The daily life of a space tycoon raising children, doting on his husband, and farming.

Chapter 230 A little famous
Winter snow falls, and thousands of pear trees bloom.

Before we knew it, it was December, almost the end of the year.

"Brother Zhang, where are you going in the snow?"

"It's all because that woman at home insisted that I go to the Spirit Medicine Pavilion to buy some new Snow Plum Ointment. She said if I went too late, I wouldn't be able to get any. She's always making a fuss."

The man in the cotton-padded coat complained, shook the snow off his umbrella, and waved to the person opposite him, "I have to go buy something. Let's drink together another day."

"Okay, the roads are slippery in the snow, be careful not to fall."

The man hurried toward the Spirit Medicine Pavilion, holding an umbrella.

It snowed heavily all night, and the roads were covered with a thin layer of ice. Although many of the ice had been broken by early risers, the chill was still intense.

A cold wind blew by, making people's faces turn red and their necks hunched over.

But this did not stop the long queues in front of the Spirit Medicine Pavilion.

"Don't rush, everyone." Lou Niangzi and the shop assistants were heating up soy milk for the men and women in line. "Have a bowl of hot soy milk first, and you'll warm up when you go inside."

Soy milk is inexpensive, a bowl costs only two copper coins, and you can get a refill if it's not enough.

On a freezing cold day, most people would be willing to pay for a bowl of hot water.

Lou Niangzi also discovered a business opportunity. Taking advantage of the customers of Lingyao Pavilion, she sold ice jelly, cold jelly and sour plum drink in the summer, lung-nourishing and thirst-quenching snow pear soup in the autumn, and hot and sweet soy milk in the winter.

If you happen to encounter customers during mealtimes, you can bring a lot of business to the store.

What? You're saying there are so many restaurants on this street, why don't other places follow suit?
Why else? Because Lady Lou has a good relationship with the shopkeeper of Lingyao Pavilion. Not only can she get inside information, but she can also sometimes give out a few beta testing slots for new products from Lingyao Pavilion.

Do you think other restaurant owners have this ability? Do they even bother with him?
Lingyao Pavilion's Jade Complexion Powder and White Jade Cream are in high demand and short supply in the Suzhou and Hangzhou area. White Jade Cream, in particular, is so popular that almost every young woman and married woman owns a box. Some people even travel from afar to the small Dongning County to buy it, only to be attracted by other products from Lingyao Pavilion and buy them wholesale to take back and resell.

Over time, the reputation of Lingyao Pavilion spread far and wide, becoming well-known not only in the Jiangnan region of Suzhou and Hangzhou but also in the capital.

The medicines from Lingyao Pavilion, whether ingested or applied to the face or body, are all safe and effective.

Being able to use the new products from the Spirit Medicine Pavilion before others is something that many people would envy.

At this moment, inside the Spirit Medicine Pavilion, unlike the icy and snowy outside, it was warm as spring.

Knowing that winters in Dongning County are cold, Shang Wan made a special request when renovating the shop to turn the east and west walls into fire walls. In winter, charcoal would be burned, and the smoke would circulate through the hollow walls along the flue, not only keeping out the cold but also warming the whole room.

At first, Shang Wan wanted to build all four walls as fire walls, but if she wasn't careful, the whole shop could turn into a steamer or cause carbon monoxide poisoning. After weighing the pros and cons, she only built two fire walls.

Even so, the heating effect is still significant.

It uses a lot of charcoal.

Fortunately, Shang Wan had stockpiled a batch of charcoal during the hot weather, so they can still afford to burn it now.

The guests who stepped into the Spirit Medicine Pavilion all sighed uncomfortably, even sticking out their hunched necks.

"Shopkeeper, Mr. Duanmu requests your presence at the counter in a moment." Liu Cheng returned after delivering medicinal herbs to the two clinics and strode to the counter.

"I understand." Shang Wan, without looking up, asked while keeping the accounts behind the counter, "Have all the gifts been given out?"

Liu Cheng nodded with a smile: "I reckon the return gift will arrive soon."

