Clouds and Moon Shadow

Chapter 290 The Fox Borrows the Tiger's Power (1)

It was incredibly lucky that such a large shop was available on Zhuque Street, and that she happened to buy it. However, Gu Qingyue still felt a pang of heartache.

This amount of silver could buy two large five-courtyard houses in Lizhou. Sigh, that's why they say land in the capital is incredibly valuable.

Gu Yuanen, who had been following the entire tour, stared blankly at Gu Qingyue with a complicated expression.

"What's wrong? Is my shop not good enough?"

After Zhang the broker left happily with the contract and silver notes, Gu Qingyue carefully toured the shop again.

When she came to her senses, she realized that Gu Yuanen, who had been silent all along, was following behind her.

Gu Yuanen nodded reluctantly, "You want to open a shop?"

Gu Qingyue nodded and immediately excitedly pulled him to look at the shop from front to back.

"Well then, my Fragrant Pavilion is opening right here!"

After Gu Qingyue finished speaking, she gave Gu Yuanen a big smile, spread her arms wide, and looked extremely proud.

Gu Yuanen couldn't help but pat her head. "If you want a shop, just ask your mother for one. Why do you need to buy one yourself?"

Gu Qingyue was taken aback. Could it be done like this?

She immediately dismissed the idea; she had never thought of it, and even if she could, she wouldn't want to.

She wasn't pretending to be aloof, really.

On the way back, Gu Qingyue kept thinking about this question.

Since returning to the capital, she has naturally continued to think about how to expand the business of Wenxianglou and how to make money.

But I never thought about whether it was permissible for a noblewoman from a prominent family to do these things.

Will the Qin family stop it if they find out? Will the old Duke stop it?

In Qin's eyes, Gu Qingyue always went out shopping and had fun every day, and she never stopped her.

What would she think if she knew I was going to open a restaurant?

Gu Qingyue suddenly felt uncertain.

She has been doing things her own way since she came into this world, and has never been constrained.

But now that I'm back home and with my family, things should be different, right?

Should she consult with Madam Qin and the old Duke first?

Thinking this, she moved a little closer to Gu Yuanen and asked somewhat guiltily, "Do you think my mother and grandfather will stop me from opening a restaurant?"

Gu Yuanen looked up and saw her fawning expression, and said with some amusement, "Other families might, but the Duke's mansion won't."

Gu Qingyue raised an eyebrow, very curious. "Why?"

“From my great-grandfather onwards, I have been admonishing the descendants of the Gu family that in addition to protecting the country, the ability to earn a living is also essential. Therefore, the children of the Gu family all have their own businesses outside. However, apart from my cousin Yuan Zhen from the third branch, the others are not cut out for business and simply leave it to their managers.”

Gu Qingyue became excited; she hadn't expected the Duke's Mansion to have such advanced ideas!

This is quite a breath of fresh air in the Great Chu!

In an era when aristocratic families considered themselves refined scholars, running a business and making money was considered a lowly and money-grubbing affair.

However, the fact that the Duke's Mansion took the ability of its descendants to support themselves as an ancestral precept is indeed quite advanced in its thinking, which shows the foresight and vision of the Gu family ancestors.

If these self-proclaimed noble families knew that in future generations everyone would strive to earn a living through their own efforts and find ways to make money, would they think it was a great act of rebellion?

Of course, Gu Qingyue was not naive enough to think that those aristocratic families really did not get involved in business at all. Otherwise, where would they get the money to maintain the expenses of such a large family and how could they remain wealthy for generations?

Gu Qingyue finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If Qin Shi and the old Duke stop her from doing business in public, she will most likely stick to her own opinion. However, if it is something that Qin Shi and the old Duke do not like, she may be in a difficult position.

But if it is mentioned in ancestral precepts, then it makes perfect sense.

With the burden in her heart lifted, Gu Qingyue began to feel happy again.

She had just measured the dimensions of the shop and couldn't wait to go back and draw up the blueprints.

Her Fragrant Pavilion needs to open as soon as possible.

In the capital, she no longer needed to hide her identity. Wenxianglou was owned by her—Gu Qingyue, so what?

The ambiguity surrounding Wenxianglou's owner in Lizhou was a last resort, intended to keep the identity of the owner a mystery, thus instilling fear and allowing Wenxianglou to continue operating safely.

In the capital, the estate of the eldest daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo's family is something no one would dare to covet!

She also wants to rely on the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to exert her influence! Haha!

On the second floor of a teahouse, a man in purple robes is sketching a woman's profile with a paintbrush in hand.

Her eyes held a smile, the corners slightly upturned, and a gleam of light shone within them, as if they held a bright, shining light...

But no matter how hard he tried to recall, the faces of the people in the painting were always somewhat blurry, yet somewhat familiar.

He shook his head slightly, a trace of regret passing through his heart. Could it be her?

"Third Brother, who did you draw?" A young man in white stood beside him and asked curiously.

The man's eyes flickered slightly, but he did not answer.

"Let Asa go shopping with you. I need to draw for a while, so I don't have time to accompany you." The man drew for a long time, and the boy next to him pouted and looked unhappy, which annoyed him.

Upon hearing this, the boy angrily turned around and left with his men.

As soon as she opened the door, she bumped into a man in black who was about to knock.

The man immediately stopped and took a few steps back, only to be pushed off balance by the boy.

"Hmph! None of them are good people!" the boy muttered under his breath, then strode away.

The man in purple glanced up, then lowered his head again to continue painting.

"Master," the man in black was scolded, but he could only give a helpless bitter smile. He was not angry. Only after the boy had gone far away did he bow and enter the private room.

"explain".

“Master, that carriage just now belonged to the Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion, and the woman inside is very likely the Third Miss who just returned from Lizhou.”

The man in purple was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. He looked up and saw that it was none other than Mo Shaoshang.

As if thinking of something, a pleased smile appeared on his lips.

Sure enough it was her!

Looking at the painting in his hand, he had never seen Gu Qingyue dressed as a woman before. How should he begin to paint this face?

"Let's go, I'll go with you to your mother's."

As soon as Gu Yuanen returned to the Duke's mansion, he pulled Gu Qingyue toward the main courtyard of the second branch.

Before I even stepped inside, a familiar voice came from the courtyard.

"Second sister-in-law, are you really feeling better? You can't push yourself too hard. You have to get through the illness completely. You were so sick before, how could you possibly get better so quickly? I'll recommend a great doctor to you. How about he comes and take a look at you?"

Gu Qingyue wanted to roll her eyes. What kind of vicious and stupid person would say such things in front of a patient?

This Liu woman is not only vicious, but also quite good at pretending.

She made everyone think that she was just openly evil, with a sharp and mean tongue, but not a truly wicked person; she was almost instantly recognizable.

But who could know that this shallow person who pretends to be stupid and wicked everywhere is actually a thoroughly evil person?

This is a perfect example of going against the grain!

Most people only know that truly bad people can't be detected openly; they have to do bad things behind people's backs, right?

As the saying goes, a barking dog doesn't bite; that's the truth.