Chef Hua
Chapter 497 - 269 Want to Audit You_2

Chapter 497: Chapter 269 Want to Audit You_2

"In any case, from now on, whenever something comes up, you should at least tell me about it. Even if I can’t help, at least I’ll have an idea," Hua Xiaomai muttered softly, "Usually, whatever happens, I tell you about it. Could it be that in your eyes, I am unreliable?"

Meng Yuhuai smiled and agreed with an "Alright."

In fact, today Dong Deyou and Lv Bin went to Daoxiang Garden for a reason that Hua Xiaomai couldn’t quite figure out.

A business transaction involving six thousand taels of silver was indeed not a small sum and was worth a fight, naturally. However, she vaguely remembered hearing Meng Yuhuai mentioning that Dong Deyou’s late father had made quite a fortune over the years. His family should be quite affluent. Shenglong Escort Agency, situated in Tong’an City, would naturally not lack for business. Taking a trip to Shu, facing numerous dangers, and in the end, the Escort Agency only earning three hundred taels—why was he so obsessed about it, relentlessly coming over repeatedly?

While she pondered this, she also asked him about it. Meng Yuhuai curled his lip in a smile, stood up to pour her some warm water into a teacup, and after she took a few sips, he gulped down the rest of the half cup.

"Dong Deyou and Lv Bin might not have explained it clearly to you."

He said gravely in a slow tone, "Ruijin is the largest silk store in Tong’an Prefecture, and the volume of silk they purchase from Shu each year is considerable. Twice a year, in March and September, they need to settle payments with the suppliers there. As long as their store remains open, they inevitably need to have a long-term relationship with the Escort Agency—the original Escort Agency from the Provincial City that used to escort their money had a fallout with them not long ago, and after splitting ways, Ruijin Silk Store turned to Lianshun Escort Agency."

No wonder then!

A business worth merely three hundred taels might not be very important for Dong Deyou’s Shenglong Escort Agency, but if they could establish a long-term collaboration with Ruijin Silk Store, it essentially meant having six hundred taels securely in hand each year. Such a lucrative deal, who wouldn’t be tempted?

Even now that the business had been transferred to Lianshun Escort Agency, Dong Deyou was still showing up, blatantly clamoring for a "collaboration"—wasn’t he just aiming to get a share of the pie?

Unable to swallow a big piece of meat by themselves, grabbing a sip of the broth was still pretty good!

"If it weren’t for the fact that all the big and small matters of Lianshun now fall on me, I’d really like to lead the trip myself," Meng Yuhuai glanced at Hua Xiaomai and continued, "For now, Ruijin Silk Store is just tentatively giving us this lucrative opportunity to handle once. If we do well without any errors, it could turn into a long-term business for us."

Hua Xiaomai pondered for a moment, grasping his arm and said, "Shenglong Escort Agency is in Tong’an City and Dong Deyou is indeed wealthy. Ruijin Silk Store is also located locally, yet they prefer to seek help from our Lianshun Escort Agency in Fuzhe County to escort the goods. Could it be because ’Shenglong’ does not have a loud enough reputation?"

"Correct." Meng Yuhuai nodded decisively, "I’ve told you, in the business of Escort Agencies, reputation is incredibly important. Dong Deyou might be financially strong and have sufficient manpower, but he has never been involved in this business before, essentially being a nobody. For such an important shipment of silver, who would easily entrust him? If I’m not wrong, Ruijin never considered them from the start."

"Hmm." Hua Xiaomai felt a bit sleepy and leaned into his arms, mumbling sleepily, "Now I finally understand the whole story. Then... in my opinion, you shouldn’t meet them tomorrow. After all, I didn’t give them a definite answer—they are not from Fire Knife Village, and I don’t believe they will insist on staying here just to meet you."

"...I’ll still make the trip." Meng Yuhuai thought for a moment and frowned, "Speak it all out once, to avoid them pestering you continuously. If it’s like this every day, can Daoxiang Garden still do its business? Since he wants to host a dinner for me, you just pick the most expensive dishes to put on the table. Since he’s bringing the money on his own accord, we should make what we can."

"Pfft!" Hua Xiaomai giggled groggily, "I thought you were an honest man, but it turns out you can be quite sly too. Don’t worry, in our Daoxiang Garden, we send someone to shop in Fuzhe County every day. We might be short on other things, but not on expensive ingredients. They’re being this annoying, so I won’t be too generous either!"

The couple looked at each other and smiled, noticing that she seemed very sleepy, Meng Yuhuai gently patted her back: "It’s getting late, let’s go warm up some water, so you can wash up and rest well."

After speaking, he led her out of the room.

It was deep into the night, and the village was silent.

Hua Xiaomai comfortably took a bath in the bathhouse, and upon returning to the room, she saw Meng Yuhuai had already removed his clothes and climbed onto the bed.

She walked to the window to blow out the light and then climbed up as well, barely getting under the covers when he moved closer.

The room was pitch-dark, his expression unseen, but a faint light shone in his dark eyes.

"Have you finished evaluating me?" his voice could barely hide his amusement and was slightly hoarse as he spoke softly, "Are you satisfied?"

"Yes, you are fairly honest since you’ve explained everything. I’ll be magnanimous and not hold it against you. But remember, the next time something troublesome happens, you must tell me, I..."

She hadn’t finished her words when she felt a warm breath on her neck.

"What are you doing?" she quickly pressed a hand against the wandering hand that was moving up from her waist, "Stop it!" (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to vote with a recommendation ticket or a monthly ticket at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)