Guo Shao did not go home in the morning, but went straight to the Guards Department from Dong's house. Because he did not return home last night, he had to go home early this afternoon.
As soon as I got back home, I saw Yu Lian looking worried and said, "My dear, I seem to have been deceived. What should I do?"
Seeing her anxious face, Guo Shao pulled her to sit on a stool at the back door of the living room and said: Don't worry, what's going on? Who lied to you
The money for buying silk, the deposit. Yu Lian felt guilty and worried. The Shenlichen weaving shop took my money, but this morning when I asked Bai Xiangu and Huang Tiejiang to take people to see the goods, the people in the shop refused to let me see them, saying that the goods could not be sold. I asked Bai Xiangu to ask about the deposit and breach of contract compensation, but the people in the shop refused to refund me.
Guo Shao was confused and only understood the general idea. Seeing Yu Lian's anxiety, he thought: What kind of businessman is that? He even dared to cheat the wife of a senior general of the Imperial Guards.
He asked: Is there a contract
Yu Lian nodded aggrievedly: I have written it, but what if they don’t recognize it? I gave them a large deposit.
Her oval face was full of anxiety and pitiful. Seeing this, Guo Shao hurriedly held her hand and comforted her: Money is something outside of one's body. Even if you are really cheated, it's no big deal. Just think of it as paying for a lesson. But if a businessman really dares to do that, even if there is no contract, they are too bold.
Holding Yulian's hand, the back of her hand was smooth, and there were calluses on her palm. Guo Shao felt even more pity when he touched it, and shouted: I have many ways to make them lose more than they gain. If the store really wants to bully you, a woman, I will help you. But Yulian, tell me the details first, so that I can know what is going on.
Yulian said: At first, Jingniang asked Bai Xiangu to go to the shop to discuss the purchase of silk fabrics, but the silk, satin, brocade, and silk yarn in their shop were more than 30% more expensive than those on the market. I told Bai Xiangu to go to other shops in the East Market and West Market to have a look. If that doesn't work, there are silk merchants in the outer city. Can't you buy things in Tokyo with money
Unexpectedly, that afternoon, the shop sent a woman, who was over 40 years old, dressed elegantly and had servants. She called herself Aunt Sun and seemed to be the manager of the weaving shop. When I met her, she was very straightforward and said that if we could cut the originally negotiated price in half, the silk would be much cheaper than the silk fabrics on the market. Moreover, I saw the samples and found that they were indeed finer than ordinary silk materials. I was a little confused and asked her why.
Guo Shao asked casually: It is natural for businessmen to seek profit. Why did she do this
Yulian said: She said that she would do the business even if it would make a loss, because she had heard of General Guo's name for a long time, and her master wanted to make friends with him, but had no chance before. Later, Aunt Sun did not talk about business, but kept talking about her husband's affairs, starting from the killing of Zhang Yuanhui of the Northern Han Dynasty in the battlefield, and she talked about everything like the back of her hand. There were some things on the battlefield that I didn't know, but she talked about them in great detail, even knowing my affairs.
Yulian blushed slightly when she said this, which was a little different from the truth. But when she said that my husband had made great contributions in the Battle of Gaoping and was promoted to a higher position, he came to the market to greet me with great fanfare, it was not wrong.
She paused and continued: I was surprised and asked her why you businessmen are so concerned about the war. Aunt Sun said that her master loved to hear about General Guo, so she and her subordinates catered to his interests and often inquired about the matter and told her master.
Guo Shao was very pleased to hear this. He was a vulgar man who loved fame and fortune. Knowing that an unrelated person also praised his achievements always satisfied his vanity. He thought that the shop owner admired him very much, so how could he deceive Yu Lian
Before he asked this question, Yulian said: I heard that Aunt Sun loved you so much and was a righteous person, so I let it go. I asked Bai Xiangu to take the money to Shenlichen Weaving Factory to sign a contract to order silk and satin. I just waited for them to be ready and paid the rest of the money to move the things. Unexpectedly, after the money was paid and the matter was settled, when I sent someone to move the things today, they told us that the deal was not going to be done and they would not refund the deposit, you, could Aunt Sun be a bad person disguised as a shop owner to cheat money
Guo Shao thought for a while and said: Didn’t you say that you sent Bai Xiangu to order the goods from the shop? If that’s the case, and the people in the shop knew about it, how could they condone her to cheat money in the shop? Yulian, please be patient and don’t get angry and hurt yourself. Leave this matter to me.
He tried to comfort her, thinking that even if she was really scammed, she would just lose some money. Compared to money, Yu Lian was more important.
Soon, Bai Xiangu went in to look for Yulian, and seeing Guo Shao there, she reported: "The Shen, Chen and Li weaving shop sent someone to invite the people from Guo's house to the shop to discuss something. I came back to tell Yulian first."
