Chapter 70
Chapter 70
The news was indeed significant, and for several people, it was great news.
After the crown prince was deposed, the Xie family had a chance to survive.
He looked back into the house, unsure whether the young lady wanted to go with him. Before he could ask, the young lady's voice came through the screen, "You go, my lord. I won't go. I want to go around and look around."
Prince Jing must have something important to discuss with him, so it would be boring for her to go.
He struggled to take out twenty cents from his pocket and gave them to Min Zhang, leaving him to Wen Shuse and going out alone.
When they arrived outside the inn, Prince Jing's carriage was already waiting at the door.
After Prince Jing went to his fiefdom Fengcheng ten years ago, the Emperor did not take back his mansion, and there had always been someone special cleaning it. This time when he returned to Dongdu, he was able to move in.
When they arrived at the mansion, Prince Jing took him to see Pei Qing first.
Yesterday, Prince Jing invited people from the Imperial Hospital and used the best medicinal materials. After a night, although Pei Qing's wound was a little red, it was not swollen.
Seeing that he was in much better spirits than yesterday, Xie Shao stayed in the house and chatted with him for a while.
Pei Qing was used to lying down all day, and he was not used to it. He couldn't get up or turn over. He felt depressed and asked Xie Shao, "What's going on outside?"
"The prince has been deposed." Xie Shao looked at him, hesitant to speak, "Pei Yuanqiu..." He is most likely not going to survive.
Pei Qing's face was calm. From the moment he decided to put the knife to his neck, he had completely severed the father-son relationship between the two. As for the fact that Pei Yuanqiu risked his life to save him in the end, it was not him, but the blood of the Pei family in his body. "If you can find his body, please help me bury it, brother Xie."
After seeing Pei Qing coming out, Prince Jing invited him to the study. As soon as he sat down, he said, "The Third Young Master will stay in Dongdu for the time being."
Xie Shao knew what Prince Jing meant.
I'm afraid that the crown prince will not give up after being deposed. The most feared thing is that he will become desperate and turn around to attack Fengcheng, cutting off Prince Jing's retreat.
Xie Daoyuan is of no use, and the imperial court has already gone to capture him. They will most likely not leave him alive, so his survival depends entirely on his life.
But the Xie family still has the old ancestor, and his father-in-law's family is also there, so he can't just sit back and watch. Since the young lady likes Dongdu, let her stay here first.
Before he could even speak out his thoughts, Prince Jing said, "The Crown Prince is eager to chop you into pieces, so you don't need to go and get yourself killed. Just stay in Dongdu." His expression eased, and he said, "Don't worry, your father and mother have returned to Fengcheng. If Crown Prince Zhou can't even make it through this, he probably won't be able to protect himself in the future."
Xie Shao was stunned.
The two old people finally remembered that they still have a home.
After Xie Shao left, Wen Shuse took Min Zhang out of the inn.
I got up late and haven't had breakfast yet. When I saw Min Zhang was about to buy some buns, Wen Shuse stopped him in time, "We finally came to Dongdu, let's change the taste and look for other delicious food."
After searching for a while, they found themselves in front of Mixian Tower, one of the major restaurants in Dongdu.
The three-storey pavilion stands by the water. Three arched stone bridges in front of the building all lead to the building. It has red doors and tiles, carved eaves and embroidered thresholds. The faint aroma of wine mixed with folk songs wafts from inside, making people feel fascinated by what kind of paradise on earth it is.
Thinking of the Bailou and Zuixianglou in Fengcheng again, they are really dwarfed by the big ones and cannot be compared.
Wen Shuse stood on the arch bridge, his eyes becoming more and more infatuated.
How much money did that old fox make...
Min Zhang's heart was in turmoil. He glanced at her and tightly grasped the twenty coins in his hand. His face turned red with nervousness. He finally realized how difficult it was for his master and tried to persuade her: "Third Madam, the food in the restaurant is just for the atmosphere. The taste is not as good as the food in the alley."
"Not necessarily." Wen Shuse suddenly walked forward.
Min Zhang was unable to stop her and called her urgently: "Third Grandma..."
"Don't worry, there is still some money left from the two taels of silver that the Wen family's eldest lady gave us last night. Let's go ask first."
With a little over one tael of silver, you can have a good meal at a foot shop, but if you go to a restaurant, it may only be enough to buy a few vegetarian dishes.
Min Zhang was worried. Seeing her running straight to the door, he was at a loss as to what to do. He kept calling for his master to come back quickly, otherwise the third lady would probably die in the restaurant today.
