Whаt а sеnsitivе little girl!
When hе lаst wеnt tо thе capitаl tо entrust Yuan Вieyun with thе mаttеr оf thе littlе girl's marriagе, Yuan Bieyun had laughеd аt him for bеing busy with suсh triviаl аnd bоring affаirs аll dау lоng, saуing he "neither соmmits crimеs nor bullies the wеak, nor dоes he frеquеnt рlеаsurе quаrters—neithеr а prореr schоlar nоr а proреr yоung master. What's thе point of hаving раssed thе imperial ехаminatiоn?"
Сhеng Сhi thоught hе hadn't tаkеn it to hеart, but it turnеd out he hаd remеmbеrеd it all аlоng аnd еven brought it up in а teasing manner!
Hе shook his heаd lightly and smilеd indifferеntlу, "Evеn if someone says something about me, it's behind my back. How would I know?"
That's true!
Zhou Shaojin flushed with embarrassment and said, "Everything I've heard about Uncle Chi has been praise. You can rest assured."
The little girl actually knows how to comfort him now!
Cheng Chi chuckled, his voice softening unconsciously, "I will speak to Prefect Wu about this matter. No matter how much he stirs up trouble, he won't be able to change the outcome."
Zhou Shaojin said, "What if he goes around shouting about it..."
Cheng Chi interrupted her with a smile, "His father died early, and he grew up relying on Nine Prosperities Lane. The Cheng clan school didn't charge him tuition and even supported him all the way until he became a xiucai. If he's cornered and starts shouting about it, who would be in the right—him or our Cheng family? At that time, I only need to remain silent, and people will come up with all sorts of speculations. A xiucai stripped of his scholarly title versus a jinshi who passed both imperial examinations—who do you think people would believe more? This is also one of the reasons why Prefect Wu and Instructor Lin dared to promise me.
"Since he has received the Cheng family's favor, he must pay the price!"
It's just that Cheng Lu probably never expected the price to be so high!
The dark clouds in Zhou Shaojin's heart instantly cleared, and everything brightened.
She nodded with a radiant smile, unable to resist saying, "Uncle Chi, you're truly amazing! I was worried all along that Cheng Lu might use underhanded means to scheme against you."
Her delicate features bloomed like spring flowers, bright and captivating.
Cheng Chi couldn't help but smile even more warmly.
Could it be that this was the reason the little girl hesitated and never came to find him?
He said gently, "Don't overthink things alone from now on. If anything happens, come find Uncle Chi, understood?"
Zhou Shaojin obediently agreed and asked about Cheng Chi's journey.
Cheng Chi often went to Huai'an, and this trip was rather rushed, so there wasn't anything particularly special. He simply told Zhou Shaojin about the local customs and scenery of Huai'an.
Zhou Shaojin listened with great interest, her clear and bright eyes fixed unblinkingly on him, like a curious little creature.
Cheng Chi suddenly felt a bit uneasy.
It was like when elders see their juniors during the New Year but haven't prepared red envelopes.
His gaze swept over the curio shelf where he kept gifts, then passed over the abacus he had just used for calculations.
Cheng Chi's spirits lifted.
How could he have forgotten about this thing?
While talking with Zhou Shaojin, he took out a small golden abacus from a drawer and handed it to her, smiling, "I was in a hurry on the way back and didn't have time to buy you anything. This golden abacus was originally meant as a gift for someone else. Later, I found something better and casually left it in the desk drawer. Take it to play with!"
The golden abacus was about the size of a palm, exquisitely crafted, with every bead movable. It was solid, no different from a real abacus, and had a bright red tassel over an inch long tied to one corner, making it exceptionally beautiful.
Zhou Shaojin liked it at first sight.Seeing that Cheng Chi had casually taken it from a drawer, Zhou Shaojin knew it wasn’t anything particularly precious to him. She couldn’t help but smile and say, “So Uncle Chi’s room has been hiding such a fine thing all along. You should have brought it out earlier. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have spent money on a set of hair ornaments for Cousin Jia as a wedding gift—I could have just sent this instead.”
