Red apricots make spring

Chapter 142
Lu Ce said that he would go out in three days, Rourou counted on his fingers with complicated emotions.

On the first day, Lu Ce took Xizhu out during the day, and didn't come back until night, bringing back a crested starling to relieve her boredom.

On the second day, a valet named Yun Dan came back and gave Lu Ce a stack of what seemed to be account books. He closed the door in the study and looked at it for a day.

On the third day, Lu Ce got up early in the morning, called Xi Zhu and Yun Dan into the study room and closed the door and talked for a long time. When he turned his head and came out, Yun Dan disappeared again, and Xi Zhu began to help Lu Ce in the evening. Pack your bags and prepare to go out the next day.

It seems very mysterious, but Ruan guessed that he must be busy with business matters, but he didn't notice it on weekdays. He is such a pampered young master, and he has a business mind. No wonder he dared to fall out with his family, because he was not afraid of being broken. source of income.

Early in the morning on the fourth day, when Rourou woke up and was still combing her hair, Xizhu stood outside the curtain and replied, saying that he was going out with Lu Ce.Gentle and faint "um", suddenly felt that his behavior was not like a married woman who cared about her husband wholeheartedly, so she had to ask one more question, "When will you come back?"

"I don't know for the younger ones, maybe five or six days, or ten days and a half months, there is no certain number." Xizhu replied respectfully outside the curtain.

"It's okay, you can go." Rourou stood up, took a deep breath, and smiled in the mirror.I thought to myself that after being cautious for the past few days, I can finally live a comfortable life for two days, but why is there still a faint feeling of separation in my heart?
Instead of going out to see Lu Ce off, she hid in her room and ate a bowl of Shuangpi Nai, then played backgammon with herself, then asked the maid to open the box and count the money she had saved in the past few months, and counted When will she be able to save enough money to open a small restaurant? This is her dream, but the capital required is too large, and the money she has saved so far is not enough!Depressed for a while, she threw the money back at the bottom of the box and locked it. She took a book and was going to sit under the shade of a tree by the pool, play in the water, and read the book.

Unexpectedly, as soon as she went out, she bumped into Xiaohuan who was coming in. Seeing her worried expression, Rourou hurriedly asked, "What happened?"

Xiaohuan frowned, didn't know what to say, hesitated for a while, closed the door with her backhand, pulled Rourou to the back room and said, "Sister, have you noticed that Mei Xiang's expression is a little bit wrong these two days?"

"Mei Xiang?" Hearing that she was worried about Mei Xiang, Wen Wen's tense mood immediately relaxed, and said with a smile: "She has behaved a little shyly in the past two days, and she talks much less, as if she just came to our house The way she looked at that time, probably because she is not used to the current life, if you forgive her, maybe it will be all right in two days."

"But..." Xiaohuan lowered her head and took out an account book from her sleeve, handed it to Wen Rou, and said: "There is something wrong with the account book in the pastry shop for the past two days, you can see for yourself."

Rourou took the account book, opened it, looked at it, frowned and said, "Why did you spend twice as much on buying ingredients as usual? Is the business better recently? That's not right, the income has actually decreased!"

"Business is the same as before, sister, please take a closer look." Xiaohuan pointed to a certain line to teach her to see clearly, and then turned to the previous account records for comparison.

"This—" Wen Rou raised her eyes and said, "The purchase price of each ingredient is twice as high as usual!"

Xiaohuan bit her lip and said hesitantly: "I have never understood what ingredients the pastry shop uses, and Mei Xiang ordered the assistants to buy them. Logically speaking, I should suspect that the assistant in charge of purchasing took advantage of it. Pay the bill, but..."

"Go on." Rourou gently put the account book on the table.

"I went to the pastry shop to collect the bill for several days and didn't receive it. At night, I asked Mei Xiang for the accounts of daily expenses and income to keep the accounts. She always shirked and said that she was too tired, so she just put it in and didn't pay it until last night. The money came halfway, and she reported the account to me, and only told me an approximate amount, without a detailed account." Xiaohuan sighed and continued: "I asked for a long time, and she only said that it took a long time. I can't get up, I asked her to think about it, and she told me the quantity and price of a few ingredients that are not commonly used, and I checked the account again, and I felt something was wrong."
Gentle groaned without speaking, fisted and loosened the hand resting on the account book, loosened and fisted again, finally sat down, looked at Xiaohuan and said, "Are you sure it's her?"

"I didn't fall asleep last night. I kept thinking about it over and over again. I felt that she didn't need to do this, but the accounts were indeed wrong..." Xiaohuan lowered her head and said, "When I got up early, I saw that Mei Xiang's eyes were also faintly green. Wu, I must have stayed up all night, waiting for her to go to the shop before coming to my sister for advice."

