After being forced to leave the marriage, I became the wife of a top scholar.

Chapter 261 Further Discussion on Divorce
Just as dazed as Manager Du was the young shop assistant, who was busy running around the shop, unable to believe that the shop, which was on the verge of closing down just two days ago, had now become the signboard of Jiangnan Cloth Shop.

"I...I really can't be dreaming, can I?" the young shop assistant muttered blankly, holding the abacus.

Manager Du, who was passing by, chuckled and patted the young waiter on the head, saying, "Don't worry! You're not dreaming, and neither are we!"

The young waiter snapped out of his daze, and grinned happily at the sight of the real Manager Du before him.

Just then, a middle-aged man nearing forty years old stepped into the shop.

"Excuse me, is Steward Du here?"

The young waiter was taken aback when he saw the man. This man looked distinguished and extraordinary. He quickly called to Manager Du, "Manager Du, someone is looking for you!"

Upon hearing the shout, Steward Du hurriedly came out, and a smile spread across his face when he saw who it was.

"Old Li, I heard before that Madam Du was going to send a capable manager, but I didn't expect it to be you!"

Manager Li has been working for the Du family for over twenty years, and along with Steward Du, he is regarded by Madam Du as the Du family's right-hand man.

Manager Du is skilled in combat and adept at using people! Manager Li, on the other hand, is a master at managing the business.

Manager Li said with a smile, "It's me! You can't take all the credit for Jiangnan, can you?"

Upon hearing this, the two of them burst into laughter simultaneously.

Manager Du led Manager Li to the backyard and then called over the young waiter who was busy in the front hall.

"Old Li, this kid is clever. This time it's rare that he gritted his teeth and worked with us to protect the Du family's cloth shop."

"Haven't you always wanted to find an apprentice to take care of you in the future?"

"If you ask me, this kid is pretty good!"

As he spoke, Manager Du beckoned for the young waiter to come over.

Manager Li looked at Steward Du with slight surprise. He had worked with Steward Du for so many years and had never heard him praise any young man. It was clear that this young man had truly caught the eye of this old man, Steward Du.

Manager Li sized up the young man before him. He was quite pleased with the upright air about him, but still teased, "Old Du, you know, this kid is so good, why don't you keep him as your apprentice?"

"So, I'm actually getting a good deal?"

Manager Du knew that Manager Li was joking, so he pretended to be in pain.

"Isn't it because this kid aspires to be a successful businessman? If he were to stay with me, wouldn't that be a waste of his potential?"

Upon hearing this, Manager Li was even more delighted and laughed a few times. He then asked the young shop assistant, "So? Manager Du wants me to be your mentor. Are you willing?"

The young shop assistant came from a poor family. Finding a job at the Du Family Cloth Shop was already a huge stroke of luck for him, let alone being able to become an apprentice to the shopkeeper.

"Yes! I'm willing!"

After saying that, the young waiter immediately knelt down and offered Manager Li tea as a gesture of acknowledgment of becoming his apprentice.

Manager Du stood up and waved to the two of them, "Alright! Now that you're here, I won't get in your way anymore!"

"The future of the Du family's cloth shop depends entirely on you!"

Manager Li took a step forward, patted his chest, and said, "Don't worry! Madam sent me here, so I'm determined to win the title of number one in Jiangnan."

The best in Jiangnan? Bai Wanqing couldn't help but smile happily when she heard that Madam Du had such ambition.

"Yes! The Fang family was able to become the number one in Jiangnan by leveraging the Fang Family Cloth Shop."

“The Du family can naturally become the richest family in Jiangnan, or even the richest family in the Shang Kingdom, by leveraging the Du Family Cloth Shop.”

"Then I'll be waiting for Aunt Du's good news!"

Manager Du chuckled and then discussed the return trip with Bai Wanqing.

"Madam Lin, things at the Du family's cloth shop have basically stabilized now."

"Madam Du has also sent several letters to inquire about your well-being. When do you think we should set off back to Huaizhou?"

Bai Wanqing originally planned to stay in Yangzhou for a few more days and wanted to visit Lord Sui.

But Madam Du sent several letters urging her to come, and Bai Wanqing felt that something serious must have happened in Huaizhou! Madam Du couldn't explain it in her letters.

"Let's go! We'll leave tomorrow! I'll trouble Manager Du to make the arrangements as soon as possible!"

When Steward Du saw that Bai Wanqing's expression suddenly turned serious, he didn't dare to delay and immediately arranged for people to make preparations.

The next day, almost before dawn, Bai Wanqing and her group packed up and set off.

Cheng Susu didn't expect them to leave in such a hurry. Bai Wanqing pulled her directly out of bed, and she was still sleepy.

"Wanqing, what happened?"

"Why are we in such a hurry to leave now!"

Bai Wanqing said with a rare serious expression, "I don't know, but I have a feeling that something big is about to happen."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Susu instantly sobered up, as if she had also realized something.

"Is it related to my father?"

Bai Wanqing didn't speak. Cheng Susu pursed her lips, her sleepiness instantly vanishing. After a moment, she couldn't wait to stick her head out of the carriage and shout to Steward Du, "Steward Du, let's go faster!"

"We won't stop in the middle!"

Manager Du's smiling face froze, and he replied in a tearful voice, "Okay!"

