Chapter 32: Miss Mi Is Angry

Page 1 of 3

Zhen Jiang was far steadier and more composed than Zhen Mi. Even inside the carriage, she still paid close attention to her bearing.

She first took a delicate bite of the golden-brown flatbread. It was crisp and flaky, with an excellent texture and the fragrant aroma of grain.

Then she carefully sampled the meat. It had been stewed until tender and richly seasoned—fatty without being greasy, lean without being tough, melting in her mouth. It was far better than any meat dish she had ever eaten at home.

After swallowing the bite, Zhen Jiang completely forgot about maintaining her composure. She took a hearty bite. The crisp flatbread and tender meat blended together with the rich fragrance of the meat broth, creating nothing short of an incomparable delicacy!

Zhen Jiang suddenly felt that she had wasted all these years of her life. She had never imagined that meat and flatbread could be combined to create something so delicious.

“Eldest Sister, isn’t it wonderful?”

Zhen Jiang was still savoring the taste of the meat sandwich, but Zhen Mi had already finished the one in her hand. She was licking her fingers, still unsatisfied, her eyes fixed expectantly on the sandwich in Zhen Jiang’s hand.

Seeing her like that, Zhen Jiang could not help laughing.

“You little glutton! Here, you can have it.”

“Heehee! Eldest Sister is the best!”

Zhen Mi took the meat sandwich from her without the slightest hesitation and began eating.

It was hard to imagine that a girl of only eight or nine could finish two candied hawthorn skewers and one meat sandwich, then go on to eat a second sandwich.

At any rate, Zhen Mi had never eaten so much at home.

Zhen Jiang gazed at her fondly, already planning to bring the recipe for the meat sandwiches home so she could make them for Zhen Mi every day.

And there were the candied hawthorn skewers as well.

Although Zhen Jiang had eaten only one hawthorn, she had taken an instant liking to its sweet-and-sour flavor.

“Eldest Miss, this old servant has already made inquiries. Both the meat sandwiches and the candied hawthorn skewers are specialties of Lu County. They were invented by Lord Lu Chuan, the magistrate of Lu County, who passed the recipes on to these vendors. That is why hawthorn skewers and meat sandwiches can be seen for sale everywhere in Lu County.”

The old servant of the Zhen family who was driving the carriage respectfully reported his findings from outside.

Zhen Jiang nodded slightly. “They were all invented by that magistrate named Lu Chuan? How interesting. Let us settle into an inn first. Once I have arranged the affairs of the caravan, I will pay this magistrate a visit.”

“Yes!”

Page 2 of 3

The old servant acknowledged her order and carefully drove the carriage to the Lu Clan Inn.

Several months had passed since Miss Mi had stayed at the inn. The weather had warmed, and the underfloor heating was no longer being used, so Zhen Jiang never experienced just how miraculous the legendary heating system was.

After making a few simple arrangements at the inn, Zhen Jiang summoned several of the caravan’s principal managers. She instructed them to follow their usual procedures, sell off the caravan’s various goods as quickly as possible, and, while doing so, gather information about Lu County.

She had made this decision because the Zhen family had also heard of Lu County’s reputation. The county’s flourishing commercial atmosphere in particular had greatly attracted their interest. Otherwise, why would Zhen Jiang, the eldest daughter of the Zhen family, personally accompany the caravan on its journey?

Ultimately, it was because the Zhen family had discovered the enormous market represented by Lu County.

They also knew that the Mi family of Xu Province had already established a foothold in Lu County and had even invested three hundred million coins in the construction of the outer city.

As fellow merchants, the Zhen family understood the Mi family well. They knew the Mi family was formidable, especially its current head, Mi Zhu, who was an exceptional man.

Quite apart from anything else, the fact that Mi Zhu was willing to invest three hundred million coins in Lu County alone was enough to make the Zhen family take him seriously.

After making the necessary arrangements, Zhen Jiang did not rush to request a meeting with Lu Chuan. She was cautious by nature. No matter what rumors circulated outside, she always insisted on investigating matters personally and reaching a conclusion only after seeing the facts for herself.

Until then, she would rather observe a little longer.

What Zhen Jiang did not expect, however, was that she was not the only one Lu Chuan had his eye on. The Mi family was watching her as well.

The Mi family had begun laying plans in Lu County several months earlier. With three shops, they had built an excellent reputation and earned a considerable amount of money. Naturally, they wanted more shops.

Unfortunately, Lu Shui refused to yield. He insisted that Lu County had only so many shops. If they were all given to the Mi family, what would the other merchants do?

If they truly wanted more shops, they could return after the northern outer city was completed.

But Mi Zhu knew perfectly well that Lu Chuan still had many shops in his hands. He simply was not willing to give them to him.

Now that the Zhen family had arrived in Lu County, and their wealth exceeded even that of the Mi family, Lu Chuan had no reason to refuse them proper consideration.

Therefore, as long as the Zhen family did not cause trouble in Lu County, they would certainly be able to obtain three shops, perhaps even more.

Moreover, construction of the northern outer city had already been underway for several months. Every few days, Mi Zhu received updates on its progress, and he could even obtain Lu Chuan’s latest designs for the project through Lu Shui.

Mi Zhu was especially unable to remain calm after seeing that Lu Chuan had succeeded in firing red bricks and intended to convert all the buildings in the northern outer city into three-story structures.

As a merchant, he understood all too well the size of the market that a dense population could create.

Page 3 of 3

If every building in the northern outer city were truly constructed as a three-story structure, how many people would gather there?

What kind of market would such a vast population create?

If the Mi family could establish itself there ahead of time and gain an advantage, how much profit could they reap in the future?

Mi Zhu was utterly unable to sit still. He wanted to travel to Lu County personally and discuss the matter thoroughly with Lu Shui, securing shops in the northern outer city ahead of time. If possible, he also wanted to purchase several houses there for his own residence.

Unfortunately, Tao Qian had already recruited Mi Zhu into his service, so he could not leave at will. Mi Fang, meanwhile, was not skilled in commerce. After considering the matter from every angle, he could only send Miss Mi to Lu County to secure as much benefit as possible for the Mi family.

After all, Miss Mi had met Lu Chuan before. That gave her a considerable advantage over her elder brother.

Though Mi Zhu had spent three hundred million coins in Lu County, he had not even managed to meet Lu Chuan in person. It was truly exasperating.

Thus, while Zhen Jiang was still gathering information at the inn and analyzing the situation in Lu County, Miss Mi quietly entered the county.

The first thing she did after arriving was to use the identity of Young Master Yun to send Lu Chuan a letter requesting an audience.

In Miss Mi’s view, her identity as Young Master Yun had not yet been exposed, so she naturally could not discard it casually.

When traveling outside, the identity of Young Master Yun was certainly far more useful than that of Miss Mi.

She had assumed that she would surely be able to meet Lu Chuan without difficulty. Yet not long after the letter was delivered, a servant returned to report that it had been stopped before it even reached the gates of Lu Chuan’s residence.

Miss Mi immediately flew into a rage. It had only been a few months—how could Lu Chuan have suddenly turned against her?

Had he forgotten that they had once shared a carriage?

How outrageous!

In reality, Lu Chuan had known of Miss Mi’s arrival from the very beginning. The reason he refused to meet her was that he intended to arrange an occasion where Miss Mi and Zhen Jiang could meet at the same time.

He wanted to see what sort of sparks would fly when the young ladies of these two immensely wealthy families came face-to-face!