Rourou stared at the account book in a daze for a long time, then let out a long breath and said: "It's better to be cautious about this matter, I don't have to make Mei Xiang cold, first call the guy in charge of purchasing to ask."

Xiaohuan agreed, but didn't go, hesitantly said: "What excuse do you have to call him out? It's impossible for Mei Xiang to be in the shop without knowing that we called him in for questioning."

"Then you don't need to call him here, just ask him a few words when you go to check in the shop." Rourou didn't expect such a thing to happen, she was very confused for a while, seeing Xiaohuan turned to go out, she hurriedly said: "Wait, you don't have to ask directly about the accounts, just ask if anyone has visited the shop to look for Mei Xiang in the past two days."

"Sister means—" Xiaohuan pondered.

"We haven't treated her harshly these days. I don't believe she would do such a thing for no reason. There must be a reason!" Gentle sighed, and her mood suddenly became very bad.In fact, there is no need to investigate, she also knows that it can be concluded that Mei Xiang did it, no wonder she has always been preoccupied these two days, and dare not raise her eyes to look at others.

Xiaohuan went out, Rourou didn't have the heart to do anything anymore, she just opened the door, sat on the red lacquered railing in the veranda, and stared in a daze.The crested mynah that Lu Ce gave was hanging on the corridor, tilted its head to look at her, made a face at it gently, and grinned, but the mynah was startled, fluttered its wings and screamed, "Good job— —”

"Pfft", Wenrou couldn't help being amused by it, originally thought this stupid bird couldn't talk, but it's been three days since I bought it, and I've never heard it speak, so it's really surprising to say such a word out of the blue.

I was teasing mynah, wanting to see what else it would say, but it stopped talking and just lowered its head and pecked at the rice.At this time Wenrou heard footsteps behind her, and when she turned her head, it was Mother Wen who came over with her maid, Xianglan, and smiled at her: "I've been thinking about something all night, and I want to hear what you mean?"

"What's the matter?" Rourou thought, why is everyone busy today?But seeing the smile on Wen's mother's face, she didn't seem to be troubled, so she made up her mind.

Mother Wen took the fragrant orchid branch and poured tea, sat next to Rourou and smiled, "I think, how about hiring a luthier for you and Gang'er?"

"The luthier?" Wen Rou was extremely surprised, she didn't know how she would think of this out of nowhere.

"Last night I saw Gang'er was studying chess records. I thought you should learn something when you are free now." Mother Wen said with a smile: "I heard that girls from rich families have to learn such elegant things as piano, chess, calligraphy and painting since childhood." , so that in the future married people will be able to please their husbands and sons-in-law, and the husband and wife will sing poems and fight against each other, this is called husband singing and wife following!"

Rourou opened her eyes wide, looked at Mother Wen for a while and refused, "Mother, I don't want to learn."

"Hey, why don't you want to learn?" Mother Wen kindly persuaded, "You are just a concubine now, and you have a bad background. It is impossible to be straightened up. Right now, my uncle is not a regular wife and concubine. You are living a good life. If he has someone else in the future, what will you use to compete for favor? Although you have a good cooking skill, but marrying such a family that has no shortage of cooks, it is unseemly to cook by yourself every day Son, besides..."

"Mother!" Rourou interrupted her and said, "I'm not in the mood to learn this right now, why don't you find a piano teacher to teach Gang'er first, I think he is very interested in these things, it's better to learn more."

Even if she wants to learn, she needs to be able to learn because she likes it, instead of using piano, chess, calligraphy and painting as a means of competing for favor!To put it bluntly, it's not just girls from rich families who can do this?The oiran lady in the hook bar will also do it!Then does she still have to learn those winking eyes and flirtatious jokes?The most important thing is that she doesn't need to please Lu Ce or her future real husband-in-law like this. If she really married someone, and her husband-in-law wants to take a concubine, who will divorce whom?
Mother Wen looked at her for a while, then sighed in a low voice, "Why don't you always listen to advice?" This daughter has always been at odds with her, almost to the point where she will object to whatever she says. I don't understand how the relationship between mother and daughter became like this.

"Mother—" said softly and helplessly: "You can't force your own thoughts onto me. When you have free time, you should take a good rest, take care of your body, and ask the maids to wipe the cards with you, don't think so much Things just make me worry."

Mother Wen let out a long sigh, and wanted to speak, when the starling above her head patted her wings twice and shouted, "That's right - that's right -"

Her unspoken words froze on the tip of her tongue, and she could no longer speak them.
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(End of this chapter)