Chapter 158 Ye Ningshuang Makes Trouble
After dinner, Zhan Xiao accompanied Shen Zhi to Sifang Yahang. Shen Zhi had been thinking about opening an embroidery shop with his mother Shen. Now that he had accumulated a lot of cross-stitches, he could prepare for the opening of the shop.
The person who received us today was still Manager Zhao. When he learned that Shen Zhi wanted to buy a shop to open an embroidery shop, he smiled and said, "What a coincidence! I really have a shop that is really suitable. It is right next to the shop you bought last time. It used to sell ready-made clothes. The boss wants to move his family to the capital, so he is selling it urgently."
When Shen Zhi heard that it was next to a photo studio, he immediately became interested, and the three of them went to the shop to take a look.
The shop is slightly smaller than the photo studio, but fortunately, since it is an embroidery business, it does not need to be that big. There are also several rooms in the backyard, which can be used for living and storing goods.
Seeing that both of them were interested in the shop, Manager Zhao said, "The landlord offered six hundred taels for the shop, but he's in a hurry to leave, so I think we can negotiate for five hundred taels."
"Okay, then I'll trouble Manager Zhao to help us negotiate a peace." Shen Zhi said.
Not long after, Manager Zhao came back with good news. The landlord agreed to sell it for five hundred taels, but the money had to be settled today. They would leave Beijing tomorrow.
Shen Zhi nodded in agreement. Manager Zhao was very efficient and finished the job in no time. He even brought back the red deed from the yamen.
After the shop matter was settled, Shen Zhi took Zhan Xiao to the photo studio next door. Zhan Xiao had never taken a photo before, so she took two photos of him as a souvenir. Unexpectedly, the two of them ran into Ke Meng who was courting Shen Zhen.
Zhan Xiao's face changed when he saw Ke Meng. Before he had the chance to settle the score with Ke Meng, he jumped out on his own.
Ke Meng also saw Zhan Xiao, and his face changed instantly. How come this cold and cruel devil came?
"General Zhan, long time no see, haha." Ke Meng greeted awkwardly.
"It's been a long time since we last met. However, I came back specially to see you. I heard that you said she was shameless." Zhan Xiao looked at Ke Meng with interest and pointed at Shen Zhi beside him.
"It's a misunderstanding, it's a misunderstanding. I recognized the wrong person, hehe." Ke Meng said embarrassedly.
Zhan Xiao had just said one sentence when he heard a quarrel coming from the hall.
"No, I said we should take the photo now. If we wait until next May, the opportunity will be gone." A shrill female voice came.
"I'm sorry, our store requires appointments and queuing, please abide by the rules." A clerk explained.
"Humph, such a small shop has so many problems. I have money, so I'll take the photo first. How much is this single meal?"
The clerk said, "Miss, our single meal is two hundred taels of silver, and you can only wait in line."
"Two hundred taels?" The man gasped, "You are trying to rob me. No, I can only pay one tael at most. Follow me now, or I will make you pay."
Shen Zhi was speechless when he heard this in the private room. He only offered one tael out of two hundred taels of silver and acted like a big shot wanting to be the first to bid.
"I'll take care of it," Zhan Xiao was about to go out to help when he was stopped by Shen Zhi.
"A woman is making trouble, why do you, a grown man, have to get involved? Sit down and rest for a while, I'll go meet her." Shen Zhi glared at him, turned and left the private room, leaving Zhan Xiao and Ke Meng staring at each other.
Shen Zhi was stunned when he saw the girl. Isn’t this Ye Ningshuang, Zhan Xiao’s childhood sweetheart?
"Miss, our shop has clearly marked prices, and customers who come here voluntarily line up to make reservations. If you want to take a photo, you can pay the deposit and wait until May next year to take the photo." Shen Zhi stepped forward and said with a smile.
Ye Ningshuang looked Shen Zhi up and down, and did not recognize that Shen Zhi was the person Zhan Xiao welcomed into Wangxian Tower that day. She said disdainfully: "Who are you? How dare you interfere in my affairs?"
Shen Zhi replied neither servilely nor arrogantly, "I am the owner of this photo studio."
Ye Ningshuang sneered: "Boss? You are qualified to be a boss. I think you are just a waiter inside, and you are dressed so shabby. Stop talking nonsense, I want to take pictures right away."
Shen Zhi's smile did not diminish, but she felt a little angry in her heart. Did she look poor? She just liked to wear plain clothes.
"Miss, our photo studio is open for business, so of course we have to abide by the rules. If you can't follow our rules, we're sorry we can't receive you." Shen Zhi still said with a smile.
Ye Ningshuang had never been wronged like this since she was a child, and she immediately said angrily: "What kind of attitude is this? Customers are God, they are your bread and butter. If I say east, you can't say west. I'll say it one last time, one tael of silver, you must bid immediately."
Shen Zhi was now impatient and snorted, "One tael of silver? One tael of silver can't even take a photo, and you want to take a photo of the set meal, and you want to take it right away, why do you have such a big face? Oh, your face is really big, big enough to set up a full banquet."
"You, how dare you scold me." Ye Ningshuang was so angry that her chest heaved and she was furious.
The other guests in the photo studio were all pointing and talking at Ye Ningshuang.
"The boss has already told her the rules here, but she's still making a fuss. She really doesn't know any manners."
"That's right, being ugly is more troublesome."
"One ounce of silver is like alms."
Ye Ningshuang listened to everyone's discussion about her, her face turned red, and she glared at Shen Zhi fiercely with her cold eyes.
"Do you know who I am? I am the fiancée of the God of War General Zhan. I will remember you. When I become the general's wife, I will not let you go." Ye Ningshuang was so angry that she blurted out. In the past, she would not say such unsure things, but today she was too angry.
The crowd was stunned for a moment after hearing her words, a little bit unbelieving. General Zhan was a god-like existence, mighty and brave, how could he have a fiancée with a sesame-shaped face? However, seeing that she was so sure of what she said, it might be true.
Shen Zhi looked at her with a half-smile, "So what if he has a fiancée? Even if he comes, he has to follow the rules. General Zhan is upright and honest, and as his partner, you should set an example and not take a single penny from the people. If you do this, you will bring shame to our national hero."
"That's right, Ye Ningshuang, why didn't you ever mention that you were engaged to General Zhan when everyone was laughing at you for not being able to get married. Now that General Zhan has just made a contribution, you're marrying him." Yang Wantang came down from upstairs with her maid, apparently having just taken a photo.
Yang Wantang was followed by a group of young ladies from wealthy families, all of them smiling as they came down together.
"Oh, Ye Ningshuang, you are so bold. You are just the daughter of a county magistrate, and you dare to covet General Zhan." A woman said, and the other daughters all laughed with their hands covering their mouths.
Ye Ningshuang's face turned pale and she wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.