Chapter 180 He Wants to Coax Chen Ning into Engaging Him
Just as Concubine Xu and her daughter calmly changed the topic from chatting about family matters to Shen Ning in the Empress Dowager's Palace, Shen Ning was listening to people talking about business in the private room of the restaurant outside.
The private room was very large. Shen Ning did not show up, but sat inside and listened through the partition.
The person outside was the shopkeeper whom she borrowed from Xie Yunqing, whose surname was Li.
The Shen's Silk Shop is now full of people left behind by the Xie family. The shopkeeper is also surnamed Xie, and Shen Ning doesn't want to use him for the time being.
Opposite Shopkeeper Li was the manager of the famous Changfeng Weaving Company. Changfeng Weaving Company came to their silk company to place an order for raw silk.
Chen Ning knew that the Changfeng Weaving Company was the largest weaving company in the capital and the surrounding provinces except for the Royal Weaving and Dyeing Bureau. Every year, more than half of the silk in the capital came from the Changfeng Weaving Company.
In the past, the original Xie's Silk Shop, which is now the Shen's Silk Shop in Chen Ning's hands, also supplied goods to Changfeng Weaving Shop, but it had never received such a large order in previous years.
Most of the previous orders were several thousand kilograms, and no more than five thousand gold. But this time, Changfeng Weaving Company wanted to order a full 30,000 kilograms of raw silk from them.
This business was too big, and Shopkeeper Li didn't dare to make the decision on his own, so Chen Ning, the owner of the silk shop, came to take charge.
Shen Ning listened to the conversation outside and pondered in her heart.
The climate has improved since the beginning of spring this year, silk production has increased, and the price of raw silk is not high. If you go out a little, you can buy the best raw silk for eight or nine cents. If you bargain or go a little further, it is not impossible to get seven or eight cents.
Based on the price of eight coins per catty, 30,000 catties of raw silk would require a capital of 24,000 taels of silver... If sold to Changfeng Weaving Company, the price would generally be between one tael and three coins and one tael and four coins. Based on one tael and three coins, the gross profit would be 15,000 taels.
This is indeed a huge deal.
Outside, the owner of Changfeng Weaving Shop acted a little impatient, implying that he was giving their silk shop this opportunity to make money because of the business dealings they had in previous years, but he didn't know that the owner had changed.
If Shen's Silk Shop wants to make this deal, they should make a decision quickly, otherwise they will go to their old customers.
The more impatient the shopkeeper became, as if he regretted coming to Shen's Silk Shop, and the more he urged them to make a decision, the more alert Shen Ning became.
Shopkeeper Li came in to ask her for advice, and Shen Ning told him not to rush to sign the agreement and told him that we need to consider it for two days.
Shopkeeper Li hesitated. "The shopkeeper at Changfeng Weaving didn't want to give us time. He said if we couldn't make up our minds, we should go find someone else. They're in a hurry."
Chen Ning smiled and said, "Of course we can't force them to find another buyer. It doesn't matter. Business matters can't be rushed. Just reply like this. If they can wait, give them a reply in two days. If they can't wait, it doesn't matter. Please let them do as they please."
Shopkeeper Li hesitated for a long time, then finally sighed and went out to answer.
This new owner is really young and timid... Others will pay a deposit when placing an order, so how can he cheat them out of such a huge sum of money?
This is a big deal with a profit of over 10,000 taels...
Outside, upon hearing that they needed two days to consider it, the manager of Changfeng Weaving Company snorted coldly and left with a flick of his sleeves. Shen Ning asked someone to send Manager Li back, and he planned to take July and February to have dinner before returning.
But at this moment, there was a knock on the private room door.
Qiyue opened the door and saw a familiar face. Her face immediately turned cold: "What?"
It was the tall guard beside Xu Zhiyi. The guard seemed a little afraid of Qiyue and quickly bowed: "The third master wants to see Shen Xiangjun, saying that there is something important."
"Wait."
Qi Yue was in a bad mood when she saw the person who had defeated her before. She turned to Shen Ning and became soft-spoken again.
Shen Ning hesitated for a moment, but then she thought, in the future in the capital, she would see him every day, and she couldn't hide from Xu Zhiyi all her life.
Just proceed with caution.
"I'll go over and take a look."
Although she felt that the "important matter" that Mr. Xu San mentioned might be something strange, Shen Ning still decided to go and see him.
I haven't seen him do anything out of the ordinary since he came to Beijing. What if something really happened?
A moment later, she walked into another private room diagonally opposite.
"I thought you were afraid to come see me."
Xu Zhiyi was wearing a moon-white brocade robe, with raised eyebrows and a mischievous smile.
Shen Ning remained calm: "Third Master, you are joking. You are not a monster, what should I be afraid of?"
"Call again."
Shen Ning was speechless: “Uncle.”
Xu Zhiyi finally smiled: "Be good... come and sit down, uncle will give you some candy."
Shen Ning: ...
I feel inexplicably irritated when I see this person.
She sat down opposite Xu Zhiyi and said patiently, "Uncle, if you have anything important to say, just tell me."
"Well...it's a good thing."
