Shopkeeper Zhou told Xu Qinyu, "It's not that the boss is difficult to deal with, but the situation at home is a little different..."

Generally speaking, families that can own dozens of acres of land are not short of money. They are either gentry, wealthy businessmen, or some aristocratic families or eunuchs. Xu Qinyu originally thought that it was because such families were not short of money and the land was difficult to buy, so they were unwilling to sell it.

It was not until Manager Zhou told her about his employer's situation that she understood why.

It's not that I'm unwilling, but the employer's situation is too special.

The host's surname is Ying and his given name is Shuchang. The Ying family is not a big family. They have lived in the southwest for generations and have accumulated some property. The old lady of the Ying family gave birth to three sons and a concubine. She favored the eldest and second sons. The second son was not loved by his father and mother. The old man Ying passed away a few years ago. When the old man passed away, the old lady Ying disliked the second son and divided the family property on the pretext of something. She didn't even give the second son any property, but just gave him a few taels of silver.

At that time, the second son of the Ying family had just gotten married. It would be a lie to say that he was not sad when he was pushed out of the Ying family along with his new wife.

He didn't understand why they had the same mother and he was obviously the old lady's biological son, but why didn't the old lady love him at all? He was obviously very filial and always gave in to his eldest brothers, third brothers and youngest sister, but why did they want to split up the family right after his father passed away?

Later, Ying Laoer gritted his teeth and broke out with his wife. He accumulated a lot of property and became a member of the Imperial Court.

As for the old lady, in the past ten years or so, she had almost squandered all the fortune accumulated by her husband, leaving only a shabby house and two small shops.

The second son of the Ying family not only bought a very large and beautiful house with five courtyards, but also had two three-story shops in Raozhou City, several perfume and rouge and powder shops, and hundreds of acres of land under his control.

Ying Laoer's perfume shop was opened because his wife was good at perfume making.

Even his wife knew something about rouge and powder, and the rouge and powder she mixed were very delicate.

At first, Ying Laoer and his wife used the few taels of silver to rent an old courtyard to live in. They used the remaining silver to buy raw materials for perfumery and made some solid ointments. Ying Laoer then carried a shoulder pole and went from street to street selling the ointments.

At the beginning, I sold cheap ointments on the streets, ten cents a box. The ingredients were mostly mountain flowers and plants, one or two cheap spices, and ointments, but the fragrance was very pleasant. I could put it in the cupboard to fumigate clothes on weekdays, or I could just open the lid and put it in the living room or room to use as incense, and it could last for more than a month.

So after accumulating the first batch of customers and earning some money, Ying Laoer's wife began to mix incense which was actually more expensive.

During this period, Ying Shuchang, the second daughter of Ying Lao Er, was born.

After Ying Shuchang was born, Ying Laoer's business became better and better. When Ying Shuchang was two or three years old, their family had bought their own small courtyard. In addition to making incense, Ying Laoer's wife also started to make rouge and powder.

His wife makes very good perfume and rouge.

Just like that, Ying Laoer's business grew bigger and bigger. He opened a perfume shop and also sold rouge and powder.

Gradually they accumulated a huge fortune, and the second son of the Ying family even became a member of the Imperial Court.

But unfortunately, two years ago, Ying Laoer and his wife encountered bandits when they were out, and both husband and wife were killed by the bandits, leaving only Ying Shuchang left in Ying Laoer's family.

Ying Shuchang was only seventeen years old at that time, and she would be nineteen in two years.

She is quite capable. She was heartbroken when her parents passed away, but even so, she managed the business her parents left her in an orderly manner.

But it is inevitable that an orphan girl, looking after such a huge family business, would not be missed by others.

Outsiders still want to get their hands on the family property left by Ying Lao Er to Ying Shuchang. It's nothing more than some poor people thinking that marrying Ying Shuchang is equivalent to marrying the Ying family's huge family property, which they can spend as they please.

So during that period, many matchmakers came to propose marriage, but Ying Shuchang rejected them all, saying that she had to observe a three-year mourning period for her parents and hoped that matchmakers would not come.

