chapter 6 Chapter 6 Pastries

Chapter 6

It had been raining for several days in a row, but Jiang Yu had not gone out, instead she had been accompanying her mother. She had been married to the palace for three years, and she had never slacked off for a single minute. Now was the time to have a good rest.

Raindrops slid down from the eaves and hit the water tank below, making a dripping sound, which sounded like unknown music and was pleasing to the heart.

Jiang Yu was reading a book, while Du was looking at the account book sent by the shop, but she frowned as she looked at it, and could not help sighing. Jiang Yu came over and pointed out a few mistakes, and Du handed the abacus to Jiang Yu directly, "You know that mother is not good at abacus, and it gives me a headache to see these numbers."

Jiang Yu had been in the palace for three years, and had already experienced the difficulties at the beginning and the ease at the end.

Mrs. Du was already very worried about these account books. She hadn't had a good sleep for half a month. Seeing Jiang Yu was like seeing a savior. "Ayu, you have been helping mother with abacus since you were seven years old. Come and help mother."

Jiang Yu didn't refuse. Compared with the account books of the palace, the family's account books were nothing. She looked at them seriously and checked the accounts clearly in just an hour.

Mrs. Du said happily, "Ayu is really capable."

Jiang Yu was a little puzzled about a few places and said, "Mother, there has been something wrong with the revenue since the beginning of the year. Look here... Half of the revenue is missing. Why is that?" Mrs.

Du listened to Jiang Yu's words and bought three shops by the Huai River. Two of them were rented to others, but one was left to open a pastry shop. Because no one in the Jiang family knew how to do business, she asked her uncle Du Ping before deciding to make pastries for a living. After all, the Du family happened to open a shop in Beijing and had connections. These pastries were naturally shipped from Beijing by the Du family.

Mrs. Du said, "Our pastries are all shipped from the capital by water, and they arrive in seven or eight days. Although they are not as delicious as freshly made ones, they are made by chefs in the capital after all, so the taste is naturally excellent. In addition, the store is in a good location, and the purchase price given by your uncle is very affordable. Business has always been good. It was just that at the beginning of the year, Li Ji's pastries were requisitioned by the palace as tribute, and they were temporarily out of supply, so our family could not get the goods." "

Li Ji's jujube flower pastries, rose cakes, and blessing cakes are the best-selling ones. Without these, our livelihood would be much worse." Mrs. Du did not expect Li Ji to be so prosperous. To be honest, they were a little bit in a mess a few years ago, but since their young master took over, the business has been booming.

"I heard that the young master of Li's is about the same age as you. Who knew he is so capable? It means the Li family will become prosperous."

Jiang Yu watched the rain fall into the fish tank, creating ripples. The koi fish swam around in the water, looking very lively. A smile appeared on her face, and she said, "Mom, isn't it a coincidence that I know the young master of Li's?"

Mrs. Du was quite unbelievable, but then she thought, no matter how difficult the Zhou Palace was, a lean camel is bigger than a horse, and the people who came and went must be different, not to mention that Li's was just a businessman.

But after thinking about it, she shook her head and said, "Now that you're back home, the relationship is different from before. The family will just earn less, and you won't have to suffer."

Jiang Yu knew that her mother was worried that she would go to ask for help, and said, "Don't worry, mom. This is easy to handle."

Mrs. Du was a little surprised and was about to ask, but Jiang Yu asked about her sister Jiang Jin, "Did you come back last Mid-Autumn Festival? I haven't seen you for three years. I don't know what you look like now? Does Peng look like your sister or your brother-in-law?"

Mrs. Du immediately thought of her eldest daughter Jiang Jin. She couldn't help but sighed and said, "When she came back, she ate in a hurry and went home again. She said that there would be a banquet in the evening and she couldn't leave her." The child became energetic when talking about Jiang Jin, and said, "He has grown so tall, and has been educated by his grandfather. He can recite the Three Character Classic at a young age."

Jiang Yu missed her sister very much, and wanted to see this nephew even more. They sisters have always been very good, but she hasn't seen each other since she married into the palace.

Mrs. Du said, "There is a long time to come. It will be convenient for you to stay at home." Then she looked at the almanac, flipped through it for a long time, and said, "I was confused. Next month is your father's birthday. The Xie family pays the most attention to rules and will definitely let her come back to celebrate his birthday."

The two talked about her sister Jiang Jin, and Mrs. Du forgot about Li Ji for a while.

