manynovel Chapter 359: Accepting Gifts Blatantly
Chapter 359: Accepting Gifts Blatantly
"It should be Senior Brother Wen. I heard his voice."
"Why don't we call him up? We have a private room." In fact, Tong Huaian didn't want to sit at the same table with Master Luodan, but Master Luodan was so enthusiastic that he couldn't refuse. Wouldn't that be a slap in the face of the host?
If they called Wen Ruyu up, they could use the excuse that there were too many people and there wasn't enough space, and then they could go to the private room.
"But is it someone Mr. Jiang knows? Why not call him up and remove the screen here so that there will be room for him to sit down." Luo Dan said directly.
"That's not necessary! As soon as we see Senior Brother Wen, we know that he is enjoying it. We might as well wait for him to come up later."
Jiang Youzhen shook his head. Actually, this lantern riddle was quite interesting.
"Mr. Tong, I have a friend who has admired you for a long time. He is here today too. How about I introduce you two to each other?" Luo Dan suddenly said.
Tong Huai'an smiled knowingly. He knew that this person had other purposes in looking for him. They had only met a few times, but he made it sound like they were very familiar with each other.
"Master Li, from Dongyuan Prefecture."
Dongyuan Mansion? Tong Huaian's heart moved.
He took a closer look at the man walking towards him. He was in his forties, which was consistent with his impression.
"But is it the Li family of Lin County, Dongyuan Prefecture?"
"Exactly! Li Mingliang has met Master Tong and Master Jiang!"
Tong Huaian and Jiang Youzhen hurriedly returned the greeting. Jiang Youzhen just raised her head and found that the other party was looking at her with a businesslike smile.
It was a bit puzzling. Could it be that this person knew her?
"Wen County in Tongzhou Prefecture is really full of talents, and has produced two county champions. Li also admires scholars and is even more interested in the imperial examinations. It's a pity that I was born into a merchant family and was unable to achieve my wish."
"Thank you for your praise, Mr. Li. It's just luck." Tong Huaian's attitude was much more enthusiastic than before.
Everyone sat down, okay! It was a lantern festival just now, but now it has become a chamber of commerce. I guess this person came for the new policy of Tongzhou Prefecture, but I don’t know why the second prince didn’t convince the Li family.
Because from what she heard from Tong Huaian just now, the Li family is quite famous.
"I am very sorry to have disturbed the pleasure of you gentlemen. But I have no one else to recommend me, so I can only trouble Master Luodan."
"Mr. Li, you are too polite."
When Young Master Luodan saw this, he took the opportunity to lead them to the private room next door to guess lantern riddles. Those who had good sense followed them out, and soon there were only three of them left.
Then? Jiang Youzhen immediately stood up and said, "Brother Huai'an, I'm going to guess the lantern riddles."
"You don't have to avoid it, just sit down!" Tong Huaian pushed Jiang Youzhen down.
"This? Isn't it a bit embarrassing?" Jiang Youzhen felt a little embarrassed, and at the same time, he was confused about Tong Huaian's intention.
Tong Hua should know that she had dealings with the Second Prince, and might even suspect that she was giving him advice, but why isn't he avoiding her now?
"Please sit down! There's nothing to be shy about." Tong Hua'an saw her uneasiness and said.
"Mr. Tong, I heard that the court had issued a new policy for Tongzhou Prefecture, so I came here for this matter. I am not bragging, but my family is a merchant family that has been passed down for three generations, and we have quite a bit of extra money. I heard that the court needed donations to build a new wharf, so I came here for this purpose, and I also wanted to do my best to help."
"Mr. Li has a broad mind and a broad heart. This is true. The court is indeed worried about the fundraising issue."
Li Mingliang's eyes suddenly lit up, "Then I wonder if Li has this opportunity?"
"Five days from now will be the day for fundraising, Mr. Li, why not give it a try."
Li Mingliang smiled happily, "Thank you very much, Master Tong."
Jiang Youzhen was a little surprised. Was Tong Huaian already a member of the Fourth Prince's party? How come everyone knew about the relationship between Tong Huaian and the Fourth Prince? Why did they ask Tong Huaian for help?
Li Mingliang clapped his hands three times behind him as he spoke, and immediately several servants came in carrying a tray.
"A few small things for you to play with. I hope you won't dislike them."
Huh? Is it so blatant? Jiang Youzhen was stunned. She was also convinced by this operation.
Unexpectedly, Tong Huaian did not reject him as she imagined. Instead, he glanced at him, smiled faintly and said, "Thank you, Master Li."
Mr. Li smiled like a chrysanthemum, "No thanks, no thanks. They are just some small things, not worth much."
Jiang Youzhen half opened her mouth. Is it okay to accept so many gifts in front of her? She thought Tong Huaian would refuse, or at least pretend to refuse. She didn't expect him to accept it so straightforwardly.
It seems like this is a lucrative job! Tong Huaian must be very rich these days.
Li Mingliang knew that the matter was settled, so he said he would not disturb them anymore and left with his men.
Tong Huaian casually opened one of the brocade boxes. Jiang Youzhen stretched his neck to take a look and found that there was a night-shining pearl the size of a baby's fist, emitting a soft light inside the brocade box.
"That's quite generous." Wang Huaian smiled.
However, his next move shocked Jiang Youzhen. Tong Huaian took out the night pearl from the brocade box and handed it to Jiang Youzhen.
"It's just a small, not very valuable thing. You can play with this night-shining pearl!"
"Ah?" Jiang Youzhen was stunned. What was going on? So generous.
"Such a big night pearl is not cheap, right? I don't want it if it's not a reward for my merit." Jiang Youzhen refused repeatedly.
"It's not a valuable thing, just take it. I have a bigger one in my hand, and this small one is useless. The Fourth Prince would not even look down on this kind of stuff, so he probably left it for his subordinates."
Is it so extravagant? Compared with the second prince, the second prince is indeed quite poor.
This night-shining pearl must have cost at least one or two thousand taels, after all, it was a natural light source. In addition, people in this dynasty thought that the night-shining pearl was some kind of jade, and they kept it as a treasure.
When he thought about the fact that he had a night-shining pearl in his space that was bigger than his fist, he realized that it would be extremely valuable. Jiang Youzhen suddenly felt that he had made a fortune again.
"Xiaowu, take the things. I will deliver this night-shining pearl to Xiaolang's house later."
Jiang Youzhen waved his hands quickly, "Really, no need. In fact, it's useless even if I want it."
However, Tong Huaian ignored her. Jiang Youzhen was about to refuse again, but Young Master Luodan came in.
It was getting lively here again. Jiang Youzhen suddenly thought of Wen Ruyu. He quickly leaned over the railing and looked down, but he did not see Wen Ruyu.
Just as she was wondering, footsteps were heard at the stairs again.
Jiang Youzhen turned around to look, and immediately shouted in surprise, "Senior Brother Wen."
Tong Huaian looked at Jiang Youzhen and found her eyes sparkling, and immediately curled his lips. Why was she happier to see Wen Ruyu than to see him?
Jiang Youzhen wasn't this happy when he gave her the night pearl just now.
"Junior brother, why are you here?" Wen Ruyu was also very happy and walked over quickly.
"I asked you after I went back, and the servants said you hadn't come back yet. I wanted to invite you to the Lantern Festival. I felt a little disappointed that you weren't here, but I didn't expect you to come here by yourself."