"Wow! Aunt Liu is really decisive and takes resolute actions. She's truly an example for us!" Li Wanming said with admiration on her face.
Actually, according to her and Liu Yiyi's opinion, Aunt Liu should have divorced long ago! Why should she suppress herself and endure such humiliation?
On the other hand, she also knew that Aunt Liu and Uncle Liu had a deep affection for each other.
They were a married couple from the start and had built up this family business together, going through a lot of hardships.
Precisely because they had experienced so much together in the past, Aunt Liu was so angry when Uncle Liu took a concubine.
However, angry as she was, she never divorced.
Deep down, she still held out a glimmer of hope that Uncle Liu would suddenly wake up and return to the way they used to be.
So this time, when Li Wanming heard that Aunt Liu had finally come to her senses, her first reaction was to be happy for her.
"Not only to divorce, but actually to divorce her husband! Wow, Yiyi, your mother is really brave!"
Unexpectedly, Liu Yiyi replied with a wooden face, "Did you see the woman in the peach - colored dress in the room?"
"You mean the one kneeling beside Concubine Hua? I saw her. I was just about to ask you. Who is she?"
"Heh, she's the new concubine my father took in the capital last month!"
What!!
Li Wanming opened her mouth in surprise, "Another concubine? So soon!"
Liu Yiyi sneered, "Indeed. He just got rid of Concubine Shuang in July, and in August, he brought in a new one! My father is so eager to have a son that he's even more impatient than a sky - rocket!"
Li Wanming thought for a while, "No wonder Aunt Liu is so angry..."
Liu Yiyi sighed, "But the reason my mother wants to divorce her husband is not because of this."
Ah?
There's more?
Is the Liu family so eventful recently?
Li Wanming looked up in surprise.
She had been so busy in the past two months that she hadn't had time to keep up with what was going on.
Liu Yiyi's expression became a bit strange, as if she was confused, or perhaps bewildered, with a hint of admiration.
"You know Concubine Hua. She was the first concubine my father took in, but she never had any children.
After Concubine Shuang got pregnant, she often showed off in front of Concubine Hua and bullied her in every way. Concubine Hua was angry but had no choice but to swallow her anger.
Later, when my mother quickly got rid of Concubine Shuang, she... actually became convinced! She ran to my mother and said that she wanted to be my mother's maid and serve her as a slave for the rest of her life!
Ah... this.
Li Wanming really didn't expect the story of the Liu family to develop like this.
A concubine who had been bullied, accidentally receiving pity from the mistress, and from then on abandoning the master and vowing to be loyal to the mistress - even the storytellers wouldn't dare to write like this!
Liu Yiyi looked up and murmured, "Moreover... she even convinced my mother to wake up!"
Ah?
"She heard the story of how my mother and father started their business in the past and was deeply inspired. Then she pleaded with my mother to teach her how to do business.
She said that if she ever offended my father and had to leave the Liu family in the future, she could still support herself with her own skills instead of being sold to another family and relying on a man's uncertain favor.
My mother felt sorry for her and agreed. She started teaching her how to write, do accounts, purchase goods, and negotiate prices... Then suddenly one day, she said, 'Madam, let's start our own business!'
'You have the ability, the skills, and the capital. Now you even have me to help you. The two of us sisters can live a good life anywhere. Why should we cling to an unreliable man?'
My mother thought about it and realized she was right!
The man had taken one concubine after another. Clearly, he wasn't going to change. Why couldn't she rely on herself and live a good life?
Liu Yiyi let out a long sigh, "Then, my mother came to the capital.
She said that she was blameless and didn't accept a divorce. It was my father who had broken his promise and was fickle, marrying one woman after another... My father was at fault, so she wanted to divorce her husband!
Liu Yiyi's face was extremely haggard, with two big dark circles under her eyes. She said listlessly, "I've been busy with this matter for the past few days. I'm about to go crazy."
Li Wanming was stunned for a while and then asked, "Will Uncle Liu agree?"
"He won't! Otherwise, why would they be arguing like this?
The concubine ran away with the mistress and even encouraged the mistress to divorce him. If this got out, my father wouldn't be able to make a living in both the capital and Fujian in the future!
