Chapter 375: Supporting a Piece of Sky

Translator: 549690339

“I didn’t help at all. You know this is my first time coming to this wine-house too.”

Liu Sisi cast him a glance and took in the layout of the wine-house.

This wine-house was originally located on a main street near the county government offices, and just around the corner, at a crossroad. There were six shops in a row, and in the middle of the courtyard was a stage. A young girl was singing a little tune on it, while an old man further away was strumming and singing. There were as many as four floors above, which was not like a regular wine-house.

Di Yelei’s eyes flashed: “Sisi, don’t you think your Brother Nan is quite capable? To set up such a luxurious wine-house and silver pavilion in less than a month is quite an incredible feat, isn’t it?”

Liu Sisi’s hand, which was pouring the tea, paused, and she couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows: “What are you trying to say?”

“I mean to say, Nan Tianzong’s identity…”

Before Di Yelei could finish his sentence, a waiter approached with a tray: “Here is your meal – the two of you, please enjoy!”

“Thank you, waiter.”

After the waiter put down the food and left, Di Yelei brought the soy milk in front of her: “Don’t drink tea, soy milk is better.”

Liu Sisi obeyed and took a sip before looking up at him: “We have discussed the issue of his identity before. No matter what it is, I just treat him as my big brother, that’s all.”

Di Yelei nodded silently and sighed in agreement. The two ate breakfast in silence, and only when they were full did they call the waiter to pay the bill.

“Waiter, is your boss here?”

The waiter was clearly stunned by Liu Sisi’s question before bowing with respect: “You both know our boss? Ah! It’s such a pity, he left just yesterday to go home for the New Year.”

“We are acquaintances. If he isn’t here, it would be fine to ask Shopkeeper Qu instead.’

“Letting Shopkeeper Qu know is, of course, possible…” The waiter hesitated.

Liu Sisi smiled and took some copper coins from her pocket and handed them to the waiter: “Thank you for your trouble, waiter.”

“No problem, no problem. Wait a moment, the two of you.”

The waiter happily accepted the copper coins and left.

“Why didn’t you mention our identities earlier? Is it to see his attitude towards customers?” Di Yelei asked curiously.

“Not entirely. Actually, I wanted to see the quality of the food in the shop and how it tasted.”

Liu Sisi pointed at the breakfast on the table and then laughed: “But after trying it, I found that, as expected, this big shop serves delicious, fragrant food.”

Di Yelei couldn’t help but laugh: “Haha! Don’t you think, coming to this kind of place is going to be more expensive than eating outside.”

Soon after, Shopkeeper Qu hurried over and, upon seeing Liu Sisi, quickly bowed in greeting.

” Greetings to Boss Liu! I did not know Boss Liu was gracing us with her presence, please excuse my poor hospitality!”

This scared the waiter who immediately stepped aside, stealthily watching the conversation in the corner.

Liu Sisi stood up from her chair and helped Shopkeeper Qu up: “Shopkeeper Qu, please rise. I came today to see Brother Nan; is he in the shop?”

“Boss isn’t in the shop! Last night he went over to the Silver Pavilion after going through the account books. The Silver Pavilion has been overwhelmed with business as the end of the year approaches, so… the boss went to guard the Silver Pavilion.”

“I see! Thank you, Shopkeeper.”

After receiving the exact information, Liu Sisi exchanged a glance with Di Yelei, each seeing the intention in the other’s eyes.

“I have other matters to attend to in the county today, so you don’t need to attend to us, Shopkeeper Qu.”

Shopkeeper Qu repeatedly bowed: “Boss Liu, please wait a moment! The boss has instructed me that, if Boss Liu comes, I must give this to you.”

As he spoke, he took a thick envelope from his pocket and handed it to Liu Sisi.

“What is this?”

Liu Sisi flipped through it without much interest.

“I…I don’t know.”

Shopkeeper Qu discreetly stepped back, still keeping his head low, looking up at her for a moment before lowering his head again.

Liu Sisi didn’t press him for an answer and handed the envelope to Di Yelei before leaving the wine-house. Shopkeeper Qu wanted to say more, but seeing that she was not interested, he had no choice but to return to the shop.

It wasn’t until after Liu Sisi and Di Yelei had mounted their horses and disappeared from sight that the waiter emerged from the shadows, patting his chest in relief!

“Oh my gosh! That scared the heck out of me! She is actually Boss Liu? She came and didn’t even announce herself, and I asked her for a tip, this…Am I lighting a candle in a latrine — am I seeking death? I wonder if she’ll remember me in the future, sigh!”

After speaking, he sighed for a while before continuing to attend to the new customers.

“Aren’t you going to open the envelope and have a look?”

Seeing that they had walked down the street and were about to reach the pawnshop, Di Yelei finally couldn’t help but ask about the lingering question on his mind.

Liu Sisi merely laughed: “What’s there to look at? Even without looking, I know that the envelope must contain the dividends from the wine-house and the Silver Pavilion.”

“How do you know? You haven’t even opened it.”

“I can guess without opening it. Brother Nan always acts so mysteriously. If you don’t believe me, you can open the envelope and see if there’s anything off about what I said.”

“…Forget it, let’s wait until we get home.”

Di Yelei wanted to open it, but considering they were on a public street, he decided against it.

The light snow that had stopped in the morning started to fall again. Scattered snowflakes drifted in the sky, and when a cold wind blew, it was quite cold for those riding horses.

However, they soon arrived at Gan Family’s pawnshop.

Compared to going to Gan Family, this time it was much easier for Liu Sisi to meet Old Madam Gan.

Upon arriving at the pawnshop, she was immediately led by a house servant through the back hall to Old Madam Gan, who was seated by her side.

Next to Old Madam Gan were Third Aunt Jin and County Magistrate Su, and surprisingly, Thirteenth Luo of Prefecture Princess Luo!

She hesitated for a moment and then resumed her usual behavior as she and Di Yelei stepped forward to greet them.

“Sisi, you’re here just at the right time. Come quickly to your grandmother.” Old Madam Gan said with a wide smile.

“Yes, grandmother.” Liu Sisi responded as she approached.

Everyone chatted aimlessly, touching on various topics from north to south, without a single mention of the accounts. It was only as noontime approached that Thirteenth Luo and County Magistrate Su took leave.