Nothing in the world remains unchanged.

Chen Qushui deeply understood what Dou Zhao said.

When he was fifteen, he never dreamed that he would stop before the fame of raising people; when he was thirty-three, he never thought that he could not even be a good aide; when he was fifty-six, he thought that he would be mediocre and die alone in the small and cramped house on Dongxiang Street, but he never thought that he would move to this peaceful and quiet village, sit in the house with glass inlaid on the window sash, burning earth dragon, and warm as spring in the windy and snowy weather, and drink Lu'an Guapian with a twelve-year-old girl.

"So, even though those properties are in your name, you can't use them?" Chen Qushui asked after taking a sip of the clear tea.

"Unless I marry far away," Dou Zhao said with a smile, "the steward needs to go with me to my husband's house, otherwise changing someone will offend the second house."

"What a pity." Chen Qushui sighed, "I have carefully looked at the list of your property. The shops are scattered all over the country. If we can set up a rule, the shopkeepers and employees of these shops will become our eyes and ears in time. By then, nothing that happens in the world will escape our eyes."

Dou Zhao was shocked when she heard this, and laughed, "People who do business may not be good at scouting, and scouts may not be good at doing business. It's too difficult to find someone who can take care of both. Moreover, it may cost a lot to maintain the business, and the gains will not make up for the losses." But Chen Qushui's words also reminded her. She pondered and said, "So I think, can we do another business besides the Dou family's industry? The capital should not be too large, and it would be best if we can open branches from Kyoto to Zhending - we need to keep an eye on Wang Yousheng and Kyoto's movements, so that if anything happens, we will not react slowly and become very passive."

Chen Qushui thought for a moment and said, "I found out that the young lady's ancestors made their fortune by lending money at high interest rates..."

Dou Zhao blushed slightly.

Chen Qushui said hurriedly, "Miss, please don't misunderstand me. What I mean is that if you want to know what's going on in Kyoto, the best way is to do a business that allows you to talk to the adults in the halls at any time. And all the adults in the halls are scholars. I think we might as well open a writing shop and sell some contemporary essays, official records, and records of the same year, etc." At this point, he smiled strangely and said, "If anyone needs it, we can also lend them some money for temporary turnover. What do you think?"

Dou Zhao thought about it carefully and had to admit that this was a good idea.

"But who should be put in charge of this pen and ink shop?" she pondered. "Zhao Liangbi is too young to be controlled. Besides, the people in the Dou family have always mistaken him for a member of the Zhao family. They guess that he might be my uncle's spy, so they tell him everything. Only then can I know the situation over there at any time. I also want Zhao Liangbi to learn more skills from the experienced managers of the Dou family over there. If there is a quarrel with the Dou family one day, there will be someone to help preside over the overall situation over there, so as not to be in a hurry and be controlled by others. He must not be moved. As for the others... Cui Da is not suitable, and I plan to let Cui Shisan follow Dou Qijun..." She couldn't find a suitable person. Or, it's not that she couldn't find one, but she had never been able to open her heart and find a few trustworthy people in this life.

Chen Qushui asked, "Young lady seems to trust Master Xiu San very much?"

"Their family needs money," Dou Zhao said, "and their family has the most boys. If there is a disagreement in the family, there will be relatively more people who can speak up." Of course, the main reason is Dou Qijun. Fifteen years later, his sharpness is approaching that of Dou Shishu. She wondered, if Dou Shishu could not defeat Wang Xingyi, should she support Dou Qijun in fighting against Wang Xingyi?

She didn't dare to think about it before, but now, she has someone to help her with foreign affairs, so maybe she can give it a try.

Isn’t it said that the brave will die of strength and the timid will die of hunger?

Dou Zhao was thinking about it when he heard Chen Qushui say, "Miss, whether at home or in the temple, the one who can make others surrender is not necessarily the one who speaks the loudest, but the one whose words carry the most weight. Since you have made up your mind to rely on your nephews at home, why don't we pick a few of your nephews and make friends with them from now on..."

"Then I'll trouble you, Mr. Chen." The person she picked was Dou Qijun. However, this life had changed a lot from the last. It would be more helpful for her to pick a few more people. It would also be a good opportunity to test Chen Qushui's eyesight. Dou Zhao smiled and said, "I grew up in Dongdou. In my opinion, all of these people are good. I'm just afraid it's hard to be impartial."

What kind of family is the Dou family?

Ten Jinshi have come from this clan, and even the wealthy families in Jiangnan that have been passed down for hundreds of years dare not underestimate him. He can pick people to support from among the children of the Dou family. Chen Qushui's heart, which had long been cold, began to beat again, as if a hot summer was about to come.

"Okay." He said without hesitation, "I'll give you the candidates in a few days. You can decide which ones are suitable and which ones are not."

Dou Zhao was very satisfied and said, "I think this is a good idea. We will open a pen and ink shop, find a decent businessman as the head shopkeeper, and let Cui Shisan be the second shopkeeper. His main task is to make friends with the nobles in the court, and then report to us about things in Kyoto in a timely manner." At this point, she couldn't help but laugh, "He is best at this kind of thing and he likes it the most."

