Qin Sheng spoke to him in the outer room.
Yu Fu said that the wife of the caravan manager had also come, saying that she had long admired the prosperity of Da Xiang and had taken this opportunity to come and see for herself. They would be staying in Qingzhou for about half a month this time.
The caravan from Wuyue Kingdom is said to have brought back many fine items, including top-quality animal furs, egg-sized South China Sea jade beads, high-grade wolf-hair brushes and gold-flecked paper that scholars would treasure for a fortune, as well as many rare trinkets and so on.
Qin Sheng wasn't very interested in the other items, except for the gold-flecked paper and the wolf-hair brush.
Qin Sheng, who was born into a scholarly family, naturally knew how precious these two things were.
The best wolf-hair brushes from Wuyue can sell for eighty taels of silver, while the others that are slightly more average sell for around ten taels of silver.
There's also that Golden Pavilion paper, which is said to be as thin as a cicada's wing, but the ink dries instantly when written on it, and if you're painting on it, the finished painting looks several times better than one on ordinary paper.
Qin Sheng had already made up her mind.
"By the way, my wife---"
Yu Fu lowered his voice, "I spent some money to find out that tomorrow at noon, the wife of the caravan manager of Wuyue Kingdom, Madam Keya, will be having lunch at Xiangshuilou."
Xiangshuilou is a very famous restaurant in Qingzhou. What makes it famous is that the chefs at their restaurant prepare dishes with Beijing flavors.
“Mrs. Keya is very low-key. I suppose she just wanted to enjoy the food in peace and quiet, so she didn’t book the entire restaurant,” Yu Fu said.
"Let's go to Xiangshuilou for dinner tomorrow too."
Qin Sheng thought for a moment and had already made up her mind. She whispered a few instructions to Yu Fu.
The next day, Qin Sheng changed into a new set of clothes, which were embroidered with exquisite auspicious patterns.
Standing in the sunlight, the patterns on Qin Sheng's turquoise dress seemed to come alive, blooming like small green flowers on her body.
The outfit was originally plain when it was bought; the floral patterns on it were embroidered by Qin Sheng herself in her spare time.
"My lady, you look beautiful in this outfit!" Caiyue praised with a smile.
"Give me a simple hairstyle," Qin Sheng instructed. "Pick simple jewelry as well, something that won't overshadow the main hair accessory."
Today, Mrs. Kjaer is the real protagonist.
"yes."
Although Caiyue's hairstyling skills were not as good as Feicui's, she was still very skillful and quickly styled Qin Sheng's hair into an elegant bun.
She couldn't help but laugh and said, "No wonder Qiao'er said that you don't look like a divorced woman at all, but rather like a young lady who hasn't left home yet."
Her skin was like solidified cream, her lips were red and her teeth were white, and her eyebrows and eyes were elegant and beautiful.
Looking at her now, she really is a young woman!
Qin Sheng laughed and said that she must have learned it from Qiao'er, as she was becoming more and more talkative. She took Caiyue and Lü Qingfeng with her when she went out.
Since Madam Keya was keeping a low profile today, Qin Sheng had to be even more discreet. So Qin Sheng didn't even bring Yu Fu with her, only Caiyue, a maid, and Lü Qingfeng, a guard.
It wasn't lunchtime yet, but the first floor of Xiangshuilou was already bustling with activity, while the second floor was still empty.
That's because all the seats on the second floor have been booked.
The person who booked all the seats on the second floor was Qin Sheng.
The three of them, led by the waiter, went up to the second floor.
Xiangshuilou is a large restaurant with a lobby on the first floor and private rooms on the second floor, but no private rooms. Guests dining on the second floor with better seats can enjoy a beautiful view of West Lake in the distance.
Qingzhou is a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery. Among its most famous places is West Lake. It is said that when it rains in spring, people standing by the lake feel as if they are in a fairyland.
It's a pity, though, that today is a beautiful sunny day.
They sat in the best spot by the window.
The waiter first brought a pot of tea and several plates of snacks. Qin Sheng told him to go down first, saying they would order more food later.
Caiyue would occasionally lean out and look downstairs.
Finally, on the seventh time they looked out, they saw a very luxurious carriage coming towards Xiangshui Tower.
“My lady,” Caiyue said excitedly, “could that be Lady Keya’s carriage?”
The carriage was large and luxurious, with a sign on it, but it wasn't inscribed with the script of the Da Xiang people, but rather with a foreign script.
The coachman had a full head of braids, and his hair was brown, not black. His eyes would occasionally sweep around.
“That’s a master,” Lü Qingfeng said calmly.
A foreigner, and a master at that...
Just as Qin Sheng was pondering this, the carriage stopped in front of the Xiangshui Tower gate, and the manager personally went to greet him.
The man with a full braid and a menacing appearance said something that made the shopkeeper look troubled.
Finally, it was the person inside the carriage who spoke up.
Then, the pale gold carriage curtain was lifted, and two girls dressed in foreign clothing got out of the carriage first, and then helped a noblewoman who looked to be around forty years old down.
Qin Sheng had a premonition that this must be Lady Ke Ya, the wife of the general manager of the Wuyue caravan.
The two maids helped Lady Kya over, and after saying something to the shopkeeper, he nodded hurriedly.
Then the innkeeper personally invited them into the restaurant, and after a short while, the innkeeper went up to the second floor.
Qin Sheng was talking to Caiyue.
"I apologize for disturbing you distinguished guests."
The innkeeper bowed very politely before speaking with a troubled expression: "Well, our downstairs is already full. And now, another distinguished guest has arrived. Gentlemen, do you think... we could add a table upstairs?"
"Hey, what do you mean?"
Caiyue had already received Qin Sheng's instructions; she was to play the role of a bold and feisty girl, so she immediately stood up.
"My wife paid for it!"
The shopkeeper looked embarrassed and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Qin Sheng spoke up at the right moment: "I wonder what kind of distinguished guest it is that would make you, the manager, come all the way up to talk to us? If they are easy to get along with, we can all eat quietly without disturbing each other, and I have no objection."
"Don't worry about that!"
The shopkeeper quickly patted his chest and assured him, "She's also a lady, I guarantee there won't be any friction between us."
Qin Sheng nodded and said nothing more.
The shopkeeper hurried downstairs and soon led Mrs. Keya and her entourage up, where they sat behind Qin Sheng and the others.
This lady had booked the entire floor, and when she offered them a seat, she thanked Qin Sheng.
Although she was a foreigner, Lady Keya spoke the Da Xiang Mandarin fluently.
Qin Sheng smiled and said, "You're welcome," then turned to Caiyue and told her that they could order.
Before coming, Yu Fu had already done his research. Among the dishes served at Xiangshuilou, the most outstanding were dried scallops with hydrangea filling and lotus seed tofu.
The waiter was enthusiastically introducing the restaurant's signature dishes to them.
Qin Sheng ordered a dish of dried scallops with hydrangea, lotus seed tofu, red bean porridge, and stir-fried pearl chicken, all of which were recommended by the waiter earlier.
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