The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

Look at the kneeling woman; her eyes are full of piety.

“Miss, Cheng Ying is at fault. Whatever you decide to do with Cheng Ying, Cheng Ying will accept it,” Cheng Ying said firmly.

An Mi watched Cheng Ying's actions without saying a word for a long time. Bai Yi knew why An Mi was silent. He had indeed challenged her authority as her mistress, but in order to keep An Mi in the capital, he had no choice but to do so!

As for Cheng Ying… Bai Yi frowned, about to say something, when An Mi’s voice suddenly rang out, “Cheng Ying has taken it upon herself to revoke her qualification as manager of Shengshi Lieyan, effective today.”

Besides the guests, there were also many employees of Shengshi Lieyan present. Some of them were brought by Cheng Ying from Rongjin City, while the rest were recruited in the capital. With so many people present, if An Mi did not deal with Cheng Ying, then Shengshi Lieyan would probably become unruly in the future.

As for Cheng Ying… An Mi frowned. This could be considered a lesson for her. As for her feelings for Cheng Ying… An Mi felt a warmth in her heart. How could she not see it?

In front of outsiders, she had to be ruthless. As for Cheng Ying's future arrangements... An Mi frowned. She had her own plans and would never mistreat someone who genuinely cared about her.

Cheng Ying was secretly pleased to receive the punishment. In her opinion, the fact that her mistress hadn't expelled her from the Prosperous Flame was already a great favor.

Meanwhile, the other members of Shengshi Lieyan, whether recruited from the capital or brought from Rongjin City, held Anmi in even greater awe.

"Alright, those who want to look at the embroidery, look at the embroidery; those who want to greet the customers, go and greet them. Today is the grand opening of Shengshi Lieyan, and the owner of Shengshi Lieyan is also a good friend of mine. He is new to the capital, so please take good care of him." After a moment of silence, Bai Yi spoke. His penetrating voice startled everyone in the shop from what had just happened. They paused for a moment, then suddenly became lively again, as if nothing had happened.

However, everyone still remembered what the King of Bohai had just said clearly. They were not stupid and vaguely guessed who the true owner of the Flourishing Flame was. It was probably the woman standing next to the First Prince and the King of Bohai!

This guess jumped into the mind of a woman in a pinkish-purple dress in the corner. She couldn't help but glance at An Mi a few more times. Then, her gaze shifted to the side and landed on the figure in green. Her originally calm eyes became even gentler. However, there was a shadow in the depths of her eyes that was hard to detect if one did not look closely.

As the shadow faded, the woman in purple slowly approached the tranquil direction...

An Mi ignored the probing gazes that were secretly falling on her and looked at the embroidery on display. She had to admit that she was satisfied with the embroidery. It seemed that Cheng Ying had trained the embroiderers quite well.

Just as her hand touched an embroidered handkerchief with colorful auspicious clouds, another slender fingertip also touched the handkerchief. An Mi looked up and met another pair of eyes that were also raised. Their eyes met for a moment, and An Mi had already sized up the woman in purple.

Just by looking at the elegance in that smile, An Mi knew in her heart that she was a lady from a prominent family, and probably a lady of high status.

An Mi smiled, nodded to the other person, and withdrew her hand, her meaning clear: she was giving the embroidered handkerchief to the woman in purple.

However, the woman in purple took the embroidered handkerchief and handed it to An Mi. "Miss, I apologize for my rudeness earlier. I didn't expect that we would all take a fancy to an embroidered handkerchief. However, since this handkerchief caught your eye first, please give it to you!"

An Mi was surprised by the woman's modest behavior, but soon she smiled and realized that she was a well-mannered and respectable young lady!

However… An Mi’s gaze fell on the embroidered handkerchief, and she spoke softly, “If Miss likes it, then it should naturally belong to Miss. I’m not looking at the handkerchief to buy it.”

"Oh? Don't you like it, young lady? This embroidered handkerchief is exquisite in every way, from the materials to the embroidery technique. I've never seen anything so fine in the capital. I've heard that even the King of Donglin likes the things from Shengshi Lieyan. It seems that its reputation is well-deserved." The woman in purple said excitedly, her brows becoming even brighter. "I really wonder what kind of embroiderer could create something so beautiful."

An Mi listened to the purple-clad woman's praise, smiled faintly, and said nothing. But the purple-clad woman seemed to have no intention of stopping there and continued, "Miss, do you know embroidery?"

Faced with the woman's enthusiasm, An Mi glanced at her a couple more times and replied indifferently, "It's just rudimentary skill!"

The woman in purple lowered her gaze, something flickering in her eyes...

Seeing that An Mi seemed unwilling to talk more, the woman in purple did not press the matter further. Holding the embroidered handkerchief in her hand, she and her maid continued to look at the things around them. She appeared focused, but her attention never left An Mi and Qing Lan.

Inside the shop, it was still bustling with activity. An Mi watched for a while, then left without lingering. As soon as An Mi went out, Bai Yi and Qing Lan followed her out. However, no one noticed that just as the three of them left, the woman in purple gestured to her maid to settle the bill with the shopkeeper, and then left with her maid as well.

Outside the door, the onlookers had all gone into the shop. The street was bustling and spacious. Anmi was getting into her carriage when she heard a woman's exclamation and the clatter of hooves getting closer and closer.

Anmi looked over at the sound and saw a woman standing in the middle of the street, her purple clothes fluttering. Her beautiful and dignified face was pale with fright because of the galloping horse, and she even lost the elegance she had just had in the shop.

"Ah... help..."

"Miss...Miss..."

The maidservant of the woman in purple was a few steps away from her, watching helplessly as she was about to be trampled by the horse's hooves. She was anxious, but out of fear, she dared not approach even a little. For a moment, everyone around looked over, but no one dared to step forward.

An Mi frowned, thinking that this woman was probably going to be hurt. What a pity, such a beautiful woman should have a hero to save her. She glanced at Bai Yi, who was standing not far from her, looking like he was watching a good show, without any intention of helping. There was even a faint smile in his eyes that was hard to understand.

The wild horse drew ever closer, but the woman in purple remained standing still. Just when everyone thought this delicate and beautiful woman was about to be trampled under the horse's hooves, some even closed their eyes, unable to bear witnessing this bloody and tragic scene. But at the critical moment, a heroic figure swiftly leaped onto the horse, deftly seizing the reins. The wild horse neighed even louder, bucking wildly a few times, but eventually, under the man's control, it became docile.