Xu Zhiyi peeled a grape and put it in his mouth. While eating, he said vaguely: "Someone wants to propose marriage to you."
Shen Ning looked up: "Who is it?"
In the end, Xu Zhiyi started talking but refused to finish. He slowly peeled the grapes, the juice dripping down his jade-like fingers: "What, are you scared?"
Shen Ning was speechless. In fact, she could guess who it was without asking, but she got angry when she saw Xu Zhiyi like this, so she reached out and snatched the grape from his hand and threw it aside.
Xu Zhiyi paused for a moment, then looked up helplessly: "If you want to ask for help, you should act like you're asking for help."
"Forget it."
Shen Ning stood up directly.
Xu Zhiyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Hey, you have a bad temper. You can't stand being teased... Sit down and let your uncle talk to you properly."
Shen Ning glanced at him, then sat down again.
"I'm really scared of you."
Xu Zhiyi laughed, reached out to pour a cup of tea for Shen Ning, and then spoke.
"Empress Xu recommended you to the Empress Dowager, hoping you would marry her nephew... a poor, tuberculotic creature. As for who's behind this, let me think about it. Your good sister first went to see my eldest niece, who then went to the palace to see my good sister... Hmm, there are quite a few people involved, all working together to deal with you."
Shen Ning sneered: “These people don’t even have innovative tricks to harm people.”
"No, no, no, there is a difference."
Xu Zhiyi raised an eyebrow: "Madam Xu's is called a proposal of marriage, you can refuse it, but the Queen Mother's is called an arranged marriage, that is an imperial decree."
Shen Ning raised her eyelids: "So?"
Across from her, Xu Zhiyi glanced at her, then looked away, his eyelashes drooping and his lips curled: "I have a plan, do you want to hear it?"
Shen Ning raised her eyebrows: "Oh? What method?"
Before he finished speaking, a smile appeared in Xu Zhiyi's peach blossom eyes: "Let's tell everyone that you and I are in love...how about that?"
Chen Ning chuckled: "I'm hurting the enemy by a thousand while hurting myself by a thousand and a half."
Xu Zhiyi didn't mind at all: "What are you afraid of? You don't care about those false reputations, and I don't care either... At worst, we won't get married in the future, and I will be single with you."
Shen Ning shook her head without hesitation: "No need, no need, I don't really care about reputation."
Xu Zhiyi tutted his words, "You don't know what's good for you."
Shen Ning: Hehe...
"It seems you've been prepared..."
Xu Zhiyi held out his hand: "Compensate me with grapes."
Shen Ning: ...
She plucked a grape from the bunch and handed it over: "Here you go."
Mr. Xu San squinted his eyes and said, "It's not peeled... Hmm."
Before he could finish his words, Shen Ning stuffed the grape into his mouth. Uncle Xu was caught off guard and almost choked. After he finally swallowed it, Shen Ning had already stood up to leave.
"Are you seeking revenge?"
Master Xu San covered his neck and said, "I almost shot you, and now you want to choke me to death?"
Shen Ning ignored it.
But when he reached the door, he heard Xu Zhiyi's voice behind him suddenly become serious.
"If I say that I shot that arrow because I knew it would never hit you... would you believe me?"
Shen Ning paused slightly, but did not look back.
The next moment, she opened the door and walked out.
I heard Mr. Xu Sanye smacking his lips behind me.
"...He's quite vindictive."
After Chen Ning returned home, she told Xie Yunqing about the arranged marriage. Xie Yunqing was almost furious, but seeing that Chen Ning was still calm, he managed to hold back and said, "Ning Ning, do you have any ideas?"
Chen Ning nodded: "If you want to mess with my marriage, I will start wearing linen and vegetarian clothes tomorrow and say that I dreamed of my late husband Zhao Mu. I will eat vegetarian food and chant sutras for Zhao Mu for a year... The Queen Mother can't force someone who is observing mourning to get married, right?"
"Ah? This..."
Xie Yunqing didn't want his daughter to be associated with things like "widow" and "observing mourning" at all. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I'll go talk to your aunt about it."
Xie Yunqing went to the palace that afternoon, and Xie Yunyan made the decision without hesitation: if anyone had any intentions towards Shen Ning, she would say that she was planning to marry Shen Ning to the Sixth Prince.
Cousins are naturally closer than those with others.
This is indeed a method.
That was why, when she met Xiao Nanchen and Shen Qingbai the next day, Shen Ning was ready to ask Xiao Nanchen if this method was feasible.
After all, Xiao Nanjin is a prince. Even if he is his cousin, it would be difficult for Emperor Jiaping to agree to marry a widow.
However, as soon as they met, before Shen Ning could speak, Xiao Nanchen mentioned the matter first with a gloomy expression.
"The Queen Mother intends to introduce you to her nephew Zhou Ping."
His Royal Highness Prince Ding had already known about this yesterday, and he almost wanted to leave the palace and send the Queen Mother's consumptive nephew away immediately.
But then, His Royal Highness Prince Ding had other ideas.
The reason why he didn't send anyone to tell Chen Ning the whole night was because he was struggling with his conscience... Xiao Nanchen wanted to take this opportunity to coax Chen Ning into getting engaged to him...
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