She fell out after crying at the wrong grave

The newly hung plaque flows eastward, and the shop is crowded with people.

The charcoal fire was burning so vigorously that passers-by all stopped to watch.

"I guess Manager Cui and Manager Zhou don't know the rules of our Chamber of Commerce?" Liu Jingming fanned himself and said nothing, but a servant standing next to him spoke for him.

"Oh? What rules are you referring to?" A'er followed his words and continued to pass on.

The servant cleared his throat and said as if he was leaning against a big tree to enjoy the shade, "This is what you new merchants don't understand. Anyone who wants to do business on this East and West Street must first register with the Chamber of Commerce, then pay the membership fee, and meet the head manager before the procedures are complete."

It turned out that he came to ask for money.

Recalling the time before the New Year when Hengzhi blamed Wei Guohui for shoveling snow, and asked him to return the money to A'ao. This matter has been postponed until now, and A'ao has never seen Wei Guohui in person, let alone return the money.

This New Year is so busy, who has time to take care of this?

However, since Liu Jingming was in the same group as Wei Guohui, the former was a businessman and the latter was an official, it was natural that Liu Jingming had to follow behind him and clean up his mess.

No matter when the manager Liu comes, he will come anyway.

"We were in a rush before the New Year, and we heard that Manager Liu was unwell during the snowy weather and had been taking a leave of absence from the Chamber of Commerce. So we thought it would be inconvenient to disturb him, so we delayed it until now." Ah'an leaned forward and replaced Liu Jingming's cup of hot tea. "I plan to have my sister do the filing tomorrow. As for the membership fee, since you are here in person, of course it's up to you to decide."

The moment she got close, Ah-yi suddenly smelled a strange scent. She couldn't tell if it was the scent sachet she was wearing or something else. Anyway, it was very familiar, as if she had smelled it somewhere before.

After hearing this, Liu Jingming smiled and continued, "The two ladies are so sensible, I'm sure your business will be successful in the future."

correct!

It was the smell of the man I met outside Xuyun Temple that day.

At this moment, Ah-yi had countless questions in her mind about the coincidence of these two things. Even so, she still maintained a harmless smile on her face.

"Thank you for your kind words."

"Since my lady is so clear-headed, I will speak frankly." Liu Jingming took out a piece of paper with a cinnabar official seal from his arms, "I have indeed been ill for a while, so I neglected my duties and even forgot to ask people to clean the snow on the street."

The paper was flattened and handed to Ah-yi, signed with Wei Guohui's name. It roughly followed the procedure, writing that the order of the Marquis of Zhao was to return the fifteen taels of silver that the owner of the Beikuomian store on East Street spent on snow sweeping.

Hengzhi was indeed reliable in his work. Even though Ah'ao and the shop had no name at that time, he wrote the location very clearly and also signed her and Mrs. Zhou's surnames, so she was sure that she could not escape.

"We are businessmen, and it is not a good thing to get entangled with officials too much. Since my lady wants to pay the dues, and Wei Gongcao wants to refund my lady's snow-sweeping money, then I will be a middleman and offset the two sides. Is my lady willing?"

So this is the idea. Ah-yi turned her head and looked at Mrs. Zhou. She winked, indicating that Ah-yi should make the decision.

Liu Jingming put the matter of private communication between officials and businessmen in front of everyone in such a high-sounding manner, but he was determined that she did not understand or had no way to do it.

But the fact is indeed so. Liu Jingming already has his own power in the Chamber of Commerce, and Ah Yi and the others are just newcomers, so it is not the right time for them to compete with the Chamber of Commerce.

But sooner or later Liu Jingming will be brought down.

The capital city is holding Kezhou back, so they will definitely not give more military pay in the future. Hengzhi is in the army, and if he wants to have enough food and military equipment, he must rely on other financial sources.

Kezhou is a trading fortress. The simplest and most brutal way is to collect commercial taxes.

Ah-yi needs Heng-chi, along with the entire Ke-zhou, to become strong, so that they can survive and resist even if they are sandwiched between the capital and the You-bei people. So no matter how urgent it is, it cannot be done now.

If you don't want to give money, just give it to him.

"What Manager Liu said is right." Ah-yi nodded, agreeing deeply, "Originally, I hired people to clear the snow just to make it easier for my neighbors and customers to travel. It's convenient for others and beneficial for myself, so it's not a big deal. Your idea is a great one, and I'm naturally willing to do it."

Fifteen taels, what a huge loss it was for a shop that was built from scratch. Ah'ao secretly took a deep breath and felt her heart throbbing with pain.

But it was easiest to just say polite words. In business, it was common to go against one's will. It wouldn't cost Liu Jingming any money or go bankrupt to be perfunctory. Ah-yi had no position and didn't care at all.

Perhaps Liu Jingming also knew that everyone was just acting according to the situation and it was just a matter of appearance, so who would expose it?

"Madam Cui is indeed teachable." Liu Jingming seemed to be much more relaxed, and more cheerful than when he was standing on the street just now. "Hahaha, now that the matter is done, I will not stay to cause trouble for you. Goodbye."

Holding the fan in his hand, Liu Jingming made a perfunctory fist-bow gesture and left with the large group of people.

A'ao let out a long sigh and looked at the backs of the group of people, thinking that the Buddha had finally been sent away.

"By the way." After walking down the stairs, Liu Jingming turned back.

