Chapter 96 Lots of Gossip in the Capital
Princess Yongxin gave a very detailed introduction to Xiao Ruanruan.
"The only daughter of the Marquis of Anyang, she is also considered a member of the imperial family. His Majesty dotes on her. When he made me a princess, he also wanted to make her a county princess."
Upon hearing that the county head had many rules to follow, which might affect her business, she immediately refused.
She loved doing business from a young age and practically grew up in the business world.
Even the Marquis of Anyang himself said that Xiao Ruanruan was more talented than him in doing business.
She was only slightly inferior to the first Lady of Anyang.
In the capital, she ranks second in terms of the amount of money she has; I'm referring to the ranking based on the amount of money she holds individually.
Song Zhimian silently cursed in her heart.
She even gave up the title of county magistrate to do business. What a unique personality she has!
"The Marquis of Anyang's residence... I know they are imperial relatives. The current Marquis of Anyang is the Minister of Commerce!"
You just said that this Miss Xiao is so good at business, yet she doesn't have the most money in the capital; she's only second.
"Who's number one?" Song Zhimian asked curiously.
"Lord Ye Yunshu, the Chief Inspector! She has the most money at her disposal."
However, those were all dowries passed down from the older generation.
Many people say that Lord Ye's dowry is so large that he could spend it for ten lifetimes and still not be able to spend it all.
Do you know the Ye family, the most wealthy imperial merchants in Dayu? They are Lord Ye's family.
However, many years ago, they separated from the royal merchant Ye family and became the new elite of Dayu.
"Even after separating from the Ye family, they maintained close ties with the imperial merchant Ye family," Princess Yongxin continued.
Song Zhimian listened and nodded.
She knew about the Ye family, the imperial merchants; they were the richest family in Dayu! Their caravans were all over the country and even went overseas.
The key is that they clung tightly to the coattails of successive emperors, and thus wielded considerable influence in both the business and political arenas.
"Is this Young Master Xiao willing to take care of our little matter?" Song Zhimian asked Princess Yongxin.
"They will definitely take care of it!"
As long as you pay, that's fine!
Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, Xiao Ruanruan always keeps clear accounts even between close brothers, no matter what she does.
I have a good relationship with her; she helps me manage my shops, and I have to pay her money for that.
However, she gave me a sister price.
She takes 20% of the profits when she manages other people's shops, but only 10% when she manages mine.
She managed my shops exceptionally well, and they were incredibly profitable. Every year, I just waited to collect my paychecks at the end of the year! Princess Yongxin said with a smug smile.
Song Zhimian was a little dumbfounded.
In modern times, this would be equivalent to a professional manager!
This young lady is something else!
"Then... how do we tell her about our desire to open a shop?" Song Zhimian suddenly really wanted to meet this Young Master Xiao.
If someone can be appointed as a junior officer in a commercial company, they must have some skills.
“I’ll bring her here tomorrow. She’s been on leave lately and doesn’t dare go to the Merchant Guild. I’ll take her out for a stroll; she’ll definitely be happy!” Princess Yongxin said, picking up another pastry.
"Why? Did she cause trouble at the Merchant Guild?" Lian Qiao asked hurriedly.
"It's not that I caused trouble for the Merchant Guild, it's just..."
Alright, I might as well tell you all. The Marquis of Anyang wants to find a husband for her and has taken a fancy to another junior official of the Merchant Guild.
She was unhappy and declared that if her father dared to have such thoughts again, she would ask the Ye family for a ship to do business overseas.
Then I'll bring back a son-in-law with red hair and green eyes.
Xiao Ruanruan's only concern right now is making money through business; she looks down on everything else.
One of her favorite sayings is, "No man smells as good as money!"
"The father and daughter are at an impasse right now!" Princess Yongxin sighed more and more as she spoke.
Song Zhimian, Forsythia...
Song Zhimian became increasingly curious about Xiao Ruanruan.
They like making money, are clear-headed, rational, and know what their biggest asset is. Could this person be a fellow countryman?
