In a corner of the courtyard, under the dense shade of trees, Jiang Wanru sat with a serious expression, carefully examining the paper in her hand. Fang Zheng sat at the table, using his large hands to manipulate small pieces of soft fabric. He was trying his best to fold the fabric into flowers, but unfortunately, his hands were too big and clumsy, resulting in failure time and again. A few days ago, with the consent of his family, he had become an apprentice to a master craftsman and was now following his teacher's instructions, day after day trying to figure out how to fold soft fabrics into flowers.

  Jiang Wanyu was unable to attend Fang Zheng's ceremony as she had to stay in the palace to receive teachings on propriety and morality from two women due to the approaching birthday of the elderly queen. She could only learn about it afterwards from Jixian, although they had only held a small ceremony, but the master and apprentice had prepared everything they should have. The shopkeeper's wife and two daughters were present at the scene, and the shopkeeper was overjoyed that day, saying to everyone: "My family has finally found someone to inherit."

  The courtyard was quiet, with occasional voices of customers from the front shop and a few bird calls that could be heard from time to time. Jiang Wanyu looked at Xu Hou, she gently put down the paper in her hand. Seeing Fang Zheng frowning, his big hands carefully folding the cloth in his hand, only to see that the cloth was gradually turning into an ugly flower in his hands. Jiang Wanyu stared at Fang Zheng's thick and rough hands in surprise, looking up to see that he was already covered in sweat.

  He gazed at the flower on the table, muttering discontentedly, "It's not even a proper flower shape again." This earned him a gentle shake of Jiang Wanru's head. He casually wiped the sweat from his face and stood up to go wash his face with some clear water. As he lowered his head, he saw that Jiang Wanru was staring intently at the flower, her eyes filled with curiosity. His face slightly red, he said, "Miss, please don't look anymore, I really didn't fold it very well."

  Jiang Wanmu exclaimed to him, "Fang Zheng, you're quite skilled. It's only been a few days since you started learning, and you can already do such delicate work." Fang Zheng felt even more embarrassed upon hearing her words, and quickly turned to the side of the large tree, where he poured some water from a clean container onto a clean handkerchief, hastily wiping his face and hands before sitting back down at the table. He looked at Jiang Wanmu's face, which was completely dry and sweat-free, and asked, "Miss, don't you feel hot?"

  Jiang Wanmu looked up at the tree shade that blocked out the sunlight and said, "I don't feel hot. Under this big tree, there is a breeze blowing, it's cool. A calm heart naturally feels cool. You're too eager to succeed and seek perfection. Your heart is anxious, so you naturally feel the outside heat. Fang Zheng, take your time. Learning a craft can't be rushed. Your master is in his prime, you still have plenty of time to follow him and learn slowly." Fang Zheng glanced at Jiang Wanmu, who spoke so lightly, thinking about how his own sister had told him that she spent several hours every day practicing calligraphy. His mood immediately became calmer.

  "Miss, Master is not an old man. He just looks younger than people of the same age." Jiang Wanmu carefully examined the shopkeeper and saw that he was tall and slender, at most not more than forty years old. With the average lifespan in Ning being sixty years old, he still counted as a middle-aged man. Fang Zheng looked at Jiang Wanmu's face, which clearly showed disbelief, and felt that she had some of the appearance that a young woman should have.

  Jiang Wanru often gives people a sense of having gone through the vicissitudes of life, always feeling that she is very calm and composed towards people and things. After Fang Zheng became an apprentice, when the shopkeeper mentioned Jiang Wanru, he once said seriously: "Fang Zheng, our master seems to be gentle in temperament, but actually, people like her are extremely resilient. She treats you all like family members, you must cherish this affection of hers. When she cuts off relationships, she does so completely, just look at how she never mentions her family, as if she had never had a family before."

  He heard the boss's words with a hint of inquiry, but he just smiled quietly, pretending not to understand the implied meaning. Since Jiang Wanru had set them free, he had decided that he would never betray her in this life, and as long as she needed him, he would stand by her side and support her. The Jiang family was already a thing of the past in Jiang Wanru's heart, someone she hoped to never meet again. He naturally followed this point and no longer mentioned the weak relationship between Jiang Wanru and the Jiang family to others.

  The shopkeeper looked at the new apprentice, seeing that he understood the obviously implied words, but smiled and didn't answer, pretending to be unaware. After a long time, he nodded with a smile and said: "It seems that my eyesight is as good as Dongjia's, she recognized you and dared to hand over the business to you for management. And I took an apprentice who can be a conscientious person, it's a blessing for our school, it's a blessing for me. You are her subordinate, she attaches great importance to you, don't hide too much from her about your origin, you can tell her this matter, I won't object, I believe in Dongjia's character."

  Miss, my master's skills can maintain one's body and make them look younger than their peers. My master is now 55 years old, but his two daughters are only 32 years old. In this generation, our respected master only accepted three disciples, and my master was the youngest among them. The three of them have only accepted me as a disciple so far. This school's rules for accepting disciples are stricter than others, with many restrictions and regulations.