Wen Shuse had already walked into the house.
The sound of the tune and the aroma of wine became clearer and clearer. I looked up and saw a stage set up opposite me, with a vermilion brocade floor. Gorgeously dressed singing girls were sitting on the stools with their pipa in their arms. The tune in my ears came from the mouths of several people.
Looking up, one can see the interior of the three-story attic, which is connected by a circular flying bridge. The railings and windows are divided into countless small pavilions, and there are pearl curtains, embroidered foreheads, and countless exquisite gauze lanterns surrounding a circle.
There are several revolving lanterns taller than people hanging above the head. If they were lit up at night, I wonder how dazzling they would be.
It was early in the morning, and many people were leaving, but few were coming in. A waiter came over and took a look at the two of them. His attitude was quite polite: "Do you have a reservation, sir?"
Wen Shuse shook his head.
The waiter asked again, "Sir, would you like to go into the small pavilion or the hall?"
"All is fine." Wen Shuse said, "But I only have one or two taels of silver."
One tael of silver is not even enough to buy half a pot of wine.
And most of the people who come here are dignitaries.
He had never intended to judge a person by appearance, but after hearing what Wen Shuse said, his face froze and his attitude slowly changed, "Sir, you may have come to the wrong place. Mixianlou is the main store, and you may be going to a foot store." He kindly pointed her in a direction, "Turn left when you go out, sir, go ahead, I won't see you off."
It was obvious that he was disdainful of her, but Wen Shuse didn't feel embarrassed and said politely, "One tael of silver is also money. You'd better make some money. Just give me two dishes at this price, or one dish is fine. I'm new to Dongdu and I've heard of the great name of Mixianlou. I want to try it today. Can you make an exception, little brother?"
The two previous sentences had already shown his impatience, and the guy was no longer in a good mood, "If you want to pretend to be rich, you have to see if you have the ability."
She really doesn't weigh that much.
Following the waiter's gaze, he looked at himself and realized that the blue robe he was wearing, which was owned by Master Wen, was not as good as the one Wei Yun wore yesterday.
Seeing the contempt in his eyes, Wen Shuse defended himself, "Don't judge a person by his appearance."
The waiter turned around, revealing half of his mocking face, and said in a sarcastic tone: "Sir, you should show some real skills so that I can look at you with new eyes."
"What's your attitude?" Min Zhang couldn't bear it any longer, "Third Master... let's go."
Wen Shu stared at the arrogance on his face. She had never felt the feeling of being looked down upon since Second Master Wen became rich. Could it be that he would have to endure this humiliation in front of her door? "To be honest, sir, I am a fortune teller. Do you want to read my fortune?"
The waiter showed an expression of "as expected", "Young Master, if you have the time, you should get yourself a fortune. Not everyone can stay in a place like Dongdu. You should save the money and have a good meal."
"I've calculated it. I'm destined to be rich and noble." Seeing the sarcasm on the other person's face getting even more intense, Wen Shuse took a breath and said, "I'll calculate your fortune for free."
Without allowing him to refuse, she earnestly questioned him, "Your Excellency has a mean face. I calculate that within a moment, a great disaster will befall you."
The waiter's face darkened, and before he could get angry, Wen Shuse said again, "Call your manager."
The guy didn't take her seriously at all, "I advise you not to embarrass yourself."
Min Zhang was just about to draw his sword.
Wen Shuse turned around and said, "Min Zhang, go wait outside. I'll talk to him. If he doesn't come out in a moment, come in and tear this place apart."
The guy sneered.
Min Zhang didn't move.
Wen Shu looked at the guy who deserved a beating and pushed him, "Go away. I can't eat his food today. I'm angry."
Knowing what kind of personality his Third Mistress has, he knew that even a powerful person like his master couldn't get any good out of her hands, so he was still worried and said, "Call me if you have any problems."
"Know."
As soon as Min Zhang left, Wen Shuse looked up and asked the waiter in front of him: "Is your boss called Wen Zhongjing?"
This Mixianlou was sold a few months ago. Neither the management nor the people inside have changed. Almost no one knows that the owner has changed. The waiter's face is full of sarcasm, "How did you know?"
"You haven't seen him?"
“Yes.”
Wen Shu was furious. He stepped forward and thrust his face in front of the waiter, "Are you blind? Everyone says that my face is 70% similar to Master Wen. Can't you see that?"
The guy was stunned and started to inquire seriously.
Wen Shu glared at him and stopped him, "Call Uncle Wen out."
