As the sun sets, there are lanterns one after another, tables one after another, and many people. It is dinner time, just like the large-scale banquet where relatives and friends of the Su family gather around the New Year every year. The number of participants is still the same, but
The atmosphere today is a little different.
There was a lot of people, and the excitement was still lively after all, but there was no such thing as the past, where people were drinking, laughing, and laughing without any burden. The people in the big, second, and third rooms each had their own invisible areas. Only the most careless ones could be seen.
Only those people with lungs can eat and drink as much as they want with wine bottles - everyone is laughing and talking, greeting each other with everyone they know, but not many people drink. Under this lively appearance, people from all sides are
They were sizing each other up, speculating on each other, a surging undercurrent, and a slightly tense atmosphere.
Su Yu sat on top of the chief, watching everything quietly. His eyes swept across the second and third rooms. When he turned to the big room, he could clearly detect the decadence and quietness here. Only Su Yunsong and a few others were there.
Smiling to liven up the atmosphere, Su Tan'er and Ning Yi sat eating and talking quietly. The two people were also quiet. Su Tan'er's expression was calm, and she occasionally glanced around, but when chatting,
His attention still stayed on Ning Yi.
Su Yu kept his eyes on Ning Yi for a moment, and then someone came over with a wine glass. It was Xi Anzhi, the shopkeeper of the second room. The old man smiled, looked back, nodded to him and spoke.
This dinner was not long.
After probably having eaten enough, it was time to disperse. There were no solemn ceremonies or symbolic speeches here. Everyone already knew what was going to happen next, but they still asked the stewards one by one.
Notified the members who were going to attend the clan meeting. There was a bit of chaos in the banquet venue. Some people got up first and started to go to the meeting hall next to the ancestral hall. The crowd was talking in twos and threes, buzzing.
, it seemed a little chaotic for a while, some people stood up and looked for someone in the scattered crowd, giving some instructions.
There are about fifty people who can participate in this clan meeting. The rest of the people attending the dinner are mostly family members, or shopkeepers and managers of Su Mansion. Even if they cannot attend, most of these people will be waiting for news in the nearby square or garden.
. Turning around the eaves in front, the lights extended around the small square of the Su Mansion. Su Boyong was pushed forward in a wheelchair among the crowd. A little behind, Su Tan'er and Ning Yi were also heading over there.
"My husband, will you feel a little bored tonight?"
"No way."
"But..." Su Tan'er lowered her head, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just smiled. In the night wind, she quietly reached out and grabbed Ning Yi's sleeve. The couple looked intimate side by side.
Moving forward. After a while, Su Tan'er shook her arm childishly and shook Ning Yi's hand several times. At this time, as if she remembered something, she turned her head and looked aside.
It started to quiet down.
Xi Junyu was also talking to a shopkeeper in the crowd. He occasionally looked towards Su Tan'er, and what he was talking about was actually his worries about tonight and his stance after tonight. He walked about half of the square.
At that moment, a man came from the crowd and greeted him with a smile. He was guard Geng, one of the most trustworthy men in the big house.
"Miss, I have arranged some things tonight. I would like to ask Shopkeeper Xi to go out with me around a quarter of a second. This matter is important and there is still about half an hour left. If Shopkeeper Xi has something at hand, please arrange it first. I am afraid that I will be very busy tonight.
Night."
Walking to the side, Guard Geng whispered.
"Is it important?" Xi Junyu frowned, "Tonight...what is going on?"
"It's hard to say for the time being. Anyway, it's the young lady's arrangement."
Xi Junyu thought for a while and looked happy: "Is there any chance of things turning around?"
"It's hard to say. I'll know when Shopkeeper Xi comes with me..."
"Oh, okay."
Xi Junyu nodded, and when he looked towards Su Tan'er, he saw that Su Tan'er had left Ning Yi's side and was leaning over his father's wheelchair saying something. Seeing his eyes, he smiled slightly.
He smiled and nodded to him and Guard Geng. Then Su Boyong also turned his head and nodded slightly.
So Xi Junyu smiled and nodded in response.
At this time, the two sides were already far apart. When he saw Su Tan'er turning around and walking towards the ancestral hall, he remembered that he should have gone over to say a few words of comfort about what happened tonight, but... whatever.
Let’s talk about it when we get back.
He walked towards the crowd whose back disappeared from sight.
However, is there a turning point? How is it possible?
So I started to frown and think...
Soon after, the first round of ancestor worship began to sound from that side.
