Having solved the immediate problem, Manager Wang insisted on treating Lan Ya Mei to drinks, but Lan Ya Mei politely declined, turning to say, "I've come here today to ask Manager Wang for help with something."
"Please speak, Manager Lan. I will do my best to help in any way I can."
"Alright! Then I'll get straight to the point. As you've probably seen these past few days, an elderly man sells tofu pudding at my shop every morning. He's a distant relative of mine. He's getting old, and it's not a long-term solution for him to keep going back and forth like this. So I'm thinking of buying a place for him to live in, so that the children can have more time to study. I wonder if Manager Wang has any suitable places to recommend?"
Shopkeeper Wang has been green with envy these past few days, and the old man knows it himself. He runs a small, shabby stall at the end of the street, selling tofu pudding, business isn't great, and he has a quiet child to take care of—he's living a pitiful life. Now, he's become a distant relative of Shopkeeper Lan, and his business is booming, making everyone green with envy.
It must have been Manager Lan who gave the advice, so I quickly said, "Manager Lan, since he's a distant relative of yours, it's better if he stays closer so it's easier to take care of him. There are indeed shops along this street, but as you know, they're not cheap. Of course, with you here, everything is a small matter! But it's always good to save money where we can! There's a small woodshed next to my hotel; the entrance isn't very bright, and we mainly use it to store odds and ends. If you don't mind, you can use it; we're all family."
Manager Wang led the person to the door and pointed. Only then did Lan Yamei notice that there was a low building next to Zuixianglou. It was not very tall and had no windows, but it was two stories high. Next to it was the river.
"Let me open it and show you," said Manager Wang, taking out his key and unlocking the door. The room was spotless, with wine, meat, vegetables, and oil, and a lot of firewood neatly stacked along the side, clearly used as a storeroom.
Walk a few steps further in, and you'll see a narrow staircase, which is clean and tidy. The upstairs area is empty, with many unused bowls lying around. There is a window upstairs that offers a view of the main street outside.
Lan Yamei was very satisfied with the house. "Manager Wang, I'll buy this house. How much do you think is a reasonable price?"
"Bought it?" Manager Wang was somewhat surprised.
“I bought it. Living here isn’t a solution. We need our own home. Do you have a land deed for this woodshed?” Lan Yamei asked.
"I have the land deed. To be honest, this house used to be the old Zuixianglou, but business was good, so they built a bigger one next door, and this place has been vacant ever since. Since Manager Lan has taken a liking to it, I'll do you a favor and sell it to you. The location is pretty good, it's in the middle of the street, and the market price is 10,000 taels, but I'll take 8,000 taels from you. What do you think?"
“Okay!” Lan Yamei readily agreed, and took out the silver notes that Aunt Guan had just given her from her bosom, counted out eight thousand taels, and gave them to Manager Wang.
Manager Wang first gave out the keys, then immediately went to get the property deed.
Taking advantage of this free time, Lan Yamei roughly planned out the room and had some ideas in mind.
After receiving the land deed from Manager Wang, he didn't forget to give him a little something extra. "Manager Wang, you should open for business as soon as possible! You must have heard that Hua Man Lou is going to hold a martial arts auction in three days to auction a martial arts treasure."
Manager Wang looked blank, seemingly lost in his own work and oblivious to the outside world.
Then he continued, "Think about it, since it's a martial arts treasure, everyone in the martial arts world must be envious. A large number of people will flock to Longyang Town. Do you think any family on this street will make money?"
They were all shrewd people; they understood immediately. Shopkeeper Wang was extremely grateful and ran off in a flash, beaming with joy.
Leaving the door open while they moved their things, Lan Yamei returned to her shop. She had intended to find a few of the less busy female employees to clean up, but everyone was too busy. So she found Tie Tou and instructed him, "Make sure to prepare plenty of wine and meat these next few days, the more the better. Our time to make a fortune has arrived! Make sure everyone eats well, these days will be tiring. After the auction, I will give everyone a cash reward."
Tie Tou knew nothing of these things; he simply did as the shopkeeper instructed and went to the market to buy meat and wine. After all, Meng Lan's delivery was limited and would be consumed within a day; to stockpile a large quantity, they had to buy from the market.
Lan Yamei went out again and found a few day laborers waiting for work at the market. She brought them back to the newly bought house and assigned them cleaning tasks.
Everything was ready. Lan Yamei returned to the barbecue restaurant, craving a sip of soda water. Behind everyone's back, she poured some into a glass, sat down near the entrance, and watched the people go by on the street. A sip of soda water, a bite of crispy pork dipped in chili powder—it was incredibly pleasant. Meanwhile, she was pondering how to actually conduct the auction.
The comfort lasted no more than three minutes before Qiu Zeyu hurriedly returned on horseback.
Seeing that Lan Ya Mei was relaxed, he must have been very thirsty, so he took the remaining half cup of water and gulped it down.
It tasted sweet, unlike plain water or tea. Just as I was about to see what kind of water it was, I finished it.
Just as Qiu Zeyu was about to ask, Lan Yamei quickly pulled him upstairs and changed the subject, "Why are you rushing back now? What's wrong?"
Qiu Zeyu told him that the Emperor had asked him to find food.
"Oh, so you were looking for me?"
"The hot pot we had last time was so delicious that I wanted to eat it again. I think it would be nice to offer it to His Majesty. Why don't you help me out?" Qiu Zeyu acted like a little boyfriend, pouting at Lan Yamei for the first time.
Lan Yamei couldn't resist the praise and shyly agreed. Just as she turned to prepare, Qiu Zeyu grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms, saying, "Let me kiss you first."
He gently kissed Lan Yamei on the forehead before pulling her into his arms.
Lan Ya Mei naturally knew his feelings, and gently wrapped her arms around his waist. At this moment, the world was so peaceful and beautiful.
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