Chapter 65, Chapter 65, Strange Twist
Whether it was a cruel twist of fate or a coincidence, Yu'an continued on her journey to the funeral, still bearing the title of the young mistress of the Ji family.
Ji Shu originally planned to go, but her mother was unwell and someone needed to take care of her at home, so she had to stay.
The journey was long, and the priority was to keep moving, so they traveled almost day and night.
Shen Qiulan's body almost couldn't take it, but unfortunately, she was in mourning and gritted her teeth to endure it. Yu'an and Baozhu were young and adapted in just four or five days.
Funerals are extremely exhausting, and after Mr. Shen was properly buried, Shen Qiulan fell seriously ill.
Illness strikes like a landslide; a perfectly healthy person feels like they've lost half their life, lying listlessly in bed all day, even struggling to take medicine.
"You don't need to serve me. Granny Cao will take care of you. You can go out for a walk with Qin Yue. Don't let me pass my illness on to you." Shen Qiulan said a lot to her.
Yu An chuckled, "If I take good care of you, it's the same if I go out for a stroll. The old man took three months of leave specifically for mourning, so there's still plenty of time."
Ji Jinghe used the pretext of meeting old friends to take the opportunity to go to Fulin Port to check on the situation. There was nothing else she could do while staying at the Shen family's house, so helping to take care of her nominal mother-in-law was the only thing she could do.
Since it's acting, she should act it out convincingly, after all, she doesn't want to be branded as someone who doesn't take care of her mother-in-law.
"You're willing to come with us, does that mean you've forgiven Jinghe and me?" Shen Qiulan stroked her hand, gazing at her expectantly.
The sudden passing of Mr. Shen was a great blow to her, and after nearly a month of physical and mental exhaustion, no one would be immune to such a situation.
Having suffered such pain herself, Yu An was unwilling to take advantage of her vulnerability and kick her while she was down.
She smiled noncommittally: "Hurry up and take your medicine. Get well so you can go home."
Shen Qiulan kept talking, but kept her mouth tightly shut and refused to drink the medicine.
“Shu’er said that you returned everything I sent over, which means you definitely haven’t let go.” She lowered her eyes weakly and slowly placed her hand on Yu’an’s knee.
“When Jinghe came to me with your and his birth charts, I was so surprised. I thought he did it because he loved you. He has always been very opinionated, and I have hardly ever had to worry about him. But after we got married, he stayed away from home for a whole month. That’s when I realized that it wasn’t like that.”
"Back then, you were so naive. You didn't even know how to serve tea properly on the first day, and you spilled half a cup of hot tea on me. I was thinking to myself, Chu Xingjian is supposed to be a famous minister, how could he have raised such a blockhead? Hesitant and timid, he's not the wife I imagined at all..."
"But this time I misjudged you. You're more capable than I imagined, more capable than me..."
“I don’t know if you and Jinghe can make it work, but what our family owes you is still what we owe you. Just rest assured and let us make it up to you…”
Yu An remained frozen in her seat, unsure of what to say in response; she didn't even want to speak.
"Mother-in-law, you're delirious from your illness."
Shen Qiulan shook her head: "No, I am perfectly clear-headed. When your father had the accident, we didn't do anything to help him, and that was our fault."
"You can choose to accept our compensation or not, I understand. But if possible, I would still like you to allow us to do something for you, even if it's just a very small favor."
"I admit, I had selfish motives."
Shen Qiulan was seriously ill, and the more she talked, the weaker she became. Yu An nodded repeatedly, "Alright, alright, take your medicine first..."
Whether it was due to the severe blow she had suffered or some other reason, this was truly the first time she had ever seen Shen Qiulan like this.
Unlike the time he spoke softly to her, this time it sounded more like a dying man's entrustment, tinged with a hint of pleading.
After comforting Shen Qiulan, who was in love with him, to sleep, Yu'an went out.
With Ji Jinghe not around, and nothing in the house to relieve her boredom, she couldn't stay still. Only when Shen Qinyue came to visit could she feel a little better.
"Why don't you come play in my yard, sister-in-law? I have lots of things there." With that, Shen Qinyue pulled her along.
She was telling the truth; since the old master of the Shen family had only Shen Qiulan and one son, Shen Yi, he had no other children.
Unlike his father, this young man had no interest in officialdom or politics since childhood. After failing the imperial examination, he followed his father back to Lizhou to beg for retirement and began to do business.