But those poor families were not willing to miss such an opportunity, so they naturally continued to let matchmakers come to their homes and praise their sons to the skies. Ying Shuchang also said coldly that she had no plans to arrange a marriage within three years, so if they continued to come, don't blame her for being rude.

As a result, the matchmaker was too embarrassed to come again, but some families didn't even have the nerve to do that. The woman in charge went to the house to lobby in person, and she also thought that her son was handsome and that Ying Shuchang would be moved as soon as she saw him.

Ying Shuchang also turned hostile and asked the servants in her house to beat the man out.

Afterwards, not many people came to the Ying family to propose marriage, but Ying Shuchang's relatives could no longer sit still.

At first, it was just Old Lady Ying who came and cried bitterly, saying that Ying Shuchang was the only one left in the second son's family and that she was very pitiful. She asked the family members to take care of her together in the future to prevent her from being bullied by outsiders.

Ying Shuchang responded indifferently at that time. She knew very well that the other members of the Ying family came just to want the family business left by their parents.

Later, the old lady even wanted to move into Ying Laoer's large house with five entrances with her entire family, but was rejected by Ying Shuchang.

Two years passed like this, and the old lady was too lazy to pretend anymore, so she bribed the head of the Ying family, and with the head of the family witnessing, she transferred the son of the third son of Ying to the second branch of the family. Now the whole family has moved into the big house that the second son of Ying left for his daughter.

Shopkeeper Zhou sighed as he said this, "This is the current situation of the Ying family."

Xu Qinyu couldn't help but ask, "Is the second son of Ying Lao Er really the biological child of Mrs. Ying? Why is she treating the second wife like this?"

After she finished speaking, she suddenly stopped.

Isn't Ying Laoer just like her father? Her father is the second master of Dechang Marquis's mansion, also the second son in line with an older brother and a younger brother. The old couple of Dechang Marquis did not like her father, and even when the daughter of the third room was to be exiled with him, they directly pushed the original father out.

To Xu Qinyu, the original father had a very good personality, easy-going and stable, and he used to be very filial to his parents, but he was not liked by the old couple.

Not all parents love every one of their children, and many parents can easily be biased sometimes.

Moreover, the second son of the Ying family and his wife suffered misfortune and left behind such a huge fortune. The wealth was very tempting. The other two branches of the Ying family had fallen into such a state in recent years. Naturally, they also wanted to take over the family property left by the second son to Ying Shuchang. So in the end, they shamelessly passed the child to the second branch by force.

Ying Shuchang was only a seventeen-year-old girl, and would be only nineteen in two years. Even though there were some servants in the house, the old lady would move in other clan members and the clan leader, and no matter how powerful she was, it would not work.

And even if Ying Lao Er separated the family, he would still take her to visit the old lady during the holidays. It was just a separation, not a complete severance of relations. The old lady was still there, and they were still a family. The child was adopted in the presence of other clan leaders and clan members. There was no point in going to the government to complain. The adopted son was already on the family tree, which meant that he was already the child of the second wife and Ying Shuchang's younger brother. Not only was it recognized by law, but it could not be changed in terms of human ethics.

Shopkeeper Zhou sighed, "This happened not long ago. The piece of land at the foot of the mountain you mentioned, Miss Xu, was left to Ying Shuchang by Ying Lao Er. But Ying Shuchang is in a state of panic now, so she has no time to care about these things. Moreover, this girl has been through so much. I'm afraid she won't agree if we rashly go to her house to sell the land."

Xu Qinyu couldn't help but sigh in her heart. This girl's experience was not much better than her original self. The original self was directly pushed out as a shield by her grandmother, while this girl was also bullied by her grandmother, uncle and uncle.

Moreover, the younger brother who was adopted by Ying Shuchang from the third house was a two-year-old baby, the biological son of Ying Lao San and his wife. They loved the child very much, and now that they had all moved into the Ying family house, they were not worried that Ying Shuchang would vent her anger on their younger son.

