diskusbooks Chapter 209 Could it be Fu Yingli?
Chapter 209 Could it be Fu Yingli?
Su Mowan chatted with Shangguan Qingqi for a while longer, and when she saw that it was time, she sent him away and left the painting building herself.
Yinshuang thought she was going straight back to the manor, but Su Mowan turned around and headed towards Zui Jinzhao.
So, Yinshuang, who was following behind, instructed the carriage to wait at Zuijinzhao first, and then she went to catch up with Su Mowan, who was walking ahead.
The two walked together until they were drunk.
It was almost noon, and Zui Jin Zhao Li was already packed with customers. Manager Qian was so busy that he didn't even have time to look up. It was a waiter who delivered the dishes who noticed the two of them first and then turned around to report to Manager Qian.
Manager Qian finally looked up, but only smiled and didn't come out to greet her. After Su Mowan nodded, he buried himself in bookkeeping again, not forgetting to instruct the waiter to send tea to the private room upstairs.
Su Mowan was already familiar with the place, so she went straight to the private room that had been reserved for her.
Then she discovered that she was very lucky at eavesdropping.
This time is no exception.
Right next to her private room, a group of young men were celebrating happily, making quite a racket. She didn't even need to eavesdrop to hear everything clearly.
So I simply stood there and listened openly.
Yinshuang, who was following behind, also silently stood to the side. Although she wasn't very curious, well, it wouldn't hurt to listen.
There was a cacophony of compliments coming from inside before a familiar voice finally emerged.
"Minzhi, my buddy, I'm counting on you to get back my honor. You'd better keep up the good work and become the top scholar!"
A smile flashed in Su Mowan's eyes; it was Xue Ting's voice.
He was outshone by Shen Muyao during the martial arts exam, so he must be feeling really annoyed.
Then, she heard Tang Minzhi's humble voice.
"Do your best and leave the rest to fate. I have done my best, and I have no regrets no matter what the final result is."
Su Mowan listened and applauded in admiration; Tang Minzhi had a good attitude.
Xue Ting scoffed unhappily and said loudly, "Keep being modest! We've known you for a long time. Since you've said so, it's probably true. Brothers, let's wait for the top scholar to treat us to drinks!"
"You're absolutely right! You absolutely have to treat Minzhi to this wine! There's no escaping it!"
"Hey, what's the rush? Minzhi isn't a stingy person. He's always the one who treats us, so relax! We can talk about it after the results are released!"
Finally, it was Tang Minzhi's helpless voice.
"Don't make such confident statements. If it doesn't work out, I'll be too ashamed to face anyone."
Upon hearing this, Su Mowan, who was standing in the corridor outside the door, smiled again. This was interesting. Judging from Tang Minzhi's tone, he was very confident that the top scholar title should be his.
I wonder what Shangguan Qingqi would think if he found out. He'd probably be furious.
Su Mowan felt there was no need to listen anymore, so she turned to signal Yinshuang that she could leave. Just then, the door to the private room in front of her suddenly opened, and Tang Minzhi, dressed in a blue brocade robe with a faint smile on her face, walked out.
Their eyes met, and Tang Minzhi was stunned. It took her a while to find her voice.
"Young Master Mo?"
Su Mowan was glad that she hadn't taken off her mask when she entered the building, so she smiled and nodded to Tang Minzhi.
Yinshuang, standing behind him, said at the opportune moment, "Greetings, Young Master Tang."
Tang Minzhi nodded somewhat awkwardly: "Is Young Master Mo all by himself?"
Su Mowan nodded and smiled at him.
Looking at the smile on her lips, Tang Minzhi was momentarily dazed.
Seeing that he was standing motionless at the door, Xue Ting, who was inside, walked over curiously and leaned halfway out, saying, "Minzhi, what are you doing standing here—Young Master Mo?!"
Su Mowan could only smile at Xue Ting again.
Xue Ting was clearly more outgoing than Tang Minzhi, and immediately invited, "Young Master Mo, are you here for dinner too? Would you like to join us? It's more lively here with more people. Minzhi just took his civil service exam today, and we're celebrating for him."
When Tang Minzhi heard him say that, a hint of unease flashed across her face: "Don't talk nonsense. If Young Master Mo doesn't like crowded places, please leave. I won't disturb you any longer."
The following sentence was clearly addressed to Su Mowan.
Su Mowan thought to herself, "This is exactly what I wanted." Just as she was about to take her leave, Xue Ting came out of the door and stopped her, saying, "Young Master Mo, please wait a moment. On the day of the martial arts exam, I saw Young Master Mo and Shangguan Qingqi going together. May I ask if Young Master Mo and Shangguan Qingqi are friends?"
So that's what you wanted to ask.
Su Mowan curved her lips into a smile and gestured to Yinshuang. Yinshuang then answered on her behalf, "Young Master Mo and Young Master Shangguan only met recently. Young Master Shangguan is a guest of the Painting Pavilion, and Young Master Mo painted a portrait of him."
Before Xue Ting could speak, Tang Minzhi praised, "I saw a portrait of Young Master Shangguan at Wanggui Tower. Young Master Mo's painting skills are superb."
Su Mowan smiled modestly.
Xue Ting wanted to say something more, but Tang Minzhi quickly pulled him back and said to Su Mowan, "Then Young Master Mo, please continue with your work. We won't disturb you any longer."
