The New Year has just passed, and the New Year’s Eve has not yet arrived. The streets along the Qinhuai River are full of festive atmosphere. The sound of firecrackers is occasionally heard. Some shops are opening or the New Year’s greetings are lively, and some are scattered. The children took them Firecrackers were scattered all over the street, running laughing and joking, and vehicles and pedestrians passed by on the street.
The festive atmosphere could not dampen the cold weather. In this market, the snow was swept aside, and there was no sign of melting, and it looked like a hill. On the side of the road, the restaurant box called Tingtao Pavilion is warm, with a well-arranged flaming stove, which warms the room and ensures a little air circulation. Flying away, there are also ethereal and beautiful piano sounds as accompaniment. The woman playing the piano has a beautiful figure and bright appearance. At this time, it is only a foil, not much to say.
The tea cup was filled with tea, the leaves spread out in the water waves, and the heat floated out.
"I left Jiangning at the end of the year, and I returned yesterday. Has anything major happened in the last few days?"
"Like Brother Tang, the younger brother also went out of the city to worship his ancestors and visited the elders in the family. How can there be any news to say."
The scene seemed peaceful. One of the two people talking was Pu Yangyi and the other was Tang Xu. They were both leaders of the younger generation in Jiangning's business world. Tang Xu was a gentle and elegant person, not only in business, but also in literary talent and knowledge. Quite accomplished. These two are both opponents and good friends. They meet once in a while, drink tea and chat. Today is also a chance encounter after the new year. It happened that the oiran Qilan was there, so he played the qin to accompany him.
"... This time out of the city, I heard that there was a snow disaster in the north, and Lin Shouzhou had shipped a batch of goods over. The road encountered an avalanche and lost everything. It's pitiful."
"Lin Shouzhou has a lot of tricks. He works hard and borrows from the west. He can always pass. Hehe, it's just that his luck has been bad in the past two years..."
"He is indeed a powerful man. He is about to fight. I heard that he has invested a lot in the northern land. Once the fight starts, he is waiting to make a fortune. Now he is probably counting his days.
"The cloth sellers are also discussing things recently. They had a drink with the people from the Weaving Bureau two days ago, and the group sighed."
"Huh? It wasn't enough last year? What's the matter now? Has the Xue family moved?"
"It's still a matter of the Su family and the Wu family."
Puyang Yi took a sip of tea and was slightly surprised: "Wouldn't it be over when the Su family split up at the end of October last year? The Wu family was miscalculated by Ning Yi, and now those businesses are probably about to be handed over. , Could it be that you are not convinced, and are you planning to make something happen?"
"The aftermath is not over."
"Is there any aftermath?"
"I also guessed it today, but the people in the cloth line have a more sensitive sense of smell, and I guess they have reacted... The Wu family took the initiative to take all the shares of the old cloth in the Jiangning area, and officials at all levels walked around quite frequently."
"Take Suibu? Is he crazy?"
"I can't help it. I heard that the Wu family spends money like flowing water recently, and the situation at home is like a landslide. Next to one-third of the Su family's knock, they took the old cloth, rubbed it up and down, and almost went half way. , it was only after the end of the year that someone noticed that their activities were too exaggerated. Now they are probably relieved. After this, it is estimated that the background of the Wu family is not enough to one-third of the previous one, and it will be feared within a few years. I can only be busy for the royal business. I met Wu Qilong once, and I became a lot more introverted."
Puyang Yi opened his mouth: "Why is this happening?"
"Guess, I just reacted too."
There, he put the teacup to his mouth, then blinked his eyes, and put the cup down: "That cloth faded... Can't solve it?" This is not a question, but a guess after deep thought.
Tang Xu nodded on the opposite side: "I guess the same is true, many people should have noticed it."
"This matter is really twists and turns, and it's not over yet..." Puyang Yi murmured with a complicated expression.
