Volume 2: Eagle vs. Dragon Chapter 61: Pregnancy
The news of Qianlong's abdication, Jiaqing's ascension to the throne, and the change of the reign name finally officially reached Guangzhou.
Officially, this is a great event for all to celebrate. But for some people, it may not be the case.
In Xiguan, the most direct change was that before the "treasure appraisal conference" was over, most of the guests suddenly left and flocked to Lu Guanhuan's house.
However, when they arrived at the Lu family, Cai Qinghua had already left.
Thinking of Master Cai’s angry departure, all the “late” guests felt uneasy - things in Beijing had changed, and the city of Guangzhou and Xiguan Street might also change!
The news reached Guangzhou in the morning, and within a single meal time the whole of Xiguan knew about it.
The six managers of Yihehang met in a hurry, and then without even having time to eat lunch, they crossed the river to Wujiayuan to urgently meet Wu Chengjian.
Wu Chengjian was not at Ritianju, so Ye Youyu received all the shopkeepers and asked, "My dear shopkeepers, what's the big deal? Why are you so anxious?"
"Oh my, things have changed, things have changed! Third Young Lady!" said Manager Liu, "News came from Beijing that on the first day of the first lunar month, His Majesty Emperor Qianlong abdicated and became the Supreme Emperor, and the fifteenth son ascended the throne and changed the reign to Jiaqing. Now it is the first year of Jiaqing!"
Ye Youyu was shocked and thought to himself, "Finally it's here."
Because her face was too calm, Manager Liu and the others thought she didn't understand, so Ou Jiafu added: "Third Young Lady, the current Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, Mr. Zhu, is the fifteenth son of the emperor... No, no, he is the teacher of the current emperor!"
Ye Youyu nodded gently and said, "We women don't know anything about what's going on outside. Haoguan is not in Ritianju now. I heard him mention it this morning. He should be in Manqian Penglai now."
The six shopkeepers said goodbye and hurried to Manqian Penglai, only to see Wu Chengjian and Zhou Yijin both performing on the stage. Wu Chengjian played the role of Emperor Minghuang of Tang, while Zhou Yijin played the role of Yang Guifei, singing Kunqu Opera. The shopkeeper Liu was a native Cantonese, who could speak Mandarin but could not understand Kunqu Opera. He could only hear the babbling on the stage, and he jumped and shouted in the audience: "Hao Guan, Hao Guan! Something bad has happened!"
It was Zhou Yijin's turn to sing, and Wu Chengjian was assisting him. The actors nearby were all disturbed, but it was only Wu and Zhou. Wu Chengjian only looked at "Yang Guifei", while Zhou Yijin continued to sing without his breath being disturbed at all.
Manager Liu was old, and his voice could not drown out the drums and music, so Ou Jiafu shouted, "Official Hao! News has come from Beijing that Emperor Qianlong has abdicated, and the fifteenth son of the emperor has ascended the throne!"
The actors were all a little surprised, but Wu Chengjian seemed not to have heard anything, and Zhou Yijin also sang the whole opera as usual.
It was not until he stopped singing that someone in the theater began to applaud and said with a smile, "Not bad, not bad! Hao Guan, your appearance is really good, and Master Zhou's singing is even better!"
Manager Liu and others were slightly surprised, only then they realized that there was actually an audience member in the viewing pavilion, and it was Pan Youjie!
Wu Chengjian and Zhou Yijin finished their performance. Wu Chengjian said with a smile, "I have only learned this part. I cannot sing any other part."
Pan Youjie laughed and said, "We are just playing around. Can we really learn the entire "The Palace of Eternal Life"?"
On the stage and in the pavilion, Pan, Wu and Zhou laughed at the same time.
Pan Youjie said, "Your shopkeepers probably have something to talk to you about, so I'll be leaving first." As he spoke, he raised his hands to greet the shopkeeper Liu and the others, and the six shopkeepers quickly returned the greeting.
Because of Pan Youjie's interruption, the six shopkeepers calmed down a lot. Wu Chengjian called two young actresses to remove makeup for himself and Zhou Yijin. The six shopkeepers followed beside them, not knowing whether to talk or leave. After a long time, they finally removed their makeup and changed clothes. Only then did Wu Chengjian take them back to the pavilion.
Wu Qi came up and said, "Officer Hao, where are we going for lunch?"
Wu Chengjian said with a smile: "Let's just make do here." He glanced at the six shopkeepers and said with a smile: "I see Uncle Liu and the others haven't eaten yet, why don't we eat together."
Although the meal was prepared for him and Zhou Yijin, there were fewer dishes, only twenty-eight. If a few bowls of rice were added, it would be barely enough to entertain six more people.
Manager Liu stamped his feet and said, "Officer Hao, didn't you hear what Xiao Ou said just now? Things have changed, things have changed!"
Wu Chengjian smiled faintly and said, "I knew about this a long time ago."
Except for Shopkeeper Yao Si, the other five shopkeepers were all stunned.
Wu Chengjian said: "Let the world change as it pleases. We should eat and drink as usual, play and have fun as usual, don't worry."
Manager Liu said: "This... this..."
Ou Jiafu said: "The treasure appraisal conference held by Haoguan, Ye... Daguan this morning ended in disgrace halfway through. As for the Lu family, it used to be deserted, but now it is packed with people."
Wu Chengjian said with a smile: "It's human nature to follow the rich and the poor. Let them be."
