With Lu Zheng’s help, the remaining few patients were quickly prescribed medicine and left.
“Sister, Sister! There’s chicken!” Liu Qingquan excitedly brought out the food box Lu Zheng had brought.
“I can smell it, you little glutton!” Liu Qingyan chuckled, patting Liu Qingquan’s head, then opened the box and took out the roast chicken.
Liu San portioned some vegetables and meat into two bowls of rice for the two assistants, but Liu Qingyan stopped him, tearing a few pieces of chicken to add to each bowl.
“Thank you, Boss! Thank you, Young Master!” The two assistants expressed their gratitude profusely, taking the bowls to eat aside.
“I want a chicken leg!”
“Here you go!” Liu Qingyan tore off a leg and placed it in Liu Qingquan’s bowl.
“And fruit!”
“You sure know how to pair!” Lu Zheng speared an apple slice with a toothpick and handed it to her.
Liu Qingquan ate with a beaming smile.
Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan exchanged a glance, sharing a silent understanding.
“Yesterday, Uncle Li mentioned someone came looking for you. Did someone take a liking to Sweet Shop’s sugar?” Liu Qingyan asked with a smile.
Since buying a sugar refinery in this era and securing some supply channels to produce malt sugar and rock sugar, Lu Zheng, out of boredom, had come up with some ideas for his business. Membership cards and point-based redemption were too advanced, and he worried the mostly illiterate townsfolk wouldn’t understand, so he kept it simple. He made molds to shape malt sugar into various small animals and differentiated the packaging.
A set of thirty-two animal-shaped malt sugars paired with zoo-themed oiled paper packaging…
A set of eighteen weapon-shaped sugar candies paired with martial arts-themed oiled paper packaging…
These had taken Tonglin County’s sugar market by storm, becoming a haven for local children and prompting competitors to follow suit. However, Sweet Shop led the trend, with Lu Zheng’s molds, custom-made in the modern world, being lifelike and charming, securing the largest market share and establishing a unique, high-end brand.
Thus, Liu Qingyan assumed some out-of-town merchant had taken a fancy to Sweet Shop’s candies, planning to buy in bulk for resale.
“No way!” Lu Zheng shook his head, laughing. “It’s just some molds and printed paper, nothing technically complex. Who couldn’t make them?”
No matter how exquisite Sweet Shop’s molds and designs were, they were just craftsmanship. The Great Jing Dynasty had plenty of skilled artisans who could surpass Sweet Shop’s styles.
“Then why? A new sugarcane merchant?” Liu Qingyan asked.
“Not that either,” Lu Zheng shook his head, a bit exasperated. “They wanted to buy my shopfront.”
Liu Qingyan was surprised. “Acquire Sweet Shop?”
“No, just the shopfront itself.”
Liu Qingyan blinked, momentarily confused. “Buy the shopfront? But you haven’t listed it with a broker.”
Lu Zheng smirked. “They came straight to my door, acting all high and mighty, saying the price was negotiable. When I asked, they offered only four hundred and fifty guan.”
Liu Qingyan chuckled lightly. “Lu Lang, didn’t you spend four hundred and thirty guan on that shop?”
Lu Zheng shrugged. “Exactly!”
Liu Qingyan had accompanied Lu Zheng when he bought the shopfront. Upon learning he was Sweet Shop’s owner and wanted to buy, the seller had boldly asked for six hundred guan for a shop worth four hundred at market price. But after Lu Zheng chatted warmly with the seller, they happily lowered it to four hundred and thirty guan—a fair price, and Lu Zheng didn’t feel cheated.
So, after the entire town had grown accustomed to Sweet Shop’s location, you offer just four hundred and fifty guan and expect me to go through the hassle of relocating?
“Outsiders?” Old Man Liu suddenly asked from the side.
“From Yizhou Prefecture, a big player crossing the river,” Lu Zheng said with a smile. “Now some local wealthy families will have headaches.”
“No wonder,” Old Man Liu nodded, understanding the situation. “But they might not give up so easily. They could come back.”
Lu Zheng shrugged. “The thing is, I have no reason to sell. I’m not short of money.”
“True,” Old Man Liu said, merely noting the matter without dwelling on it.
Given Lu Zheng’s status and strength, anyone or any force capable of pressuring him to sell wouldn’t bother with such tactics.
“Sister! Brother-in-law! Eat chicken!” Liu Qingquan, her mouth greasy, tore off a chicken wing for each of Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan, gave Old Man Liu a piece of chicken tail, and sneakily placed the last chicken leg in her own bowl. After a moment’s thought, she tore off half the leg meat for Liu San, but he ruffled her head and returned it.
“Hehe!” Liu Qingquan grinned happily at Liu San, then piled a large helping of chicken breast into his bowl before devouring her chicken leg.
…
After lunch, Liu Qingquan and Liu San took the food box home, while Lu Zheng stayed at Benevolence Hall to assist Liu Qingyan with patients.
With Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan handling things, Old Man Liu was free to sip tea and read, looking utterly relaxed.
Not long into the afternoon, Uncle Li came in with an invitation. “Young Master!”
“What’s up?”
“It’s an invitation from that Steward Zhou, inviting you to a banquet at Spring Breeze Tower tonight,” Uncle Li said.
“Spring Breeze Tower?”
Lu Zheng took the invitation, opened it, and saw polite words about admiring his reputation and requesting a meeting. But the signature wasn’t Zhou Mingsheng—it was someone named Zhao Wenrong.
“Who’s this?” Lu Zheng asked.
Uncle Li shook his head. “No idea. It was delivered by the servant with Steward Zhou.”
“Where is he?”
“Still waiting at the house.”
Lu Zheng handed the invitation back to Uncle Li. “Return it to him. Say I’m busy and unavailable.”
“Yes!” Uncle Li took the invitation and left without hesitation.
“Spring Breeze Tower? You’re not going, Lu Lang?” Liu Qingyan teased with a giggle.
“Nope!” Lu Zheng said firmly. “I’m afraid I’ll run into another scorpion spirit!”
Liu Qingyan was about to tease further when a patient arrived, cutting their conversation short as she greeted them.
…
By late afternoon, as dusk approached and no more patients came, Old Man Liu sent Liu Qingyan and Lu Zheng home, staying behind with the two assistants to close the shop.
Knowing Old Man Liu was giving them some alone time, they didn’t refuse. Leaving the clinic, they walked closely together down the street.
“Three days from now is the rest day. Shall we go with Sister Shen to Hundred Springs Valley for a hot spring soak?” Liu Qingyan asked.
“Sure!” Lu Zheng nodded, seeing no issue.
As they reached the Liu residence, instead of entering, they glanced toward the Lu residence. Then, three figures emerged from the corner by Lu Zheng’s gate.
A clear voice rang out, “Young Master Lu! You sure put on airs!”
