Mu Houchu looked at her eyes, which were tinged with a hint of laughter, and shook his head helplessly, pinching her little hand: "My wife, you really are clever."
This method could only have been thought of by her.
Xin He snorted lightly, "What do you mean wife? We aren’t married yet!"
As she said this, she tried to pull her hand away, but Mu Houchu wouldn’t let her. He held her tightly and whispered, "You’ll marry me in three days. You’re not thinking of backing out, are you?"
Xin He giggled, "Where would I get the courage?"
"Young Master, just now..."
A young servant rushed in excitedly and was startled to see the two men whispering intimately together. The servant almost hurt his back from shock, hesitating whether to proceed or leave. His face displayed a range of emotions.
Xin He quickly pulled her hand away and glared at Mu Houchu, who didn’t care at all and still looked calm. He certainly didn’t feel guilty.
It’s just holding his own wife’s hand and whispering little secrets. Was that against the law?
Xin He knew that this shameless man would only bring her trouble!
Xin He cleared her throat gently, quickly suppressing her emotions, feigning anger towards the servant, "Who taught you the rule of not knocking before entering?"
The servant had a look of grievance, "I, I just saw that the door wasn’t closed tightly, and I was anxious to report good news to the Young Master, so I just..."
How could he have known that Young Master Ji had such heavy tastes and enjoyed being with men? Otherwise, he wouldn’t have dared to barge in like that!
Xin He lightly snorted, showing that the matter was forgiven, "Since that’s the case, don’t repeat this again! What did you come to see me for?"
Finally, the little servant managed to regain his composure, but he still didn’t dare to look at them. He hurried to say, "I came to tell you that you won the bet earlier, and Ah Lian is still the top courtesan this year. This, this is the money you won."
With that, the servant quickly presented a small box filled with silver notes to Xin He. He accidentally glanced up and saw Xin He looking at him, which scared him into retreating several steps, as if he feared being targeted by young Master Ji.
"Young Master, please do as you please."
Having said that, the servant ran away as fast as a rabbit, disappearing into the room.
Xin He gaped at the figure of the servant running away, her eyes widening, "What expression did he have just now? As if seeing me as a fierce beast? Does he really think I have an unclear sexual orientation?!"
Mu Houchu pinched her chin, "You’re getting into character quite quickly, aren’t you?"
Xin He grunted unhappily, "It’s the servant who’s overacting!"
As she said this, she opened the small box in front of her with excitement and found it contained ten silver notes, each worth a hundred taels!
Xin He laughed loudly, "On this night, I’ve won bets all over Wanhua Tower! We’ve made quite a fortune!"
Mu Houchu looked at her acting this way and smiled helplessly, then sternly said, "This is just one time. For the next three days, you’d better stay quietly in the Hou Mansion, and not run around anywhere. Prepare for our wedding. Understand?"
Xin He glanced at the bustling crowd in the hall, holding the silver notes contentedly and nodding, "I know!"
——
After the Oiran competition ended, the entire capital was abuzz for three days.
Along with the news of Ah Lian successfully defending her title, the story of her loving Qinghe’s grape wine and performing the "drunken concubine" dance also spread! 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
People could hardly avoid talking about this at meal times!
"Did you know? Ah Lian from Wanhua Tower won the title of top courtesan again! I heard that Wanhua Tower deliberately promoted a new girl, holding her back until now, hoping to use this Oiran competition to surpass Ah Lian’s charm. Who would have thought..."
"How can I not know? I saw her amazing dance personally that night! Especially the part where she drank wine. It made me crave some! I heard that it was Qinghe’s grape wine. The next morning, I rushed to buy some Qinghe’s grape wine. Ah Lian drank this delicious wine while dancing so beautifully, I couldn’t help but feel envious."
"Where could that Hanxiang girl compete with Ah Lian? They simply couldn’t compare! You don’t know, but that day was Hanxiang’s first night. Not only did she lose the courtesan title, but her price was also quite low! Such a beauty, on her first night, was only worth two hundred taels of silver! Nine years ago, Ah Lian’s first-night price was as high as a thousand taels!"
"Hmph, after Ah Lian won the title that day, her price wasn’t low either. It reached more than a thousand taels for one night! It is really something. The dignitaries in the capital probably can’t wait to empty their family wealth for such a courtesan!"
While the gossip continued in the capital, the Hou Mansion was extremely peaceful.
Xiaoyu hurried in, her face full of joy, "Eldest Miss, Lai Fu just came by and said that the grape wine from our shop is almost sold out. Should we increase production?"
Ever since Ah Lian performed her dance with Qinghe’s grape wine at the Oiran competition, business at Qinghe Small Shop had been booming. The next morning, customers had been flooding into the shop before it even opened.
Xin He was combing her hair in front of the mirror, casually tying a strand of hair, and smiling, "Increase it a little bit. But don’t make too much. After all, scarcity is what makes things valuable. Add a bit of inventory, at least enough to cut off Yueke Lai’s business."
Xiaoyu smiled and bowed, "Yes!"
Xiaoyu hurried out, and Shulan took over combing Xin He’s three thousand green silk hair strands, "Miss, this move is truly clever. Now, our grape wine is famous throughout the whole capital. Are we afraid of not suppressing Yueke Lai?"
Xin He heaved a light sigh, "With this, at least I can feel a little reassured. Our Qinghe small shop, after all, has finally found its foothold in the capital before I leave."
Shulan laughed, "Now that the Eldest Miss is at ease, can she start preparing for her wedding in peace? Tomorrow is the wedding day, and I have never seen a bride who is still so busy with various matters right before her wedding, if not for my talented Miss."
Xin He looked at herself in the mirror, her face blooming with a radiant smile. Listening to Shulan’s words, she couldn’t help but laugh, "Of course, I will be well prepared for my wedding."
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