Denghuaxiao

Chapter 54 The palace commander borrows money

The young man from Luyuan Dianxing entered the room and quickly brought out two huge copper plates. The copper plates were padded with rose red velvet. All kinds of jewelry were wiped clean, placed on the plates and presented.

The old shopkeeper smiled and said: "Here are the newly delivered jewelry. Miss, you can choose as much as you like."

In these two copper plates, one contains mostly jade, jade, agate and other relatively expensive hairpins, while the other contains some plain silver bracelets and rings, as well as cracked and ordinary necklaces.

Lu Zong put down the tea cup, looked at the two copper plates, and slowly stroked the carved edges of the copper plates with his fingers.

 After Ke Chengxing's death, the Ke family's business suffered a setback. Mrs. Ke had to sell her belongings to pay for the debt.

　　When Lu Rou got married, even though her family was poor, given the temperament of her father and mother, she would never miss out on Lu Rou's dowry. After Lu Rou's death, I don't know how much of the dowry was used by the Ke family, but thinking about it, if there was any leftover, Mrs. Ke would be the first to take it out and exchange it for money.

 And the new wife of the Ke family, Mrs. Qin, is now eager to cut ties with the Ke family, and will probably not keep the belongings of the Ke family's great-grandmother.

Lu Zhu fiddled with the copper plate twice and picked out a delicate bamboo hairpin and a fairly bright silver bracelet. Finally, he looked past the dazzling array of fragrant red dots on the velvet and picked up a silver-plated gold bracelet. Gem-encrusted hibiscus hairpin.

The flower hairpin seems to have been used for a long time. The body of the hairpin has been rubbed until it is smooth, but the luster of the small gemstones inlaid on it is still bright.

Lu Zhu picked out these three things and looked at the old shopkeeper: "I want these."

The old shopkeeper asked the waiter to take away the copper plate, and said with a smile: "Miss, you have good taste. These three items are new gifts. The bamboo hairpin is five taels of silver, the bracelet is fifteen taels, and this gemstone hairpin is a little more expensive. I need it." One hundred taels. But I see that the lady is a stranger, and it’s her first time here. I’ll erase the change, and the lady will only pay one hundred taels.”

"So expensive?" Yin Zheng couldn't help but blurt out, "It's not some kind of tourmaline coral. Master, don't deceive us into not knowing the goods!"

The old shopkeeper was not annoyed when he heard this. He just smiled patiently and said: "Young girl, you don't know. Although the material of this hairpin is not as good as tourmaline and coral, it is more exquisite and special in craftsmanship. It will definitely not be a loss for one hundred taels of silver. If the girl feels that the price is not right, why not look at it?" Looking at something else?”

 Lu Yan was silent.

She came here for this hibiscus hairpin, but the price was unexpected. Even if she bought the hairpin alone, the money would still be half the price.

 Now, it’s really a bit difficult.

When Lu Zhen and Yin Zheng were in trouble for money at the **** shop, someone came down from the upper floor of the Yuxian Building next door.

The young man is wearing a crimson official uniform with a narrow waist, and his wristbands are embroidered with silver brocade patterns, which glow with a dark light under the sunlight. He walked downstairs, untied the horse's rope, and was about to get on his horse.

The young man behind him followed and suddenly said: "Huh? Isn't that Dr. Lu?"

Pei Yunying paused at the horse's movements and looked up.

 At the **** shop not far across the street, two familiar people were standing. Lu Yan's white dress and hairpin were really eye-catching, and she was so delicate and frail that a gust of wind could blow her away. Standing in the shop, it was hard not to recognize her.

 Duan Xiaoyan was a little excited: "I didn't expect to see you here again just after we parted ways in the temple. What a coincidence."

Pei Yunying looked at her thoughtfully for a while and then said, "It's a coincidence."

