Free Web NovelChapter 343: Chapter 137: Book Collection Building (Part 2)
Chen Song wanted to call it ’showing off,’ but he felt the words were too harsh.
To be fair, while De’an’s suggestion was unreliable, Jing’s proposal was highly feasible.
He couldn’t reject everything they said just to put them down. That would be unfair to the boys.
But Chen Song was also worried they would eventually misspeak, so he gave them a pointed reminder. "From now on, you must think carefully before you speak. When making your way in the world, the biggest mistake is to speak too freely with those you barely know. You both have scholarly honors now, and the people you’ll be dealing with won’t be ordinary. Remember this well." ’What if they say the wrong thing and offend someone? They could be crushed without even knowing how it happened. Wouldn’t that be a terrible injustice?’
Upon hearing this, Zhao Jing and De’an both nodded respectfully in agreement. They wouldn’t dare try to act clever in front of strangers again.
Chen Song left soon after. De’an, ecstatic, started doing somersaults in the courtyard.
Zhao Jing, however, pulled Chen Wanqing aside. "Sister, what do you want to do now? Shall we go to Moxiang Pavilion?"
The previous afternoon, the two of them had gone to Moxiang Pavilion for a brief chat with Mr. Xie about their partnership for Moonlight Fragrance.
Moonlight Fragrance had completely conquered the market in the Prefecture, bringing a huge amount of foot traffic and profit to Moxiang Pavilion.
Earlier, Chen Wanqing had signed a mere two-month agreement with Mr. Wang. It stipulated that Chen Wanqing would supply Moxiang Pavilion with Moonlight Fragrance, and Moxiang Pavilion would collect a twenty-percent commission.
At the time, they weren’t certain if Moonlight Fragrance could truly succeed in the market. As a result, both Chen Wanqing and Moxiang Pavilion had been very cautious.
Now, however, things were different. Sales of Moonlight Fragrance grew higher by the day, and the resulting profits made Mr. Xie’s eyes burn with greed.
Even though the prefectural and academy examinations were over, the Provincial Examination was still to come in August. Many Scholars would be arriving in the Prefecture during the fifth and sixth months to prepare for it.
Mr. Xie planned to leverage Zhao Jing’s "little triple crown" fame to launch a major promotional campaign for Moonlight Fragrance, hoping to earn an even bigger fortune from it.
In Mr. Xie’s view, the launch of Moonlight Fragrance in the Prefecture had been too hasty. If they had started promoting it a month before the prefectural examination, they would have sold far more.
Because its fame had spread a little too late, they had missed out on a lot of sales.
But no matter. With this lesson learned, he would be sure to start the marketing push early this time. He would guarantee that the moment the Scholars taking the Provincial Examination arrived in the Prefecture, they would immediately hear the name Moonlight Fragrance.
Mr. Xie wanted to buy the formula for Moonlight Fragrance outright, but Chen Wanqing refused to sell.
Even when Mr. Xie offered the high price of five thousand taels, she knew she could earn that much in two years if she just buckled down.
She wasn’t in urgent need of money, so selling the recipe wasn’t worth it.
Chen Wanqing still preferred to have Moxiang Pavilion sell Moonlight Fragrance on her behalf. For every incense pill sold, Moxiang Pavilion would receive a twenty-two percent commission.
The two parties argued over this without reaching an agreement and parted on bad terms.
Now that she had some free time, she needed to finalize the matter as soon as possible.
After all, a tough battle lay ahead. Moxiang Pavilion needed to make ample preparations, but she needed to be even more thoroughly prepared. freeweɓnovel.cøm
Chen Wanqing nodded at Zhao Jing. "Let me change my clothes, then we’ll head to Moxiang Pavilion. Let’s try to finalize everything this time. Afterward, I can purchase the spices and get ready to go back and make the incense."
Zhao Jing followed her into the room and showed no intention of leaving, even as she prepared to change her clothes.
Chen Wanqing blinked at him, but Zhao Jing deliberately misinterpreted her look. "Does Sister want me to help you? I would be delighted."
As he spoke, he actually stepped forward and began to undo the knotted buttons on her dress.
Chen Wanqing knew she wouldn’t be able to get rid of him. She couldn’t resist giving him a light push. "Forcing a lady against her will is hardly the mark of a gentleman."
Zhao Jing chuckled and leaned back against the canopied bed. His features were bright with confidence, and a closer look revealed a hint of rakish indulgence.
"Is there any part of you I haven’t seen, Sister?"
His words made Chen Wanqing’s cheeks flush crimson. She couldn’t stop herself from glaring at him. "Jing, you never used to be like this." freēwēbnovel.com
Then she turned her back to him and began to undress.
"I was always like this. I just hid it well, so you never knew, Sister."
"Then why have you stopped hiding it?"
"I can’t hide it anymore. It’s suffocating to keep it all pent up. Don’t ignore me, Sister. Turn around and look at me."
Of course, Chen Wanqing didn’t look at him. She quickly slipped out of her clothes and reached for a thin blouse hanging on the rack.
Just then, Zhao Jing pressed up against her from behind.
His palms were cool, but his heart was pounding. As their skin touched, Chen Wanqing could easily feel the wild drumming in his chest.
She didn’t know if it was the chill from his hands, the heat of her own breath, or the sheer aggression of his presence behind her, but goosebumps instantly erupted across her bare skin.
