Chapter 337 The New Heir of the British Government
Li Zhiying smiled and said: "Whose lady is this next to you? Why don't you introduce her to us?"
After everyone heard this, they all looked at the woman in purple next to Princess Taiping.
At first, all the girls thought that the woman was her maid. After hearing what Li Zhiying said, they took a few more glances.
After a closer look, I found that this woman had a noble temperament and was definitely not a maid.
Seeing that Princess Taiping was not sitting down, the woman on Mrs. Li's right still held one hand in the purple-clothed woman's hand. She quickly stood up and found a new seat like Mrs. Li.
Princess Taiping then pulled the woman in purple to sit down and said with a smile: "This is my good friend, the eldest lady of the Fan family, Fan Yuping. Please take care of her in the future."
All the girls felt strange that they had never heard of an eldest lady in the Fan family named Fan Yuping.
However, Princess Taiping finally spoke, and most people did not dare not to give face and greeted Fan Yuping one after another.
Of course there are exceptions. Dai Qing glanced at the woman in purple and asked deliberately: "Could it be the young lady from Fan Shilang's family?"
The eldest daughter of the Fan family smiled and said: "My little girl is not the daughter of the minister's family, she is just a business girl. Today I have been favored by Her Highness the Princess, and I am very happy to be able to meet so many noble people."
"It turns out she is a businesswoman." Dai Qing hummed.
Princess Taiping glanced at Dai Qing, but did not speak for Fan Yuping. Others thought that Princess Taiping was also afraid of the people in the East Palace, and they were all secretly frightened.
Li Zhiying knew Princess Taiping's temper. Not to mention a little Dai Qing, even if Prince Li Hong was here, she would still fall out when she lost her temper.
Now Princess Taiping's reaction made her a little curious. She looked at Princess Taiping and saw her glance at Fan Yuping again casually.
Li Zhiying thought, maybe Princess Taiping wanted to see how Fan Yuping would deal with this situation.
At this moment, Fan Yuping spoke, and she said with a smile: "Mr. Dai, although my daughter comes from a merchant's family, the taxes we pay to the country are no less than anyone else's. My daughter has not violated the king's laws and has not been punished.
Even though the government punished me, I never failed in my moral conduct and was criticized by others."
Dai Qing said with a cold face: "What exactly do you want to say?"
"I just want to tell you that business women are no worse than other women."
Dai Qing shouted: "How dare you, everyone here is a noble lady of the imperial court, how dare you, a lowly businesswoman, compare with us?"
Fan Yuping's face turned pale, but he still raised his head stubbornly and did not succumb to Dai Qing's power.
Xue Yujin laughed and said: "Your Royal Highness, you are a very good friend. I admire her very much."
Dai Qing frowned and said, "Mr.
Xue Yujin hummed: "How can there be so many nobles and lows in the world? If more than ten years ago, I was just a village girl, am I born low at that time?"
Dai Qing's face turned green and he stopped talking.
Cheng Caiyi said: "It is by no means an easy thing for a woman to show her face outside. Miss Fan, I give you a toast."
Seeing that Cheng Caiyi did not introduce herself, Li Zhiying was afraid that Fan Yuping would not know her identity, so she smiled and said: "This is Cheng County Master of Guangping County Duke's Mansion, Cheng Caiyi."
Fan Yuping glanced at her gratefully, raised his glass to Cheng Caiyi and said, "Thank you so much, Lord Cheng."
After the two of them had a toast with women's mini cups, Li Zhiying asked: "Miss Fan, is your cloth shop located in Chang'an City?"
When Fan Yuping saw someone asking about the business, he immediately cheered up and said, "All the big counties north of the Yangtze River have our own cloth shops, both in cloth and ready-made clothes, and the latest styles are available every year."
"Could it be that Fanji Cloth Shop, one of the three major cloth shops in Chang'an City, is owned by your family?" A young woman with a double-ringed bun suddenly asked.
Fan Yuping smiled and nodded.
A woman next to her joked: "Mrs. Wu bought all her clothes at Fanji."
Fan Yuping smiled and said, "Thank you, Mrs. Wu, for taking care of the shop's business."
That Mrs. Wu was Pei Yanting, Wu Youxu's newly married daughter-in-law. It is natural for women to love beauty, but Pei Yanting can be regarded as a leader among women in this aspect.
What she wears, whether clothes, shoes or jewelry, is always the latest style. Fortunately, Wu Youxu's family is quite wealthy, so he can barely afford to support her.
However, after marrying his wife, Wu Youxu, who originally only drank good wine, switched to drinking inferior wine. He also lost the habit of going to Taoist temples to offer incense and worked hard outside to support his family every day.
