Adhere to the gentleman's principles

"Boss Qu, you can buy these cloths, but you are a ship merchant. What kind of cloth do you think is good?" Zhao Junning asked. Qu He said, "Of course it has to be strong and durable, and preferably waterproof and fireproof. After all, something went wrong with the things I shipped on the ship this time. Boss Zhao, do you have such cloth in your cloth shop?"

Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Yes, a cloth shop in Jiaozhi naturally follows the local customs."

Zhao Junning thought: Waterproof and fireproof cloth is generally used to cover military kerosene, or food and fodder, so it seems much easier to talk about.

"Boss Zhao?" Qu He called Zhao Junning.

Zhao Junning came back to his senses and looked at Qu He: "Boss Qu." Qu He said: "I wonder how many such cloths are there in Boss Zhao's cloth shop?"

Zhao Junning said: "One hundred batches."

Qu He said: "One hundred batches... OK, I'll take them all."

Zhao Junning asked, "Boss Qu, would you consider it? Aren't you worried that the quality of the fabrics will be bad if you buy them all?"

Qu He said, "Don't worry. When I saw Boss Zhao talking to me just now, her behavior was that of a girl from a wealthy family. The way Boss Zhao flipped through the account books and used the abacus also showed that she had been doing business for a while. From her conversation, I could tell that there would be no problem with Boss Zhao's cloth."

After hearing this, Zhao Junning said, "Boss Qu, you are too kind."

Qu He asked, "How much is this batch of 100 waterproof leathers, Mr. Zhao?"

Zhao Junning said, "One thousand taels."

Qu He smiled and said, "Boss Zhao, isn't this one thousand taels a bit expensive?"

Zhao Junning shook his head and said, "It's not expensive. The leather of this kind of fabric takes a long time to make. Boss Qu is also a businessman."

Qu He hesitated and said, "But... Boss Zhao is a real man, but one thousand taels."

"One thousand taels is indeed too expensive. Even if we are businessmen, shouldn't we show some courtesy?" A man's voice came. Zhao Junning turned around and saw that it was Lu Wu. Lu Wu walked to Qu He and saluted: "Mr. Qu, I really can't stand it. One hundred batches of leather, and you want one thousand taels. Isn't this just robbing money?"

When Zhao Junning saw Lu Wu, she remembered how she died in her previous life. She smiled and said, "Who is this, Boss Qu?" Lu Wu said, "Hello, Boss Zhao. My name is Lu Wu. I am a close friend that Boss Qu just met."

Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Mr. Lu, you also said that I am a businessman. Have you ever seen a businessman who cares about personal relationships when making money? But I am a more honest person and do not care about personal relationships when doing business. One thousand taels is not expensive."

Qu He thought for a moment and said, "Boss Zhao is right. If businessmen talk about relationships, then this business cannot be done."

Lu Wu said earnestly, "Mr. Qu, you are too kind. Boss Zhao doesn't seem to be short of money. Business is a two-way street. We are doing this transaction out of friendship and we will pay it back in the future."

Zhao Junning raised the corners of his lips and smiled slightly, saying, "Business is a two-way street, but this street has to start with a relationship. Forgive my shallow knowledge." He stood up and said, "How about this, Boss Qu, come with me to see the cloth-making women, and you will understand why I said one thousand taels is not expensive."

The three of them went to Houfang and watched dozens of cloth girls making the cloth that Qu He needed. Qu He sighed, and Zhao Junning turned around and said, "Boss Qu has seen it, too. What do you think?" Qu He said, "One thousand taels is one thousand taels. When can Boss Zhao deliver all the goods?"

Zhao Junning said, "It can be done tomorrow. I have already said that the cloth shop has 100 batches of cloth. These will be made tomorrow to make up for part of the 100 batches of cloth sold to Boss Qu." Qu He said, "Okay." Back in the cloth shop, Qu He waved his hand, and the butler next to him handed over ten silver notes. Qu He said, "Boss Zhao, this is one thousand taels. Boss Zhao is an interesting person and I admire him very much."

