Transmigration: Space-Aided Rise to Power and Prosperity-Chapter 609 - 445: Ye Zhiqiu’s Livelihood

This time it was Gu Chengyu’s turn to be surprised. He discreetly observed Ye Zhiqiu’s expression, not expecting Ye Zhiqiu to be so agreeable this time.

If it were before, Ye Zhiqiu would certainly have declined multiple times, felt embarrassed, and thanked him several times over.

Seeing Gu Chengyu’s surprise, Ye Zhiqiu couldn’t help but laugh, "What? You’re not used to me being so straightforward this time?"

Gu Chengyu was first taken aback, then chuckled, relieving his surprise. Ye Zhiqiu having such a change was certainly a good thing.

"It should be like this, we’ve known each other for so many years, we shouldn’t be so distant. By the way, have you thought about finding some employment for your family, so your mother doesn’t have to work so hard?"

As Ye Zhiqiu’s friend, Gu Chengyu had thought about this before. But the Ye family only had Ye Zhiqiu as their male, and since Ye Zhiqiu still had to study, he naturally didn’t have the energy to manage those businesses.

Ye’s mother and the women in the family couldn’t show themselves in public, so they could only do embroidery for sale.

Ye Zhiqiu had considered this, after all, he knew how profitable Gu Chengyu’s restaurant was. But he had no ideas, and his mother and the others didn’t have other skills aside from embroidery.

And besides, he had no one to rely on, everything required his personal effort. Now that he was an official, he certainly didn’t have the free time. Moreover, officials of the Dayan Dynasty were prohibited from engaging in business.

Ye Zhiqiu sighed bitterly, "Isn’t it because I have no one? The shopkeepers under you are all so competent, but such talent is hard to come by. Besides, my position is modest, and people wouldn’t look up to me. Moreover, I don’t even know what business I should do."

Speaking of this, Ye Zhiqiu was quite frustrated. He didn’t have Gu Chengyu’s boldness nor his ability.

His expectations weren’t high, just a moderate prosperity, just enough to have a livelihood without worrying about food and drink.

Hearing this, Gu Chengyu pondered for a moment. If it was just a lack of people, that was easily solvable; he could lend his shopkeeper for a while, but what about afterward?

He couldn’t just give his shopkeeper to Ye Zhiqiu, regardless of whether they would be willing, and he was used to working with them and didn’t want to change shopkeepers or disappoint them.

Even buying someone would be a chance encounter, and finding someone agreeable would be even harder.

Then Gu Chengyu suddenly thought of Ye Zhiqiu’s eldest sister, "What do your eldest sister and brother-in-law do?"

Previously, Gu Chengyu hadn’t paid attention to what Ye Zhiqiu’s brother-in-law did; he only heard that Ye Zhiqiu’s eldest sister’s father-in-law was a shopkeeper.

"He had studied for a few years, didn’t pass an examination once, and later lost interest in taking more. He claimed to be interested in business." Ye Zhiqiu’s eyes suddenly brightened, could this be what Jinyu meant?

However, his sister’s father-in-law was a shopkeeper at a large silk store. Although the store had a different owner, the monthly salary of a shopkeeper wasn’t small. His eldest sister was already eighteen at the time of marriage, considered late for a match.

The man valued him for being a scholar who had passed the scholar examination, which pleased them about the marriage. Brother-in-law’s family had a house in town and lived comfortably, and that was the reason for his consent.

Otherwise, for a scholar’s sister, wouldn’t she find a better match?

"What business is he currently doing? You could ask for his help and share some profits. If you’re unsure what to do, I have an idea. It’s about making food, and I’ll write it down for you when I get back."

Gu Chengyu intended to give Ye Zhiqiu the recipe for skewer hotpot, which wasn’t too technically demanding; one just needed to be hardworking. The earnings wouldn’t make one immensely wealthy but enough to stop worrying about food and drink. Then he planned to let Ye Zhiqiu share some of the business profits with his brother-in-law and have Ye’s mother help supervise at the shop.

Moreover, those spices had to be controlled by Ye Zhiqiu. Just because everyone is family, they’re not outsiders. Over time, people’s hearts will change; who wouldn’t be envious of money?

"But a food recipe? That’s a valuable thing; I can’t take it for free. I’ll pay you or give you a share, whichever you choose." Although Ye Zhiqiu could honestly accept the goodwill of others, he still had principles.

Gu Chengyu had helped him so much, he couldn’t just accept everything from Gu Chengyu as his friend.

Gu Chengyu nodded, not arguing with Ye Zhiqiu, "As you wish! Once the recipe is written, I’ll sell it to you."

Selling the recipe to Ye Zhiqiu was to avoid entanglement. Besides, he wasn’t short of money and only planned to charge a token sum.

The two chatted a bit more in the carriage, and finally, Gu Chengyu hurried back to his residence for dinner and then went to the study.

He needed to think carefully about the specifics of the tea tax, as the Emperor only gave him two days. Once done today, he planned to first let his teacher review it before presenting it to the Emperor.

Ming Yan had already returned from Hechuan Prefecture, "Master!"

With a tea tray in hand, Ming Yan reported from outside the study, and only entered when Gu Chengyu called him in.

Gu Chengyu glanced at Ming Yan as he entered and set down his pen.

"Has Ji Fuhu been arranged properly?"

"Yes, sir! Arrangements have been made; she has been placed in a secluded location with four people to watch over her. Miss Ji was initially uncooperative, and our people were a bit rough. However, Miss Ji was not harmed." Ming Yan reported everything from his trip to Hechuan Prefecture to Gu Chengyu.

Gu Chengyu nodded in acknowledgment, understanding that anyone would resist being suddenly captured and confined.

"Did you explain to Miss Guo? Is everything fine with them in Hechuan Prefecture?" Suddenly remembering Guo Moruo, Gu Chengyu casually asked.

"I explained to Miss Guo, only mentioning some inconvenient reasons and that it was for Miss Ji’s good. Miss Guo said she trusted in the master’s character and that there are reasons for your actions. She also asked me to extend her regards to you."

Ming Yan couldn’t help but smile ambiguously as he mentioned this.

Miss Guo’s joy was evident when they arrived; it couldn’t be faked. Although Miss Guo hadn’t seen his master’s face, it was clear that she held some undefined feelings toward him.

Gu Chengyu didn’t pay attention to any of this, nor did he notice Ming Yan’s suggestive smile. He merely thought the greetings were for the items he’d sent through Ming Yan, including food and clothing.

"Make sure those people keep a close watch, and have a martial-skilled girl from the Ding Generation keep a vigilant eye on Ji Fuhu."

Gu Chengyu planned to begin investigating the matter once the message from Yingnan Mansion arrived. He wouldn’t keep Ji Fuhu confined for long, as detention was never pleasant.

After Ming Yan left, Gu Chengyu worked into the night, finally sorting out his general thoughts, with the next step being to delineate each one.

Tomorrow he had a rest day and planned to first show the outlined plan to his teacher to see if any revisions were needed.