"There are a lot of people in the store today, so keep a close eye on things and don't let anyone take advantage of the situation." Shang Wan closed the ledger and came out from behind the counter after finishing the last entry.

Today she was wearing a silver-red jacket embroidered with begonia patterns. A white rabbit fur trim around the collar accentuated her fair complexion, and her delicate features made her a living advertisement for the Spirit Medicine Pavilion.

It's no wonder that women flock to the Lingyao Pavilion.

The men secretly lamented, wondering how the beautiful shopkeeper could already be taken.
After boarding the carriage through the back door, Shang Wan said to the driver, "To the estate."

The driver was a villager named Liu Zhong, an honest man. Because Shang Wan's medicine had saved his wife and children's lives, he volunteered to work as Shang Wan's driver without pay. He was skilled at taking care of animals, raising horses to be glossy, plump, and strong, and his driving skills were also quite good, so Shang Wan kept him on. Of course, Shang Wan still paid him.

Liu Zhong agreed and gently lashed the horse's rump with his whip.

The obedient horse pulled the cart out of the city.

Shang Wan was just about to take a nap when she suddenly remembered something, raised her hand and knocked on the side of the carriage, "Uncle Liu, let's go to the county school first."

With the Lunar New Year approaching, the county school will begin its holiday this afternoon and will not resume until the tenth day of the Lunar New Year.

Judging by the time, Shang Wan thought she would pick up Lu Chengjing from school on the way.

The carriage turned a corner and headed towards the county school.

Several carriages were parked not far from the county school. Shang Wan lifted the curtain and looked out, and found that the Qiao family's carriage was also there, probably to pick up Qiao Yu'an.

Just as I was thinking this, two figures, one in purple and one in moon white, walked over side by side.

The young man in purple smiled and said, "Let's go to Baoyuezhai for dinner. It's on me."

"I..." The young man with the white hair had only uttered one word when he suddenly noticed a familiar carriage and the people getting off it.

"I have other things to do, you go by yourself." Lu Chengjing walked quickly towards the carriage, his steps hurried, leaving Qiao Yu'an, who was traveling with him, behind.

"Hey, why are you walking so fast?"

Qiao Yu'an, puzzled, chased after her. Only when she got closer did she see Shang Wan getting off the carriage. She couldn't help but mutter, "She values ​​romance over friendship."

Lu Chengjing, that rascal, can't see anyone else as long as his wife is around. It's not like they're newlyweds anymore, he's getting more and more clingy. Why wasn't he like this before?
Despite thinking that way, Qiao Yu'an still waved to Shang Wan.

Shang Wan returned his smile.

Qiao Yu'an invited, "Perfect timing, let's go to Baoyuezhai for dinner together. Let's bring Yuanyuan over too, I haven't seen her for quite some time."

“Not today, I have to go to the estate,” Shang Wan said. “How about the day after tomorrow? It’ll be my treat, Baoyuezhai again.”

"That's a deal."

"Ah."

Just then, Ah Le came over with an umbrella to pick someone up, so Qiao Yu'an said goodbye and left.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and a glimpse of a black hem flashed by.

"Qiao Yugui is in the carriage." Shang Wan withdrew her gaze, tiptoed to brush the snow off Lu Chengjing's hair, and pulled him into the carriage.

As Lu Chengjing spoke, he exhaled a puff of white breath, "He's been much quieter lately."

Shang Wan picked up the copper kettle on the small stove and poured him a cup of hot goat milk.

Lu Chengjing lowered his eyes and slowly drank, the rising steam softening his cool and aloof features.

The goat milk was a little hot, so he puffed out his cheeks and blew on it gently. Suddenly, his cheeks felt warm, and a fair, warm hand landed on them.

Her eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly lifted them.

Shang Wan smiled, her eyes crinkling, and looked at him with her chin resting on her hand.

"You've gained some weight in your face."

He casually pinched the soft flesh on the cheek of the person next to him with two fingers.

Three main meals, two snacks, and a late-night snack a day—that's enough to feed a person.

It still feels better to have meat in your hand.