“Li Heng, are you… alright?”

“Hmm?”

The city gates were closed, and it was past lunchtime in the afternoon. There were few diners at the Zhu Family's main store. Upstairs on the second floor, when Nie Yunzhu asked this question, Ning Yi was taken aback. The woman sat down in front of him, smoothed her hair, and smiled gently, "I heard about the Su family's incident a few days ago, that… the Su family's master was assassinated. I heard the Su family's young lady and her husband were also there, so I've been wondering these past few days if you were alright…"

Jiangning had many wealthy merchants, and all industries were quite developed. Although the Su family held a prominent position in the cloth industry, the atmosphere had been tense these days. After the assassination, others didn't have much chance to hear about it, as it was none of their business. Even in the millennium after the era of developed information, an average person wouldn't necessarily hear about a merchant being robbed. Nie Yunzhu had already been concerned about the Su family, so she was able to hear about this incident in conversation. Not seeing Ning Yi these past few days had made her uneasy, afraid that he might have been implicated and something might have happened to him.

Ning Yi nodded after hearing her words, "Yes, I'm fine, but… things are quite tense at home, so I've been pulled into it these days and have been busy."

Hearing him confirm that he was alright, the worried look on Nie Yunzhu's face eased. She smiled again, "Is the Su family's master… alright?"

"He's just out of danger, but he's paralyzed and won't be able to walk in the future. It'll probably take several months to recover. " Ning Yi took a bite of the dish and shook his head, but his tone was casual, "It's still confidential, and we haven't dared to say anything about it."

"Hmm? Why?"

"The assassin has been caught and is now in the yamen, claiming that the Su family ruined his family first… Someone is manipulating things behind the scenes. After all, whether the victim lives or dies will ultimately affect the verdict, so we're delaying things for a few days, but it's hard to say how long we can delay..."

"Someone… wants to frame the Su family?" Nie Yunzhu's eyes widened.

Ning Yi smiled and casually explained the incident. His tone was indifferent, except for a slight sigh about his father-in-law's injury. His conversations with Nie Yunzhu had always been in this kind of atmosphere. However, this time, Nie Yunzhu became worried again, then thought to herself that such things wouldn't affect him as a live-in son-in-law. After a moment, she casually asked, "Then… can that Tan'er sister of yours handle this matter?"

"She happened to catch a cold and is ill," Ning Yi sighed, "So I've been helping to oversee things recently."

"Uh…" Nie Yunzhu was asking casually, but she was stunned and didn't know what expression to show. In the end, she repeated, "Are you alright?" She didn't know whether she was asking about Su Tan'er's situation or Ning Yi's.

"I'm fine, she just needs some rest. The pressure was too great, things like that, but she'll be fine after a period of recuperation."

After exchanging a few words of concern, Nie Yunzhu smiled, "So, recently, Li Heng has been taking care of the Su family's business?" She had always felt that Ning Yi was talented but had no opportunity to show it. Zhu Ji had also been operating well under his guidance. Now that he finally had this opportunity, as a friend, she should naturally be happy for him.

Ning Yi shook his head with a smile, "Uh, not really, it's just that the Su family's business needs someone like that right now. I don't know much about the specific projects. I've just been messing around these past few days to show people. Oh, something happened a few days ago. I treated the incense and camphor used for storing cloth as dyeing materials and told them not to waste them and to collect them all. Haha, I was almost laughed to death…"

Ning Yi was eating while talking about his own joke. Nie Yunzhu listened halfway, not knowing what expression to show, and laughed in annoyance, "Li Heng, are you doing it on purpose?"

"Tch, of course! I'm so awesome, how could I make such a small mistake, right?" Ning Yi blinked, "I was deliberately teasing them, and they didn't even know it. Hmm, don't tell anyone about this…"

"Now that you say that, I don't believe you anymore." Nie Yunzhu frowned with a smile, "But since Li Heng is taking charge, there definitely won't be any problems, right?"

"Haha, maybe. Anyway, I'll probably be wandering around outside these days. I'll go to see the shops in the morning… Hmm, I have to look after several shops now, which are much larger than your shop. Maybe I'll come over for lunch or in the afternoon. There aren't many serious things to do, and those shopkeepers are all experienced, so I don't need to teach them what to do. So in a couple of days, I'll find some time to accompany you to see old Qin… I had already promised, but I didn't have time a few days ago. I was planning to come over today to apologize."

Nie Yunzhu looked at him, then pursed her lips, "If Li Heng is busy now, you don't have to rush to make time for this…"

"I'm not busy, there's nothing much to do." Ning Yi became serious again, shook his head, and ate a mouthful of rice, "The Su family's problems aren't big, and they're not difficult to solve. Someone has half a foot in the pit, I'm just responsible for digging the pit a little bigger, waiting for others to fall in, and then see who's in the pit."

His mood was relaxed, no different from his usual running and chatting, and then he laughed as he talked about some of the little things he had seen in the cloth business these past few days. Yunzhu listened with her chin in her hand across the table from him. When Ning Yi asked, she also talked about the situation in the city after the gates were closed these days. Although the atmosphere was tense and there were several incidents, large and small, in the city, they weren't in any danger overall.

