Shang Shaoyan and Qiao Xiuyu appeared in the dining room hand in hand, and were greeted by a table full of bright red dishes and an irresistible aroma of chili peppers in the air. Qiao Xiuyu sneezed several times.
Shang Shaoyan's eyes were filled with nostalgia as she looked at the table full of spicy food with emotion—she hadn't touched chili peppers in so long since she came to this world!
Chili peppers were considered a luxury item in Shengjing, and were very expensive. The Duke of Zhenguo's mansion had previously spent a lot of money to forge weapons and replenish military funds, so the brother and sister usually tried to save as much money as possible and would not buy chili peppers.
Now, smelling this familiar fragrance, Shang Shaoyan almost shed tears of emotion, feeling as if his whole being had been elevated!
She eagerly pulled Qiao Xiuyu to sit down, and once everyone was there, they began to eat.
Shang Shaoyan ate with relish, occasionally putting food on Qiao Xiuyu's plate: "Seventh Brother, this is spicy diced chicken."
"Qilang, try this stir-fried pork with chili peppers."
"Qilang, try the pickled pepper pig liver."
"Shichiro..."
Qiao Xiuyu is actually not very good at eating spicy food.
But Shang Shaoyan's repeated calls of "Seventh Brother" made him dizzy and disoriented, and in his euphoria, he unknowingly ate a lot.
By the time he realized he wasn't feeling well, he had already eaten three bowls of rice and a third of the dishes on the table—mainly because Bai Lu, Cheng Chu, and Xu Xian felt a bit uncomfortable after a few bites, so they all started drinking soup.
Qiao Xiuyu looked at the bowl in front of her: "..."
Just as he was about to put down his chopsticks, he saw Shang Shaoyan turn to look at him, his lips red from the spiciness, and he looked at him with a hint of admiration: "Qilang can actually handle so much spice!"
Under such gazes, Qiao Xiuyu felt confident again, and then devoured half of the remaining dishes.
While Qiao Xiuyu was eating, Shang Shaoyan looked at Xu Xian, his smile concealing a dagger: "Why isn't Lord Xu eating? Do you find the food at my county princess's residence unpalatable?"
Xu Xian was drinking soup when he heard this and choked. He put down his bowl and smiled sheepishly, "I didn't expect it to be so spicy."
Shang Shaoyan widened his eyes and blinked innocently: "Really? Lord Xu is quite talented, able to write such wonderful stories, so he must be able to handle spicy food without any problem!"
Xu Xian: "..."
He knew it!
But Xu Xian was prepared. He took out a few silver notes from his pocket and handed them to Shang Shaoyan with a fawning smile: "Your Highness really reminded me. This is the profit sharing we agreed on before. Please take a look."
Shang Shaoyan's expression softened slightly. She took the silver notes, counted them roughly, and found that there were several thousand taels.
She calculated her current assets and felt that she was probably a small-time rich woman, which improved her mood. She decided to let Xu Xian off the hook for the time being, but she still had to give him a warning: "It's good that Lord Xu knows what he should and shouldn't say... I believe you know very well what you should and shouldn't say."
These words had a hidden meaning, and Xu Xian's heart trembled. He naturally thought of his previous guess—that the Princess of Heyang had rebellious intentions.
However, he dared not think too deeply about it.
Xu Xian always advocated the principle of self-preservation, but he would not disregard the lives of ordinary people like Prefect Yan.
The reason he was willing to go to such a remote place as Shuzhou was to avoid the treacherous power struggles in Shengjing. Of course, this also means that he was not loyal to the royal family. He only cared about the common people and whether he could "cultivate himself, regulate his family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world".
In Shang Shaoyan's view, Xu Xian is a true gentleman.
However, she wasn't sure if Xu Xian could be recruited, so the best outcome was for Xu Xian to remain silent and neutral.
Thinking this, Shang Shaoyan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Lord Xu. As long as you behave yourself, I have as many of those good things as Qing Shui Li as you want."
Xu Xian's eyes lit up, and he readily agreed: "Don't worry, Your Highness, I will not write or say anything recklessly again."
He paused, then seemed to remember something and laughed: "I've known since I was a child that your abilities are no less than yours, and I would never think that you can only be a good wife and mother... Princess, I am very much looking forward to seeing how far you can go."
Shang Shaoyan patted the somewhat uneasy Qiao Xiuyu reassuringly, then raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Then Lord Xu, just keep a close eye on things."
...
Shengjing, the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.
As usual, Shang Yunlan discussed matters with Boss Qian today. Half a month ago, they had already released the secret recipe for the floral soap. Now that the market for floral soap is saturated and prices are gradually returning to normal, Boss Qian can be considered to have successfully retired.
"Did you go to see Boss Zhou the other day?" Shang Yunlan slowly took a sip of tea. He was feeling much better now. "I have a new business to hand over to him. The reason I didn't give it to you is so that you wouldn't attract too much attention. Otherwise, those who don't get along with me will naturally include you in my camp, and there will be a lot of trouble in the future."
Mr. Qian naturally understood this principle, and he was already quite satisfied with the money he had made from his scented soaps, so he was not greedy: "Sir, Mr. Zhou used to be a scholar, and scholars naturally have a sense of aloofness and pride. He has never really associated with people like us who have been in business for generations... I went to see him once before and explained your intentions, but he only said he would consider it and did not agree."
Shang Yunlan frowned, somewhat puzzled: "A scholar? How did he become a merchant?"
Mr. Qian lowered his voice: "When his grandfather was alive, he was a minor official. Later, for some reason, he was imprisoned by the late emperor, his father died, and his mother was not registered as a courtesan. It's already quite good that he was able to go into business."
In just a few words, he told the story of a man's tumultuous life, which is just as the saying goes: "Every grain of dust in the era becomes a mountain when it falls on a person."
Shang Yunlan remained silent for a moment, then nodded without saying anything more: "In that case, I will go to see him in person another day."
Soon it was noon. A quarter past noon was the time for Shang Yunlan to have the poison removed. Lin Jing had been waiting in the side room for a while. After Shang Yunlan had Qingzhu see Boss Qian off, she began to remove the poison.
Lin Jing slowly and deliberately disinfected his set of gold needles, then looked at Shang Yunlan with a serious expression: "Yao Chen, do you still remember when I told you that there is a 30% chance of death when removing poison to cure disease?"
Shang Yunlan nodded, showing no fear on her face: "I remember."
Seeing that he wasn't afraid, Lin Jing smiled slightly: "Today is the ninth time the poison has been extracted, and it's also the most dangerous one. If you get through this, everything will go smoothly afterward. If you don't..."
Lin Jing didn't say anything more, but Shang Yunlan knew that he was still smiling, his face gentle: "That's fate."
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