*******************
In the meeting hall, the lights were brightly lit, shining brightly on every corner of this large room.
"...According to the old practice, we all gather here at least once a year. Every time, we need to decide some important things. In previous years, the meeting was held after the general ledger was done at the end of the year. This year, why is it more than a month in advance?
The clan leaders and clan leaders came forward and helped everyone come back from all over the place because in the recent period, our Su family has had many problems. The problems may be small, but they may also be big... But now everyone feels that there is a problem
I’m afraid it will be very troublesome…”
A loud voice rang out in the meeting hall, and there was silence among all the seats. Below a group of clan leaders were people from the third room. Su Boyong, who was sitting in a wheelchair, was not in good spirits. He looked at his nose and his nose, and Su Zhongkan sat upright.
, Su Yunfang seemed to be thinking about his own things. The person speaking in the center of the hall was Su An, who was called the seventh uncle by several people. When he said this, he paused slightly.
"About these matters and matters in this family, after all, the clan leader knows best..." He turned around and asked, "Third brother, what do you think?"
Su Yu frowned and looked at everyone in the meeting hall. After a moment, he raised his hand: "Old Seven, you should continue talking."
Su An nodded, and after a moment, he turned to the side and stretched out his hand to someone: "For the specific details... let the butler tell me, he knows best."
What he is referring to is naturally the big housekeeper who manages the specific affairs of this big house. This middle-aged man is also a relative of the Su family. He usually keeps a low profile and does not participate in matters such as property disputes, but now the Su family is in Jiangning.
Most of the clerical work will end up being summarized by him. Even though the second and third bedrooms in the big house are hidden away, the accounts in his hands are still relatively objective after all.
Not long after, the voice sounded.
"I can't say whether these things are big or not, but in the recent period, the things specific to me are probably as follows: First, in the past three months, my Su family's various goods in Jiangning area
Sales and market share have declined to a certain extent, but in general, it is less than half... The main problem is the profit in the future. In recent times, nearly 60% of the suppliers in Jiangning,
The partners began to request negotiations with my Su family to increase the price of raw silk and reduce the cost of purchasing goods. I have listed here: Qi family’s requirements..."
The butler's voice was not low. The voice came out of the meeting hall and echoed in the night wind. It could be heard faintly in the nearby square and the garden on the side. Su Wengui and others gathered not far away to listen and discuss.
, a little further away, Sudan Hong was also talking to several family members of the shopkeeper who were close to the big house, occasionally frowning.
Everything started as expected. She was also very clear about the problems the Su family was facing, the demands put forward by various parties, and the crises hidden behind these demands. When she turned her head, she accidentally saw what was going on from there.
Ning Yi, who was walking by, seemed a little bored. He was doing some stretching movements with his hands and feet, and walked further away.
Sudan Red followed.
After walking through the courtyard gate, you can no longer hear the sound from far away. You can only see the lights around the meeting hall over the courtyard wall. Ning Yi's figure at this time seems a little different from the past. He still looks relaxed, but... it seems...
As if he was feeling something there, he sat down by the pavilion in the yard, raised his head and looked at the starry sky. From time to time, footsteps would pass by in the lane near the yard, and Sudan Hong frowned.
Could this person be feeling the last moment before Dafang lost power?
She frowned...
******************
In the meeting hall, the narrative continues. Anyone who knows something about business can feel the danger behind these situations. The problems of the Su family are surrounded by hungry wolves, adding insult to injury. The big butler talked for a long time, and will
After narrating these things, he returned to his seat. No one spoke below, only a few elders from the clan began to speak.
"This is... thinking that my Su family is hopeless, thinking that something big is going to happen to my Su family..."
"To solve the problem, let's talk about it and find a reason..."
Several old people looked around, and the hall began to become silent again. Su Chonghua sat among the crowd and watched silently. He could probably guess what would happen next, but after all, these things did not require him to speak or come forward.
After stating something, I felt a little relaxed at this time. Just looking at it, when my eyes swept across the door, I suddenly thought of Ning Yi again.
Where is he now and how is he feeling? That song that sets the storm...
"This matter started after all when the uncle was assassinated. Of course, the responsibility will not be on the uncle. I think our Su family should also try our best to find the instigator behind the murder. But if we just talk about the reason for the incident, Wen
I have some ideas..." Next, the person who lit the fuse came out. Although he is the third generation of the Su family, he has recently managed some specific affairs of the second house, so he can already participate in this meeting.
"In the final analysis, this incident is due to my Su family's high-profile fight for the imperial merchants but failed..."