Liu Yiyi pulled Li Wanming towards her room and said, "Alas, let's not talk about them. It's so annoying to mention them! Did you come to see me today for something?"
Li Wanming nodded, "I want to order ten more carts of dried lychees."
"Ten carts? So many?" Liu Yiyi said in surprise.
"Yes. They don't need to be delivered all at once. They can be delivered in batches over several months."
Li Wanming sat down in her room and told her what had happened recently. Liu Yiyi was so shocked that her tongue almost fell out.
"The emperor?!!!"
"The emperor himself went to your wine shop?"
"And he even ordered your family's wine for General Feng's welcome banquet?"
Li Wanming sighed, "Yes. I only found out about it yesterday..."
Even now, when she thought about it, she still felt it was unbelievable.
Who would have thought that the big spender who ordered three thousand jars of wine at once was actually the current emperor?
It was like a dream.
But Liu Yiyi was even happier than her. She clapped her hands and said, "Wanming, you're going to get rich! Your wine is going to be a big hit in the capital!"
"At this rate, it won't be long before you can take Sister Wanxin and Sister Wanmo out!"
However, a look of worry appeared on Li Wanming's face.
"It's easier to talk about my second sister, but my eldest sister... I'm afraid she won't come with me."
Li Wanxin was gentle, kind, and the most virtuous and polite woman in the world... but she was just too virtuous.
In her mind, a woman should be filial to her in - laws, considerate of her husband, and caring for her children.
If the in - laws were dissatisfied with her, it must be because she had done something wrong. How could she blame the in - laws instead?
Although she loved her two younger sisters, she didn't approve of their way of doing things.
She always thought that the two of them were too rebellious and it was not what a good daughter should do...
Liu Yiyi said, "Don't worry. My mother was so stubborn at first. No matter how I tried to persuade her to divorce, she refused. But now she has thought it through, hasn't she?"
"You just wait. Maybe one day, your eldest sister will figure it out on her own."
Li Wanming said helplessly, "I can only do that."
"Although one thousand taels of silver is not a small amount, if we have to flee in the future, it's still not enough. I need to save more."
Liu Yiyi said, "The cart of dried lychees you ordered last time is already on the way. It should arrive in the capital in about four or five days. I'll write a letter right away and ask them to prepare five more carts!"
Li Wanming smiled, "Great! I'll leave the matter of the dried lychees to you. There's only one thing. Tell me how much it costs, and I'll pay you in full."
Liu Yiyi also smiled, "I know! Even brothers should settle accounts clearly. We're going to do long - term business in the future. I won't be polite to you!"
After settling the matter of the dried lychees, Li Wanming talked to Liu Yiyi for a few more words and then left the Liu family and walked towards Pingkangfang.
The sun was high in the sky, and the sunlight was dazzling.
The usually quiet alley was now bustling with noise.
"My master said he must have the wine today. Why is there none left?"
"Our young master's full - moon banquet is in five days. Will there be wine by then?"
"It's my old lady's birthday next month. We want to order a hundred jars!"
...
Caiwei and Qinglan were explaining and registering at the same time. They were so busy that they were sweating profusely and their voices were hoarse, but they still couldn't stop the surging crowd.
A big and burly man was at the front, shouting stubbornly in a rough voice.
"You're running a business. How can you not even have a few jars of wine?"
"If you don't have wine, why are you running a wine shop? You're probably a bunch of swindlers!"
As he said this, he tried to push his way in. Caiwei and Qinglan tried to stop him, but he gave them a push and they almost fell.
Li Wanming walked over quickly, picked up a broom from the side of the wall and held it in front of her. She shouted sharply, "Even the emperor showed courtesy to my Li family's wine shop. What do you want to do? Do you want to break into a private house?"
The man was intimidated by her imposing manner and his confidence waned. "Who... who are you?"
Li Wanming blocked him outside, put her hands on her hips, and stood in front of the counter. She shouted loudly,
"I'm the owner of this wine shop!
"When the emperor came to order wine, do you know how long he waited?"
She looked around and slowly held up two fingers, "More than two months!"
"Even the emperor could wait for more than two months, but you can't even wait for three or five days... What, do you think you're more noble than the current emperor?"