Chapter 161 161 The Sad Shijia Long Time No See
After busying themselves with Su Wumei's full month celebration and welcoming Shu Tongshu's eldest son, before Xu Niansong's full month celebration, the New Year of Chengxi's sixteenth year was approaching. The Su family was so busy.
Fortunately, Prince Zhao gave two capable maids to Su Ruojin, otherwise, she would have been too busy to handle the confinement of her mother and Aunt Shu together.
Finally, after delivering the holiday gifts to all the families, they paid the wages of Su's shop, Feng's family and others, and allowed them to go home with abundant New Year's goods to celebrate the New Year.
After the shop closed, Mother Dong and Xianggui returned to the Su family to help. After a busy day, they were used to returning to the dormitory of Su's shop to rest. Late at night, Mother Dong didn't find anything different in the shop. She habitually checked the doors and windows, and the fire in the stove, but there was no problem. She was old and tired after a day's work, so she took a shower and went to bed.
The same thing happened to Xianggui. When she came out to wash her feet, Shi Liu stopped her and said, "Gui... Sister Gui..."
The young man put his hand lightly on her arm. Xianggui blushed, but it was hard to see in the darkness. She pretended to be calm and asked, "Didn't you have dinner?"
She just asked casually, but she didn't expect the guy opposite to really say "hmm".
Xiang Gui looked up in surprise: "There are pots and stoves in the shop, but no firewood?"
Shi Liu shook his head.
"That's..." Xianggui felt that Shi Liu was different from usual, "Are you not used to being the only one in the shop?" But he had difficulty walking, and the Second Lady took pity on him and did not let him go to the Su family for the New Year, but let him rest in the shop.
"I..." Shi Liu was in a heavy mood and had difficulty speaking. "Can I come to your room and sit for a while?" His hands were still shaking.
Xianggui had been with Shi Liu for more than half a year. Although the young man had difficulty walking, he was honest and hardworking. She had seen it all. But this was the first time he wanted to enter her room like tonight. She felt nervous and her heart skipped a beat.
"If you have anything to say, just say it here."
Although everyone in the shop knew that the two of them were in love, this was the Su family's shop after all. No matter what they did, they had to get the boss's approval. When Xianggui thought of her good life, her heart suddenly calmed down.
I didn't expect that a lame man would have such a fancy mind. He looked indifferent and leaned against the door, refusing to let Shi Liu in. The cold wind blew to the door, causing people to shiver.
Shi Liu just finds it hard to speak.
Xianggui washed up and put on her coat. The cold wind blew and she felt cold all over. Seeing that he refused to speak, she lost her patience and picked up the wooden basin on the ground, turned back to her room and closed the door. At the moment the door closed, Shi Liu stretched out his hand to block the gap in the door. If the door was closed, he would break his wrist.
"Shi Liu, what are you doing?"
It was the coldest time of winter and it got dark early. Hua Ping returned to Su Ji against the northwest wind. When he jumped onto a tree, he saw Shi Liu standing at the door of Xianggui's room with a crutch in the yard where the woman lived, and he was sneaking around for a while.
Just when Hua Ping was not about to watch the show, Xianggui walked in, and Shi Liu actually wanted to force the door open. He narrowed his eyes, glanced towards Mother Dong's room, and thought to himself, should I meddle in this business, or should I ignore it?
Just when he was about to go back to his room to wash up and go to bed, Xianggui screamed in surprise.
"What did you say?"
"I...I said that the tables...the tables and ovens in the shop were...robbed by my brothers."
Xianggui hurriedly pushed Shi Liu away, quickly picked up the angry lamp and ran towards the lobby. She put down the angry lamp and quickly lit two large oil lamps. The lobby suddenly became bright.
The shop was closed and no business was done. The rectangular tables were not only put together, but also stacked upside down. All twelve of them were placed in one corner. Now that corner was empty. He hurried to the kitchen, but there was no steamer or oven on the specially made stove.
She was anxious and angry, and for a moment, she was at a loss, "What should I do...what should I do?" These were all custom-made by the young lady's neighbor, Lord Xue, who asked the blacksmith in the Ministry of Works. Without this, the delicate desserts such as egg cakes would not taste good at all. This thing is not only expensive, but also requires favors.
No, she had to go find the young boss. When she turned around, Hua Ping was standing behind her.
"What's missing?"
As the guard of the house, Hua Ping has the responsibility. Shi Liu has been here for more than half a year without any trouble. Unexpectedly, the shop was robbed during the New Year holiday, and the people involved were Shi Liu's brothers.
Usually, Xianggui avoided Huaping to avoid embarrassment, but now she didn't care about anything else and hurriedly ordered things one by one.
Hua Ping stepped back a few steps and asked her to order something. He turned around and looked at Shi Liu who had followed him. "What's going on?"