Mo Yu, who was standing by, said, "My young mistress has my young master." Fuling covered Mo Yu's mouth and whispered in his ear, "She didn't say she liked my young lady, shut up."

Zhao Junning looked at Mo Yu after hearing this. Qu He smiled awkwardly and said, "So Boss Zhao is already married. Judging from your age, I thought Boss Zhao... Sorry for being so abrupt, but it's okay. It's good to make friends." Zhao Junning said, "No problem. It's an honor to make friends with Boss Qu."

After Qu He left, Fuling walked to Zhao Junning and asked, "Miss, you asked them to go to the back spinning to see the cloth making..." Zhao Junning said, "Don't worry, what I showed them was arranged in advance with my mother-in-law. They can't tell which step is the intermediate process. Only the cloth ladies know the process of this kind of cloth."

Fuling nodded in confusion after hearing this. Zhao Junning looked at Mo Yu, who quickly admitted his mistake: "Madam, it was Mo Yu who was wrong just now." Zhao Junning said: "You are not wrong, you did the right thing." Mo Yu scratched the back of his head and said: "Really? Thank you for the compliment, Madam."

Zhao Junning walked out of the cloth shop with a smile. Fuling looked at Mo Yu and said with a smile, "Fool." Then she followed Zhao Junning, and Mo Yu followed behind them.

After returning to the inn, Xu Zhiwan waited for a long time and saw Zhao Junning coming back and said, "You're back." Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Yeah."

After sitting down, Xu Zhiwan said, "It seems that the business was discussed very well. It really puts me at ease." Zhao Junning said, "I have to thank my mother-in-law for her teachings." Xu Zhiwan shook her head, "I just gave you some guidance. You are very smart."

At the Qu Mansion, Lu Wu was still adding fuel to the fire, but Qu He said first: "Mr. Lu, you and I are not the same kind of people, you should leave. We are not suitable to be friends." Lu Wu asked: "Why?" Qu He said: "Mr. Lu's mind is different from mine. I am not talented enough to be friends with you." Lu Wu looked at Qu He and thought: Well, it is not convenient to be friends with such a pure-minded person. He bowed and said: "Then I will take my leave."

Half a month later, "Why haven't Dad Jun Ning and Mom come back yet?" Li Ziyan asked in front of the account counter. Li Yin, who was using an abacus, said, "It's almost time. Go and count the cloth again."

The next day, Xu Zhiwan and Zhao Junning Fuling got on the carriage. Xu Zhiwan said, "After working for almost a month, it's finally time to go home." Zhao Junning said, "Yes, it will take some time to travel this time."

Three days later, at the gate of the mansion, Li Yin was waiting for the carriage. After Xu Zhiwan and Zhao Junning got off the carriage, Zhao Junning looked around and asked, "Where is Gonggong Ziyan?" Li Yin said, "He is still in the shop. I told him that you would be back today, but he didn't believe me and went to the academy early in the morning. After class, he went to the shop." Then he said, "Come in quickly. You must be exhausted after three days of traveling." Zhao Junning said, "Gonggong and mother-in-law, please go in first. I'll go to the shop." Then he ran to the cloth shop.

Arriving at the door of the accounting office, I saw Li Ziyan carefully calculating the abacus in front of the accounting desk. Zhao Junning walked into the accounting office and Li Ziyan said, "Uncle Chen has a new account book again? I'm almost done with it." Zhao Junning said, "Young Master is so amazing."

Li Ziyan heard this familiar voice and looked up to see the girl he had been thinking about day and night. Zhao Junning said with a sweet smile, "I'm here to find my brother from the Li family."

Li Ziyan also smiled and walked up to Zhao Junning and said, "You're really back."

Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Yes. Did you miss me, brother?"

Li Ziyan nodded and said in a daze: "I do."

