flstandardbreds Chapter 216 Grandstanding
Chapter 216 Grandstanding
"Grandma, we don't need your money. I've found Zhou Lingfei and my cousin. They will provide the money and I will provide the labor. Then we will split the profits equally among the three of us." Li Xiaoxiao could guess what the old lady was thinking.
The restaurant found a location, which was on Zhuque Street. Yuelai Restaurant on Zhuque Street was the largest one in Beijing and was also the head office of Yuelai Restaurant. Business was booming and all the guests who came in and out were dignitaries.
It’s a pity that opposite the Yuelai Restaurant is a cloth shop that is still in business, and it’s a time-honored brand. Even though Li Xiaoxiao offered a price much higher than the market price, the shop refused to rent it out.
I had no choice but to find a shop a short distance away from Yuelai Restaurant. Fortunately, this shop was spacious enough, had a large area and a good location.
After signing the rental contract, Li Xiaoxiao started to decorate the house. The decoration in ancient times was very simple. She just painted the house white and the tables and chairs were all made of wood. Because she still cooked hot pot, the tables and chairs were the same as those she made in Jiunu County.
The restaurant has three floors in total. Li Xiaoxiao determined the number of tables, renovated the doors, windows and stair railings, and did some other miscellaneous things.
Zhou Lingfei would come here occasionally. She was very happy to see the restaurant changing day by day. Somehow, she inexplicably trusted Li Xiaoxiao, otherwise she would not have invested so much money at once.
"Sister, thank you for your hard work. I brought you some delicious osmanthus cakes." Zhou Lingfei smiled and put the cake in her hand into hers.
"That's so nice. You even brought me some delicious food." Li Xiaoxiao took it and said jokingly.
"Of course. I'm counting on you to make money for me." Zhou Lingfei walked around the hall, nodded with satisfaction, and looked at the shuangxiang hotpots on each table in amazement.
Could this be the shabu-shabu hotpot that Li Xiaoxiao described? It looks pretty good.
"According to what you said, you really have to curry favor with me." Li Xiaoxiao suddenly realized.
"That's right. How about I treat you to a meal later and let you owe me a favor first so that you can make good money for me." Zhou Lingfei continued with her words.
"Okay, then I'll obey your command." Li Xiaoxiao smiled.
As the saying goes, knowing yourself and your enemy will ensure victory in a hundred battles. Ever since knowing that Si Chengxu had special feelings for Li Xiaoxiao, Cheng Yuner sent someone to specifically inquire about Li Xiaoxiao's situation.
When he learned that Li Xiaoxiao's family lived in Si Chengxu's new house, he became so angry that his eyes turned red and he stomped his feet. That house was for Si Chengxu to get married.
She was actually given the house to Li Xiaoxiao to live in. She was really angry. No, she couldn't just sit there and wait for death. Li Xiaoxiao was that vixen. It would be troublesome if her cousin was bewitched by her.
Cheng Yuner's eyebrows were raised and her brows were furrowed. She always appeared dignified and quiet, so she couldn't do anything personally to deal with Li Xiaoxiao.
What should she do? After thinking for a while, Cheng Yuner suddenly thought of someone, Qiao Yueru. Although Qiao Yueru was stupid, she had advantages.
Only she can enter and leave the Marquis' Mansion at will, and has more opportunities to contact Li Xiaoxiao. With more opportunities to contact, it will naturally be easier to take action.
Cheng Yuner did what she said and immediately sent someone to deliver the invitation to Qiao Yueru.
Qiao Yueru has been very low-key recently, staying at home all day and not going anywhere.
He went to the Marquis' Mansion, intending to cause trouble for Li Xiaoxiao, but he was met with a cold shoulder and returned in disgrace.
Although her parents didn't blame her, their attitude towards her became noticeably colder since that incident.
At this moment, she was staying in the room sighing, but unexpectedly a little girl brought her a note. Qiao Yueru opened it curiously.
After reading it, she opened her mouth in shock. It turned out that the post was sent by Cheng Yuner. The general content was that they wanted to invite her to the Prime Minister's Mansion tomorrow.
The sudden arrival of the post made Qiao Yueru dizzy. Why would Cheng Yuner send her a post? She was the most talented woman in the capital. She felt like she was dreaming.
Qiao Yueru's mother, Si Qingshui, also rushed over after hearing the news. After the incident at the Censorate's Mansion last time, she was often criticized when attending banquets later. But she could only get angry. The person she blamed had a lot of her faults, so what else could she do?
She never expected Cheng Yun'er to send an invitation: "My daughter, you must dress up well. That is the Prime Minister's Mansion. You must be careful and cautious. Don't lose face."
"Humph, of course I know that. Don't worry, I will never embarrass you." Qiao Yueru was very proud, with her freckled face raised. She didn't dress up when she didn't go out, and the freckles on her face were extremely conspicuous.
"I knew my daughter was smart and could win Cheng Yuner's favor." Si Qingshui felt proud. As the saying goes, a higher-ranking official can crush a person. Her husband and the prime minister were several ranks apart.
Sure enough, the next day, Qiao Yueru came to the Prime Minister's Mansion again dressed up. When the guards at the door saw Qiao Yueru's outfit, their eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
At this time, Qiao Yueru's head was decorated with pearl flowers, hairpins, and hairpins, which were dazzling and the rouge on her face was like a monkey's butt. With every step she took, the ornaments on her head swayed from side to side, as if they would fall over at any time.
It was even more grand than the last time she attended the Censorate, which showed how much she valued Cheng Yuner's invitation this time.
With the invitation in hand, Qiao Yueru entered the Prime Minister's Mansion unimpeded. The little maid beside her supported her. Yes, she supported her because the burden on her head was too heavy.
She arrived early, and Cheng Yun'er hadn't gotten up yet, so she sat in the living room waiting. She felt like her neck was about to break, but she didn't dare to move, as many maids in the room were watching her.
Just when she felt she could not hold on any longer, Cheng Yuner finally arrived.
The first time she saw Qiao Yueru, Cheng Yun'er curled her lips imperceptibly, a look of disdain flashed across her face, and she walked leisurely to the main seat and sat down.
The head maid Xiangling looked at Qiao Yueru's cheap accessories with disdain and rolled her eyes.
"Greetings to Miss Cheng." Qiao Yueru straightened her body and stiffened her neck, fearing that the accessories on her head would bend her hair.
"You're welcome, Miss Qiao. I'm already very happy that you can come." Cheng Yun'er spoke beautifully, but there was no trace of happiness on her face.
"Miss Cheng sent me an invitation, so of course I came." Qiao Yueru felt so happy, wondering who would dare to say bad things about her again.
"That day I saw Miss Qiao's paintings at the Censor's house and thought they were very beautiful, so I wanted to ask for advice." Cheng Yun'er cleverly turned the topic to the events of that day.
"I just drew it randomly. I don't deserve such praise from Miss Cheng." Qiao Yueru pretended to be modest, but she was very happy in her heart.
Even the most talented woman in the capital praised her for her good painting skills. Those who looked down on her paintings were vulgar people who did not know how to appreciate them.
"Ms. Qiao is truly a woman of character, unlike that Li Xiaoxiao, who is grandstanding and trying to curry favor with the powerful." Cheng Yun'er said casually, but her eyes were carefully watching Qiao Yueru's reaction.