Chapter 215 - Chapter 215: 215. Rabbit Purse

Chapter 215: 215. Rabbit Purse

Translator: 549690339

Early in the morning, Su Liang went for a run in the garden to practice martial arts. By the time the sun rose, she was already bathed, dressed, and tidied up.

The old housekeeper delivered breakfast to her in person, a proud and appreciative expression in his eyes as he looked at her. He had no doubts that Ning Family would only continue to prosper under this talented, diligent, honest, and kind lady of the house.

But the more he thought this way, the bigger his regret became. He sincerely wished that Ning Jing was still alive.

“The mistress is a very busy person and should not be left unattended. An old servant like me has a granddaughter who is fourteen this year. She may be a bit clumsy, but she can do all the chores, like washing clothes and cooking. She’s also very obedient. If the mistress doesn’t mind…” The old housekeeper phrased his words carefully as he proposed getting Su Liang a maid.

Although he was a servant, his family was wealthy compared to the common people and didn’t need to serve others for a living. He really appreciated Su

Liang and was considering a reliable maid for her, as he didn’t trust outsiders.

While Su Liang was deep in thought and somewhat distracted, she still caught the gist of what he was saying and quickly replied, “There’s no need for that. I will return to the capital city soon. I can’t stay here for long.”

“Once you’re back in the capital city, you’ll need someone to serve you even more.” The old housekeeper stated with great emphasis.

Su Liang shook her head, “There’s really no need. If necessary, I will find one on my own.”

The old housekeeper seemed slightly disappointed, but he didn’t push further.

After all the servants had left, Su Liang went to call Gu Ling from next door. Seeing that he wasn’t there, she didn’t press further. After finishing her breakfast, she resumed her unfinished tasks from yesterday in the front hall.

The eldest son of the governor’s family came to deliver some thank-you gifts mid-morning, kneeling at Su Liang’s feet as soon as he saw her. His wife had been the one who was having a difficult childbirth the day before.

Su Liang asked about the condition of the mother and child and gave them some advice for care.

She accepted the expensive thank-you gifts without refusal, along with an invitation card for the child’s baptism ceremony with gilded characters on it.

It crossed Su Liang’s mind that there would certainly be many guests at the ceremony. Her attendance would garner as much attention as a panda at the zoo, so she graciously declined the invitation, stating she had a commitment to visit a friend outside the city that day.

Once the guests had left, all the stewards who had been waiting on the side throughout the whole process felt a big difference between the current Ning Family and the previous one.

Not until noon did the stewards finish their first round of reports for the day.

Looking at the steward group, which comprised mostly elderly men, Su Liang felt that Ning Family’s business management needed fresh blood. While she wanted to understand the full process of the tea trade, she didn’t have the time and energy to manage such a massive operation herself.

If only there was a “Family Owner’s Assistant”…she thought. She would likely be able to relax a great deal if she could find a capable person to oversee Ning Family’s business for her.

So, she formed a preliminary plan during lunch.

In the afternoon, she summoned all the senior stewards for a meeting, announcing her plans to “recruit” a head housekeeper.

The reason she used the word “recruit” was that she was not only considering promoting someone from within the Ning Family, but also looking for external candidates.

Because Su Liang is amiable, a steward dared to suggest that bringing in someone from outside to fill such an important position was risky.

“I’ve just taken over the Ning Family’s business and have only recently met you all. There isn’t much of an understanding between us yet.” Su Liang explained calmly, “I will be personally selecting the head housekeeper. The position will be given to the most capable candidate. If any of you are interested, feel free to come find me. If someone from outside the Ning Family applies, I will look into their background thoroughly.”

That day, Ning Family made a splash in the city by posting a unique recruitment notice in the most conspicuous location, immediately causing a sensation among the public.

The term “Head Housekeeper” shocked many, as no one had ever openly recruited outsiders for such an important position before.

The recruitment notice itself was also unusual: competency was key, and if you were brave enough, they wanted you to come forward.

At first glance, people found it amusing and then felt that Su Liang definitely was a person of courage. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have done something like this.

Su Liang didn’t see Gu Ling again until dinner time.

She had already put her thoughts about the painting she longed for and then gave up on last night behind her. She asked Gu Ling where he had been during the day.

“Gathering herbs,” said Gu Ling.

Su Liang was startled and only then noticed a basket on the ground nearby. She put down her chopsticks and went to look. There were quite a few medicinal herbs in it, among which two were quite rare.

“Great God, you really are one to make work where there is none,” Su Liang said laughing as she sat back down to continue her meal.

This was complimenting Gu Ling. Even though there weren’t any mandatory tasks to be done, he always found things that piqued his interest, made his days fulfilling, a rather remarkable ability, indeed.

“Did you hear about me recruiting a Head Housekeeper today?” Su Liang asked, “What if you applied with a different identity? I believe you would be competent as my assistant.”

Gu Ling shook his head and straightforwardly refused, “Not interested.” Too much to do, and none of it was what he enjoyed.

“Then never mind,” Su Liang only asked casually. When she planned to recruit people, she hadn’t considered Gu Ling at all.

After dinner, while Gu Ling was processing the collected herbs, Su Liang was talking to the old housekeeper in the courtyard.