At this time, Wu Qi had already had the food served. Wu Chengjian said, "Uncle Liu, shall we take our place?"
Shopkeeper Yao Si smiled and said, "My wife has already prepared the meal and is waiting for me at home. I will go back first so as not to disturb Hao Guan and Master Zhou from having their meal."
As he said this, he was about to say goodbye, but he didn't move his feet. He just looked at the manager Liu.
After all, Manager Liu was an experienced man. If today's news was not too shocking, he would not have lost his composure. He paused and said, "Then I'll take my leave first."
Wu Chengjian asked for two words but didn't force him to stay.
The six shopkeepers left Manqian Penglai, and the big shopkeeper Liu said, "Brother Yao, why are you suddenly not in a hurry?"
Shopkeeper Yao Si said with a smile: "Didn't everyone hear what Hao Guan said just now? He already knew about this. Since he already knew about it, and he still had the mood to sing and play, then why are we in such a hurry?"
When the five shopkeepers heard this, they felt it made sense.
Shopkeeper Yao Si added, "Not only does Hao Guan know, Master Zhou must also know. But when you heard his singing just now, did he seem a little flustered? No, it shows that Master Zhou is also determined."
When the five
Shopkeeper Yao Si added, "And Qi Guan, he was just listening to the opera in the viewing pavilion. You see he didn't take our words to heart at all, which shows he knew it long ago. And you see Qi Guan and Hao Guan are still talking and laughing. Hao Guan is singing on the stage, and he is listening to the opera below. They have a close relationship, and there is no change from before. From this, we can infer that the change of the era name in Beijing will probably not have much impact on our Wu family."
When the five shopkeepers heard this, they all felt it made perfect sense - although there were still many things they didn't understand, their mood was not as bad as when they first arrived.
After the six shopkeepers left, the servants also retreated to a distance.
Zhou Yijin said: "Among the six shopkeepers, it is the shopkeeper Yao Si who has the best eyesight."
Wu Chengjian smiled and nodded: "Jiafu is smart and capable, but after all, he is not calm enough. He needs more experience."
Wu Qi said from the side: "Hao Guan, does the fifteenth prince ascending the throne really have no impact on us?"
Wu Chengjian laughed and said, "How could it not have an impact? It has a huge impact."
Wu Qi said: "Then you are still joking and laughing."
Zhou Yijin said calmly: "If you don't laugh while playing, are you crying for others to see? Haha."
Regardless of how various parties reacted, this news from Beijing still caused subtle changes in the situation within the Thirteen Factories in Guangzhou.
Although Cai Qinghua was gone, Lu Guanhuan still raised a lot of money.
More and more news came in about the situation in Beijing, and the situation on all sides was changing in the dark. But the overall trend was that people's hearts were gradually leaning towards Zhu Gui, and money was also flowing towards Lu Guanhuan. However, these were all vague situations. As far as the external situation was concerned, most people were still waiting and watching.
While Lu Guanhuan was helping the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi to raise funds, Pan Youjie of Tonghe Bank remained low-key, and Ye Dalin of Xingcheng Bank stayed indoors.
Only Wu Chengjian would go to Shenxianzhou every two or three days, where he reveled every night and spent money like water.
So the Xiguan Thirteen Factories, which everyone thought was going to be in turmoil, inexplicably became quiet.
As spring goes and summer arrives, the monsoon comes from the south, and the overseas fleets that left return with the monsoon.
As a result, the Guangzhou port, which had been quiet for several months, became more and more lively again.
No matter which emperor is in charge in Beijing, business in Guangzhou must continue, money must be earned, and food must be eaten.
Mr. He Er also went to the Wu family's old house in Xiguan as usual to check the pulse of Wu Chengjun and Mr. Wu. Ye Youyu usually lived in Henan Island, but she would come here several times a month - especially when Mr. He Er came to check the pulse, she would come here to greet and serve.
Wu Chengjun's condition was not very good, and Old Master Wu was also much weaker, but the family still maintained the greatest degree of stability. Cai Qiaozhu knew that the succession of the throne in Beijing would definitely have an impact on the Wu family, but seeing that Wu Chengjian was calm, she did not even ask, and just pretended that nothing had happened.
After Mr. Er He examined Wu Guoying's pulse, Ye Youyu returned to the left courtyard. Mr. Er He followed him. His daughter-in-law, whom he had brought with him, entered the room and carefully examined Ye Youyu's chest injury. After coming out, she reported to Mr. Er He. After listening, Mr. Er He said, "The external injury is not serious."
After the Chinese New Year, Mr. Er He went to Henan Island to check Ye Youyu's pulse and prescribed a prescription for dissolving blood stasis and promoting blood circulation. After taking it for a month, he instructed him to change his diet. After that, he checked Ye Youyu's pulse once every half a month. After two checks, he changed the frequency to once a month. The most recent check was over forty or fifty days ago. Today's pulse check is to see if there is any recurrence or sequelae.
Ye Youyu had been living a life of luxury in recent months, and his life had been going smoothly. His complexion was in good shape, and he felt that his blood circulation was smooth, so he thought nothing would happen. However, after Mr. He took his pulse, he found that there was something wrong, so he used his other hand to diagnose him more carefully.
Dongxue was a little worried and asked, "Sir, is our Third Young Lady okay?"
"How come nothing happened?" Mr. He glanced at her, and before they could worry, he smiled and said, "Something happened! She's pregnant! Congratulations, Third Young Madam."