Back in the room, Jiang Yu asked Cuiping to grind ink and write a letter, which was sent to Li Qiu, the young master of Li Ji. After writing, she stamped her private seal and said, "Send it out today."

Cuiping received the letter and said, "Second Miss, the revenue of the shop in the capital should have arrived, right?" Then she looked at Jiang Yu, but she was thinking in her heart that no one knew that Jiang Yu actually had a shop in the capital, and it was opened together with Li Qiu, the young master of Li Ji. Li Qiu took 30% and Jiang Yu took 70%.

Li Qiu would send the revenue every few months.

The Jiang family was not wealthy. Her father was only a small county magistrate. Although the Du family was engaged in business, they were her family after all. Jiang Yu's dowry was just enough to get by, but it was impossible to support the entire palace. The court also cut off the salary and rice. Originally, the palace had tens of thousands of acres of fertile land and dozens of shops on the street, but they were all used up before the death of King Zhou. They were either sold or given away to smooth relations and save Lin Bozhi's life.

After Jiang Yu married in, she was at a loss. She could save money, but the Princess of Zhou could not stand any grievances. She always wanted the best food, clothing and daily necessities.

It was also a coincidence that she met the young master of Li Ji by chance. Jiang Yu liked reading when she was a child. She accidentally got a recipe in an ancient book, and this recipe was exactly the lost cakes of Li Ji.

Li Qiu knew that Jiang Yu was the princess of King Zhou, so he did not dare to neglect her. He only asked for a high price to buy her back. Jiang Yu asked for a shop in the capital.

"Madam said that Li Ji's Jujube Flower Pastry was chosen as a tribute by the palace. Wasn't it the recipe that the second girl helped to modify? Good guy, no wonder the revenue of the shop in Beijing has doubled since the beginning of the year." Cuiping was naturally serving Jiang Yu on the side, and she also heard the conversation between Du and Jiang Yu.

Then, as if she thought of something, "Since there is no need to subsidize the palace, Madam, then we have to have this amount a year?"

"No wonder you wanted to register the shop under Madam's name."

Cuiping's expression changed from excitement to a little frustrated. Jiang Yu's move was probably to keep some private property. Why did she do this? I'm afraid she had thought that she might come out of the palace, and then wanted to keep some money for backup.

Jiang Yu didn't say anything. She did have a private intention for this shop in Beijing at the beginning. Perhaps, just like Cuiping said, she had expected it a long time ago, right?

Seven or eight days have passed. It only took seven or eight days to ride to the Huaihe River Ferry and then go to Beijing by water. Lin Bozhi should be in Beijing now, right?

Jiang Yu had always thought that he would feel a heart-wrenching pain when he left, but apart from some discomfort, it was easier than he had imagined, and he even felt a sense of relief.

***

Li Qiusheng had thick eyebrows and big eyes, a slender figure, a good-looking face, and liked to wear plain straight robes. He behaved as gentle and elegant as a scholar, not like a businessman.

He was settling today's accounts when the steward ran over and said, "Young Master, I have found out what you asked me to find out."

Li Qiu stopped what he was doing, stood up and walked to the window. This was Li's shop on East Street. It was four stories high, with people coming and going in front of it, and the sounds of hawking were endless. It was very lively, and it was also a place where every inch of land was worth gold. It was said that when my great grandfather was still alive, the capital was in chaos, and he bought this piece of land with only two stones of grain.

The steward respectfully served tea to Li Qiu, and waited for him to lower his head and take a sip before speaking, "The prince came to the capital on his own, and as for the prince's wife... I heard that she gave her divorce letter and went home."

Li Qiu did not hold the teacup firmly in his hand, and looked at the steward in surprise. The steward obviously thought this was incredible and said, "It is absolutely true."

"How could it be like this?" In Li Qiu's eyes, Jiang Yu was a person who knew when to advance and retreat, was smart and polite, and was also admirable. After all, in such a situation, she did not ask for an exorbitant price to sell the recipe.

"I don't understand it either. I heard that the prince's wife asked for it herself, but the prince's wife is so virtuous and has been through thick and thin with the prince. Could it be that the palace is still short of her food?" The steward obviously did not understand.

Li Qiu put down the teacup and opened the drawer. Inside was a letter written by Jiang Yu to him. There was nothing else in it, just suggestions on how to improve a few cakes.

Jiang Yu's handwriting was very beautiful, graceful and elegant, just like her.

