet dream, so she didn't move.
Now, seeing that she had regained consciousness and Zhang Kai was even reciting a poem, he couldn't help but smile and joke: "In next year's autumn examination, it would be better for you to take your place as your husband."
Zhao Mingyan wiped her eyes and glanced at him, "I see you don't want to take the exam at all."
"Hehe!" Tan Linshuang just smiled and said nothing.
"How is it? Is our child well behaved? Did he give you any trouble?"
Then, he carefully helped Zhao Mingyan, who was about to get up, and asked her with concern.
Zhao Mingyan laughed angrily: "Didn't you hear what Doctor Wen said? It's not the time for pregnancy yet!"
"The child in your belly is ours." Tan Linshuang emphasized seriously.
Zhao Mingyan pursed her lips and smiled.
Dongdong——
"Miss, are you up yet?"
At this time, Xiaozhu, who had been waiting outside the door, knocked on the door.
Zhao Mingyan immediately called her into the house and asked her to help her change clothes and wash up. Tan Linshuang assisted her attentively and gently.
Xiaozhu saw it and felt happy for Zhao Mingyan.
Finally, they look like a married couple, not just half-familiar people anymore.
After breakfast, Fan Wenlan and Li Yuzhu took Zhao Mingyan aside to talk for a while. When they saw her yawning, they quickly asked her to go back to the room to rest, fearing that she would be tired.
Li Yuzhu said with a smile: "It's just like me. When I first got pregnant with her, I was always sleepy and had no appetite."
"Fortunately, Yan'er's appetite doesn't follow yours." Fan Wenlan teased mischievously.
The two of them were chatting and laughing, and the atmosphere was warm and harmonious.
Seeing this scene, Tan Linshuang remained calm, but her eyes became a little deeper.
"Husband, go to your study."
Zhao Mingyan didn't notice his subtle expression and straightened his back as soon as he left the main courtyard.
"Not sleepy anymore?"
Tan Linshuang raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at her with lowered eyes.
Zhao Mingyan gave him a sly smile, stuck out her tongue, and then said, "My mother is too nagging. She will definitely keep me chatting for a long time, delaying my work."
"Isn't your main task now to take good care of your baby?"
Tan Linshuang said this, but still put his arm around her and walked towards the study.
"After listening to your words yesterday, I have new plans." Zhao Mingyan smiled.
"Oh?" Tan Linshuang pricked up his ears.
Zhao Mingyan leaned against his chest, her belly not yet noticeable but already full, and said slowly, "You're right. Although the phoenix lantern I made may not be able to soar in the capital, it will definitely fly high in our Xuzhou Prefecture."
"When the craftsman from our shop delivered the lanterns, he casually mentioned that the lanterns hung by Huadengfang this year were mediocre. At least in their eyes, they didn't see a single stunning piece."
"So I plan to teach them how to make Phoenix lanterns, have them make them, and then hold a lantern banquet. For every Phoenix lantern purchased, I'll give them a rolling lantern or 'ephemeral flower lantern'...the kind made with Wenxuan rice paper that only burns once or twice."
"It is only held in Mingyuezhai and Fanxingzhai." She emphasized this sentence.
Tan Linshuang understood, "You want to cut ties with the other branch lamp shops."
"yes!"
Zhao Mingyan nodded heavily. "They were so ruthless back then. They probably never expected that we, an orphan and a widow, would have our day of reckoning."
"You and your mother-in-law are no longer orphans and widows." Tan Linshuang hugged her tightly.
After arriving at the study, Zhao Mingyan dictated and Tan Linshuang wrote, and then notified Zhao Guangyao to plan together.
Fanxingzhai is also located in Huadengfang, right at the end of Mingyuezhai. The two houses held a "Huadeng Banquet", which attracted many people to watch.
Especially after seeing the lifelike and gorgeous phoenix lanterns, one can't help but linger.
Soon, the first batch of Phoenix lanterns were sold out, and the lantern makers in the back shop worked all night long.
Tan Linshuang was not idle either, helping out on the side.
"Hey! Mingyuezhai has changed its owner?"
One day, Tan Linshuang was counting accounts behind the counter when she suddenly heard a sinister voice coming from outside the door. Before she could look up, she heard another voice deliberately shouting, "That's right! Now that this woman is married, her family's shop will become her husband's property."
"Who knows? Before long, this 'Ming Yue Zhai' won't be called 'Ming Yue Zhai' anymore."
"What's that called?"
"Tan's Lantern Shop!"
"Hahaha……"
Their chatter grew louder and louder, accompanied by sarcastic laughter, which attracted the attention of passers-by and made the shop assistants change their expressions.
The Second Imperial Secretary Wang Bo stole a glance at Tan Linshuang and found that his expression remained unchanged. His movements on the abacus remained unchanged, his ten fingers flying and the rhythm remained the same, but the sound of the beads colliding was louder than before.
Sensing Uncle Wang's gaze, Tan Linshuang spoke calmly without even looking up: "The mosquitoes and flies are flying around, and the more you chase them away, the louder they get."
"That's true, but they're always hovering around, which is very annoying." Uncle Wang frowned.
The flying mosquitoes and flies were annoying, and the shouting of those people also made him annoyed.
If the speaker has intentions and the listener also has intentions, then the words will become a thorn that pierces the listener's heart.
He rubbed his hands under his sleeves repeatedly, lowered his head and thought to himself: They are not talking nonsense. As an only daughter, when my aunt gets married, won’t the shop become a dowry?
Now that she is pregnant again, her son-in-law is ostensibly helping to manage the business, but in reality... he is just getting familiar with the business here, right?
"Is Mingyuezhai really going to become the property of the Tan family?"
