The Owner Behind the Shop Turned Out to Be...

After stuffing all the gold ingots into her pouch, Jiang Nuan looked at its bulging sides and nodded in satisfaction.

The money she had just spent had come back to her, with a tidy profit on top.

Since the matter at the General's Residence was settled and she had enjoyed her fill of juicy gossip, she had no reason to stay any longer.

Jiang Nuan happily took An Yan's hand and left the General's Residence.

Once they returned to the courtyard residence, Jiang Nuan took out her pouch of gold ingots, generously removed half of them, and pushed them in front of An Yan.

"Everyone who was there gets a share. Half for you, Sister, and half for me!"

An Yan looked at the gold ingots in surprise. She had not expected a share herself and was about to refuse when Jiang Nuan said:

"I remember you seem very interested in business, Sister. Consider this my investment in you. Don't forget me when you start making money!"

If I don't latch onto her now, when will I? If my sister gets to eat the meat, surely it's not too much to ask for a sip of the broth. Hehe!

After some thought, An Yan decided to accept it.

She was indeed very interested in business. Whenever she went shopping, she could never help wondering which goods sold best that season, how much profit they could bring, and so on. But women rarely went out into the public eye, so she had never had a chance to put her ideas into practice.

Jiang Nuan had given her starting capital and placed great trust in her. She did not want to betray that trust.

"There's a jewelry shop in the eastern part of the city. Its location is excellent, but business is only so-so. Perhaps we could buy it at a low price."

While shopping that day, An Yan had found herself paying attention to such things. Since she had decided to go into business, perhaps she could start with a good shop.

"You're amazing, Sister! You even noticed that."

Jiang Nuan remembered that shop. At the time, she had merely sighed over it inwardly without considering anything else.

Seeing that the sky had not yet grown dark, Jiang Nuan immediately took her hand and headed over.

Business at the shop was indeed dismal. There was not even a shop assistant, only a shopkeeper.

When he saw the two of them enter, the shopkeeper greeted them enthusiastically.

"Are you young ladies looking to buy jewelry? Let me show you around."

An Yan shook her head. "Shopkeeper, we haven't come to buy jewelry today. We wanted to ask whether this shop is for sale. We'd like to take it over."

Upon hearing that they were not buying jewelry, the shopkeeper's enthusiasm faded considerably. He waved a hand and said, "I'm sorry, miss, but there are no plans to transfer this shop."

An Yan frowned. That did not make sense.

"Shopkeeper, business here doesn't seem particularly good. It looks as though you're practically operating at a loss. Why not sell the shop? We can negotiate the price!"

This street had plenty of foot traffic and an excellent location. The other shops were doing booming business, and buying any of them would cost a great deal. This shop was the most suitable, so An Yan was unwilling to give up.

The shopkeeper still shook his head.

"It isn't a matter of money. To tell you the truth, I'm not the owner of this shop. I don't have the authority to decide."

"Then who is your owner?"

An Yan pressed him.

The shopkeeper did not answer directly. Instead, he said, "My owner is someone of unusual standing, so I can't disclose that. Please head back, young ladies."

Seeing his attitude, An Yan could only give up.

Jiang Nuan, however, began asking Guagua inwardly.

[Guagua, dig up this shopkeeper's gossip and see who his owner is.]

[Oh? You know this owner, host. You're quite familiar with him, too!]

Guagua sounded a little surprised.

[Someone I know?]

Jiang Nuan was somewhat surprised. What a small world—but which acquaintance was it?

[It's your Fourth Brother!]

Guagua told her outright.

[My Fourth Brother? Could all that ugly jewelry he gave me in my previous life have come from this shop?]

After her Fourth Brother had brought her out of the palace in her previous life, he had thought that girls liked pretty things and would give Jiang Nuan jewelry. But those pieces had all been beyond description. At first, Jiang Nuan had thought her Fourth Brother simply had rather peculiar taste.

[Well, since it's him, I don't need to worry. I'll just ask him directly. He'll definitely give it to me!]

Jiang Nuan had complete confidence in her Fourth Brother. He was a truly good person.

"Don't worry, Sister. I have a way to get this shop."

Jiang Nuan said this to An Yan.

An Yan nodded.

Jiang Nuan's Fourth Brother was the Fourth Prince, so his identity was indeed difficult to disclose. Since An Yan did not know what Jiang Nuan's relationship with the Fourth Prince was like, she had been ready to give up—only to hear Jiang Nuan's thoughts a moment later.

Then she had nothing to worry about.

Jiang Nuan had intended to stay and have dinner with An Yan before returning to the palace, but she was told that her lousy father was looking for her. She could only bid An Yan farewell and return to the imperial palace.

The moment Jiang Yunsheng saw Jiang Nuan, he flicked her on the forehead.

"You little ingrate. Had plenty of fun outside the palace these past two days, haven't you?"

Jiang Nuan chuckled without saying a word.

Had it been any other princess, Jiang Yunsheng would never have allowed her such freedom. But Jiang Nuan was different. Her head was full of strange and unusual ideas, all for the good of Great Xia, so he could hardly stop her.

Even so, Jiang Yunsheng still worried about her, despite having already assigned Shadow Guards.

"Come here. I'll introduce you to two people."

Holding Jiang Nuan's hand, Jiang Yunsheng walked into the hall.

When the two women saw Jiang Yunsheng and Jiang Nuan, they immediately bowed.

"Greetings, Your Majesty. Greetings, Ninth Princess."

"These two palace maids are named Chunhua and Qiuyue. From now on, they belong to you. They also know some martial arts. Whenever you leave the palace, you must take them with you!"

In the end, Shadow Guards were not as convenient as palace maids, so Jiang Yunsheng had simply found two women skilled in martial arts to serve as Jiang Nuan's personal maids.

[Host, these two aren't ordinary palace maids. Their martial arts would rank among the best in the martial world today. Your Imperial Father put quite a bit of effort into finding them.]

Guagua offered a timely reminder in her mind.

"Thank you, Imperial Father. You're so good to me."

Jiang Nuan was a little moved. Although he had always ignored her before and given her a miserable childhood, he really did treat her very well now.

Jiang Yunsheng nodded in satisfaction. It was good that Guagua had said it aloud. Even if Guagua had not, Jiang Yunsheng would have found a way to let her know. He was not the sort to do good deeds without leaving his name.

Usually, the Crown Prince could win her over with the smallest favors. This time, Jiang Yunsheng had gone to so much trouble that he refused to believe Jiang Nuan would not be moved. His place in Jiang Nuan's heart absolutely could not be lower than the Crown Prince's!

Sure enough, Jiang Nuan's attitude toward him had improved considerably. She was not even calling him her lousy father in her thoughts now. What a tremendous step forward!

"All right, I still have state affairs to attend to. Take them back to the Lotus Palace."

Jiang Yunsheng wanted to spend more time with Jiang Nuan, but there were too many state affairs to handle, so he could only send her away.

After Jiang Nuan returned to the Lotus Palace, she looked at Chunhua and Qiuyue. A flash of inspiration struck her, and she suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.