novelaction Chapter 136: Separation
Chapter 136: Separation
Chapter 136: Separation
It was another sunny afternoon.
She was doing accounts in the side room when there was a sudden knock on the door. The manager wanted to come in. Ji Meiqing didn't even look up and said, "The door isn't closed."
The shopkeeper came in, tiptoed to her side, and said, "There is a young master surnamed Jiang outside who wishes to see you."
She finally raised her head and asked in surprise, "See me?"
"Yes, he said he was sent by the Jiang family of Jiangnan. He heard that our wine is good and is thinking about whether we can cooperate." The shopkeeper rubbed his hands and chuckled.
Ji Meiqing thought for a moment and then let him in.
She tidied the table and had someone bring over some Pu'er tea. Young Master Jiang came in from outside, dressed in a brocade robe and looking every bit the part of a wealthy young man. She glanced at him briefly and then smiled and invited him to sit down.
"My name is Ji Qing, and I am the manager here." She revealed her identity and looked at him steadily. "The Jiang family of Jiangnan? I've never heard of them."
"My family is small, so this is inevitable." He only said this to Ji Meiqing's question. Ji Meiqing smiled slightly embarrassedly, "My surname is Jiang, and my given name is Ziyi."
“Jiang Ziyi?” she repeated, then looked at him. “He lives up to his name.”
"Excellent."
After some polite refusals, they got down to business.
"I heard you want to cooperate with us, but I don't know your requirements."
“Every month… at least this much.” He spread his fingers.
Without a second thought, Ji Meiqing guessed: "Fifty thousand?"
“Five hundred thousand vats.” He stated the quantity, and fearing that Ji Meiqing might not know, he explained further: “The Jiang family runs a tavern, so the demand is huge, and Jiangnan is quite far from here, which is why we need a month’s supply.”
"This..." She hesitated. If she agreed, production would likely increase again. But there was only one wine stall, and they weren't enough manpower. Five hundred thousand was indeed a bit too much.
Seeing her troubled expression, Jiang Ziyi couldn't help but ask, "Is it a bit difficult?"
"No, it's not that, but the amount is quite large, and I'd like to discuss it with my husband."
"Then I will await good news. Let's discuss the price later. What price range would you like, Madam?" Hearing her address him as "husband" earlier, Jiang Ziyi naturally changed his form of address to her.
"Let's go by the market price, twenty-five taels of silver per jar of wine."
"Alright then." He agreed immediately, which made Ji Meiqing feel a little embarrassed.
After settling the other matters, Ji Meiqing saw him off and then returned home to tell Lu Yu about the incident.
After listening, Lu Yu was somewhat puzzled, "If that's the case, then the orders we have on hand now will have to be postponed."
"Then let's push it first. After we finish this order, we can do the others." Ji Meiqing was somewhat dismissive. "Although the quantity this time is large, the amount of money is also considerable. There's only one wine shed, so we need more money to get more."
“That won’t do. If we do that, we’ll become dishonest people,” he said seriously. “For us merchants, the most important thing is morality.”
"It's okay, it's just postponing the order for a few days..." she smiled.
Lu Yu insisted that they couldn't do that, and Ji Meiqing's face fell. "If we postpone this job, wouldn't we lose a great opportunity? We can't keep looking at small profits. Besides, we will continue to cooperate with them, so it's no big deal to postpone this one."
Lu Yu still disagreed with her, saying, "It's best not to do this."
"Why should I!" she said, getting a little angry. "You say no, and that's it? I'm determined to get this money!"
After saying that, she walked straight outside. Lu Yu wanted to say something but couldn't, and could only watch her leave.
At dinner time, Ji Meiqing brought Tianci over for dinner. Lu Yu calmly finished his meal, then looked at Tianci and said, "I'll squeeze in with you tonight."
"Huh?" He looked up, his mouth still full of unfinished rice grains, and stared at him blankly. "Oh."
Ji Meiqing's face suddenly darkened. No one noticed, except for Ji Tianci, who suddenly felt a chill. He pulled his coat tighter, trying to wrap himself up, before continuing to eat.
After she finished eating, she went to take a shower. Lu Yu carried the things directly to Ji Tianci's room, and the bed was divided into two sections; he slept on the outer section.
Ji Tianci walked over shakily, looking at his brother-in-law cautiously. Usually, the two of them were fine, more like friends than husband and wife. But today, for some reason, they seemed more like a couple who had a fight than friends.
"Brother-in-law... what happened between you and my sister?" he asked tentatively.
Lu Yu said calmly, "It's nothing."
"Then why do you want to separate from my sister? You two usually get along very well."
"I upset her." The voice remained calm.
But Ji Tianci was surprised, "How did you make her angry?"
"We disagree." He turned around, looked at Ji Tianci, who was shorter than him, and said, "Get ready, go take a shower right away."
"Oh..." He lowered his head in disappointment, unaware of what happened next or what had happened to his sister.
After tidying up his things, Ji Tianci slowly went to the bathroom. Ji Meiqing had already finished showering and came out, her body still damp with steam.
Upon seeing his sister, he immediately ran over and asked, "Why did you and your brother-in-law have a fight?"
Ji Meiqing's face immediately darkened. Looking at her younger brother, she exuded a dangerous aura. Ji Tianci couldn't help but shrink back, timidly saying, "I...I'm going to take a shower...I'm going to take a shower."
She immediately ran into the bathhouse, then returned to her room, which was completely empty. The bed was already made; she let her hair down and lay down.
There were no entertainment programs in the evening, so all she could do was sleep. She used to fall asleep almost immediately with Lu Yu around, but tonight, for some reason, a burning anger seemed to be simmering in her chest, making it impossible for her to sleep.
He closed his eyes and didn't move for a long time. Just when she thought she had fallen asleep, several bursts of laughter suddenly came from next door, startling her awake.
Ji Meiqing opened her eyes without a second thought. Next door, they were laughing heartily, seemingly doing something. She tossed and turned, hearing their voices; the bed was practically shaking.
"Can't you guys let a person rest?!" She pounded on the wall, and only after the noise from next door stopped did she lie down. The night remained silent, but she still couldn't sleep, and woke up the next day with dark circles under her eyes.