The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 468 - 466

Chapter 468: 466

Boss Tian invited the three of them to a tea house by the road, mindful that these were the benefactors who had bought his shop and saved him from his urgent plight.

He specifically chose a private room on the second floor, served the finest green tea, and ordered a half table of pastries before sitting down with his guests.

After exchanging pleasantries, Boss Tian looked at Song Chongjin suspiciously, "May I inquire your esteemed surname? I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before?"

"My surname is Song, Song Chongjin. I once had the pleasure of making Boss Tian’s acquaintance." Song Chongjin nodded.

"Song Chongjin?" Boss Tian mulled over the name, feeling as though he had heard it somewhere before.

"And this lady is?" Boss Tian turned to Wang Yongzhu.

"This is my fiancée, surnamed Wang—" Song Chongjin knew the malicious amusement Wang Yongzhu had in coming to the tea house with Boss Tian.

He deliberately answered at a leisurely pace, especially emphasizing the surname Wang.

Filled with foreboding, Boss Tian changed color upon hearing the surname Wang and then looked at Song Chongjin—finally remembering, "It was you! That day, you were the one driving the carriage..."

At this point, he didn’t need to say any more to understand that he had been utterly deceived. His face turned white in an instant; his fingers trembled as he pointed at Wang Yongzhu, "You... it was you... you set the trap that ruined my family and led to its downfall! How... how cruel-hearted you are..."

Wang Yongzhu languidly sipped her tea before replying, "Boss Tian is too kind! Whatever I have done, compared to what you have done, still falls far short. But rest assured, I will strive to catch up with you!"

Stymied, Boss Tian could only roll his eyes, "You... you are too cruel! It was just a formula, and you’ve managed to bury the entirety of my life’s work! Your heartless and ruthless actions... sooner or later... you will meet your retribution!"

Yan Zhongren, a shrewd man, quickly discerned from the conversation the longstanding grudge between seller and buyer.

And from Boss Tian’s tone, the decline of his household to the point of returning to his hometown for retirement—the cause was this young lady from the Wang family?

His ears perked up at once.

Wang Yongzhu sneered, "When Boss Tian sent Sun Ahfu to steal our family’s recipe, I’m sure he never considered whether our family would be ruined and people killed if the recipe was taken from us. That Sun Ahfu caused nothing but trouble in my family, stirring disharmony between brothers, and in the end, when he was about to succeed, he even plotted to poison our water tank and kill us all."

"Had we not been vigilant against the man you sent, and had he succeeded, by now my entire family would be watching from beneath the ground as Boss Tian, using our recipe, climbed into the good graces of noble patrons, rapidly ascending to a life of glory and wealth. At that time, I doubt Boss Tian would have thought himself cruel and ruthless, right?"

Unable to speak, Boss Tian’s lips quivered.

Yan Zhongren at this point fully understood; it was Boss Tian who had planned to steal the Wang family’s recipe, but the scheme had been turned against him.

Boss Tian had been outwitted, leading to his current predicament.

Could he really blame the Wang family? Whatever the recipe was, its desirability meant it was valuable, perhaps even a family heirloom.

To attempt stealing a family’s means of livelihood and go so far as to poison them, he would have fought them to death if he were in their shoes.

Realizing his position, Boss Tian knew that he had no choice but to accept defeat.

Having offended a noble patron and with his peers piling on, he was now like a stray dog.

The Wang family’s willingness to pay a thousand silver taels to purchase his house and shop, allowing him to return home with silver to live out the rest of his days peacefully, was already quite generous.

He genuinely had nothing to complain about.

After his face turned shades of pale and green for a while, Boss Tian finally staggered, sighing, "Old Tian’s craftsmanship is inferior to others, as are my schemes. I deserve to be in my current state! I have nothing to say! There’s just one thing I don’t understand..."

Before he could finish, Wang Yongzhu interjected, "Do you wish to know what was wrong with my recipe?"

Boss Tian looked at Wang Yongzhu, dumbfounded.

Wang Yongzhu smiled, "You’re selling the shop and the dye workshop, insisting on including that batch of ruined fabric. Isn’t it because you were hoping to alarm me? By setting the low price of one thousand silver taels, weren’t you trying to lure me out?"

Boss Tian’s face changed.

Song Chongjin remained impassive, but a hint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes as he watched Boss Tian.

Yan Zhongren suddenly showed signs of unease. If this deal ran into trouble now, his reputation, built up over half a lifetime, would be ruined.

With that in mind, he subtly took two steps back and signaled to the Shop Assistant at the door with his eyes.

The Shop Assistant nodded and stealthily left.

After Wang Yongzhu finished speaking, she leisurely watched Boss Tian, not worried at all.

Boss Tian gritted his teeth, "You’ve seen through it, so there’s no point in hiding anymore. I did want to draw you out, that’s all. I just want to know how, following your recipe, I dyed the cloth. I had secretly bribed a small Shop Assistant from the Auspicious Dye Workshop. I checked every step, and there were no mistakes before I started the dyeing."

"The final product looked identical to that of the Auspicious Dye Workshop, the feel and everything. But where did the problem lie? What trick did you use that made the fabric I dyed completely ruin upon contact with water?"

"I can’t figure it out! I just can’t understand where the mistake is. If I don’t sort this out, even in death, I won’t be at peace! Now my family is ruined, and I am ruined because of your recipe. If you’re going to let me die, at least let me be an enlightened ghost."

Boss Tian was truly unwilling to accept this fate. He had started learning how to dye from a young apprentice to get to where he was now, considering himself experienced. Yet, the end came, and a young girl had fooled him.

He had lost a lifetime’s foundation, everything! And the most suffocating part was that he didn’t even understand the recipe that had ruined his family’s business.

Therefore, no matter what, he had to find out the truth!

Wang Yongzhu watched Boss Tian intently, before finally revealing a smile after a long while, "Want to know?"

Boss Tian nodded desperately.

"I won’t tell you!" Wang Yongzhu wasn’t foolish. If she revealed the most crucial step to a veteran insider like Boss Tian, wouldn’t that be the same as giving away the recipe?

Want to know? She would rather die than disclose it! In this lifetime, never figure it out!

Having said that, she threw down some Silver Pieces, took Song Chongjin by the arm, and left leisurely downstairs.

Boss Tian’s eyes reddened, and he reached out to grab Wang Yongzhu.

He was nailed to the spot by a fiercely murderous look from Song Chongjin and dared not make another move.

Yan Zhongren regarded Boss Tian as if he were looking at a simpleton, really thinking others are foolish? To tell you the most crucial part of the recipe?

Shaking his head, he took out the remaining Silver and a gold ingot from his embrace, laid them in front of Boss Tian, "Count this Silver. If there’s no problem, bring me the deed I wrote for you."

Defeated and dispirited, Boss Tian sat on a chair, looking at the two gold ingots, about to reach for them.

Yan Zhongren stopped him.

He took out the deed from his embrace, threw it at Yan Zhongren, then clutched the gold ingots tightly in his hands, inspecting them meticulously for a long while before suddenly breaking into laughter, "The royal reward... at last, it’s mine... I have a royal reward too..."

Seeing Boss Tian’s maniacal demeanor, Yan Zhongren hurriedly opened the deed to check it was all right, tucked it into his breast, and beat a hasty retreat.