This proposal was worth a thousand gold coins. However, after a slight change in the ratio, the Shangshanju in the palace took a fancy to it and ordered it as a tribute. In fact, the tribute did not make much money, after all, the conditions for sending it to the palace were very harsh, but it would make a name for itself. This is not it... Since it became a tribute, the sales of the family's cakes have increased dozens of times, and the supply is simply in short supply.

Li Qiudao still remembers the first time he saw Jiang Yu. Because he could not see a man outside, he could only see a vague outline through the beaded curtain, and this half-covered still blocked Jiang Yu's stunning beauty. He only felt that the person behind the curtain did not know how to be pure and elegant. She was wearing a half-worn lotus-colored brocade jacket, with fair and round skin on her knees, and her fingers were placed on her knees, which were whiter than the white porcelain drinking tea.

How could the prince bear to let go?

Although Li Qiu was still young, he had a big family and a big business. He had seen a lot of dirty things, and also saw love that others had not experienced.

"Have you sent the revenue for the past few months?"

Usually, Li Qiu would not ask about such trivial matters. The shop he opened with Jiang Yu was not very prominent in his business. But today, he obviously remembered Jiang Yu's situation and asked about it.

"Young Master, I will go and ask right away." The steward said respectfully, and was about to leave, but suddenly he seemed to think of something and stopped. Li Qiu asked, "But is there anything else?"

"What about the gifts prepared by the embroidery workshop?"

Li Qiu thought that Jiang Yu would go to Beijing with Lin Bozhi, so he specially asked someone to go to the largest embroidery workshop in Beijing to order some new clothes and a valuable Dongzhu headpiece.

But after doing it, he felt that it was inappropriate. After all, he was a foreign man, and giving gifts like this might cause misunderstandings, so he delayed it.

"Let's send them together, but use my mother's name."

The steward nodded and thought it was better to use Madam Li's name. Then he sighed and said, "Young Master, when do you plan to get married? It's not a good idea to keep dragging it on like this. You see, if you have a good wife, it would be much more convenient to let Madam come forward now, and you don't have to worry about other people gossiping, right?"

The steward is an old man in the Li family. He watched Li Qiu grow up, so he is the only one who dares to say this.

Li Qiu originally had a marriage arranged since childhood. It was the girl from the Wang family who was well-matched. They were going to get married when Li Qiu was seventeen years old, but it was unfortunate that the girl from the Wang family went to the temple to burn incense and was favored by Ningyang Hou. The

Wang family was just a merchant, how could they beat Ningyang Hou?

Naturally, the Li family did not dare to confront Ningyang Hou head-on. Li Qiu's father asked the lady to take the initiative to cancel the marriage. In this way, Miss Wang became Ningyang Hou's concubine, and Li Qiu was so angry that he ran away from home. He stayed outside for many years and brought back the lost pastry recipe when he came back.

However, the family's business was booming, but Li Qiu never mentioned the matter of marriage, which caused a headache for the family.

Li Qiu said, "Let's not mention this matter later."

Seeing that Li Qiu was unhappy, the steward did not dare to say anything, and changed the subject, saying, "I heard that the sixth young master of the Tang family recognized Wei Tong as his brother and gave him a house on Southwest Street."

"Is the Wei Tong you are talking about the nephew of Eunuch Li of the Shangshan Bureau?"

"That's right."

The Tang family has been making pastries for generations, and they didn't interfere with each other at first. After all, this stall is so big that one person can't eat it, right? But the Tang family has become more and more arrogant in recent years, always trying to squeeze the Li family.

Li Qiu sneered and said, "Who is the big shot now? You wait and see. We should respond to all changes with the same attitude and the same attitude."

"What does the young master mean?" The steward was still a little confused, but saw Li Qiu finally sit down and drink a sip of tea, and said, "Who do you think changed the ratio of our pastries?"

"Of course it was Madam Jiang..." The steward understood at once, showing an expression of sudden enlightenment, and then said proudly, "The young master is still thinking far ahead. My brain is not good enough. No wonder the master said that our Li family will rely on you in the future."

The steward flattered him, and Li Qiu was not surprised by the honor or disgrace. He nodded to show that he had listened. But in his heart, he was thinking that the prince was used to Jiang Yu's care, so he naturally liked the pastries that Jiang Yu had matched. As long as their Li family grasped this formula, they would naturally be able to grasp the taste of the future prince.

But he couldn't help sighing in his heart. If he really guessed everything right, could the prince really let it go? I'm afraid he himself doesn't know it.