Chapter 313: The newly appointed Imperial Consort

Fu Ruyan knew her father wouldn't give up easily, so she continued to argue: "Daughter is no longer a child, and I can manage the inn's accounts clearly. Daughter has her own sense of propriety in this matter and will be careful and cautious, never daring to implicate the family.

I beg Father... to allow Daughter to try."

Third Master Fu frowned, his expression extremely unpleasant. Aside from setbacks within the family, he was always glorious outside; who didn't respectfully call him Third Master Fu when they saw him? He had never imagined his own daughter would be so rebellious toward him.

Fu Ruyan took a deep breath, her eyes even more determined. "Daughter knows Father is doing this for Daughter's own good."

No matter what Third Master Fu said, she had to make her reasoning stand firm first.

"Precisely because of that, Daughter wants to do it well even more. Daughter does not want to be someone who can only be trapped in the back courtyard, relying on Father and brothers for support, and of no use to the family forever. This opportunity might be the only chance for Daughter to prove that I am not entirely useless and can also contribute a little to the family. Father... please consider it as giving Daughter a chance to gain experience, alright?"

She stood up and bowed deeply to Third Master Fu.

Fu Ruyan's posture was respectful, yet it revealed stubbornness.

Third Master Fu stared at his daughter for a long time, his gaze complex. If it were an ordinary business, he would let her do it, but now the Yan Family had such goods, and even the Cui Family had released news, clearly intending to compete with the Yan Family for the market.

And at such a juncture, his own family could also get a share of the profits; the profit was tempting, and Third Master Fu naturally didn't want to hand over this good thing to others, even if it was his own daughter.

Just as Third Master Fu was still thinking, Fu Ruyan saw that her father didn't want to give up, and finally played her trump card.

"Father! That Young Master Jiang said that he has already reached an agreement with me, and if people are changed easily, he will terminate the cooperation!"

Third Master Fu heard this blatant threat and instinctively wanted to get angry.

Who do you think you are? If it weren't for the face of the Fu family, would he cooperate with you?

Jiang Qingyan spoke up before Third Master Fu could: "Master, this matter is true! That Young Master Jiang has a strange personality and usually doesn't see people; I heard this with my own ears."

Third Master Fu's words were stuck in his throat. Jiang Qingyan was just a servant, and one from his daughter's side, so naturally, she would speak in favor of Fu Ruyan.

But Third Master Fu didn't dare to gamble!

If this were true, and he forcibly seized it and messed it up, many people within the clan would have opinions about him.

Thinking of this, Third Master Fu uncharacteristically didn't lose his temper, but instead, after careful consideration, said slowly.

"Since that is the case! Then this matter shall be left for you to handle!"

"Thank you, Father!"

Fu Ruyan was overjoyed; she had finally kept this business, and she thought she could give Young Master Jiang an explanation.

Third Master Fu was naturally not that easy to talk to; he had already figured it out in his heart—his daughter had lived in the deep boudoir for a long time, what did she know about the way of business!

In the end, he feared he would have to take over anyway, so it was better to let her try first; once she suffered a loss, she would know he was doing it for her own good.

Fu Ruyan walked out of the main hall, clenching her fists tightly, determined to make the Fu family look at her with new eyes regarding this matter.

Jiang Jinshi waited at the inn for a few more days before finally receiving good news from Shen Mo.

The few people on the roster had all been persuaded by Shen Mo and were willing to go to Beijiang together.

Although Beijiang was barren and bitter, one could indeed achieve something there.

And Jiang Jinshi also learned a lot of news; most people in the South didn't know about the affairs in Beijiang, and hadn't even heard of the Ming Army.

The documents regarding Jiang Jinshi's initial uprising were only circulated within Beijiang, and all of this had been deliberately covered up by the Imperial Court.

Thinking from another perspective, whether it was the Emperor or the scholar-gentry in the Imperial Court, what they wanted was stability, so any news unfavorable to them would be nipped in the bud in advance.

So now the situation in Beijiang was not known to everyone, only circulating in a small range; it was better in places closer to the North, where most people could hear some news.

The closer they were to the South, the more ignorant they were about Beijiang.

This was not bad news for Jiang Jinshi; anyway, Beijiang needed to develop quietly now, and being a small, transparent entity was naturally the best.

But he also knew that the Imperial Court would not let this go, so he would just wait and see the Imperial Court's next moves.

Currently, Da Qian had the Western Liang King rebelling in the West and the Ming Army uprising in the North; the situation was not as optimistic as imagined, so where would the Imperial Court take as a breakthrough point next?

The Western Liang King would certainly not be the breakthrough point, because the Western Liang King had an orthodox status; once he attacked the capital, he could claim the throne, and even many people would defect on the spot.

Because of Wei Xi Yuan's actions, some literati found him despicable, but they still wanted to achieve something, so the best choice was the Western Liang King!

Looking at it this way, the breakthrough point had instead become Beijiang!

Jiang Jinshi still didn't know what methods the Imperial Court would use to deal with Beijiang, but he wasn't afraid if they really fought; it would be a good chance to test whether his Ming Army was stronger or the Forbidden Army was stronger.

"Big Brother, where are we going next? Back to Beijiang?" Huang Yan crossed his hands behind his head, looking somewhat idle.

These days he had drunk a lot of tea and heard a lot of gossip, but he still hadn't heard anyone asking about his group.

Jiang Jinshi stood up and decided to move: "Let's go back! Now that the goods are gone, the trip south should also come to an end."

"Alright! Then I'll go pack the luggage." Huang Yan's eyes lit up, and he stood up and trotted off. Although Jiangnan was good, it was never as comfortable as staying in Beijiang.

Yan Wu asked: "Big Brother! Are we going straight back to Yangzhou?"

"No!" Jiang Jinshi shook his head: "Change the route, go to Luoyang for a tour, then go from Luoyang to Yangzhou, and then head north."

Jiang Jinshi didn't have any plans for going to Luoyang; he just purely wanted to go and see it.

The fastest route from Jiangnan to Yangzhou was the one they took when they came, but taking a detour would allow them to rest in Luoyang, and it wouldn't delay much time anyway.

Since they were already here! Go and see!

At this moment, inside the Imperial Palace in the capital, the civil and military officials were standing straight for the morning court session.

Wei Xi Yuan on the Dragon Throne no longer had the high spirits of his initial usurpation; at this moment, he looked more like a dissolute and incompetent ruler, his bright yellow dragon robe worn loosely, and the four words "excessive indulgence" written on his pale face.

His gaze was not on the officials, but instead, he looked toward the side and back of the Dragon Throne from time to time.

A beaded curtain hung there, and a slender figure could be vaguely seen behind it.

She was the newly appointed Imperial Consort, a beauty presented by the Jiangnan Governor two months ago.

There were three thousand beauties in the harem, and originally, the Imperial Consort's appearance was not considered top-tier among them, but she possessed many novel gadgets.

For example, "silk stockings" that were as smooth as a second layer of skin, "scented soap" whose fragrance lingered, and that "body wash" that could make one fragrant all over after bathing, as well as some small gadgets to increase the fun in the bedroom! ===== CHAPTER 314 =====