In Lu Yuan's **** shop, Yin Zheng was still arguing with the old shopkeeper. She said: "Shopkeeper, no matter how exquisite the craftsmanship of this hairpin is, the material is just like this. If my girl doesn't like it, others will not be willing to spend a hundred dollars." Buy it for two. Why don’t you sell it to us less, and we’ll still come here to buy things in the future.”

The old shopkeeper had a gentle face and said without giving in: "Young lady, you are joking, I am telling you the truth. Our shop is located on Qinghe Street in the south of the city. The rent is already more expensive than elsewhere. We are also a small business. If the girl says that we are missing a few Three or five taels is okay, but this time it’s fifty taels… It’s really embarrassing for me.”

 “But…” Yin Zheng wanted to say more.

 A hand came over from his side and dropped a piece of silver on the table. Someone behind him said, "No need to say anything, I'll pay for her."

Lu Zhen raised his head and met a pair of smiling black eyes.

 “Master Pei?” Lu Zhu frowned slightly.

 I didn’t expect to meet Pei Yunying here.

He seemed to have just finished an official errand, and he had not yet taken off his official uniform. His official hat covered his bun, which made him look handsome, and his posture was a bit more elegant. The crimson official uniform on this person made him look bright. Eye-catching.

 He smiled at Lu Huan and said, "Doctor Lu, we meet again."

The old shopkeeper also recognized Pei Yunying, and hurriedly squeezed out a smile. This time the smile was much more sincere than when he faced Lu Huan just now, and there was also a hint of fear: "I had known that this young lady was a friend of Mr. Pei, how could I have done this? I will also accept money from the young lady. You can just take these three pieces of jewelry back with you as a gift from me to the young lady."

He stretched out his hand to push the silver back, and held down the silver ingot with one hand.

Pei Yunying leaned on the table and said nonchalantly: "Old sir, this shop is located on Qinghe Street in the south of the city. The rent is already more expensive than elsewhere. Since it is a small business, why should you spend money?"

 He returned the exact words of what the old shopkeeper had just said, and the old shopkeeper's face became stiff.

Pei Yunying knocked on the table with one finger: "Can the shopkeeper please wrap it up for her?"

This time the old shopkeeper did not dare to delay, and hurriedly ordered the boy to wrap up the three selected pieces of jewelry and hand them to Yin Zheng.

Lu Zhu and Yin Zheng collected their things and walked out of the **** shop. They found Pei Yunying waiting outside the shop, followed by the young man named Duan Xiaoyan. When they saw Lu Zhu and Yin Zheng, Duan Xiaoyan hurriedly waved to them and said hello.

Lu Zhen returned the greeting, walked behind Pei Yunying, and said to him: "Thank you very much, Mr. Pei just now."

 He turned around, looked down at Lu Shen, and said, "Doctor Lu's vision is not good."

 Lu Zhuo looked at him.

"You seem to have been tricked by that old guy," he glanced at the cloth bag in Yin Zheng's hand: "I dare to accept a hundred taels for this little thing."

The old shopkeeper of Luyuan Pawnshop may seem kind and kind, but in fact he is a smart person. Lu Zhuo knows it very well. If he is not smart, he will not be able to open a shop in a prosperous place like Qinghe Street and still stand for many years.

Yin Zheng was stunned for a moment, then summoned up the courage to speak: "Why didn't Mr. Pei remind us girls when he was in the **** shop just now?"

Pei Yunying crossed her arms and looked at Lu Yun, and suddenly smiled: "Because, if you say that, there will be no chance for Doctor Lu to owe me a favor."

His expression was ambiguous and his tone was subtle, but it made Lu Zhu frown slightly.

Lu Huo said: "I owe the fifty taels of silver to Mr. Pei. I will take it and return it as soon as I get back."

"No need." Pei Yunying looked at her: "I heard that in Dr. Lu's medical clinic, there is a herbal tea called Chun Shuisheng that sells very well, so let's use that to pay for it."