Ning Yi spoke lightly about the Su family's affairs and didn't mention too much. Yunzhu naturally didn't ask too much. However, after Ning Yi left, she couldn't help but wonder about Ning Yi's style and performance when he officially took control of the Su family's business. For her, once Ning Yi took action, he would definitely impress everyone. In any case, as a friend, she liked to hear these things, just as she often felt honored when old Qin praised Ning Yi. In the evening, Yuan Jin'er, who taught dance at Yan Cui Lou, came over. Hearing that Ning Yi had come, she jokingly teased.

"Oh, he's finally here. Sister Yunzhu, you don't have to worry all day now."

When she heard Nie Yunzhu mention the Su family's crisis, Jin'er widened her eyes, "His wife is so capable, but she's fallen ill… How could Ning Yi possibly do it…"

"I don't know, he didn't say too much, but since Li Heng is taking charge, there definitely won't be any problems. And he said just now that the problem isn't big, and he'll solve it."

"Words of comfort." Jin'er showed a disapproving look, "Everyone has their specialty, Sister Yunzhu, I know. That Ning Yi… He's very capable, but he can't possibly know everything. I bet he's definitely not as good as his wife when it comes to doing business!"

What Jin'er said made sense. Yunzhu thought about it and showed a slight hesitation. Yuan Jin'er looked at her and sat down beside her, "Anyway, it's not our business, and we can't help this time. There are so many people in the Su family, and it's not like he has to do it all by himself. They just need someone who can come forward and take charge. Don't worry… Hmm, how about this, tomorrow I'll ask a few sisters who are familiar with the Su family to see what's really going on with the Su family…"

Although Yuan Jin'er had redeemed herself, these relationships were not yet completely severed and she was always trying to drum up business. Ning Yi went to Zhu Ji again the next afternoon for a meal and chatted with Yunzhu for a while before leaving. That evening, Jin'er was in bed with Yunzhu, talking about the information she had gathered.

"Tsk, it turns out the Su family wants to be the Imperial Merchant. It's been a big commotion lately. Now the Xue family, the Wu family, and the Chen and Lu families are all treating them as rivals. Oh, the Su family is even fighting internally, but if they really succeed, all these problems will be solved… That Ning Li Heng of yours is doing everything according to the bookish way…"

"What's mine Ning Li Heng…"

"Then someone else's Ning Li Heng, okay? He's been trying to see Lord He Fang of the Bureau of Textile Manufacturing these past two days, and he's not really looking for connections—although connections wouldn't be of much use anyway. But anyway, he just went straight there to ask for a meeting. Yesterday and today, he bothered the doorman for more than an hour before leaving. He's really persistent. I heard he's going again tomorrow. For just two days, everyone in the cloth business has been talking about it… I guess he plans to bother them for an hour every day until Lord He sees him. He's so stupid. Doesn't he have connections with that驸马爷 (fuma ye, imperial son-in-law)? He just needs to say a word…"

"If you casually use other people's connections for things you can do yourself, you'll be looked down upon in the future."

"Tch, anyway… what a stupid person. You can't tell he's this stupid when you're arguing with him…"

The two were lying in bed wearing thin clothes. Nie Yunzhu laughed, "That's called having principles, not being stupid. That Lord He will see him sooner or later. You're always thinking about finding connections…"

"Hmph, if he wasn't Ning Li Heng, Sister Yunzhu, you'd say he's stupid too! And even if he does get to see him, if people aren't happy, you can't possibly persuade them. In the end, you still need connections to be useful. Want to bet?"

"I'm not betting on that. I bet Li Heng will definitely solve this matter."

"Okay, then… then I bet he can't solve it!" Jin'er thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled suggestively, "What's the stake? I've got one. If he can't solve it and I win, Sister Yunzhu, you have to confess to that Ning Yi that you like him!"

"I… I don't… that…" In the dim light, Yunzhu's face suddenly burned up. She turned her head towards Yuan Jin'er over there. Jin'er tilted her chin slightly, blinking provocatively. The two looked at each other for a moment, and Yunzhu frowned with some annoyance—she actually didn't like Jin'er always teasing her with this. At this time, she took a deep breath, "Then you? What if Li Heng solves the problem?"

"Then he's so amazing, I'll like him with Sister Yunzhu, and I won't say bad things about him in the future." This was obviously Jin'er's prankish psychology at work. She was slightly smug and still looking at Yunzhu beside her with her chin tilted up. Yunzhu's eyes widened, then she turned her head and looked at the top of the mosquito net. After a long while, she said, word by word, "I… bet!"

"Tch…" Jin'er's arrogance faded. The bed was quiet for a moment. She moved closer to Yunzhu. Yunzhu moved away, and she moved closer again. Yunzhu laughed, but also sighed, "Impossible things… go away! You're annoying…" She reached out and pushed the clinging Jin'er, "You just love to mess around!"

