When she left the palace, Lady Sun was still immersed in the awe she had felt at the palace. By now, she no longer felt any fear of the palace, but rather awe and reverence.
"This palace is so luxurious! The roof tiles are all glittering gold, it's incredibly opulent!"
Sun's words were so exaggerated that He Jiuniang laughed and couldn't help but say, "Ms. Sun, those are just yellow tiles sprinkled with some gold powder. Plus, the sun is so bright today that they look shiny. They're not real gold!"
If he can say such exaggerated things in front of her, you can imagine what he'll say when he gets back.
This little old lady is so cute!
"None of your business! I'll just say it's an immense fortune!"
Sun glared at her, then sat down and sulked. Why was this third son's wife so annoying?
"Okay, okay, I'll shut up. Whatever you say goes!"
He Jiuniang made a shushing gesture, then kept covering her mouth and laughing. Sun Shi was so angry that her teeth itched, so she pounced on her and slapped her.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law argued all the way home. When they got home, the old lady ignored her and got out of the car. She strode towards the backyard, wanting to talk to Mrs. Yao, otherwise she couldn't calm down her agitation.
While the Yao family is still living in the mansion, they have already bought a small two-courtyard house and plan to move there in the next couple of days. It's quite far from here, so if Madam Sun wants Madam Yao to brag, she'll have to take a carriage. Madam Sun is quite reluctant to let it go and wants to take advantage of these few days to chat more.
Time flies. With the joint efforts of everyone in the family, the shops that He Jiuniang had taken over were all opened. Yao Shi took over as the manager of the clothing shop Jiayuan Pavilion. She not only had to manage the shop, but also take care of two young maids, and even teach Ting and Susu how to embroider.
Yes, Xiao Susu also followed Yao Shi. She likes embroidery, and because of the lack of maternal love in her childhood, she is now very attached to Yao Shi. So she follows Yao Shi around every day and keeps Ting Ya Tou company.
Jiayuan Pavilion in the capital city targets the mid-to-high-end market, offering custom-made clothing for noble ladies and young women. The designs by He Jiuniang and other embroiderers are also available in limited quantities. They don't need to deal with ordinary people. As long as they manage to get through the busy period of opening, they still have some free time. Therefore, teaching Susu and Tingya, training two more assistants, and managing the group of embroiderers and tailors they have recruited is not a difficult task.
Lianhua and Youya are so busy at the milk tea shop that they never have a moment to spare. Next door, the shop selling Lu Hei Ya (a type of braised duck) is run by Lu Xiaoyang and Liu Yuexiang, two cousins.
However, Lu Xiaoyang doesn't stay in the shop all day. He still has to go out to explore the market, conduct market research, and see what other businesses he can do. He Jiuniang's business dreams extend far beyond just these few shops.
Amidst all this activity, envoys from various countries arrived one after another. The first to arrive were naturally the envoys led by the Crown Prince of the Eastern Court. When they were still fifty miles from the capital, they sent a message to the palace, specifying that Lu Baichuan should lead a group to welcome them.
The letter was written in a grand and respectable tone, saying that he had long admired Lu Baichuan's name and wanted to meet him.
The other party is the Crown Prince of Dongting. It is acceptable to have Lu Baichuan go to receive him, but the premise is that Dongting behaves itself and does not cause any crisis or harm to Beiyan.
The two sides are currently antagonistic, and the main purpose of this meeting is to negotiate peace. Who gave them the audacity to make such a demand?
When He Jiuniang heard this unreasonable request, she couldn't help but wonder if the Crown Prince of Dongting was asking for trouble.
Could it be that he took the antidote I gave him the whole way, and now that his health has improved, he's about to start causing trouble?
But shouldn't this talent for causing trouble be displayed back in the Eastern Court? How come the first sign of trouble is directed at the man who saved her life?
He Jiuniang was displeased and planned to find an opportunity to get revenge, to make him realize the wickedness of society.
As for Lu Baichuan, he was naturally unwilling as well. So when the matter was brought up in court, he refused as soon as he opened his mouth, giving a very good reason: he was too busy.
Of course he's too busy. He can't even spend time with his wife, so who would have the mind to pick up the envoy from the Eastern Court? Are you crazy?
But other court officials thought differently. They felt that Lu Baichuan was receiving a salary from the court and had been promoted so quickly, so what was wrong with him going to pick someone up?
Lu Baichuan directly confronted those officials who were talking without understanding the situation, saying, "Is there anyone among you who hasn't received their salary from the court? Is it because the Ministry of Revenue missed paying it or something? We must find out the truth. We can't let you work for nothing."
His words were practically a direct accusation that these court officials did nothing but spout nonsense, causing the group that had just been spouting filth to turn red in the face and stammer, "You, you, you..." They couldn't find a good excuse for a long time and were so angry that they almost jumped up and down in the hall.
The crown prince almost burst out laughing, and quickly pinched his thigh to suppress it.
The former third-ranking scholar Kang, now a court official, also stepped forward and engaged in a heated debate. With the help of other court officials, he successfully turned the few civil officials who had just been talking into becoming greeters.
The Crown Prince readily agreed and then dismissed the court, not giving them a chance to argue.
Even though they were unwilling, they still went. The other party was a little unhappy that it wasn't Lu Baichuan who went to greet them, but the group also got angry and brought up the fact that the Third Prince of Dongting was still waiting in prison. The two sides almost got into a fight and made a scene before heading to the capital.
The Crown Prince of Dongting felt that Beiyan was trying to intimidate him, but instead of being angry, he happily told his subordinates, "Sending a few civil officials is exactly what I wanted. I'm sure we'll encounter many interesting people and things on this trip."
The subordinate immediately flattered, "Your Highness is shrewd and will certainly not let Bei Yan gain the upper hand."
The Crown Prince of Dongting didn't speak, but merely curled the corners of his lips into a slight smile.
Bei Yan knew that the people of Dongting were cunning and would not enter the city so easily, so he secretly arranged for people to accompany them, but he still could not avoid trouble at the city gate of the capital.
There were assassins, and they were heading straight for the Crown Prince of Dongting. Their attacks were swift, accurate, and ruthless, showing no mercy whatsoever.
The civil officials who were there to greet the guests were scared half to death. They had already entered the city, how could they possibly capsize in the ditch again?
They cursed Lu Baichuan in their hearts. Such dangerous tasks should have been done by military officers. Even if it wasn't Lu Baichuan, it could have been any other military officer. Why should they, the civil officials, have to suffer like this?
Just as they were grumbling to themselves, a long arrow came flying through the wind and knocked off the official hat of one of the men. The man screamed, a foul stench emanated from beneath him, and he was so frightened that he fainted and tumbled off his horse.
The others, forgetting about the mockery, hurriedly sought shelter to avoid becoming the second person to suffer from urinary incontinence.
Fortunately, the assassins weren't after them; instead, they charged towards the Crown Prince's carriage with their swords drawn.
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