Chapter 168 The Most Expensive Lunch
Although Su Luo tried her best to act as if she didn't care, her face also showed that she was curious. She looked eagerly at Qin Huai, then at the note on the table, and picked it up to take a look...
"Twenty-four... uh..." Su Luo blinked vigorously, "You guys use copper coins for your accounts? How long will it take you to count 240,000 copper coins? It's better to use cash bills, which are more convenient."
The shopkeeper laughed and pointed to the unit behind "two hundred and forty thousand" and said to Su Luo, "Miss, it's two."
"Two hundred and forty thousand..." Su Luo pointed at the eight dishes and a pot of wine on the table, "...two taels? Silver?"
"Our shop can accept banknotes from most banks in the capital."
Su Luo immediately turned around to look at Liu Chengxuan, pretending not to hear what the shopkeeper said, "What's wrong with you?"
Li Rusong scratched his head and stood up, "Can't you see it? I'm afraid this old guy is the boss of Hongyunlou, right?"
He asked Qin Huai this question, and Qin Huai nodded, "That should be the case."
Qin Huai's eyes were fixed on Liu Chengxuan. Liu Chengxuan gathered up his fan and tapped his head, then said with a smile, "I still can't figure out what went wrong. Did you know it all along?"
Qin Huai shook his head and said, "Since we met, I have never introduced myself to you, and neither have they. How do you know my last name is Qin? Although I have a small reputation in the Jiangnan business community, I don't have many acquaintances in the capital. Considering the strange smile you showed when you agreed to let me host you, and the respectful attitude of the shopkeeper and the waiter when they saw you, that is not the attitude you should have towards a guest."
Liu Chengxuan touched his face, apparently reflecting, "Did I really smile weirdly at that time?"
Qin Huai ignored his jokes and asked seriously, "What is your purpose?"
"Of course the purpose is to make money." Liu Chengxuan opened his folding fan again, fanning it elegantly, "Didn't we discuss this issue just now?"
Qin Huai smiled calmly, "In that case, there is no point in saying more. We will take our leave now."
Su Luo was quite indignant and yelled, "Brother!"
Liu Chengxuan shuddered with fear. Li Rusong hurriedly dragged Su Luo and Qin Huai out. Liu Chengxuan chased after them, fanning himself and shouting, "I'll go to your house this afternoon to collect the meal money."
Su Luo was so angry that he picked up something and threw it over, thinking it was a hidden weapon. Liu Chengxuan jumped into the room at the right time and saw clearly that what fell to the ground was a silver hairpin. The hairpin had a long and thin head, and it would probably not feel good to be pricked by this thing.
Li Rusong carried Su Luo out of Hongyun Building and sighed before letting go, "Recognition doesn't work!"
Su Luo's face turned the color of liver, purely out of anger!
What does 240,000 taels of silver mean? It would take two or three months to move the bricks piled in the corner, but today I was fooled by just eight dishes of small dishes. What a shame in life!
"Qin Huai!" Su Luo's voice became rough. It was unknown whether it was due to the excessive secretion of testosterone caused by anger. "How should we punish him!"
Qin Huai looked at Su Luo and smiled gently, "That's it."
Su Luo's ambitions were immediately suppressed by half, "That's it? What do you mean?"
"Pay for meals, that's what it means."
This time, before Su Luo could speak, Li Rusong asked, "What do you mean?"
Qin Huai sighed, "He is coming for me. There is only one person in the capital who hates me and has the ability to do this."
Su Luo exclaimed, "Wan Yan Gui?"
Li Rusong frowned, "Do you think Liu Chengxuan is helping Wan Yangui to bully you?"
"There is no other explanation for Liu Chengxuan's actions today. He is quite capable. If he really wanted to share a piece of the pie with Luo'er, he wouldn't have resorted to such a trick. Moreover, today's dinner was a spur-of-the-moment idea. I think he only came up with this idea when he arrived at Hongyun Building." Qin Huai said as he walked. He was not even too surprised. Instead, it seemed as if he had expected it. "Whether it is true or not, I guess we will know in the next two days."
"Then...are you really going to give me money?" Su Luo was so anxious that she kept pulling her hair.
"I owe the Wan family a lot. What does a little money mean to me? I am just worried that they now think that you and I are in the same boat. If they sink you, they will definitely sink me as well."
Su Luo was a little uncomfortable with this metaphor. "What ship? We are in the same group!" She crossed her arms angrily and said to Li Rusong, "Liu Chengxuan is such a nasty guy. We can't just sit there and do nothing!"
Li Rusong pointed at Su Luo and then at himself, "We?"
Su Luo nodded seriously, "Even if it's not for the money, I have to fight for this dignity. You have always had a bad heart. Help me think of a way to quietly trick him and deal him a fatal blow."
Li Rusong was obviously not satisfied with Su Luo's comments, and his tone became bad as well. "You hanged yourself in front of Hongyun Tower with a rope in the middle of the night. It would be the quietest and most deadly way!"
