Imperial Capital 6. My Lord, you have to pay for things you buy

"Haha...Xiu Yao, your fiancée is quite interesting."

A large and plain carriage stopped outside Shen De Xuan at some point. Although the people sitting in the carriage could not see what was going on inside, their hearing was obviously much better than that of ordinary people, and they could hear clearly what was happening in Shen De Xuan.

In the carriage, a man in red brocade clothes, with eyebrows flying into his temples, was handsome and outstanding. He leaned against the carriage with a lazy smile on his face, looking at the quiet man opposite him jokingly.

"Feng Zhiyao, are you too idle?" The man, dressed in plain clothes, sat upright in a wheelchair and looked at the man who was laughing non-stop. Although he was sitting in a wheelchair, his back was straight, as if nothing could crush him. There was a hint of gentleness on his handsome face, but his clear eyes made people who were stared at by him feel a chill for no reason. He turned his head to look at the man in brocade clothes, and a slightly hideous scar was clearly visible on his left face, which immediately destroyed his original gentleness and elegance, making people dare not look directly at him.

With a swish, Feng Zhiyao unfolded the folding fan in his hand and fanned it leisurely, saying, "Aren't I too idle? My old man won't let me leave the capital. But I shouldn't be too bored recently, after all, Prince Li and Prince Ding are going to get married within a month. The emperor is too partial. Ye Ying is known as the most beautiful woman in the capital, and Ye Li is indeed a famous "three-no rich girl" in the capital. Xiu Yao, do you really want to marry her? Isn't the emperor clearly trying to embarrass you?" It would be fine if she was a "three-no rich girl", but Mo Jingli still broke off the engagement. The royal family wants to trample on the reputation of Prince Ding's Mansion.

The man in plain clothes was none other than the current Prince of Dingguo, Mo Xiuyao. Mo Xiuyao smiled faintly. Outside the carriage, the woman in Shen Dexuan's gentle but not weak voice came softly into his ears, "If the king wants the subject to die, the subject has to die, not to mention that it's just a gift of marriage. Didn't you also say that Miss Ye San is quite interesting?"

Feng Zhiyao frowned and looked at him worriedly, "This is the most important thing in your life. Marrying a princess is different from taking a concubine. Have you really thought it through?"

"So what if I can't figure it out? It's just... I'm afraid I've wronged others with my appearance."

Feng Zhiyao was silent. Indeed, what does it matter whether you think it through or not? The emperor's will cannot be disobeyed, otherwise it will only bring disaster to the Dingguo Palace. Moreover, Mo Xiuyao is already twenty-five years old, and it is time for him to get married. But who would not avoid the most famous ladies in the capital like snakes and scorpions? Now... I just hope that this Miss Ye is really a good woman. But will the emperor appoint a good wife to Mo Xiuyao?

Before they could send the young man selling paintings away, a handsome man and a beautiful woman walked in from the door. The shopkeeper shouted as if he had seen a savior: "Ying'er... Ying'er, Prince, help me..."

The people who came in together were none other than the famous Li Wang Mo Jingli and Ye Ying. Ye Ying glanced at the handsome man standing beside her, then walked to Ye Li and said in a coquettish voice: "Third sister, what are you doing? Did my cousin do something wrong to make you angry? Please don't take it too seriously for the sake of him being an elder." With just a few words, Ye Li was accused of being disrespectful to elders. Mo Jingli frowned as he stared at Ye Li. Ye Li looked at Ye Ying with a half-smile, and said lightly: "Fourth sister, you have recognized the wrong person. There are only three uncles in my grandfather's family. Now only the second uncle is in the capital. Moreover, although Shen Dexuan is my mother's dowry, my uncles are no longer worried about it. There is no need for them to be the shopkeeper. This is just a servant in the family. How can fourth sister think that this is the elder of the third sister?" Ye Ying's face turned red with anger, and she was even more angry in her heart. If she didn't understand what Ye Li meant, she would be a fool. In Ye Li's eyes, they didn't regard their relatives of the Wang family as relatives, and naturally didn't recognize the elders of the Wang family as elders. So since her cousin was the shopkeeper of Shen Dexuan, in Ye Li's eyes, he was her servant. This woman usually appears gentle and non-confrontational, but she actually dared to humiliate King Li like this!

Biting her lip, Ye Ying forced a smile and said, "Third sister, you are joking. It's just that there was no one to manage Shen De Xuan before, so my cousin was asked by my mother to take care of it. How could he be a servant?"

Ye Li nodded and smiled knowingly, "So that's how it is. It was my sister who misunderstood. You don't need to bother Madam's brother with this matter in the future. I will ask someone to take care of it. I will trouble this Wang... Master to follow me to the Ye Mansion to make the handover in front of my father and grandmother."

