Only this green, not disappointing the spring

The fifth prince’s wedding date was set for the eighteenth day of the twelfth lunar month.

It is said that Concubine Xian is hanging on to her last breath just to see her son's wedding.

Shangguan Qingyue only regarded this matter as a topic of conversation after dinner and laughed it off, but she never thought that trouble would come to her on its own initiative.

Just five days before the fifth prince's wedding, a housekeeper from the Wu family came to Shuiyunjian to discuss a business deal.

The woman looked to be at least forty years old, and was dressed meticulously, with nothing faulty to be found.

But the moment she stepped into the store, she was stunned for a long time by the scene in front of her.

It was rumored that the Imperial Concubine's Jingyue Palace was as warm as spring in winter, with all kinds of precious flowers always in bloom. She had the honor of going there with her wife several times, but now it seemed that it was far inferior to Shuiyunjian.

The biggest difference is the lack of the most precious freshness and aura.

The furnishings in the house were not as exquisite as those in Jingyue Palace, and many of them could even be considered cheap. For example, the crude pottery vases, the tables made of tree roots, the carpets woven with cotton thread, the bamboo screens...

The list goes on and on.

But these humble things are cleverly combined together to give people a fresh and refined feeling.

Look at the bouquets in the vases, bunches of flowers inserted together without any rules, the flowers blooming in clusters...

The bouquets were almost all of a certain quality, but they were extremely rare in this harsh winter, not to mention that they were very bright and eye-catching.

The woman could only sigh in her heart, no wonder Shuiyunjian was so popular and had almost become a must-visit place for the ladies and young ladies in the capital.

Even if you do nothing, you can just find a seat and spend the whole day there to have fun.

There wasn't much of the scent of women's cosmetics in the store, but more of a refreshing smell. She couldn't help but ask:

“I don’t know what kind of fragrance is used in the store, but the smell is so special and gives people a relaxing and happy feeling.”

The female shopkeeper was still in her usual good temper, although she was somewhat dissatisfied with this uninvited guest. When asked what she wanted, she refused to tell her and insisted on waiting for the boss to come.

Humph! Their boss had long ago said that she, as the shopkeeper, could make all decisions in the store. This was enough to show the boss's trust in her ability, but this woman actually looked down on her!

"Oh, you mean the fragrance in our store. This is not some kind of incense, but the flowers and plants that our boss personally matched.

The fragrance of these flowers and plants has the effect of calming the qi and nourishing the lungs, and is most suitable for the autumn and winter seasons. Our regular customers deliberately do not wear sachets when they come here, just to avoid conflicting with the fragrance in the store. "

The maid picked up the glass cup on the table and saw a colorful drink filled with berries she had never seen before.

She tried taking a small sip, intending to just swirl it around on the tip of her tongue and spit it out into her handkerchief if she found it hard to swallow.

Unexpectedly, the taste was so good that she swallowed it unconsciously. Then she drank several mouthfuls in a row, and her originally dry throat soon became clear and comfortable.

She was like a country woman who had never seen the world and came to the city for the first time. Everything she saw was new to her.

Later, I couldn’t help it and simply ordered three more pastries, which I ate with gusto.

Shangguan Qingyue was baking a freshly made cake in the backyard, but because it was the most critical time for baking, she couldn't get away to come over.

When she walked into the store carrying a plate of soft, sweet and rich milky pastries, she saw the nanny from the Wu family eating happily.

The female shopkeeper quickly took the plate and carefully brought it to Mother Dou.

"Madam, I heard that you have been waiting for me?"

A mouthful of cake got stuck in Zhang's throat, and she rolled her eyes. At such a critical moment, she didn't think about how to save herself, but how embarrassed she was at the moment. She couldn't face anyone anymore!

Shangguan Qingyue walked quickly behind her, helped her smooth her back, and handed the glass cup to her mouth, motioning her to drink quickly.

Fortunately, the cake was soft and didn’t hurt my throat. After a few sips of juice, the choking feeling finally disappeared.

Aunt Zhang's old face turned red and she bowed repeatedly to express her gratitude.

"I didn't expect to disturb you. I'm really sorry. I heard from the shopkeeper that you want to discuss a business with me?"

