The mistress has no feelings, why do you provoke her?

For more than ten days in a row, business at the shops on Chang'an Street not only did not improve, but plummeted.

Gu Huaizhou didn't care at first, thinking that people would forget about it in a few days and business would come back.

However, he underestimated the people's resentment towards the rich. The fact that so many people were beaten up on the opening day had already sown the seeds of hatred.

The soap wasn't selling, but the labor and material costs were real.

The money was being spent every day, and eventually the material suppliers came knocking on our door, demanding that we repay them.

Gu Huaizhou had no money, so he told the shopkeeper to send the man away and then slipped back to his residence to think of a solution.

He couldn't get the money from the public coffers; he had to go to Song Wenjun to get it.

He had been deliberately ignoring Song Wenjun these past few days, so it was quite embarrassing for him to come to her for money now.

"Wenjun." Gu Huaizhou walked in dejectedly and sat down in a chair with a distressed expression.

In just over ten days, he lost a lot of weight.

His eyes were covered in dark circles, as if his vital energy had been drained.

Song Wenjun knew why he had come, but pretended not to know and asked him, "Your Excellency is back? I heard that your soap is selling very well, bringing in a hundred or so taels of silver every day. Congratulations!"

"I..." Gu Huaizhou was choked and speechless.

He hesitated for a long time before saying, "To be honest, business at the shop hasn't been that good this time."

"How could that be?" Song Wenjun wiped her lips with a handkerchief, hiding her smile. "I heard that it was very lively on the opening day, with many customers. Lord Marquis, please don't be modest. You are capable, and I'm sure you're quite good at doing business."

Gu Huaizhou was so embarrassed that he wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground.

The bigger the hype they made back then, the harder the slap in the face will be now.

Seeing his embarrassed expression, Song Wenjun's lips curved into an even wider smile.

"I don't know what's going on. We have the same business model, and we both sell rouge, so why do you sell well while I don't?" Gu Huaizhou was driven to a dead end, but he was more unwilling to accept it.

He wanted to extract Song Wenjun's experience, so he had to soften his tone.

Song Wenjun smiled lightly and replied dismissively, "Perhaps I'm just lucky. After all, they're the same things. There's no reason why I can succeed while you, sir, can't."

Gu Huaizhou: "..."

What does that mean? Does it mean he's incompetent and lacks business acumen?

"Could you lend me a thousand taels of silver first?" The wages for the suppliers and the shopkeepers outside haven't been settled yet.

Gu Huaizhou was penniless, and having no other choice, he had to ask Song Wenjun for money.

Fearing she wouldn't give it to him, Gu Huaizhou resorted to his old tricks: "Wenjun, you've always been virtuous and generous, and I know how you feel about me. We're husband and wife, bound by fate, you wouldn't just stand by and watch me suffer, would you?"

Song Wenjun smiled faintly; this was the first time she had ever seen Gu Huaizhou look so embarrassed.

In her previous life, she managed the household and shops very well.

Even in matters of social interaction, Gu Huaizhou never needed to get involved.

He only needed to be a good marquis, and he would have money to spend every month without having to worry about anything.

Now, just by giving him a small shop as a trial, he's already caused such a huge mess.

"A thousand taels?" Song Wenjun gasped. "What did the Marquis do to lose so much?"

One tael of silver could make an ordinary family live quite comfortably for a month, with wine and food, a comfortable life.

Gu Huaizhou lost a thousand taels of silver with his first move, which was like throwing a hole in the sky.

Song Wenjun's shocked expression was like a stinging slap on Gu Huaizhou's face.

All the ambition and arrogance of the past have been extinguished.

He felt guilty and dared not look Song Wenjun in the eye, stammering, "I stockpiled too much goods, and they became unsaleable. I didn't expect it to turn out like this. I was originally planning to make a big splash, after all, business was very good at first, and I sold several hundred taels of silver in a single day."

“Husband, you’re so foolish!” Song Wenjun slammed her hand on the table and scolded him, “The worst thing you can do in business is to hold onto inventory. Once you’re stuck with inventory, your cash flow will be disrupted, and of course you’ll suffer losses.”

"I didn't know it would turn out like this." Gu Huaizhou kept repeating this one sentence.

Of course he didn't know, Song Wenjun thought to herself with a cold snort.

If you don't know your own limitations, you're bound to lose money, right?

Gu Huaizhou was like a child who had done something wrong, and he didn't even have the courage to look Song Wenjun in the eye.

Song Wenjun kept a straight face and remained silent.

If she were to utter a few curses at this moment, Gu Huaizhou would still feel reassured.

But she remained silent, her somber expression making her even more frightening.

Gu Huaizhou, unusually, admitted defeat: "This was my oversight. You can blame me or scold me, I'll take it all. There's just one thing: don't keep it to yourself..."

"Does Your Excellency think I'm angry about this?"

"Which one is it?" Gu Huaizhou asked, somewhat confused.

Song Wenjun sighed and said, "Doesn't the Marquis know about the rumors outside? They say that you and Miss Biao have an improper relationship and that the two of you are always inseparable. Don't you know about these rumors?"

Gu Huaizhou had heard some of these things, but he believed that he and Xue Qingwan were completely innocent and had nothing to hide, so he didn't take it to heart.

But when these words came from Song Wenjun's mouth, it was a different story.

It seems the rumors are already quite outrageous.

Gu Huaizhou was determined to establish himself as a good husband, so naturally he wouldn't admit it.

He hurriedly said, "Wenjun, you know me, I'm not that kind of person."

"My lord, gossip is a fearsome thing," Song Wenjun said earnestly.

Gu Huaizhou's expression wilted: "So, what does Madam intend to do?"

He had no intention of taking a concubine, and Xue Qingwan was unwilling to become his concubine.

But rumors can destroy people's hearts.

Song Wenjun said with a distressed expression, "This matter is of great importance, and I cannot make the decision on my own. It is up to Mother to decide."

Then she got up.

Seeing that Gu Huaizhou was still sitting there, he called out to him again, "Lord Marquis, aren't you coming along?"

Is it necessary for Mother to know?

"The truth will eventually come out. Let's discuss a plan before things escalate."

As Song Wenjun walked out, she called to Xiao Tao, "Go and send a message to Miss Biao, and tell her to go to Ruyi Residence as well."

Xiao Tao responded and then sent a servant to deliver a message to Xue Qingwan.

Gu Huaizhou followed behind Song Wenjun and they walked together toward the Zhou family courtyard.

As the two were approaching Zhou's Ruyi Residence, Xue Qingwan also arrived.

Her brows furrowed, her face full of displeasure: "What's going on? Why did you call me here for no reason?"

"Let's go inside and talk about it," Song Wenjun said.

Then, without even looking at her, he went into the courtyard first.

Xue Qingwan looked at Gu Huaizhou in confusion. Gu Huaizhou shook his head slightly, gesturing for her to come inside.

Mrs. Zhou was drinking tea and dozing off in the room.

Suddenly seeing Song Wenjun and Gu Huaizhou enter, with Xue Qingwan following behind, he was instantly wide awake.

She looked at Song Wenjun with displeasure and scolded, "Why did you come at this hour? You ruined my nap."

“Mother, I’ve come to discuss the matter of the Marquis and Miss Song with you,” Song Wenjun said.