Cheng Chi was pleased to see her accept it so openly and cheerfully. He chuckled and asked, “Did it cost you a lot of silver?”
Zhou Shaojin played along, pouting as she replied, “It cost me fifty taels in total.”
Cheng Chi smirked and asked, “Short on money?”
“Who isn’t short on money?” Zhou Shaojin complained to him, half-jokingly and half-seriously. “With silver hair ornaments, you start wanting gold ones; with gold ones, you start wanting them inlaid with jewels… The old woman who sweeps the courtyard is short on money, and so am I!”
Cheng Chi laughed heartily.
Zhou Shaojin wrinkled her nose slightly.
Ever since she had rewarded Fan Qi, she felt she had never quite recovered financially—she truly was short on money.
But there was no need to mention this to Uncle Chi, lest he misunderstand and think she was complaining about her poverty.
Neither Zhou Zhen nor Zhou Shaojin’s stepmother, Madam Li, would ever shortchange her.
However, given Zhou Zhen’s financial standing, it was impossible for Zhou Shaojin to spend freely.
In Cheng Chi’s eyes, anything related to money was never a problem.
He thought for a moment, then turned and took a small, tightly tied indigo-blue pouch, about the size of a palm, from a shelf on the curio cabinet. Handing it to Zhou Shaojin, he smiled and said, “Hold it carefully—don’t drop it.”
“What is this?” Zhou Shaojin reached out to take it.
Cheng Chi raised an eyebrow.
Only when Zhou Shaojin cupped her hands together did Cheng Chi place the pouch into her palms.
It was heavy. Despite being mentally prepared, Zhou Shaojin stumbled slightly and nearly dropped the pouch.
“What’s in here?” She placed the small pouch on the tea table and opened it, only to find it filled to the brim with golden beans.
No, calling them golden beans wasn’t quite right.
They were more like a pouch full of golden kidney beans.
They were the same size and shape as real kidney beans, heavy in the hand, and surprisingly all solid.
Zhou Shaojin looked at Cheng Chi in confusion.
Cheng Chi smiled and explained, “These were meant for giving out as gifts during the New Year. I didn’t use them all, so I’m giving them to you.”
Zhou Shaojin was startled.
A pouch full of golden kidney beans was worth at least several thousand taels of silver.
She didn’t want to accept it, but she also didn’t want to appear petty. She said, “Just give me two of them. With so many, I’d have to worry about thieves if I kept them in my room!”
Rather than intending to give her the golden kidney beans, Cheng Chi seemed more inclined to make up for her disappointment at not receiving a gift earlier. He chuckled and said, “If they’re kept here, won’t thieves still covet them? Take them and keep them safe! If you ever need silver or copper coins, you can have Ma Fushan exchange them for you. When an elder gives a gift, it cannot be refused!”
Zhou Shaojin really liked this pouch of golden kidney beans.
Even the tiny stems on them were exquisitely crafted, looking incredibly lifelike.
Individually, they seemed merely delicate, but gathered together, they gleamed brilliantly, dazzling to the eyes.
It was the first time she had realized gold could be used this way… Thinking of the things Old Madam Guo had given her… Zhou Shaojin calmed down. Smiling, she said, “Alright then, I’ll accept them.” She added, “Thank you, Uncle Chi!”
At most, she could do as Cheng Jia did—when Uncle Chi got married, she could prepare a gift of equal value to return to him.
Zhou Shaojin felt a slight dip in her mood but quickly pushed the thought aside.Thinking that this item was a gift from Cheng Chi and was quite small, she didn't want it to be easily taken away by someone, so she asked, "How many are there?"
"I don't know!" Cheng Chi laughed. "I just grabbed a handful at the time. Why don't you count them?"
Since there was nothing else to do anyway.
And more importantly, it meant she could stay here a little longer.
Zhou Shaojin happily agreed and ran over to the nearby daybed, pouring all the golden cloud beans from the pouch onto the tea table, arranging them one by one.
