Chapter 52 Ru Fang's Tragedy (2) Li Yang, provoked, refuses Chen Junbai's advances...
Upon hearing Li Yang's question, Liu Yitong's vision blurred. "Sister-in-law, aunt, you are so kind! Oh dear, how did I end up in this situation where I'm looking for a latrine just in time to take a dump!"
Li Yang blushed and couldn't respond to those words.
Chen Junbo said in a deep voice, "It's just the wages of craftsmen and laborers. Why are you, the dignified General Manager Liu, so anxious?"
"What a joke! It's not like you're the one paying for it." Liu Yi stepped forward, almost cursing him to the nose. "Your little mistress can't even keep an eye on a storeroom, what business are you trying to discuss?"
Chen Junbo, I only agreed to this because of you. What, now you expect me to suffer this in silence? Don't even think about it!
With each curse he uttered, Li Yang's face burned hotter, until it felt as if boiling water was scalding the back of his ears.
Chen Junbo glanced at her, noticing her face was ashen and she was biting her lip in silence. He sighed and said, "Have the foreman hand over the receipts to Chen's Salt Shop. Someone will settle the payment with them. I think you're getting more and more senile. It's just a hundred taels of silver, why are you making such a fuss?"
Seeing that he had taken out the silver, Liu Yitong felt better. He sat back in his chair, picked up a covered bowl from the table, and skimmed the tea foam. "Ziheng, it's not that I want to jump around, but you know, after this incident, we'll have to find a new nursery to order more goods and then contact a foreman. There will be so many more things to do."
"To be honest, women are really no good at running a business. Take my Peach Blossom, for example. She wanted to open a new shop the other day, and I get a headache just hearing about her new ideas. Why don't you learn from your brother's mistake? I think your wife should just go back and settle down to be a good wife and mother."
His words, though unintentional, stung Li Yang more than a slap in the face. She suddenly looked up, her eyes glistening with tears, "No!"
The two men, who were chatting idly, turned to look at her upon hearing this. "The money doesn't need to come from Chen's Salt Shop; the Flower Bureau will cover it. Later, once the seedlings are purchased, I'll arrange for the foreman to go to the site together." After saying this, she sniffed hard to suppress the stinging sensation in her nose, stood up, curtsied, and left.
"Oh! Sister-in-law..." Liu Yitong was startled, put down his teacup, got up and looked around, but there was no one there.
"Ziheng, hehe, this, this sister-in-law's temper is too much..." Knowing he had said something wrong, he looked at Chen Junbai awkwardly.
Chen Junbo shot him a glare, "You got the money but still can't shut up. I can't be bothered to look at you. Get lost."
Alright, you're in my way, get lost!
Liu Yitong clasped his hands in apology, then lifted his clothes and ran off.
At the flower shop, Zhong Qian, having received his orders, scraped silver from the accounts to settle the matter. His heart was bleeding: hadn't the young mistress gone to see the young master? Why was the flower shop still losing money? Given the young master's relationship with General Manager Liu, why would he need to spend so much money… As he pondered this, a sudden thought struck him, a vague sense that something was amiss: Could it be that the young master was angry?!
While everyone at the Flower Bureau was in a flurry of activity, the weather inside the Baomo Hall had been sunny and pleasant for the past two days.
Madam Chen carefully applied lip rouge, admiring herself in the mirror. "Ruqing, you just said that girl admitted her mistake? Can you calculate for me whether her account is beyond saving now?"
"Oh dear, Madam, there's no way to save her!" Granny Sun was busy selecting hairpins and accessories for her, handing them to her for confirmation one by one. Every wrinkle on her face was filled with relief. "The flower shop had so many debts before, and it was all thanks to you, Madam, that it was all covered. After the young mistress took over, even with all her tricks, she only managed to sell some flowers and potted plants. How much silver could she earn?"
As she spoke, she received a nod from Madam Chen, inserted the gold-threaded eight-treasure comb into her hair bun, and said, "This old servant also heard that the young mistress was bewitched by something and hung famous paintings all over the shop to attract customers, but all she attracted were poor scholars. She didn't make a penny and even lost a lot of money on tea."
