The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 364

"My wife (husband)..."

The wet nurse and servants had just left when the couple spoke at the same time, exchanging a smile.

"You speak first."

Again in unison.

At this moment, Qiu Yan could no longer hold back and laughed as she fell into his arms.

"Husband, what do you want to say?"

"Yan'er, you don't need to do things you don't want to do for the sake of so-called reputation." Zhao Minglang lovingly stroked her face. "We don't live for anyone else, but for ourselves. I didn't marry you for so-called reputation; I truly love you and cherish you..."

"My husband, I love you too."

Qiu Yan's face flushed with joy and shone brightly: "Husband, the woman I accepted from the Zhang family wasn't meant for you. Please don't overthink it, and definitely don't go looking for her, or I'll get angry."

"Okay, I won't look for her, and I won't look for anyone else. Your husband will only look for you."

He then picked the person up and carried them to the bed.

Qiu Yan blushed, but she liked it very much.

After the master's room had been asked for water twice, Qiu Yan was so tired that she could barely keep her eyes open. Yet, Zhao Minglang still pressed her for an explanation of why she had left the woman behind.

“My husband, I saw a shop I liked by the river a few days ago and bought it.”

shop?

What kind of business do the shops along the riverside do?

These are places frequented by women on pleasure boats. Surely Yan'er knows what kind of people go on those boats?
"I want to run it myself."

What?
Zhao Minglang was startled.

"No."

What a joke! The wife of a governor is running a pleasure boat? What will people say about that?
Well, it's not a matter of saving face... it's just that my reputation isn't good.

As for a lady, it's perfectly acceptable for her to do some small business or run her own dowry shop, but that kind of business is really not advisable.

"Look how scared you are." Qiu Yan chuckled. "How could I do something so reckless?"

“I’ve looked around. The businesses along the riverside are all run by men.”

Or else?

What woman would go on a pleasure boat?

No, what is her wife going to do?

"I want to open a pleasure boat for women to enjoy."

No, no, no, that's really not good. It will set a bad example!

Zhao Minglang couldn't even imagine what it would be like if the two pleasure boats met, with her husband standing on one side and her wife on the other.

“Husband, didn’t you say that women in Sichuan are very bold and capable? Women can also do business. I’ve heard Nuan Nuan say that there are special tea houses for women in Sichuan, where ladies and young women can go to drink tea.”

Drinking tea and listening to music while boating on a painted boat are two different things!

"My pleasure boat is just like any other place where you can drink tea, eat pastries, listen to music, and enjoy a leisurely boat ride. It's just that I only entertain women and don't accept male guests."

"This……"

Zhao Minglang smiled wryly: "The riverside streets are lined with those kinds of pleasure boats; who knows, someone might come and cause trouble..."

"What? My husband thinks you can't protect my pleasure boat?"

Zhao Minglang... That's right. As a governor, can't he even protect a women's pleasure boat?

This isn't the capital; there aren't that many imperial relatives here that I can't afford to offend!

Besides, it's normal business. If you give advance notice, even if royalty comes, you still have to follow their rules, right?

"Husband..."

"Alright, Yan'er, go ahead and do it if you want. I won't stop you, as long as you're happy." She came all the way from the capital to the Hubei and Hunan regions to be with her. She had no relatives or friends and nowhere to go, so she had to find her own fun.

There is a painted boat where she can drink tea, listen to music, and enjoy a leisurely cruise.

"However, you can't overwork yourself; just leave everything to the servants."

"Of course, I'm not someone who can endure hardship."

Qiu Yan was very frank: "I just like to enjoy life."

"It's good to enjoy life. Good fortune comes naturally to us. If you can enjoy life, it means I am also blessed."

After saying all that, Zhao Minglang finally remembered: What should be done with the young lady from the Zhang family?

“The Zhang family raises their young lady very simply. Other families’ young ladies carry a child for ten months and give birth, and then they have to raise them for sixteen years. Their young lady takes less than a month from start to finish.”

"Heh, these are all their usual tricks."

Zhao Minglang wouldn't have understood this before, but now he does: the Zhang family just randomly picked a woman to be their daughter.

These so-called high-ranking officials and nobles are all opportunists. He never associates with them and refuses to accept any daughters, whether they are legitimate or adopted.

Unexpectedly, his wife accepted all the offers.

“I put her in charge of the pleasure boat business; she understands the intricacies of it.”

This Yu Linglong was a clever person. After receiving the indenture from Madam Zhang, Qiu Yan had a real talk with her.

Upon hearing that she would be appointed as the manager and trained some young women to serve ladies and mistresses, without having to sell herself or compromise herself to serve men, Yu Linglong readily agreed.

However, she was still very worried.

"Can you really make money by operating pleasure boats exclusively for women?"

What if it collapses again after a short time?
To be honest, by the time Madam Zhang redeemed her from the pleasure boat, she had already given up hope. She figured that living a stable life with an old man, with no shortage of food and clothing, might be alright.

Unexpectedly, the reason she was sent to the Zhang residence to learn etiquette was that she was to be sent to serve the young governor.

That's a young governor! Wouldn't it be better to be his concubine than to serve an old man?

Yu Linglong once thought she was about to live a good life.

Unexpectedly, the lady did not want her to be a concubine, but rather to become a manager.

Moreover, the lady made a three-point agreement with her: if she did a good job as a manager, her indenture would be returned after three years, and she would be free to marry.

The temptation is immense.

Singing and dancing in the pleasure boats to please the men, she felt she would never get ahead.

Looking at the young men carrying loads and hawking their wares on the shore, I thought that if I could live that kind of free and easy life with them, I wouldn't mind even if it was a little tough.

But the thought that I wasn't a free person made me lose all interest.

Now, the lady has given her hope. In three years, she only needs to manage things well for three years to be free and marry a man she likes!

This is what she has always dreamed of!

"Linglong, come with me to Linhe Street for a walk. Let's pick out a few suitable girls and train them properly." Qiuyan said, "I've already arranged for Aji and the others to tidy up the shop. Let's see if we need anything else later."

"Yes, ma'am."

I'm going to be the manager myself!
Yu Linglong was incredibly excited.

"You can choose the people yourself, I won't get involved, but the prerequisite is that they must be good people. Don't bring in those with ulterior motives."

"Yes, ma'am."

Yu Linglong was walking with Qiu Yan on the riverside street when suddenly a girl ran out of a shop, followed by a group of people.

"Stop right there, you little slut, if I catch you I'll beat you to death."

"Where do you think you're going, you little whore..."

The girl kept looking back as she ran, and almost bumped into Qiuyan.

"Madam, be careful." At the critical moment, Yu Linglong stepped forward to protect Qiu Yan. The girl threw herself into Yu Linglong's arms, and Yu Linglong lost her balance, and the two of them fell to the ground.