Chapter 439: Taking Advantage
Editor: Atlas Studios
Before Mu Yangling came, her father had told her to stay further away from the Shu family. Back then, the Shu family was probably the one who had stopped the Mu family from going south, forcing them to become a military household.
Mu Yangling could most likely understand their thoughts. Her mother, Shu Wanniang, was already considered “dead” to the Shu family. For the sake of the so-called dignity of the aristocratic family, they naturally did not want Shu Wanniang to have the chance to appear in front of others again.
It was fine in the north. Anyway, it was far away and remote, and no one would go to the border. They could tolerate Shu Wanniang continuing to live there, but it was different in the south.
Mu Yangling didn’t know if they had been sending people to keep an eye on them or if they knew about them by chance. But no matter which it was, at this moment, Mu Yangling didn’t want to have anything to do with the Shu family. However, she had to gather the necessary information. Otherwise, what if she accidentally did something stupid?
Li Jinghua was the most familiar with such banquets. Since she did not have to take care of Mu Yangling, she was more at ease. At this time, her pregnancy had already stabilized, and Mu Yangling and Qi Haoran were much less worried about her. Hence, the next day, everyone was divided into two groups. Li Jinghua went to that banquet while Mu Yangling went shopping with Qi Haoran.
She was wearing an agarwood-colored brocade jacket with golden sleeves, as well as a simple white pleated skirt. Seeing that the weather was cold outside, she also put on a white rabbit fur scarf. Seeing that she looked good dressed like this, Spring trimmed her eyebrows slightly and lightly touched them up with some brow powder. She clapped her hands and said, “Fourth Madam, you’re really pretty. With that tinge of rosiness on your fair face, you don’t need any rouge at all.”
Rain came over to take a look and smiled. “Very pretty indeed.”
Qi Haoran was also stunned when he saw Mu Yangling’s attire. Then, he complained, “It’s just a trip to the streets. Is there a need to dress up for so long? Alright, grab your cloak and let’s go. Zijin must have waited for a long time.”
“Didn’t you say that you were going shopping with me today? Why did you call Zi Jin along?”
“He just opened a new restaurant and you have a share in it. Of course, you have to go take a look.” Qi Haoran held her hand nonchalantly and walked out. When Steward Zhao saw the two of them, his face scrunched up. He bent over and said, “Fourth Master, the carriages in the residence are all in use. Eldest Madam used one, Madam, Second Madam, and Third Madam used two more. Old Master also used one. What do you think…”
Qi Haoran waved his hand nonchalantly and said, “Forget it, you may go. We don’t need a carriage anymore.”
Qi Haoran asked Fei Bai to bring his horse over. He got on the horse and carried Mu Yangling to sit in front of him. Mu Yangling complained in a low voice, “If I had known earlier, I would have changed into lighter clothes and not worn a dress.”
That way, she wouldn’t have to sit sideways. It was very difficult to maintain this posture for a long time.
“We’ll be there in a while. When we reach the street, we’ll stroll all the way.”
Lin’an Prefecture was much more prosperous than Jingzhao Prefecture. After the new year, when the market opened, many people would go on the streets to play. They could not remain on a horse once they got on the main street. Pedestrians also occupied the horse lane.
Instead of chasing the pedestrians away, Qi Haoran jumped off the horse and helped Mu Yangling down. He then left the horse to Fei Bai and held Mu Yangling’s hand as they strolled slowly.
Mu Yangling didn’t think that there was anything wrong with holding hands, and Qi Haoran didn’t notice it either. However, everyone looked over curiously from time to time. The sharp Mu Yangling turned around and saw everyone looking at the two of them holding hands. Understanding what was going on, she patted his hand and said, “Let’s go check out the string bags in front.”
Qi Haoran followed closely behind. However, compared to these little trinkets, the two of them were more interested in food. Hence, they bought snacks and ate all the way to Fan Zijin’s new restaurant. By the time they reached, both of them were full.
Mu Yangling said regretfully, “What’s the main dish of the restaurant?”
“Huaiyang cuisine.”
