Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved-Chapter 32 - Stockpiling Grain and Taking Over the Colored Glaze Workshop
Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Stockpiling Grain and Taking Over the Colored Glaze Workshop
Murong Jiu was about to climb into the carriage when the Old Madam hurriedly let go of her dignity and grabbed her.
“Xiao Jiu,” said the Old Madam, “even if the Prince is in a hurry, it won’t hurt to delay for a moment longer. Let’s go inside and have a quick chat before your grandmother leaves.”
“If Grandmother has something to say, why not speak plainly here? The shop hasn’t been cleaned up yet, and I’d hate for your and my elder sister’s clothes to get dirty. If there’s something you wish to say, let’s talk about it here,” Murong Jiu responded, her feet firmly rooted in place.
Murong Jiu stood her ground, unmoved by persuasion. Glancing at Manager Chai behind her and the heads of several neighboring shopkeepers peeking out, the Old Madam’s expression darkened. But if she chose not to speak now, she would miss an opportune moment.
Having lived to her ripe age, the Old Madam truly couldn’t bring herself to lower her face that much, thus she nudged Murong Man lightly, “Let your elder sister speak with you.”
Within her heart, Murong Man definitely felt reluctant to speak, but the Marquis Mansion was indeed living beyond its means. A few days ago, the Second Prince had given her a few hundred taels, but it was far from enough to fill the deep holes in the Marquis Mansion’s finances.
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Though the Second Prince was wealthy and now willing to spend money on her, she did not wish to be tainted by the scent of copper, making the Second Prince think of her as someone seeking only money. She yearned to be nothing more than a tender Flower Solving People for the Second Prince.
The best ways to acquire money was definitely through Murong Jiu.
After all, Murong Jiu was part of the Marquis Mansion. Was it not her duty to contribute financially to her own family?
Murong Man lowered her voice and spoke gently to Murong Jiu:
“Ninth Sister, here’s the situation. The Phoenix Fairy Restaurant to the south of the city is up for sale. Our second uncle feels that the location is excellent, and he happens to know several outstanding chefs, so he wants to take over the place. But as you are aware of the financial strains on the Marquis Mansion, he now finds himself short of more than twenty thousand taels. He thought to ask you for a loan.”
Her words sounded pleasing enough, merely requesting a loan. Yet with this loan, it was clear they would never see any repayment.
Surprised, Murong Jiu turned to Manager Chai and asked:
“That much? Has my second uncle been deceived? Manager Chai, the Phoenix Fairy Restaurant isn’t that big. Does it really require more than twenty thousand taels to take over?”
Her voice was loud. The moment she spoke, the faces of the Old Madam and Murong Man grew even uglier, as if they wanted nothing more than to cover her mouth.
Having already acquired a rough understanding of the various shops in the Capital City these past few days, Manager Chai quickly replied:
“In response to the Princess Consort, I am aware that the Phoenix Fairy Restaurant is for sale, and I inquired just two days ago. Their price for me was twelve thousand taels. Over twenty thousand taels is unthinkable; the Marquis Mansion must be careful not to be deceived.”
The onlookers who were watching the drama unfold immediately understood that the Old Madam from the Marquis Mansion had inflated the price in her request for money from Princess Consort Ling to acquire the restaurant.
“It seems my second uncle has been misled. Grandmother, I urge you to counsel my second uncle well. He frequents pleasure quarters so often, I fear he’s being swindled by some disreputable characters,” said Murong Jiu, though she stopped just short of calling the second master of the Marquis Mansion a layabout.
Struggling to suppress her anger, the Old Madam said with a forced laugh, “Xiao Jiu, whether your second uncle has been deceived or not, your third uncle and others will personally investigate. How about this – for now, you lend me ten thousand taels in a silver note and I will find a way to make up the rest.”
“Ten thousand taels isn’t much,” remarked Murong Jiu.
The Old Madam and Murong Man’s hearts leaped with joy, thinking that finally, they would get their hands on some money today. Ten thousand taels would be enough for the Marquis Mansion’s expenses for several months.
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In a little while, they could continue to find other excuses to ask Murong Jiu for money.
