As soon as Qin Chuan finished speaking, Zheng Miao blushed again, turned around and hit her brother gently with her small fist, while muttering: "Brother, don't talk nonsense, you haven't even written your horoscope yet, how bad it would be for Master Ouyang to hear..." "
The Qin Chuan brothers and sisters were playing around when Ouyang Qi came over and asked with a blank look on his face: "What are you talking about... I'll listen too..."
Qin Chuan smiled slyly and said, "You really want to know? My sister...she..." Qin Chuan hesitated and pretended to be mysterious. Zheng Miao became anxious and stepped forward to cover Qin Chuan's mouth. , smiled sheepishly at Ouyang Qi and said: "Don't listen to my brother's nonsense... He always likes to make fun of others recently..."
"Oh, oh..." Ouyang Qi responded with a smile, found a place to sit down, and then said to Su Qiqi and others: "I don't have much left with the money I brought, so I plan to find a place to set up a stall to sell some calligraphy and paintings. To make ends meet...you can help me advise on which place is better to set up a stall..."
Su Qiqi and others listened to Ouyang Qi's words and gave him advice one after another. Qin Chuan even patted his chest and said that he knew some business friends in the capital and could help match Ouyang Qi to find a good place to set up a stall.
Zheng Miao also took out more than ten taels of silver that she had saved hard and said she wanted to invest in Ouyang Qi's calligraphy and painting business. Ouyang Qi refused, and signed a written note on the spot, and solemnly asked Su Qiqi and others to act as guarantees. If he made money in the future, he would give half of it to Zheng Miao as agreed.
Yan Ruoyu promoted her graffiti masterpieces to Ouyang Qi, and wanted to put them on consignment at Ouyang Qi's calligraphy and painting stall. For every painting sold, Ouyang Qi could receive half of the commission. The two also established a written document.
Luo Xiaoshi is also eager to give it a try, but he is currently too cash-strapped to pay for shares. He offered to help Ouyang Qi and serve as Ouyang Qi's temporary bodyguard. He would use his skills to invest in Ouyang Qi's calligraphy and painting stall, and then invest more in the future when he saves money.
During the entire dinner, only Su Qiqi and Qin Chuan remained cheerful and happy. When Zheng Miao cast her earnest eyes on Qin Chuan, Qin Chuan subconsciously touched his purse. He quietly weighed the few taels of silver in it and said to Zheng Miao: "Haha, since everyone has bought in, I'll join in the fun..." After that, he took off the purse from his waist and handed it to Zheng Miao. To Ouyang Qi.
Ouyang Qi was so moved when he saw everyone's enthusiastic generosity. He also knew in his heart that his friends wanted to help him, but they were afraid of hurting his self-esteem, so they chose to buy shares so that he would not feel embarrassed. He will always remember this friendship. When he becomes prosperous in the future, he must repay these friends well.
After nearly a month of preparation, Su Qiqi’s Escort Branch and Ouyang Qi’s calligraphy and painting stall opened as scheduled.
On the first day of business, Ye Yanru brought her maid Hui'er to ruin the place early in the morning. She walked to the calligraphy and painting stall with a wealthy look, pretended to pick up one painting after another, looked at it, and threw it aside. She threw several paintings in a row, and then looked at the customers who were standing around to watch. With a look of disgust on his face, he shouted loudly: "Who painted this? You have the nerve to sell such an ugly painting... You are really poor and crazy!" After that, he clapped his hands and walked away.
After listening to her words, some customers who had originally intended to buy were temporarily shaken, and put the silver coins already held in their hands back into the purse on their waist. Some guests even turned around and left.
Seeing that his business was messed up, Ouyang Qi wanted to stop Ye Yanru and beat her up. But he only thought about it in his heart, and then he thought that this girl was quite pitiful. She had a father who was obsessed with clinging to power, so her situation was probably not easy. Thinking about it, he felt relieved, carefully sorted out the calligraphy and paintings that Ye Yanru had messed up, and continued to immerse himself in creating new works.
Zheng Miao and Yan Ruoyu were furious, so they quietly left the stall and followed Ye Yanru.
Ye Yanru breathed a sigh of relief and proudly turned into a teahouse on the street. She ordered a pot of scented tea and several plates of snacks, and was happily eating and chatting with the maid Hui'er. Suddenly I saw Zheng Miao and Yan Ruoyu walking over with unkind expressions.
She suddenly stood up from her seat, acted arrogantly, and said sternly: "A good dog doesn't block the road! Don't disturb my lady's enjoyment here, otherwise you won't be able to eat and walk around!"
The maid Hui'er also echoed with an arrogant look: "That's right! Our lady didn't smash your stall, so you are very polite! If you don't know how to show appreciation, let our master put you all in jail!"
Seeing Ye Yanru's master and servant being so arrogant, Yan Ruoyu couldn't help but clenched her fists and said with a bad smile: "Who are you trying to scare? We are still friends of Prince Jingbei! Your master is only a fifth-grade official, how dare you dare to go against the prince?" Showing prestige..."