"What an idiot! What's with displaying famous paintings in the brothel?" Madam Chen laughed heartily, feeling extremely pleased. "Why haven't I seen Rufang these past two days? Go and see if the troupe leader has taken him away again."
Granny Sun's smile vanished as she reluctantly accepted the task.
Liu Rufang wasn't being held captive by the troupe leader. After receiving Chen Zhangshi's message that day, he rushed to find his sweetheart the next day to discuss the matter.
To everyone's surprise, Brother Long didn't react much to these words. He was anxious and hurriedly asked, "Madam Chen has agreed, Brother Long. You should hurry up and get rid of those goods. If you do a good job, maybe Madam Chen will agree to help us pay off our debts."
"Hmph, she can give you a thousand taels of silver? Rufang, do you really think that if you sleep with her for a few days, she will do anything for you? Don't be silly."
Ah Long's words were blunt and touched a nerve, causing Liu Rufang to pause in surprise. "What do you mean?"
Brother Long rummaged through drawers and cupboards, gathering all the valuables into a bundle, which he then placed on the bedside table. Looking up, he saw Liu Rufang's dazed expression, a blend of allure and serene beauty. Suddenly intrigued, he turned and sat on the bed, pulling her close. "Rufang," he said, "to tell you the truth, I sold the seedlings from that flower shop a long time ago. Last time, I just had you pass a message back to stall that old hag, so she wouldn't get angry when she heard the news."
As she spoke, she reached down his neck, buried her head in his shoulder, and took a deep sniff. "I didn't expect that old hag could actually be fooled by you. You must have used a lot of effort. Let me see if you managed to get a piece of flesh bitten off."
Ren Long's hands were making love to her body, and Liu Rufang sat frozen on the edge of the bed, "You, you said you sold that goods a long time ago?"
Brother Long seemed anxious and said impatiently, "Yes, when the mistress of the house brought people to take inventory that day, I heard her say that this batch of goods was worth at least six or seven hundred taels of silver. She left and I sold it right after she left."
"Hey, don't just stand there, hurry up." A pair of hands reached for his waistband, but a tear slapped onto the back of his hand. Ah Long was startled, looked up at Liu Rufang as if she were bewitched, "Why are you crying?"
Liu Rufang ignored his question and asked again, "So, you deliberately tricked me into going to meet that Mrs. Chen... You had already made up your mind?"
Ah Long's face darkened. "You're being all effeminate. Are you going to do it or not?"
Liu Rufang: "What do you take me for? What do you take me for?" He suddenly screamed hysterically.
Ah Long completely lost his previous interest, spat angrily and cursed, "Damn it, what bad luck!" He reached out and rummaged around for a few moments, pulled out a bag of silver from the man's body, threw it down, and left the house.
Ah Long bent down and stepped out the door, leaving only the sound of the door hinges slamming shut. Liu Rufang's body seemed to have lost all strength, and she slid off the bed and sat down on the floor, staring blankly at the door 'clatter, clatter, clatter'.
He worked straight from dawn until late at night. When Ah Long returned, he was still sitting there dumbfounded, as if he were possessed.
"You haven't left yet?" Ah Long didn't seem to care. He took out a fried dough stick from his pocket and started eating it. He had been tormented by the women in the 'Qunfanglou' all afternoon, leaving him with an empty stomach. Thinking about it, he was really grateful for Liu Rufang's money. He had actually managed to sleep with a second-class courtesan in that building today. Heh, she truly lived up to her second-class status. Even her skin was smoother than the previous ones.
Ah Long was still savoring the good things that had happened that afternoon. Thinking of how much money Liu Rufang had contributed, he tore off half a pancake and stuffed it into Ah Long's hand, saying in a kind voice, "You must be hungry after sitting all afternoon. This pancake is fresh out of the oven, eat it while it's hot." As he spoke, he even reached out and wiped Ah Long's cheek.
