Chapter 179 Huazhou Chamber of Commerce! (Part 2)
Previous annual meetings were very loose, with no specific areas , so it was normal for men and women to sit together.
Shen Ruoyan couldn't find a reason to refuse for a moment, so she subconsciously looked at Jiang Chengfeng for help.
Fang Zhi was just about to sit down when Jiang Chengfeng pulled his chair away, causing him to stagger and almost fall to the ground.
"Jiang Dazhu, you--" Fang Zhi glared at Jiang Chengfeng, his words as cold as a knife. If he had not found out the truth about Jiang Dazhu's background, he would have killed him long ago.
Jiang Chengfeng said with a smile: "Mr. Fang, don't be angry, just listen to me! These two days, my eldest daughter went to Lingyin Temple to burn incense and draw lots. The Zen master in the temple said that if my eldest daughter wants the best lot she drew to work, she can't get close to men outside the Shen family to avoid being contaminated by bad luck, so Mr. Fang can't sit!"
Shen Ruoyan didn't know whether to laugh or cry when listening to Jiang Chengfeng's nonsense, but this guy was sincere but not sincere at the same time, if someone didn't understand the reason, it would be easy to be fooled by him.
Fang Zhi also felt that Jiang Chengfeng was talking nonsense, but he didn't dare to say that the Zen master of Lingyin Temple was talking nonsense in front of so many people, otherwise he would arouse public anger.
Fang Xinyuan didn't care and snorted, "You're full of lies!"
Jiang Chengfeng glared at Fang Xinyuan and shouted, "Who are you saying is full of lies?"
This was an era of belief in gods and Buddhas, but Fang Xinyuan's words aroused the anger of the Buddhists present. Among the many merchants present, most of them had various Buddha statues enshrined in their homes, and blaspheming the Buddha was a serious crime of disrespect.
Fang Zhi realized that something was wrong, so he tugged at his sister's sleeve, bowed to everyone, and said with a smile, "Everyone, I am young and ignorant, please don't be offended!"
After hearing what her brother said, Fang Xinyuan realized belatedly that her words were inappropriate. She glanced at a certain evil slave and saw the latter's smug look. She knew that she had been fooled by this evil slave!
Fang Xinyuan didn't want to dwell on this matter, so she took Shen Ruoyan's hand and said in a coquettish tone, "Sister Shen, my eldest brother scolded me severely after he found out about what happened last time. This time, I took the opportunity of the annual meeting and dragged me to Huazhou to apologize to you, Sister Shen! No matter how wrong I am, it's all because I was ignorant. Please don't blame my eldest brother!"
I'm stunned. This girl really dares to say anything. Is she helping her big brother to express his feelings? But when I think about it carefully, this girl is really persistent. She is willing to work hard to match her big brother with Miss Shen!
These half-confessions made Shen Ruoyan's cheeks hot. She was angry that Fang Xinyuan didn't know how to speak. Wasn't this deliberately embarrassing her? If she didn't make it clear, I'm afraid everyone would misunderstand!
Shen Ruoyan took a deep breath and said, "Sister Xinyuan, you are worrying too much. I have never blamed Mr. Fang! Mr. Fang and I are just ordinary friends at most, that's all! As for other things, I haven't thought about them yet, please don't misunderstand, Sister Xinyuan!"
Most of the people present knew that Fang Zhi was pursuing Shen Ruoyan, but they did not expect that Fang Xinyuan would actually pursue Shen Ruoyan on behalf of his eldest brother at this annual meeting. What was even more amazing was that Miss Shen actually refused!
Jiang Chengfeng glanced at Shen Ruoyan with great appreciation. Things like this should be cut short as soon as possible, otherwise the situation would only get worse and he would be the only one to suffer.
Fang Xinyuan was anxious. Just as she was about to get back at her elder brother and persuade Shen Ruoyan, Chen Susu grabbed her wrist and said with a smile, "Hey, isn't this Sister Xinyuan? You haven't come to Sister Chen's shop to choose jewelry for a long time. Sister Chen misses you so much!"
Fang Xinyuan, who was interrupted, had no choice but to bite the bullet and greet Sister Chen, saying, "Sister Chen, I'm a little busy these days! When I'm free, I'll go to your shop and sit down, I--"
Before she could finish her words, she was dragged away by Fang Zhi.
As the president of Huayang Chamber of Commerce, Shen Ruoyan rejected him in front of so many people, which was simply a loss of face. Even if Fang Zhi was very cunning, his face was livid, and he pulled his sister towards Liu Song.
Chen Susu glanced at Fang Zhi, lowered her head and whispered, "Sister Shen, now we have offended Master Fang, it's a bit difficult to deal with!"
Shen Ruoyan didn't care at all. If it came to offending someone, she had probably already offended Mr. Fang several times, so it wouldn't matter if she offended him once more!
Firecrackers roared outside the Misty Rain Tower. The fat old man Liu Song walked up to the platform with a smile, clasped his hands, and said with a smile: "Colleagues from the two provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang Huaihai, welcome everyone to attend the 13th Annual Meeting of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Huaihai Chamber of Commerce!"
There was thunderous applause from the audience, and then a middle-aged man in a bright red official robe came on stage to deliver the opening speech. According to Shen Ruoyan, this man was none other than Lord Li, the prefect of Huazhou. It seemed that the Huazhou Chamber of Commerce was really powerful!
Next, the presidents of Huayang Chamber of Commerce and Huazhou Chamber of Commerce gave speeches. Fang Zhi must have prepared this speech for a long time. After he took the stage, he was so passionate and eloquent that Jiang Chengfeng almost fell asleep.
The eldest brother was performing passionately on the stage, and Fang Xinyuan in the audience kept clapping his hands, glancing at Shen Ruoyan from the corner of his eyes from time to time. The deep meaning of this was self-evident.
Then, it was time to summarize. Liu Song spoke first and gave a lot of data, but Jiang Chengfeng was not interested in knowing the specific content.
Then came the speeches by the representatives selected by the two provincial chambers of commerce. There were many similarities between these speeches and the year-end summary meetings in later generations. Jiang Chengfeng felt drowsy while listening to them.
After all the groundwork is done, the main event is next.
Liu Song, president of the Huazhou Chamber of Commerce, looked at the crowd with a smile and said in a loud voice: "Everyone knows the people who just came on stage, but everyone is also very clear about the other outstanding talent! I won't tell you who this outstanding talent is yet. Allow me to give you a riddle."
"First of all, I want to say that in Huayang and Huazhou, two wonderful treasures have been circulating recently, and I have never heard of or seen them before! One is called perfume, and the other is called soap! These two wonderful treasures are now popular in the whole of Huayang and Huazhou. I am afraid that they will make a sensation in the capital in a few days!"
"Having said this, I believe that everyone knows who this outstanding talent is without me having to say anything! Next, please invite Shen Ruoyan from Huayang Chamber of Commerce to discuss these two great treasures with everyone present!"
What is coming cannot be avoided. Fortunately, Shen Ruoyan was prepared and did not panic. She stood up with a smile, took light steps, and walked onto the platform in front.
As per convention, Shen Ruoyan first said something like thank you for everyone's kindness, and after bowing, she drew warm applause from everyone present.
Then, Shen Ruoyan mentioned that perfume and soap were the means for the Shen family to find new ways to make money. She also specifically explained the benefits of these two things and that only the Shen family could produce them, which was considered as a promotion for perfume and soap.
