The Story of a Spoiled Daughter Raising a Husband

Tong Qian listened and simply nodded without offering any further explanation. She continued, "If you want to see it, you can come with me now. If you also feel that this new format has affected the storytellers of the past, then I have no way to argue with you."

Seeing Tong Qian sitting so upright, Master Yuan guessed that she must have heard some other negative rumors, so he comforted her, "Miss Tong, you don't have to think of me as too old-fashioned. Although I am not particularly interested in such new forms, and I was quite biased before."

"But I also know that without something new, it can't last long. When I heard that yesterday the form of drama and storytelling were combined well, I realized that it wasn't that the dramas influenced the storytellers, but that their storytelling had become so bland and uninteresting that it wasn't enough to attract enough people to support them."

Tong Qian listened and smiled slightly. It was rare that this old scholar didn't say anything bad about her, so she just stared at him, waiting for him to give his final answer.

Looking at Tong Qian's expression, Master Yuan smiled helplessly. "Miss Tong, since you have invited me so warmly, it would be disrespectful for you if I didn't go. Besides, I still need your money, so how could I refuse? Moreover, I've heard that even many people with money might not be able to afford that kind of invitation. Since you have such connections, Miss Tong, I would naturally be impolite to refuse."

Hearing him say that, Tong Qian shook her head helplessly, but she didn't want to argue with him any further on this matter. However, she did want to go to the teahouse today to see if the situation would be the same as yesterday if she performed again, so she impulsively called Master Yuan over.

As soon as I arrived outside the teahouse, I heard people whispering among themselves. I was puzzled by what had happened in the teahouse that day. I wondered what had happened in just half a day, and why so many people had such a strange expression on their faces.

Thinking this, he led Master Yuan inside.

When the waiter saw Tong Qian enter, he walked straight towards her, intending to lead her to the original room. Looking at the person following behind him, he asked, "Miss Tong, is this teacher your guest?"

Seeing the waiter's somewhat evasive gaze, Tong Qian nodded and followed him to the room where she had been before, where she saw Yun Yatou reciting a song. Her expression was not very natural, so she guessed that something must have happened in the teahouse.

After Master Yuan was seated, he simply explained, "Master, the music is still being performed below. Later, the drama troupe will come up to perform. You just need to look out the window to see the whole scene. I have some things to attend to and need to leave for a moment. I hope you won't mind my absence."

Looking at Tong Qian's unwavering expression, Master Yuan knew that she was definitely not as simple as he had imagined. Just from that painting worth one hundred taels of silver, one could see her extraordinary qualities. He nodded and said, "I am here today at Miss Tong's invitation as a guest. Please make yourself at home. I will wait for you to come back here."

After Tong Qian went out, she saw Xiao Er standing at the door and asked without any hesitation, "What's wrong? What happened? The atmosphere here feels strange. I also heard some rather dissenting words on the street. Although I couldn't quite make out what they were, I'm sure something must have happened here."

Hearing her ask so bluntly, the waiter sighed inwardly. Couldn't this Miss Tong be a little more tactful when she spoke? But he had no choice but to tell her what had happened that day, and added, "Miss, the boss is in the room right now, and the owner of the teahouse is also there. If it's convenient for you, please go and take a look."

As Tong Qian watched the waiter flee in disarray, she pondered his words and her previous actions. Although they had attracted some customers, the teahouse was the largest in town and hadn't been significantly affected. Moreover, their foundation remained intact, and she hadn't been greatly shaken.

Yesterday, so many customers flocked in, and the response afterward was excellent. The number of people sitting down today is proof of that. He probably came because this new performance style attracted more customers to their teahouse, making them earn less money each day, which made him impatient.

If that were really the case, why couldn't the boss have sent someone to look for her beforehand? But what Tong Qian didn't know was that the boss only knew she had visited the courtyard, but didn't know she had already bought it. If the boss went to the village to look for her, he wouldn't be able to find out where she was going.

With a hint of doubt, Tong Qian went straight to the room where the boss usually stayed. Sure enough, she could hear the two arguing when she was at the door. Although she didn't want to go in, it was all because of her, and she had no reason to avoid it.

So he knocked lightly on the door, only to hear the boss inside angrily say, "Who is it? Don't you know I have things to deal with right now? Come in quickly, tell me what you need to do, and then get out!"

Tong Qian had never seen her boss like this before. Hearing what he said, she slowly walked in and sighed slightly when she saw the two of them like this.

Youyou said slowly, "Boss, I just came here today to see how the play was going, but how did this happen so suddenly?"

The boss looked at Tong Qian, who had suddenly appeared, as if he had seen a savior. The gloom on his face disappeared instantly, but the shadow in his eyes could still send a chill down one's spine. However, Tong Qian did not care about that. She simply followed the boss's hand and sat down on another stool next to her.

After Tong Qian was seated, the owner said, "Miss Tong, you've come at the right time. Boss Li said that our play has stolen their teahouse's business. He just brought a group of people downstairs and made a scene, which not only prevented many customers from enjoying the play, but also caused them to leave in displeasure."