"When it was getting dark in the evening, several brothers came over. I thought they didn't have money for the New Year and came to rob me of my money. I didn't expect that they not only robbed me of my money, but also took away the valuables in the shop. I couldn't stop them."
Hua Ping narrowed his eyes, "Aren't they afraid of being sued?"
"I... I don't know either... They covered my mouth and pressed me to the ground..."
Hua Ping stared at him.
Shi Liu felt weak and squatted down dejectedly.
"You let the Shi family steal Su's things. Are you colluding with the insiders?"
"No, absolutely not!" Shi Liu's hands were shaking not only, but his whole body was shaking. Only after living a good life did he know what kind of life he had lived before. How could he betray such a good life?
Xianggui quickly told Huaping what was missing from the shop, "What should we do?"
Hua Ping glanced at Shi Liu and said, "It's better not to, otherwise..." He turned around, walked out of the shop, blended into the night, and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
When Mrs. Dong heard the noise, she put on her clothes and went to the lobby. Only then did she find that the lobby was empty. She screamed like Xianggui, "What's going on?"
It was almost eight o'clock when Su Ruojin heard Shu Tong knocking on the door: "Second Madam... Second Madam..." The voice was not loud, but very urgent. She was startled and quickly got dressed and came out.
"Uncle Shutong, what's wrong?"
Shu Tong glanced at the adults' bedroom and lowered his voice, "The tables and ovens in the shop have been emptied by the Shi brothers."
Su Ruojin's eyes widened, and she couldn't believe it. "How is it possible?"
Yes, in such a blatant manner, they actually robbed the shop openly. Is there any law against this?
She couldn't sleep there, so she quickly found a cloak and asked Shu Tong to drive her to the shop.
Shi Liuyi knelt down and couldn't get up when he saw the young master. "Please put me in jail, Madam."
"How many of your brothers came to move?"
"Three, namely the eldest brother, the third brother, and the fourth brother."
Of course Shi Er is not involved. He lives a very comfortable life in Wenshan Street and it is impossible for him to get involved.
Su Ruojin looked at him carefully, "Didn't they beat you?"
The young lady was like the backbone. Ever since she stepped into the shop, Shi Liu's heart stopped shaking and he spoke in an orderly manner. "Before, at home, these three people often took their anger out on me. But tonight, when they came to rob things, they didn't even touch me at all. They just pressed me to the ground and covered my mouth. After they moved the things, they hit me. I waited until Mother Dong came back. The noise outside woke me up. When I woke up, I found myself in my own bed."
Su Ruojin asked him to lead the way and went to his room, only to find that the room was turned upside down. "Did they take away all the money you saved?"
Shi Liu nodded sadly.
"Where's Uncle Hua Ping?"
Shu Tong replied, "Xiang Gui said he went out."
Hua Ping is a spy. If he knew, he would probably help Su Ji chase something.
Su Ruojin returned to the kitchen again. It was obvious that the Shi brothers came for the oven, and they probably stole the table in the lobby.
After a year of good times and many happy events at home, I didn't expect that something like this would happen just before the New Year.
Su Ruojin did the math and found that excluding the favor from Lord Xue, the loss of the steamer, oven, copper basin, etc. was nearly one hundred taels of silver. In ancient times, there was no stainless steel technology or enamel. Except for the large wooden basin for washing dishes, all basins for various ingredients and fillings were made of copper, which was both light and durable. However, the price of copper was controlled by the government and had to be registered with the government. Even this was only obtained through the relationship of the young prince.
"It seems that your brother has found out everything about us."
Shi Liu cried sadly, "Little Boss, why don't you suspect that I'm colluding with the insiders and the outsiders?"
"Then can you?"
Shi Liu shook his head.
"That's all." It's New Year's Day, so let's just let it go. "As long as people are safe, that's all."
"Little Master..." Shi Liu, who had been feeling scared and blaming himself for the entire night, could no longer hold back his tears. "I am an unlucky person. Please throw me into jail. I can't pay anything except this broken body."
"Uncle Shutong."
"Second Lady."
"After daybreak, wait for Uncle Hua to come back and ask him about the details. If Uncle Hua fails to catch us, we will report to the police."
"good."
The thing has happened, there is no point in being anxious.
It was freezing cold in the middle of winter, so Su Ruojin asked everyone to go to bed, "Don't worry, do what you need to do, I'm going back to bed too."
"Young Master..." Shi Liu felt very guilty, "My eldest brother, third brother, and fourth brother have a history of stealing. If they are caught, they will definitely go to jail."
Su Ruojin nodded, "Yeah."
The young boss didn't care, so Shi Liu resigned: "Once this matter is settled, I will no longer work at Su's." In order to avoid causing trouble for the young boss.
"If not here, where to go?"
"I..." Shi Liu hesitated for a moment and said, "I will go to the mountains and become a monk."
Everyone: ...
Then they all looked at Xianggui.
Xianggui: ...