Ah'ao was forced to take a breath again.

"The business has just opened, so there must be a lot of physical work to do. Madam Cui and Madam Zhou, you two are so precious, so I will send you two servants to do chores as a gift!" Liu Jingming pointed his hand, and the two people at the back of the queue stood up in response.

He even planted spies. Liu Jingming is really cunning.

What can I do? I have to accept it with tears in my eyes. "Take care!"
-
Chu's house.

After being confined to his room for two months, Chu Qingfang finally saw the day of release.

Chu Hui was the head of the household, and even Mrs. Chu did not dare to interfere with his orders. So after two months, to the exact moment, the servants did not dare to release the young lady earlier.

The people finally left the door, but Chu Qingfang felt a little uncomfortable.

"Miss, what do you want?" The maid brought the dessert and placed it on the table. "This is the milk cake that the kitchen just made. Miss, please have some."

Chu Qingfang frowned, "Don't eat, don't eat. I haven't been out for the past two months, and I've gained a lot of weight. If I eat more, I won't even be able to fit into my spring clothes." She waved her hand and poured herself a cup of tea.

Mrs. Chu's love for her daughter is always reflected in some irresistible details.

For example, her husband sentenced his daughter to house arrest and not allowed to go out. Mrs. Chu was afraid that she would stay in the house alone and think about nothing, so she wrote a recipe herself and asked the kitchen to cook different dishes for her.

At first, Chu Qingfang was in a bad mood and couldn't eat anything. But Mrs. Chu knew her food preferences very well, and after sending her food several times, Chu Qingfang's appetite was unstoppable.

Now that spring has arrived, my chin feels rounder.

However, even though she doesn't eat it, it doesn't mean she can't give it to others as a token of her love.

Chu Qingfang's eyes lit up, and his palm fell on the table, "Go get the car, I need to go out for a while."

Going out right after being released from house arrest? The maid looked at her mistress in surprise.

"What are you standing there for? Go to the Marquis's mansion, quickly!" He frowned and scolded softly.

The chef of the Chu Mansion was specially invited by Mrs. Chu from her hometown, Qinzhou. Qinzhou is surrounded by mountains and rivers and is a real land of fish and rice. Qinzhou's cuisine has always been famous for its exquisiteness.

Not only the delicacies, but also the desserts are quite good.

Chu Qingfang put the plate of milk cake into the food box, then went to the kitchen and asked them to make a few plates of crispy cakes and Kezhou's traditional early spring crispy cakes, then went to the marquis's mansion in high spirits.

But it's no wonder Yunli said that Chu Qingfang had no chance of becoming the Marquis's wife. Chu Qingfang had been immersed in the depression of getting married to Hengzhi for the past few months. In the past few months, she was not only confined to the house, but also isolated from the world. She finally arrived at the Marquis's mansion, but ended up with nothing.

"Not here? How could she not be here? Don't lie to me!" Chu Qingfang heard the maid come back and report twice that the young marquis's wife was not here. He became anxious and went to the door to ask in person.

The guards at the gate of the Marquis' Mansion were also speechless. How could they have run into such a jerk like Chu Qingfang?

In the past, she had waited at the gate of the mansion from daybreak to pitch dark in order to see the prince who had returned from the army, with a heart as firm as a rock. Today, she said she would not be there, so why not wait here until dark?

It's not a secret that the young marquis moved to his own private residence, right? The warden who came all the way from the capital knew about it, but Miss Chu, who lived two streets away, didn't know about it?

"Miss Chu, we are not trying to deceive you. It's just that the young marquis no longer lives in the mansion. Please go back!"

At this moment, the expression on Chu Qingfang's face was as if he had seen a ghost in a Taoist temple in broad daylight.

Chu Qingfang, who was wearing beautiful makeup, sneered and felt extremely pitiful. "Don't all the people in Kezhou know that this mansion is no longer inhabited? I am the only one who didn't know..."

Seeing the man walk away in despair, Yunli came out from behind the door carrying a basket. "What is Miss Chu doing here?" Her master is already married! No matter what, it is shameful to visit a married man!
When the guard saw it was Yunli, his tone softened, "It turns out to be Miss Yunli. It's been a long time since we last saw you. This Miss Chu insisted on meeting our new wife, so we sent her away."

Yunli nodded as expected, then reacted and asked unexpectedly, "Hmm? You said she came to ask to see our new wife?"

The guard nodded, "Yes."

It’s bad! Yunli lifted her skirt and ran away.

"Hey! Miss Yunli, why are you leaving? Run slower!" The guard saw a figure flash past him and was confused.

No matter why Chu Qingfang wanted to meet A'an, and no one knew how long it would take her to find out the location of the private residence, in short, A'an was not at the house now!

She had to go out to look after the shop during the day, and Chu Qingfang would come to the door later. If she asked and the people in the mansion found out that the young marquis's wife was not there, they would definitely alarm Aunt Zhao who happened to be at the private residence today.

Aunt Zhao was a solitary and pretentious person. She liked Chu Qingfang and disliked the new wife. If she found out that Ah-yi was not home yet, she would definitely keep complaining for a long time without stopping.

How could she blame the princess?

Just thinking about it makes me angry.

For the princess, Yunli dodged pedestrians on the street and ran faster.

Chu Qingfang, I curse that the axle of your carriage will fall off halfway!

(End of this chapter)