In reality, Steward Du was already heartbroken. These two young girls are young and strong enough to handle the strain, but his old bones might not be able to withstand it!
Hopefully, when he returns to Huaizhou, he will still be alive to report to his employer.

Although Steward Du was inwardly complaining, he didn't hesitate in his actions. Bai Wanqing and the others barely rested, so in just over ten days, they were already able to see the gates of Huaizhou City.

Ruixin gently lifted the carriage curtain and saw Du Huan and Furong greeting her at the city gate from afar. "Madam, it's the Second Miss and the others!" Ruixin said excitedly.

Bai Wanqing nodded with a smile, "Quickly, let's go over there!"

The carriage stopped quickly, and Bai Wanqing and Cheng Susu hurriedly got off.

When Bai Furong saw Bai Wanqing, she ran up to her, grabbed Bai Wanqing's arm, and said happily, "Big sister, you're finally back!"

We've been so worried about you these past few days!

Du Huan then stepped forward and bowed solemnly to Bai Wanqing.

"Second brother-in-law, what are you doing?" Bai Wanqing hurriedly raised her hand to help Du Huan up.

Du Huan replied, "Elder sister, we were unaware of what you had done for the Du family before. Now that we know, I feel ashamed!"

"The Du family was able to turn the tide this time entirely thanks to my eldest sister's help."

Bai Wanqing smiled slightly and said, "Since the Du family and our Bai family have become related by marriage, we are essentially one family."

"We're family, so there's no need for formalities, brother-in-law, please don't stand on ceremony."

Du Huan knew Bai Wanqing's intentions and said with a smile, "Then thank you for your kindness, elder sister. I will definitely take good care of Furong in the future and will never let her suffer any grievances."

Bai Furong smiled shyly, and Bai Wanqing felt gratified looking at the young couple.

At this moment, Fengniang, who had been waiting for a long time, came up.

"Second Miss, Second Son-in-law, have we forgotten something important?"

Du Huan suddenly realized, slapped his forehead, and said to Bai Wanqing, "Yes, yes, yes! Big sister, Aunt has already prepared a welcome banquet for you."

"Shall we hurry back to the Du family?"

Bai Wanqing nodded and said, "Okay!"

Fengniang quickly helped Bai Wanqing into the carriage, and Cheng Susu also tactfully pulled Ruixin into another carriage prepared by the Du family.

The group then headed towards the Du family's residence.

As soon as Fengniang got into the carriage, she said nervously, "Madam, something terrible has happened! The Prince of Huai's men are here!"

Bai Wanqing had been thinking about this for a long time on the way.

After much thought, if it were a normal matter, with Marquis Cui of Zhaonan in the Lin family and her parents-in-law also there to oversee things, Aunt Du wouldn't be in such a hurry to send letter after letter to Yangzhou.

Prince Huai! At this moment, Prince Huai came looking for Lin Yunche, who was not there, which was indeed a tricky situation.

"It's alright! Don't worry! There's always a way out." Bai Wanqing's calm expression helped Feng Niang, who had been somewhat flustered, to calm down as well.

Yes! She's seen it all, so why isn't she as composed as the lady?

The Du family's carriage traveled very fast, and in less than a quarter of an hour, they arrived at the Du family's gate.

Madam Cui, Lin Feiyun, and Madam Du had been standing at the door to greet them for quite some time.

As soon as Bai Wanqing got out of the car, Madam Du rushed forward, took Bai Wanqing's hand, and greeted her warmly, "Wanqing, you're finally back!"

Not to be outdone, Cui grabbed Bai Wanqing's other hand and said, "Yes! You have no idea how worried we've been about you these past few days."

The two men carried Bai Wanqing directly into the courtyard, while Lin Feiyun and the others stood at the door looking at each other awkwardly.

"Ah! She really is a woman!"

"All they know how to do is chat about everyday things!"

Lin Feiyun muttered to himself, thankfully Du Huan came to his rescue at that moment, so that Lin Feiyun no longer had to be embarrassed.

On the other side, the two pulled Bai Wanqing into the backyard.

Madam Du had already instructed that the best guest room be prepared and arranged everything for Bai Wanqing. After that, she tactfully said, "Wanqing, you've just returned. There are still some important matters to attend to at home. You and Sister Cui can talk first."

"Don't worry about the others, I'll take care of them."

Madam Cui and Bai Wanqing nodded their thanks and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Madam Du/Aunt Du."

"Not at all, we're all family!" After saying that, Du Wei left with her servants, just as Lin Feiyun hurriedly caught up with her.

Their eyes met, and Lin Feiyun nodded slightly before heading straight to find the Cui family.

Seeing this, Steward Du came over to greet her, "Madam."

Should I assign some people to keep an eye on things?

Du Wei shook her head and said, "No need! I've already made arrangements here!"

"It's perfect that you're back! Come back with me first, and tell me about what happened in Yangzhou!"

"Yes!" Then Steward Du followed Madam Du out of the villa.

Meanwhile, inside the house in the villa, both Lin Feiyun and Madam Cui wore unusually solemn expressions.

Bai Wanqing was genuinely startled. Was the Prince of Huai really that terrifying?

"Father, Mother, what exactly happened?" Bai Wanqing asked.

Madam Cui sighed, turned to look at Lin Feiyun, who said helplessly, "Wanqing."

"Why don't we make the decision? You and Che'er should get a divorce!"

(End of this chapter)