YBTS - 17

Ding Pei saw the slight change in Su Hongmeng’s expression but was not flustered. She put on the air of a madam and said to Luoyun, “You are a daughter of the Su family. You shouldn’t have kept a new formula to yourself. Even if the formula was leaked, it was within our own shop. How can you question your father as if it was stolen by a thief? Besides, you were always at the shop mixing the formulas. Maybe the master craftsman accidentally saw you and secretly learned it. Those are old hands at the shop, and some of them have been working for the Su family since your grandfather’s generation. You can’t ask your father to go and interrogate them, can you? That would offend all the old hands, wouldn’t it?”

Su Luoyun didn’t say anything, just waited for her father to give a fair judgment.

But Su Hongmeng remained silent, seemingly thinking about the pros and cons of the situation.

A spice shop, like a restaurant, is most afraid of changing its masters and losing its experienced hands. Although Su Hongmeng was certain that there was some hidden agenda, what Ding Shi said was not without reason. His family was large, and sometimes he had to be cautious and consider all the possibilities...

After a long while, Luoyun heard Su Hongmeng say, “What your mother said is reasonable. Even if they did steal your formula, we have to deal with it carefully. After all, the formula is still in our own shop. I will investigate slowly in the future, and once I find out the truth, I will decide how to handle it.”

Although Luoyun had guessed Su Hongmeng’s reaction, she still couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

She took a deep breath and slowly stood up, facing her father. “You’re right. It’s not worth offending a few experienced master craftsmen for my own grievances... But, Father, how will you calculate the profits you promised me?”

Before Su Hongmeng could speak, Ding Pei interjected, “Your father promised you a twenty percent profit from the new fragrance. I will have the accountant settle the profits from what was sold before. But now that the ‘Faint Pear Fragrance’ balm is no longer being sold, how can we give you a share of the money? How about this, if you can create another popular new fragrance, I’ll speak for your father and give you a thirty percent profit?”

Su Luoyun completely broke into a smile. “I heard that you came from a poor background and didn’t get much schooling, so you don’t know the Confucian virtues of righteousness, honesty, and wisdom, but you’re better at using the abacus than the accountant! Since you’ve already thought it through, I won’t be petty. I don’t want the twenty percent profit anymore!”

Su Luoyun only later learned from Tian Mama that Ding Pei’s acquaintance with her father was quite a journey.

It was said that Ding Pei’s ancestors were once famous Confucian scholars, and her family was wealthy. Unfortunately, by the time of Ding Pei’s grandfather, the family had fallen into decline. She lost both of her parents at a young age and lived with her uncle’s family. Later, she met Su Hongmeng and became dependent on him.

With the added identity of being the disgraced descendant of a great Confucian scholar, Su Hongmeng’s act of taking her in was a classic story of a loving man rescuing a young lady in distress, a moving tale.

Although Ding Pei hadn’t had much schooling, she had been good at reading people’s expressions and humbling herself to please others since she was a child. This was something that the dignified Madam Hu could not compare to. It made Su Hongmeng feel that this private affair was more flavorful than a marriage arranged by his parents.

She was very wary of her humble origins, especially her past as a concubine, and never spoke about it to others.

Ding Pei knew her own background best. Hearing Su Luoyun’s veiled accusation that she had no sense of propriety or shame, her face immediately soured.

Su Hongmeng, however, only paid attention to the second half of Su Luoyun’s words. It was a good thing that his daughter didn’t want the profits anymore!

The family was spending money like water now. That girl Caijian was setting up her dowry as if she was raiding the entire Su family, wanting to take everything with her.

If his daughters could all be sensible, he would have a much easier time.

Before Su Hongmeng could smile in satisfaction, Su Luoyun continued, “However, I have always wanted to open a small shop to pass the time. Father has many shops under his name. I want a bustling shop in the south of the city. I’ll take the profits as payment for the shop. Father, please transfer the shop to my name! Also, you need to help me with the procedures for registering with the Spice Guild.”

Of the two things she asked for, the registration with the Spice Guild was the most difficult!

The spice business in the capital was limited. The fewer the wolves, the more meat there would be.

Anyone from another city who wanted to open a shop in the capital had to be accepted into the capital’s Spice Guild and get the nod from the leaders before they could open a shop and do business.

