The New Year had just passed, but it was not yet Lantern Festival. The streets by the Qinhuai River were filled with a festive atmosphere. The sound of firecrackers could be heard from time to time. Some were from the opening of shops or welcoming new tenants. Others were sporadic. Children set off firecrackers all over the streets, laughing and running. Vehicles and pedestrians passed by.
The festive atmosphere could not wash away the cold weather. In the streets, the snow had been swept to one side. There was no sign of melting, and it piled up like a small mountain. On the side of the road, there was a restaurant called Hearing Surf Pavilion. The private room was warm. A well-arranged, blazing stove warmed the room and ensured a slight circulation of air. The room was luxurious. Behind the beaded curtains, the smell of incense wafted in spirals. At the same time, there was the ethereal and beautiful sound of a zither. The woman playing the zither had a beautiful figure and bright appearance. At this time, she only served as a foil and did not speak much.
Tea was poured into the teacup. The leaves in the rippling water unfolded, and steam rose.
"I left Jiangning at the end of the year and only returned yesterday. Did anything big happen recently?"
"Like Brother Tang, I also left the city to pay respects to my ancestors and meet the elders of my family. There is no news to report."
The scene seemed peaceful. Of the two people who spoke, one was called Pu Yangyi, and the other was called Tang Xu. Both of them were well-known figures of the younger generation in Jiangning's business world. Tang Xu was a cultured and refined person. Not only did he do business, but he was also quite accomplished in literary talent and knowledge. The two of them were rivals, but also good friends. They would occasionally meet to drink tea and chat. Today was a chance encounter after the end of the year. Coincidentally, the top courtesan Qi Lan was also there, so she played the zither to accompany them.
"… This time, I left the city. I heard that there was a snow disaster in the north. Lin Shouzhou shipped a batch of goods over, but there was an avalanche on the way. He lost everything. Poor thing."
"Lin Shouzhou has a lot of tricks up his sleeves. He borrowed from everywhere and always made it through. Haha, it's just that his luck has been bad these past two years …"
"He is indeed a powerful person. There will be a war soon. I heard that he has invested a lot in the north. Once the war starts, he is waiting to make a fortune. He is probably counting the days. It can be said that riches come from danger … "
"The cloth sellers have been talking about this recently. Two days ago, they had a drink with the people from the weaving bureau. They are all sighing."
"Hmm? Wasn't the trouble last year enough? What happened now? The Xue family also made a move? "
"It's still a matter between the Su family and the Wu Family."
Puyang Yi took a sip of tea and was slightly surprised. "Wasn't it over at the end of October last year when the Su family wanted to separate from the family? The Wu Family has been miserably schemed against by Ning Yi. Now that those businesses have been handed over, could it be that they are not convinced and want to make some trouble? "
"The aftermath is not over yet."
"There are still aftershocks?"
"I'm just guessing today. However, the people in the cloth industry are more sensitive. I think they've realized something … The Wu Family took the initiative to buy all the Lunar New Year's cloth in the Jiangning area. Officials of all levels are moving around quite frequently."
"Bring New Year's Cloth? Is he crazy? "
"I think he had no choice. I heard that recently, the Wu Family has been spending money like water. The family's power is also like a landslide. They extorted one-third of the Su family's money, took the Lunar New Year's cloth, and bribed everyone. Almost half of the money was gone. People only noticed this after the end of the year. They were too active. Now they are probably relieved. After this incident, the Wu Family's foundation will probably be less than one-third of what it used to be. In the next few years, they will probably be busy for the imperial merchants. I met Wu Qilong once, and he was much more reserved. "
Puyang Yi opened his mouth. "Why is it like this?"
"Guess, I just realized it too."
The other side put the teacup to his mouth, then blinked his eyes and put down the cup. "The fading of the cloth … can't be solved?" This was not a question, but a guess after thinking deeply.
Tang Xu nodded on the other side. "I think so too. Quite a few people should have already sensed it."
"This thing is really full of twists and turns. It's not over yet …" Puyang Yi murmured with a complicated expression.
