The Incense Monopoly Order

Chapter 65: Using Credit to Defraud Money
"Thank you, Second Brother Cheng." Shang Zishu was not in high spirits, but she was sincerely grateful to Cheng She.

People like Cheng She would never speak so clearly unless they really wanted to help.

"Second Brother Cheng, are Third Brother Cheng okay?" Shang Mingshu changed the subject.

"Third brother's injuries are not serious, he is just too tired. The doctor ordered him to rest in bed for seven days." There was no trace of sadness between Cheng She's thick sword-like eyebrows, and his tone was light.

Shang Mingshu felt relieved.

After bidding farewell to Cheng She, Shang Mingshu walked with Shang Zishu on the street. It could be seen that Shang Zishu was still a little disappointed: "If Second Sister approves of Mr. Chen's character, you can give it a try."

Shang Zishu shook her head and refused: "I'm not depressed about this, it's just a man. Look at the people coming and going on the street, the last thing they lack is men."

Taking a deep breath, Shang Zishu lowered her shoulders and said, "I'm just worried about how to learn how to stir-fry Longjing tea."

Shang Zishu was particularly active and thought that getting close to Chen Jin would help her achieve her goal. Now that she has decided to stay away from Chen Jin, it will be difficult for her to take advantage of him. Suddenly, she feels that the secret recipe of tea is getting further and further away from her.

"Didn't we agree to go to Xihang after the Double Ninth Festival? Why bother? We can see if there's a solution when we get there," Shang Mingshu advised. "Besides, this is just my speculation, it may not work. Second sister, please don't be too obsessed with it."

"No, Third Sister," Shang Zishu retorted firmly. "Before the tea competition, I, like you, only considered this method a trial. Ever since I tasted the top-notch Longjing tea during the competition, I've felt that if I could understand the roasting method of Longjing, I would definitely learn how to make new tea."

The idea was proposed by Shang Mingshu, and now Shang Zishu regards it as a crucial link. She couldn't continue to persuade her, so she could only say: "Then let's think of a solution after we go to Xihang."

"Yeah." Shang Zishu nodded heavily, feeling very anxious and wishing she could pack her bags and set off right away.

Tea merchants who came from all over the place left one after another. They hired cargo ships and took away many things from Huizhou Prefecture, including Huizhou Prefecture's tea, pens, ink, paper, and inkstones, Qimen porcelain, etc., as well as cloth and rice purchased by Huizhou Prefecture from Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Merchants in Huizhou Prefecture also seized the opportunity. Shang Jinliang and several others joined forces with the Duan family in southern Yunnan to purchase what they needed, and then waited for Duan to return home to send the goods to Huizhou.

The government earned a lot of tax money from several big businesses. If it weren't for the unexpected events at the gathering of literati, this tea-fighting event would have been perfect.

After finishing all these, Magistrate He and his wife came to visit the merchant one afternoon. This was something they had promised a long time ago, but later Magistrate He was busy with one thing after another and had no time to spare, so it was delayed until today.

"These dishes like Wensi tofu are exactly the same as those at Fuqiu Temple." After the meal, Mrs. He couldn't help but praise them. She had eaten the vegetarian dishes at Fuqiu Temple before.

The Taoist priests at Fuqiu Temple were all generous and open-minded. They offered their full support to anyone who asked them how to prepare vegetarian dishes. Mrs. He's servants also learned a few tricks, waiting to report back to Beijing and serve her parents-in-law.

The chef at home could only imitate 70% of the taste. She had been a guest at other official residences in the government office before, and two of them also prepared vegetarian meals at Fuqiuguan. The best taste was only 80% similar.

"Thanks to Madam Gong's words, my efforts have paid off." Shang Zishu was a lively person. She was not at all reserved in front of Madam He. In her opinion, she had no expectations of Madam He, and all she needed was respect. "The first time my third sister tasted the vegetarian dishes at Fuqiu Temple, she thought Madam Gong would definitely like it, so she specially asked her people to learn how to cook them."

As she spoke, she casually brought up the amusement between the sisters that day: "I confronted her then, asking her if she hadn't vowed to never learn the art of flattery. Respected Lady, guess what Third Sister said to me?"

Madam He liked ladies very much, especially outgoing ladies like Shang Zishu. She tried to please Shang Zishu, and after careful consideration, she said with a smile, "The third lady is a lady with unique ideas. I really can't guess." "Lady, please don't praise her. She doesn't like praise. She'll come up with this to stop me and my elder sister someday, saying that the ladies praised her for her unique ideas and that we, as elder sisters, must obey her." Shang Zishu winked mischievously at Shang Mingshu, then cleared her throat and imitated Shang Mingshu's stubbornness. "She replied to me: 'This is how I treat guests.'"

The young ladies were as beautiful as flower buds, and Madam He was delighted to see them. "Third Madam is right," she said, turning to praise Xiao Yu. "Madam Shang's three daughters are not only as beautiful as flowers, but also have different personalities. They are all wonderful people. I wonder which of them will end up with such a handsome boy in the future."

"I'm glad your Highness doesn't mind their noise." Xiao Yu's face was filled with a bright smile and a sense of pride.

"I don't even have time to like you." Mrs. He waved at Shang Mingshu.

Shang Mingshu stood up and walked to Madam He. The maid behind Madam He handed her an intricately carved wooden box. Madam He handed it to Shang Mingshu personally and said, "This is a pair of hairpins that my mother made for me when I was a girl. I took them out of the box today. Don't think they are old."

Shang Mingshu took it and opened the box under Mrs. He's encouraging gaze. The hairpin inside was finely crafted. Not only Shang Mingshu, but even Xiao Yu's breathing became heavier.

At one end of the hairpin is a bunch of lifelike grapes. One bunch of grapes is inlaid with olive-colored gems, and the other bunch is made of purple-red gems.

"Gongren, it's too precious."

"Take them." Madam He stopped Shang Mingshu's hand from returning it. "I only have one daughter. She loves plain things just like I do. If I don't give this pair of hairpins to you, I'll give them to someone else in the future. There's no one who suits them better than you."

Shang Mingshu looked at Xiao Yushi, who smiled and nodded, "It's a gift from an elder, so I can't refuse it. Please accept it."

There are also many treasures in her storehouse, and I will return them with gifts of equal value in the future.

"Thank you, Kyouren."

Mrs. He was very happy and prepared gifts for Shang Wenshu and Shang Zishu respectively, but the two did not open them.

Xiao Yu took Madam He to the stage. The mansion had prepared some opera. This troupe was supported by Shang Jinliang. The old troupe leader was Shang Jinliang's favorite actor in his childhood, and now he was supported by Shang Jinliang.

On weekdays, Shang Jinliang would arrange for opera troupes to set up stages and perform in various parts of the prefecture. This was not for profit, but because he loved Huizhou opera. The opera masters were happy to take the troupe around the entire Huizhou prefecture.

Naturally, wherever they went, they would mention the Xiangmingzhai Opera Troupe.

After seeing off Magistrate He and Madam He, Shang Mingshu looked back and saw that Shang Wenshu was worried. She had noticed this worry early on, but she was busy entertaining Madam He today and never mentioned it.

Shang Wenshu has been helping to check the accounts at Yao's Pharmacy these days. The reason she looks like this must be related to Yao's accounts.

"Is the Yao family's accounting seriously problematic?"

Shang Wenshu nodded weakly and pulled her two sisters into the house. "Falsely reporting losses and inflating inventory are not worth mentioning. The biggest problem is that they are using credit to embezzle money."

(End of this chapter)