MYSIOAMEWTMMAlTWOAM: Chapter 55

Glossary

 ·Qin Yuan (秦鸢): The female protagonist, Marquise of the household.

 ·Gu Jinghui (顾靖晖): The male protagonist, Marquis Gu.

 ·Sixth Madame Gu (六夫人): Wife of the sixth son, Gu Jingjun.

 ·Hongye (红叶): Qin Yuan's loyal maidservant.

 ·Cuiming (翠茗): Qin Yuan's other maidservant.

 ·Cai Mama (蔡妈妈): A stewardess in charge of repairs.

 ·Cold Manager (冷掌柜): Manager of the Gu family's spice shop, Ranxiang Ju.

 ·Bai Que (白雀): A maidservant serving Zhao Niangzi.

 ·Zhao Niangzi (赵娘子): The widow the Marquis brought back.

 ·Old Madame Gu (顾老夫人): Gu Jinghui's mother.

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Chapter 55: Impossible to Provoke

The stewardesses, who originally had ingratiating smiles plastered on their faces, were stunned upon hearing this.

Sixth Madame Gu quickly asked, "What does Third Sister-in-law mean?"

Qin Yuan said with a smile, "I know Sixth Sister-in-law wants to be considerate of their hard work running around and wants to help them get rich, but..."

"But what?"

Qin Yuan glanced at the eager stewardesses and said with a smile, "But if Sixth Sister-in-law wants to help them get rich, you shouldn't have come to me. Pepper is a valuable commodity. When valuable goods rise in price, it's not like cheap items that might increase a few coins per jin today and drop a few coins tomorrow due to some event. If you catch the right opportunity during a shortage, the price can multiply over tenfold."

Sixth Madame Gu frowned: "Third Sister-in-law means we need to buy the pepper and store it, waiting slowly for the price to rise, and not sell until the time is right."

"Correct," Qin Yuan said with a smile. "Sixth Sister-in-law is clever, you've spotted the key point immediately."

Sixth Madame Gu quickly patted her chest in assurance.

"That silver I gave to Third Sister-in-law is entirely at your disposal."

The stewardesses also hurriedly chimed in, "Madame, we are the same, we will only follow your instructions. We will sell whenever you say to sell."

Qin Yuan put on a helpless expression and said, "We haven't purchased the goods yet. You should all go back and think it over carefully, then come back to talk about contributing shares. Since I've already accepted Cai Mama's contribution, how could I refuse yours?"

The implication was that they all had their dignity.

The stewardesses relaxed their expressions and looked at Qin Yuan with much more familiarity.

Sixth Madame Gu lowered her eyes, watching the tea stems rise and fall in her cup, and said nothing.

Someone asked directly, "Madame, do you think there's something unsuitable about this pepper business?"

Qin Yuan nodded.

She glanced at Hongye, who stepped forward and said clearly, "The Madame went to find Manager Leng of Ranxiang Ju. Manager Leng found out that several major merchants are determined to go overseas this year to purchase foreign pepper. If this route is established, the price of pepper might fall. Pepper is valuable, and not many people can afford it. Please consider carefully."

A few of them became hesitant.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

That person continued to ask, "Then why does the Madame still want to stockpile pepper?"

Everyone stared at Hongye.

Hongye said, "The Madame had a dream and received an auspicious sign. She feels that if Heaven offers it and you don't take it, you will suffer instead, so she wants to try. If you all want to contribute shares, you should understand that business involves both profit and loss; there's no principle of guaranteed profit. If you withdraw midway, the Madame will only refund you based on the market price at that time, deducting the handling losses."

The stewardesses fell silent.

Who would have thought that the Marquise undertaking a major business venture was all because of an illusory dream?

This young woman, having just married into the Marquis household and having a bit more financial freedom, becomes so impulsive. Who knows how much dowry she has to squander like this.

Qin Yuan said with a smile, "Old Madame Gu and Sixth Madame Gu were also thinking that since I've just entered the household and plan to do a business deal, they contributed some silver for luck. If you want to follow, I won't stop you, but if there's a loss, don't blame me. Think it over and come find Hongye or Cuiming in a couple of days. They will record it in the accounts and fill out the receipts."

Sixth Madame Gu truly hadn't expected Qin Yuan to be so patient; she simply couldn't be provoked into a rash action.

If she weren't very optimistic about pepper, she wouldn't disregard Manager Leng's advice, buy so much stock, and accept silver from Old Madame Gu and others.

But even like this, she couldn't be provoked.