Mu Yangling’s heart ached even more. “Huaiyang cuisine? Is there ‘lion’s head’? If I had known earlier, I wouldn’t have eaten so much just now.”
Qi Haoran chuckled and waved his hand. “We’ll go back after dinner tonight.”
Mu Yangling was instantly satisfied.
When the shopkeeper saw the two of them, he immediately welcomed them. He was transferred over from Hanzhong Prefecture by Fan Zijin and knew that there were three owners of this restaurant. Now that he saw these two, he hurriedly welcomed them respectfully.
Looking around, Mu Yangling saw that there were many customers in the restaurant, and that two-thirds of the seats in the restaurant were occupied. The two of them followed the shopkeeper to the office in the backyard.
When Fan Zijin saw the two of them, he put down the account book and held his forehead with a headache.
Qi Haoran picked up the account books on his table and stuffed them into Mu Yangling’s hands. “Let Ah Ling take care of these things.”
Fan Zijin raised his eyebrows.
Qi Haoran said, “You should be participating in the Fall Quarter Examinations this year, right? Don’t worry about these things. Just focus on studying in the academy.”
Fan Zijin knocked on the table and said, “The shopkeepers are familiar with the business of the restaurant and the dry goods shop, and just need to make some minor adjustments. It’s good to let Ah Ling manage the accounts. If you have any questions, look for me.”
Fan Zijin gestured for Yanmo to find the contract and said, “Same old rules. The money for these shops in Jiangnan also came from us, so we’ll split the profits like before. The contract is here. The two of you can sign it.”
Qi Haoran grabbed the pen and was about to sign when Mu Yangling patted his hand and pushed the contract back. Fan Zijin looked at her in surprise.
Mu Yangling said seriously, “We can’t accept this. You’ve always been the one handling these businesses. Although they’re set up using our profits, to be honest, we were also taking advantage of you with regards to the money we received from the north.”
Speaking of this, Mu Yangling felt very embarrassed.
In the beginning, she was indeed at a disadvantage when she worked with Fan Zijin. The profits were very small, but she had to contribute a lot. However, as Fan Zijin gradually expanded his business, the profits from rabbit farming only consisted of a small portion of the overall profits. However, Fan Zijin used those profits to expand his business to various industries. Other than restaurants, cloth shops, tea leaves, he even dabbled in the salt business in the north. The annual dividends had long exceeded the profits of her original investment plan.
It wasn’t so bad for her since she had indeed put in a lot of effort after all. Qi Haoran, on the other hand, was completely freeloading.
No matter how thick-skinned Mu Yangling was, she couldn’t bring herself to take advantage of Fan Zijin. Moreover, they were taking advantage of Fan Zijin all the way from the north to Jiangnan.
Mu Yangling thought for a moment and said, “The business profits in Jiangnan are too great. Considering you’ve invested so much effort, how can we still take advantage of you? So I think you should enjoy this benefit alone.”
However, Fan Zijin did not appreciate it and said unhappily, “This is the contract signed back then. We agreed that as long as we use the profits from our initial business to expand our business, we would all have a share in these businesses. Do you think I, Fan Zijin, am a despicable person who goes back on my word?”
Qi Haoran was also very unappreciative. “That’s right, Ah Ling. Our businesses have always been tied together. How can we split up now?”
Mu Yangling was furious at Qi Haoran for not having any self-awareness. “But you can’t keep taking advantage of Zijin.”
Fan Zijin said angrily, “I’m willing to let Haoran take advantage of me. What’s wrong with that?”
Qi Haoran also nodded fiercely. “Ah Ling, Zijin doesn’t care about this. I’ve taken advantage of him since I was young. Anyway, he earns a lot of money. If you feel bad, we can return it when we earn money in the future.”
Fan Zijin waved his hand and said, “I don’t need you to pay me back. I’m happy to use my money on you.”
Mu Yangling looked at the two of them speechlessly. It turned out that she was the villain in the end. After some thought, she decided to just accept it. She could only return it when she had the chance in the future.