After all, it was only fitting that Murong Jiu’s leftover inheritance help support the Marquis Mansion’s expenses.
Yet, her tone suddenly shifted as she said to them:
“However, I’ve already used up all my silver to acquire the Colored Glaze Workshop, so I don’t have a single penny to spare at the moment. If Grandmother and elder sister urgently need money, shall I go to the Prince to see if I can borrow some for you?”
“What! The Colored Glaze Workshop? Have you gone mad?”
Old Madam was so startled that she raised her voice, which became even shriller and more cutting.
Murong Man also panicked. She said,
“Ninth Sister, don’t tell me you’ve been deceived by your manager. Quickly get your silver back. You’ve hoarded one hundred thousand taels worth of grain. Do you know how many people in the Capital City are laughing at you? And now you’re thinking of starting some sort of Colored Glaze Workshop? Isn’t that just throwing money into the water?”
Old Madam’s expression was as if she wanted to tear the flesh off Manager Chai’s body.
“My manager is just helping me manage things; all the decisions are made by me. It’s my money; I will spend it however I want, to my pleasure. In my view, Uncle’s desire to open a restaurant is even more of a whim. He can’t even produce the money for it, so what business does he have opening a restaurant? Could it be, once the restaurant is up and running, that even the money for buying vegetables would have to come from me?”
After Murong Jiu finished speaking, she, supported by Chun Tao’s hand, got into the carriage without looking back.
As soon as Chun Tao got in, the coachman immediately started the carriage, leaving behind only a luxurious view of their backs to Old Madam and Murong Man.
Old Madam was so angry she felt like her head would explode. Suddenly, there was a loud bang—a realization that Murong Jiu’s manager had closed the door as if fearfully preventing them from bursting in.
By now, Old Madam’s face looked as unappealing as leftover vegetables from the night before.
Murong Man clenched her handkerchief; the looks from the people around made her feel embarrassed for the first time.
Murong Jiu is truly, unreasonable!
Anxious about leaving a bad impression on others, Murong Man had no choice but to say to Old Madam,
“Grandmother, perhaps Ninth Sister is not entirely wrong. The matter of Uncle wanting to take over the restaurant should be carefully considered. Manman is just too worried about Ninth Sister. She has spent so much silver hoarding grain, and now she wants to buy the Colored Glaze Workshop. When the time comes, I’m afraid she’ll lose so much that not even the principal will remain.”
Hearing this, everyone thought that the eldest daughter of Marquis Mansion was truly gentle and kind.
In fact, the matter of Princess Consort Ling hoarding grain had already spread throughout the Capital City, and people secretly mocked her for knowing nothing yet trying to imitate others in doing business.
And now she wanted to open a Colored Glaze Workshop—wasn’t that just throwing money away?
What others said and thought didn’t concern Manager Chai; his only task was to negotiate the acquisition of the suburban Colored Glaze Workshop at the cheapest price.
Manager Chai was very reliable in handling affairs, which put Murong Jiu at ease.
The following afternoon, she received good news from Manager Chai: with just two thousand taels, the entire Colored Glaze Workshop had been taken over, and not only were all the master craftsmen retained, but numerous additional craftsmen were also recruited.
The workshop would not stop, and within half a month, it should be able to produce tens of thousands of colored glaze pieces.
With this, Murong Jiu was extremely pleased.
The rain in the Capital City continued to patter down.
Everybody had initially treated Princess Consort Ling’s massive grain hoarding as a joke, but gradually, they couldn’t laugh anymore.
Other grain shops realized too late and wanted to hoard grain, but it was already too late. Manager Chai had acquired all the grain within hundreds of miles around, and by then, it was certainly impossible to get any more from even further away. Even if they could, the price would surely be too high to be worthwhile.
“Second Prince, there’s a rush for grain all over the country now, and our Auspicious Rice Shop can no longer supply it. In the surrounding areas of the Capital City, all the grain is in Princess Consort Ling’s hands.”
Jun Haoze, listening to the words of the rice shop manager, looked up in surprise, “What are you saying, Princess Consort Ling is hoarding grain?”
He had been out of the Capital City for a few days and had just returned, unaware of what had happened.
