Chapter 34.1 â Iâll Give Them to You as a Dowry (1)
Life did not stop because of one personâs death, not to mention the Lu Qicheng of today wasnât really anyone important. After the Lu Mansionâs mourning hall was dismantled and the white flags removed, everything seemed to have returned to the way it was before.
Just that, Lu Qipei suddenly became very busy. It seemed that after Lu Qichengâs death, his responsibilities were shifted to her. First, all kinds of account books were sent to her â they were the various businesses that the Lu family owned. For the first time, she realized how rich she was! Then there were also correspondence letters with some people, although Lu Qipei did not know who the other parties were.
It seemed that Qi Bo was gradually handing the Lu family to her, but he was cautious during the process. He did not give Lu Qipei any extra explanation, nor did he let her come in contact with some sensitive personnel. However, Lu Qipei was surprised by what he revealed.
âI never knew that the Lu family was so rich.â Lu Qipei couldnât help being emotional when he was with Qi Yang in private.
Her Royal Highness The Princess didnât really care much about this. She knew from her previous life that the Lu family had money; how could Lu Qicheng have bought peopleâs hearts without money? How could he had made himself at home in the royal court like fish in water in just a few years? In the end, he even managed to cozy up to the Third Prince, and brought great changes to the court!
Only Lu Qipei, who never paid attention to secular affairs, would have such a feeling.
But Qi Yang wouldnât spoil the fun, so she still followed Lu Qipeiâs words and said with a smile, âHow rich? If Ah Pei is rich, then I will rely on you to support me in the future.â
She laughed and joked while her white and delicate pinky hooked Lu Qipeiâs finger. It was just a small touch, but it somehow felt seductive.
Lu Qipeiâs attention was immediately distracted. It had always been like this lately, where Qi Yangâs constant teasing made her unable to speak properly. But it didnât make her angry, instead she felt a little happy.
Right now, she just shook her head and replied as if nothing happened, âNaturally, it canât compare to Your Highness.â After saying that, she brought up the Lu familyâs properties in the capital one by one.
When you count it, there didnât seem to be that many of them. One bank and one grain store, two pawnshops, three embroidery workshops and a few scattered businesses. The grain store and the embroidery workshops aside, the bank and the pawnshops were quite profitable. It wasnât an exaggeration to say that theyâre making money everyday.
But that wasnât what caught Qi Yangâs attention. She suddenly frowned and asked, âWhat did you say the Lu familyâs bank and grain store were called again?â
Lu Qipei did not know why she asked that, but she still replied, âHengtong Bank, Qingfeng Grain Store.â
Even though Qi Yang didnât know much about the capitalâs businesses, she had heard of these two stores. Hengtong Bank was an age-old brand in the capital â many powerful families in the capital had savings in it, including some of her royal brothers who had left the palace and built their own mansions.
And there was no need to say anything more about Qingfeng Grain Store â half of the capitalâs grain stores belong to them. The Imperial Court relied on Qingfeng Grain Store to balance the grain prices in the capital!
Who wouldâve thought that these two stores that seemed so unrelated on the surface actually belonged to the same owner!
This lowkey and unremarkable Lu family that came from Jiangnan, was actually hiding such a strong financial power!
Qi Yangâs heart beat faster when she heard these two names, but instead of feeling joy from getting a sudden windfall, all she felt was her heartstrings tightening. When it came these money, she had a bad hunch, but she kept it in her own heart for the time being. âThatâs indeed⦠quite rich.â
Lu Qipei was not from the capital, so she didnât know the details behind these two stores. She indifferently nodded and said, âThen Iâll give them to you in the future.â
That was really⦠a big gift!
Qi Yang was stunned by her casual words, but she did not refuse and agreed with a smile. But she was clear in her heart that even if such stores were to be given to her, it might not be that easy to receive it.
But before Qi Yang could think clearly about trouble behind them, she heard a blushing Lu Qipei add another sentence in a low voice, âAs a dowry.â
As soon as those words were said, Qi Yang decided that she had to receive these hot potatoes no matter what. She was even happy to accept them!
Qi Bo probably never imagined that Lu Qipei would sell out her family so quickly and thoroughly. He was still diligently planning for Lu Qipei to succeed Lu Qichengâs original position, and planning for her future.
The former was not very smooth. Lu Qipeiâs identity as a woman was her natural disadvantage. If not because of that, Qi Bo and the others would not have chosen Lu Qicheng as the Young Lord in the first place, when he was never as good as Lu Qipei. They wouldnât have held on so long without giving up on him when he repeatedly played dead before. Although the situation had changed now, there were still many objections against pushing a woman to the top, which required Qi Bo to go through pains to persuade and appease them.
As for the latter, Qi Bo didnât need to worry about it. As soon as he made up his mind to let Lu Qipei take the risk, his Young Master and the Princess were already sticking to each other all the time. Anyone with eyes wouldnât believe if someone said there was nothing between them!
Well, at least one side was progressing smoothly, which made the busy old Qi Bo feel very relieved.
He looked up outside the window â the sun was just right, and the wind was gentle. The weather was perfect for young men and women to go out together for an outingâ¦
Qi Bo raised his hand and massaged his stiff old waist, then picked up his brush and continued replying to the letter he just received. But somehow, he felt a little bit sad in his heart.