Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

Gu Mingyue heard it all clearly from the side.

The woman's name is Su Wan, and the shop is called Su's Cloth Shop, but this fat man...

He just said "the Shen family's lineage".

Su Wan married into the Shen family, but the shop uses her maiden name.

This detail shows that Su Wan never intended to merge her skills and business into her husband's family from the very beginning.

A woman who can improve the spinning wheel process wouldn't be so foolish as to not be able to tell whose name is on the contract.

The fat man probably knew he couldn't manipulate the contract, so he resorted to this thuggish tactic to coerce people.

This attracted a large crowd of onlookers.

The fat man wasn't going to argue any further and arrogantly made a statement.

"I won't make things difficult for you."

"Hand over the contract for the cloth shop, and leave the cloth and spinning wheel in the shop. I'll give you two taels of silver. Pack your things and go back to your parents' home. You can remarry or whatever you want in the future, but you'll have nothing to do with the Shen family anymore."

Two taels of silver.

Gu Mingyue did some mental calculations.

The few bolts of cotton cloth she just touched would be worth at least four or five taels on the market.

A spinning wheel costs at least several taels of silver.

In addition, there's this shop.

Two taels of silver? Are you trying to get rid of a beggar?

When the fat man saw that Su Wan did not respond, the fake smile on his face disappeared, and his eyes changed.

"Or I'll go to the authorities and sue you."

"Anyway, my nephew died in your bed, without any explanation. Who can guarantee that you didn't murder your husband and embezzle my Shen family's assets?"

"If this goes to court, you won't be able to stay in Jiangzhou City. You won't be able to keep your cloth shop or your contracts."

Su Wan took a step back, her back hitting the door panel, her fingers gripping the corner of the cloth.

Her family's business failed, and while they still had some savings, they found her a poor scholar named Shen.

They only hoped that if Scholar Shen passed the imperial examination in the future, he could bring some glory to their Su family, which came from a merchant background.

After the marriage, the Shen family quickly divided up her dowry, leaving only this cloth shop.

The Shen family's life gradually became more prosperous.

But now her husband has passed away less than a month ago.

The Shen family was eager to get back the last of her dowry.

She was all alone in Jiangzhou, with no relatives to help her and no children to rely on.

Today, we've finally laid our cards on the table.

This is driving her to her death!

Su Wan placed the cotton cloth on her knees and slowly stood up.

"I won't pay."

His voice was choked with emotion.

"This cloth shop was the thing my husband supported me most when he was alive, and it's my livelihood from now on. You can only take it away if I die."

The fat man glared at him, his temper flaring, and he raised his hand to strike.

Su Wan stood still.

It's not that I'm not afraid, it's that I can't avoid it.

He may hide today, but he'll come back tomorrow and the day after.

Where could a woman like her hide?

"Snapped!"

The expected pain did not occur.

Gong Huo stepped forward, grabbed the fat man's wrist, and twisted it outwards.

The fat man screamed, his body tilted to one side, and he almost fell over.

"Who...who are you?!"

Gong Huo remained expressionless, said nothing, and did not loosen his grip.

The fat man grimaced in pain, trying desperately to break free, but the other man's grip was too strong, and he couldn't break free at all.

"Let go...let go! Who are you people?!"

Gu Mingyue walked past Su Wan and glanced at the fat man slowly.

"I'll take care of her."

The fat man's face was covered in a layer of oily sweat from the pain, but he still stubbornly insisted, "Miss, this is the Shen family's home..."

"I heard you," Gu Mingyue interrupted him. "You just said you were going to the authorities to accuse her of murdering her husband and to seize her shop."

The fat man's lips twitched, but he didn't say anything.

"Perfect timing, I also want to go to the government office."

Gu Mingyue tilted her head and glanced at the two men behind him.

"Repeat those intimidating words you just said in front of the officials."

"I'd like to see if the laws of the Great Yong Dynasty will be ineffective in front of your Shen family."

The fat man immediately fell silent.

That sounds a bit arrogant, like something an official would say!

Could it be related to the government?

Before the fat man could gather his thoughts, Gu Mingyue asked coldly, "What's your name? Where do you live? Tell me."

That was said so naturally that the fat man almost actually signed up.

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them back.

The fat man eyed Gu Mingyue warily.

This girl looks young, but her presence is absolutely overwhelming.

His intuition told him:

This is someone he can't afford to offend!

The fat man quickly averted his gaze. "Alright, alright, I didn't check the almanac before going out today, what bad luck!"

Gong Huo released his grip.

The fat man staggered back two steps, rubbing his wrist, and glared at Gu Mingyue and Gong Huo for several moments.

Finally, he pointed at Su Wan resentfully.

"You just wait!"

"This isn't over. I'll be back tomorrow!"

The fat man left, and his two buddies followed him away.

The onlookers dispersed quickly, leaving only a few murmurs, which would soon become another topic of conversation among the locals.

Su Wan didn't care.

She squatted on the ground, picking up the cloth piece by piece.

She didn't cry out of fear, nor did she thank those who helped her.

Gu Mingyue observed her style of doing things.

This person is someone who can distinguish between what is important and what is not.

Taozhi bent down to help support the bamboo frame, but Su Wan quickly lifted it up herself.

One of the crossbars on the bamboo frame was crooked. She used her knee to brace it, and with both hands, she straightened the crossbar and re-inserted it into the tenon.

His movements were swift and efficient, clearly indicating that this wasn't his first time doing this job.

The cloth was put back on the bamboo frame.

Su Wan stood up, patted the dirt off her skirt, and finally turned to look at Gu Mingyue.

"Thank you for your help, young lady."

She suppressed her turbulent emotions completely, as if nothing had happened.

Gu Mingyue looked at her.

The woman's eyes were still red.

But he stood very straight, with his chin slightly raised, without a trace of ingratiating curve.

"You're welcome," Gu Mingyue said. "However, they will come again."

Su Wan's eyelashes trembled.

"I know."

Gu Mingyue did not continue with anything like "I'll help you".

She walked to the bamboo frame and reached out to touch the dusty cotton cloth again.

Press down with your fingertips, then release.

The fabric has a uniform, elastic feel, without sagging or becoming soft.

"How much of this cloth can you weave in a day?"

Su Wan was stunned for a moment.

She probably didn't expect that the first thing this girl who had just driven away the bully for her would ask her, "Are you alright?", was about production.

"...It depends on the ingredients."

Su Wan's gaze shifted from Gu Mingyue's fingers to the fabric, her guarded tone lessening slightly, replaced by the earnestness that only a craftsman would show when discussing their profession.

"If the cotton yarn is spun well, it can be made into a roll a day. Adding linen yarn will make it faster, but the texture will be rougher."

"Pure cotton yarn?"

"Pure cotton".

One bolt of pure cotton cloth per day.

Gu Mingyue mentally counted them.

Weavers in the market use old-fashioned spinning wheels, and they can barely manage to produce half a bolt of linen a day.

This output is either due to Su Wan's amazing hand speed, or her spinning wheel has indeed been modified.

"May I come in and take a look at your spinning wheel?"

Su Wan did not answer immediately.

She pursed her lips, her gaze lingering on Gu Mingyue for a few moments.

His eyes held a wary and calculating look.

"If you want to buy fabric, I'll bring it out for you to choose from."

Su Wan's voice became more polite, but she moved half an inch toward the door, subtly blocking the crack.