Volume 2: Eagle vs. Dragon Chapter 7: The Rise of Potential
From Wu Qi to the accounting office, listening to the discussion between Wu Chengjian and Ou Jiafu, to the study room to deal with the list and seating arrangement for the Shenxianzhou banquet, and then to finishing his speech, more than half an hour had passed.
When Wu Chengjian was in this position, he was busy and had a lot of things to do. In fact, he had no intention of deliberately taking advantage of a servant.
But Changzi didn't know all this. However, he was used to being looked down upon. He was waiting in the ear room and had finished his tea long ago. It was impossible to say that he was not anxious, but he managed to hold it back and didn't show it. Finally, a servant came to call him and led him to the study.
When he saw Wu Chengjian, his hands and feet suddenly became stiff.
The status of Wu Chengjian and him was very different. If Wu Chengjian was an official, he would just kowtow directly. But no matter how rich Wu Chengjun was, he was just a businessman after all. If Changzi came here on his own behalf, it would be fine to kowtow to the rich man directly, but this time he came here on behalf of Ye Youyu after all. He didn't know how to be decent without damaging Ye Youyu's face.
Although Ye Youyu had taught him what to say to the concierge, Wu Qi, and Wu Chengjian before coming, it was impossible to take care of all the details of every word and action, so when he saw Wu Chengjian, Changzi was a little at a loss - this was the disadvantage of being born in a low class. The top servants of real wealthy families were trained in all kinds of etiquette for various occasions. Even the first- and second-class servants who were bought had to go through various training before entering the family. It was not that they were worth the money just because they had good looks.
Fortunately, Changzi was a smart man. He quickly realized that one day he saw a servant of the Cai family half-kneeling before Ye Dalin, so he imitated that person and half-knelt before Wu Chengjian, saying, "My humble servant, I am honored to meet you, Officer Hao ... Officer Hao."
His hesitation was only a matter of a moment, but Wu Chengjian had sharp eyes and had already noticed it. He smiled and asked, "What was your last job at the Ye family before you ran errands for your third lady?"
Changzi was stunned for a moment, and wanted to speak but couldn't.
Wu Chengjian said, "If you don't tell the truth, I will kick you out immediately. If you lie and I find out the truth later, no matter what your third daughter says today, I will deny it later."
What kind of aura does Wu Chengjian have now? How can a mere Ye Xiangzi resist it? In less than a second, Changzi was sweating coldly and said, "I...it turns out...it's Ye Xiang..." He was forced to tell the truth.
Wu Chengjian glared at Wu Qi. Wu Qi thought about how many wealthy merchants and capable officials he had helped Hao Guan to fend off during this period of time. He didn't expect that today a night-scented boy would break into his house and meet Hao Guan. He felt embarrassed for a moment. Wu Chengjian said leisurely, "You have been a little arrogant recently. You don't look at people carefully and attentively!"
This stick knocked Wu Qi's head down, and Wu Chengjian asked Changzi: "Why does your third lady use you?"
Changzi said: "I... don't... know." He really didn't know, and even though he had some guesses in his mind he was not sure.
Wu Chengjian asked again: "Who ordered you?"
Changzi said: "Master Zhong... asked someone... to call me, yes."
Wu Chengjian said: "Then Uncle Zhong asked you to change your clothes, and at the same time your third daughter taught you word by word how to talk to the doorman, how to talk to Wu Qi, and how to talk to me, right?"
Now it was Changzi's turn to be embarrassed. Wu Chengjian's reaction was totally out of the ordinary. He did not ask about Ye Youyu's affairs, but instead asked about Changzi's own affairs. All of Ye Youyu's speculations and the routines she taught him to deal with were in vain. What was even more terrible was that Wu Chengjian seemed to be able to see through his own mind at a glance, and everything he said was right!
If it were Wu Qi or Wu Liu, they would have more frequent opportunities to deal with upper-class people and would be able to respond flexibly when encountering similar situations. After all, Changzi was promoted temporarily, and at this moment he was panicked and was led by Wu Chengjian.
Wu Chengjian also asked Ye Youyu what clothes she wore recently, which courtyard she lived in, and whether the servants served her well, just like an older brother asking about the daily life of a younger sister who was close to the family. This was a topic that Ye Youyu had never thought about before - Changzi was confused all of a sudden. He actually didn't know the relationship between Wu Chengjian and Ye Youyu, and didn't dare to say anything nonsense. Although he didn't have much contact with Ye Youyu, he knew that she lived in Yingyangyuan, wore good clothes, and had many maids and old women serving her. He stammered and talked for a meal. Wu Chengjian nodded to Wu Qi, and Wu Qi took him away.
Changzai came out of the study room, looking as if he was still in a dream. His steps were unsteady. He suddenly slapped his head and stammered, "Ah... I haven't told you about Miss San..."
Wu Qi felt ashamed of the warning he received from Wu Chengjian, so he didn't say much to him and asked a servant to send him back.
He returned to the study and was about to make some excuses for his mistake when he heard Wu Chengjian say, "Send someone to find out about the current situation of the third daughter of the Ye family. Don't go by yourself. There will be two more twists and turns. Don't let anyone know that I'm asking."