  It's said that Master originally spent many years in the capital, but never met anyone with a good fate, and was thinking of going elsewhere to try his luck. It wasn't until Great Master asked someone to divine it beforehand that he knew he would have gains in the capital, so Master agreed to come help Miss manage the shop. As for how I was chosen, this is a secret of our sect, and I'm not at liberty to discuss it with Miss in detail. All Master said was that although our school has many advantages, we can't avoid birth, aging, illness, and death either. Great Master and Second Master are getting older and their bodies are weak. Therefore, Master hopes I can study diligently and learn as much as possible.

  Jiang Wanru's eyes lit up, and she leaned in, lowering her voice to say: "If it's so difficult to take on disciples, why not just take your own children as apprentices? That way, it would be perfectly reasonable." Fang Zheng chuckled after hearing this, also leaning in with a low voice to say: "I've mentioned this before. If Master had taken his own daughter or son-in-law as an apprentice, I wouldn't have to worry about not being taught properly today." The two of them sat up straight at the same time, smiling thoughtfully.

  Fang Zheng smiled for a while, then remembered that he was talking about his own sect. He looked at Jiang Wanru and explained, "Miss, Master said that if it were so easy to take in disciples, our sect wouldn't have only a few people." Jiang Wanru raised her hand to stop Fang Zheng from continuing, as she knew that knowing too much about the secrets of various sects would not be good for herself. She smiled and changed the subject, saying: "Fang Zheng, do you think it's possible for you to go to Zhongnan in the near future?"

  Fang Zheng shook his head slightly, looking at Jiang Wanru with a serious expression: "Miss, do you want me to go to Zhongnan to inquire about the market situation now?" Jiang Wanru furrowed her brow and nodded, saying: "The bookshop's business has been seeking stability, peace, and good reputation in recent years. As for making money, we can only rely on the fabric store side. If the market situation in Zhongnan is good, having this channel would be better than relying solely on supplies from the capital. However, if you don't have time, we can consider this route next year. For now, focus on learning from the shopkeeper."

  I've taken a look at the materials you provided, and I think this route is feasible. Perhaps if we do well, in the future we can open another fabric store. If it doesn't work out, it's just a waste of money, and you'll have to make an extra trip." Fang Zheng nodded repeatedly and said: "Miss, then I'll go investigate further. As long as everything is stable, when the time comes, I'll follow the escort agency to Zhongnan. That way, we'll be safe on the road, and when we bring the goods back, we'll also have a guarantee. Miss, don't worry about Master's side, I can handle more things, which will be beneficial for both myself and the fabric store."

  Jiang Wanru saw that Fang Zheng could set out, and she no longer worried about this matter. Although she didn't know how deep the roots of the cloth shop owner's master were, the person who introduced him had said, "Take good care of him, and from now on, you won't have to worry about the cloth shop and fabric matters." Jiang Wanru handed the paper in front of her to Fang Zheng and said, "I think your preparations are thorough, but unexpected things may happen along the way. You still need to be careful, some things must be investigated clearly before arranging the travel date, people must come and go safely."

  Miss, don't worry. I will take care of this matter carefully. If I can make it to Zhongnan, I'll go see the sights first and bring back some samples if I can make a decision. If not, I'll bring back some new sample goods. As for the escort agency's affairs, I've made it clear that they have been stable in their escorting business over the years. The silver earned by the fabric store in recent months, I plan to take it all with me. I'm just worried that the fabric store won't have enough silver for purchasing goods in the coming days.

  "I've discussed it with Mu Gen, and we thought of borrowing some from him first. Mu Gen's fellow shopkeeper has mentioned this matter before, and he said that as long as we draw up a loan agreement, it'll be fine. However, this matter still requires Miss's approval, and only then will the two of us dare to take action." Jiang Wanru nodded after hearing this and said: "As for the silver, I'll think of a way. From now on, remember not to embezzle silver from the bookstore. After all, it's a shop that I opened with someone else, so the accounts must be clear and transparent. The owner trusts me, which is why he was willing to partner with me. I couldn't possibly violate the rules of our trade or hurt anyone's feelings. We'll do as much as we're capable of doing."

  Miss Jiang, this time it was my mistake, not Mu Gen's fault. I wanted to get everything done at once and forgot that some things can't be rushed. Jiang smiled and nodded, "Fang Zheng, we're still young, there's no need to rush some things. When you're striving to move forward, you also need to pay attention to details, and you'll definitely become a great leader in the future. However, for now, we need to take it slow, every step must be solid, and at the same time, we can't hurt our friends' feelings. This time, you were thinking only of the shop's business and didn't think things through. Although we can lend each other a hand, the fabric store is not in a desperate situation, so we absolutely cannot take this step."

  Thank you yema1995 for casting a pink vote, thank you book friends for your continued support. (If you like this work, welcome to start (start) cast recommendation votes, monthly votes, your support is my greatest motivation.)

  Hard study