Lan Ruoting's original intention was to find ways to squeeze out other expenses. Since Shang Shuqing was sure that Master Dao would not have any objections, he said no more.
To be honest, Shang Chaozong felt a little guilty for giving 10,000 gold coins, and was afraid of being embarrassed by taking action, but now Qingshan County is in dire straits and there are too many places to spend money, so my sister took the initiative to take over this matter.
Chaozong was a little eager, nodded and said: "Qing'er's words make sense. It's convenient for you women to speak, so let you go."
Lan Ruoting glanced at Shang Chaozong with a slightly strange look in his eyes. He murmured in his heart, is it convenient for an unmarried young girl to always run to a man? Aren't you afraid of causing some gossip and ruining your family?
My sister’s innocence?
In fact, Shang Chaozong didn't worry about this at all. The reason was that his sister was so ugly that no man would have any evil thoughts. He didn't think Taoist Master had such a heavy appetite!
Of course, having confidence in this aspect also means believing in Niu Youdao's character. After being in contact with him for so long, I have never seen Taoist masters make any demands on women, unlike some monks from Tianyu Sect!
After settling on 10,000 gold coins, Lan Ruoting immediately ordered someone to get the money.
This is not to say that there are currently only ten thousand gold coins here, and cash of more than one hundred thousand gold coins can still be spent, but many expenses have been planned, and the expenses are very tight. If you squeeze some out here, other important expenses must be reduced.
Peng was waiting for the arrival of a group of senior officials from Tianyu Sect, as well as the arrival of senior officials from the three sects of Liuxian Sect. It was impossible not to entertain them well. He had already squeezed out a tight expense once, and now he had to squeeze out another ten thousand.
The person in charge of accounting came down below and presented the account book.
Shang Chaozong and Lan Ruoting discussed for a long time about the ten thousand gold coins. It was uncomfortable to stump a heroic man for a penny. After much discussion, they finally decided to reduce military supplies and temporarily withhold part of the sergeants' pay.
Some other imminent expenses are really difficult to deal with. They are related to the people of Qingshan County and may lead to trouble.
At present, the army is controllable, but local officials have to spend money for every meal. How can local officials and their families help you manage the place if they are hungry? The army does not need to pay for the soldiers to eat from the big pot. Everyone
We have already occupied the territory of Qingshan County, and we can see the future benefits. We should talk to the generals below and reissue it to everyone later. We can only ask the generals to appease the people below.
Shang Chaozong personally signed and deducted 10,000 gold coins from the military supplies column in the accounts!
A gold ticket with a face value of 10,000 came into Lan Ruoting's hands, and Lan Ruoting gave it to Shang Shuqing.
Shang Shuqing, who got the golden ticket, estimated that Niu Youdao would not rest so early when he came back, and he had never been able to have a serious conversation with Niu Youdao before they met. With his thoughts in mind, he returned to the garden behind the governor's house with the golden ticket.
.
Niu Youdao was indeed not resting and was taking a bath.
"Princess Princess, how about you go and sit in the hall first, and when the Taoist master finishes taking a bath, how about I inform him?"
Yuan Fang, who was standing outside, tried to ask, but there was a hint of guilt in his words.
He also didn't understand why Black Mudan got involved with Master Dao. Anyway, he witnessed Black Mudan and Master Dao go in to take a bath together. After not coming out for so long, what good could be done between a man and a widowed woman bathing together?
He was also afraid that outsiders would see him badly. After all, Hei Mudan was much older than Dao Ye.
He has been lamenting in his heart, what kind of woman can't be found according to Dao Master's conditions, why hang out with Black Peony?
Shang Shuqing smiled and said, "No, I'll wait for you here."
If you can't spend a lot of money, you should still show some sincerity.
"Uh..." Yuanfang was speechless. Shang Shuqing's identity was here, and he couldn't force her away.
Just as he was thinking about a way to move Shang Shuqing away to avoid the negative impact, the bathroom door opened with a creak.
The plump and graceful Black Peony walked out first, wearing plain clothes after bathing, with her long wet hair hanging over her shoulders.
After taking a shower, Niu Youdao, who was almost dressed in casual clothes, also walked out slowly.
Shang Shuqing, who was standing in the yard, stared blankly at this scene. She stared blankly at the man and woman who had obviously walked out of the bath together, and stared at it with widened eyes.
In an instant! After reacting, Shang Shuqing suddenly felt her heart twisting. She felt so distressed that it was difficult to attach to it, and it hurt her heart!
At this moment, something seemed to hit her heart hard. The feeling that filled her body and mind was something she had never experienced before. This sudden attack was so unforgettable!
She didn't know why she had such a big reaction after seeing this scene. For a moment, she, who had always been smart, was a little flustered. She was so confused and at a loss what to do that she turned around and walked away.
Niu Youdao, who was walking to the steps and was about to go down the steps, was stunned for a moment. What did this woman mean? He hurriedly shouted: "Is there something wrong, Princess?"
Shang Shuqing replied as she walked, "It's nothing, Qing'er took the liberty." Without even looking back, she turned around and disappeared outside the moon gate.
Black Peony, who was standing next to Niu Youdao, looked thoughtful.
Niu Youdao slowly walked down the steps and asked Yuanfang, "Is there something wrong with the princess?"