Three years ago, one hundred taels of silver was like a mountain to Su Ruojin, which could not help but crush her. Today, one hundred taels of silver is probably like the Himalayas to Shi Liu.
Su Ruojin still sympathized with the lame young man. If this incident caused the Shi family members who deserved to go to jail to go to jail, the potential danger would be eliminated, and Su Ji would no longer be affected, so there would be nothing wrong in letting him work here.
"Let's wait until this matter has a result."
Su Ruojin asked everyone to go and rest. Chunxiao took a cloak and put it on the young master. The master and servants left the hall and were about to get on the mule cart when a large horse carriage stopped.
She recognized that this was Zhao Lan's carriage. Sure enough, the next moment, Shuang Rui jumped out of the carriage, lifted the curtain, stretched out a long leg, and stepped out of the carriage.
It had been more than half a year since they last met. Su Ruojin lamented the passing of time, and at the same time, it seemed as if they had just met yesterday. She called out in a familiar voice, "Young Prince!"
Under the dim light, the young man looked up towards the bright light of the shop. His tall nose was highlighted, his brows were sharp, but the lines of his brow bones were unexpectedly soft. Hearing the young lady's clear and soft cry, something deep in his heart was pulled little by little by her joyful cry, bringing up waves of long and subtle soreness.
He heard his own voice: My dear, long time no see!
With long legs and big strides, he arrived in front of the young lady in just a few steps.
Su Ruojin looked up, "Little Prince, why are you here?"
The young lady's almond-shaped eyes were as clear as the mist in the forest in the morning. Zhao Lan saw his own shadow in her clear pupils and raised the corners of his mouth slightly. "I heard that your things were stolen."
"Uncle Hua went to see you?"
"Um."
Today is the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. For the powerful and noble, this is the busiest time when it comes to social interactions. Yet, Uncle Hua Ping actually went to see Prince Zhao.
Su Ruojin felt bad, "It's okay, it's just over a hundred taels of silver, after the New Year, I'll ask Master Xue to help me."
"The Shi brothers have been found."
"Ah, so fast?" It was quite surprising.
The young lady looked surprised and smiled widely.
Zhao Lan, who came here with a cold look on his face, was melted away by the young lady's sweet smile, leaving only a warm smile, "It's cold outside, go in and wait a while, it won't be long, Hua Ping will pack all the things back."
"Oh!" Su Ruojin hurriedly asked the person to go back, "Mother Dong, boil some water." As if she remembered something, she turned her head again, "Little Prince, are you hungry? I'll make you a bowl of mutton noodles?"
"Isn't the store closed?" Meaning, are these things still in the store?
"Uncle Hua usually lives here, and he always prepares some food in the cupboard for Mama Dong to cook for him."
No wonder Hua Ping refused to stay in the courtyard. It turned out that he was not only Su Ji's bodyguard, but also felt like his own home where he could have food to eat when he returned. No wonder he was reluctant to leave.
Everyone returned to the shop again. Since the tables and chairs had been moved away by the Shi brothers, Xianggui hurried to her room and moved a table for temporary use.
Su Ruojin found a small pot, scooped up the mutton soup she brought back from the Su's house, and put the noodles she usually made aside for later use. When the soup boiled, she sliced the mutton. If you want the mutton to not have a smell, add white radish together. As the saying goes, one thing can overcome another. The mutton did not have any smell at all. The mutton she was using now had already been processed at the Su's house, so she could just cut it and use it directly.
Fry the eggs and cut the side dishes: mushrooms, coriander, chopped green onions, minced ginger, etc.
The soup in the pot boils, and noodles, mutton, side dishes, etc. are added. After a while, a bowl of steaming mutton noodles is cooked, and the aroma fills the house.
Su Ruojin turned around and found Zhao Lan standing at the door of the kitchen, waiting for her mutton noodles to come out of the pot.
She smiled, "Okay."
Shuangrui hurried over to take the tray and brought the mutton noodles to the small table.
Zhao Lan and the young lady walked in a double row. "How are you doing recently?" he asked.
Su Ruojin smiled and replied: "Too busy."
Yes, Mrs. Su gave birth to a child, and the housekeeper of the Su family also gave birth to a child, and it was the end of the year, so it was indeed very busy.
"What about you?" Su Ruojin asked with a smile, "Why haven't you come to eat for free recently?"
Zhao Lan lowered his eyes, then raised them again with a gentle smile: "Just like you, very busy."
"Haha..." Su Ruojin laughed, "If I say 'die' at home, my dad will chase me around two blocks and beat me up."
It is indeed taboo during the New Year.
Zhao Lan smiled and said, "I don't believe the teacher will hit you."
Su Ruojin's eyes curved: "Of course I won't, I've been beaten several times."
Zhao Lan: ...The teacher is such a gentle person, it is impossible for him to imagine hitting his daughter. If the young lady was his daughter, he would definitely not be willing to do so.
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