A convention

  "Is what Miss Cui is referring to the ornament on your hand?"

  "It's exactly this one that I like, can't Liu Zhuang cut his losses?" Cui Mengyao smiled faintly.

  Chui Cishi smiled and said, "You little girl, that's what Liu Zhuang took as a token of good luck, this will make him even more embarrassed."

  Liu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, it was bound to happen, and now it finally has.

  As soon as Cui Mengyao mentioned wanting to see the jewelry, Liu Yuan had already guessed this outcome. He didn't expect her to actually speak up, and that Cui Shi was superficially blaming her but in reality hinting to Liu Yuan: Our Cui family's girl has taken a liking, you'd better think of a way.

  If it were someone else, Liu Yuan would have directly refused. After all, these accessories had already become the main characters of this event, and many women came for them. Suddenly saying that they didn't exist would be very unconvincing and a huge blow to the credibility of the Jin Yu family.

  However, Liu Yuan could not directly refuse because the two people sitting there were surnamed Cui, and they came from Qinghe Cui's family.

  Tang Taizong Li Shimin was able to obtain the world in a chaotic era, relying on the power of the aristocracy. After gaining heaven, as a great achievement, the power of the aristocracy expanded greatly. Speaking of the aristocracy, the most famous are the seven clans and five surnames: Qinghe, Boling Cui, the first among Tang Dynasty aristocrats, produced more than 20 prime ministers with the surname Cui. Others include Fanyang Lu, Zhaojun Li, Xiangyang Zheng, Taiyuan Wang, and Longxi Li.

  Li's clan is Li Shimin's tribe, which is also the imperial family.

  Cui Ci Shi came from the Qinghe Cui family, and held a fourth-rank official position. That Cui Meng Yao who was so arrogant, even this Governor had to show her three parts of respect. Now that she personally spoke up, if Liu Yuan refused, it would be a slap in the face for the entire Cui family. As the head of the clan, they could crush him with just a slight movement of their little finger.

  On one side is integrity, on the other is power, can Liu Yuan not be torn?

  "Does Miss Cui like this ornament?" Liu Yuan did not answer Cui Mengyao's question, but instead changed the subject.

  "The workmanship is exquisite, the design is novel, it can be described as clever and ingenious. I really like it, but in a few months, it will be Old Lady's birthday, I know that taking it out to make a splash now would be embarrassing, please consider the filial piety of being a good son and daughter, I beg of you, Mr. Liu, to spare it, I am willing to offer 100 taels of gold for Mr. Liu to spare it."

  "It turned out that it was for Old Lady's birthday, Xiao Yao, you are truly filial and commendable." Cui Ci Shi praised from the side.

  It was a matter of filial piety, and also a large sum of money, and the local highest official, Governor Taishou's help, Liu Yuan couldn't even refuse if he wanted to, and the little girl beside him was at a loss.

  "Actually, it's the old lady's birthday, I don't know how long until her big birthday?"

  "There's still more than three months." Cui Mengyao didn't hide it either.

  More than three months? That's enough, Liu Yuan's face showed a joyful expression.

  "Miss Cui" Liu Yu said with a straight face: "Now that these three pieces of jewelry are on display, everyone in Yangzhou knows about it, and many talented scholars and merchants from outside have also witnessed it. If we were to change the display at this late hour, our family's loss of integrity would be a small matter, but if we were to tarnish Yangzhou's reputation, that would be a grave mistake."

  Seeing Cui Mengyao wanting to say something, Liu Yuan hastily said: "However, Miss Cui's filial piety is really admirable. Fortunately, there are still three months left. This period of time is enough for me to recreate a more exquisite piece of jewelry to replace this ordinary one, so that Miss Cui can fulfill her filial duty."

  When Liu Yuan refused, Cui Mengyao was a bit disappointed. The expression on the face of Cui Xishi, who was standing beside him, didn't look good either. However, when he heard what Liu Yuan said, Cui Xishi's expression improved. He thought that what Liu Yuan said made sense. This matter had already spread to the imperial capital, and if they were to go back on their word, it would be a sign of their own incompetence.

  "Unbelievable, this one is even worse?" Cui Mengyao said in surprise.

  Liu Yuan smiled and said, "To be honest with you two, when we first made these pieces of jewelry, our family's gold and jade business was facing great difficulties and lacked funds. In order to save costs, the materials used for these few pieces of jewelry were not precious. Take that Butterfly in Love piece that Cui Niang is holding, for example. Each wing of the butterfly has 368 stones. Normally, it would be best to use green stone or cat's eye stone, but our family's business is small and we've just suffered a great calamity, so to save costs, I used inexpensive green tourmaline instead. This doesn't match the status of an elderly lady like you, which is also one of the main reasons why I refused your offer."

  "In three months," Liu Yuan said confidently: "As long as you give me three months, I will definitely make a piece of jewelry more exquisite than Die Lian Hua, and guarantee that it will satisfy you."