Liu Rufang's icy hands suddenly warmed up. Looking up, he saw that the scars on Brother Long's face were fading. At this moment, his handsome eyes were looking at him, and he was saying words of concern. He couldn't help but feel a pang of tenderness: He still cared about me, but he was driven to desperation by those debt collectors.
Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed Brother Long's arm, "Brother Long... I..."
Seeing that his expression had softened, Ah Long used his arms to lift the man up from the ground and brushed the dust off his back. "You're such a grown man, why are you still sitting on the ground like a child?"
Liu Rufang's nose twitched as she caught a whiff of perfume. Looking closer, she saw a few cherry-red spots on Brother Long's neck. "Brother Long, where did you go this afternoon?"
Ah Long paused, his eyes darkening slightly, before continuing to pat me. "You ignored me all afternoon, but now you're asking me where I'm going. The way you're questioning me is like a wife interrogating her husband."
As he said this, a mischievous smile played on his lips, and Liu Rufang felt a chill run down her spine. "I didn't ignore you."
Looking at his fair complexion with a hint of pink, and the strands of hair falling behind his ears, standing behind him and looking down through his neck, the loose-fitting clothes couldn't hide his ample bosom. Ah Long secretly pouted. He had put in too much effort with that courtesan this afternoon, and now, while Liu Rufang was willing, he couldn't muster any more energy.
He could see it but couldn't eat it, and he was unwilling to give up. So he coaxed Liu Rufang to stay overnight with him. The two ate and drank their fill and slept together.
Ah Long was only thinking about conserving his energy so he could have another big battle with him tomorrow morning.
He was a man who indulged in both meat and vegetables, and Liu Rufang was exceptionally beautiful and completely infatuated with him, giving him money and women whenever he asked. The two shared a childhood bond, and it was he who had 'rescued' Liu Rufang from her gambling-addicted father. Now, whenever he took advantage of Liu Rufang, he felt a secret sense of pride; this woman, as beautiful as a fairy, was completely subservient to him.
The person in his arms sighed inwardly: He had truly lost his mind during the day. Brother Long had only sold the items from the flower market ahead of time, without consulting him. Hadn't he told him everything later? How could he have been so foolish as to upset him? Brother Long was once such a valiant and extraordinary man; it was all because of him that he had fallen to the mundane world. How could he hold a grudge against him over such a trivial matter…
The next day, the two men woke up and engaged in a fierce battle.
As the rain subsided, Liu Rufang brushed the wet hair from her forehead and nestled in her man's arms. "Brother Long, now that you've got that money, I'll try to scrape together some more so we can pay off our debts as soon as possible."
Hearing that he wanted to raise more money, Ah Long was pleased. He didn't say anything, but just pulled the person closer. He was really tired these past two days, and he didn't know what had gotten into Liu Rufang today. She was even more untamable than a wild horse. All he wanted to do now was cover himself with the blanket and get some more sleep.
He sighed inwardly: "This Liu Rufang is so good. If she had just treated him a little better, she would have presented him with money on her own. What a pity."
Thinking that this person had been so innocent since the first time they met, Liu Rufang was moved to tears and wanted to go home with him because Old Man Liu owed her gambling debts and hadn't paid them back.
She was as beautiful as a fairy, but she was a man. He hesitated for a while but finally decided to take her. Unexpectedly, she was quite cooperative, and just as the two were getting into a good time, the troupe leader suddenly showed up at their door.
He'd only slept with the troupe leader's daughter once; that girl had slept with countless others in the troupe, yet the leader wouldn't let him off the hook. But it was for the best; at least he wouldn't have to stay in the troupe practicing every day, and even going to the gambling den required sneaking around. Liu Rufang was sending him money every day now; life wasn't bad, it's just a pity…
Recalling the past, Ah Long tightened his embrace, pulled the blanket up, and sighed, "Ru Fang, all these years, only you have always been by my side."
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Author's Note: After much deliberation, I've decided to portray Liu Rufang as a realistic character. I apologize profusely for any mistakes; please forgive me. [Heart emoji]
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