Su Mowan then led Yinshuang to the private room next door. After entering, Su Mowan deliberately locked the door from the inside before taking off her mask.
"This Xue Ting is no simple character. Could it be that he thinks I'm in cahoots with Shangguan Qingqi because he asked that question?"
Yinshuang pulled out a chair, and Su Mowan sat down and continued, "Tang Jingzhi failed the military exam. I wonder how he did in the civil exam. Tang Minzhi seems quite confident. This Minister of Personnel is really something; both his sons are talented."
After considering it for a moment, Yinshuang said, "Young Master Tang is indeed very likely to become the top scholar in the imperial examination. He has already achieved the highest score twice before."
Tang Minzhi's name is familiar to everyone in the capital, but he is a low-key person, so no one talks about him.
As a high-profile figure like Shangguan Qingqi, he was surrounded by people gossiping about him on the streets.
Su Mowan was quite surprised that Tang Minzhi was a talent who had passed two imperial examinations. Her previous impression of Tang Minzhi was, how should I put it, that she still had a bit of naivety and didn't seem like someone who had seen two great storms.
Upon further reflection on Shangguan Qingqi, Su Mowan realized the problem.
"What about Shangguan Qingqi? Has he ever won any prizes?"
Yinshuang shook her head calmly.
"Never passed the imperial examination."
Su Mowan blinked: "Did he fail the exam, or did he take it but not pass?"
"I didn't pass the exam." Yinshuang's expression remained calm.
Su Mowan could no longer remain calm.
"He can participate in the final written exam even though he hasn't taken it before? Won't the people who took it before feel that this is unfair?"
Yinshuang said, "Young Master Shangguan is the only son of the Right Chancellor and receives special treatment."
incredible……
Compared to this, Su Mowan felt that Tang Minzhi was bound to win. After all, Tang Minzhi had a solid foundation and had climbed up the ranks by overcoming numerous obstacles, while Shangguan Qingqi had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and was definitely a half-baked talent.
Just then, there was a knock on the door of the private room.
Su Mowan quickly put the mask on her face, signaling to Yinshuang that she could open the door.
When Yinshuang opened the door, she found it was the waiter who brought tea.
As the waiter left, Su Mowan instructed, "Tell Manager Qian not to rush. He can come up slowly after he's finished with his work. I'm not leaving anytime soon."
The man nodded in agreement.
Yinshuang locked the door again, and Su Mowan took off her mask. She was a little worried: "I'm leaving in six or seven days. What will happen to this restaurant then?"
Yinshuang knew what she was worried about.
"Didn't Manager Liu say he would give you an answer after his distant relative finished taking the exam?"
"That's true, but what if they pass the exam? If they unfortunately fail, the results won't be released for another three days. With such a tight schedule, we won't have time to wait for them to learn how to keep accounts before we have to go to Jiangnan."
Su Mowan was worried that if the young scholar didn't have the perseverance and quit after two days, that would be a real crisis. She couldn't just let Zui Jinzhao temporarily close down, could she?
Yinshuang smiled.
"How could you forget about the Prince? If you want to hire people, it's just a matter of the Prince's word; you can choose as many as you want."
In fact, Yinshuang was also somewhat worried about her prince. Consort Su liked to do everything herself and had no idea of asking her prince for help.
This is not a good sign.
Reminded by Yinshuang, Su Mowan excitedly slapped the table: "That's right, how come I didn't think of that! Sigh, I was worried for nothing."
"..."
After waiting for about half an hour, the door to the private room was knocked on again, and this time it was Manager Qian who came in.
As soon as Su Mowan and the others sat down, she said directly, "Manager Qian, we will be able to set off for Jiangnan in six or seven days. I'm letting you know in advance so that you can make preparations."
"Six or seven days?"
Instead of the joy Su Mowan expected, Manager Qian's face showed worry.
Su Mowan hurriedly asked, "What's wrong? Is it too rushed? Is there anything else you haven't resolved?"
"No no no, no."
Manager Qian waved his hand repeatedly.
"It's about the restaurant. Once I'm gone, who will take care of it? It won't be easy to find someone new in just six or seven days."
Su Mowan breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
She was truly moved that Manager Qian was still thinking of the restaurant even when she was able to return to her hometown.
"You don't need to worry about that. I'm already looking for someone, and I expect to find someone soon. I'll have to trouble you to take care of them for a couple of days."
Manager Qian said, "Of course, of course! I wouldn't feel at ease if you just left like that!"
She came mainly to talk about this matter. After she finished speaking, Su Mowan wanted to leave, but Manager Qian said, "Consort Su, I have something else to say, but I don't know if I should."
Manager Qian is always outspoken, but this time he's actually undecided?
Su Mowan immediately replied, "Please speak freely."
Manager Qian looked troubled, and finally managed to say, "Last time, a young lady came to the restaurant, saying she was looking for Young Master Su. I didn't know her, so I asked her who she was, but she wouldn't say, she just kept crying. In the end, I had no choice but to send someone to inform you to come over, but the young lady ran away in a panic."
Su Mowan's heart stirred.
Could it be Fu Yingli?
Fu Yingli knew this was her restaurant, but why did she choose to come to the restaurant instead of the General's Mansion or the Prince of Qin's Mansion when she was looking for someone?