Lady of Fortune, Jiao Niang

Chapter 164

After being thrown in the face, Sixth Young Master Wen was stunned. When he pulled the thing off his face, he still had the presence of mind to look at it.

It was a small pair of pants, split-crotch pants at that...

"Sixth Young Master Wen, trespassing in someone else's back courtyard doesn't seem like gentlemanly behavior." Manager Song got down from the carriage, signaled for Nanny Mo to take good care of Little Shi Tou and Young Master Ning, then smiled and cupped his hands toward Sixth Young Master Wen: "Please conduct yourself with caution, Sixth Young Master Wen."

Sixth Young Master Wen knew Manager Song. In this Capital now, the Qi Family Wine Shop had made its own reputation, and Qi Yun had taken over several restaurants and wine shops, always having Manager Song handle everything publicly.

He was nominally a manager, but actually he was already Qi Yun's most capable right-hand man, and everyone would give him some respect.

But in Sixth Young Master Wen's mind, this person was just a dog raised by Qi Yun, nothing to fear.

If it were before, Sixth Young Master Wen definitely wouldn't even give him a glance, but now times were different. The Wen family had already been cornered by the Qi family, and he had just been talking nonsense outside. Every word had probably been heard by this man. If this person spread it around, he feared the matter he wanted to accomplish would fail again.

Sun Shi had already been locked in the woodshed by Wen Minsong for several days because she had drained the Wen family's resources, counting on Sixth Young Master Wen to save her life.

For Sixth Young Master Wen, he was somewhat angry about Sun Shi's greed, but he also knew that if Sun Shi were gone, they would certainly marry a new wife. Then as a son born of a concubine, his days would be even harder.

Even though he looked down on Manager Song, Sixth Young Master Wen now told himself that a great man could bend and stretch. He forced a smile: "Isn't this Manager Song? I came to speak with your Second Young Master about something, please pass on the message."

Manager Song looked Sixth Young Master Wen up and down, thinking that although this person was stupid and narrow-minded, he did have some good points.

Thick-skinned and able to endure.

Being thrown in the face with urine-soaked pants and still able to smile was truly not easy.

On his face, Manager Song's smile was as gentle as usual, his voice equally calm: "The master said he won't see Sixth Young Master Wen. Please leave early, Sixth Young Master Wen, don't waste time. It's better to leave some dignity for both sides."

But Sixth Young Master Wen wouldn't leave so easily. Just as he was about to speak, he saw a familiar person in the distance.

Walking in from the main gate was Third Young Master Qi, who had hurried over.

Originally, Qi Yun hadn't planned to tell Qi Ming about Qi Zhao and Little Shi Tou arriving in the Capital today, to avoid disrupting his work. But it happened that Qi Ming had business at home today, and as soon as he entered, he heard a servant mention this matter.

He missed his elder brother and didn't need to return to work anyway, so he immediately changed into casual clothes and hurried over.

Liu Si followed behind him, carrying a box containing books that Third Young Master had prepared as gifts for Little Shi Tou. They were all difficult to find, and Liu Si held them carefully, afraid of dropping them.

Perhaps because Qi Yun had always said Little Shi Tou was excellent reading material, and Qi Ming had always held his second brother in highest regard, he believed these words completely. He naturally thought Little Shi Tou, like Xu Bao, considered reading the greatest joy in life, and felt his gift choice was particularly good.

As soon as Qi Ming entered the restaurant, he heard someone calling him from afar: "Third Young Master, Third Young Master!"

Qi Ming's steps paused slightly. He turned to look and saw Sixth Young Master Wen waving at him from beside the carriage, along with Manager Song who was frowning nearby.

Regarding Sixth Young Master Wen, Qi Ming had long decided this person wasn't worth associating with, so he wanted to pretend he hadn't heard.

But a small head poked out from the carriage curtain. Qi Ming immediately recognized it as his elder brother's son, Little Shi Tou. He smiled immediately, ran over quickly, completely ignoring Sixth Young Master Wen, and reached out to lift Little Shi Tou from the carriage, smiling: "Little Shi Tou, you've grown quite a bit."

Little Shi Tou actually didn't have a deep impression of Qi Ming. When Third Uncle was at home before, he could only return from the academy one or two days each month, only seen during holidays. Little Shi Tou wasn't like Xu Bao who liked listening to people read, so their relationship wasn't deep.