Wu Qi replied yes, and then smiled and said, "Hao Guan is really interested in this Miss Ye San?"
Wu Chengjian said, "Youyu is a concubine's daughter, and Ye Dalin's wife is well known in Xiguan. She is even meaner to concubines than servants, let alone a concubine's daughter. But Youyu actually moved into Yingyang Garden - although the courtyard is not big, it is the best place in the Ye family. There are more than a dozen maids and servants serving her. Our Wu and Ye families have only been in business for a few years. When did we have such rules and ceremonies? When my eldest sister was at home, she only had two maids! So something must have happened . Find out more about it, and we can talk about the rest later."
Wu Qi said: "Okay. But why didn't Hao Guan listen to what the other party was going to do first?"
Wu Chengjian scolded, "Have you been so tired of receiving red envelopes lately that you are confused? Why are you asking such a question?"
Wu Qi was scolded again, and felt bitter in his heart, but he still didn't understand what this meant. He was flustered and confused. Wu Chengjian glared at him again and took out two boxes and gave them to him: "I haven't had time to go to Huachahao for several days. Go for a walk. This box of tea is for Yijin, and this box of pearl powder is for Sanniang."
Wu Qi said "oh", took a carriage and a speedboat, boarded the Huacha, and delivered all the things. Zhou Yijin saw that he was listless and asked what happened. Wu Qi thought about it and told him what happened just now. After that, he said with a crying voice: "I know I was wrong in the first incident. But I don't even know what I did wrong in the latter scolding. Master Zhou, please teach me. You are the only one who can understand Hao Guan's mind."
Zhou Yijin smiled and said, "These two things are actually the same thing. Hao Guan's identity has changed, and your identity has also changed, but you haven't grasped it well and haven't adapted to this sudden improvement in status."
"I understand the first one," Wu Qi said, "I went from being a servant of the Third Young Master Yihe to being a powerful manager in front of the head of the Thirteen Hongs. I haven't stopped playing around, so I got into trouble. But how come the second one is the same as the first one?"
Zhou Yijin said: "Hao Guan is Hao Guan now, not the Third Young Master Yihe. At his position, time and energy are so precious. Let alone helping others solve problems, even asking him to 'listen' to a request is a very 'valuable' thing. If it is a valuable thing, it should not be given to others easily, otherwise valuable things will become worthless after ."
Wu Qi is still a smart and insightful person after all: "Ah! I understand!"
Yes, Wu Chengjian couldn’t even get Ye Dalin to talk to him now, let alone a Ye Xiangzi?
Changzi remembered that he had not fulfilled the third lady's instructions, and returned to the Ye family almost crying. He felt that he had waited so long for an opportunity, but he messed things up. He was so panicked that he arrived at Yingyang Garden and lay on the steps outside the room.
Seeing his expression, Ye Youyu guessed that things were not done well, so she did not let him speak and sent everyone away. Changzi then sobbed and told him about the journey to Wu's house. Although he stuttered, fortunately he had a good memory. He stammered and repeated almost every word of Wu Chengjian. After he finished speaking, he cried, "Third... Miss, I... ruined... your... business. You... can hit me, scold me. Woo woo..."
Ye Youyu chewed on Wu Chengjian's words for a long while, and the more she chewed, the more she found them delicious. Over the years, she had pondered over Wu Chengjian's words and deeds so many times, and had learned a lot. She said, "Don't cry. It's not your fault. It's my fault... Alas! In my heart, I still think of the Third Young Master before the Autumn Festival as my conversation partner, but I didn't think about the fact that he is no longer the same person today. I misjudged the matter."
Changzi said: "Then...then..."
Ye Youyu said, "Don't worry. Although Hao Guan manipulated me a bit, he did it on purpose. Otherwise, you wouldn't have seen him at all, let alone had such a long speech. But you have already revealed most of my true background without knowing it."
Changzi let out a cry.
Ye Youyu said: "It's not your fault. He was able to turn the tables in such a dangerous situation as the forced donation in Yongding River. It would be strange if he couldn't easily capture you."
She was talking about Changzai, but she was thinking about herself: "Let alone Changzai, even if it's my level, I'm naturally not as good as his."
Changzi said: "Then...then...what should we do?"
Ye Youyu asked, "Where's the Sun Ring?"
Changzi cried out in pain, and then he remembered that he had not brought back the Sun Ring, and he became even more panicked - in fact, although he was young, he was not someone who had not explained himself. It was because he met Wu Chengjian, and his mood was disrupted by just a few words.
Ye Youyu said, "It doesn't matter if you didn't bring it back. I'll write a letter and you go to the Wu family again, asking for something, begging, making a scene, or pestering, you must see Wu Qi again. But before you see Wu Qi, don't reveal that you want the Sun Ring, and don't reveal my identity easily. When you see Wu Qi, give him the letter and ask him to pass it to Hao Guan, and then you wait for a reply. If you don't get a reply for a while, you can squat at the gate or guard the corner, don't come back until you get the news."