Ye Yanru was speechless for a moment, and Hui'er rolled her eyes because of the rebuke. However, the master and servant were silent for a while, and then snorted: "I heard that King Jingbei is going to fight again... You should be more careful..."
Zheng Miao and Yan Ruoyu were stunned when they heard this, looked at each other, and asked in unison: "Where did you get the news..."
Ye Yanru shook her head proudly and said quietly: "No comment... Believe it or not..." After saying that, she pulled her maid Hui'er away.
Zheng Miao and Yan Ruoyu stood there in a daze for a while and decided to go back and ask Su Qiqi for advice.
Su Qiqi was stunned for a moment after hearing what Zheng Miao and Yan Ruoyu said. She and Qin Chuan had been in and out of Prince Jingbei's residence frequently recently, and had not heard anything from Prince Jingbei and the Xiao brothers about going on an expedition.
Su Qiqi secretly thought, is Ye Yanru's news reliable? Is there any connection between King Jingbei's expedition at this time and his request for him to escort his mentor to retire and return home? Will the Weiyuan Escort Bureau repeat the same mistakes and get involved in court battles again?
The last thrilling encounter is still vivid in my mind. Su Qiqi had to consider the safety of the escort agency.
Qin Chuan couldn't help but become worried when he saw Su Qiqi suddenly frowning and pacing aimlessly in the yard. He silently walked to Su Qiqi, patted her shoulder gently, and said softly: "Su'er, is there anything you need me to do?"
Su Qiqi shook his head slightly, smiled slightly and said: "Let's wait and see what happens for now... help me keep an eye on Ye Mansion when you have time..."
Qin Chuan nodded, leaned close to Su Qiqi's ear, and whispered: "Then I'll go explore it tonight..."
Su Qiqi smiled knowingly, and the two of them walked side by side to the makeshift practice room in the backyard.
After Ye Yanru returned to the house, she stayed alone in her room for a long time, thinking about the way she saw Ouyang Qi immersed in painting today, and the way he greeted the guests in a low voice. She suddenly felt compassion and felt that her behavior seemed to Somewhat excessive.
She sighed, took off the heavy hairpin on her head, threw herself lazily on the bed, and lay there quietly for a while. Suddenly he stood up and shouted: "Hui'er!"
The maid Hui'er pushed the door open and asked cautiously: "Miss! What are your orders?"
Ye Yanru glanced blankly at the void outside the window, and said lazily: "Accompany me to the calligraphy and painting stall... bring me a few taels of my personal money, I have some use for it..."
Hui'er nodded ignorantly, went to the cabinet behind the screen and took out a wooden box, grabbed a few pieces of silver, and handed it to Ye Yanru.
Ye Yanru wrapped the broken silver in a handkerchief and carried it around her waist. The master and servant sneaked out of the house again.
"Ouyang Qi! Ouyang - Qi!" Master and servant Ye Yanru walked to the place where Ouyang Qi set up his stall, and found that the calligraphy and painting stall was no longer there. She asked several nearby vendors before she found the branch of Weiyuan Escort Agency located in a remote alley. She stood outside the door and shouted Ouyang Qi's name into the door.
After a while, Ouyang Qi hurried out and called Ye Yanru angrily: "Miss Ye, what do you want? My business has been ruined by you, can you stop for a while?"
Ye Yanru heard this and glared at Ouyang Qi fiercely: "Who asked you to break the contract first? I can't even vent my anger?" Just after finishing speaking, she curled her lips again and muttered: "I went too far today. , so I came here specifically to apologize to you..."
Ouyang Qi looked at Ye Yanru suspiciously, smiled bitterly and said: "Okay, I accept your apology. You can go back. I hope Miss Ye will not make trouble again in the future..." After that, he made a sign to see off the guests.
Ye Yanru's face turned red with anger, and she said angrily: "Good intentions are regarded as a donkey's liver and lungs... Humph! You stinky nerd, don't regret it..." After that, she ran away angrily. The maid Hui'er was stunned for a moment and quickly followed.
In the next few days, Ye Yanru did not appear again. Ouyang Qi and Zheng Miao ran a calligraphy and painting stall together, and their business gradually improved. After a month, Ouyang Qi saved dozens of taels of silver. For him, this is his biggest savings yet. He plans to rent a small store in a relatively prosperous street in the capital.
Qin Chuan heard about Ouyang Qi's grand plan, so he used the contacts he had made as a escort to actively help Ouyang Qi find suitable stores. Zheng Miao was filled with gratitude when she saw her brother supporting Ouyang Qi so much. She cooked Hangzhou's famous traditional snacks to reward her brother. In order to be able to eat his sister's hometown delicacies more often in the future, Qin Chuan worked even harder to help Ouyang Qi's calligraphy and painting stall sell business, and even extended the business to the Jingbei Prince's Palace.
