Chapter 28 Black Market Merchants
After they were out of the manager's sight.
Jiang Shiyao picked up her daughter and quickened her pace.
In his previous life, Zhou Congxian joined the Shadow Guard, and this Prince Cheng is no pushover either.
The two might be enemies now.
"stop!"
They were stopped just as the gate was in front of them.
She turned around and saw a group of beautiful women, among whom was Song Jiyun.
Two rising stars are currently in the court: Liu Minghan and Song Yitang.
Liu Minghan came from a poor family and had no family connections in Beijing.
The Song family was different; they had been officials for generations, and their ancestor was even the founding prime minister.
However, as their fortunes declined and their family business dwindled, the Song family gradually became minor officials on the fringes of the capital.
Until Song Yitang entered officialdom, he became the youngest scholar in just five years.
Although his rank is not high, he is the first choice to join the cabinet.
The Song family has risen in status, and Song Jiyun has also gained a foothold in the family.
What are you doing here?!
Song Jiyun looked at Jiang Shiyao, who shouldn't be there, with disgust in his eyes.
Why would the eldest princess send an invitation to a mere concubine?
If Zhao didn't even know how to take care of Zhou Wanqing and Zhou Wanhui, she certainly wouldn't be able to take care of Jiang Shiyao.
The only person who could bring her in was Zhou Congxian.
Thinking of this, Song Jiyun almost ground his teeth to powder!
Jiang Shiyao glanced at the young ladies beside her.
Song Jiyun followed behind the others, but it was clear that the girl in the very center was the true center of this group.
She held Fu'er and bowed, saying, "Greetings to all the young ladies."
The girl in the lead glanced at Jiang Shiyao. Her clothes weren't bad, but they weren't the fashionable styles in the capital. The little girl in her arms looked like a dough doll, her big eyes darting around as she looked them over without any fear.
The banquet hosted by the eldest princess was attended by powerful and influential figures from the capital.
The woman greeted them.
“Cumulus clouds, whose are these?”
Some people are curious.
Song Jiyun blushed. Jiang Shiyao was Zhou Congxian's concubine. If she sat at the same banquet table with Jiang Shiyao today and was recognized in the future, how could she save face!
Now she felt like everyone's eyes were on her.
Of all the noble ladies in the capital, who else is like her, expecting to be served tea as a concubine upon entering the house?
It would have been fine if they had kept it hidden, but they had to bring it so openly to the Princess's banquet to embarrass her!
Jiang Shiyao acted as if she hadn't heard, "The banquet is about to begin, ladies, please take your seats quickly."
She went out today for a travel permit, but she doesn't have time to deal with them here.
The banquet was short, and the horse farm was quite far from here.
It takes a lot of time to go back and forth.
We should leave sooner rather than later.
The girl in the lead suddenly narrowed her eyes slightly and looked between Song Jiyun and Jiang Shiyao.
She suddenly smiled and said, "So you're someone Miss Song knows. Since we're going to the banquet together, let's go in together."
"It would be good to sit together and talk."
Song Jiyun's eye twitched violently.
She was the youngest daughter of Minister Chen, the younger sister of the Empress, and a close friend of Li Ruoshuang.
Li Ruoshuang didn't come today; Miss Chen wanted to stand up for her friend.
Miss Chen's smile deepened. "I suddenly have a vague impression of this lady."
"It looks like Zhou..."
"Miss Chen!" Song Jiyun exclaimed urgently, "The nanny has been urging us several times already, we should go in!"
Miss Chen covered her mouth with her fan and said with a smile, "I feel like Miss Song is a little scared."
Suddenly, someone called out.
"I remember now, I saw her at Yubaolou before, she's Madam Jiang from the Duke of Ying's mansion!"
Who is Lady Jiang?
Naturally, it was Zhou Shizi's wife, Jiang Niangzi.
Just as the rumors said, Prince Zhou even dared to bring his concubines to the Princess's banquet.
Does he really want his wives and concubines to sit together at the banquet?
Miss Chen gently swayed the round fan in her hand, and the sound softly reached Song Jiyun's ears.
