She's skilled in medicine, martial arts, and even understands animal language—the abandoned dau

Gu Cang attempted to transport fabric from other regions to replenish his inventory, but discovered that the fabric supply in the surrounding areas was also secretly controlled by Jinxiu Textile Workshop.

Jinxiu Textile Workshop leveraged its scale and network of contacts gained from acquiring multiple textile workshops to reach cooperation agreements with suppliers across various regions, restricting their supply of fabrics to Gujia Textile Workshop.

Soon, the warehouse of the Gu family's weaving workshop was empty, and the shop became a ghost town because there were no goods to sell.

This scene coincided with previous rumors, making everyone even more convinced that the Gu family's weaving workshop was failing.

Faced with this predicament, Gu Cang was filled with regret and anger. He realized that he had underestimated Shen Man, but the situation was already beyond repair.

Gu Cang, as the second young master of the Marquis of Jingyang's mansion, has always been proud and arrogant, and has never suffered such humiliation before.

He immediately led a group of his men and stormed into the border city government office, ignoring the yamen runners' attempts to stop him, and headed straight for the study of Prefect Liu Tong.

"Who dares to trespass into the government compound?" Liu Tong was furious and immediately shouted at them.

"You must be Prefect Liu of the border town. I am Gu Cang, the second son of Marquis Jingyang!"

When Gu Cang saw Liu Tong, he did not bow to him, but spoke directly.

Upon hearing that it was the second son of the Marquis of Jingyang, Liu Tong was somewhat displeased with his rudeness, but also wary of his marquis's background. He immediately suppressed his displeasure and said with a smile, "So it is Second Master Gu who has graced us with his presence. I am sorry for not welcoming you properly. May I ask what brings you here today?"

Gu Cang snorted coldly: "Lord Liu, I have come here today to accuse Jinxiu Textile Workshop of malicious competition, market manipulation, and using despicable means such as spreading rumors to drive my Gu family textile workshop to the brink of ruin. As the local official, you cannot sit idly by!"

"Second Master, please don't be anxious. There must be some misunderstanding. Business matters are complicated, and I need time to investigate them clearly."

Gu Cang snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, sat down in a chair, and said, "Misunderstanding? I think she did it on purpose. First, she tried to steal customers from my Gu Family Weaving Workshop by offering low prices, and then she secretly manipulated the fabric supply, leaving my Gu Family Weaving Workshop with no fabric to sell."

Rumors are rampant outside, all saying that my Gu family weaving workshop is incompetent, but this is clearly her conspiracy!

"Lord Liu, as an official, you have a duty to ensure fairness and justice in the local commerce. If you allow Ding Man to act so recklessly, I fear the commercial order of this city will cease to exist."

Liu Tong was inwardly groaning. He knew this was the norm in the business world, and Jinxiu Textile Workshop had not done anything obviously illegal in its operations.

However, he dared not offend Gu Cang easily, so he could only say perfunctorily, "Second Master, rest assured, I will investigate this matter thoroughly as soon as possible. If Ding Man has indeed committed any illegal or disorderly conduct, I will not tolerate it. However, during this investigation, I hope that you will remain calm and not cause any further trouble."

Gu Cang glanced at Liu Tong with disdain and said, "Lord Liu, I hope you can give me a satisfactory answer as soon as possible."

"If I get impatient, this matter is probably beyond the capacity of a mere prefect like you." With that, he stood up and left with his men.

After Gu Cang left, Liu Tong couldn't sit still any longer. Worried that this matter would affect his career, he summoned a group of yamen runners and said, "Go and find Ding Man, the owner of the Jinxiu Weaving Workshop. Tell her that I have something to ask her!"

The constables obeyed the order and soon arrived at the office of the Brocade Weaving Workshop.

At this moment, Shen Man was handling matters in the house when she heard that someone from the prefectural government office had come to see her, and she knew roughly what was going on.

She remained calm and unhurried as she followed the constables to the government office.

Upon arriving at the prefectural government office, Shen Man greeted Liu Tong with a respectful bow: "This humble woman, Ding Man, greets Your Excellency the Prefect. May I ask why Your Excellency has summoned me?"

When Liu Tong saw Shen Man, his mouth dropped open in astonishment: "So you're Ding Man!"

"Your Excellency, have you taken all the medicine I prescribed for you last time? How are you feeling?" Shen Man asked casually.

Liu Tong originally summoned Shen Man to confront her, but he never expected that she was the doctor who had saved his life.

As a result, the harsh words that were on the tip of their tongues could not be uttered.

An unnatural expression flashed across his face. He coughed lightly to cover his embarrassment. "Well... Master Ding's medicine is indeed effective, and I am extremely grateful. However, the reason I summoned you today is because Gu Cang, the owner of Gu Family Weaving Workshop, has come to accuse you of malicious competition, driving Gu Family Weaving Workshop to the brink of ruin. Do you have any explanation for this?"

Shen Man raised her head slightly, looked directly into Liu Tong's eyes with a frank expression, and said, "My lord, I have always adhered to the principle of honest business practices, and I have struggled in this business world all along."

The Gu family's weaving workshop failed miserably, yet they blamed me, which is utterly unfair. Their so-called malicious competition is nothing but an excuse for their own failure.

Liu Tong frowned and asked, "Is it true that Gu Cang said you first dumped goods at low prices to steal customers, and then controlled the fabric supply?"

Shen Man responded neither humbly nor arrogantly: "My lord, the pricing strategy launched by my Jinxiu Textile Workshop is based on market demand and cost accounting, aiming to provide the people with more affordable choices. How can it be called malicious dumping?"

Regarding fabric supply, my cooperation with suppliers in various regions is based on fairness, mutual benefit, and voluntariness, and there is no improper manipulation involved.

Liu Tong nodded thoughtfully after hearing Shen Man's words. He then asked, "Did you send people to spread the rumors about the Gu family's weaving workshop?"

Shen Man quickly shook her head and said firmly, "Your Excellency, I have never done such a despicable thing. There are many rumors in the business world. My Jinxiu Textile Workshop has always focused on its own development and the improvement of product quality. I would never stoop to using such means to slander others."

Liu Tong remained silent for a moment, having already formed a rough idea of ​​the truth of the matter.

He said slowly, "Master Ding, this matter concerns the commercial order of Biancheng Prefecture. I will definitely continue to investigate, clear your name, and give Second Master Gu an explanation. In the meantime, you also need to be careful and not cause any more trouble."

Shen Man bowed respectfully again: "Thank you for your fairness and impartiality, sir. I will do my best to cooperate with your investigation."

After leaving the government office, Shen Man knew that this matter would not be easily resolved.

After returning to the weaving workshop, she strengthened security measures at the office and shops to prevent Gu Cang from sending people to cause trouble.

On the other hand, she instructed the accountant to carefully organize the operating accounts of Jinxiu Textile Workshop, contracts with suppliers, and tax records from recent days, in preparation for possible future inspections.

Two days later, Gu Cang still hadn't received Liu Tong's instructions. In a fit of anger, he personally led his men to surround the Jinxiu Textile Workshop's office.