Yuan Fang nodded: "There seems to be something wrong. I was just waiting for you here, Master Dao. I guess..." He glanced at Black Peony, who was slowly following him. "I guess I misunderstood something. I was afraid of ruining your good deeds, Master Dao."
.”
Niu Youdao glanced at him coldly, "Why did you come up with so many crooked ideas as soon as you became a monk?"
Yuanfang muttered: "Isn't this obvious? No one can see it unless they are blind."
Niu Youdao looked back at the bathroom, looked at Black Mudan's appearance, and then looked at himself. Combined with what Shang Shuqing said just now, thinking about it, it might indeed be a misunderstanding.
But it didn't matter to him. If he misunderstood, just misunderstood. There was nothing to explain.
He estimated that Shang Shuqing had nothing important to do, otherwise the woman would be smart enough to distinguish the serious from the serious, and would not evade it just because of a misunderstanding. Since it was not an important matter at night, there was no rush, and they would just meet up another day and ask for clarification.
Niu Youdao turned around and left. Black Mudan, who was following him, smiled and asked, "Master Dao, does this princess have a crush on you?"
Niu Youdao glanced at her, too lazy to answer this boring question.
He has no interest in Shang Shuqing, and it has nothing to do with beauty or ugliness. Even if Shang Shuqing is as beautiful as a fairy, he has no such messy plans. What's more, Shang Shuqing is also frighteningly ugly. No matter how he looks at people, he doesn't focus on appearance but only on the inside.
Heavy appetite.
After observing his reactions and probing him with words, Black Mudan finally understood that Master Dao had no feelings for that person, but thinking about it, that person was really scary. If his identity and background were excluded, he probably didn't have any feelings for him.
Men like it.
As an experienced person, Black Peony shook her head slightly and sighed in her heart. It has nothing to do with beauty or ugliness. What woman doesn't have her first love? She's just another silly girl who has to pass this test!
I just hope that this silly girl can figure out what she wants and not be blinded by her temporary love, lest she be the one who gets hurt in the end.
She somewhat pities and sympathizes with Shang Shuqing. As a woman, she can empathize with her. She knows very well what a woman's appearance means to a woman. She is so ugly and can still come out to meet people calmly. How strong must be to do this!
Not only her, but also Feng Ruonan, who was always rude to people from Shang Chaozong, took the initiative to get close to Shang Shuqing when he saw her.
At present, basically no woman will subconsciously regard Shang Shuqing as a threat, and it is difficult for her to feel jealous.
Being ugly is not necessarily a bad thing sometimes.
At this time, Shang Shuqing was stopping by the wall in the shadow, holding on to the wall with one hand and lowering his head.
He slowly raised his other hand, and gently touched his ugly face with his soft fingertips. His fingertips were trembling, and his eyes were full of shameful dejection.
However, I quickly calmed down and sobered up because I knew it was impossible!
I asked myself, what's wrong with me? How can I delay the business? How should I report to my brother and Mr. Lan when I go back? My brother must be waiting for my reply, and I must ask him what his attitude is.
"Who is it?" A figure turned out from the corner in front and shouted, his voice sonorous and powerful, full of majestic momentum!
The visitor was Yuan Gang, who had carefully inspected Niu Youdao's residence when he first arrived. When he came here, he suddenly discovered that there was someone hiding in the shadow of the corner.
"It's me!" Shang Shuqing stood upright and asked.
Seeing her supporting the wall, Yuan Gang came over to take a look and asked doubtfully: "Princess, why are you here? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"
Shang Shuqing's thoughts changed, and she thought of a way to save her job, and replied: "I had something to do with Master Dao, but I didn't expect that Master Dao was taking a bath with Black Peony, which violated Master Tao's elegance and ran away in a hurry. Now I think about it.
, I haven’t finished the errands my brother asked me to do, and I don’t know what to do.”
Yuan Gang knew as soon as he heard that Black Mudan's shamelessness had caused people to misunderstand him, and said: "There is no such thing as conflict. Master Dao is not that elegant. Master Dao and Black Mudan are not what you think. The princess is overthinking.
Now that we have business, Master Dao should not be resting yet, so come with me."
When we met Niu Youdao again in the living room, Shang Shuqing had regained her composure and reason.
Paying attention to her reaction, Black Peony's bright eyes flashed twice.
Seeing that Yuan Gang had brought Shang Shuqing back, Niu Youdao, who was in casual clothes, didn't care about the little thing in front of him and said with a smile: "It seems that the princess is really busy, what are your orders?"
"Master Dao is joking." Shang Shuqing took out the golden ticket and placed it on the coffee table. With her slender fingers, she gently pushed the golden ticket to Niu Youdao.
Niu Youdao looked at the face value of the golden ticket, looked suspicious, and asked: "What does this mean, Princess? Is it for me?"
It makes sense that people are poor but have short ambitions. Even though he is the daughter of a royal prince, Shang Shuqing felt a little embarrassed at this time, "The people around Master Dao also need expenses. However, the current situation in Qingshan County is full of waste. This little money
Don’t be too dissatisfied with the amount, Taoist Master, just keep it for now, and then make up for it with additional offerings when the various taxes come down.”
It was really for me! Niu Youdao understood, but he looked at the golden ticket with a slightly strange look.
His look made Shang Shuqing slightly uneasy. Could it be that he had made a mistake in his judgment and the other party really disliked him?
Niu Youdao raised his eyes and asked slowly, pondering: "Is Qingshan County's financial resources very tight at the moment?"