But before coming, Qi Zhao had already instructed that this time they would meet Second Uncle and Third Uncle. Little Shi Tou remembered Second Uncle deeply, so the person before him now must be Third Uncle.

So Little Shi Tou obediently raised his head: "Third Uncle, good health."

Hearing this, Qi Ming's smile deepened considerably.

He was still young, not yet twenty, didn't even have a wife in sight, let alone children. But it was precisely people of this age who most enjoyed seeing their juniors.

Qi Ming liked Xu Bao so much, partly because Xu Bao loved reading and they had common ground, and partly because Xu Bao's soft call of "Third Uncle" warmed his heart.

Now another one called him Third Uncle, and Qi Ming was delighted inside and out. Though he had learned some emotional restraint during his time at the Hanlin Academy, he didn't show all his happiness on his face like that awkward young man before, just smiled and touched Little Shi Tou's head: "Little Shi Tou is good, Third Uncle has a gift for you."

Little Shi Tou's eyes lit up.

Qi Ming took the wooden box from Liu Si's hands and handed it to him, with some pride in his voice: "These are books I selected, for you."

Little Shi Tou's bright eyes became confused, suddenly feeling that this Third Uncle looked smiling, but was actually the same as Second Uncle...

However, Little Shi Tou still obediently accepted it and sincerely said to Qi Ming: "Thank you, Third Uncle."

Qi Ming smiled again and nodded at him.

Sixth Young Master Wen, who had been ignored all along, couldn't bear it anymore. Seeing that Qi Ming was about to leave with Little Shi Tou without even looking at him, Sixth Young Master Wen felt angry, thinking that this Third Young Master Qi had changed after passing the imperial examination, truly turning his back on people after getting ahead.

But he needed something from others, so he suppressed his anger, forced a smile: "Third Young Master, wait a moment, I have something I want to discuss with you..."

"Sixth Young Master Wen," Qi Ming interrupted him. Normally he wouldn't do this, as it was obviously very rude, but Qi Ming really didn't want to say more to him: "Today is my family banquet, my two elder brothers are still waiting for me. We can discuss matters later."

Sixth Young Master Wen finally heard that Qi Ming truly didn't want to deal with him, and this person probably knew about the Qi and Wen families' situation too.

But Sixth Young Master Wen couldn't retreat anymore, so he could only steel himself: "For the sake of our friendship, let me meet Second Young Master Qi, alright?"

Qi Ming still smiled, his voice slow: "What friendship? You and I don't even have the bond of fellow students, please watch your words, Sixth Young Master Wen." Then he looked at Manager Song: "See the guest out."

Manager Song smiled and called over servants and the restaurant's guards to carry Sixth Young Master Wen out.

Sixth Young Master Wen naturally wasn't willing, but he was ultimately just a scholar, and one spoiled by his family at that. He had little strength, so when his mouth was gagged and hands pinned, he was simply lifted up and thrown out of the restaurant along with his servant.

Manager Song maintained his smile throughout, extremely respectful, just with some examination in his eyes as he looked at Qi Ming.

Previously, after Qi Ming's imperial examination, he had spent several days with Manager Song. Manager Song, who knew countless people, understood Qi Ming's temperament very clearly.

Usually gentle, with clear sense of right and wrong, but still having a childish nature, not very stable.

But hearing these two sentences now, though they were spoken flatly without emotional ups and downs, they clearly showed he had changed considerably.

It wasn't that he had become bureaucratic, but that he had become... somewhat like his own Second Young Master.

Though he didn't yet have Qi Yun's unpredictable scheming mind, Third Young Master was consciously or unconsciously learning from Qi Yun in his speech and actions.

After all, he was the second brother he had admired since childhood. Qi Ming learning from him was almost something he did subconsciously.

Qi Ming didn't know what Manager Song was thinking, just smiled and pulled Little Shi Tou's hand into the shop. Nanny Mo finally dared to get out of the carriage carrying Young Master Ning, glanced at the already expelled Sixth Young Master Wen, and whispered: "What a pity about the young master's pants, that was good silk."

Ning Bao couldn't understand, just yawned and slept peacefully against Nanny Mo.

When they reached the third floor, Qi Zhao immediately saw Qi Ming.

As the elder brother, Qi Zhao had always been particularly enthusiastic and caring toward his two younger brothers. Even though both brothers now had success, one wealthy and one with official position, in his heart they still needed his care.

Being an elder brother was a lifelong responsibility, especially as the eldest son. Supporting the family had almost become Qi Zhao's instinct.

