Chapter Ninety-Four: Which bead maker can make it as good as the one who makes incense beads?
In the small courtyard.
Shen Qingnian tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. She was overjoyed, thinking that Xie Yanzhi would leave Yunzhou by boat as soon as it was dawn.
Once Xie Yanzhi left, the two of them would be separated by vast distances and would never cross paths again.
And so, with a faint sense of anticipation, she finally managed to fall asleep just as dawn was breaking.
The next morning, Shen Qingnian was awakened by a knocking sound on the door.
Someone was shouting in front of the shop: "Open the door! Open the door!"
Seeing the dark circles under Shen Qingnian's eyes, Ling'er knew that her mistress hadn't slept well again last night.
She went over and tucked the blanket around Shen Qingnian, letting her lie down a little longer.
She went out to open the door first to see who it was.
As soon as Ling'er removed the wooden board blocking the door, she saw a noblewoman with a head full of jewels standing outside, accompanied by her maid and servant.
Ling'er was puzzled; they had been in Yunzhou for half a month and had never seen this person.
Seeing that Ling'er had completely removed the door panel, the noblewoman led her people in.
"May I ask what brings you here, Madam?"
The maidservant next to her took out a brocade box and said, "Give us a refund, we don't want this incense bead anymore!"
Ling'er took it, opened the box, and saw that the fragrant beads were a little dirty.
"Madam, these incense beads are already dirty and cannot be returned."
Moreover, they never return or exchange their fragrant beads.
Seeing that the lady looked dignified, Ling'er didn't want to cause trouble.
"What did you say? Everyone who sees you should address you as Madam Wu!"
Ling'er thought to herself, "Is this guy using his status to bully others?"
The young lady once said that doing business is all about harmony and making money; don't cause trouble, but don't be afraid of trouble either.
Ling'er added, "If we take back these fragrant beads, we won't be able to sell them anymore. You..."
Before she could finish speaking, the maid slapped Ling'er across the face: "How dare you, Madam of the County Magistrate!"
"Open your dog eyes and see clearly, this is our county magistrate's wife."
The maidservant suddenly pushed Ling'er again, and Ling'er, caught off guard, fell to the side, knocking the magistrate's wife to the ground.
"Madam!" The noblewoman clutched her injured stomach, her face contorted in pain.
The maidservant quickly went over and helped the lady up, saying, "Our lady is pregnant, how dare you bump into her."
As he spoke, he gestured to the servant beside him to grab Ling'er.
Hearing the noise outside, Shen Qingnian lifted the curtain and came over.
Two servants were holding Ling'er's shoulders, as if they were about to take her away.
The woman beside him clutched her stomach, her brows furrowed with anger.
Shen Qingnian quickly stepped forward and stood in front of Ling'er: "Madam, I wonder what my sister has done to offend you?"
Looking at Shen Qingnian's stunningly beautiful face, the lady understood a thing or two.
It seems this is the person that important person wants.
She heard yesterday that the noble lady liked fragrant beads, so she came to Su's Fragrant Bead Shop and bought a string of them.
She had intended to give the incense beads to a noble person to pave the way for her husband, but today her husband took the beads to see the noble person, which displeased the noble person, who then locked her husband up.
Fortunately, someone came up with a solution for her, and the key to this solution was the shopkeeper's wife.
Looking at Shen Qingnian's poised and confident demeanor, she couldn't help but feel a little regretful.
She seems like a girl with integrity, it's a pity that her pretty face has held her back.
The maid standing nearby said aggressively, "This little girl bumped into my mistress's belly, and we're about to take her to be punished!"
Ling'er was so anxious that tears were about to well up in her eyes: "Miss, she hit me first, so I fought back. I don't know how I bumped into this lady."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingnian frowned. Regardless of who made the first move, it was a fact that Ling'er pushed the lady down.
The only option now is to apologize.
She thought for a moment and said, "The little girl is ignorant. I apologize to you on her behalf."
“In that case, I will return all the money for these incense beads and give you an additional ten taels of silver. What do you think?”
The lady glanced at the maid.
The maid curled her lip and rolled her eyes, saying, "Who wants your money? Our lady is of noble birth; would she give ten taels of silver to a beggar?"
The lady spoke again, "I never imagined that a mere maid in a shop could be so cunning and arrogant."
The more Shen Qingnian listened, the more uneasy she felt.
When did Ling'er become so arrogant? It was their fault to begin with, and now they're trying to frame Ling'er.
She suspected that the lady was there to cause trouble.
But she didn't know this lady at all, so what had she done to offend her?
Before Shen Qingnian could say anything more, the lady had already ordered her men to take Ling'er away.
"Ling'er!"
Shen Qingnian wanted to chase after them, but was blocked by the two maids in front of her.
"Where are you taking Ling'er?"
The lady boarded the carriage, turned around, and said, "Naturally, we should send her to the government office and give her fifty lashes."
Shen Qingnian's heart skipped a beat.
Fifty strokes of the cane! How could Ling'er possibly bear that!
She quickly went to the counter, took the silver, and headed to the government office.
Throughout the journey, she felt that something was amiss about what had happened today.
Just as Shen Qingnian had suspected, this lady, Jin, was indeed the wife of that official.
Jin had heard that a distinguished person from the capital had come to the Chen family today, and she wanted Old Madam Chen to help her get an audience with the person so that her husband could advance in his career.
Therefore, early this morning, Madam Jin and her husband went to the Chen residence to pay their respects to Old Madam Chen.
Madam Chen agreed only after seeing that the fragrant beads they brought looked quite good.
Unexpectedly, when Madam Chen took the incense beads to see the nobleman, she incurred his displeasure.
Her husband was arrested on trumped-up charges.
When Madam Chen saw that Xie Yanzhi was wearing a string of fragrant beads, she thought he would like it.
Xie Yanzhi was delighted; her son now had a powerful backer in his career, didn't he?
Thinking this, he took the incense beads to see Xie Yanzhi.
To everyone's surprise, Xie Yanzhi frowned as he looked at the fragrant bead: "Is this kind of low-class thing worth my trouble?"
"Yuan Qing, drag that official who dared to curry favor with me away and lock him up!"
Madam Chen's expression changed drastically, and she said somewhat nervously, "That person was foolish. He only heard that the young master was wearing fragrant beads and mistakenly thought that the young master liked them."
Xie Yanzhi rubbed his forehead and said coldly, "These beads are nowhere near as good as the ones made by the people who make incense beads!"
With that, he walked out.
After hearing this, Madam Chen thought for a moment and understood everything.
Sure enough, the young master took a liking to that lady that day.
Shen Qingnian's image flashed in her mind, and she could only sigh: Of all people to look like, Madam Fang just happened to resemble the young master's beloved cousin.
Upon seeing Madam Chen come out, Madam Jin quickly stepped forward.
"Madam, what's going on? Why did that noble lady lock my husband up?"
If they can't curry favor with someone, they don't have to lock them up!
As she spoke, she began to sob.
Madam Chen frowned and turned to look at Madam Jin: "If you want to save your husband, there is a way."
She couldn't very well say that the young master had taken a fancy to the young lady from the perfume shop.
He could only subtly hint to Madam Jin, "In the end, it was that Lady Fang who angered the young master, not your husband."
“The apology should naturally be made by Madam Fang.”
Jin suddenly looked up: "You mean..."
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