"In the past, Lord Song's friendship was as steadfast as gold, a fact known throughout the capital."
"Miss Song inherited her family's tradition and carefully selected a lover whose bond is stronger than gold."
The scandal of the Song family's favored concubine killing his wife caused a great uproar, and in the end, the late emperor even demoted him because of it.
It was a topic of conversation for several years.
Song Jiyun's head suddenly exploded with a "buzz".
It seemed as if snickers from all directions were rushing towards her.
Miss Chen glanced at Song Jiyun, whose face was deathly pale. Song Yitang had caused her second brother to suffer terribly in prison and almost cripple his leg!
Today, she embarrassed his sister, which is already too good for his family!
She gave a soft hum, her voice rising a little, "Let's go, Miss Song wants to talk to her sisters a bit more!"
The snickers suddenly grew louder.
Wives and concubines are not sisters, are they?
The group of people walked away laughing.
Song Jiyun glared angrily at Jiang Shiyao, "You came here just to humiliate me! Are you feeling smug?!"
Jiang Shiyao looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Miss Song, what are you saying? I came because I had an invitation. How is that an insult to you?"
Thinking about all the things in her past and present lives, she blurted out again, "That young lady was clearly rude just now, but you didn't dare to confront her, yet you made things difficult for an innocent person like me!"
"You!" In a fit of rage, Song Jiyun raised his hand to slap her.
Jiang Shiyao took a few steps back while holding Fu'er.
"Miss Song, this is the Princess's banquet. Please think carefully before you act!"
Her cheeks twitched, and before she could speak, the voice of a palace maid urging her from not far away came again.
"Miss Song, it's time to take your seat."
Taking advantage of Song Jiyun's distraction, Jiang Shiyao grabbed Fu'er and ran away in a flash!
As she and Fu'er left through the main gate, they happened to brush past Xiao Lin.
This time she went straight to the horse market.
The horse market in the capital city specializes in the horse trade, including horses used for pulling carriages for various households, fine and precious Akhal-Teke horses, and caravans for merchants.
They're all businesses in the horse market.
Therefore, the black market emerged.
"Madam, look at my horse! It just came down from Nanshan Mountain, an absolute thoroughbred!"
When the horse trader saw a customer arrive, he immediately patted a pure white horse tied to the door.
Jiang Shiyao glanced around and saw that the stable was full of horse manure and straw, and the stench was overwhelming when she got close.
Fu'er hugged her mother's neck with one hand and covered her nose with the other, leaning back.
"Mother! It stinks!"
The horse trader picked up a bucket of water from the corner and splashed it on the horse. "It doesn't stink, it'll be clean after a wash. Look how beautiful this horse is!"
The splashing water made the mother and daughter take two steps back.
The man in the horse hoof shop across the street laughed without any restraint.
"Blind man, you're going to be stuck with this thoroughbred horse again!"
Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Jiang Shiyao immediately picked up Fu'er and left.
Horse market dealers are divided into large and small. Small dealers buy low and sell high, making a profit from the price difference, while large dealers may have their own horse farms and horse trading routes.
Horses are needed not only in the capital, but also elsewhere.
Further in, there was a stable that was kept very clean, and a young girl was brushing the horses with her sleeves rolled up.
Jiang Shiyao stood at the door and asked, "Miss, do you have any horses that can go on long journeys?"
The girl brushing the horse glanced at her, threw the brush in her hand into the bucket of water, and raised her arm to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
"Yes, the two horses here have good stamina and are suitable for long journeys."
Jiang Shiyao nodded. "Okay, but not enough."
"Not enough? How many do you want?"
Ten horses.
"Ten horses?" The stable girl clearly didn't think she was a big spender who wanted to buy ten horses.
"What do you need so many for? A single horse isn't cheap. Do you want ten?"
Jiang Shiyao rummaged through Fu'er's small bag and pulled out five hundred taels of silver. "I brought money with me. I really came here to buy horses."
The stable girl glanced at the silver note in her hand, "Then come with me."