After a lot of twists and turns, Cui Shisan finally returned to her hands. However, he was reduced from the respected chief steward of the Jining Marquis's office to the second-in-charge of a small shop. If he knew about his past and present lives, would he be so angry that he would jump up?

Chen Qushui hesitated and asked, "Do you want to write a letter of surrender?"

"No!" Dou Zhao answered almost sharply.

In her previous life, the Cui family was afraid that she would be in trouble, so they took the initiative to write a letter of surrender. Cui Shisan followed her into the Jining Marquis's Mansion and supported her loyally. However, he was often ridiculed by Wei Tingzhen, which was a pain in her heart.

"If any of the descendants of the Cui family still want to join us," she said calmly, "let them write a letter of surrender."

Chen Qushui nodded with relief.

Dou Zhao returned to Xidou in the snow and wind.

Qiu Kui waited for her at the second gate with an anxious look on his face: "Mr. Jiang said that if you don't come back to attend classes, he will resign and return home."

"Then let him resign and return home." Dou Zhao said coldly, "Give me some hot water, I want to take a bath and then talk to Aunt Cui." He clearly told Qiu Kui that she would still not go to class today.

Qiu Kui did not dare to disobey and helped Dou Zhao wash according to her instructions.

Jiang Yougong was sitting in the study. He waited until the lights were turned on but did not see Dou Zhao. He was so angry that his fingertips holding the book turned white. He asked the servant to pass a message to Dou Zhao: "The Spring Festival is approaching. I haven't been back home for seven or eight years. I would like to close the door a few days ago and go back home to celebrate the New Year." After that, without waiting for Dou Zhao's reply, he ordered the servant and the maid to help him pack his things.

Dou Zhao asked Haitang to give Cheng Yi twenty taels of silver: "The mountains are high and the roads are long. Spring has come and the snow is melting. Sir, just stay in the village and enjoy your grandchildren."

Jiang Yougong broke a teacup at that time.

Since the relationship had been torn, Haitang didn't want to be polite. As she walked out, she muttered in a voice that Jiang Yougong could hear: "Don't you even look at where you are? That teacup is a new enamel from the official kiln. A set costs ten taels of silver. You are a scholar, but how come you don't have any taste at all?"

The servants, maids and old women who came to serve also changed their faces and did their work slowly. It took two days to finish cleaning up. It was winter and the meals they served were either cold or too salty and oily, making them difficult to swallow.

Since Jiang Yougong came to He's house as a manager, he had never been treated like this.

He couldn't stay there any longer, so he found two people outside to help him pack his luggage and hired a car to return home.

When he returned home, he remembered that he should write a letter to He Wendao and Dou Shiying.

However, by the time his letter reached He's residence, He Wendao had received an apology from Dou Shiying himself: "...My daughter is not very educated, and I don't understand most of what Mr. Jiang said. In addition, I am a weak girl and cannot insist on going to school every day. I hope Mr. Jiang will forgive me for my disrespect. I have sent a gift of 500 taels of silver to Mr. Jiang."

He Wendao was very uneasy and recommended another person to Dou Shiying: "This person is average in craftsmanship, but he is proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and is also a master in poetry and painting. It would be very suitable for him to teach you something to relax and cultivate your temperament."

Dou Shiying thanked him repeatedly and wrote a letter back to Dou Zhao: "Don't make people angry again this time. It was someone else's fault once, but could it also be someone else's fault the second or third time? Some things don't need to be taken too seriously. Just think of it as having an idle helper at home."

Is this what a father should say?

What does she do in her spare time?

Dou Zhao threw the letter aside.

Grandmother called her over and said, "New Year is coming soon. There are no relatives there, so it must be very quiet. Ask someone to bring some New Year gifts to visit them. Then see if you can buy out the other martial arts school. If you can die in the ancestral home, you won't be ashamed to see your ancestors in the afterlife."

Dou Zhaozheng was angry with Dou Shiying, and seeing that the weather had just cleared up, he took Ganlu and Su Su to Zhending Prefecture.

This was the first time that Ganlu and Sujun went on a long journey in this life. Seeing that Dou Zhao closed his eyes to rest, they quietly lifted the curtain to look out along the way, whispering to each other and looking very happy.

When they arrived at another house, they met Chen Qushui at the door. He was carrying a lot of bags and was also here to deliver New Year goods.

The Bie sisters were very grateful and hurriedly welcomed Dou Zhao and Chen Qushui to the woodshed, while Bie Sulan treated Ganlu and Sujun to tea in the kitchen next door.

Bie Gangyi has been unconscious. The only reason he has been able to survive for so long is because of the good medicine he used. Most of the money used to buy the medicine was given by Dou Zhao.

She handed over the deed to the Betsu martial arts school to the Betsu sisters.

The Bie sisters burst into tears immediately.

Dou Zhao smiled and said, "You should thank that Liu Zizhuang."

Liu Zizhuang was the one who bought Bie's martial arts school when Bie Gangyi was in trouble. When Zhao Liangbi wanted to redeem Bie's martial arts school, he sold it to Zhao Liangbi at the original price without saying a word.

The Bie sisters nodded continuously, and Ganlu and Sujin looked at them curiously.

When Bie Sulan was cooking, Ganlu was helping to light the fire and quietly asked her what was going on.

A young man's loud voice came from outside: "Junior sister, I came to see the master."