"Okay." Lu Zhu agreed immediately, "Master Pei, give me your address, and I will have someone deliver it to you tomorrow."

"No need to bother," he smiled: "West Street is not far away, I will come and pick it up another day."

Lu Zhen stared at him, his expression was calm, as if what he just said was natural.

 After a moment, Lu Zhuo nodded and said calmly: "Okay."

Lu Zhuo and Yin Zheng left first, and Duan Xiaoyan followed Pei Yunying to the Yuxian Building. Duan Xiaoyan said: "Doctor Lu doesn't wear any jewelry. I thought she didn't like hairpin bracelets, but she didn't expect it to be the same as usual." Like a girl."

Pei Yunying said leisurely: "Yes, so after you get off work, you go back to the **** shop and ask where the three pieces of jewelry she bought today come from?" Duan Xiaoyan said "Oh", and suddenly reacted: " Why do you ask this? You helped her in Wuhuai Garden yesterday. Brother, why do I feel that you are particularly concerned about Dr. Lu's affairs? "

Pei Yunying walked to the Yuxian Tower, untied the horse's rope, got on the horse, smiled, and said: "A woman who may kill someone, how can she not give her some snacks?"

Having said that, he ignored Duan Xiaoyan and rode away.

Duan Xiaoyan was stunned for a moment, then quickly mounted his horse and chased after him, asking: "Killing someone? Who?"

 …

 As summer enters, the nights are gradually not so cold.

The rose planted in front of the yard has grown a few, and it won't be long before it blooms.

 In the room, Lu Yan was sitting at the table, looking at the hibiscus hairpin in his hand in trance.

Mrs. Ke's grandma Qin really didn't take away the hairpin. As Lu Rou's dowry, the hairpin was pawned by Mrs. Ke immediately.

The hairpin is exquisite, and under the dim candlelight, the gems give off a hazy old light, like the sunset on the mountains in Changwu County in early summer.

It seems to be a night like this. My mother was sitting in front of the lamp doing acupuncture. She had just finished taking a bath, lying on Lu Rou's lap, and let Lu Rou wring her wet hair with a handkerchief.

Lu Rou combed her hair and said with a smile: "When our little girl grows up, her hair will look good when tied up." Then she leaned over and whispered in her ear: "Don't worry, I don't need that hairpin. I can help you." You keep it, and when you meet the young man you like, I will comb your hair."

She was still young at that time, and she answered without thinking: "Okay, then when I meet the husband I like, I will bring him to your door to ask for it. Sister, don't keep your word." .”

The mother glared at them both: "Don't be ashamed."

Lu Rou laughed so hard that she couldn't stand up, and pinched her face to tease her: "No problem, you can bring him to see me when you introduce me. I want to see which young man has this honor and is favored by my sister." Treat each other.”

There was wind outside the window, which caused the candlelight to sway slightly. Lu Zhen came to his senses and put the hairpin in his hand into the box.

Yin Zheng came in from outside the house with a basin in her hand. Lu Zhen handed her the remaining silver bracelet and bamboo hairpin: "This is for you."

 “Send it to me?” Yin Zheng was surprised, “Don’t you need it yourself, girl?”

“I bought it just to deceive others.” Lu Yan said, “I don’t need it on weekdays.”

Yin Zheng took it in his hand and paused before saying: "How about I change the **** shop to another one? We went to the **** shop today and spent one hundred taels, not to mention the fifty taels from Mr. Pei. , I still owe money to Shopkeeper Du. Asking Shopkeeper Du to borrow money all the time is not an option, he himself doesn’t have much left."

"what ever."

Yin Zheng looked at Lu Chen, who was sitting at the table, like a camellia in bud on an early summer night, even brighter than the one she wore on her temples.

Looking at the appearance alone, he is really pitiful.

"Girl," Yin Zheng said carefully, "that Master Pei has helped you out several times, and today he said he doesn't want you to pay back the money...Does he like you?"