Behind the stable, there is a two-story building.
Even after walking in, you can still smell the aroma of food.
"Second Madam, we have a guest!"
The stable girl stood downstairs with her hands on her hips and shouted loudly upstairs.
As soon as he finished speaking, a woman in her early thirties leaned out of the window.
"They're here."
When She Erniang saw that the big guest was actually a young woman, she crossed her arms and raised her eyes slightly.
"Ten horses, three thousand taels."
The stable girl's eyes widened in surprise.
The best horses cost 200 strings of cash, while those that only required endurance could generally be bought for around 100 strings of cash.
Three thousand? Second Sister is really asking for a fortune.
She Erniang glared at her, and she pursed her lips and continued brushing the horse.
Jiang Shiyao neither agreed nor refused, saying, "Your horse is more expensive than others."
She Erniang laughed, "There's a reason why it's expensive. It just depends on whether Madam can afford it."
Jiang Shiyao glanced around the small building. It was clean and tidy, and she could no longer smell the odor of the horse market outside.
There was an old woman cooking in the small kitchen on the first floor, so you could smell the aroma of the food.
Unlike other horse traders, She Erniang made her home here.
Horses are not only expensive, but also prone to illness and can be a target for trouble by buyers.
She Erniang must be no ordinary person to have dared to settle her home here.
Jiang Shiyao said, "I can afford the money, but I'd like to ask for a few more things."
She Erniang narrowed her eyes slightly, "Then Madam has come to the wrong place, you may leave."
Jiang Shiyao frowned. "I haven't said what I want yet."
She Erniang turned around, swaying her hips. "I've seen plenty of women like you, Madam. I still advise you to go back. Don't give up your good life and go out to suffer. You'll regret it later and only be able to cry to the King of Hell."
Jiang Shiyao pursed her lips slightly, clutching the silver notes she had taken out of Fu'er's small bag tightly in her hand.
Finally, he turned and left, holding Fu'er in his arms.
The stable girl poked her head out, and seeing that the deal hadn't gone through, she pouted again.
As soon as Jiang Shiyao stepped out, she was spotted by the horse trader across the street.
He looked around, caught up with her, and whispered as he passed her, "Does Madam need the order to leave the city?"
Jiang Shiyao paused, and the man turned around and glanced at her, gesturing for her to follow.
When she reached the alley entrance and saw that she was almost out of the horse market area, she immediately stopped.
The man glanced back and said, "Don't worry, Madam, I'm honest and fair! If you're in a hurry, I can open it for you today!"
Jiang Shiyao frowned. With the Empress Dowager's birthday approaching, the city gates were under martial law, and no one would take the risk at this time.
"You've got it wrong, I'm just buying horses."
The black market is called the black market because it is unregulated and grows in the dark.
It's quite possible that the money was spent, and the person was also sold out.
She took two steps back while holding her daughter.
The man's face turned fierce, and he raised his hand as if to grab her.
Jiang Shiyao's expression changed, and she was about to turn around.
A hand reached out from her side, grabbed the man's hand, and twisted it backward, causing the man to scream and fall to the ground.
His head was resting on a pile of steaming horse manure.
"Second Aunt She! You son of a bitch, ouch!!—"
With a "crack," his arm was dislocated, limp and powerless, hanging on the ground.
She Erniang slowly stood up, stepped on his head, and shoved him into the horse manure.
"I warned you, if you mess with my customer, I'll break your arm!"
"If this happens again, I'll twist your head off and use it as a football!"
"roll!"
The man, furious but unable to speak out, ran away with his head covered in horse manure.
She Erniang personally led Jiang Shiyao down another path.
She Erniang escorted the person to the main road, saying, "Don't come here again."
She glanced at the mother and daughter and said, "You two are as beautiful as flowers and your daughter is as delicate as a jade carving. You've been targeted ever since you entered the horse market."
As she spoke, she repeated the sentence.
"Why not just enjoy a good life instead of going out to suffer?"
As soon as She Erniang turned around, she heard that soft yet firm voice behind her.
"We'll die if we don't leave."
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