She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Shen Qingtan frowned, her eyes filled with doubt: "The person I married is not you, so why can't Boss Qin cooperate with you?"

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, she countered, "Is it true that you conspired with the Marquis's family to switch brides?"

"No, that's a rumor. How could I so easily sever our friendship of over ten years?" Zhao Jue denied it outright, looking into her clear eyes as if she could see right through the filth in his heart.

He didn't dare to look directly at me for a moment, and lowered his voice: "I'm afraid you'll believe these rumors and resent me... My aunt and uncle don't get along with our second branch of the family. Now that you're a member of the first branch, if you don't care about me, you'll definitely not allow Boss Qin to cooperate with me."

"I see..." Shen Qingtan nodded, as if she believed him. "Why don't we each get a divorce and set things right?"

Zhao Jue's expression changed, as if he had something difficult to say. His deep voice was filled with pain: "Tan'er, Mingzhu and I have consummated our marriage. If I were to divorce her for my own selfish reasons, it would be driving her to the brink of despair."

"You cherish our friendship of over ten years, yet on your wedding night you discovered the bride wasn't me, and still happily consummated your marriage with my second sister." Shen Qingtan sneered, "Zhao Jue, you are truly disgusting."

Zhao Jue's face turned pale, and the veins on his forehead twitched. He couldn't stand Shen Qingtan's disgusted look, especially her harsh words, which made him furious.

He patiently explained, "You know that your grandfather and grandmother make the decisions in this household. Before the veil was lifted, your grandmother had already designated you as my second brother's wife, and I have no power to change that. Mingzhu is your second younger sister, and you love her the most. If I neglect her, you will not forgive me."

Shen Qingtan followed his words and said, "You're right. Treat my second sister well and return all the things I gave you to me, so that my second sister won't feel bad if she sees them."

Zhao Jue didn't want to repay the debt. He used the sisterly bond as a pretext, but Shen Qingtan turned the tables on him.

Shen Qingtan didn't need his consent and spoke directly: "I will have Liuyue fetch it later. If one or two items are missing, I will tell my second sister in public when we set out for Grandmother tomorrow, so that Grandmother can be a witness. Otherwise, my second sister might find out from some corner and misunderstand that we are entangled, which would damage the harmony of the whole family."

Zhao Jue's face turned ashen.

“Boss Qin is a businessman, and businessmen value profit. He won’t refuse to cooperate with you just because of the grudges between us.” Shen Qingtan’s expression was cold and her tone distant as she advised, “I am now your second sister-in-law. You don’t need to send me messages in private anymore. I don’t want your second brother to misunderstand.”

Zhao Jue opened his mouth to defend himself, but saw Shen Qingtan leave without looking back and walk towards Zhao Yi in the pavilion.

At that moment, he understood why Shen Qingtan had come to the appointment with Zhao Yi: she was afraid of rumors that would damage their relationship.

The thought that Shen Qingtan had truly let him go filled him with uncontrollable resentment.

Zhao Jue looked coldly at the pavilion. Shen Qingtan spoke gently to Zhao Yi. No one knew what Zhao Yi said, but a smile bloomed on her face, making her even more charming.

He returned to the second room, seething with resentment. A servant came forward and reported, "Third Master, Boss Qin is waiting for you in the back room."

Zhao Jue hurried to the back room and saw Boss Qin pacing back and forth inside.

He greeted him warmly, "Mr. Qin, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"I've only been here a short while." Boss Qin said with a smile, "Young general, I checked the accounts and there are still 50,000 shi of grain in the granary. I also contacted a grain merchant I work with, and he can spare another 50,000 shi for me."

Zhao Jue's frustration dissipated considerably, and this was the first piece of good news he had heard today: "Boss Qin, thank you for your trouble. After this matter is completed, you will naturally receive your share of the benefits."

“Young General, there is something I need to explain to you…” Boss Qin’s smile faded a bit, and he frowned as he said, “You know that food is scarce these days. My old friend bought the food at a high price. Since you want it all and need it urgently, he raised the price a little.”

Zhao Jue didn't care: "As long as we can raise enough military rations, I'll take any amount of silver."

He had already explained that it was military rations, and he was certain that the merchants wouldn't ask for an exorbitant price.

"The young general is a straightforward man." Boss Qin held up one finger to indicate a number: "His grain sells for one tael and two mace per shi."

Zhao Jue's gaze darkened: "One hundred thousand shi of grain, is that all you want?"

"No, no, no." Boss Qin waved his hand: "My grain sells for eight coins a shi."

Zhao Jue's expression was cold and stern. The 50,000 shi of grain in Qin's hands would cost 40,000 taels of silver, and the other 50,000 shi would cost 60,000 taels of silver, for a total of 100,000 taels.

The old Duke only gave him 50,000 taels, but he still had to put in another 50,000 taels.

My mother's dowry was meager; even after selling it all, she could only come up with 10,000 taels.

It turns out he planned to use Shen Qingtan's dowry to fill this gap.

Now that the dowry has been returned to Shen Qingtan, Shen Mingzhu went back to her parents' home to ask Madam Shen for help, but she still couldn't get the dowry back.

Seeing Zhao Jue's gloomy expression, Boss Qin cautiously asked, "Do you... need more grain?"

Zhao Jue said coldly, "Boss Qin, please introduce me to him. I'll go talk to him myself."

Mr. Qin said with difficulty, "Young General, I promised him that I would not reveal his identity. If I break my promise, I'm afraid I will not be able to do well in the business world in the future, and no one will dare to cooperate with me."

He clasped his hands and bowed deeply: "I hope the young general will understand."

Seeing that he couldn't get any information out of him, Zhao Jue didn't dare to use force, fearing that if he pushed Qin too far, Qin would seek help from Zhao Yi and sell all the grain to Zhao Yi, which would be a loss for him.

"I will raise the money as soon as possible and then go to your place to transport the grain."

After weighing the options, Zhao Jue compromised, outwardly appearing indifferent, but inwardly holding a grudge against Boss Qin.

Once he finishes his job, he'll have to return everything that Boss Qin took from him.

"Alright, I'll go get the grain now." Boss Qin said goodbye and left.

After resolving the issue of grain, Zhao Jue was now worried about money, so he went to the Mingde Hall of the second branch of the family to discuss it with the second master and second mistress.

The second master and his wife were having dinner when they heard Zhao Jue's words. The second wife raised her voice: "Fifty thousand taels?"

Zhao Jue's face was cold and his tone impatient: "My grandfather intends to grant me the title of heir apparent because he is dissatisfied with my marriage. If I mess up this matter again, I'm afraid I will miss out on the title."

The second wife's life was instantly in her grasp.

"There are only seven days left until the ten-day agreement. The matter of military provisions is of utmost importance. Although my grandfather entrusted it to me, he also had Zhao Yi collect military provisions." Zhao Jue left it at that, not revealing the details, which only made the Second Madam more anxious and uneasy.

The second wife gritted her teeth and said, "I have some dowry here. You can pawn it and that should be enough to raise the money."