First Young Master Qi had been as close to Qi Yun earlier, and now he was equally enthusiastic with Qi Ming, not becoming distant because Qi Ming had official position. Instead, he smiled genuinely and patted his third brother's shoulder: "Good, Third Brother is accomplished, bringing great honor to our family."

Qi Ming also smiled and sat down beside Qi Zhao.

If Second Young Master Qi had made Qi Ming admire him by forcing him to study and learn characters since childhood, then First Young Master Qi was the one who had always spoiled Qi Ming. Seeing him now, naturally there were endless things to say.

Qi Yun was naturally quiet, sitting aside listening, occasionally serving Ye Jiao food and picking fishbones, quite content.

When Manager Song returned, he quietly told Qi Yun about what had happened outside.

Ye Jiao, listening nearby, frowned, especially when hearing Sixth Young Master Wen mention Dong Shi. She even put down the shrimp cake she was eating halfway and stared at Manager Song.

Fortunately, Manager Song understood propriety and didn't repeat Sixth Young Master Wen's "short-lived ghost" comment, because he knew that just the fact that this person had startled Young Master Ning was enough for Qi Yun to hold a grudge. The Wen family only had a few days left anyway, so there was no need to repeat everything and displease his master.

Ye Jiao gently tugged Qi Yun's sleeve and asked softly: "They won't try to bring Ying Xiu back, will they?"

Qi Yun was full of thoughts about how to make the Wen family pay, one method after another, but hadn't expected his wife to suddenly say this.

Seeing that Qi Zhao and Qi Ming were chatting enthusiastically without looking this way, Qi Yun asked Ye Jiao quietly: "Why would Jiao Niang think that?"

Ye Jiao looked at Qi Yun, her gaze clear, her tone soft: "Sun Shi drained the Wen family's resources, but Ying Xiu has 500 taels. The Wen family is very bad, so they might wickedly cause trouble for Ying Xiu."

At these words, Qi Yun looked at Ye Jiao with some surprise, then curved his mouth corners.

Usually Qi Yun wouldn't tell Ye Jiao about these sordid matters, only occasionally telling her things suitable for her ears, to put his wife's mind at ease.

Yet Ye Jiao could piece together a reasonable conclusion from these scattered bits of information, truly clever.

Both clever and purely good, with clean and straightforward thoughts. Even when talking about the shameless Wen family, she would only softly say they were bad, no other words. If not for the crowd here, Qi Yun really wanted to kiss her lips and taste whether today's lip balm was peach blossom or osmanthus flavored.

Little Ginseng didn't notice Qi Yun's admiration for her, somewhat puzzled as she tugged his sleeve: "What are you smiling about?"

Qi Yun coughed lightly and glanced at Manager Song.

Manager Song, being perceptive, had already stepped back two paces, lowering his eyes and pretending nothing had happened.

Only then did Qi Yun lean close to Ye Jiao's ear: "Jiao Niang, rest assured. The Wen family can barely take care of themselves now. They probably need to find another marriage alliance to survive. If they implicate Dong Shi at this time, just Dong Shi's relationship with you would make this new marriage difficult to find. He wouldn't dare."

Manager Song was stunned, wanting to ask how his master knew the Wen family wanted to find a new wife.

But Manager Song quickly thought of Qi Yun's always unpredictable but consistently accurate calculations and stopped asking.

Ye Jiao had unconditional trust in Qi Yun, smiled, and nodded slightly.

Second Young Master Qi served her another bowl of chicken soup fish balls, watching her eat with a smile, his gaze carrying warmth and gentleness he showed to no one else.

Nearby Qi Ming wanted to speak with Qi Yun, but when he turned his head, he saw his second brother staring straight at his second sister-in-law as if he wanted to glue his eyes to her. Qi Ming very consciously closed his mouth and didn't disturb them.

Having suffered losses so many times, Qi Ming firmly remembered one thing:

Second sister-in-law was the person on Second Brother's heart's tip. Say one wrong word, and he'd be copying books until dawn.

After finishing the meal, Qi Zhao proactively picked up the twins, happily taking this opportunity to let the two little ones get to know him. Little Shi Tou and Xu Bao walked out hand in hand, with Ye Jiao following closely behind, having servants protect them from falls.

Qi Yun walked with Qi Ming, saying slowly: "What did you want to say earlier?"