  Cui Mengyao heard this, and held the jewelry in front of her eyes to examine it carefully. Indeed, the stone on the wing was green but not bright enough, transparent but not clear enough. In terms of material, it was a bit inferior. Giving it to the most respected elderly lady in the clan would be inappropriate for her status.

  "Mr. Liu, you're a straightforward person, so I'll take your word for it. I'm looking forward to being surprised in three months," said Cui Mengyao, who then gestured with her hand, and soon a maid walked over, placed a bulging money bag on the table, and retreated.

  Cui Mengyao gently pushed the wallet on the table in front of Liu Yuan.

  "Here are three hundred taels of silver, consider it as the advance payment I made earlier, also to let Manager Liu prepare well. The price is not a problem, whatever the difference is, we can make up for it later."

  The big family is the big family, it's said that due to financial problems, they can't do it perfectly. Cui Mengyao saw that this store was very small and not upscale at all, so she was afraid that Liu Yuan didn't have enough capital to make good decorations, so she prepaid a portion of the price as a deposit, which also showed her sincerity.

  "Miss Cui is really thoughtful, so thank you first." Having money to collect is of course a good thing, their family is powerful and Liu Yuan was still worried that she wouldn't pay for the things she bought.

  It's also good this way.

  Cui Mengyao smiled and turned to Cui Xishi, saying: "Uncle, I just chatted with this girl and found out that her father was killed by two apprentices who also stole gold and silver. She was so desperate that she almost had to sell herself into prostitution. Please help bring the culprits to justice, so that my younger sister's father's spirit can rest in peace soon. Also, please take care of this matter, it is a matter of justice for the dead."

  The young girl was clever enough to know that the woman in front of her was not an ordinary person. When chatting, she mentioned her own miserable life experience, and Cui Mengyao immediately sympathized with her and couldn't help but plead for the little girl to Cui Shi.

  "I'm from Yangzhou, where the people are simple and honest. With these two murderers on the loose, I wouldn't let them off even if you asked me to. Miss Yuan, rest assured." Cui Xie Shi said with a serious face.

  "Thank you, sir." Liu Yuan and Xiao Niang said in unison.

  After seeing Cui Mengyao's jewelry, the business was also settled. Cui Xishi didn't want to stay here any longer either. He brushed off his sleeves and stood up saying: "Alright then, we still have some official business later, Little Yao, let's go."

  "Yes, Uncle." Cui Mengyao stood up upon hearing this, her hands clasped together in a respectful gesture.

  Liu Yuan and Xiao Niang bowed together: "Farewell, sir, and Miss Cui."

  "Hey, Manager Liu~~"

  "The common people remain."

  "Hmm, this juice is quite good, I wonder if it's available for sale normally?"

  He's delighted after drinking the juice and even asked if Liu Yuan is for sale.

  Liu Yuan smiled and said: "Sir, this is quite simple, one teaching will do. If not, sir can let the cook come and learn from me, then whenever sir wants to eat, he can eat."

  "That's settled then. This is my name card, if you have any business in the future, you can find me at the Imperial Censorate." With Liu Yuan's ability to read the situation, and also because of his own sake, having impressed the Emperor, he found him more and more pleasing to the eye, so in high spirits, he gave him his name card.

  Don't look at it as just a small business card, in many cases, its role is still very big.

  "Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir!" Liu Yuan took it with both hands and thanked him repeatedly in excitement.

  In this day and age, officials are valued more than merchants. Having this name card is like finding a powerful backer for oneself. And it's the highest administrative official in Yangzhou, all for the price of just a few cups of cheap fruit juice. It's worth it, totally worth it.

  Before leaving, Cui Mengyao reminded again: "Liu Zhuanggui, that jewelry must be done well."

  "Definitely, definitely," Liu Yuan repeatedly assured: "I guarantee that you won't forget, just wait and see. Three months later, I will personally deliver it to your mansion for Miss Cui, ensuring her satisfaction."

  "Alright then, see you in three months."

  Cui Mengyao finished speaking and followed Cui Ci's history back to the mansion.

  After the two "great gods" left, Liu Yuan and Xiao Niang exchanged a glance, both feeling a sense of relief. In a society with class privileges, an official's power can be overwhelming, but fortunately, although they got what they wanted, they didn't make things difficult for the couple, and even left behind 300 taels of silver.

  It's lucky that the robbers didn't care about their reputation, if they had encountered those young masters who don't care about their reputation, it would have been a small matter to just steal things, but if they had taken a liking to the young lady, they might have even kidnapped her.

  Liu Yuan picked up the package of silver and tossed it in his hand: Qinghe Cui's family, how interesting! That woman named Cui Mengyao, her temperament, figure, and voice must be those of a stunning beauty. Unfortunately, she has been covering her face all along, so I couldn't see her true appearance. It would be great if I had the chance to take a look at her true appearance.

  ;