Nanny Zhang cleared her throat and said:

"That's right. I come from the family of the Minister of Revenue Wu. I plan to have Shui Yunjian provide the snacks needed for the wedding banquet of our eldest daughter."

Let them Shuiyunjian provide desserts for the Wu family’s wedding banquet?

Ha ha.

Not to mention that Shuiyunjian was already extremely busy just serving the customers in the store, the business could not be done simply because of the previous conflicts between their Shangguan family and the Wu family.

This was something that was imported, and no matter how hard they tried, they could not defeat the calculations of those with ulterior motives. Therefore, they could not accept this matter no matter what.

So she refused without hesitation:

"I'm afraid you've made a wasted trip. We in Shuiyunjian don't accept private work. Not only that, many foods are not allowed to be taken out. Please eat slowly. I'll leave you now."

Seeing that the other party refused so straightforwardly, Aunt Zhang became a little anxious and hurriedly stood up and said:

"Ms. Shangguan, please stay! How about we have a good talk? We can talk about money.

When our eldest daughter came, she repeatedly reminded the old servant that this is the only wedding a woman gets in her life and she hopes everything can be perfect.

Just let Shui Yunjian send some snacks to our house, and the money will be settled on the spot, why are you unwilling?"

Although her voice was not loud, it was loud enough for the people around her to hear clearly. Many guests could not help but stick their heads out from behind the screen to watch.

Aunt Zhang did not look flustered. She smoothed out the slight wrinkles on her clothes and continued:

"Second Miss Shangguan, although our two families have been engaged and then broken off, it is not something shameful. Now that things have passed, there is no need to keep holding on to it, right?"

She glanced around and saw that many people were listening attentively, so she became more calm.

"Our young lady simply fell in love with the snacks from Shuiyunjian. You are refusing like this. Does that mean that your Shangguan family is still brooding over the past?"

She looked at the girl opposite with a hint of provocation, thinking that the girl must have never seen the world, and might agree to it after being provoked by her.

However, she was destined to be disappointed. After all, Shangguan Qingyue was not a child who was ignorant of the world.

Not only was she not caught by the other party, but she became more certain that this person had ill intentions.

Tsk, I shouldn’t have cared about it just now and just let her choke to death!

"Madam, you don't have to provoke me with words. We in Shuiyunjian don't accept private work. This is a rule that has been set long ago. There is no order without rules. How can you break them at will? If you continue to pester me, it will be suspected that you are deliberately making things difficult for my daughter.

If this is true, then who is holding on to it?"

Nanny Zhang didn't expect the little girl to be so sharp-tongued. Her words put her in a dilemma!

After a brief thought, she felt that there was no need to stay any longer, so it would be better to hurry back and report to her master. She threw the handkerchief in her hand back fiercely and turned to leave.

At this time, the female shopkeeper appeared and said with a smile on her face:

"Don't leave in a hurry. The money has not been paid yet. The total is ten taels of silver and fifty coins. Ten taels will do."

When the woman heard this, her eyes widened and she said in disbelief:

"Shouldn't the food we just provided be your basic way of entertaining guests? Why are you charging me money? What's so precious that it costs ten taels of silver?!"

After hearing this, the female shopkeeper's face darkened and she said quietly:

"Is Madam really from the Shangshu Mansion? Is she a liar? We have clearly marked our prices since the opening of Shuiyunjian, and we are fair to everyone. You can't speak nonsense!

If you have something to visit, you can just go to our boss's house. But now you come to our store and take the initiative to order food, how can you eat for free?"

Suddenly, there was a burst of laughter all around, and a girl from an unknown family whispered:

“How shameless.”

Immediately, everyone couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter.

Nanny Zhang was the wet nurse of the eldest daughter of the Wu family. She was used to being domineering and arrogant, so she could not stand such humiliation. With trembling hands, she took out a silver ingot from her bosom and threw it hard on the ground, then left quickly.

The female shopkeeper picked up the silver ingot from the ground without any hesitation, wiped it with a handkerchief, and then carefully put it on the counter.

Are you kidding? What kind of storms had she not experienced in the past? If she had not been so outstanding, she would not have been recruited to Shuiyunjian with a huge sum of money and achieved her current success!

Shangguan Qingyue bowed slightly to the guests around him and said:

"I'm sorry to bother you all. We have just launched a new dessert. We will serve it to you all for free later."