"I'm just joking with you, Sister Yunzhu, you can really bet…" Jin'er curled up and hummed a few times, "Whether you lose or win, that guy Ning will take advantage of you. I don't want to put myself in…"

"Whether you lose or win, how can I possibly say it? How can we get along after that… What kind of person do you think Li Heng is."

"Men all like it… and I think you really like him, Sister Yunzhu. I get anxious watching you sometimes…"

"I…" Yunzhu thought for a while, then looked at the mosquito net and sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I…"

"…"

"…I like him."

After a long time, Yunzhu said these words, with mixed feelings. Jin'er over there looked at her silently, then held out her hands to make an X: "Okay, I was joking, forget it…"

Yunzhu also held out her hands in the air to cross them, then scratched Jin'er's nose with one hand. Jin'er smiled and leaned in, and the room fell silent. After a while, rustling sounds rang out again. Jin'er leaned in again, shamelessly, and reached out to hug one of Yunzhu's hands, "Sister Yunzhu, I let you just now…"

"Hmm?"

"Although I think it's unlikely, I also hope that Ning Yi can really do it, because he's someone we know. But I know you want to stand on his side, Sister Yunzhu, so I have to stand on the other side. Hmm, Jin'er let you, okay…"

"I know."

"But I still think he can't do it…"

"…"

The atmosphere became depressed. In the bedroom, there was a slight silence…

Just as Nie Yunzhu and Yuan Jin'er were watching Ning Yi's actions, there were many others who were watching the movement here. Ning Yi was not the real key point. No one would believe that he was really useful. However, when Su Tan'er retreated behind the scenes, clues about the Su family's decision-making had to be sought from Ning Yi.

It wasn't important that he made some blunders in the cloth shops. At most, it added some jokes, but after these jokes, those shopkeepers were meticulously creating momentum for the Imperial Merchant, which was naturally Su Tan'er's true intention. And when Ning Yi suddenly ran to visit Lord He Fang of the Bureau of Textile Manufacturing, although it seemed nonsensical and he was turned away, everyone like Xue Yan and Xue Jin also became alert and watched whether he could make any progress or pay attention to the Su family's movements afterward to find Su Tan'er's true intention.

Not only the Xue family and other rivals, but even within the Su family's system, many shopkeepers like Xi Junyu did not understand the current situation and did not understand whether Ning Yi suddenly valued He Fang because his bookish nature had flared up and he really believed that as long as he saw the other party, he could persuade them, or whether Su Tan'er's will was operating behind the scenes with a deeper intention.

"What exactly is he trying to do…" On this evening when Ning Yi was turned away from the He mansion for the second time, Xi Junyu was drinking and chatting about these things with a familiar shopkeeper in his yard. He shook his head and smiled at Ning Yi's actions, but as for Su Tan'er's intentions, with Ning Yi stirring things up this time, he really couldn't guess.

"What the son-in-law is doing may just be a smokescreen. For example, using incense as dye is harmless, but this time going to Lord He's residence is really reckless. It doesn't matter if there's no progress, but I'm afraid of offending Lord He, which would be troublesome…"

"Alas, let's just assume that the second lady has instructed and thought about it behind the scenes. As for you and me… let's just care about the Imperial Merchant matter for now. Anyway… he's bookish, and once he makes a decision, it's not good for you and me to interfere…"

At the same time, on the other side of Jiangning, there were also some people who were simply watching Ning Yi's actions, as for Su Tan'er, Su Yu, and the like, they probably didn't put them in their eyes.

"He's been turned away for two days. Will he go again tomorrow?" In the pavilion of the Imperial Son-in-Law's mansion, Kang Xian laughed as he listened to the situation reported by Lu Agui, "What does this kid want to do? Does he really think he can persuade He Fang if he sees him?"

Nearby, a pair of young siblings who had recently heard about these things unintentionally and then became concerned exchanged a glance and ran to the side to whisper…

***********

ps1: Last night, I thought I should post a notice around eleven o'clock, but I couldn't be sure… Sometimes I can be sure whether this chapter can be written, and sometimes I can't. If it can be written, I don't know when it will be, so I continued to write until four in the morning before giving up, but it was meaningless to post a notice at this time, um, this is the reason why I didn't post a notice yesterday, I'm sorry.

ps2: It seems that many people say that the author's grasp is wrong, and that he wanted to create a merchant but didn't create it well, etc., etc… I didn't want to create him as a merchant by having him run to a shop and point out a few things and say a few words… What is Ning Yi doing, and why is he doing it like this, please read on. I only confirm one thing, there is no place where I have a grasp error here. Originally, the author shouldn't say these words, but some people, because the plot development is different from their imagination, say "The author must want to create a big merchant here, but I don't have that feeling, so the author must be inexperienced, have no experience, and the author has failed, if it were me, I would have done this and that…" But in fact, I didn't intend to create it like this at all, just like every time I lay out a line, someone tells me that you shouldn't lay it out like this here, and there's no need for it, because everyone will have a set outline in their minds. This is very helpless.

I will be responsible for making it great when an outline becomes round, as for what Ning Yi is going to do, why don't you guess… ^_^