Pei Yanting asked hurriedly: "Have you produced any new styles of clothes recently?"
Fan Yuping smiled and said: "There just happened to be a few models, and I brought them all when I came here this time. Do you want to take a look?"
Dai Qing snorted: "This is not a clothing store. If you want to see clothes, look elsewhere!"
Pei Yanting was born in the Pei family, and her husband's family was from the Wu clan, so she was not afraid of Dai Qing and ignored her. She looked at Li Zhiying and begged: "Second sister-in-law, can I take a look here?"
Li Zhiying said: "Okay."
Pei Yanting smiled and said: "Miss Fan, please hurry up and have someone bring it in and take a look!"
Fan Yuping was elated.
She came here this time to sell her own clothes at this high-end banquet for officials' wives. The woman sitting here was not only rich, but also had the best taste.
As long as their own clothes are favored and sought after by them, the reputation of Fan's clothing will be greatly improved.
Fan Yuping left the side hall and came in with a servant not long after. The servant had wheat-colored skin, was tall and strong, and had a confident look on his dark face.
All the girls present were thinking that with such a servant, the Fan family was definitely not an ordinary merchant's family.
The black-faced servant held a big box and opened it. There were three styles of women's clothing inside, all of which were palace styles.
Pei Yanting took a dress, stretched out her hand to touch it, and immediately smiled and said: "Well, it is indeed Fan Ji's dress. No one else can make this kind of smooth feel."
All the girls immediately gathered around, and the banquet turned into a costume party.
Only Li Zhiying, Cheng Caiyi, Dai Qing and Princess Taiping were still sitting on their chairs. Princess Taiping suddenly said: "Second cousin, the clothes you are wearing are made of royal materials given by your mother, right?"
"Yes what's the matter?"
Li Zhiying found it a little strange that Princess Taiping came here today just to help Fan Yuping sell clothes.
Princess Taiping touched her sleeves and said, "It's mine too. Go and touch the Fan family's clothing. It's more comfortable to touch than ours."
Li Zhiying frowned and thought for a while, then stood up and leaned towards the girls. Seeing her coming, Xue Yujin immediately handed over the clothes in her hand.
"Zhiying, please touch it quickly. The silk material is really good and the style is beautiful. I want to buy a few pieces."
Li Zhiying stretched out her hand and touched it for a while. Just as Princess Taiping said, the material felt more comfortable than what she was wearing.
This is a bit strange. Royal fabrics have always been produced through private elections, with the best gray fabrics selected at high prices and then woven and dyed into finished products by the Textile and Textile Department.
In order to use materials for the royal election, major cloth shops in the private sector have made great efforts to optimize their own gray cloths.
As long as you can succeed in the election, you will not only earn huge profits, but also gain the reputation of an imperial merchant and become a leader in the industry.
Nowadays, clothes made of royal materials are not as good as folk clothes. There are only two situations, either there is something wrong with the gray cloth purchased, or there is something wrong with the dyeing by the craftsmen of the Textile and Textile Department.
Thinking of this, Li Zhiying stopped thinking. She just simply liked to explore the truth of the matter. As for the matter itself, she was not interested.
Fan Yuping's business strategy was very successful. Except for Princess Taiping, Dai Qing and Cheng Caiyi, almost every lady present ordered one.
Even Li Zhiying fell in love with one of them and decided to buy it to see if it would attract more attention from her husband.
Fan Yuping was all smiles.
For her, as long as these ladies dress appropriately, they will naturally become Fan Ji's regular customers in the future, and their social circle is full of wealthy women, so it is easy to have a chain reaction.
Just as the girls were talking about clothes, a scream suddenly sounded outside, and Li Zhiying's face immediately changed.
That voice was all too familiar to her. It was the voice of her brother Li Jingye.
Li Zhiying lifted up her skirt and ran quickly towards the direction of the sound. Xue Yujin reacted the fastest and followed closely.
The rain outside has stopped, the sky seems to have been washed, turning blue, and the air has become exceptionally fresh.
The two women followed the corridor and turned two corners. They saw Li Jingye kneeling on one knee beside a rockery in front of him, his right hand pressing on his left arm, and blood flowing out from between his fingers.
Opposite him, two men stood. One stood in front, holding a long sword. It was Chen Zi'ang, the former chief of Pei Prince's Mansion. Behind him stood Yang Tai, Yang Wulian's son.
Seeing that Li Jingye only injured his arm, Li Zhiying felt relieved and stepped forward and asked, "Brother, what happened here?"
Li Jingye glanced at his sister and did not reply.
On the contrary, when Yang Tai on the opposite side saw Li Zhiying, his eyes suddenly lit up and he wanted to come over to talk, but he stopped after taking two steps, seeming to be concerned about Li Jingye, who was next to Li Zhiying.