No matter how much Ying Shuchang hated this family and this adopted brother, she would never take her anger out on a two-year-old baby who knew nothing.

Xu Qinyu asked, "Can Ying Shuchang come out now?" She was also worried that the other members of the Ying family would move into the mansion and keep Ying Shuchang under control, not even being able to leave the house.

Shopkeeper Zhou said, "She can still get out. Although the shameless people in the Ying family have moved to the house of the second son of the Ying family, the incense and rouge powder shops of the Ying family need to be taken care of. The most important thing is that she needs to go to the workshop to personally monitor the formulas of these incense and rouge powder, otherwise she will lose a lot of money in a day. So they can only let Ying Shuchang go. And I heard that the old lady and the people from the first and third rooms want to force the formulas of incense and rouge powder, but the formulas are only known to Madam Ying, and they can't do anything about it."

In fact, the formula is the most valuable. Even if Ying Lao Er left behind these shops, houses and fields, they are not as valuable as the formula. Only by holding the formula can you make money.

He felt that the other members of the Ying family were too much, but there were also many people who felt that Mrs. Ying did nothing wrong. A girl would eventually get married, so would such a huge family business be given as a dowry to someone from another family? It must be left to someone from the family. They also felt that Ying Shuchang should also hand over the formula, otherwise the formula would also be given as a dowry, which would benefit others.

In the end, they think that girls cannot carry on the family line. Even if they are from other families, they should leave all their property to their cousins. Only men can carry on the family line, so that a family will not be destroyed.

When Xu Qinyu heard this, she felt disgusted. There were still many people who had such thoughts in later generations, both men and women. It was really disgusting.

She also felt more and more that this girl was similar to her, but at least she still had her original parents and younger brother, who were all still alive, and her life was getting better and better.

After listening to what Manager Zhou said, Xu Qinyu thanked him and went back to her room with her fourth brother.

Back in the room, Xu Qinyu said, "Fourth brother, although the Ying family is in this situation now, I still want to meet Ying Shuchang."

Pei Weixuan nodded, "We should meet her and ask her. In her current situation, she has to break through before she can build up. Instead of wasting time at the Ying family, it is better for her to take the recipe and leave. Those people in the Ying family have squandered all the family business left by the old man Ying, and now they can't keep the family business left by the second son Ying. If Ying Shuchang stays at the Ying family, she will only waste herself."

Xu Qinyu also thought so, because now that the children had been adopted, the matter was done and it would only be a waste of time for her to stay in the Ying family.

If the situation really gets desperate and anything happens to the Ying family, Ying Shuchang will not be in any good situation either.

As long as she has the formula in her hands, Ying Shuchang still has the final say.

Pei Weixuan went to the vicinity of Ying's house that day to inquire and learned that Ying Shuchang would go to the workshop every morning, so the next morning, after breakfast, he and Yu Niang went to the workshop to wait for Ying Shuchang.

Although the Ying family's incense and rouge and powder workshops both hired female craftsmen, the most important formula was still in the hands of Ying Shuchang. She was responsible for the most important process, which did not take much time. But without this process, neither incense nor rouge and powder could be made.

The two waited in front of the workshop for a while, and then they saw a very thin girl walking over.

The girl had delicate features, but she looked bad. Her face and lips were pale with a hint of blue. She was extremely thin, and her clothes looked empty on her. She was accompanied by two maids. One of them was also thin and had a sad look on her face. The other was of strong build and was staring at the thin girl with her eyes rolling around.

Xu Qinyu knew that this thin girl should be Ying Shuchang. Her mental state at the moment showed that she was a little malnourished. Come to think of it, her parents had an accident suddenly. Although they left her a lot of family property, everyone was still staring at her and coveting the things her parents left for her. Now that the Ying family had done such a thing, it would be strange if she could eat and drink well.

Seeing Ying Shuchang walking over, Xu Qinyu stepped forward and called out, "Madam Ying."

When Ying Shuchang heard someone calling her, her eyes became cold and her face looked a little numb.

