The north gate of the Yuan Mansion slammed shut with force—Mo Zi had shoved it closed.

“Not satisfied?” She stamped her feet on the ground, fuming as she placed her hands on her hips facing the door. “Not satisfied? What’s there to be dissatisfied about? That was the only sum of silver I could access. Three hundred taels—just how much have you been embezzling from people normally? How unreasonable! Three hundred taels still isn’t enough?”

At times like this, she wanted nothing more than to curse him out.

Let’s talk about the goodwill gift she had just given Yuan Cheng.

It was a banknote for three hundred taels. She had prepared it yesterday as a thank-you gift for him saving her once again. She hadn’t carved flowers or grass for him because there was no time. Recently, her left hand had been holding nothing but shipbuilding tools—she simply had no spare moments. After much consideration, she figured that since Yuan Cheng was greedy, she would take out half of the deposit to show her appreciation. Though it was a bit vulgar, this was Hongyu’s first income, which held profound significance.

But Yuan the Greedy didn’t appreciate it.

Fine, she admitted it—perhaps the timing of the gift wasn’t quite right. He had just made her a solemn promise, and she immediately threw money at him. It was like pairing elegant spring snow with pawnshops and brothels. But to not let her explain properly and just ask her to leave—that was too unreasonable of him. Moreover, the problem was, he accepted the banknote and folded it neatly. And the bigger problem was, he accepted it but wasn’t happy about it, saying the return gift had flown away, and he didn’t have Ming Nian take her to the accounting office to collect the two hundred taels for lumber costs.

In reality, he had made her spend five hundred taels, not counting the inexplicable ten gold pieces. She had given away a box of mooncakes for free, and in the end, forget about meat—she didn’t even get a single chicken feather.

After glaring at the door, Mo Zi glared at the sky. She had discovered that whenever she had thoughts of making money, Heaven absolutely would not let her succeed. It was like a curse—she earned plenty for Qiu Sanniang, but as soon as she started planning for herself, the silver only flowed out, never in. Though admittedly, being greedy for wealth was wrong. But she was quite honest and dutiful—why couldn’t Heaven satisfy her just a little? It was as if everyone in the world was watching her pocket, and as soon as it bulged slightly, they immediately set their sights on it.

Her deal of fifteen hundred taels minus five hundred taels ended up breaking even. With ten months remaining, she had originally been confident she could present Qiu Sanniang with an account book showing five thousand taels, but now, a sense of crisis surged from all directions.

Yet she swallowed her frustration. She didn’t dare curse in front of Yuan Cheng. The man had already said he would take her with him if war broke out—if she didn’t know what was good for her, she might as well go bash her head against a block of tofu. She could only hypnotize herself: five hundred taels is small money, consider it spending money to ward off disaster, it’ll be earned back quickly. Right now, the most urgent thing was to find new sources of income.

Immediately, she headed to Wangqiu Tower.

The moon was full for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and it was also a time when Qiu Sanniang and Xiao Sanlang were at odds with each other. She should have returned after delivering the mooncakes, but because of Hongyu, she really couldn’t set her mind at ease. The holiday arrangements for the site had been discussed long ago. Those whose homes were in the capital each received two taels of silver as a holiday bonus. For those living at the site, she had Nanny Ding buy some good wine, good food, and large crabs so they could celebrate and enjoy the moon together.

How could she make customers come to Hongyu of their own accord? Hongyu currently had no business coming in, mainly because it was newly opened and had no reputation in the trade yet. What if she opened a small storefront in a bustling area of the capital as a reception office and displayed some ship models? Like a modern exhibition room, using the foot traffic to build name recognition. She could also do some promotion through Wangqiu Tower, like adding advertisements to the menu. Wangqiu Tower’s inner courtyard did a lot of business with high-ranking officials and nobility—perhaps there would be some who wanted to buy ships.

Mo Zi walked along with her head down, lost in thought, coming up with quite a few ideas without knowing if they were good or bad. By the time she reached Wangqiu Tower, she was in quite a good mood.

As soon as she entered, she saw Manager Zhao and greeted him with a smile.

Manager Zhao turned around, stared at her blankly for a long moment, then said somewhat hesitantly, “Brother Mo…”

Mo Zi found him strange, so she looked down to examine herself. Only then did she realize that in her heated state of mind when rushing out of Yuan Mansion, she was still wearing women’s clothing. However, as her female identity became known to more and more people, perhaps opportunities to go out in women’s clothing were becoming more feasible.

“Now that Manager Zhao has seen through me, watching me dress as a man must feel quite awkward,” she said with a playful smile.

The day Zhao Liang learned that his employer was a woman, he also learned that Brother Mo was a woman, but this was the first time seeing her in women’s clothing. He saw that her eyes were like autumn waters, her face like clear dew—she possessed an ethereal beauty. Secretly marveling in his heart, such a beautiful young lady could disguise herself as a man so completely that it was impossible to tell—it was truly her skill.

“Not at all, not at all. Actually, I find Brother Mo’s male appearance more natural. In women’s attire, you’re too striking—you’ll have those romantic young masters chasing after you,” Zhao Liang said. Since entering Wangqiu Tower, he had become less scholarly and more composed.

“I’m looking for Zan Jin. Is he here?” Mo Zi took Zhao Liang’s words as compliments.

“Zan Jin? He went out with Yilang, said he was taking Yilang to see the interesting places in the capital. Brother Mo, should I call the head steward instead?” Zhao Liang now handled matters with great propriety.

Mo Zi remembered Qiu Sanniang asking her about candidates and couldn’t help saying, “Manager Zhao, when is your major examination?”