Qi Ming immediately replied: "Second Brother, I found a very good courtyard. Though it's a bit far, being in the same city doesn't matter. I'll move there soon, can't keep freeloading at your place."

Qi Ming said this sincerely, and Qi Yun had no intention of being polite with him.

After all, now that Qi Ming had official position, living at his house was indeed inappropriate. This area had many merchant families, and it would be inconvenient for an official who rode in sedan chairs to come and go. If colleagues wanted to visit in the future, it wouldn't be convenient either.

Qi Yun just asked: "Where exactly is the courtyard?"

"Near Second Brother's wine shop, the landlord is surnamed Su."

Second Young Master Qi nodded, while Manager Song behind them lowered his head even more, immediately knowing from these words that Third Young Master had indeed taken a fancy to the courtyard their master had previously bought.

From the beginning, Qi Yun had considered everything for Qi Ming, having Manager Song and Tie Zi search for good places in the Capital. It not only had to be a good location but also well-protected, away from merchant areas yet not outside Qi Yun's sight range. Finally, they selected a small courtyard around the wine shop area.

It looked modest but was exquisite. From the wine shop's third floor, they could see the situation there. If anything unexpected happened, they could go help, and most importantly, travel was very convenient, neighbors were easy to get along with, and most were scholarly families. These conditions were excellent.

So Qi Yun had Tie Zi take money and buy the courtyard in his own name, then gave Liu Si a hint to bring Qi Ming to look, and rent it to him cheaply.

Now that Qi Ming had indeed taken a liking to it, Qi Yun didn't reveal the truth, just said: "Good, when you get everything settled, find an auspicious day and I'll have people help you move. But you must come home for a meal every five days, and the servants should come from home too. You don't have money to buy servants now, so I'll select some honest ones and give you their contracts to use first, pay me back later."

Qi Ming had originally thought it would take some persuasion to convince his second brother, but seeing Qi Yun agree so readily, he smiled: "Thank you, Second Brother."

Qi Yun looked at him: "You don't need to copy the 'Book of Rites' I assigned you before."

Qi Yun not only remembered Sixth Young Master Wen's stupidity from the earlier incident but also remembered his third brother's cleverness.

Though initially befriending Sixth Young Master Wen showed some poor judgment, being able to decisively cut ties with that person later was good.

Usually gentle but with clear sense of right and wrong, his third brother had grown up considerably, and Qi Yun felt gratified.

But Manager Song looked confused.

Third Young Master's admiration for his master was genuine, and he had always been completely obedient before, but now the master was just a merchant, ultimately still a commoner. How could he order an official to copy books?

If Qi Ming knew this thought, he would probably sigh to the heavens.

His second brother was truly extraordinary. Years ago he dared to get 1,000 taels of silver from the then-Prince Rui Chu Chengyun with empty promises. Managing him now was naturally appropriate.

At this moment, Qi Ming didn't know Manager Song's thoughts, nor did he know Second Young Master Qi's mental calculations. Hearing he didn't need to copy books, he immediately smiled and quickly nodded: "Good, thank you, Second Brother!"

Qi Yun patted his arm, and the two said no more, quickly catching up and getting into separate carriages to return home.

In the following days, the Qi household was particularly lively.

During the day, everyone had their own activities. Little Shi Tou and Xu Bao went to Master Feng for lessons, Qi Zhao accompanied Qi Yun to the wine shop to see the new wine, Qi Ming was so busy at the yamen his feet didn't touch the ground, and at night he was often pulled away by Chu Chengyun to discuss poetry and literature, often unseen for entire days.

Little Ginseng didn't stay cooped up at home either, but would bring the twins to Dong Shi's orchard to chat with her and look at flowers, often eating and drinking for the whole day. After returning home, she'd check the medicinal flowers and play with the children, becoming the most comfortable and leisurely person in the house.

However, at night, Little Ginseng became busy.

Perhaps because the soup she'd been stewing recently was effective, Second Young Master Qi was much more passionate than before. Combined with Ye Jiao's curious nature and willingness to experiment, she would often randomly flip through illustrated books, and if something looked interesting, she wanted to try it.

After reinforcing the bed, it became even more convenient. Since this kind of mutually comfortable activity had nothing to be shy about, Ye Jiao enjoyed it.

What made Ye Jiao happy was that she felt Qi Yun's health was truly much better than before.

After tonight's passion had initially subsided, Ye Jiao lay lazily in Qi Yun's arms, reaching out to play with the man's hair, winding it around her fingers. Her voice carried lazy contentment that sounded particularly intoxicating: "Husband, so good."

