Raising a wife? The mistress of the Hou family divorced and remarried her younger uncle

Chapter 14 Your Majesty
Su Qingwan took Luzhu to the Xie family business. The Xie family was the third largest tea merchant in Jiangnan. The sale of tea had been allowed for decades. Huainan was rich in tea, and merchants had been selling it secretly before it was opened up. After the Xie family set up their own business and opened up for business, they developed rapidly with the help of the relationship in Huainan and became a generation of tea merchants. The foundation was mainly in the south. The powerful and wealthy divided up all fields in the capital. The Xie family's business was more scattered, but the variety was wide. In addition to tea, there were silks and satins, ready-made clothes, wine making and three large restaurants. The Xie family's head office was on North-South Street. The manager's surname was Xie, so he was considered a relative and had a distant blood relationship. The shopkeepers would come to the business every month to reconcile accounts and hold meetings.

When Su Qingwan came, Xie Min was not too shocked. The news that the eldest daughter-in-law of the Lu family came back to life had spread throughout the capital, and Lu Feng's wedding had caused such a big commotion. Business people were well-informed and would naturally know about it. Xie Min knew that the boss would definitely come to the company.

The Xie family has twelve shopkeepers of all sizes in Beijing. Su Qingwan had sent someone last night to notify them all to be present today. Except for Xie Min, only four shopkeepers came, one of whom was a female shopkeeper who was in charge of the restaurant.

Xie Min is over forty years old, thin, with a pair of very bright eyes. In the words of other shopkeepers, he is short and strong. The head of the Xie family has been to Beijing only a few times, and all matters of all sizes in the capital's business are decided by Xie Min.

After Su Qingwan greeted him, she entered the inner hall. Several shopkeepers stood up to greet her, their eyes inquiring and curious. More than a dozen shopkeepers had attended Xie Zhaolan's funeral, and the Xie family had also issued an obituary. It was inevitable that people would be surprised that she had come back to life out of the blue.

Su Qingwan said, "Why haven't the other shopkeepers come yet?"

Xie Min smiled and said, "Maybe he is tied up in some business and can't get away for the moment. If you have any instructions, please let me know and I will pass them on."

If one or two people are absent or are delayed, and most people are not here, then it won’t be that simple.

Su Qingwan said calmly, "We gathered here today to tell you something. When the Lu family comes to buy from us in the future, we will charge them according to the price. We treat everyone equally in business. We will pay for the goods and you don't have to pay for them. We don't have to pay silver to the Lin family."

Xie Min and the shopkeepers were shocked. Most of the shops in Beijing were Xie Zhaolan's dowry. Since she married Lu Feng, the Lu family would use her name when making purchases. Lin was even more greedy and put pressure on Xie Zhaolan several times. Xie Zhaolan wanted to spend money to get rid of the trouble, so she asked the shopkeepers to keep accounts and she would pay off the debt in one lump sum in the middle of the month.

This rule was maintained until Xie Zhaolan passed away. In the year after her death, the Lin family almost took over all the shops and did not need to keep accounts when spending money. Almost all of the Xie family's properties in Beijing became the property of the Lu family.

The shopkeepers looked at each other. Xie Min actually looked a little impatient. Su Qingwan drank her tea with her eyes slightly lowered, her heart as clear as a mirror.

"Miss, we also know that you have been wronged by the Lu family and want to cut off their money. However, merchants have their own rules. We support the Lu family, which is actually a kind of respect. If Beijing merchants want to seek the protection of Beijing officials, they must be respectful and spend money to get things done. The Lu family can also protect us from being disturbed. Miss, you have never asked about business matters, and you have not done things properly. In my opinion, it is better to continue to provide this money."

Xie Zhaolan is the eldest daughter who was carefully raised by the Xie family. She was exposed to business matters by nature, and could read account books and do business. After marrying into the Lu family, she was in charge of the household expenses. She was so busy with the Lu family affairs every day that she had no energy to take care of the business in Beijing, so she handed it all over to Xie Min.

Relying on her status as an elder, Xie Min often lectured Xie Zhaolan, telling her to be filial to her parents-in-law at home, respectful to her husband, and not to show up in public to take care of business matters.

Su Qingwan couldn't help but understand the contempt and disparagement in his words. She frowned slightly and asked, "Xie Min, Xie's business, you are the owner and I am the boss?"

"Of course it's you!" Xie Min said with a smile. "Since I'm the boss, when will it be your turn to teach me how to do things?" Su Qingwan's face darkened.

Xie Min's smile froze, and she turned stern. "Miss, you are the boss, but without us shopkeepers working hard and taking care of the business, how could the business in Beijing be so prosperous? You wear silk and satin, eat delicacies from land and sea, enjoy yourself at home, and sit and count money, while we travel around the country, exposed to the wind and sun. Now you want to destroy your foundation because of a momentary anger, how can I watch you get into trouble?"

"Do you really think I'm a little girl who knows nothing and can be fooled by you? The Xie family's business has been established in Beijing for many years. When did it need the protection of the Lu family? Is the ice and charcoal tribute for the Lu family? Now there is an extra ice and charcoal tribute for no reason, and it's the biggest one. Tell me, why?" Su Qingwan asked in a deep voice, "Are you guys making profits from it? So everyone is covering up and fighting each other everywhere?"

Xie Min looked a little embarrassed, then became angry and said, "Miss, please stop slandering us. You were the one who kept the accounts for the Lu family, and you didn't stop them from asking for money. Now it's all our fault?"

"I did something wrong, I admit it. I also smuggled money over the years to make up for the deficit of the business. Now I don't want to pay, this is also an order." Su Qingwan said calmly, "Can you do it?"

Xie Min has been the head shopkeeper for so many years. He thinks highly of himself and is very concerned about his reputation. How could he allow Su Qingwan to challenge his authority? "Miss, you have raised a greedy snake for the past three years and have enlarged its appetite. Now that you are going to cut off its food supply, how can it be willing? We are running a business and cannot afford to suffer. You have to spend money to avoid trouble. Why do you ask for trouble?"

"If anything goes wrong, I will take the responsibility!" Su Qingwan said in a deep voice, "I may not understand business matters, but I don't want to spend my money on anyone. I know this better than anyone else. Someone, notify all the shopkeepers to come to North and South Streets within a cup of tea. Anyone who doesn't come will be dismissed as a shopkeeper. The Xie family temple is small and cannot afford to support a big Buddha."

Su Qingwan was the boss after all, so her words carried some weight, and soon someone went to find the shopkeepers.

Xie Min sneered and mocked, "As a girl from a boudoir, how can you read account books? Do you know how to run a business? Without us shopkeepers, the business in Beijing will fail in less than half a month."

Su Qingwan looked at him calmly, "Xie Min, do you think you are very capable? The business in Beijing has been thriving over the years, and it is all thanks to you."

Xie Min looked arrogant and proud, and even said, "It's all thanks to all of us shopkeepers."

"It is indeed very hard for all of you shopkeepers to travel far and wide and attend social events. But don't forget that when the Xie family's business was first established, you were not yet born. When the Xie family's business was well-known to every household, you were still young. You came when the business was at its peak. With the experience of your predecessors and the connections of the Xie family, anyone can do well." Su Qingwan's tone was steady and powerful, and she slapped him like a candy, "You got married, started a family, and had children for a full month. The Xie family has never treated you unfairly."

In other words, it was the Xie family that provided them with the best platform to display their talents, and it was not their talents that brought prosperity to the Xie family. The Xie family has never treated these shopkeepers unfairly over the years.

(End of this chapter)