“This year it’s in October,” Zhao Liang said, then seeing Mo Zi shake her head slightly, asked, “Why does Brother Mo ask?”

“Nothing, just asking casually.” Mo Zi felt it was better not to say anything, to avoid distracting him.

“Brother Mo clearly has something to say. This kind of evasiveness makes me speculate wildly. Is the employer going to dismiss me?” Zhao Liang had one wife and three sons. His originally impoverished household circumstances had gradually improved precisely because he found this position. Now they lived in the family quarters behind Wangqiu Tower in domestic bliss.

Mo Zi scoffed, “Manager Zhao, where does this come from? You manage the main hall affairs so well—the employer wants to promote you before it’s too late. How would she dismiss you? Actually, what I’m about to say, you can just listen and that’s all. The employer might be doing imported goods trade. This business involves selecting our local specialties, shipping them overseas to sell elsewhere, then bringing back their goods to sell here, making money on the price difference. Because the journey is so long, the price difference is enormous—it’s basically a huge profit margin. The employer wants to find someone to lead the team overseas. Cen Er and I are both managing affairs, so naturally we can’t go, which is why she can’t find anyone at the moment. When the question of candidates came up, I thought of you. You’ve worked with us for nearly a year—though the time isn’t long, you learned quickly and you’re a steady person. However, you need to take the civil examination, and I told the employer about that too—we can’t obstruct your future prospects. If the employer brings this up with you again, don’t feel pressured—just say no directly.” Once Qiu Sanniang set her mind on something, she could be very stubborn.

“This is indeed a major business venture.” Working in a restaurant, one heard a lot of news—Zhao Liang knew about this kind of trade. “I never imagined Brother Mo thought so highly of me. I’m deeply grateful.”

Mo Zi felt rather embarrassed. “Manager Zhao, don’t be so polite. Though this business is large, the risks are also high. Once at sea, you’re putting your life in Heaven’s hands. I discussed with Head Steward Cen about letting you continue with the examinations, and now I’ve mentioned you to the employer again—I really didn’t think it through. So as I said, you can just let it pass after hearing it.”

“Does Brother Mo know how old I am this year?” Zhao Liang suddenly asked this.

“Just past thirty?” Supposedly he had taken the major examination several times. The major examination was held every three years, and if he started at twenty—

“I’m thirty-seven this year,” Zhao Liang answered himself. “My eldest son has already passed the children’s examination. In another two years he’ll marry and have children, and I’ll be a grandfather. My eldest son is smarter than me. If the Zhao family is to bring honor to our name, he’s more reliable than I am.”

Wow—this kind of perseverance, Mo Zi had to admit she didn’t match it. “There are also people who passed the scholar degree at fifty or sixty years old. Manager Zhao is still young.”

Mo Zi spoke very sincerely, but to ancient people it sounded somewhat comical. A person in their thirties or forties was already middle-aged, with life goals basically already achieved.

Therefore, Zhao Liang only took it as kind words. “Sometimes I wonder, all these years—was it really examination anxiety, or did I know my ambitions exceeded my talents and used this to comfort my family? A year ago, my home had four bare walls, my three children went hungry daily, my wife washed clothes for others from dawn to dusk earning a few copper coins to maintain the household. As a grown man, I had done nothing for them, spending whole days in pipe dreams.”

Mo Zi hadn’t expected Zhao Liang’s heartfelt words to contain so much bitterness. For a moment she didn’t know how to comfort him.

“Please say a word for me to the employer, and give me three days to think it over clearly.” He had passed the age of dreaming—it was time to think about his children’s future. He gave Mo Zi a deep bow. “Again, thank you for your support, Brother Mo.”

Mo Zi quickly returned the courtesy, repeatedly saying there was no need to be polite, thinking to herself that human hearts truly couldn’t be controlled by others. She had thought he wanted to be an official, but who knew that a year of diligent work had changed his mind. Probably, after both spirit and material needs are fulfilled, one can know what truly matters most. Now, for Zhao Liang, having his wife and children live well was everything.

This way was actually good too.

The two were talking at the counter in the main hall when they heard commotion at the entrance.

A loud voice was shouting, “Xu Jiu, I don’t see anything different about this place. Compared to ordinary restaurants, it just looks a bit more comfortable. Compared to Wuyou Pavilion, it’s much more boring.”

The corners of Mo Zi’s mouth curved up. Wangqiu Tower was doing so well that she kept running into acquaintances. This fellow Xu Jiu—she had helped him so much, even made him cannon fodder, so he should show some appreciation. Today she had originally expected two return gifts: one was exchanged for something worthless, one sprouted wings and was still flying. This third return gift, she absolutely had to secure.

With this thought, she turned around, stood in the inevitable path through the main hall, and watched the arrivals with a beaming smile.

Many people arrived—a group of men, most of whom Mo Zi had seen before. The three in the middle were Xu Jiu, Fu Tian, and Wang Kun respectively. Beside and behind them were the three men’s subordinates. Mo Zi immediately recognized Fu Tian’s four experts in green robes—their steps were uniform and orderly, their presence restrained tightly, their expressions showing no fluctuation, their gazes constantly scanning in all directions.

“Brother Kun, don’t underestimate this place. If I didn’t have some connection with the head steward and reserve a table three days in advance, we wouldn’t even get a table. Look, the main hall is completely full,” Xu Jiu said. Now that he was gang leader of the Leopard Gang, he looked no different on the outside, but his eyes and expression had gained an intimidating quality.

Xu Jiu quickly sensed someone watching him. He glanced over—it was a young lady.

A young lady even more beautiful than spring peach blossoms.

She smiled, and he smiled too.