Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 2179: Chapter 2177: The Field That Cannot Be Exhausted

Bai Ruozhu pretended not to notice anything, and continued to stroll ahead with the others. Soon, a middle-aged man with a small mustache approached, bowed to him, and said, ”Sir, you’re not from around here, are you? Do you need someone to introduce the local situation to you?”

Bai Ruozhu glanced at him calmly and asked, ”Who are you?”

”Oh, pardon my forgetfulness, sir. I’m Xu Man, a local here in the Capital City. I usually run errands for the gentlemen and introduce some business opportunities,” the mustached man said with a humble smile.

Bai Ruozhu scrutinized him, ”How did you find us?” His tone already carried a slight displeasure.

Xu Man quickly glanced around and replied respectfully, ”I noticed that sir’s clothing is not of local style and your demeanor is extraordinary, so I figured you must be from the Northern region here for large business deals. I wondered if there’s anything I could assist you with? May I know how to address you, sir?”

Jianqi, standing by, said coldly, ”My master’s surname is Li, meaning ’formidable’ Li.”

”Oh, Master Li indeed seems formidable. If there’s anything you need, just let me know,” Xu Man said ingratiatingly.

Bai Ruozhu nodded slightly and asked a few business-related questions as they walked. Being in the trade herself, her questions were quite targeted. Before long, Xu Man’s face not only showed flattery but also a bit of seriousness, realizing that this Master Li was an expert in the field.

”I’m tired today; let’s look around again tomorrow. Meet me at Donglin Inn tomorrow morning, and we can check out the dried goods workshop you mentioned,” Bai Ruozhu said.

”Alright, I will come to pay my respects to Master Li tomorrow morning,” Xu Man said as he withdrew.

Bai Ruozhu wasn’t in a rush and led the group back to the inn to rest. The next morning, Xu Man arrived at the inn as promised. After Bai Ruozhu and others finished breakfast, he led them to the seafood dried goods workshop he had recommended.

Bai Ruozhu instructed Jianqi to toss him a silver ingot. Xu Man was immediately overjoyed, thinking to himself that this Master Li, of unknown origin, was truly generous. If the business were to be concluded, wouldn’t there be even more rewards?

Chengshui Country, being close to the sea, has an abundance of seafood. However, as these products are hard to transport, many people would process them into dried goods and then sell them to some inland cities.

Since there are quite a few types of seafish unseen inland, they seem rather novel.

Bai Ruozhu picked up a dried scallop and sniffed it, nodding in satisfaction, ”Not bad, just a bit too humid and the color could be better.”

”Master Li, you indeed have a keen eye. We also have premium products inside, please, this way,” Xu Man gestured invitingly.

Bai Ruozhu followed him to take a look and indeed found some decent quality goods. She immediately decided to purchase some but not too much.

”In a few days, I’ll send the steward to contact you, and at that time, we’ll purchase more and transport them back,” Bai Ruozhu said.

Xu Man was overjoyed and became even more diligent in front of Bai Ruozhu.

For lunch, Bai Ruozhu invited Xu Man to dine at the renowned Tianxiang Tower in the Capital City. After a few rounds of wine, Xu Man became even more talkative.

Bai Ruozhu, casually chatting, began to inquire about some customs in the Chengshui Capital. Before long, the conversation shifted to a few amusing stories. Xu Man, hoping for more business in the future and eager to please Master Li, spoke with even greater enthusiasm.

”Recently, I heard an interesting thing. Our Princess Fu’an from Chengshui married a consort from Danliang Country, who happens to be the newly crowned Champion of Danliang Country,” Xu Man finally touched upon the matter Bai Ruozhu was interested in. Don’t underestimate these middlemen active in the marketplace; their information is always sharp, and they enjoy sharing interesting tidbits with customers, so they know quite a few things.

”I heard about this before,” Bai Ruozhu deliberately hiccuped from the wine, looking disinterested.

Xu Man gulped down another sip of fine wine and laughed, ”Master Li, I haven’t finished. That Tang Champion is incredibly handsome. Princess Fu’an, afraid he might run away, tied him up, and this was witnessed by the servants in the Princess Residence.”

After saying this, he laughed a bit wantonly, ”Moreover, that Tang Champion is just a scholar and would certainly not be robust, unable to satisfy Princess Fu’an in bed, leading her to find a few handsome men from outside to serve together every night. It’s simply too indulgent.”

Muyu, standing nearby, chimed in, ”Is this really just gossip among the people? How could she, a woman, handle several men at once? Could she withstand it?”

Xu Man, seeing that Muyu was younger and emboldened by the alcohol, patted Muyu on the shoulder, saying, ”Little brother, you just don’t understand. There’s only tired cattle, never plowed-out fields. The more the cattle plow, the thinner they get, but the more the field is plowed, the more fertile it becomes.”

Muyu’s face suddenly flushed red, and he couldn’t help but think of Princess Zhenzhen, feeling that thinking of her at this moment was too inappropriate, but he just couldn’t stop thinking about her.

Xu Man burst into hearty laughter, and Bai Ruozhu also laughed heartily, boldly giving Xu Man a thumbs up, ”Well said.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Man felt that ”Master Li” truly understood this aspect and immediately became even more enthusiastic in his speech.

”I’ve only heard that men get exhausted, but Princess Fu’an seems to be getting more and more nourished. However...” Xu Man elongated his tone, speaking mysteriously, ”There are whispers that she swings both ways!”

Bai Ruozhu’s mouth twitched. Why do Chengshui’s princes and princesses have such tastes? Zhou Jue was the same before, and although Princess Fu’an seemed dignified and generous, previously infatuated with Tang Feng, who would have guessed that she was like this?

Of course, there may also be some exaggeration in these tales from the marketplace.

”After all, she is a princess; she wouldn’t behave so recklessly, right?” Bai Ruozhu shook his head, ”People love to exaggerate things.”

”Oh, this one’s true,” Xu Man laughed, ”She has a female guard who eats and sleeps with her, and even when she plays with men at night. A servant in the Princess Residence witnessed it at night and couldn’t help but spread the word when going out on errands, only to later have his tongue cut out and his limbs broken by Princess Fu’an before being thrown into a well!”

He shook his head as he spoke, clicking his tongue, ”Too ruthless—nowadays, no one dares to speak out in the Princess Residence.”

”Then aren’t you afraid to speak? Aren’t you worried she’d deal with you too?” Bai Ruozhu asked, smiling.

Xu Man burst into hearty laughter, ”With the Emperor so far away, she can’t control what the people say, right?”

Bai Ruozhu praised him a few more times and even rewarded him with a jade ring, making Xu Man even happier.

”Master Li, we feel like old friends at first sight, so there are some things I’ll just say directly,” Xu Man spoke after a few more cups of wine.

”Feel free to speak,” Bai Ruozhu replied.

Xu Man looked at Jianqi, then at Muyu, and said in a low voice, ”Princess Fu’an’s female guard frequently searches for handsome men in the City. Both of your guards are quite striking; you’d better be cautious. I’ve heard that those who enter the Princess Residence never reappear!”

Jianqi’s expression remained unchanged, but Muyu’s face turned red again. Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but laugh internally; did this simpleton Muyu even know how to blush?

Could he be pondering the dilemma of the cattle or the field?