Chapter 442: Closeness and Distance
After this incident, Hua Zhi finally understood why her cousin had been more attentive than usual these past two days. Looking back now, he must have already known about his father’s intention to break off the engagement and felt guilty about it.
She saw clearly that it was her elder uncle who wanted to withdraw—otherwise, her aunt wouldn’t have dared to stir up trouble. Moreover, her attitude today clearly showed she was willing to defy her mother-in-law, which meant her elder uncle had given her the courage.
Although Hua Zhi would have found a way to end the engagement herself if the other party hadn’t brought it up, the fact that her elder uncle took this stance was still hurtful. It inevitably damaged their relationship, and she couldn’t pretend it didn’t bother her.
That said, she had always been closer to her younger uncle anyway. As a businessperson, it made sense for her to associate with fellow businesspeople. Her elder uncle was an official—he could mingle with other officials.
Just as she was lost in thought, the doorway darkened, and her younger uncle walked in with a beaming smile. “Look at you—from the moment I entered until I reached here, countless people told me the young lady had arrived. Anyone unaware would think some distinguished guest had come. Your reputation is truly remarkable, tsk.”
“Just because I’ve visited a few more times doesn’t mean I’m no longer a guest,” Hua Zhi replied with a chuckle as she stood to greet him, her tone relaxed.
Old Madam visibly relaxed and stood up. “Zhi Er, you mustn’t leave today. Stay and have a meal with your grandmother. I’ll go instruct the kitchen to prepare some of your favorite vegetarian dishes.”
“Yes, as you wish.”
Only then did Old Madam leave satisfied, casting a meaningful glance at her younger son where Hua Zhi couldn’t see.
Zhu Haodong, unaware of what had happened, observed Zhi Er but noticed nothing unusual, so he simply filed it away mentally. “Have you been here long?”
“A little while.”
“I thought you were so busy you hardly had time to rest. You do look a bit pale.”
Hua Zhi felt too embarrassed to explain that her pallor was due to her monthly cycle. She took a small booklet from Liu Xiang and handed it to him. “I’ve had some new ideas about the soap business. Take a look first.”
Having already heard her outline the plan once before, Zhu Haodong didn’t stand on ceremony and began reading carefully. He went slowly, at times almost word by word.
“This is better than I expected.”
Hua Zhi raised an eyebrow.
Zhu Haodong laughed. “I thought after you took the business back, you’d at most let us have a sip of the broth. But judging by this, we can still get a decent bite of the meat.”
“Naturally. I wouldn’t have reclaimed the business if this approach didn’t offer you greater profits. You haven’t forgotten that I still have a share in this venture, have you? Also, you’ll need to explain this to Old General Zhou.”
“Don’t worry, the Zhou family won’t object to such a favorable arrangement.” Zhu Haodong was confident. They had already tasted the benefits and knew how profitable this venture was. Besides, they couldn’t even meet the demand in the capital alone—how could they possibly swallow up the entire empire? This product was a consumable; once used up, people would need to buy more. Their workshop had already expanded once, but it still seemed far too small. If they scaled up as Zhi Er suggested, even if each of the three families only held a ten percent share, the returns would be substantial.
However, he had one concern: “If we distribute shares in other regions the same way, the portion given away won’t be insignificant. Will the Emperor agree?”"Other places won't have three families, at most two to balance each other. Even after distributing twenty percent of the profits, the Emperor would still exclusively retain eighty percent. What more could he want? When the business expands, I plan to sell to neighboring countries—all the returns would be genuine silver. There's really no need to limit ourselves to the present."
Zhu Haodong was surprised, "Sell to other countries? Would the Emperor agree?"
"This isn't strategic material, why wouldn't he agree?"
That seemed... quite reasonable. This wasn't iron, grain, or tea—selling it abroad would bring back silver. What reason was there to disagree?
However, "I say, Zhi Er, aren't you thinking a bit too far ahead? We haven't even finished making money in Daqing yet, and you're already thinking about earning from other countries!"
"Let's plan ahead first. There will come a time when it becomes reality."
Zhu Haodong wore an expression halfway between laughter and disbelief, "I don't know why, but even though this matter hasn't even begun, when you say it, it always sounds perfectly reasonable."
"That means what I'm saying makes sense."
Uncle and niece exchanged smiles, the atmosphere couldn't be more harmonious. Zhiniang, who had been deliberately left behind by Old Madam, breathed a sigh of relief and quietly left the room. Old Madam could rest assured—the eldest young lady hadn't become estranged from the Zhu family.
No matter how good the plan, it needed to be implemented to see results. Hua Zhi wasn't one to procrastinate. After receiving news from General Zhou, she drafted a new contract for the three families to sign, then immediately began implementation.
She found her maternal uncle's workshop too modest and directly requested an abandoned large residence from the Emperor. She had unnecessary walls demolished where needed, then moved the entire small workshop there before posting notices to recruit workers. The two managers from the other families remained in their positions, and she assigned another manager from the Hua family. She then left subsequent matters to these three to handle.
As for how the three would get along, she didn't interfere. If such matters required her involvement, what would be the point of having managers?
Once she made her attitude clear, the few people instead adapted more quickly, each taking charge of their respective areas and getting the workshop operational in a very short time.
Meanwhile, at court, the proposal to establish The Seventh Division caused an immediate uproar, like water hitting hot oil. Since salt taxes originally belonged to the Ministry of Revenue, Zhu Bowen—who stood to lose authority—remained silent while others strongly supported the move. Creating a new division would mean numerous new official positions from top to bottom. Everyone wanted to place their own people in these positions, and though the power struggles were exhausting, everyone remained excited.
The Emperor bided his time for several days. When they had debated some regulations, he immediately brought up the matter of transportation, making it clear he intended to resolve both issues together. Military officials who had originally stayed out of the matter, upon learning this would be handled by the military attaché, all entered the fray either actively or passively. The court remained bustling for several consecutive days.
As the weather grew colder day by day, while the matter remained unresolved, Hua Zhi had already begun contemplating her journey to the northern regions.
Gu Yanxi didn't quite approve, "It will only get colder. Why endure such hardship? Wouldn't it be better to go after the New Year?"
"I want to return before Grandmother's memorial day. The north stays cold longer—even if we depart in March, the weather would still be cold. We might as well go early." Hua Zhi rubbed her icy fingertips. Those previous injuries ultimately couldn't be fully recovered from—the colder it got, the colder her hands became."I'll speak with Grandfather and let him know I won't be going during the first half of next year. I'll go in the second half instead, then make another trip around April the following year, and another in October. This way we can adjust the schedule to avoid the coldest periods." As she spoke, Hua Zhi smiled again, "Perhaps by then they'll all have returned, and I won't need to go at all."
"Who can predict what the future holds? Anything is possible." Gu Yanxi enclosed her cold hands in his palms, frowning at her unusually low body temperature despite having felt it before. "I'll summon Shaoyao to examine you again."
"She only left a few days ago—don't trouble her. Didn't you say the Emperor has also caught a chill? My condition isn't something that can be cured quickly. Following her previous advice and recuperating steadily is sufficient."
Gu Yanxi's frown remained, but in the end, he said nothing more.
OpenNovel