Life there was not as good as being an official in the court. In addition, Lizhou was an important place for foreign trade, and the Shen family often saw imported goods.
“Didn’t my sister-in-law say my peephole was pretty? I had someone buy one for you a few days ago. This other one is for my cousin Ji Shu.” Shen Qinyue handed over the items.
"I'm so sorry to have troubled you to spend so much money."
Yu An waved her hand to refuse, but Shen Qinyue insisted and forced the item into her hand.
“Just two mirrors, nothing special,” Shen Qinyue said. “These things are more expensive elsewhere, but in Lizhou, almost everyone has one.”
Yu An chuckled awkwardly, "Unfortunately, I didn't bring anything with me, so I can't return the favor."
"What's the point of returning the gift? We're family."
Shen Qinyue took a small knife and cut a melon, then familiarly handed a piece to Yu'an.
Yu'an was not used to incense, so her nose was naturally sensitive to fragrances. After smelling for a while, she felt that the incense burning in the room was unusual and seemed to be used in the palace.
"I wonder what kind of fragrance my cousin uses? It's so unique."
“Ambergris,” she replied naturally.
"An inch of ambergris is worth an inch of gold." This stuff is rarely recorded and hard to obtain. Even in the palace, it is used very sparingly. After arriving at the Shen residence, Yu'an didn't seem to have seen Shen Qinyue exude this scent.
After spending half a month with the Shen family, her understanding of them was still only superficial.
Shen Yi is low-key and exceptionally humble in his every move, unlike someone who would allow his daughter to use such expensive spices.
That's a bit too ostentatious.
Yu An smiled as she ate the melon, secretly calculating in her mind. When Shen Qinyue spoke again, she naturally put her thoughts behind her.
"Cousin, did you have some important friends to see? Grandfather's funeral just ended, and he left right away," Shen Qinyue asked with a smile.
Having learned to be cautious, Yu-an remained vague as usual: "He never talks to me about these things, so I really don't know. I estimate he'll be back soon."
"Your sister-in-law is so lax. Aren't you afraid your cousin will be seduced by someone else?"
Yu An smiled but didn't reply.
There was no news from Ji Jinghe, so she didn't need to urge him. She focused on playing with Shen Qinyue and taking care of Shen Qiulan at the same time.
Lizhou is not as expensive as the capital, so the Shen family's mansion is naturally large, with an old house in the front and a new garden built in the back.
Both Shen Yi and his son were busy outside, and Madam Shen was rarely seen at home. Yu An was mostly with Shen Qinyue and Shen's sister-in-law.
As autumn and winter approach, the damp cold intensifies. Even wrapped in a thick fur coat before going out, I was still terribly cold. Watching the children running around happily, Yu'an couldn't help but sigh, "Look, I'm getting worse and worse than a child. The children aren't afraid of the cold, but I can't even put down my hot water bottle."
“Children are all like this because they have a hot body,” Shen Qinyue said with a smile.
Sister-in-law Shen: "My sister-in-law is used to living in the capital. It's normal that she can't stand the damp cold here in Lizhou. I'll have someone make a pot later so she can eat something warmer."
The three joked around for a while and were just about to go back when suddenly an old woman's shout came from the courtyard.
The child looks like he/she has fallen.
The three of them rushed over.
Before Yu'an could walk over, Sister-in-law Shen came over carrying the child. "This child is running around like a madman."
Shen Qinyue: "You didn't hurt yourself, did you?"
"It's alright, it's alright."
Just as Yu'an was about to glance at the artificial hill, Shen's sister-in-law pushed her away, saying, "Let's go back."
Her expression and movements hinted at something strange, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.
The three of them sat around the pot eating. Since they sensed that the other person was trying hard to hide something, Yu'an simply pretended to be ignorant.
Halfway through the meal, a servant rushed in.
"The master had something urgent to attend to and just went out."
Sister-in-law Shen raised an eyebrow, asking in confusion, "Where did they go?"
A servant leaned forward and whispered something, but Yu'an couldn't hear it.
Shen Qinyue: "It's almost dark, why do you want to go out for no reason?"
Sister-in-law Shen smiled and said, "It's nothing serious, keep using it."
Yu'an was an outsider, so there were some things she couldn't ask. After returning home that evening, she called Yunxiu over and asked her again, but she still didn't know where Shen Yi had gone.