Of course Su Luo would not sacrifice her own life for such a villain, but she could consider sacrificing Li Rusong's, because it was he who came up with the idea!
Back at the clothing store, Su Luo grabbed the busy Su Jiang and held a meeting. After listening to what happened, Su Jiang pondered for a while and said, "So we don't have any advantage. Liu Chengxuan has been in Beijing for many years and is very familiar with various forces and merchants. If we fight hard, we will definitely not get any benefits."
"That's right." It was Li Rusong who answered. He looked at Su Jiang with an awkward look. He had been avoiding spending time alone with Su Jiang since he came here. The reason was nothing more than that night half a year ago when Su Luo exposed their relationship. So if he got too close, he was afraid that Su Jiang would misunderstand him. If he stayed away from her, he felt that it was actually no big deal. However, it was difficult to grasp the balance between being neither too close nor too far, so he looked very distressed.
If Su Luo was in a good mood, she might have thought about mediating between the two, but she was not in a good mood. All she could think about was how to "trick" Liu Chengxuan. Since they were attacking from behind, there was no need to fight back openly.
"No, I have to go to the palace tomorrow!" Su Luo planned to talk to Concubine Zheng. She has been playing harem conspiracies for many years, so dealing with this kind of thing should be a piece of cake for her.
Qin Huai never expressed his opinion, perhaps he really didn't know how to deal with it. Fu Leran, what next? Then the second and third times will come one after another. If it was just him, he wouldn't have to worry about it at all, but now, the person Liu Chengxuan wanted to deal with was Su Luo.
A small meeting lasted until the evening, but no practical solution was produced. Su Luo came up with a lot of bad ideas. He planned to compare them one by one with Concubine Zheng tomorrow to see which one was more insidious.
The next day, Su Luo got up early to go to the palace. Before she left, someone came to the palace and said that Concubine Zheng wanted to see Su Luo about something. Su Luo thought it was about being the spokesperson for the beauty salon, but she didn't take it seriously. Following the eunuch who delivered the message into the palace, Concubine Zheng said mysteriously, "The Queen Mother has found a new job. Guess what it is?"
Su Luo was stunned for a while, and his mind suddenly jumped, "Could it be..."
She guessed correctly. The old guy Liu Chengxuan had indeed informed the Queen Mother and asked her to be his image spokesperson.
This not only made Su Luo feel embarrassed, but Concubine Zheng was also embarrassed. The Queen Mother was her mother-in-law, especially in the palace. She was still counting on the Queen Mother to stand on her side and support her son to become the crown prince.
Concubine Zheng surrendered without a fight, so Su Luo couldn't discuss the dirty tricks she had thought of yesterday with her. She suddenly felt that the sky was gray and the future was bleak. Oh my God, please send thunder down and kill all the hateful people!
Of course, there would be no surprises. Concubine Zheng did have an idea. I think Concubine Zheng felt embarrassed for abandoning Su Luo. After all, she had received many benefits from Su Luo, so she praised Su Luo's advantages to Wanli every day. As for Wanli taking Su Luo as his sister, it was a 50-50 probability some time ago, but now the probability has risen to 88.975%. Don't ask why it is so precise, it's not easy to make up two words.
"If you go and talk to the Queen Mother again, this matter will be a sure thing. By then, you will also be related to the Queen Mother, and your own problems will be easier to solve."
This makes sense. The degree of the godparents that I recognized in a roundabout way and the godparents that were personally appointed by the emperor of the dynasty are definitely different. Internal problems will be solved internally by then, and maybe I can find out something about Wan Yangui through Liu Chengxuan... Well, it's feasible!
Although she had no previous contact with the Queen Mother, everything went very harmoniously with Concubine Zheng as the introducer. Su Luo tried her best to act as gentle and virtuous as possible, which was enough to scare people. The Queen Mother was a middle-aged woman who did nothing all day long. She was well maintained, but because of the generation gap, she rarely appeared in palace fights, so she was even more bored. Therefore, Liu Chengxuan's invitation this time was successful immediately - the Queen Mother was too idle.
The Queen Mother did not act as if it was her first time meeting Su Luo. She held Su Luo's hand and looked at him from left to right. Finally, she nodded in appreciation and said, "Huairou is right. This child is indeed simple in appearance."
…
I believe no woman would like to hear such comments, and Su Luo is no exception. She had to twitch her lips and thank the Queen Mother for her compliments. The Queen Mother pulled Su Luo to sit next to her and said, "I have heard about your affairs a long time ago. The Emperor also mentioned it. Huairou and your mother came to the palace yesterday and specifically mentioned this matter. With so many people praising you, it is difficult for me, an old woman, to say anything. I will do whatever you want."
Su Luo looked at the Empress Dowager and then at Concubine Zheng. Concubine Zheng was also confused. Just as she was about to ask, the Empress Dowager said something that immediately made Concubine Zheng's eyes full of murderous intent and made Su Luo almost bang his head against the wall.
"Let's discuss with the Emperor and pick a good day, and then get the job done."
