Chapter 72: Collusion
After the three-day free trial, customers started to flock to Huayingxue.
Pingning County can be said to be the largest city in Xinzhou. It is not far from several surrounding counties and has a ferry, making water transportation convenient. In addition, it is already prosperous and populous, so Huayingxue became famous in just a few days.
In addition to customers from the city and several nearby cities, there are even customers who come here by water specifically to buy.
The three-day trial was enough for those people to verify: the soap produced by Huayingxue is very easy to use, the ointment is very moisturizing and not greasy, and most importantly, the perfume and lip balm.
You only need to spray a little bit of perfume to make it last long. It is much simpler than incense, and there are many kinds of scents. You can choose according to your preferences. By the way, you can also mix them to create your favorite scent.
As for the lip balm, not to mention the many colors it comes in, it is moisturizing and fragrant when applied to the lips, and it is not easy to fade, so you don’t have to worry about the lip balm falling off shortly after going out.
In short, Hua Yingxue's business was more prosperous than expected. After Chen Ning and Su Lianyi settled the accounts, they were very happy again.
Of course, some are happy while others are sad. Some are happy while others are unhappy.
Li Qingqing entered the Xu family through the back door and became the concubine of Xu Fang, the third son of the second wife... and she was a concubine who was welcomed into the family only after the matter had been settled.
In addition, her family was impoverished and notorious, and she had a disabled brother and a cunning mother, so the Second Lady looked down on her.
It's just that the third son Xu Fang doesn't like his new fiancée who is too dignified and boring. Instead, he is very interested in Li Qingqing, who can let go and act like a mischief all day long. So Li Qingqing's life in the Xu family is not too difficult for the time being.
In addition to making a living, he also had enough energy to take care of his brother with a disabled leg and his mother Li Wanhua.
However, it was impossible for Li Wanhua to live the life she had lived before as a rich lady supported by Su Lianyi.
After all, Li Qingqing is just a concubine, and a concubine of a bastard. It is not easy to support them. At most, she can provide them with enough food and clothing. It is absolutely impossible to get anything extra.
Besides, Xu Fang seemed to be getting tired of her these days...
It was at this time that Li Qingqing met Mrs. Pan.
Mrs. Pan was the wife of the county magistrate. Even though she was just a slutty bitch who was promoted from a concubine, she was still the wife of the county magistrate after all. When she visited the second wife at the Xu family, the second wife still had to be polite to her.
When Mrs. Pan casually asked about Li Qingqing and said that she had known her before, the second wife asked someone to call Li Qingqing to accompany her.
When only Mrs. Pan and Li Qingqing were left, Mrs. Pan finally revealed her intentions.
"Madame Li was originally going to be the Third Young Master's wife. What a pity."
She deliberately poked Li Qingqing's lungs: "I just saw that the Second Madam didn't seem to care much about Concubine Li. If you were the Third Young Master's wife, the Second Madam, as a mother-in-law, wouldn't look down on you like this, right?"
Li Qingqing's expression suddenly became stiff.
She looked away and said stiffly, "What exactly do you want to say, Madam?"
"It's nothing, actually. I just felt sorry for you after learning about what happened to Concubine Li. Also, I was thinking... until now, you probably don't even know who hurt you to this point, right?"
Li Qingqing was stunned when she heard this: "What do you mean, Madam?"
Who else could have harmed her to this point but that lowly merchant girl Su Lianyi!
If Su Lianyi had not caught the adulterer in public and reported her brother to the government regardless of their marital relationship, how could the Li family have ended up in such a state.
She was originally a young lady from a noble family, and was a suitable match for the third young master's wife. However, because Su Lianyi did not remember their old friendship and caused a scene, the Li family was gone.
Her brother was disabled and had no official title, which completely ruined his future and also made her notorious. In order to save her brother, she had to give herself to Xu Fang, and now she was looked down upon by the old woman, the Second Madam.
"It's all because of that ungrateful, lowly merchant girl, Su Lianyi. My brother, despite his fame and success, didn't even look down on her background, yet she's so cruel and ruthless that she's ruined our entire family!"
Li Qingqing gritted her teeth in hatred, but there was nothing she could do.
In the final analysis, it was the Xu family that was noble, and she was just the concubine of the second son of the Xu family... What could she do to that merchant girl!
Across from her, Madam Pan smiled and shook her head: "I knew you couldn't figure out the whole story."
Under Li Qingqing's suspicious gaze, Madam Pan said quietly, "Have you ever thought about this? Su Lianyi has been married to your brother for three years, and your family has been thriving and peaceful. Why did she suddenly start making such a fuss?"
Li Qingqing frowned: "What exactly does Madam mean?"
“If I’m not mistaken, her change in attitude towards you started when she and that Widow Shen got involved in business together, right?”
