Chapter 780 The Imperial Advisor is Stunningly Beautiful (7)
When the waiter heard that she wanted a private room, he thought she had some friends who hadn't come. But even after all eighteen dishes were served, no one showed up. Of course, they wouldn't refuse a customer's order, since the more they ordered, the more they earned. If the customer couldn't finish the food, wouldn't that be a bonus for them?
As a result, when the guests left and went to pay the bill, all the dishes on the table were completely empty!
He exclaimed to his heavens, "This girl can eat so much! How big is her belly?!"
Ning Yan: Cough cough, my belly isn't that big, but my Shenfu (a point on the body) is.
As soon as we left the restaurant, an old man carrying a bundle of straw started calling out, "Candied hawthorns, candied hawthorns, delicious and inexpensive candied hawthorns, three coins a skewer, five coins for two skewers!"
Ning Yan's legs were too tired to walk anymore. It was a pity that these candied hawthorns were all made from pure mountain hawthorn. She loved the ones with red bean or mung bean filling. She could eat twenty skewers in one go without stopping.
"How many candied hawthorn skewers do you have left? I'll buy them all."
The old man's eyes narrowed with laughter. After counting, he announced, "There are still seventy-three strings left. You can give me one hundred and eighty coins."
Ning Yan gave him two coins directly, saying, "Keep the change. Please deliver it to my home."
My home isn't far from here.
The magpie was chirping at the door today. I never expected to meet such a distinguished guest when I went out. It was the first time I had ever met such a generous guest who would take everything. "Okay, okay, I'll deliver it to your door."
On her way back, Ning Yan bought a lot more food, and also bought a basket specifically to hold the snacks she bought.
After walking for about 15 minutes, we finally arrived at the palace gate.
Old man: "...Auntie, young lady, I look around here, and it seems like this isn't a place I can enter."
"It's alright, just come with me. I'll have someone bring you out later."
Old man: His legs were so scared they went weak. This is the imperial palace! How could a commoner like him be allowed to enter?
Is it all for a broken bundle of straw?
Ning Yan took out the Imperial Preceptor's identity token and waved it. The guards bowed respectfully, checked the old man's token, and then let the two pass.
The old man followed Ning Yan into the palace with a heart full of fear. When the palace maid saw the missing Grand Preceptor return, she almost burst into tears of joy. "Grand Preceptor, you're finally back. Next time you go out of the palace, can you take me with you?"
When the Emperor arrived and found you weren't there, he almost had all the servants killed.
A palace maid took the basket from Ning Yan's hands, someone went to make tea and pour water, and a clever little eunuch went to inform the emperor.
Ning Yan felt a little guilty and then pointed at the old man: "I bought those candied hawthorns, you can take them first."
The palace maid quickly went to get a plate, and then removed the candied hawthorns from the bundle of straw one by one.
The old man selling candied hawthorns: ...The...the Imperial Advisor? He actually met the Imperial Advisor?
Oh, Li family ancestors for eighteen generations, your descendants have made something of themselves!
Today, not only did I enter the palace, but I also let the Imperial Advisor eat the candied hawthorns I made myself. I, Old Li, can die without regrets!
"Bring me a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone."
With pen and ink brought out, Ning Yan picked up the brush and began to write. After finishing, she suddenly remembered that the old man might not be able to read.
He then called the person over and taught them how to make candied hawthorn skewers with fruit, as well as candied hawthorn skewers with red beans and mung beans.
"It's okay if you can't remember it. Keep this recipe safe. If you can't remember it, have someone in your family who can read read it to you again. The candied hawthorn skewers will still be sold the same way. If they have fillings, you can add a penny. I think there will be people willing to buy them."
The old man knelt down and kowtowed to Ning Yan.
"Thank you very much, Grand Preceptor. It must be a blessing from ten lifetimes for me to receive your guidance. I will make candied hawthorns according to your recipe when I get back, and I will invite you to taste them when they are ready."
He was a farmer who made a living by farming. Every winter, when there was no work in the fields, he would make some candied hawthorns to supplement his income. Who would have thought that one day he would enter the palace because of a bunch of candied hawthorns and even receive guidance from the Imperial Advisor? He had a bellyful of gratitude to express but didn't know how to say it, so he could only kowtow instead. He kowtowed three times in a row!
...
When he left the palace, the old man carried an empty bundle of straw, with a prescription written by the Imperial Preceptor hidden in his left chest, and in his sleeve pocket were the 63 copper coins he had earned that day, 2 taels of silver, a 5-tael silver ingot, and his heart full of ambition.
After the old man left, Ning Yan had some of the candied hawthorns and snacks in the basket sent to the Emperor, and the rest were distributed to the palace servants.
As a result, the food was delivered, and after tasting the candied hawthorn, the person eagerly came back.
"Why didn't the Imperial Preceptor summon me when he left the palace today?"
"Why would I call you when I'm just strolling around the streets? Doesn't the Emperor need to attend court?"
Yuan Yan was furious: "The Imperial Advisor can wait until I finish court and we can go together."
Ning Yan: You're the emperor, you need a whole bunch of people following you when you go out, how am I supposed to go shopping?
I quickly changed the subject, asking, "What do you want from me?"
Speaking of this, Yuan Yan immediately perked up and recounted the urgent message from that morning, as well as vividly describing how he had punished the abbot of Chengxin Temple to go to the north for disaster relief.
Ning Yan already knew about this. Today, everyone in restaurants, teahouses, and streets was talking about it. The cold winter wind couldn't dampen the people's enthusiasm.
After Yuan Yan finished speaking, he saw that the Imperial Advisor still had a calm expression, and he was taken aback. Oh right, the Imperial Advisor already knew that this would be the result, so of course he would be calm.
He was too excited.
"By the way, the prescription you gave me has earned more than 300,000 taels of silver from just two shops in the capital this month. I have sent you 50% of the profits."
Ning Yan: "...I didn't intend to take the money."
"I know. But I can't just take the Imperial Preceptor's prescription for nothing."
Actually, they felt that even this 50% altruistic contribution was too little.
However, the national treasury was truly empty, and the snow disaster in the north was costing a fortune, so he had no choice but to shamelessly take advantage of the imperial advisor.
Ning Yan refused, but the Emperor insisted on giving it to her. In the end, Ning Yan only took 10% of the profits.
"Your Majesty, it's time to open glass shops and mirror stores all over the Canglan Kingdom."
Having just one store in Beijing isn't enough; we need to open at least thirty to fifty stores.
"That's exactly what I was thinking too. I'll arrange for someone to handle this matter tomorrow."
Chu Zheng was being too cautious, resulting in consistently low production. Moreover, even with new goods, he would ship most of them to other countries to sell in exchange for supplies there, thus reducing the amount of goods sold domestically.
After discussing business matters, Ning Yan brought up what she had seen and heard on the street that day.
“If you can see beggars from time to time in such a prosperous place as the capital, you can imagine how many people in the entire Canglan Kingdom are starving. I plan to use the money I earn to open a shelter, provide them with a place to live, teach them to read and write, cultivate their character, and give them the ability to make a living. In the future, if we do any business, we can arrange for them to stay.”
The Emperor's eyes lit up: "I think this is feasible. Imperial Advisor, please go ahead and do it. I will definitely support you."
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