Seeing that Lu Zhen was silent, Yin Zheng thought again: "He is the prince of Zhaoning. He is good-looking and has good skills. If he really treats you..."

 “No.” Lu Yan interrupted her.

 “He doesn’t like me, he is testing me.”

 The Prince Pei didn't look at her with any affection at all, but rather as if he knew all her secrets, which was alarming.

However, no matter what the purpose of Pei Yunying's test against Lu Chen was, Lu Chen didn't have time to pay attention to it.

 For several days, Lu Huan was busy giving medicine to Dong Lin.

The Renxin Medical Center could not afford to offend the minister of Taifu Temple for the time being. In addition, the Dong family provided a very generous medical fee for medicine, so Du Changqing could not say anything. Lu Zhu was busy for several days before he prepared the medicine and ordered Du Changqing to do it in person. Send it to the minister's house in Taifu Temple.

　　This person has just finished delivering the medicine, and the person from the other end who cooked the medicine has arrived.

The pharmacist from the Medicine Institute stood in front of Lu Yu and said respectfully: "Doctor Lu, the Chun Shui Sheng prescription has been improved by the Imperial Medicine Institute and has been accepted as an official medicine. In the future, Chun Shui Sheng herbal tea can only be sold in the Imperial Medicine Institute. It is purchased from and cooked medicines, and no other medical shop merchants can continue to sell it."

This is what Du Changqing heard when he just came back from Dong's Mansion. He couldn't hold himself back for a moment and grabbed the messenger's collar: "What did you say?"

The pharmacist was still young and stammered: "...This is a good thing. It is a supreme honor for the prescription to be prescribed in a medicine store. The shopkeeper should be happy."

"I'm so happy!" Du Changqing couldn't help but cursed: "He took away the prescription, how can I make money? Did the person named Lou do it on purpose? You bastard, didn't he even listen to the words of the Minister of Taifu Temple? ?”

"This is... this is the decision of the Royal Pharmacy Academy," the pharmacist said helplessly, "You can't make the decision even if you are young. Please calm down..."

Getting angry at a little pharmacist is really not an option. Du Changqing let go of his hand, his face changed with anger, and he gritted his teeth and said: "Shameless!"

Lou Si did not dare to disgrace the Dong family and allowed the medical clinic to continue selling medicinal materials. However, at this juncture, he took a step back and turned Chun Shui's prescription into an official pharmacy prescription. For Ordinary Medical Center, this was indeed a promising move, but for Renxin Medical Center, which now relied on spring water to generate the bulk of its income, it was not a good thing.

 When money is tight, it is not advantageous to be famous.

Acheng and Yinzheng looked at each other. Acheng looked at Lu Zhu cautiously: "Doctor Lu, what should we do now?"

Since it can no longer sell Chun Shui Sheng, Renxin Medical Center has lost its most important source of money and has returned to its original state.

Lu Zhen didn't say a word. He took the pharmacist's official seal and watched the young pharmacist leave. Then he turned back to the inner shop and said, "Don't worry."

Three pairs of eyes stared at her, with a glimmer of hope in Du Changqing's eyes.

"The same medical center can only requisition one patent medicine prescription as the official medicine. Chun Shuisheng is used by the cooked medicine, which means that all the patent medicines produced and sold by Renxin Medical Center from now on will no longer be used by the cooked medicine. Take care." Lu Yan said: "Shopkeeper Du, you are free."

"Freedom is of no use." Du Changqing said angrily: "I have no money left, I would rather be a prisoner of wealth!"

“If you run out of money, you can make more money.” Lu Yan said in a calm voice: “If one medicine is taken away, we will make another one.”

"Do we want to do it again?" Du Changqing stared at her, a little doubtful: "It's easy to say, but can you do it?"

 Lu Zhen said nothing.

 After a while, she said: "I can."

Xiao Pei: Today is also a good day for fishing.

 (End of this chapter)