Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 23 What is your noble surname, young master?

Qiu Niang came from a merchant family, so she knew the general rules of running a shop. She planned to help her daughter manage the accounts after Lu Jia opened the shop.

So, instead of taking the job of brushing umbrella ribs home to do, he now works directly in the umbrella shop, observing how others do things and taking the opportunity to refresh the skills he has neglected.

She found Xie Yi an old accountant who had previously managed Zhang's accounts to be his mentor, and now Xie Yi works with this old accountant at another grain store.

The family of three has been busy working outside lately. Lu Jia goes home early, so she has to take on the responsibility of buying groceries.

From the Hongtai ship downstream, the route was full of pedestrians, as well as vendors from nearby suburban counties selling local products and vegetables.

Lu Jia bought groceries and turned into Xichun Street, where there were noticeably fewer people.

Half a setting sun shone in our faces, and soon it disappeared behind the distant mountains, as twilight enveloped the earth.

As she walked, Lu Jia glanced back twice and unconsciously quickened her pace.

She lived in the Yan family for five years, and on the very night of her marriage, she was brutally beaten by Yan Qu. After that, everyone in the family knew that this Miss Lu, who had been living in the countryside for many years, was indeed unworthy of the Third Young Master's favor, thus beginning her days of misery.

The Yan family targeted her for two reasons: first, the Jiang mother and daughter were causing trouble behind the scenes; and second, Lu Jie was not always completely obedient to the Yan family.

Once the Yan family father and son felt uncomfortable in the court, Lu Jia, living deep within the mansion, naturally became the target of the women in the inner quarters.

In the first six months after marrying into the Yan family, Lu Jia faced life-or-death situations several times. After constantly hitting walls, she finally learned how to protect herself.

Even though it's easier to dodge a spear in the open than to guard against an arrow in the dark, she still managed to cleverly avoid a lot of harm during those five years, allowing herself to survive unscathed until five years later, and also accumulating the resources to escape.

If she hadn't been so eager to use the opportunity of the Yan family's funeral to escape, she wouldn't have deliberately taken the beating from Yan Qu that night, resulting in those injuries.

So how could Lu Jia have lost her vigilance when a crisis was approaching?

Several people followed behind her at a leisurely pace for a while, and Lu Jia immediately became alert.

Reaching a pile of bricks, she quickly picked up a brick, then turned around and demanded, "What do you want?!"

The four thugs who had been crept up behind her stopped abruptly, exchanged glances, and then walked towards her again.

"This little wench's pretty fierce? Guys, let's all go for her!"

After saying that, they actually blocked their way.

How can we possibly defeat them with just a brick?
A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle!

Lu Jia hurled a brick at them, then took advantage of their distraction and ran away! As she ran, she shouted "Help!"
……

The carriage stopped in front of the Xie family's gate, which was secured with a large lock.

He Qu stared at the door lock for a long time, then turned to Shen Qingzhou in the carriage and said, "Young Master, should I ask around the neighborhood again?"

Shen Qingzhou's eyes were as deep as the river.

"Need not."

If it weren't for that snowy night, he and Lu Jia would have been completely unrelated. And even though they crossed paths again on a snowy night six years later, they wouldn't have developed any real friendship.

He just wanted to know if Lu Jia was in Shawan; he didn't necessarily intend to meet her.

After all, it's troublesome to explain.

"Young master, what important matter do you insist on seeking out this Miss Lu?"

He Qu really didn't understand.

A glint of light flickered in Shen Qingzhou's eyes.

When Lu Jia chose to perish together with the Jiang family, her act of mutual destruction also gave Shen Qingzhou a chance to escape, allowing him to avoid being hunted down.

After opening the bundle, Shen Qingzhou finally understood why she had tried so hard to escape the Yan family.

Without Lu Jia, he would never have escaped the Yan family's swords.

Shen Qingzhou felt it was her responsibility to fulfill her last wish.

No one expected that he would die a few days later, without ever fulfilling his promise to her. But he was also lucky; he woke up before anything happened, and the forces he had secretly gathered to fight against the Yan family were still there.

In their previous lives, they directly investigated Yan Song, uncovering his crimes and submitting impeachments, but the Yan family father and son resolved each case one by one.

In this life, he wants to try a different path.

At this time, Yan Song proposed reforming the nation's water transport. Tanzhou was also an important water transport town. During his convalescence, Shen Qingzhou discovered from the records of Tanzhou's water transport that the prosperity of Tanzhou was extremely inconsistent with the famine in Shawan mentioned in Li Daoshi's letter.

So, of course, I came to Tanzhou to do serious business.

However, he and Lu Jia had fought side by side in their previous life, and given his status, it wouldn't take much effort for him to help Lu Jia now.

But before we can pull her away, we have to find her first, right?
"Wait a little longer. If we really can't find anyone, then we'll leave."

He leaned back on the pillow and closed his eyes.

He Qu said worriedly, "But young master, you only ate some thin porridge today, and you are not fully recovered yet."

Shen Qingzhou thought about it and agreed.

"Go and buy two steamed buns."

The steamed buns shouldn't be spicy.

He Qu quickly ran away.

Shen Qingzhou closed his eyes again, just as he was about to adjust to a comfortable position and wait for the Xie family to open the door, when a sharp cry for help pierced his ears like a needle!

"……Help!"

It's another woman...

Shen Qingzhou subconsciously opened his eyes, opened the car door with one hand, and held onto the car frame with the other. With a forceful push, he was already on the ground.

Lu Jia knew that she would be safe once she got out of this street.

But these thugs were strong men after all. They caught up with her after she had run about ten steps.

There were densely packed houses on both sides, so they didn't dare to be too bold. Four people blocked her in the middle, one person was in charge of keeping watch, two people blocked the front and back sides, and the rest grabbed Lu Jia's arm without saying a word.

When it comes to fighting, Lu Jia knows nothing.

But she'll fight tooth and nail!

The thug grabbed her arm, and she bit down hard. The thug cried out in pain, grabbed her hair, and slapped her, but she wouldn't let go.

Several people came over to help, and together they pushed her to the ground.

When Shen Qingzhou arrived, panting, he saw several people ganging up on a frail girl. The girl's face was pressed to the ground, her hands were tied behind her back, and she was like a fish on a chopping board.

He stepped forward, panting, grabbed one of them, and then swept that person across the other three.

Suddenly, a series of pig-like screams rang out, and the four people collapsed to the ground.

Lu Jia was already thinking about how to leave clues so that Xie Yi would come looking for her after she was arrested, but unexpectedly, her savior appeared!
Before she could even get up, she turned her head and saw the group of people running around frantically, while another person stood in the middle of the road, pale-faced, staring coldly at their backs.

Looking at the half of his face that he was facing, you could already tell that he was quite handsome, a dashing young man!

Lu Jia quickly got up: "Thank you for saving me, young master."

Shen Qingzhou was already in poor health, and since waking up from her coma, she had never been so overworked.

Just as he was about to sit down and rest, he heard the sound and turned his gaze to Lu Jia's face.

Upon seeing this, he froze.

Lu Jia hesitated, "May I ask your surname, young master?"

Could there be something wrong with this handsome young man's head?
As soon as she finished speaking, she saw him sway and fall straight forward, then collapse at her feet with a thud!
……

(End of this chapter)