She was really difficult to deal with.

Sixth Madame Gu said with a smile, "I wasn't just contributing for luck; I truly believe in Third Brother and Third Sister-in-law's capabilities. But Third Sister-in-law is right; business can bring profit or loss, and unpleasant words must be stated upfront."

Just as they were all about to back out, hearing this, the stewardesses felt it might be possible again.

The Marquise was being foolish, throwing her silver into the water just to hear the splash, but the Marquis wouldn't.

Qin Yuan glanced at Sixth Madame Gu and said with a smile, "The Marquis is afraid that after I took Mother's and your money and boasted, I might ultimately fail to deliver. That's why he's helping me inquire. He's been fighting on the northern frontier for years; how would he have time to study these things? To be honest, I'm also a bit apprehensive. This investment is from my dowry silver."

The implication was that this was her private money and had nothing to do with Marquis Gu.

The stewardesses hesitated again.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Seeing this, Sixth Madame Gu had no choice but to say, "Third Sister-in-law, don't worry. Since you had an auspicious dream, it will naturally come true. I believe in you."

Even if she couldn't rope in the stewardesses, she still had to ensure this pepper deal went through.

Qin Yuan smiled bashfully.

She was already as gorgeous as a rosy cloud, and her shy demeanor added to her charm.

In Sixth Madame Gu's eyes, it was simply blinding.

Next to her, she truly felt, as Sixth Master had said, like a pancake scorched on the kang.

This young sister-in-law was tender, fresh, and unshakeable.

No wonder Zhao Niangzi couldn't make waves no matter what.

A few quick-witted stewardesses observed from the side and suddenly understood: the pepper business might not necessarily make money, but the Marquise's beauty was truly captivating.

With such a beautiful wife, how could Marquis Gu be solely focused on Fengxuan Pavilion?

They immediately began to have other calculations.

Cai Mama was indeed cunning.

So that was it.

Sixth Madame Gu hadn't yet realized that the stewardesses around her were already having other thoughts. She asked with a concerned expression, "Third Sister-in-law, when we arrived, we happened to see that maid Bai Que collapsed at the entrance of Wutong Yuan. Did she offend you?"

"Bai Que?"

Qin Yuan looked at Sixth Madame Gu strangely.

Her face was completely blank, clearly having no idea who this person was.

Sixth Madame Gu didn't believe she didn't know, but could only pretend she didn't. She quickly chided herself and said, "Look at me, I actually forgot that Third Sister-in-law doesn't know everyone yet. Bai Que is a second-rank maid from Old Madame Gu's side, assigned to serve Zhao Niangzi. She has some status. Just now, as we approached the courtyard gate, we saw that girl, in such hot weather, not seeking shade, standing directly under the sun, her face red and swollen from the heat. When she saw me, before she could even speak, she collapsed. Perhaps she has heatstroke. The Marquis household shows some consideration to those who have served Old Madame Gu. I was just worried..."

Qin Yuan said in surprise, "There was such a thing?"

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Hongye quickly replied, "The Madame doesn't know. This servant, following the Marquis's orders, told that girl to report any matters to Old Madame Gu in the future and not to seek out the Marquis anymore. If they are short of anything, lack anything, or need anything, Old Madame Gu will arrange everything properly and won't neglect them. But that girl insisted that this servant was lying and wanted to confront the Marquis. This servant didn't know she originally served Old Madame Gu and wondered how there could be such a cheeky, presumptuous maid. I didn't argue with her and directly returned to Wutong Yuan. Who would have thought that on such a hot day, she would still stand outside waiting? The Marquis didn't go out, and she actually got heatstroke just like that."

Everyone: "..."

The maid named Hongye by the Madame's side really had a sharp tongue.

Qin Yuan glanced at Hongye.

Hongye pressed her lips together and added, "Just now, when this servant went out to welcome Sixth Madame Gu, I saw that Sixth Madame Gu had already ordered people to carry her back to Fengxuan Pavilion. Perhaps by now, a physician should have been called for her. This servant only found the girl strange and didn't think it was a major issue, so I didn't report it to the Marquis or the Madame. This servant acted on my own authority. I beg the Madame to punish me."

These words slapped Sixth Madame Gu's face, making it sting.

(End of Chapter)

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Translator's Note: check out my other work— The Marquis’s Beloved is a Black-Hearted Lotus and Rebirth as the Matriarch of a Noble Family (⁠*⁠＾⁠3⁠＾⁠)⁠/⁠～⁠♡

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