Chapter 63

  The vermilion gate is always quietly closed, the plaque with the words "Rongyuan" shining brightly in the scorching sun of Jiangnan. Passersby can't help but wonder what kind of place it is and who lives inside. The comings and goings seem to be those of high-ranking officials' carriages. Some people want to get close and take a peek, but they feel like there are many cold eyes staring at them from the shadows, so they quickly retreat in a hurry.

  There was a man wearing a silk garment standing not far from the gate, with sweat beads on his round face and even the clothes on his back were soaked. The little servant attending to him said: "Mr. Huang, this is Rong Garden, the owner of Tianxiang Pavilion lives inside, today he's recruiting an accountant, look, there are so many people at the side door!"

  Then Huang Wandah followed the young servant's hand and looked over, only to see a long queue under a locust tree not far away. He frowned even more, since this Tianxiang Pavilion opened in Suzhou City, it has squeezed out almost all other spice shops, and the boss of Tianxiang Pavilion is also ruthless and cunning, one after another acquiring and merging spice shops, now almost all spice shops in Suzhou City are under the name of Tianxiang Pavilion, no wonder they need so many accountants.

  Huang Wandai gestured to the young servant to go forward and knock on the door. After a while, a man with a tiger's back and bear's waist opened the door. He stared at Huang Wandai and the young servant for a while, making Huang Wandai feel a chill run down his spine. The man finally spoke up, still being polite: "I don't know who you are, what can I do for you?"

  Huang Wanda suddenly felt tense and stepped forward to report his name: "Huang Wanda from the Purple Cassia Pavilion in the south of the city, I have come to pay my respects to your master."

  The person who opened the door nodded: "The superior has instructed that if Old Master Huang comes, he can go in directly."

  Was it expected that he would come here to negotiate and plead? His family had been operating incense in Suzhou City for generations, and it had been five generations since he came here. In the chaotic world of the Ming and Qing dynasties, the signboard of Ziwu Pavilion did not fall, and he really did not want to bury this family business in his own hands. However, Tianxiang Pavilion was growing stronger day by day, and it was no longer something that Ziwu Pavilion could contend with. Therefore, he had no choice but to come to the door to plead for his own business.

  A nimble servant led Huang Wanda into the courtyard, and as they walked out of the flower hall, they entered a winding corridor. The ancient trees on both sides reached for the sky, creating a refreshing and serene atmosphere. Although there were no birds hanging under the eaves, the clear and crisp calls of birds could be heard, exuding freedom and comfort. Suddenly, they entered a dark cave, and then suddenly appeared in front of a wide water surface, where half a pool of lotus flowers floated, allowing boats to sail. Then, again, it was a dazzling array of colorful flowers that bewildered the eyes. Pavilions and kiosks were scattered about, each one revealing exquisite craftsmanship and extraordinary beauty. Huang Wanda's back was drenched with sweat once more. This was clearly not an ordinary merchant's residence; such an extraordinary atmosphere must have been built on a deep foundation.

  The flower hall with Western-style glass was well-lit, and the ice blocks in the copper basin exuded a coolness. The various flower pots were planted with lush flowers and trees, which also revealed a deep and winding path. The nanny had already led him in and asked him to stand in front of a twelve-leafed flower and bird screen. Before he could even lift his head, he heard someone behind the screen say: "Mr. Huang... how have you been lately..."

  "This tone was lazy and casual, yet it made Huang Wandao forget the words he had prepared in advance, becoming even more at a loss for what to say: 'You're the boss of Tianxiang Pavilion? Ah... really... we're all just doing business, why must you be so ruthless...'"

  "You're wrong, I never thought of killing him off, it's just that everyone has their own skills. Have we ever intentionally made things difficult for Old Man Huang? Have we ever forced down the price or squeezed him dry? Have we ever said a bad word about Old Man Huang in the industry? It's actually Old Man Huang..."

  The words were spoken in a childish voice, and Huang Wanda's forehead began to sweat again, his back arched even more, and the corner of his eye glanced at the screen, but he couldn't see the situation behind it clearly. The child's words hit the nail on the head, after all, Tianxiang Pavilion had never intentionally made things difficult for any family, each relying on their own abilities.

  。

  Huang Wanda wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve: "It's... also said... didn't make things difficult for me..." Then he had to mention his own difficulties again: "...the family business of several generations, really don't want it to go bad in my own hands, so I came to ask for help today, hoping to get a way out."

  "Huang boss is wrong again, a way out is something you create for yourself, it's not given by others."

  It was the child from just now, Huang Wandao nodded in agreement: "Yes, yes, that's right."

  The girl had tea brought in and invited Huang Wanda to sit down, and it was only then that Huang Wanda realized he had been standing for a while.

  The two big characters "Yuan" and "Garden" still shone brightly behind him, the side door next to it was still as long as Mr. Zhang's team followed Huang Wanda in that year, the large gate behind him creaked shut, the contract in his hand seemed to be burning hot, Huang Wanda squinted under the scorching sun.

  The Ziwei Pavilion is still the Ziwei Pavilion, but it will no longer be his sole domain. People from the Tianxiang Pavilion will come to manage the accounts and warehouses, and the income will be split four-six, with him getting 40% and the Tianxiang Pavilion getting 60%. The Tianxiang Pavilion will also regularly provide high-quality incense for sale at the Ziwei Pavilion. In reality, he doesn't know the formula for blending the incense, so if he were to unilaterally renege on the agreement, the Ziwei Pavilion would revert to its original state.

  But in any case, he kept the sign of Ziwei Pavilion, which was still a thing of the Huang family, and he was still worthy of his ancestors.