When the guy heard him call out this name, his heart tightened. He didn't dare to delay any longer and stammered, "Wait a moment." Then he turned around and went to the backyard.
Soon after, an old man came out from a corridor on one side. He was very busy. When he heard that someone was making trouble, he was very impatient and said, "Who is it? He has the nerve to come in for only one tael of silver..."
Before he finished speaking, he saw the figure in front of him, his expression froze, and after a while, he suddenly stepped forward and said excitedly: "Oh, Second Lady..."
Min Zhang was waiting outside nervously, paying attention to the movements inside. When the moment came, he pushed the door open immediately.
But the waiter who had been so arrogant just now was smiling apologetically at Wen Shuse, "Young Master... please wait a moment, it will be ready soon."
Min Zhang was stunned.
After a stick of incense, Wen Shuse sat down in the seat in the hall. The dishes on the wooden table in front of him must have cost more than one or two taels of silver.
Not only her, but Min Zhang was also enthusiastically taken to a place by the waiter and had a hearty meal with him.
The difference between the before and after was so great that Min Zhang was really confused.
After coming out of the restaurant, Wen Shuse explained to him, "When you meet someone who is unreasonable, you should first appeal to his emotions and reason with him. If he doesn't listen, we can't be polite to him. Find his boss. When doing business outside, the most important thing is reputation. Who doesn't want his business to be good? On the contrary, it's these chores who like to make dough figurines according to the order. Now, the boss has called us over, and the matter has been settled. We can even have a free meal." He spread his palms to reveal a red sign, "Look, you've given us a meal. When your master comes back, we can come again."
He glanced at Min Zhang's stunned expression and said with a smile, "Is it just luck?"
Min Zhang nodded.
It’s really good, almost too good to be true.
"Now that I think about it, that earlier roll of the eyes was actually worth it." Wen Shuse spoke with an expression that it was a blessing in disguise, and his words were extremely realistic.
Min Zhang was also slowly influenced by her, "Third Grandma is a blessed person, she must have good luck."
These words were like a blessing, and the two of them went to look for a house, and they found an old acquaintance.
Wen Shuse went forward and knocked on the door. As soon as the door opened, Min Zhang felt that the woman inside looked very familiar.
It was not until he heard Wen Shuse calling, "Aunt Qing?" Min Zhang instantly remembered that this was the Third Grandma's personal nanny.
It seems that something happened in my hometown some time ago, so I asked for leave from my third grandmother.
I didn't expect to meet you here.
Min Zhang was surprised, and Wen Shuse was even more surprised. After a few pauses, he exclaimed, "Aunt Qing?" and rolled his eyes back.
Aunt Qing understood and took back the words that were about to come out of her mouth, "Why did the Second Lady come to Dongdu..."
It is particularly exciting to meet old friends in a foreign land.
Min Zhang stood guard in the yard while the master and servant were reminiscing about the past in the room.
As soon as the door was closed, Aunt Qing looked worried. "A few days ago, I was planning to go back to Fengcheng. When I arrived at Nancheng, I didn't expect that Nancheng had sealed the city gates and no one was allowed to go in or out. I also heard rumors from Fengcheng that Master Xie didn't want his head anymore, so why did he rebel... I couldn't leave Nancheng, so I had to turn back and waited for news from my wife. Finally, my wife came..."
She has been extremely anxious these days, but she can't go back, so she can only wait for news here.
"How did the lady get here? Does the old lady know?" She asked a lot of questions, and then looked at her carefully. Her heart ached, "I'm afraid the second lady must have suffered a lot on this trip..."
She asked too many questions, and Wen Shuse didn't know which one to answer. He comforted her, "Everything is fine." He chose an armchair and sat down, "Is Uncle An also in Dongdu?"
"The gate of the South City was sealed, and they turned back. Now they are all in the East Capital." He glanced outside and asked in a low voice, "My son-in-law is here. Is this what Madam Xie meant?"
Wen Shuse shook his head, "Mr. Xie rebelled, and the city gates were closed that night, so no one had time to respond."
Aunt Qing was stunned, her heart was beating fast, she couldn't imagine how they got to Dongdu, and couldn't help but worry: "The old lady is alone in Fengcheng, what should we do?"
"Father and brother are back."
Aunt Qing breathed a sigh of relief.
To save her from asking again, Wen Shuse roughly recounted what happened in Fengcheng and what happened on the road. After Aunt Qing heard it, all the color on her face went away, and she muttered, "God bless you, my lady, it's better than anything else to be safe."