Guo Shao asked casually: Didn't Aunt Sun come to talk to us last time? Why did she ask us to go to the store to discuss this time
Bai Xiangu said: I also asked, the shop owner said that this time it was their boss who was in charge, but the boss was a woman, so it was inconvenient for her to come to her house. So they asked us to send someone over.
The boss, it should be the one that Aunt Sun said likes to hear about my fighting, Guo Shao groaned, thinking that after all, Fairy Bai couldn't make a decision on the spot, and the master came to talk in person. After thinking about it, he said, I have nothing to do this afternoon, I will go and tell her and solve this matter to save Yulian from worrying.
Yulian said faintly: My dear, do you think I am useless and can't do anything well? Guo Shao smiled and said: No. But Yulian is still so petty, that little money makes you worry so much. Yulian whispered: It's not a little, if it were in the past, the deposit would be enough for us to spend for a lifetime.
Wait for me at home. Guo Shao smiled and stood up from the stool, told Bai Xiangu to call Jingniang along, and then asked the servants to prepare the carriage and escort.
The Shen, Chen and Li weaving factories were located near the East Market of the inner city, as they were in the same direction and not far from the Guo residence. Go north from the residence gate, pass the Daxiangguo Temple and walk a few streets to the East Market; both places were in the southeast of the inner city.
Jingniang and Guo Shao rode in the carriage together. She said: After all, the shop is on someone else's territory. We don't know much about Shen, Chen and Li. Why not find a teahouse in the downtown area and send someone to invite the owner of the shop to meet in the teahouse. Even if she is a woman, it won't be inappropriate.
Guo Shao adopted Jingniang's suggestion and first found a restaurant and booked a private room, then sent someone to invite the owner of the business. Jingniang was more cautious about going out because of what happened last time, so she asked the servants to disperse and watch in the building and nearby.
They drank tea in the room for a long time, and the tea gradually became cold. At this time, a middle-aged woman came and asked to see the owner of the Guo Mansion.
When the woman was brought in, Guo Shaoguan called out "satin". She looked calm and composed, unlike an ordinary servant. He also saw that she was about 40 years old. He remembered what Yulian said, and thought that this person might be Aunt Sun. Could it be that Aunt Sun was the mistress of the company
Sure enough, as soon as the woman came in, she bowed deeply and said with lowered eyes: My name is Aunt Sun, and I’m here to meet General Guo.
Guo Shaodao: Don’t be polite, please sit down and let’s talk about business.
Aunt Sun said: "It is not my turn to talk today. My mistress has already arrived. However, she is a widow and cannot show up. She asked me to apologize to General Guo first, and then ask General Guo to move to the next room to talk."
After hearing this, Guo Shao thought to himself: This business owner is really arrogant. When I arrived at the place, she asked me to meet her, as if she summoned me. There are many widows in this world, and since she is running the business, why can't she see people? If it were a capitalist society in the future, the female directors of some group companies would still be arrogant; but in this era, the role of money is just like that. It is very useful in the market, but it is useless at a certain level. The status of businessmen is completely incomparable to that of civil and military bureaucrats.
But since they were already here, Guo Shao was too lazy to argue with her or argue with a woman. He immediately said, "Okay, please lead the way."
He immediately left the private room with Jingniang Baixiangu and went to another place.
As soon as he entered the teahouse, he saw a curtain drawn against the wall, and a figure could be seen faintly inside. Seeing this, Guo Shao felt that this woman was really hypocritical. She was showing off her grandeur, actually meeting someone in the teahouse and covering it with a curtain. And this curtain was obviously not something from the teahouse, but something they brought with them.
I am a woman, it is not appropriate for me to meet a man. Please forgive me for my impoliteness, General Guo. The figure inside bowed gently. As soon as she opened her mouth, Guo Shao was slightly stunned. The voice was very clear and beautiful. Haha, it sounded like she really had some capital to be hypocritical.
Guo Shaodao: Never mind, they are just small details, I don’t care.
After hearing this, the woman praised: General Guo is indeed a hero, and his conversation is excellent.
Guo Shao smiled and thought: I just said one sentence, how can you tell how I talk
The woman said softly: "General Guo, please take a seat. The tea outside is too dirty, so I didn't ask anyone to serve it. If there is a chance in the future, I will use the clear spring to make tea for General Guo to make up for today's impoliteness."
After hearing this, Guo Shao felt strange again. As long as the tea in the teahouse was not poisoned, there was nothing wrong with drinking it. This woman must have mysophobia. Fortunately, her family was rich, otherwise she would have been born into an ordinary family in this chaotic world and see how she would complain about the dirty tea.
Guo Shao said: Let's stop drinking tea. We need to talk. I heard that the deal has been settled, but you guys are going back on your word. I don't know why.
The woman said slowly and in a quiet voice: "Please allow me to explain. This is why I came here today. This is a dispute among our own people in the company, but it has implicated General Guo. I am very sorry."
Guo Shao asked: "Madam, aren't you the owner of the shop? How could someone take the initiative and go back on his word without your consent?"