“This Young Master Xiao… I think he’s quite good! He has ideas!” Song Zhimian couldn’t help but speak up for Xiao Ruanruan.
"Right! Back then, Consort Wu in the palace wanted to arrange a marriage for her, but as soon as she heard the news, she went home and poured a bucket of cold water over her head to make herself sick."
This frightened Consort Wu so much that she quickly abandoned the idea.
Later, when other noble families wanted to arrange marriages with her family, she found out and immediately went back to figure out how to suppress their business and make them lose money.
Nowadays, even noble families in the capital dare not provoke her.
That's why Xiao Ruanruan is said to be the most difficult noblewoman to marry in the capital!
However, I like Xiao Ruanruan, and Lord Ye likes Xiao Ruanruan too, so let others say what they want!
Anyway, in other people's eyes, we're all the same kind of people, hehe! Princess Yongxin said while laughing.
"Are you the same kind of people? What? None of you want to get married?" Song Zhimian teased with a smile.
"I think so! Song Zhimian, do you know? Wei Yanli said that those bored people outside have selected the four people in the capital who are the hardest to marry and the hardest to marry, and Xiao Ruanruan and I are two of them." Princess Yongxin said this with great pride.
"The four hardest to marry and the hardest to marry? Which four are they?" Song Zhimian and Lian Qiao asked almost simultaneously.
"Xiao Ruanruan is ranked first."
Xiao Ruanruan's surname is Xiao, she is of royal blood, and is the only daughter of the Marquis of Anyang. Whoever marries her is essentially bringing the entire Marquis of Anyang's mansion home.
Most importantly, Marquis Anyang controls the Money Bag Trading Company of Dayu, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, Xiao Ruanruan will definitely take over Marquis Anyang's position in the future.
"Besides, do you know about Minbao Bank, the largest money exchange controlled by the Merchant Guild?" Princess Yongxin asked Song Zhimian.
Song Zhimian nodded immediately.
Of course I know! Those silver notes she hid were all from the Minbao Bank!
Minbao Bank has always held a higher position than the four major money houses.
"The Marquis of Anyang's mansion owns 30% of the Minbaohao (民保号) business. Just imagine how much wealth that must be."
That's why the Marquis of Anyang's mansion is the second richest family, second only to the imperial merchant Ye family!
Just think about it, how many people would want to make a move on Xiao Ruanruan!
The woman in Ronghua Palace, wasn't she originally planning to arrange a marriage between Prince Zhao and Xiao Ruanruan? But Xiao Ruanruan caused such a scene.
Consort Wu was also reprimanded by His Majesty.
"Xiao Ruanruan...that's a walking gold mine!" Princess Yongxin blinked.
Song Zhimian nodded vigorously.
That's right. If King Zhao really marries Xiao Ruanruan, then he really won't have to worry about money anymore.
"And who's second in line?" Lian Qiao asked eagerly.
“The second hardest to marry is… Lord Ye Yunshu!” Princess Yongxin sighed.
Song Zhimian, Forsythia...
The two of them then realized that although Lord Ye Yunshu was already thirty years old, he was still single...
"Didn't Lord Ye Yunshu have a relationship with that Tong Shiqing back then...?"
Never mind, that was in the past.
I reckon the Tong family is kicking themselves right now.
Who could have imagined that the unremarkable little girl from the Ye family would become the number one figure in charge of the Surveillance Department!
"The current Lord Ye is not someone anyone can just marry," Princess Yongxin continued.
Lianqiao nodded vigorously.
Yes, she also knew how powerful Lord Ye was, even from the Imperial Hospital.
Of all the civil and military officials in the court, apart from Prime Minister Shen, no one was unafraid of her.
Lord Ye even dares to investigate the accounts of the Imperial Household Department!
Song Zhimian nodded vigorously.
This Lord Ye must be someone of extraordinary status; he might even be a member of the imperial family. Who would dare to even dream of such a thing...?
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