Seeing that she didn't say anything, Xu Qinyu called out "Madam Ying" again.

Ying Shuchang still ignored her, but her eyes fell on her.

The burly woman behind Ying Shuchang immediately asked, "Who are you? What do you want to do by calling our wife?"

Xu Qinyu could see that this old woman was probably not Ying Shuchang's person, but the thin old woman was. The sturdy old woman was probably from Old Lady Ying's side.

Xu Qinyu said coldly: "I am a friend of Madam Ying, and I came here specially to see her."

The burly woman snorted coldly, "How come I didn't know that my wife has a close friend like you?"

Ying Shuchang finally responded. She said calmly, "What do you want to talk to me about?"

Ever since her parents passed away, except for Nanny Zhang, everyone else who came around her had bad intentions. She no longer had any hope. Moreover, she didn't even know the beautiful young lady in front of her, so naturally she thought she was approaching her with ulterior motives.

Because just when that hateful family forced their third child to be adopted by her as her younger brother, moved into the old house and asked her for the recipe, many outsiders who were doing business wanted to buy incense and rouge and powder from her. Knowing that she hated the old lady's family, they thought that she might as well sell the recipe to them and make a fortune, but she did not agree.

This month, she didn't know what to do. She even thought about going to war with the old lady and the others. She didn't want to live anymore and wanted to go down to accompany her parents. She might as well kill all these people as well.

Pei Weixuan noticed that Ying Shuchang was not in good condition, so he whispered something in Xu Qinyu's ear.

Xu Qinyu's heart sank, and she said softly, "Madam Ying, I have something to ask you."

Ying Shuchang wanted to ask her coldly whether she also wanted to buy the formula from her like the others.

But looking at the young lady in front of her with white skin and a gentle smile on her face, she didn't say anything. She just pursed her lips and said, "Just tell me what you want to say."

Xu Qinyu looked at the two maids beside Ying Shuchang and said, "I want to talk to Madam Ying alone."

Ying Shuchang turned around and said to the equally thin old woman in a gentle voice, "Madam Zhang, please step aside first. I have something to say to this young lady." Then she said coldly to the other burly old woman, "Madam Zhao, you also step aside."

Mrs. Zhao snorted, "Who knows if this young lady will do something to you, madam? I will definitely have to stay by her side."

Ying Shuchang sneered, "You think I can't cure you, right? The old lady just wants my formula. If I let her beat you to death and then give her the formula, what do you think the old lady will do?"

Mrs. Zhao's expression changed then. She snorted and followed Nanny Zhang to the side.

After the two maids left, Ying Shuchang looked at Xu Qinyu, "I don't seem to know you. What do you want to talk to me about? If you want to buy the formula of incense and rouge powder in my hand, forget it. I won't sell it to you."

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "We really don't know each other, and I'm not Madam Ying's close friend, but just because I'm not a close friend now doesn't mean I won't be in the future. I didn't come here today to buy Madam Ying's recipe."

Ying Shuchang, however, didn't believe her at all.

She had seen too many people who approached her gently at first, but eventually revealed their true colors.

But before she could say anything, the handsome man next to the beautiful young lady suddenly said, "The incense prepared by your workshop smells like agarwood, sweet pine, green wood, chicken tongue, white sandalwood..." He named a total of fifteen spices before continuing, "This incense should be more suitable for fumigating clothes, and it can make the fragrance on the clothes last for a long time."

He even told us the most important spices in the recipe and how they were processed.

This is also the key point in Ying Shuchang’s formula.

These spices are quite expensive, so the incense they make is also worth the money. This is why everyone is so obsessed with Shu Chang's recipes, because they are really worth it.

In fact, Pei Weixuan can only smell the flavor at the moment, but the specific proportions of the formula must be slowly mixed out.

But it was not a difficult task for him. He just wanted to tell Ying Shuchang that he and Yu Niang did not come for the recipe in her hand.

Ying Shuchang's face changed. She didn't know how the two people in front of her knew the recipe of her incense, and even knew the key.