After that, he asked Wen Shuse to wait for a moment, and then he went into the house and took out a box and handed it to her, "Look, my lady, these are all exchanged with the money of the Wen family. Dongdu is not as good as Fengcheng, and the land price is higher. There are three houses, two shops, and more than 50 acres of land in total. Please take a look..."
Although there are few houses and shops, they are valuable, so Dongdu is definitely a good deal when all is said and done.
"The Xie family's possessions are all in Uncle An's hands. If my lady wants to check them out, I will go and call him over right now..."
"Let Uncle An not show up first." Wen Shuse stopped him in time: "Old Madam Xie said that as long as he doesn't get into the official career, he won't be able to live a comfortable life."
Aunt Qing was stunned when she heard about this. "My son-in-law still doesn't want to be an official?"
"After some persuasion in Fengcheng, he did a pretty good job as an official. I don't know why, but after testing him a few times, he just didn't want to stay in Dongdu."
"What about the lady?"
Wen Shuse shook her head. She didn’t want to go back. She had never seen Dongdu before. Although she longed for it in her heart, she could stop herself. But now that she had seen it, she never wanted to go back.
"My father has bought the Mixian Restaurant in Dongdu. It is now being looked after by Uncle Wen. I guess they have already made plans to move to Dongdu. As long as my father doesn't go to sea again, my grandmother will definitely be willing to come. The Wen family will have to come to Dongdu sooner or later. Moreover, the position of Yuanwailang that I bought for my father and brother from Madam Zhou will still count when they move to Dongdu. With an official position in the future, and taking care of this restaurant, they can still prosper without relying on the eldest wife."
This is the best. Anyway, the property and land deeds have been prepared. If he comes to Dongdu, there will be no worries. Aunt Qing frowned and said, "If the son-in-law doesn't stay in Dongdu, what should the lady do?"
Wen Shu sighed sadly, "I don't know either."
Aunt Qing advised: "My wife always has many ideas, please advise my uncle again."
Wen Shuse chose the one closest to the downtown area from the three houses and asked Aunt Qing, "If I rent it, how much does it cost?"
Aunt Qing had already found out everything. "I came at a good time. There was a natural disaster in Qingzhou and there was a war in Luoan. Many people were eager to sell while the price was high. This set of servants cost me 5,200 strings of cash. If I rent it out at the market price, I can earn at least 50 strings of cash per month..."
Fifty strings of cash? That's expensive.
Seeing Wen Shu's surprised expression, Aunt Qing smiled and said, "Madam, you don't know that the house where Master Wen's family lives now is not as big as this one, and it costs sixty strings of cash a month."
Wen Shuse nodded, "Okay, here's one, rent it to me."
Xie Shaocai came out of the palace at 3 p.m. Before leaving, Prince Jing handed him a bag of silver, about 20 taels, and said, "You left in a hurry, so I guess you don't have much money with you. Take this money to go around first. If you don't have enough, tell me anytime."
There is no reward without merit. If it were in the past, he would definitely not accept it, but things are different now and the young lady might still be hungry. After thanking Prince Jing, he took it and went back to the ready-made clothing shop he had visited yesterday and bought two more sets of clothes for Wen Shuse.
When I returned to the inn, I learned that Wen Shuse had checked out. When I was about to look for him, I heard a familiar voice, "My dear."
When he turned around, he saw the young lady getting off a carriage. Although she was still wearing the same blue shirt, her face was radiant.
"My dear, guess who I met." Wen Shuse hurriedly walked up to him, holding the hem of her robe in her hand. Her cheeks were flushed. She tilted her neck to look at him. Her expression had returned to its previous lively energy. Without waiting for him to guess, she answered, "Aunt Qing." Seeing that he frowned, she hurriedly helped him recall, "My dowry aunt."
Xie Shao's face suddenly realized.
"Some time ago, her eldest nephew had an accident and went back to Dongdu. Who knew that this world is really small? I happened to meet him today when I went to look for a house." He turned around and glanced at Min Zhang, "Isn't it?"
Min Zhang nodded.
Then she turned around and looked at the man in front of her excitedly, "Her eldest nephew left behind a house and asked her to help rent it out." He laughed twice, "It's really easy to get it. Now we don't have to look for a house. Aunt Qing said she would rent the house to us. The price outside is 60 strings of cash, but she gave us a 50% discount and only charged us 30 strings of cash."
Xie San: I’m so tired~
Wen Er: My dear~
Xie San: Tell me, which one do you want?
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