"Your Highness, it was Brother Li who insisted on challenging Zi Ang, but Zi Ang was forced to accept the challenge," Yang Tai explained.
"Brother, is that true?" Li Zhiying asked again.
Li Jingye still ignored him, looked directly at Chen Ziang and said: "I lost today, but I will not let you go!"
After saying that, he stood up and left.
After taking a few steps, I heard the sound of footsteps. Li Ji and Li Siwen rushed over with their people, and they happened to meet Li Jingye head-on.
At the same time, Princess Taiping and Cheng Caiyi also came from the corridor.
Li Ji stared at his grandson, then looked at Chen Ziang and Yang Tai, and said coldly: "What's going on?"
Li Jingye held his head up stubbornly and said: "It's nothing. I competed with Chen Zi'ang. He was superior. I lost. That's it."
Li Ji took two steps forward, slapped him in the face, and said angrily: "You are really confused, I think. You hate Chen Zi'ang for pointing out King Pei's crime, so you seek revenge on him, right?"
Li Jingye said loudly: "Yes, he betrayed His Royal Highness King Pei, and I can't spare him!"
Li Ji's face was livid. He raised his hand and was about to slap Li Jingye again. Li Zhiying hurriedly hugged his arm and advised: "Grandpa, please calm down and don't be angry!"
Another young man hugged Li Ji's other arm, looked at Li Jingye and said, "Brother, please don't make grandpa angry. Please admit his mistake quickly!"
Li Jingye looked at the man in surprise and said, "Why are you back?"
Li Siwen said with a cold face: "He is my son, can't he come back?"
The man's name was Li Jingwu, Li Siwen's son. Because he had done evil since childhood and bullied others, he broke the legs of a man who had offended him and was kicked out of the house by Li Ji.
Li Jingye gritted his teeth and said nothing. Li Ji actually brought Li Jingwu back. It was obvious that he had decided not to let him inherit the family business.
After all, Li Zhiying grew up with Li Jingye and had a deeper relationship with him.
Seeing his embarrassment, I really couldn't bear it and said softly: "Brother, let me take you to treat the wound."
Li Jingye glanced at her and finally nodded.
Along the way, Li Jingye suddenly asked: "When did he come back?"
"I came back more than two months ago." Li Zhiying answered with her head lowered.
Xue Yujin, who was following behind, sneered: "You stay in Prince Pei's Mansion all day long and never care about your own situation, so naturally you don't know."
Li Jingye pretended not to hear what she said and said, "Little sister, can you do me a favor?"
"If it has something to do with King Pei, don't say anything." Li Zhiying's tone became a little stiffer.
Li Jingye's face changed slightly, and he gritted his teeth and said, "I just want to see His Highness King Pei again, aren't you willing to agree to it too?"
Li Zhiying remained silent.
Xue Yujin said angrily: "Li Jingye, you are still not a human being. You almost pushed Zhiying into the fire pit for your position in Prince Pei's Mansion. Now what position do you have to let Zhiying help you?"
Li Jingye's face turned pale and he opened his mouth to defend himself, but finally closed his mouth again with a sad expression.
When Li Zhiying treated his injury, he didn't say a word, and Li Zhiying didn't take the initiative to speak again. After bandaging, he left the room.
When they returned to the side hall, they found that Cheng Caiyi was the only one left in the hall.
"Because of what happened just now, the banquet ended early and everyone left. Her Royal Highness the Princess said she had something to do and went back first." Cheng Caiyi explained.
Li Zhiying nodded and said: "Then I'll go say hello to my second uncle, and let's go back too."
When he arrived at the lobby, Li Siwen was instructing his subordinates to clean the tables and chairs.
After hearing Li Zhiying's farewell, Li Siwen said: "My father has something to tell you. You should go see him."
Li Zhiying turned to her two friends and said, "I don't know how long it will take here, otherwise you should go back first."
Cheng Caiyi nodded in agreement, but Xue Yujin stayed and planned to wait for her.
Li Zhiying met Li Jingwu on the way to Li Ji's study.
"Little, little sister, please be polite to your brother." Li Jingwu stammered.
Li Zhiying felt that he had really changed, and she didn't know what this cousin had gone through to change him from a lawless little bully to the cautious and cautious person he is now.
"Second brother, you don't need to be polite." Li Zhiying bowed.
Li Jingwu scratched the back of his neck and said with a grimace: "Little sister, my grandfather asked me to practice spear practice for three hours every day. My body really can't bear it anymore. Can you please help me?"
Li Zhiying said seriously: "Second brother, if you want to practice martial arts well, you must work hard. My husband's soldiers have to train for six hours every day, and only then can we train an invincible iron army."