The faces of the shopkeeper and Ye Ying changed. The shopkeeper naturally wanted this lucrative job. Although Wang's eldest daughter is now the Empress Zhaoyi in the palace, the Wang family's foundation is too weak, otherwise the legitimate daughter of the Wang family would not have married into the Ye Mansion as a concubine. Although there has been an improvement in recent years, there are only a few officials in the court. The shopkeeper is Wang's cousin. He used to do nothing at home. How could he live a comfortable life like now managing Shen Dexuan? Ye Ying also knew how much money her mother got from Shen Dexuan every year. Even if she herself took a fancy to some rare antiques, she would take them away directly. Therefore, she was quite glorious among the ladies in the capital. If she lost control of Shen Dexuan, it would not be so easy in the future.

Ye Li didn't care what the two were thinking. She smiled and pulled Ye Ying aside and said, "Let's not worry about that. What is Fourth Sister doing in Shen De Xuan at this time?"

Ye Ying's face froze, and after a moment's hesitation, she said, "His Royal Highness Prince Li has taken a fancy to a Guanyin statue in the store and wants to give it to the Queen Mother... I'll come with you to take a look."

Ye Li's smile remained unchanged, still calm and indifferent, without seeing the resentment and sadness of the man who broke off her engagement. She even smiled more cordially, tilted her head and smiled at Mo Jingli, "So it's His Royal Highness Prince Li, I've seen him before. But... Fourth sister, why didn't you ask His Royal Highness Prince Li to come to the store in person? Can't we just send him directly to Prince Li's mansion?"

Ye Ying frowned and looked at Ye Li, thinking, could it be that she still wanted to please Prince Li? Mo Jingli stood aside with his hands behind his back, looking at Ye Li with a hint of disdain in his eyes, and obviously thought that Ye Li was trying to please him. Ye Li continued to smile and said, "But since the prince is here, Master He, please wrap up the Guanyin statue and give it to the prince. I wonder...will the prince pay in cash or banknotes?" Everyone was stunned by the explanation. Mo Jingli looked a little ugly, staring at Ye Li and said, "What did you say?"

Ye Li frowned, looking puzzled and said, "Didn't the prince want to buy a Guanyin statue? But since he is the fourth sister's fiancé, and it is presented to the Queen Mother, Master He, just give him an 80% discount, which is auspicious."

Master He had carefully taken out the Guanyin statue. Ye Li took a look and saw that it was a white jade Guanyin statue. Even though it was only a distant glance, one could clearly feel the compassion of Guanyin for the world. It was obvious that both the jade and the carving were top-notch. I didn't expect Shen Dexuan to have such a treasure. If I hadn't come today, I would have lost a lot.

"Miss, it's ready. A total of five thousand one hundred taels." Master He also saw what the Third Miss meant. He was originally an old man from the Gu family who accompanied the dowry to the Ye family. Now that the Third Miss has taken over Shen Dexuan, he naturally favors his young master. Ye Li was also very satisfied with Master He's advice. She nodded and smiled at Mo Jingli: "After deducting the change, it will be five thousand taels. What do you think, Your Majesty?"

"Third sister! You..." Ye Ying looked at Mo Jingli uneasily, and shouted to Ye Li with a wronged look on her face.

Ye Li sneered in her heart. Wang Shi had secretly taken so much money and things over the years. Now Ye Ying was even more powerful. In order to please Mo Jingli, she even wanted to take him to get things from the store for free. Did she really think she was a sucker?

Qingshuang was disdainful of Ye Ying's pretense of weakness, and said with a smile: "What's wrong with the fourth young lady? Our young lady has already given several hundred taels of silver to the future fourth aunt because of His Royal Highness Prince Li. If it were any other family, they wouldn't be able to get such a high price. Or... I know, the prince must not have that much cash on him."

Ye Li smiled and said, "That doesn't matter. I naturally believe in you, Your Highness. You may take the things away first. I will have someone send the bill to your house and get the money later. What do you think, Your Highness?" Mo Jingli's face looked a little ugly. What could he do? If he refused, others would think he wanted to take other people's things for free. If he said he didn't want to buy it, everyone present knew that it was a gift for the Queen Mother. It would be unfilial to not buy it because it was too expensive. This Ye Li was said to be ugly, talentless and moral in the capital, but no one said that his heart was so cunning. With a cold snort, Mo Jingli nodded as a promise. As if he didn't want to stay in the store any longer, he pulled Ye Ying and walked out. He didn't even care about the call of the shopkeeper Wang. Ye Li smiled with satisfaction, waved her hand and said to Master He, "The prince is really straightforward. Master He, just send someone to deliver the bill to the palace. By the way, check if there are any previous accounts and settle them for the prince. The palace will definitely not miss this little money of ours."

Hearing this, Mo Jingli, who had just walked out of the door, turned pale, paused, and left with Ye Ying without looking back.