Wanjin Lady.

Chapter 59: Winemaking
Chen Ma also teased him, loudly announcing An Zhongrong's great achievements to those around them, "That's right, don't look at this kid who is only five or six years old, he has a very bright brain! He remembers everything the eldest lady said about the selling price, the raffle amount, and he is very fast at calculating the accounts! I've been walking around for a long time, hey, kid, you have to come back tomorrow! Our tavern can't do without you!"

An Zhongrong was so embarrassed that the tips of his ears turned pink, his forehead was covered in sweat, and he was scratching his head and grinning foolishly.

In his entire life... no one has ever praised him like this!
Although he has only lived for five or six years!
But the people at the Wen Family Winery were so nice to him! Even nicer than that fierce and cold father!

There was also the shopkeeper Wen, who would wipe his sweat with a towel with a smile on his face, not at all bothered by the smell of sweat on his body, and would give him candy every time they met.

Shopkeeper Wen is the second best person in the world!
"Take the money and buy some candy yourself." Wen Wan patted his little head and warned him with a smile, "Don't eat too much candy, or your teeth will get rotten."

"Hey!" An Zhongrong held a handful of copper coins, turned around happily and went out to find Mei Qing to show off.

Wen Wan noticed that Wen Jing seemed to be in a bad mood. Adhering to the principle of treating everyone equally, Wen Wan also grabbed a handful of copper coins and gave them to Wen Jing. "Here, this is yours. Our Wen Jing was also very impressive today. Aunt Chen, I remember she also sold two jars of wine today, right?"

Mother Chen nodded. Although she was coaxing the child, she didn't sound perfunctory at all. "Yes, yes, our second young lady is very capable!"

Wen Jing put the copper coins into her purse, and then, as if she couldn't help herself, she sniffed and threw herself into Wen Wan's arms, saying in a muffled voice, "Sister, I saw my aunt today."

Aunt Liu?
That's also a life of worry.

I heard that Mr. Liu has been very strict recently and doesn't allow her to go out, so even if Liu Yiyi wants to help, she doesn't know how.

I was probably worried about the winery today, so I sneaked out to see her.

"Auntie and Daddy...had a fight." Wen Jing hugged Wen Wan's waist. Although she was young, it didn't mean she didn't understand. "Auntie wanted Daddy to marry her in a grand sedan chair, but Daddy refused...Auntie even cried when she left."

The smile on the culprit's face froze.

Wen Jing pursed her lips and almost cried, "Sister, what if Auntie really doesn't come back?"

Wen Wan had no choice.

This incident was caused by her, but the direction of its development was beyond her expectations.

She seemed to have accidentally broken the veil between Old Man Wen and Aunt Liu.

Old Man Wen still has feelings for Bai Yueguang.

But the female substitute has already awakened her independent consciousness.

The culprit was the original wife's daughter.

This plot... could be updated for hundreds of episodes in the 8 o'clock drama in the future.

Wen Wan also had a headache. Looking at Wen Jing with red eyes, she felt distressed and helpless. "No matter where Aunt Liu is, you are her daughter. This will never change."

"As for the two of them, let them solve it themselves. There's nothing we can do."

Wen Jing seemed to understand, but she still looked very sad.

Wen Wan also felt that what she said was quite easy to say.

However… as the daughter of the first wife, she could neither force Old Man Wen to marry Concubine Liu as his legal wife, nor could she wrong Concubine Liu to return to the Wen family. Just as she said, she was powerless and caught in a dilemma.

Her mood became inexplicably low, and even a room full of silver and money could not make her happy. Fortunately, Hongmei came back soon, and the two of them walked to a secluded place. Hongmei told her all the information she had found out today.

"I saw it clearly. That man had been sitting in a carriage not far away, his eyes fixed on our tavern. Later, another man appeared in the carriage. He was tall and thin, and looked like a scholar. He also bought several jars of wine. Do you remember this man?"

"Then they left. I followed their carriage all the way south of the city and found out where they were staying. I asked around and found out the family's surname was Yuan. They said they were from outsiders in Bozhou and arrived in Ping County about two weeks ago. I didn't find out anything else."

Directions to Banshu?

Wen Wan's mind flashed with the words "Cheng family of Bozhou" that the cold and abstinent academic master said before he left.

Maybe she misunderstood.

Cheng Yunzhang said this not to show off, but to warn!

Wen Wan hurried back immediately and found Master Ma in the inner room, who was about to pack up and go home, and asked, "Cheng family of Bozhou... Master Ma... Have you heard of Cheng family of Bozhou?"

Feng Shuigen was sleeping on the floor in the lobby, his bedding in hand. The tavern still had some unsold vintage wine, so he volunteered to stay and look after it. Hearing Wen Wan's question, he smiled and said, "Young Master, who doesn't know the Cheng family of Bozhou? They're a legitimate imperial merchant. Their world-famous 'Eternal Spring Wine' was presented to Your Majesty as a tribute. This Changchun Wine is made using the cold-infusion method, using over thirty precious medicinal herbs. It has the properties of 'removing dampness and strengthening the spleen, promoting the flow of qi, nourishing the blood vessels, strengthening the bones and muscles, relaxing the stomach and relieving discomfort, and promoting appetite.' We have to source our distiller's yeast from them in Bozhou. Oh, the Cheng family is so arrogant, they completely look down on our Bifang Wine."

During the Chen Dynasty, salt and iron were both government monopolies, and alcohol was subject to a liquor monopoly system, which was a very important economic system. Its core was to prohibit private individuals from freely brewing and selling alcohol. The government controlled the sale and production of alcohol, thereby monopolizing the profits from alcohol and enriching the national treasury.

However, in recent years, with political clarity and abundant treasury, the imperial court gradually relaxed the liquor monopoly system and replaced it with liquor tax, and the brewing industry gradually prospered. However, the crucial ingredient, koji, was still controlled by the state.

The Cheng family was the government-run "Quyuan". Winemakers bought koji from Quyuan to make wine. The government had a monopoly on koji production, but did not prohibit private wine making and sale.

Ping County is under the jurisdiction of Bozhou. If her Wen family wants to make wine, they can't avoid the Cheng family no matter what.

Wen Wan suddenly realized.

No wonder she felt it sounded familiar. That day in front of the winery, weren't the workers who were clamoring to leave the Wen family winery calling out the Bozhou Cheng family?

The Cheng family of Bozhou.

These four words actually mean this.

A leaf is as light as a feather, yet it weighs a thousand pounds.

Wen Wan thought of the information Hongmei had gathered, "Besides the Cheng family, are there any other wine merchants with the surname Yuan in Bozhou?"

Master Ma smiled and said, "Young Master, you may not know this, but the Cheng and Yuan families are originally from the same family. The head of the Cheng family is a widow. Her original surname was Yuan, but her husband died early. She said she had a bad relationship with the Cheng family in her early years, so she took her children and opened the Cheng Family Winery on her own. Over the years, almost all of the business has been managed by her family, so Cheng Family Wine is also known as Yuan Family Wine."

Wen Wan thought of Cheng Yunzhang who had asked her about the Tianyuan style this afternoon, "Is there a handsome scholar in the Cheng family who is about seventeen or eighteen years old?"

"The youngest son of the Cheng family! Everyone knows that the elder lady is most proud of this young son. At only seventeen years old, he is already the youngest scholar in Bozhou."

(End of this chapter)