Otherwise, if they came uninvited, they would be pushed out. This was also why Su Luoyun, even though she had a new formula, couldn’t open her own shop to sell it.

Ding Pei sneered. “You say I’m good at using the abacus, but I think you’re the one who is! How much is your twenty percent profit? And you want to exchange it for a shop and also get registered with the guild to start a new business. You’re being too demanding!”

Su Luoyun also said coldly, “My sister is getting married and she’s taking gold and silver mountains with her. I just want a shop as compensation. How is that too demanding? Did my formula just get stolen for nothing by a wicked family member? If you all think that I, a blind woman, am easy to bully, then let’s not haggle here anymore. I’ll go to the magistrate’s office and beat the drum! I’ll let the magistrate be the judge for this motherless, blind woman...”

When Su Hongmeng heard Luoyun say this, he was furious. “Enough! You’re all being so inappropriate! How did I give birth to such a troublesome daughter! I thought you had gotten better in the past two years, but you’re back to your old ways. If this is how it is, then get out of here and go back to your old home!”

Hearing Su Hongmeng’s angry shout, Xiangcao’s neck shrank back in fear. But Su Luoyun remained unmoving. She sat upright and said word by word, “We’ve just finished talking about how to settle the profits. Next, I’m going to get justice for my maid!

With that, Su Luoyun continued, “Xiangcao was poisoned with monkshood, and the effects have not yet subsided. I have the doctor who treated her as a witness! Father, you don’t know this, but I picked up a piece of medicine-wrapping paper from the slop bucket in the shop’s backyard. Following the clues, I went to the pharmacy and asked. The pharmacy said that they don’t sell monkshood powder often, so he remembers it clearly. Wang San, the errand boy under Madam’s command, bought three coins of monkshood powder from the pharmacy that day. That afternoon, Xiangcao fell into a deep sleep in the shop. Monkshood is a deadly poison. Even skilled doctors are afraid to use it, but someone put this in my maid’s sweet syrup. Fortunately, the dose wasn’t large, or Xiangcao would have died! This is a matter of life and death, and I must get a clear answer in court! Once the culprit is beaten, they will be able to speak the truth! It won’t be too late for you to send me back to my old home then!”

Su Hongmeng didn’t know about this part. His eyes widened, and he turned his suspicious gaze to Ding Shi’s face.

Ding Shi had also underestimated the blind Su Luoyun. She never thought that after a few days, she would be able to trace it back to the pharmacy. It was her carelessness for not having her own errand boy buy the medicine...

Even though she was thinking this, Ding Shi had already started to cry with tears streaming down her face. “How would I know what the servants buy? The courtyard has been having a rat problem these past few days. Maybe Wang San bought it to poison the rats. It’s not as scary as Luoyun is making it sound, is it?”

Luoyun had already anticipated her defense and continued without haste, “Ordinary arsenic rat poison costs only three coins a pack. But three coins of this purified monkshood costs an ounce of silver. Does Madam’s errand boy have such a rich purse that he has to choose expensive medicine to kill a rat? Father, my grievances are a small matter. But you must investigate your own residence thoroughly. If there really is a family thief, who’s to say that one day your tea won’t have some monkshood or arsenic in it!”

This last sentence hit her father’s weak spot, and Su Hongmeng’s back was covered in cold sweat.

He glared at Ding Shi and said in a low voice, “Someone! Bring Wang San from Madam’s courtyard here!”

Wang San was initially confused about the reason. When he heard Su Hongmeng’s question, he looked at Ding Shi in a panic. Ding Shi was flustered at first, but then she quickly calmed down. Her expression was normal, and she had a smile on her face, but there was a hidden sting in her words. “Master, he’s asking you a question, so just tell the truth. You’re always running to the shop. If you colluded with someone and made a private deal, it’s not a major crime. Just tell the truth! Considering how clever you usually are, the master and I will be lenient with you...”

Wang San was also clever. After hearing this, it was as if he understood everything. He kowtowed to the ground, saying, “This humble servant heard that the master said that the formula was hard to come by, so I became greedy. When I saw that Xiangcao took out the formula, I thought that if I could copy a copy, I could sell it for a good price. So the next day, I got some monkshood. I just wanted to make Xiangcao sleep for a bit. I just copied the formula, and I didn’t mean to harm anyone!”