Ji Jinghe hadn't sent any messages back for several days, which meant there really was something going on. Yu An felt uneasy and took some time to go out for a walk.
Staying in the Shen residence is like being a frog at the bottom of a well; it's better to go out and find out things on your own.
Baozhu: "Miss, where are we going?"
"Go to the money exchange."
Baozhu was puzzled. No wonder they kept going astray and missed all the fun places.
"Girl, you're out of money?"
Yu An shook her head and remained silent.
Money exchanges are complex places, a melting pot of all sorts of people. The Shen family has been in business for many years, so they must be inextricably linked to money. If you really want to find out more, you might as well try to get the people here to talk to you.
The money exchange was crowded, so Yu'an stood carefully in front of the counter, waiting for the number of people in the store to decrease before slowly moving to the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper then noticed and asked with a smile, "What brings you here, madam?"
Yu An: "I want to borrow some money."
Shopkeeper: "How much does the lady want?"
Yu An: "Five hundred taels."
The shopkeeper's eyes lit up immediately, and he asked with amusement, "Why does my lady want so much?"
Yu An smiled bitterly: "My husband went north to do business, but the business failed. So I had to come out and see if there were any places with lower interest rates, so that we could still pay it back in the future."
The shopkeeper chuckled, "Madam, you look like you're from out of town. If you're looking for the best interest rates, look no further than our Lizhou City."
"Why? I searched all the way south, and there weren't many places with low interest rates," Yu An replied.
The shopkeeper shook his head repeatedly, "Madam, just say whether you'll lend or not. This is the amount we offer."
The shopkeeper counted the money, but Yu'an didn't care. She stepped forward and whispered, "Can you trust me?"
"Tsk..." The shopkeeper glanced at it, "This is all money from the Shen family, genuine goods, honest business, would I lie to you?"
The Shen family?
There is probably only one Shen family in Lizhou City that is known by name.
Yu An hesitated, "If that's what you're saying, then all the money in Lizhou City was lent out by the Shen family?"
The shopkeeper looked at him suspiciously, glancing at him sideways, "So, are you going to lend me the money or not?"
Seeing that he was losing patience, Yu'an had no choice but to say she would think about it again and then slunk away.
Baozhu wondered, "Isn't it common for wealthy merchants to lend their spare money in banks? What are you thinking about, young lady?"
Yu An pursed her lips. "But he said that the entire Lizhou City belongs to the Shen family. We've been staying at the Shen family's place for at least ten days. What do you think of the Shen family?"
"Keep a low profile," Baozhu replied immediately.
Yu An: "That's right."
The master and servant asked around at every money exchange in Lizhou City using the same excuse, and received almost identical answers. The interest rates were also as stipulated, with a margin of error of no more than five percent.
Just how powerful is the Shen family to be able to support the entire commercial loan business of Lizhou City?
You really can't judge a book by its cover.
She bought some things casually on the street and brought some for Shen Qiulan. When she returned to her courtyard, Su Mu was waiting for her at the door.
"The old man brought some things from Fulin."
Yu An glanced at him and called him in.
Su Mu put down what he was holding, and as Baozhu closed the door, he whispered, "Master has discovered a group of suspicious ships heading overseas in Fulin. They may be related to smuggling. Tonight is the time for them to leave, so Master hasn't had time to send any messages. After tonight, we should have some leads."
Yu An took a sip of hot tea: "When did you find out?"
Su Mu: "Just yesterday."
What a coincidence, it was also yesterday.
Yu An: "How's the investigation I asked you two to do?"
Su Mu truthfully replied, "I handle external affairs, while Yunxiu handles internal affairs. From what I've heard, whether it's farmers or merchants, as long as their families go bankrupt or something else, they all go to the city to get loans. Eight or nine out of ten of those loans come from the Shen family."
"As for the cellar that the young mistress saw that day, Yunxiu had already installed a heavy lock when she went there. After prying it open, she found that there was another heavy lock inside, which was well made and could not be pried open by ordinary means."
"Since we can't pry it open, let's not go any further, lest we alert them."
Yu An suddenly remembered something and asked, "Where did Master Shen Yi go last night?"
Su Mu: "It seems to be Fulin. I heard there was a problem with the goods that arrived at the port."
The heart that had been hanging in mid-air gradually settled on the ground. The series of strange occurrences and coincidences had already explained some of the issues.
The Shen family is definitely not as simple as they think.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