I thought: I haven’t seen her for a few days, how come she looks so beautiful again?

"Li Ziyan, you haven't finished your calculations yet? Didn't your father say that your aunt and the others would be back today?" Xu Wenhe and Shen Congwen walked into the accounting office and saw Li Ziyan holding Zhao Junning's hand.

The two of them left the accounting office again. Li Ziyan and Zhao Junning heard their voices and let go of each other's hands. Uncle Chen heard Zhao Junning's voice and ran in from the back room and said, "Young Madam, you're back."

Zhao Junning said, "Yes, Uncle Chen, you have worked hard these days."

Uncle Chen said, "It's not hard, it's not hard. It's you who's been working hard during this period."

Zhao Junning looked at Li Ziyan, walked to the account desk and looked at the accounts. There were still accounts that Li Ziyan had not finished calculating. Then he used the abacus two or three times to finish the calculation and said, "Okay, Uncle Chen, the accounts have been calculated. Put these account books away." Uncle Chen nodded and said, "Okay."

As they walked out of the accounting office, Zhao Junning said, "Why aren't you talking? Didn't you just say you missed me? Did you find true love during the time I was away?"

Li Ziyan shook his head and said, "No, absolutely not. I was just too excited."

Zhao Junning stopped and turned around to look at Li Ziyan, smiled and said, "Brother, do you really miss me?"

Li Ziyan nodded, and Zhao Junning said, "Then I can't walk anymore."

Li Ziyan said, "Come on, I'll carry you." He bent his back and half squatted, and after carrying Zhao Junning on his back, he said, "Wife, you've lost weight again. Your bones are hurting me. You've lost so much weight in just one month since you left home. You need to take good care of yourself when you go back. This is much lighter than when you went to Jiaozhi."

Zhao Junning leaned over to Li Ziyan's ear and said, "How are you going to fatten me up?" Li Ziyan said, "Of course I will feed you meat every day." Zhao Junning said, "Will I become fat then?" Li Ziyan said, "No way, you are as thin as paper. Others will think I mistreat you."

The two of them walked like this, with Li Ziyan carrying the girl on his back through the bustling streets back to the marquis' mansion.

Li Ziyan looked at Zhao Junning in the room, hesitating for a long time. Zhao Junning asked first, "What's wrong?" Li Ziyan looked at him and said, "Nothing. It's better to look at you like this now than to dream about you being unable to catch me."

Zhao Junning took Li Ziyan's hand and held it to her face and said, "Then you should look at her more. Look at your sister Zhao more."

Li Ziyan smiled at Zhao Junning and said, "Junning, I wanted to tell you something today, but now I think it's a bit hasty and you will feel insincere. It's early April now, and there are still more than two months to wait for your birthday. I will tell you, and I also want to confirm your thoughts." Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Okay." Li Ziyan said, "Wife, you are so nice."

As he spoke, he took Zhao Junning into his arms and said, "Just holding me like this makes me feel satisfied."

Zhao Junning also hugged Li Ziyan's waist, and Li Ziyan said, "Junning!" Zhao Junning responded.

Li Ziyan smiled as he breathed, "I miss you so much, I really miss you. This is the first time I feel helpless and lonely when you leave me. Jun Ning, please don't leave me in the future, okay? I've waited too long for you to come back."

Zhao Junning said, "But I am a businessman now and I have to travel all over the country to do business. And I like your letters very much. The letters you wrote to me during my trip to Jiaozhi made me feel particularly at ease."

Li Ziyan said: "If you like my letters, I will write to you often."

Li Ziyan added: "But you are right, you are a businessman now, you have to travel far and wide. Then I will wait for you to come back while you are traveling far and wide. I have to wait for my girl to come back." As he spoke, he hugged her tighter.

Zhao Junning asked, "Why are you hugging me so tightly?" Li Ziyan said, "I miss you so much. I want to hug you more and hold you tightly."