Cheng Chi watched her playing with them as if they were toys, feeling quite pleased.
He recalled the two shops he had acquired during his last trip to the capital.
They were old shops with over twenty years of history, specializing in rouge and fragrant powders. Relying on the patronage of the former Minister of Personnel and Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion, Shen Minzhi, their business had flourished. After Shen Minzhi retired, expenses had increased over the past two years. The owner decided to cash out while things were still good and entrusted a broker to transfer the shops.
Yuan Bieyun had kept a mistress outside and borrowed money from him, intending to quietly acquire the two shops to cover the mistress's expenses. Unexpectedly, after the shops were acquired, the mistress found out that Yuan Bieyun's wife was still alive and well, so she broke up with him and returned to her hometown in Shandong to resume her old profession. Yuan Bieyun was furious and went to Shandong to find her, abandoning the shops altogether.
Cheng Chi had always felt that relying on rental income from shops was too slow. He didn’t like holding onto too many properties, and since he wasn’t skilled in things like rouge and fragrant powders, he planned to either sell them or give them away... Why not just give them to the little girl?
The shops already had managers and clerks in place. Giving her a source of income would also give her something to pass the time.
Once Cheng Chi made up his mind, he began thinking about the size of the shops, their customer base, and their products.
He took out a piece of paper and listed all the issues he could think of, pondering how to improve them.
Meanwhile, Zhou Shaojin arranged the golden cloud beans one by one on the tea table. Seeing that Cheng Chi was busy, she then gathered them back into the pouch one by one, occasionally stealing glances at him from the corner of her eye.
Cheng Chi was fully absorbed in his work and didn’t notice Zhou Shaojin’s unusual behavior at all.
Zhou Shaojin secretly smiled to herself.
She thought Cheng Chi looked really handsome when he was focused.
His eyebrows were dark and elegant, his gaze clear and gentle, calm and composed...
She took the golden cloud beans out of the pouch again, one by one, and arranged them on the tea table.
When Nanny Shang came in to serve tea and snacks, she saw Zhou Shaojin sitting on the daybed playing with the golden beans while Cheng Chi sat behind the large desk, writing furiously. One was gentle yet lively, the other steady and reserved, yet the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious and warm.
After a moment’s thought, she quietly retreated.
When it was time to sleep that night, Zhou Shaojin poured out the golden cloud beans again and played with them for a while before putting them back into the pouch and placing it under her pillow.
Chunwan couldn’t help but laugh, saying, "Second Miss, this is a pouch full of golden beans after all. Shouldn’t you keep them in a chest? Each one is worth over ten taels of silver! You never lock your cabinets, and there are always people coming and going here. What if one goes missing? That would be terrible."
Zhou Shaojin just wanted to keep them in her hands to play with for a few days and said, "Once the novelty wears off in a few days, I’ll give them to you to put away."
Chunwan was deeply troubled.Madam Fan Liu and the maids were all aware that Zhou Shaojin kept a pouch of gold beans by her pillow, which made them hesitant to enter her room casually. Whenever they had a reason to go in, they would go in pairs, all hoping she would soon store the gold beans in a chest.
Over at the third branch, Old Madam Li personally came to deliver a message to Old Madam Guo, saying that Li Jing was no longer young. Since Li Jing had not yet married, the Li residence in Luoyang had been managed by Li Jing’s second aunt in recent years, resulting in a chaotic and disorganized state. They were eagerly awaiting Cheng Jia’s arrival to take charge of the inner household affairs, so Cheng Jia’s wedding date was set for the sixth day of the tenth month.
This made things quite urgent.
Fortunately, the third branch was wealthy and spared no expense in preparing the dowry. Old Madam Li also privately contributed a considerable amount. Although it wasn’t as grand as when the eldest daughter of the Liu family married into the Liangguo Duke’s household, it was still a lavish and splendid affair, making quite a stir at the time.
※
Dear readers, here is today’s bonus update.
The update will be around midnight tonight.
O(∩_∩)O~
※ (To be continued ~^~)
OpenNovel