Xu Qinyu said hurriedly, "Don't worry, Miss Ying. We are not here for your recipe. This is my husband. He also knows some creams and rouge and powder recipes. We just want to tell Miss Ying that we are not here for your recipe."

Ying Shuchang looked at the two of them with a complicated expression and asked, "Then why did you come to see me?"

Xu Qinyu said, "We came here today just to take possession of the several dozen acres of land that Madam Ying owned at the foot of the mountain outside the city. My name is Xu Qinyu, and I am from Yuanbao Town. I opened a restaurant in Yuanbao Town called Xu's Restaurant. Since I made some money, I plan to open a restaurant in Raozhou City..."

She told Ying Shuchang her identity and that she was planning to open a restaurant outside the city, but the location was right at the foot of the mountain. She heard that the land was hers, so she came to her and asked her if she could sell the land to her. She also expressed her willingness to pay double the price to buy the dozens of acres of land.

Ying Shuchang didn't expect that they came for the dozens of acres of land at the foot of the mountain.

She had also heard of Xu Qinyu's reputation. Before her father got into trouble, he had been to Yuanbao Town. He happened to be in Yuanbao Town at that time. He had dinner at Xu's Restaurant and he specially packed some food for her. It was the most delicious meal she had ever eaten.

She also thought that if she had the chance in the future, she would go to Yuanbao Town again and have a meal at Xu's Restaurant in person.

But a month later, something happened to her father and mother. She no longer had the energy to think about things. She lost her appetite and couldn't eat anything. Yet she had to force herself to deal with many things. She had experienced a lot in the past two years. She felt lifeless and had lost a lot of weight.

She also knew a little about Xu Qinyu. She knew about the restaurant she opened and she also heard that she opened a winery with Madam Lu. She was indeed not short of money and would not covet her recipe. She must have really wanted to open a big restaurant in Raozhou City, so she bought the land from her.

She couldn't earn that much from perfume and rouge and powder in a year, only tens of thousands of taels of silver. Even so, it was enough to make many people and other members of the Ying family jealous.

Ying Shuchang thought about it and agreed. She said, "Madam Xu, you don't have to offer double the price. Just give me the normal price. If you want those fields, just tell me and I will sell them to you. But you also know my current situation. I'm afraid it will be troublesome to sell these properties. You might even be caught by those jackals and tigers. They are all ruffians and not easy to deal with." Otherwise, she would not have forced the third wife's child to be adopted and live in her house.

She knew very well in her heart that the deeds to the fields, houses and shops her father left her were still in her hands. That was because the old lady's family had just moved in, and as time went on, they would find a way to take all the deeds away.

She did think about dying with everyone in the Ying family.

She has a bad temper. Daddy once said that she has a bad temper and will easily get into a dead end when encountering problems.

Now she couldn't deal with these things. The only thing she could think of was that it would not be good for the old lady and the others. Since they treated her like this, they might as well die together.

Xu Qinyu actually knew that even though the family property left to her by Ying Shuchang's parents was still in her hands, it would be very troublesome for her to deal with it privately, otherwise she should have sold all the property long ago.

But even if Ying Shuchang sold all her family property, she would not be able to go anywhere, because as a girl, it would be dangerous for her to carry such a large amount of cash with her wherever she went. But if she continued to stay in the Ying family, even if she sold all her family property, she would not be able to keep the cash.

Neither side had any good solution, which led Ying Shuchang into this situation.

Xu Qinyu thought about what her fourth brother had just told her, that Ying Shuchang had some deathly aura about her, and that she probably didn't want to live anymore and wanted to die with the Ying family.

Even if she was bullied and didn't want to live anymore, she should live well and see if those people would get retribution in the future, or find ways to make those people suffer. In the end, she shouldn't think of dying together.

Xu Qinyu said gently, "As for the farm matters, why don't you go to the Banfang Inn after you finish your work, and I will discuss it with Miss Ying in detail?"

Ying Shuchang hesitated, but finally nodded in agreement.