Upon hearing this, Xu Zhi's heart leaped into her throat. She knew very well that Zheng Boyuan's words meant that he had discovered or even encountered something that frightened him.
Xu Zhi wanted to ask, but after opening her mouth, she didn't dare to. She could only keep her surprise and doubt to herself. She couldn't add too much burden to Zheng Boyuan. If Zheng Boyuan asked her to leave, all she could do was quickly pack her things and go back to the capital or to a safer place. That way, Zheng Boyuan could focus on what he should do without any distractions.
Seeing that it was getting late, Zheng Boyuan put on his cotton cloak. Xi Jing'an had already finished eating and was waiting for Zheng Boyuan in the stable. When he saw Zheng Boyuan coming, he quickly led the two horses to the door to wait.
Zheng Boyuan said to Xu Zhi, "It's cold outside, you should go back inside. I've spoken to Lord Feng about something, and I'm leaving now."
Xu Zhi agreed, watching as Zheng Boyuan left without looking back. After the gatekeeper closed the gate, she stood there for a long time before turning around and going back to her room.
Xu Zhi sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), looking at the few sheets of paper covered with writing on the kang table. She pondered for a long time. Outside, the snow was still falling. The snow was lighter than before, but the wind had picked up. Sitting in the room, she could hear the howling wind outside. The wind in Wuzhou had a bit of the ruggedness of the Northwest, which made Xu Zhi very uncomfortable.
Xu Zhi picked up the papers, gritted her teeth and thought for a moment, then said to Bai Guo, "Go and find the manager of the Ma Family Trading Company. Tell him I have something important to discuss. Also, see how much usable money we have in our accounts, whether it's banknotes or silver, bring it all over."
Bai Guo had doubts, but she still followed Xu Zhi's instructions to go find the person.
Xu Zhi then called Bai Ying over and said, "Go and prepare our luggage. Pack up the important things. In a couple of days, when the road will be easier, we'll go back to Beijing."
Bai Ying wanted to ask what had happened, but Xu Zhi waved her hand and said, "Just do as I say. The shop assistants who came from the capital, if they want to go back to the capital with us for the New Year, they can go back with us. If they don't want to go back, all the shop assistants who stay in Wuzhou will be paid three times their normal monthly salary from December to the end of February next year."
Upon hearing this, Bai Ying looked at Xu Zhi in surprise. Xu Zhi waved her hand, and Bai Ying had no choice but to bow and quickly go down to prepare.
The Ma Family Trading Company has branches in many places. The company deals in the transportation of goods between the north and south. Whether it is helping others transport goods, bringing back goods from the south to sell, or taking goods from the north to sell in the south, the company has developed very well in recent years by relying on the big tree of the Cao Bang.
Xu Zhi got to know the manager of the Ma Family Trading Company through Ma Pingting. The real behind-the-scenes manager of the Ma Family Trading Company was actually Ma Pingting. Ma Pingting once told Xu Zhi that if she had any problems, she could go to the Ma Family Trading Company and someone would definitely help her solve them. If they couldn't solve them, someone would send a letter to the capital to find someone who could solve them.
After arriving in Wuzhou, Xu Zhi visited the manager of the Ma Family Trading Company. Just as Xu Di had once told her, one should not put all their eggs in one basket. Although Xu Zhi was young, she had been through the trials of the business world over the years. She had also secretly started some small businesses of her own. Because she started late, these small businesses did not earn much money, but they had already begun to make a profit.
Because of Ma Pingting, Xu Zhi entrusted many of her goods to the transport company. Ma Pingting admired Xu Zhi and had taken her to see her business in the capital. She even gave Xu Zhi a copy of her seal, which allowed her to move goods around freely within the Ma family business.
After careful consideration, Xu Zhi decided to utilize the Ma Family Trading Company as a conduit this time. Yes, the garrison in Wuzhou was protecting the Liang Dynasty, and their provisions should naturally be supplied by the imperial court. However, the current situation was that some people would stop at nothing to attack the garrison in Wuzhou. No one knew that the provisions were already on their way, or had been intercepted en route, or even worse, had been sabotaged.
Xu Zhi didn't want to take the risk. Zheng Boyuan urged her to return to the capital, so she decided to go back. Xu Zhi didn't want to be a burden to Zheng Boyuan. Only when she returned to the capital and stayed in a safe place could Zheng Boyuan focus on his work without distractions. But before leaving, Xu Zhi wanted to help Zheng Boyuan.
The manager of the Ma Family Trading Company arrived quickly. He must have been instructed by Ma Pingting. After hearing Xu Zhi's request, he thought for a moment and decided to do as Xu Zhi instructed.
Xu Zhi was grateful and said to the shopkeeper, "Please rest assured, shopkeeper, I will not let our business spend money and effort for nothing. The matter is urgent and I cannot come up with so much money at the moment. Please give me an IOU. When I return to the capital, I will go to Sister Ma to repay the money."
Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper smiled and said, "It is good for Madam Zheng to know that the people in our Ma family business are all old folks who followed Master and Madam back then. They only retired because they were old. It was our young lady who kept this business going. If it weren't for your eldest son, our master's injustice would not have been known. And now, if it weren't for your mother, our young master wouldn't have recovered so quickly. Our madam has already given instructions that if your family has any requests, we will do everything we can to help you."
Xu Zhi felt a little embarrassed. This was all thanks to her mother and brother from back then, and now she had to repay those favors because of her.
The shopkeeper, a seasoned businessman, was adept at reading people's hearts. He could tell what Xu Zhi was thinking just by looking at her. He continued, "With Wuzhou fallen, how can we ordinary people possibly fare well? It is our duty to do our best to help General Zheng keep the Great Yan people on the other side of the border river. Please rest assured, Madam Zheng, we will do our utmost to help General Zheng through this difficult time."
After Xu Zhi thanked the innkeeper and saw him off, Hong Gu came over and said to Xu Zhi, "Miss, your luggage is all packed. When would you like to set off?"
Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Then let's do it the day after tomorrow. I'll go to Lord Feng's residence early tomorrow morning."
The snow hadn't stopped, but it wasn't a heavy snowfall anymore. Scattered snowflakes slowly drifted down onto the snow-covered ground. Xu Zhi, wearing a bright red scarlet felt cloak, looked up at the gloomy sky. The leaden clouds hung extremely low, as if pressing down on people's heads, making it hard to breathe.
A few snowflakes drifted down and landed on Xu Zhi's face. Xu Zhi sighed, lowered her head, and walked to the door. Hong Gu helped her lift the cotton curtain at the door. Xu Zhi thought for a moment and asked Hong Gu, "Hong Gu, do you think it's wrong for me to just leave like this?"
When Hong Gu heard Xu Zhi ask her this, she smiled and said, "Miss, the young master has always been very methodical in his work. Since he asked you to arrange your return to the capital, he must have his reasons."
Xu Zhi nodded, sighed, and went into the room without saying anything more.
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