Li Qingqing was stunned for a moment, then she remembered that it seemed to be true.
"Widow Shen has a younger brother named Shen Qingbai, who's studying at the county school. Your brother and his... lover are also studying at the county school. Su Lianyi is just a merchant's daughter, dealing in dirty money all day long. They've been living in peace for three years, so why would she suddenly become suspicious of your brother?"
Li Qingqing stood up suddenly: "It's that Shen family gossiping!"
That’s right, it must be like this. Shen’s brother was in the county school and lived close to her brother. He must have discovered something wrong and told Shen, and then Shen gossiped about it to Su Lianyi.
Otherwise, why would Su Lianyi suddenly become suspicious of her elder brother after three years?
The more Li Qingqing thought about it, the more she felt this was true, especially when she remembered the time she went to Mi Ji to find Su Lianyi and asked her to give 100 cans of food to the Xu family. Su Lianyi had already agreed by then, but it was that Shen who was meddling.
What a lowly village woman, so vicious that even after her husband died she still wanted to cause unrest in other people's homes, and ended up ruining her own marriage... She really deserves to die!
Madam Pan sighed, "Don't underestimate that village woman. My brother died at her hands, so I'm here to remind you not to be careless."
Li Qingqing gritted her teeth and said, "I will never let that widow go."
Madam Pan's eyes flashed with a triumphant smile, but her face was sincere. "You see, I may seem prosperous now, but in fact, I was just like you, a concubine... If we can't make decisions for ourselves, how can we expect others to do the same?"
Madam Pan took Li Qingqing's hand and spoke slowly, "Now you and I share the same hatred. If we have the chance in the future, we must work together to make that widow suffer a fate worse than death!"
Li Qingqing nodded heavily: "That's right...it's just that I can make some money. After all, I am a member of the Xu family now, so I will definitely find an opportunity to teach her a lesson!"
There was a glint of triumph in Mrs. Pan's eyes.
With a helper, it will be much easier to deal with that widow...
Chen Ning didn't know that the two people were secretly planning to harm her. She didn't even care about Hua Yingxue's business these days, but spent money lavishly.
Spend your money on something else.
“Bang…bang bang bang!”
Explosions were heard in the distant wilderness, sand and rocks flew, and flashes of fire appeared.
Shen Ning watched from afar, and finally revealed a satisfied expression: "It's done."
Beside them, Qiyue stared at the scene in amazement: "Is this the thunder bomb Miss mentioned? How... is it made? How can it be so terrifying?"
Shen Ning smiled and said, “It’s the thunder bomb, this is the power we want.”
These days, Shen Ning has devoted most of his attention to making explosives.
She is ready to go to Hai City.
Haishi is on the Xinzhou side, a day's waterway away from Pingning County. Haishi is prosperous there, and the Xinzhou navy is stationed there. However, the waterway from Pingning to Haishi is not very peaceful, and pirates occasionally appear.
You can do big business and make a lot of money in Hai City, but you also have to live to earn it and spend it. Apart from the hired guards who have been trained during this period, the Thunderbolt Bomb is Shen Ning's life-saving skill.
In today's naval battles, except for the imperial navy and some real dignitaries who are equipped with artillery with poor accuracy, most people rely on bows and arrows for long-range combat and hand-to-hand combat for close combat.
Once she made this thing, it would be absolutely invincible once she used it. Otherwise, she might not have the courage to go to Haishi and risk encountering pirates.
Mountains of gold and silver are not as important as your life. Even if you are extremely rich, it is not worth risking your life.
It’s a pity that there are no conditions to make guns now, otherwise, she would definitely set up a steel company... By then, who would dare to jump in front of her?
Well... just thinking about it.
Beside him, the usually calm Yuan Yue suddenly spoke up: "Miss, this thing is powerful, but if you use it outside, I'm afraid it will cause trouble."
If something like this were used on the battlefield, one can imagine its power.
It could belong to the imperial court, but if it were privately owned, it might be coveted by others, or even attract the attention of the imperial court and cause trouble.
Shen Ning knew his concerns and replied with a smile: “This thing is not just for this trip to Hai City, but also for self-protection. I won’t use it unless it is absolutely necessary... But if it comes to the point of using it, it doesn’t matter whether it will cause trouble or not.”
Yuan Yue immediately figured it out and bowed, "Yes."
That's true. If you encounter a life-or-death situation, the most important thing is to protect yourself, and you won't be able to worry about any other troubles.
The workers at Hua Yingxue's farm were busy non-stop, shipping batches of goods to the boat rented by Shen Ning and Su Lianyi. In addition to Hua Yingxue's things, there were also canned goods stored in the ice cellar, and a batch of thirteen spices that Shen Ning had people make a few days ago.
Three days later, she took February, July, and Su Lianyi with her and set off for Hai City...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