"Such a big momentum, such a big investment, but in the end, nothing..."
"So people outside have begun to suspect..."
As planned, waves of discussion finally began to spread after Su Wenxing raised this topic. After Su Wenxing finished speaking, several other people from the second and third bedrooms participated in the discussion, and then Su Zhongkan and Su Yunfang also started talking.
There were discussions, questions, and voices came out one after another.
"So the question now is, how much did Tan'er spend to operate this imperial merchant..."
"The big room...from shopkeeper Liao on down, the specific situation...it's a pity that shopkeeper Liao is not in Jiangning today..."
"The current situation here is like this, and there are certain problems that cannot be undone. If this continues for a long time..."
"In the past two years, no, three years, we have known that this operation actually has some problems in the accounts. My eldest brother should be more aware of this matter..."
During the scheduled drama, people started talking one after another. The main room was relatively silent from beginning to end. Su Taner and others would occasionally speak. The starry night was hanging low. This night, the whole thing was destined to take a long time.
For a while, outside the meeting hall, Su Wengui and others were talking and laughing. Someone left and came back: "It just starts tonight..." they said.
*******************
A few streets away from the Su Mansion, at Yuexiang Tower, Xue Yan and others were eating and laughing about recent events. At this time, they also looked in the direction of the Su Mansion: "Speaking of which, there are already people over there.
Let’s get started.”
Luo Miaomiao, one of the four leaders in Jiangning, smiled not far away: "Master Xue and all of you are not concerned about these romantic affairs tonight."
"Haha, Miaomiao has a sharp eye. We do have something of concern tonight. Does Miss Miaomiao know about the Su family?"
Luo Miaomiao thought for a while, and a ray of light flashed in her eyes: "Mr. Xue, could it be that he refers to the Su family where Ning Yi and Ning Liheng married?"
After all, the affairs of the cloth industry are only concerned by insiders. Now that Luo Miaomiao is the leader of the industry, she doesn’t know much about it, but the first thing she thinks of is the top talent in the Shui Diao Ge Tou and the Qing Yu case. Xue Yan
The others were stunned for a moment, then started laughing.
"That's right, that's right. Speaking of which, he has something to do with him at this time. Miss Miaomiao, have you ever heard that an assassination incident occurred during the siege of Jiangning a few months ago, which caused a huge uproar..."
The Su family clan meeting has been scheduled for a meeting. Here in Yuexiang Tower, the ups and downs of Jiangning's weaving industry in recent months have also begun to be recounted. Under the same starry sky, there is a place that originally had nothing to do with these things.
Yes, Changyun Pavilion, not far from Yuexiang Tower, is a large restaurant. Tonight, a party hosted by the Puyang family is being held here.
As the richest man in Jiangning, after so many years of management, the Puyang family has Qilan as the oiran in charge, and now has a certain relationship with many talents in Jiangning. Today is not a big day, so as soon as the party started, many famous talents
, also came over, among which Cao Guan, Liu Qingdi and others were also present. This was also a poetry gathering among literati. Pu Yangyi, who hosted the gathering, was a well-rounded person, but some things were difficult to control.
At this time, a small episode occurred.
I don’t know why Liu Qingdi was in a bad mood today. He drank some wine and wrote poems a little wildly. It was also during this poetry meeting that he accidentally bumped into a participant, and then the two sides quarreled. Although Puyang was later
Things calmed down in Yiju, but there was also a faint smell of gunpowder among some people at the gathering.
A middle-aged man who was not very outstanding in talent and knowledge and was known as Kongshan layman was also among them. He originally wanted to intervene to mediate, but then he was also involved by Liu Qingdi.
The poetry meeting continued in the uncoordinated atmosphere caused by this episode. Both parties began to spell out poems and gradually became more lively. Puyang Yi was also very happy.
Of course, at this time, they still had no connection with the Su family's trajectory...
*********************
"Ka" Ning Yi peeled off the peanuts, threw them into his mouth, and hummed softly as a prelude to the enemy entering the village, and the humming turned into a wedding march.
Sudan Hong walked over from the side, feeling angry and looking at him like this.
"Cousin Hong, sit down, you're welcome. Can you eat peanuts?"
"I don't know what you are thinking."
"Feel the atmosphere..."
"The things Tan'er has fought for so many years without giving up will soon be gone. Do you know?"
"You guessed wrong." Ning Yi replied lightly, looking back at the direction of the meeting hall. The lights overflowed from there and spread over there, and there was a restless atmosphere. "Things should be almost done..."