Su Hongmeng’s face was grim as he asked again, “Then who did you sell the formula to?”

Wang San glanced at Ding Shi again, gritted his teeth, and said, “I sold it to... Master Xiao from the shop. He saw that the formula was good and didn’t ask about its origin. He bought it from me for five ounces of silver...”

Just then, someone had already found five ounces of silver under Wang San’s bed, which made his words seem plausible. It seemed that he had seen the lone Xiangcao and acted on a sudden impulse.

But Xiangcao had sharp eyes. She whispered to Su Luoyun, “Young Lady, Madam Ding’s old maid is missing. Could she have gone to the counter to coordinate her story with Master Xiao?”

Su Luoyun just gave a faint, cold laugh. In the past, she had thought that her stepmother was just good at instigating her father and that it was just a domestic dispute. But Xiangcao’s poisoning made her realize that she had underestimated her stepmother’s vicious schemes. This woman seemed to be capable of anything.

Ding Shi now had a plan in her mind. She calmed down and spoke to Wang San, who was kneeling on the ground. “Our Su residence cannot tolerate a person with such a dirty mind as you! However, the crime you committed is at most that of an internal thief. If you return the stolen money and the shop doesn’t suffer any losses, the most you’ll get at the magistrate’s office is ten lashes and a few days in jail!”

After that, she said to Su Hongmeng, “But, Master... he has seen the formula. If he is sent to the authorities and only gets a few lashes, and then holds a grudge and leaks it to another family... our family will truly suffer a loss! This matter needs to be handled carefully...”

Su Hongmeng squinted at Ding Pei, wanting to say something, but he held it in. He just kept a grim face and didn’t speak.

Wang San understood immediately. He kowtowed to the ground, saying, “Master and Madam have been very kind to me. If you will only forgive me this time and not send me to the authorities, I swear to heaven that I will never leak the formula. Otherwise, may I be struck by lightning!”

The Su family was a merchant family. They didn’t have the arrogance of a princely or noble residence to kill their servants at will. If they encountered a disobedient servant, the most they would do is sell them to a human trafficker. If they wanted to silence and kill him, and the servant’s family came to make a fuss, even if Su Hongmeng had a minor official position, he would still have to face a lawsuit.

Ding Pei had assumed that Su Hongmeng wouldn’t want the formula to be leaked, which was why she said that, making Su Hongmeng hesitant about how to deal with the situation.

As for Wang San, he was a distant relative of her side of the family. She would compensate him with silver later and send him away.

Sure enough, Su Hongmeng glared at Wang San and scolded him harshly. He then had the servant boy tied up and taken to the woodshed but was not in a hurry to punish him.

Finally, he sighed at Su Luoyun, “A large family is bound to have some vermin. He also said that it was his own greed and that it had nothing to do with your mother. How about this? I’ll give you more monthly allowance. It’s a good thing that he didn’t sell the formula to another family. I’ll punish that Wang San severely, and also the confused Master Xiao... ahem, this is a family disgrace, so don’t go spreading it around!”

It seemed that even though Su Hongmeng understood the whole story, he didn’t want to pursue it. He didn’t even mention compensating Xiangcao or opening a new shop for Luoyun. He just wanted to sweep it under the rug and get through this hurdle.

Before her father could finish, Su Luoyun slammed her hand on the table. “Even a clay figure has some dignity! My balm with a bit of crushed pearl powder added can be sold as a new product? My maid can be poisoned, and I’m supposed to pretend I don’t know? Someone is so shameless, so why should I cover for the Su family? What’s a family disgrace? If I can’t have a good life, no one can! Anyway, before I came here, I already wrote a complaint, and along with the evidence, I gave it to Tian Mama. She is now waiting at the yamen with the pharmacy assistant and the doctor who treated Xiangcao! If I don’t get a proper explanation, she will beat the drum at the yamen to plead for justice! Mother, may your spirit in heaven watch over us! Let those who bully your daughter bleed from all seven orifices and die a horrible death...”

When she said this, her unfocused eyes stared directly at Su Hongmeng.

This made Su Hongmeng’s heart tremble! If his daughter was pushed too far, she would really not care about anything...