Li Jingwu lowered his head and muttered: "I know, I'll go practice at the head office." He slowly left with a staggering step.
Li Zhiying continued to move forward, arrived outside Li Ji's study, and knocked on the door.
"Come in." Li Ji's majestic voice came out.
Li Zhiying pushed the door open and closed it gently. She came to Li Ji and said, "Grandpa, what do you want from me?"
Li Ji got up and moved a chair for her, placed it next to him, and said with a smile: "Sit down quickly. Fortunately you came here today, otherwise Mrs. Siwen would not be able to control the scene."
"You are too outspoken. How could I not come to my second uncle's tail-burning banquet? My husband has something to do, otherwise he would also want to come over." Li Zhiying sat down with the hem of her skirt.
Li Ji returned to the chair and sat down. He was silent for a long time and then said: "Son, to tell you the truth, although my experiences in this life cannot be said to be very colorful, I have seen all kinds of things. . ”
Li Zhiying saw her grandfather's serious expression and immediately listened attentively.
"The former Emperor's Xuanwu Sect defeated the prince's party back then, and now His Majesty and Empress Wu join forces to defeat Changsun Wuji's party. These old men have all experienced it personally, and they all made wise choices at the right time."
Li Zhiying was shocked and thought to herself: "Why did my grandfather suddenly say these things?" She became even more nervous.
Li Ji smiled bitterly and said: "But today, I suddenly found that I can't understand this situation. Do you think I am really old?"
Li Zhiying said hurriedly: "Don't say that. I think you are getting stronger and you are in better spirits than you were a few years ago."
"Then tell me what's going on in the current situation?" Li Ji stared closely at his granddaughter.
Li Zhiying hesitated and said, "What are you referring to?"
Li Ji said solemnly: "Let me put it bluntly. King Pei has collapsed and His Majesty's health is getting worse. I can understand why he strongly supports the prince, but there are two things I can't understand."
"Please tell me."
"I don't understand why Your Majesty rewards Chengsi so vigorously!"
"My husband exposed King Pei's conspiracy, so it's not surprising that His Majesty rewarded him." Li Zhiying lowered her head and said.
Li Ji snorted: "You really think I'm confused. Your Majesty's health is deteriorating. At this time, you will only think about the overall situation. The Queen already controls the government, so if you make Chengsi a prince at this time, it will only make the Wu family worse." Becoming more powerful will be very detrimental to the prince’s future accession to the throne!”
Li Zhiying was silent, and Li Ji stopped talking. The only sound left in the room was the crackling of candlelight.
After a long while, Li Zhiying said: "What is the other thing you don't understand?"
Li Ji said slowly: "I heard that Chengsi has been very close to the prince recently, is that right?"
"Yes, he has been walking around with the prince a few times recently." Li Zhiying said, wringing her fingers.
"Then it's even more strange. He has always been at odds with the prince, and now the prince's reputation has grown so much that it has threatened the status of Her Majesty the Queen. How could he be close to the prince at this time?"
Li Zhiying looked embarrassed and secretly raised her eyes to look at Li Ji. She immediately met his bright eyes and hurriedly lowered her head.
Li Ji sighed and said sadly: "Forget it, you are the princess of the Zhou Palace after all. Naturally, you have to consider the issue from the perspective of the palace. Even if I make a wrong judgment in the future and lead to the destruction of the British Palace, I will not blame you. "
Li Zhiying said hurriedly: "Don't say that. There is indeed some reason, but it involves secrets. My husband asked me not to tell anyone."
The sad look on Li Ji's face disappeared immediately, and he smiled slyly and said: "So, there is a special reason for Chengsi to do this. Is there some agreement between His Majesty and him?"
Li Zhiying pouted and said nothing.
Li Ji knew something in his mind and said seriously: "Does Her Majesty the Queen know about this?"
Li Zhiying turned her head and did not answer.
But Li Ji understood everything and said with a smile: "Good boy, don't be angry. We are a family. I'm just confirming. I will never do anything detrimental to our family."
Li Zhiying sighed, stood up and said, "Grandpa, if you have nothing else to do, I will go back. Yujin is still waiting for me."
"Wait a minute."
Li Ji walked to the cabinet, took out half of the jade pendant, handed it to Li Zhiying and said: "I owed someone a favor when I was young. If someone named Guo comes to you in the future with the other half of the jade pendant, help me get this favor." Pay it back."
After a pause, he added: "Originally, you shouldn't be asked to do this, but your two brothers are not up to par. I don't expect them anymore, so I have no choice but to entrust this trouble to you."
Li Zhiying took it respectfully and said, "Don't worry, I've written it down."