Lucky Farmer Girl: I rely on metaphysics to support my family

Chapter 890 is left untouched.
Upon hearing Tang Wan's question, Liu Erzhu frowned, as if he were thinking back to something.

After a long while, Liu Erzhu suddenly said, "Yes, there is one!"

Tang Wan glanced at the agitated Liu Erzhu and asked calmly, "What is it?"

“It’s a tobacco pipe,” Liu Erzhu said. “We found it in a corner of the scene. It’s made of copper, and the character ‘horse’ is engraved on the pipe. Since Boss Chen doesn’t smoke, we thought it was suspicious, so we put it away.”

Tang Wan's eyes flickered, and she asked, "Where is that tobacco pipe now?"

Liu Erzhu quickly replied, "It's in Zheng Gui's hands."

Tang Wan was somewhat surprised by this answer, and asked, "Zheng Gui?"

Since he instructed that the case be closed, why wasn't the tobacco pipe disposed of?

Liu Erzhu's answer provided Tang Wan with the answer. He said, "It was him. At the time, we kept that pipe as evidence. Later, Zheng Gui said that the case was closed and the evidence should be destroyed, and he would take it to dispose of it. But I heard that he didn't destroy it and kept it for himself."

Tang Wan didn't distrust Liu Erzhu; after all, he had used a truth-telling talisman, so what he said couldn't be a lie. But Tang Wan still asked, "Who told you that?"

Liu Erzhu replied without hesitation, "It's because Zheng Gui has a young apprentice named Ding. I've drunk with him before, and one time when we were both drunk, he let slip that Zheng Gui had a copper pipe in his room that was in good condition and that he would take it out to play with it whenever he had free time. After that, I kept an eye on it and later I had the chance to see it once. It was the same one from back then."

Upon hearing this, Tang Wan asked again, "Where is that apprentice surnamed Ding now?"

“In Shuntian Prefecture,” Liu Erzhu said. “His name is Ding San, and he’s in charge of document filing.”

Tang Wan nodded and then asked about Ding San's appearance and his daily work routine, which Liu Erzhu answered one by one.

After asking these questions, Tang Wan gently raised her hand. The truth-telling talisman lost its effect, and Liu Erzhu's body went limp, almost collapsing to the ground.

Tang Wan didn't look at the constable Liu again, and turned to leave with Er Ya.

As Tang Wan approached the alley entrance, she stopped and turned to Er Ya, saying, "Er Ya, go to Elm Alley for me."

Er Ya was taken aback: "Now?"

Tang Wan nodded and said, "Yes, go and see how the mule cart purchase is going with Shi Lei."

She originally bought thirteen people, but planned to buy ten mule carts to try it out first. If it went smoothly, she would gradually add more later.

Last time, when I asked Shi Lei to take people to buy mule carts, he bought three to try them out first. I don't know if he has all the carts now.

Since I remembered this while I was out today, I thought I'd ask Er Ya to go and take another look.

Er Ya heard Tang Wan say this and was about to leave without asking any more questions, but then Tang Wan instructed her: "From now on, let Shi Lei, the manager of Elm Tree Lane, distribute the remaining manpower. Everyone should know who drives the carts, who escorts the goods, and who is in charge of loading and unloading. Although this is our first time, we can't be chaotic."

Last time, Shi Lei was asked to teach everyone martial arts, and those who didn't know how to drive a carriage were asked to learn how, so that there would be replacements in case of emergencies.

She wants her people to be all-rounders, but that doesn't mean the division of labor should be unclear. On the contrary, the division of labor should be clear so that she can manage them better.

“I understand, then I’ll head over now,” Er Ya nodded in reply.

Tang Wan looked at the carriage and said to Er Ya, "Okay, you go ahead. I need to go to the new shop I bought. You can find us there later."

She figured Er Ya was pretty quick at getting things done, and that she might be a little late going to the shop, so they could meet at the shop and go back to the mansion together.

Er Ya nodded in agreement, looked around to make sure no one was in the alley, nodded to Tang Wan, and then disappeared into the alley.

Tang Wan watched Er Ya's figure disappear and continued walking out of the alley.

When they arrived at the carriage stop, Tang Wan said to the driver, "To the East Market." The carriage drove through several streets and stopped in front of a shop.

Tang Wan got off the carriage, pushed open the door and went inside. She saw Zhu Xi standing in the center of the first floor, holding a charcoal stick in her hand and gesturing at the wall.

Hearing footsteps, Zhu Xi turned around and saw Tang Wan. She quickly came forward and said, "Miss, you're back."

Tang Wan nodded, her gaze sweeping over her surroundings.

It's clear the shop has been cleaned once; there's much less dust now.

Tang Wan asked with a smile, "How's the planning going?"

Zhu Xi led her a few steps inside, pointing to the walls and corners, and recounted what she had been pondering all afternoon.

"I think we can build a row of shelves along the north wall, and set up a counter by the window on the south side, where the light is good and customers can see it as soon as they come in. The empty space under the stairs can be used as a small reception area with a table and two chairs to make it convenient to greet distinguished guests."

Tang Wan listened, nodding occasionally, and asked, "What about the second floor?"

“The second floor can be partitioned, like in Mobei, for the ladies to use for nursing care,” Zhu Xi replied with a smile.

As she spoke, she pulled out several sheets of paper from her sleeve. They were sketches drawn by Zhu Xi herself; though not professional, they were clear and concise.

Tang Wan took the papers, looked at them for a while, and pointed to one of them, saying, "The counter doesn't need to be too big, just big enough to display the samples. We need to make more shelves, so that when there are many kinds of goods, they can be categorized and displayed, making it easier for customers to see."

Zhu Xi nodded quickly and took out a charcoal stick to write it down on the paper.

Tang Wan then offered her opinions on several other places.

The two discussed the materials for the renovation again. Zhu Xi had just carefully noted down Tang Wan's opinions when Er Ya returned to the shop.

Upon seeing Er Ya, Tang Wan asked, "How's it going over there?"

Er Ya chimed in, "Shi Lei said that it would take another two or three days to find the right vehicles at the market. He also said that once the vehicles are all there, he'll have the people practice with them so they can get familiar with each other and avoid being caught off guard on the road."

Tang Wan was very satisfied with what she heard.

I was right about Shi Lei; he's reliable, meticulous, and always thinks ahead.

“Okay, let’s do it his way,” Tang Wan said. “If you don’t have enough money, just say so. Don’t be stingy.”

Er Ya agreed and continued, "I have conveyed Miss's message to everyone. Shi Lei will be in charge of management, and we have assigned tasks to everyone. It seems that no one has any objections and they all trust Shi Lei."

"That would be best." Tang Wan was satisfied and spoke gently.

Then, Tang Wan looked at Zhu Xi and said, "We've finished our discussion here, let's call it a day and head back."

The group boarded the carriage and headed towards the Tang residence.

Tang Wan was thinking about Boss Chen's case and the caravan she planned to form in the carriage when she arrived home without realizing it.

As soon as Tang Wan stepped off the carriage, the gatekeeper saw her and hurriedly came forward to greet her, saying, "Second Miss is back. Madam sent someone to inquire about her."

Tang Wan nodded and first went to the Wang family's courtyard to pay her respects and talk about the shop.

Hearing that she spoke logically and clearly, Wang felt much more at ease. She then gave her a few more instructions, "Don't overwork yourself," before letting her go home.

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