A full moon hangs high in the sky, shining like silver.
Dong Shulan looked up at the moon, her face was full of moonlight, and her face was even brighter than the bright moon.
It has been twenty days since I last received a letter from Fu Xiaoguan.
This guy said in his last letter that he was very busy recently. How busy is he?
Mid-Autumn Festival is just one day away. He will have to go back to Linjiang eventually. Will I receive a letter from him before Mid-Autumn Festival?
Unconsciously and subtly, Dong Shulan had already begun to miss the man far away, looking forward to his letter, wanting to see the ugly but unique handwriting - she actually felt that even this handwriting was as interesting as Fu Xiaoguan!
She realized that she had fallen in love with Fu Xiaoguan, her face turned slightly red, and she thought, so what?
She had already learned about Concubine Shang and the Ninth Princess going to Linjiang from Fu Xiaoguan's last letter. Instead of feeling jealous, she was very happy because Fu Xiaoguan told her so frankly. This was trust.
Although it is normal for men in this world to have three or four wives, which woman would be willing to share her husband with other women?
Dong Shulan's face turned even redder. She lowered her head and bit her lips lightly. They hadn't even started dating yet, so what was she thinking?
Then she thought of the pattern Fu Xiaoguan had sent her. Who knew what was in that guy's head? He even knew about women's tools. However, this little dress was indeed very comfortable to wear. She looked down at the two peaks and felt that they were a little tight, as if they were a little bigger. She was even happier and straightened her body proudly.
I have to make a few new ones tomorrow, in a larger size.
Xishan Qiongjiang has already entered the royal family, and even Xiangquan and Tianchun have been included in the royal procurement. The price of Xishan Qiongjiang is 600 wen per tael, and the prices of Xiangquan and Tianchun are based on the market price. This was negotiated by Dong Shulan in person, and Her Royal Highness the Princess agreed to this price only after she was annoyed by her pestering.
Unfortunately, the production of these three types of wine is very low, especially Xishan Qiongjiang, which can only supply 20 kilograms to the royal family every month.
Later, Her Royal Highness the Princess summoned her again and after scolding her, she mentioned that the Xishan Qiongjiang was not enough because His Majesty liked to drink, and those ministers also clamored for this kind of wine after drinking the Xishan Qiongjiang given by His Majesty. His Majesty waved his hand and gave the wine away, but His Majesty had no more to drink, so Her Royal Highness the Princess demanded a monthly supply of at least 100 kilograms of Xishan Qiongjiang.
Fu Xiaoguan wrote back saying that it really couldn't be done at the moment, and that they could only gradually increase production, which should ease the situation next year. This made Her Royal Highness the Princess very annoyed, but there was nothing she could do. She just realized that this wine, which cost 600 wen per liang, was indeed extraordinary.
The book A Dream of Red Mansions has now been published to the 45th chapter. She adopted Fu Xiaoguan's advice on the selling price of the following chapters because the women from the official and wealthy families all came to her.
It’s really too expensive. If I keep looking at it, my dowry will be gone!
Those talented and romantic men also breathed a sigh of relief. They also loved to read it. If you go out to chat, drink tea or wine, and you can't recite a few classic lines from A Dream of Red Mansions, you will be looked down upon.
Dong Shulan currently has more than 38,000 taels of silver in her account, which makes her secretly happy.
She had to spend the money, and she had her eyes on a mansion next to Xuanwu Lake. It was a wealthy family with pavilions and terraces, dozens of front and back yards, and several gardens.
That was the prince's mansion of the previous dynasty, more than ten times larger than the Shangshu Mansion. Its last owner was a Taifu in the third year of Taihe. In the sixth year of Taihe, he committed a crime and his entire family was exiled thousands of miles away. The mansion was left empty like this, and it has been nearly sixty years since then.
Yesterday, I went to the palace and pestered the eldest princess for a long time before she agreed to report to the emperor and see if he could sell it to her for 30,000 taels of silver.
"Is this... a dowry?"
"No, I bought it for someone else."
"Official Fu?"
"Um!"
Her Royal Highness the Princess patted Dong Shulan's hand and said, "I heard that Fu Xiaoguan is from a merchant family...your parents will not agree."
"This is my business. It would be best if they agree. If not..." Dong Shulan was extremely determined at that moment.
"What do you want to do if you disagree?"
"I'll elope!"
The eldest princess pinched Dong Shulan's delicate face and said, "You are quite brave, little girl. Do you know who Fu Xiaoguan's mother is?"
Dong Shulan really didn't know this. She looked at the eldest princess in confusion.
"Xu Yunqing, daughter of Xu Shaoguang, a Hanlin scholar and former director of the Imperial College."
"It's her!" Dong Shulan opened her mouth in surprise.
The Xu family tried hard to keep this matter secret back then, but there is no wall that is impenetrable. Although the news of Xu Yunqing's elopement with Fu Daguan did not spread throughout Jinling, many people in the upper class of Jinling gradually learned about it. However, since it was a family affair of the Xu family and also a face for the Xu family, no one spread it around.
Dong Shulan knew about it because her father had mentioned it. He said that Yun Qing was extremely beautiful in her time. With so many young men pursuing her in Jinling, she actually married Fu Daguan, a landlord in Linjiang City. It was unimaginable!
My mother was quite jealous about this and would say: "Are you still not giving up?"
My father just smiled. I admired her courage. It was a pity that she died young. I guess it was due to heart disease and depression.
"Xu Yunqing's elopement with Fu Daguan nearly pissed off Xu Shaoguang! Xu Shaoguang was a great scholar, and despite being a man of great pride, he was deeply saddened by such a scandal in his family. It's said that Xu Yunqing returned to Nanjing before her death, but didn't knock on the Xu family's door. This means he never forgave her and never acknowledged her as his daughter again."
The princess patted Dong Shulan's hand again. "So, eloping may seem heroic, but what happens afterwards? Will you miss your parents who gave birth to you? Can your parents really stop caring about you? Shulan, if that day ever comes, come to the palace and I will... make the decision for you!"
Dong Shulan drank under the moon, feeling quite melancholy.
I don't dare think too much about this matter, because it will make me sad.
But this hurdle has to be faced sooner or later. Now Fu Xiaoguan's mother is also reading the book and likes it very much. She even says that Fu Xiaoguan is really an extraordinary person. As a scholar, he can write such a good book. He is a talented person.
Even his mother knew about Fu Xiaoguan's identity as a landlord, but this matter did not fall on her daughter's head. All she saw was the glorious side of Fu Xiaoguan as a talented man, and she did not care about Fu Xiaoguan's identity as a landlord.
Xiaoqi felt a little worried when he saw his lady drinking alone under the moon.
She is the one who knows the young lady's thoughts, and she still believes that Yan Xiwen is the young lady's ideal match.
But that was the young lady's private matter. Although I had hinted at it, the young lady had already made up her mind about Fu Xiaoguan.
At the Mid-Autumn Lanting Poetry Gathering, I hope Yan Xiwen can give an excellent performance and win the young lady's heart. Only then will the young lady be happier.
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