"Everyone was cheated. Even after it was revealed, everyone was still cheated." Tang Xu laughed. "Since the Su family was assassinated, they have been cheated. At the end of August, when the ownership of the imperial merchants was decided, everyone felt that the Su family was cheated and marveled at the Wu Family. At the end of October, the Su family's clan meeting, everyone realized that the Wu Family was cheated. Who knew that in October, everyone was still in the dark … Looking at the attitude of the Su family and the Wu Family at that time, almost everyone thought that the Su family and the Wu Family had reached an agreement to threaten the Wu Family with the real golden brocade. Now it seems …" He took a sip of tea with a complicated expression. "They actually got something for nothing. This is really admirable …"
Puyang Yi was silent for a while. "In this case, the Su family didn't exchange the real golden brocade for one-third of the Wu Family's. They actually used a secret to exchange one-third, and the Wu Family even had to lose the other one-third themselves. At the end of October, it was revealed, but no one suspected it. This is really … ten steps ahead … "
"Now that I think about it, it makes sense." Tang Xu nodded. "The Wu Family has a strong foundation. If they only lost one-third, I'm afraid they could still maintain the tripartite balance of the three weaving families. After this incident, the Wu Family and the Su Family have become enemies. If I were Ning Yi, I'm afraid I wouldn't allow this situation to continue. I could only completely destroy the Wu Family and make them powerless to compete. Only then would I feel at ease. But at that time, this appetite was too big, so no one thought about it. They only felt that the Su family had already taken a big advantage at that time, so it was common sense to stop while they were ahead … The Xue family and others missed the best opportunity. This Ning Yi looks gentle, but in fact … he's scary. "
The two of them were just chatting. Their family business was much larger than the Su family's, and they weren't in a competitive industry. But when they talked about this matter, they were still astonished and amazed by the operation behind it. Originally, the result revealed at the clan meeting at the end of October was already scary enough. It was a plot within a plot, one ring after another. When people thought that was the result, they didn't expect this matter to continue until now, and only one-third of the Wu Family remained. And the mastermind behind all of this was a scholar like that.
"It's good that he's not an enemy."
"Oh, this kind of strange plan may not be used at all times. I'm afraid it's also a coincidence. Brother Puyang may not be afraid of him. And I heard that Brother Puyang has a good personal relationship with that Ning Liheng. What is this person like? Did you not notice it before? "
"We met a few times, but it can't be said to be a personal relationship. This person is indifferent, and he's not interested in parties or seeking pleasure. In the past, I only thought that he had a good foundation in poetry, but I didn't expect that this time, when he stood up for his family, he would set off such a shocking wave. The Wu Family was destroyed just like that … I went to visit him after October, but I heard that after the matter of the royal business was decided, he continued his teaching life at Yushan Academy. Occasionally, I met him on the street, but he didn't care about the Su family anymore. He's living a much more carefree life than you and I. "
"There's actually such a strange person." Tang Xu smiled, raised his teacup, and then said, "I'm thinking, in the future, if anyone wants to plot against the Su family, I'm afraid they'll have to think about the weight of this Ning Liheng behind the Su family …"
Thinking about the current situation of the Su family, if the Su family's enemy had Ning Liheng, who was known as "Ten Steps Ahead," standing behind them, it would really make one's scalp go numb. With one move, he wiped out one-third of the Wu Family. Others would really have to think about it carefully.
Behind the bead curtain, Qi Lan played the guqin. At this time, she gradually understood what the two were talking about, and just listened attentively.
Stories of scholars and beauties were always the mainstream. Now that she was the top courtesan, she would occasionally hear people talk about Ning Yi, and then talk about her. In fact, she would feel a little strange in her heart. Ning Yi was really one of the strangest scholars in Jiangning. He was considered the number one scholar, but he didn't get close to the brothels. There had never been such a scholar in the past, but she also felt that Ning Yi deserved his reputation, and was even better than Cao Guan. This feeling was really strange.
He didn't get close to the brothels, not to anyone, but if he was interested, he should be able to meet her. Occasionally, Qi Lan would think like this in her heart. After all, she was different, and didn't he tip her a few thousand taels during the Top Courtesan Competition last time?