Qi Yun couldn't help but turn to kiss her, asking softly: "What's good?"

"Your health is good, it must be because I've taken good care of you." Ye Jiao spoke while nodding, hugging Qi Yun tighter.

This wasn't Little Ginseng randomly taking credit. The memory of how intimacy would make this man feverish when they first married was too vivid, causing Little Ginseng to be extremely careful afterward. Even in these pleasurable activities, she was very measured and wouldn't demand too much, afraid of making him feverish again.

But now after finishing, Qi Yun was perfectly fine. Besides sleeping longer, nothing else was wrong, and he was even more spirited the next day.

It seemed that this kind of activity could also nourish him, truly good.

Ye Jiao smiled: "Husband used to get so tired after one session that he'd fall asleep, but now you can still talk with me. Though still somewhat weak, it's much stronger than before. Isn't this good care?"

Qi Yun: ......

This sounded like good news, but something felt off when it reached his ears. Yet Second Young Master Qi couldn't say no, which made him feel quite stifled.

Since they were talking about this, not working harder would disappoint his wife's painstaking efforts.

But just as Qi Yun wanted to continue accompanying Jiao Niang in diligent research, he heard Ye Jiao say: "There's something I want to ask you, husband."

Qi Yun changed his hand that was exploring the woman's soft places to embrace her slender waist instead, saying gently: "Ask away, Jiao Niang, I'm listening."

Ye Jiao moved closer to him. Second Young Master Qi could clearly smell the faint coconut fragrance on her body.

She must have eaten coconut cakes before bed again. This scent was both fresh and sweet, very pleasant.

Ye Jiao said slowly: "Little Shi Tou still has to share a room with Xu Bao, which isn't good long-term. Though our house is large, every place has its use. If Little Shi Tou gets a separate courtyard, there might be too much back-and-forth trouble. I was thinking, why not partition Xu Bao's courtyard in the middle with a moon gate, so they can each have their own space, what do you think?"

Hearing this, Qi Yun knew his wife was taking household management seriously.

In this house, every place had its arrangement. When they bought this mansion, it was for their own use, and they hadn't planned for additional residents. Except for one guest room, everything else was allocated.

Little Shi Tou wasn't a guest. When they had him come, they intended to treat him as their own child, with food, clothing, and expenses all the same as Xu Bao's.

But other courtyards truly had no space left, so Ye Jiao's concern was justified.

However, Qi Yun had his own plans, saying casually: "No matter, just wait a while longer, our house will get bigger soon."

Ye Jiao made a sound of surprise, propped herself up, and lay on the man's chest. The moonlight outside was bright, clearly showing Little Ginseng's eyes sparkling as she stared at him: "How will husband make the courtyard bigger? Like the street magicians?"

This amused Qi Yun. He couldn't help but stroke Ye Jiao's silky hair: "Soon I'll break through the wall between us and next door, won't that make it bigger?"

Next door... the Wen family?

Ye Jiao blinked, curious: "What about the Wen family?"

Qi Yun never hid things from her, and this time was the same. His voice was gentle, like wind through bamboo groves in the night: "When they can barely protect themselves, the mansion won't be important anymore. What should be abandoned naturally must be abandoned."

The Wen family was already at their wit's end. They had sold more than half their shops but still couldn't fill the hole at home. Even if they could get the goods that Qi Yun had withheld, they couldn't sell them and would still lose money.

No wealthy family in the Capital wanted to wade into this muddy water. The Wen family could only sell their mansion first to preserve their shops, then plan for the future.

Qi Yun smiled faintly: "Not to mention Little Shi Tou's living space, even if Jiao Niang wanted to plant a whole field of medicinal flowers, it would be possible."

Ye Jiao immediately smiled with curved eyes, cupped Qi Yun's face and kissed him, saying joyfully: "Husband is truly more capable than street magicians, making it big when you say it will be big."

Ye Jiao said this thoughtlessly, but Qi Yun heard it meaningfully.

Embracing his wife and turning over, Qi Yun whispered: "Then I certainly won't disappoint my wife's kind intentions."

The next day, Ye Jiao rarely woke up later than Qi Yun.

Little Ginseng stared at the bed curtains, thinking that before, supplementing her husband too much made him feverish, but now supplementing him too much meant several sessions at night.

Thinking about it this way... now was better.