  Hong Qian's height grew a bit taller, and he could already hold onto Quan Pei's arm: "That Huang Wanda doesn't seem like a very capable person, being so timid and fearful, just a few words and he was subdued."

  "He stood out among the six rooms of the Huang family, and steadily managed the Ziwei Pavilion for over twenty years. What allowed him to keep this family business was his cautiousness. Different things require different people, and if there were still a managing elder in the Huang family, it wouldn't be so easy for others to come and discuss, so timing is also very important."

  Hong Qian nodded seriously, as if he was thinking of something: "Thank you for reminding me!" He also said: "It just so happens that the master is on holiday today, and I'll go to the farm later to take a look around. The summer harvest is approaching, let's see if everything is safe."

  "Shall we ride? It's better to go and come back quickly, it might rain in the afternoon. If you really can't make it back, staying overnight is also fine, don't rush on the road in the rain."

  There were only a few wispy clouds in the sky, and I don't know how his mother could tell that it was going to rain, but Hong Qian had always trusted Quan Pei, who said that if he said there would be, then there would be: "Son knows."

  The Zhaoluo family has been helping to take care of Jiuzi until he is one year old, and it wasn't until the beginning of the 41st year that they returned to the capital. They also brought back news that everything was safe and sound for Quan Pei and her mother. Yongzheng then kept sending letters urging Quan Pei to return to Beijing.

  Although the child was born weak and thin, she has been raised with great care and now looks no different from other children of the same age. As for her daughter, Yuanyuan is pampered and spoiled, wearing a crimson agate bead hairpin on her black braids, a golden bangle on her plump wrist, looking particularly lovely in a crimson silk cloak embroidered with gold thread, set off by her pale and rosy face, making her look like the Bodhisattva of childhood. Whenever she sees Yuanyuan, she softly and gently calls out "Mother".

  Yuanyuan took Jiu'er's hand and walked inside: "What have you all been doing while Mother was away?"

  "Find butterflies among flowers!"

  "Is it? Can you see it?"

  The little boy proudly said: "I found several of them, all wearing flower clothes, how beautiful!"

  ！”

  Wei Ting smiled lightly: "Is Biju's dress beautiful?"

  "Not, not, as beautiful as Xiaochi's!"

  Yatou brought up the clear water, Quan Pei led Jiuer to wash his hands. Yatou came in from outside, holding a letter: "There's a letter from Beijing."

  It should be another letter from Yin Zhen, Quan Pei used a handkerchief to wipe her hands and took the letter, sitting on the couch to read it. After a while, Jiu'er kicked off his shoes and lay down beside Quan Pei, looking at her like a cat, waiting for Quan Pei to finish reading the letter and tell him how much Ama in Beijing missed her.

  The capital city has not rained for many days, making the whole city of 49 degrees Celsius extremely hot. The cicadas outside the window are screaming loudly, making people even more annoyed. The carved window is only half open, and there is a hint of cool air coming in. On the high table by the window, a pot of elegant peony is placed, with green leaves that seem to be dripping with dew, as if they have not been affected by the heat at all.

  A gentle female voice said: "....you're still young, you can still have children, don't hurt your own body, the road ahead is still very long..."

  Nalan Mingyue only cried: "Sister, why is it me? Why is it my fourth brother?! He's still so young, how could he have fallen ill and can't get better? Someone must be secretly plotting against him, right?!"

  Nalan sighed and said: "You can understand it's fine, cheer up, don't let those black-hearted people get their way..."

  Nalan Mingyue really wiped away her tears, gritted her teeth and said: "Sister is right, I won't let them see me make a fool of myself! But sister says, who exactly is the one who harmed Fourth Brother?"

  Nalan stroked Nalan Mingyue's back: "Foolish girl, now is not the time for revenge. Your top priority is to eliminate dissent and preserve your own strength."

  "What does sister mean?"

  "Whoever brings you the greatest harm is who you should strike at!"

  A few days ago, the third brother's family had another child die. He had found Yanping to drink and complain about it before, but at that time he was just sympathetic and didn't think that one day such pain would happen to himself. The sudden death of the fourth brother left him unprepared, and since becoming a father, he had never been so sad and uneasy. Such a lively life said goodbye without warning, making him unable to sleep for two whole nights, always having nightmares.

  Mr. Qing said to him, "The management of the back house is a big deal, and the previous children were all able to be kept safe, thanks to Madame Fu. As long as Madame Fu had even a little bit of bad intentions, the back house would not be peaceful. Now that Madame Fu is no longer around, there is no one who can control the situation, and I'm afraid it will only get worse..."

  He also said: "..... Originally, if Madam was around, a few days ago when the Ministry of Revenue changed personnel, Madam would definitely run for Master, and at that time, there would be more people from the Ministry of Revenue itself, where did it need to be so troublesome......"

  Originally, Gwon Bo had created a lot of peace for him, and he only deeply felt it when he lost it. So the longing became more intense, and he wanted Gwon Bo to come back as soon as possible.

  Anning's afternoon nap made Jiu'er fall asleep quickly, and she didn't wait for Quan Ge's story in time.

  The fourth prince's untimely death seemed to be within her expectations, sooner or later someone would make the first move, and then a vicious cycle would ensue. She let out a faint sigh, that lively child was gone just like that, Yongzheng indeed wouldn't be able to bear it, after all he was his own flesh and blood. Only she still had unfinished business of her own and didn't plan on going back now.

  The pen dipped in ink paused for a moment on the white paper, and Quan Pei still wrote...