Suddenly, an old woman came to the door with a crutch and looked into the store with a frown.
Uncle Wang looked and saw that it was Old Madam Xu, a frequent visitor and distinguished guest of Mingyuezhai. He was about to go up to her to explain, but he saw Tan Linshuang got there first, walked around the counter, went out the door, and bowed to Old Madam Xu.
"I am Tan Linshuang, Aunt Zhao's husband."
Uncle Wang blinked, and felt only a touch of sky blue passing by his eyes, with a faint scent of sandalwood left behind.
Isn’t it said that the son-in-law is frail and won’t live past twenty?
With such a light and agile posture, it shouldn't be a problem for her to be able to do it even when she is twenty, or even in her seventies, right?
Just as I was stunned, I heard Tan Linshuang say to Old Madam Xu, "Of course not. Mingyuezhai will always be the property of the Zhao family, and our Tan family only deals in bamboo-related business and will never get involved in lanterns."
"Every profession has its own specializations, and everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. If you seek out your weaknesses, you'll be shooting yourself in the foot. Madam, don't you agree?"
After he finished speaking, he supported Madam Xu and walked into the shop, without even glancing at the people who were stirring up trouble outside the door.
Although they looked unfamiliar, Tan Linshuang knew that they must have been sent by other branches to cause trouble.
In the past few days, Mingyuezhai and Fanxingzhai, one in front of and the other at Huadengfang, have been shining with their Phoenix Lantern Mountain during the Lantern Festival, and have also been running a buy-one-get-one-free promotion, which has attracted a lot of business. However, there are only a few people buying lanterns, and they all go to these two shops. Naturally, the lantern shops opened next to them are deserted.
The people in the gang are narrow-minded and have many tricks up their sleeves, so it's not surprising that they would find someone to come and make trouble.
However, this incident also reminded Tan Linshuang that if there is one thing, there will be another, and he needs to strengthen his defenses in private.
"Instead of passively defending, it is better to actively counterattack." Aye said.
In the teahouse diagonally opposite Mingyuezhai, Aye witnessed everything on the second floor. After the shop closed, he followed Tan Linshuang in a carriage back to the Tan Mansion. When the two talked about this matter, Aye curled his lips and shook his head, expressing his thoughts.
"Give them a good beating, so that they can't take care of themselves and won't have the energy to plot against the young mistress and the others."
"If a beating could make them behave, I would have done it a long time ago." Tan Linshuang shook his head.
"If one meal doesn't work, then three or five will do. Beat them until they're confused and terrified."
After Ah Ye finished speaking, he called Ah Yun to stop the carriage and said, "I will do it tonight."
Immediately afterwards, she jumped off the carriage and quickly disappeared into the night, leaving the other two looking at each other in surprise.
After a while, Ayun spoke first: "Master, just let her do whatever she wants."
Tan Linshuang smiled helplessly, then said, "But, some things can be done better if you don't follow the usual path."
For example, Ari.
"Master, this is the letter that Ari asked the concierge to give you."
When Tan Linshuang and Ayun returned to the North Courtyard, they saw Atao already waiting outside the door and handed a letter to Tan Linshuang.
The envelope was very thin. When I took it out and looked at it, there was only a note saying: [Former Xie Mansion in Gujing Lane.]
Tan Linshuang's eyes lit up, and she immediately instructed Ah Tao, "Go tell the old lady and the young mistress that the shop is busy and I will be back late."
After giving the instructions, he took Ayun back to Zhaohua Town and headed straight to Gujing Lane on the outskirts of the town.
"I heard from Ah Ye that every time Blackheart Bamboo went back there, he would take a circuitous route like this, choosing deserted paths or undeveloped trails to avoid being seen by others."
"I never thought that one day I would follow his 'old path'."
Tan Linshuang looked at the scenery outside the window and was inspired.
Ayun said meaningfully: "This road is not that road."
Tan Linshuang smiled, then said seriously, "If we don't follow the footprints he left behind, how can we know what he did?"
Ayun was silent.
Immediately, he increased the speed of the carriage. As the saying goes, the longer the night, the more dreams there are. Some things need to be resolved immediately...
The moon was half-full and the stars were not yet bright. Walking along this winding alley, it felt even darker.
There are not many residents near the outskirts of town, and most of the houses have been vacant for a long time. The courtyards where people live are almost silent, with only a few lights.
I heard that this alley was once a famous fireworks spot in the previous dynasty. After the change of dynasties, the people left the place, the fireworks were gone, and no one cared about it. It once became a ghost alley. It was not until recent years that people began to settle down there, and it became a good place to hide beautiful women.
Just because it is remote and winding, it is easy to hide but difficult to find.
Tan Linshuang didn't know whether the salt merchant named Xie had settled here voluntarily or bought the house at the instruction of Tan Mozhu. In any case, after he sold the house and left, the title deed finally fell into the hands of Tan Linshuang, who became the new owner of the house.
From this perspective, he has indeed followed Tan Mozhu's "old path".
"Is it done cleanly?"
After entering the room and seeing A Ri, Tan Linshuang asked in a low voice.
Ah Ri nodded and said, "Tell him to tell his parents that something happened in his hometown and he needs to go back immediately to deal with it. He will write a letter to let them know that he is safe."
"Um."
Tan Linshuang nodded and walked straight towards the lighted room.
"ah!"
Unexpectedly, when Zhang Kaigui saw him, he was so frightened that he screamed and jumped up, and the stool under his butt was pulled to the ground by him. His legs went weak and he fell down. He looked at Tan Linshuang who was slowly approaching with fear, sweating profusely and his face was pale.
"Ghost...you are a ghost!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