"Everyone has been deceived, and everyone is still being deceived even after they were exposed." Tang Xu laughed, "Since the assassination of the Su family, they have been deceived and deceived. At the end of August, the ownership of the royal merchant was decided. The family was deceived, and they were amazed at the Wu family. At the Su family clan meeting at the end of October, everyone realized that the Wu family was deceived. Who knew that after the October announcement, everyone was still in the dark... Look at the Su family at the Wu family at that time Almost everyone thought that the Su family had reached an agreement with the Wu family to use the real golden brocade to blackmail the Wu family, now it seems..." He took a sip of tea with a complicated expression, "It's actually a white wolf with empty gloves. , which is really admirable…”
Puyang Yi was silent for a while: "In this way, the Su family didn't exchange the real golden brocade for one third of the Wu family, but exchanged a third for a secret, and the Wu family even had to Go and defeat the other third by yourself. It was already said at the end of October, but no one doubted this. This is really... Ten steps count... "
"I think about it now." Tang Xu nodded, "The Wu family has a strong heritage. If it only loses one-third, I am afraid that it can still maintain the momentum of the three weaving families. After this incident, the Su and Wu families have already settled. Under the big beam, if I were Ning Yi, I would not allow this situation to continue. I can only completely destroy the Wu family, and I can't compete. No one thought about it, I just thought that the Su family had already taken a big advantage at that time, and it was common sense to take it as soon as possible... Xue family and others, missed the best opportunity. This Ning Yi seems to be gentle, but in fact... terrifying. "
The two were just chatting. Their family business was much larger than that of the Su family, and they were not in a competitive industry, but when they talked about it, they were still surprised and amazed at the operation behind it. The results that were originally revealed at the clan meeting at the end of October were already scary enough. There is a game in a game, one ring after another. When people thought that was the result, they didn't expect this to continue until this time. The Wu family was only one-third left. And the operator behind this is such a scholar.
"It's better not to be an enemy."
"Heh, this kind of miracle may not be available at any time, I'm afraid there are also coincidences. Brother Puyang may not be afraid of him, right? And the younger brother heard that Brother Puyang and Ning Liheng have a good personal relationship, what is this person, before? Did you not notice it?"
"I have been together a few times, but I may not be able to call it a personal relationship. This person is indifferent, and he is not very interested in gatherings for fun. In the past, I only thought that he had a great foundation in poetry and prose. It can set off such an amazing wave. A Wu family was tossed down like this... I also visited him after October. I just heard that since the decision of the emperor's business, he continued to teach in the Yushan Academy. My life, I occasionally meet on the street, but I don't care about the Su family anymore, it's much more free and easy than you and I."
"There are such weird people." Tang Xu smiled, raised his teacup, and then said, "I was thinking, if anyone wants to plot against the Su family again, I am afraid they will have to weigh up the Ning Liheng behind the Su family. Served…”
Thinking about the current situation of the Su family, if as the enemy of the Su family, there is a Ning Liheng who is called "ten steps and one calculation" always standing in the back, it will really make the scalp tingle, he will make one shot. After erasing one-third of the Wu family, others will really have to take a good look at it.
Behind the bead curtain on the side, Qilan played the violin and gradually understood what the two were talking about, so she listened carefully.
The story of the talented and the beautiful is always the mainstream of the scene. She is now a courtesan. Occasionally, she will hear people talk about Ning Yi, and then talk about her, she will actually have a somewhat strange feeling in her heart. Ning Yi is really one of the strangest talents in Jiangning. Although he is considered to be the number one talent, he is not very close to Huanchang. There has never been such a talent in the past, but she also feels that Ning Yi deserves his name, even better than him. Cao Guan is still powerful, which is really strange.
He is not close to anyone or anyone, but if he is interested, he should be able to get along with him. Qilan occasionally thinks like this in her heart, after all, she is different, and didn't he reward her with a few thousand taels last time at the Hua Kui Competition
Of course, now that she has a position, she is actually quite busy, serving guests for the Puyang family, repaying the kindness of the encounter, all kinds, and also knows some other powerful talents, but only thinks about it when she is free, thinking of Ning Yi There are not many cases, but every time I think about it, I will never hate it. Sometimes I hear that Ning Yi has a relationship with Yuan Jin'er, an already good courtesan, but I don't know how true it is. There are always rumors in the happy scene.
