Chapter 429: Chapter 166: Settling Down in the Prefecture
In the end, Xie Ming came out to greet them personally.
When he saw Chen Wanqing and Zhao Jing, he nearly pulled them into a hug on the spot.
It was no wonder he was so excited. Thanks to their thorough preparations, Moxiang Pavilion had made a fortune during this Provincial Examination.
Every year before the imperial examinations, sales of writing materials, practice exam papers, and collections of past essays would climb. This year, however, the increase far surpassed previous years. This was, of course, an added benefit from the customer traffic generated by Moonlight Fragrance.
But what truly delighted him was Moonlight Fragrance itself.
This time, Moonlight Fragrance had brought him profits far beyond his wildest expectations.
An incredibly handsome profit!
It even exceeded five months of earnings from all thirteen Moxiang Pavilion branches in Xinghuai Prefecture combined!
To say they were raking it in would be no exaggeration at all!
And this was only the beginning, with Moonlight Fragrance having just launched in the Prefecture.
He was convinced that, in time, Moonlight Fragrance would become a must-have item for every scholar taking the examinations. When that day came, it would bring him mountains of gold and silver.
How could the thought of all that glittering gold and silver not make Xie Ming’s eyes burn with excitement?
Chen Wanqing was a lady, so he couldn’t possibly hug her to express his excitement. That didn’t stop him, however, from moving to embrace Zhao Jing, wanting to give him a few hard pats on the back to release his surging elation.
However, just as Mr. Xie’s arms reached out, Zhao Jing stopped him.
Zhao Jing said with a smile, "We’re weary from our travels and haven’t had a chance to freshen up yet. We’d hate to soil your clothes."
Despite his words, this esteemed scholar was known for being exceptionally particular.
’His clothes were immaculate, without a single crease, and his face was as smooth as fine white jade, showing no hint of grime or weariness. He claims he didn’t change and wash up before leaving? I don’t believe that for a second,’ Xie Ming thought.
’But whether I believe it or not, I have to accept it. After all, he’s giving me an out, and a sensible person would take it. What’s the alternative? Forcing the esteemed scholar to say outright that he finds hugging another man beneath his dignity?’
Thanks to Zhao Jing’s little maneuver, Xie Ming’s irrepressible excitement finally cooled a bit.
His enthusiasm hadn’t waned, however, and he quickly invited the two of them into the parlor.
On the way to the parlor, Xie Ming sent a servant to the rear courtyard to tell his wife to prepare a table of dishes and come to the front to receive their guests.
Chen Wanqing spoke up to stop him. "We’ve come on urgent business and must leave shortly, so please don’t trouble your wife. I’ll catch up with her properly the next time we visit."
Seeing this, Xie Ming didn’t press the matter.
He was a shrewd man, after all, and in an instant, he guessed the reason for their visit.
Once they were seated in the parlor and tea had been served, he got straight to the point. "You’re here about the house, aren’t you?"
Chen Wanqing nodded. "Yes, exactly. I was wondering if you’d heard of anything suitable."
"Of course. You’ve come at the perfect time. A number of residences have gone up for sale recently. Whether you’re looking for a three-courtyard, four-courtyard, or even a smaller two-courtyard manor, there are plenty of options. One property, in particular, belongs to an Advanced Scholar I used to be on good terms with. He was posted to an official position in the south a few years ago and must be tight on cash. Just the day before yesterday, I received a letter from him asking me to sell his residence as quickly as possible..."
Mr. Xie said earnestly, "It’s a fine residence, a large four-courtyard ancestral home. If he hadn’t run into trouble, he would never have put it up for sale. Because of the urgent nature of the sale, the price is ten percent below market value. If you’re interested, I can take you to see it."
After explaining, Mr. Xie added with a hint of regret, "If you had arrived a few days later, I might have bought the residence myself. But I estimated you’d be arriving in the Prefecture around this time..."
He had, after all, promised Chen Wanqing long ago that he would set aside any good residences he found for her.
If he had snatched it for himself, it would have reflected poorly on his character, and people would have inevitably looked down on him.
While he wasn’t exactly a top-tier figure, he was still a man with a name and reputation in the Prefecture. He truly couldn’t bring himself to do something so damaging to his standing.
Zhao Jing and Chen Wanqing exchanged a glance, then turned to Mr. Xie in unison.
"A four-courtyard residence... even with a ten-percent discount, I’m afraid the price is more than we can afford."
Mr. Xie chuckled. "Not at all, not at all. It’s only a little over three thousand taels."
As he spoke, he slapped his forehead as if suddenly remembering something. He quickly beckoned a young servant over and told him to go to the curio shelf in his room and retrieve a palm-sized mahogany box.
The servant returned shortly, respectfully presenting the box Mr. Xie had requested with both hands.
Mr. Xie opened it and pushed it across the table to the couple. "These are the profits from this period. I was afraid of the risk of it getting lost if I sent it with a messenger. Since I happened to hear you’d be coming to the Prefecture soon, I took the liberty of holding onto it for you."
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