Of course, now that she had a position, she was actually quite busy. She had to entertain guests on behalf of the Puyang family, repay their kindness, and so on. She also got to know some other powerful scholars, but she would only think like this when she was free. She didn't think of Ning Yi often, but every time she did, she would never hate him. Sometimes she would hear that Ning Yi had a relationship with the top courtesan Yuan Jin 'er, who had already turned over a new leaf, but she didn't know the truth. In the brothels, there was always a lack of rumors.
She didn't need to say much about today's gathering, and was happy to play the strings at the side, thinking about these things casually. Puyang Yi and Tang Xu chatted for a while more before they stood up to leave. Puyang Yi also said that he would visit the Su family in a few days, and also invited Ning Yi to participate in the poetry meet on New Year's Eve … I wonder if he will come, Qi Lan guessed in her heart.
Puyang Yi also had matters to attend to, and after sending Tang Xu off, he parted ways with Qi Lan at the entrance of the Listening Surf Pavilion. In any case, Qi Lan had a servant girl with her, and also a coachman to drive her back. On this day, on the road, Qi Lan really did see Ning Yi and Yuan Jin 'er.
After the end of the year, even though there were many pedestrians on the streets, there weren't many who were purely strolling leisurely. Most of them were here to pay their New Year's greetings, each with a purpose. The carriage drove along the side of the Qinhuai River, and when it reached a street corner, she lifted the curtain and saw the figure of Ning Yi and another person walking into a restaurant by the river. The person walking with Ning Yi looked a little like Yuan Jin 'er, but there was something strange about it, and the feeling was different from before, so she called for the carriage to stop.
The main reason was because Puyang Yi and Tang Xu had just mentioned Ning Yi. At this time, Qi Lan alighted from the carriage to take a look. The restaurant by the river was still under renovation. It was probably because work had stopped for the New Year, but the layout was actually very strange, and there were some small changes in the style. Although it wasn't much when she looked closely, these changes did indeed make this two-story building, which was probably used as a restaurant, stand out. It seemed like a lot of thought had been put into it. Because of the cold weather, Ning Yi wore quite a lot of clothes, and because he wore a hat, he looked a little rustic. The person beside him was a woman who also wore a lot of clothes. She wore a brown dress and a hat with white fur. Although it still couldn't hide her beauty, from afar, she looked like a little panda.
Qi Lan took a look and saw that the person walking with Ning Yi was indeed the legendary retired Yuan Jin 'er.
As a top courtesan, Qi Lan was still wearing an elegant dress today. It was beautiful, but in fact, it also kept her warm. She had put a lot of thought into it. Yuan Jin 'er was also a top courtesan in the past, so she definitely wouldn't dress casually like this in the past. Ning Yi and Yuan Jin 'er walked into the restaurant, holding a few pieces of paper in their hands. They were pointing at the decorations in the hall of the restaurant. Qi Lan frowned. She asked her maids to wait here while she ran over to the other side.
This floor was only half renovated, and some of the windows were not closed. Ning Yi held a pen in his hand and discussed with Yuan Jin 'er. Occasionally, he would lie on the table and write something. Yuan Jin' er was pushing things around in the messy hall. A conversation could be heard from inside.
"… I don't want a big change, but I need to emphasize the importance of tidiness … Well, actually, I've been quite busy lately. I have two apprentices. The younger one wants to do dangerous experiments all day long, and the older one … is also a little girl. She has a long face recently. She's only thirteen years old, and she's fourteen this year. I heard that her family is looking for a husband for her, so she's quite annoyed …"
"Fourteen years old is also very old. You can get married, or at least get engaged."
"It's hard to explain the profound age problem to you … Well, I've decided to add a few stools … How old are you? Why don't you marry yourself?"
"I have a hard life. I can only rely on my Sister Yunzhu … Don't count on me! Oh, right, I've been thinking recently, can we call this place 'Takeshi — Jin' er Shop '? If you agree, I'll order a signboard. "
"… Change the second shop to Jin 'er Shop."
"Okay."
"Okay, no problem. Whatever."
"Why do you look so strange …"
They were talking in bits and pieces. She didn't understand some of the words, but … it felt very warm.
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