She didn't need to say too much at today's party, so she was happy to strum and think about these things at will. Puyang Yi and Tang Xu chatted for a while before they got up to say goodbye. Puyang Yi also said that he would go back to Su's house to visit in a few days, and by the way invited Ning Yi to participate in Yuan Xi's poetry party... I don't know if he will come, Qilan thought guessing.
Puyang Yi also had something to do. After sending Tang Xu away, he parted ways with Qilan at the entrance of Tingtao Pavilion. Anyway, Qilan was followed by a maid, and a driver drove her directly to take her back. On the other hand, Qilan really saw Ning Yi and Yuan Jin'er when she was on the road today.
After the New Year's Eve, even though there are already many pedestrians on the streets, there are not many people who are purely leisurely shopping. Most of them come to visit New Year's, each with its own purpose. The carriages drive along the Qinhuai River all the way to a street intersection. When she opened the curtain, she saw the figure of Ning Yi and another person entering a restaurant by the river. The person walking with Ning Yi looked a bit like Yuan Jin'er, but it was a little strange, and it was different from the previous feeling. Different, so she stopped the carriage.
It was mainly because Puyang Yi and Tang Xu only talked about Ning Yi just now. At this time, Qilan got out of the car to take a look. The restaurant by the river was still under renovation. There are some small changes in the above, although there are not many when you distinguish them carefully, these changes do highlight this two-story building that is probably used as a restaurant. It seems that it took a lot of thought. Because of the cold weather, Ning Yi wore a lot of clothes, because he was wearing a hat, so he looked a little rustic. The person next to him was a woman, and he was also wearing a lot of clothes. He was wearing brown clothes, a hat, and white fluff. It can't hide its beauty, but from a distance, it looks like a red panda.
Qilan distinguished it, and the one walking with Ning Yi was indeed Yuan Jin'er, who had already retired from the legend.
As an oiran, Qilan is still wearing a beautiful dress today. It's beautiful, but it actually keeps her warm. It took a lot of thought. Yuan Jin'er was also an oiran in the past, so she would definitely not do this kind of casual dress up that seemed to be a bit self-defeating in the past. Ning Yi and Yuan Jin'er walked to the restaurant, holding a few pieces of paper in their hands, pointing at the furnishings in the restaurant lobby. Qilan frowned and asked the maid to wait here, but she ran over.
Halfway through the renovation of this floor, some windows were not closed properly. Ning Yi held a pen in his hand to discuss with Yuan Jiner, and occasionally wrote and drew while lying on the table. Yuan Jiner was in the messy hall. Pushing things around and running around. Conversation came from inside:
"... It's not a big change in the first place, but it has to bring out the importance of cleanliness... Well, actually, I've been quite busy recently. The two apprentices, the younger one wants to do dangerous experiments all day long, the older one... The older one is also A little loli, she has been stern all day recently, she is only thirteen years old, she is fourteen this year, I heard that the family is picking her husband-in-law for her, so it is very annoying... "
"Fourteen years old is also very old, you can get married, at least you can get married."
"The esoteric age issue, I can't tell you... Well, I decided to add a few stools... How old are you, why don't you marry yourself?"
"My life is hard, and I can only rely on Sister Yunzhu... Don't count on it! By the way, I've been thinking recently, can we call this place 'Zhuji - Jin'er Store'? You promise me, I will I'm going to order a sign."
"... Change the second store to Jin'er store."
"Um."
"Okay, no problem, whatever you want."
"Why do you look so strange..."
The two were talking piecemeal inside, some words she couldn't understand, but... it felt very warm.
It feels like a family, husband and wife, or brother and sister.