“It was by his good-for-nothing brother that his son was poisoned in hopes of adopting his son and inheriting the fortune his brother earned all his life,” The old housekeeper sighed repeatedly as he revealed the truth behind the poisoning of the servant’s son that Su Liang saved yesterday, “He supported his brother’s family, never thought he was raising an ungrateful wolf. It’s really heartbreaking!”

This was in line with Su Liang’s speculation, and similar to the plight of Peng Wei and his son.

Fair people are often bullied, some would forsake kinship and morality for wealth and power, and commit all sorts of evil.

The old steward had already found evidence, reported it to the authorities, and thrown his brother’s family out.

After discussing this matter, the old housekeeper asked about Su Liang’s recruitment plans. He mentioned someone, “The Master always praised him as a business talent during his lifetime. If it hadn’t been for Miss and Ning Feng who tricked her into marrying into the Ning family, it should have been him. Miss married Ning Feng, and the Master tried his best to stay, but he still left, I don’t know where he went.”

The man the old housekeeper spoke of was surnamed Song, with a single name Qi. His ancestors were also prominent, but by his generation, he had already declined. He liked tea and came to the Ning family in Xunyang City to find a job. The old Master Ning discovered that he was a talent and cultivated him intensively. He wanted him to marry into the family as a son-in-law. But Ning Qingqing turned her nose up at Song Qi for his ordinary appearance and became enamored with the ambitious and handsome Ning Feng instead, leading to a disaster.

Su Liang became interested upon hearing this, “Do you know where this Song Qi is now?”

The old housekeeper shook his head, “He left for a distant place, and there has been no news for many years, but servant remembers, his old home is in the south. If the young lady is interested, should I send someone to find him?”

Su Liang nodded immediately, “Since it is someone that Grandfather Ning valued, he must be quite good. Go and find him. But whether he would still be willing to return to the Ning family, whether he still has his abilities and ambitions from his younger days, all depend on the circumstances. Just because he had a relationship with the Ning family in the past, doesn’t mean that I would definitely hire him.”

The old housekeeper repeatedly nodded, “Of course.”

After the old housekeeper left, Su Liang returned to the study, where Gu Ling had already cleaned up the medicinal herbs he had gathered for the day. Hearing the name Song Qi, Gu Ling commented, “I know him.”

Su Liang was very surprised, “Do you know him?”

Gu Ling nodded, “Sort of. I saved him once.”

Su Liang blinked her eyes, “The kind with a blackened face? You’ve saved quite a lot, tell me about Song Qi?”

“Right now, he should be helping Master Lin grow oranges,” said Gu Ling.

Su Liang rubbed her forehead, “How does it involve Lianshun now? That’s right, they mentioned Song’s family was in the south.”

Gu Ling explained that he had secretly traveled to the southern part of Qian Country when he was thirteen. It was in the fall, and Lin’s Orchard was quite famous. He went to pick oranges and noticed a man whose face was darkened by an ill omen, so he watched him for two days.

“It was Ning Feng who hired someone to kill him,” Gu Ling said.

Of course, Gu Ling saved Song Qi by a lucky chance, but Song Qi did not know about it. At that time, Gu Ling only heard his name.

“Great God, confess honestly, didn’t you sneak into the Lin’s Family to steal oranges?” Su Liang asked with a smirk.

Gu Ling nodded, admitting it straight away.

However, Su Liang found it hard to picture a thirteen-year-old Gu Ling sneaking into the Orange Garden, sitting in a tree and stealing oranges. Because he’s so aloof now, she could only compare it to the Monkey King stealing peaches…

“Were you very lively when you were 13?” Su Liang asked curiously.

Gu Ling shook his head. “No.”

Su Liang chuckled, “Unless you paint me a picture of you stealing oranges in the orange garden of the Lin Ershan’s Home at 13, I’ll just imagine you infiltrating the peach garden like the Monkey King! ”

As she finished speaking, Su Liang couldn’t help laughing at the mental image of Gu Ling changing into the Monkey King. The thought was amusing.

Gu Ling squinted slightly, looking at Su Liang who was laughing at him, he suddenly raised his hand and flicked at her forehead.

Su Liang didn’t dodge in time and was flicked in the forehead. It didn’t hurt, but she was speechless, “Great God, are you piqued?” Gu Ling looked indifferent, “Don’t dream about getting my painting.” Su Liang huffed softly, “I won’t tell you stories in the future.”

“That was agreed upon earlier, don’t break your word.” Gu Ling said.

Su Liang massaged her forehead. Indeed, Gu Ling was someone who liked to clarify things, especially between them. Every time he wanted Su Liang to do something, he always got her explicit promise.

And once Su Liang committed to something, she never went back on her word.

Su Liang stopped joking, and said seriously, “I’ll tell Yu Bo tomorrow where Song Qi is, and have him send someone over to ask. It won’t be considered as stealing the talents from under Lin Shun’s nose. It all depends on Song Qi’s own wishes. If he still loves tea and is willing to come back, the Ning Family will gladly welcome him. If not, then it’s okay.”

That night, Su Liang told the story of “Song Jiang’s Reluctance to Kill” from the Water Margin, and Gu Ling drew another painting.

After Su Liang complimented him, she saw a new purse hanging on Gu Ling’s side.

“Bought it today? It looks pretty good,” Su Liang said. The style was simple, the color scheme was very unique, and there was an herb outlined with silk thread on it.

Gu Ling shook his head, “I made it myself.”

Su Liang expressed her surprise. She knew Gu Ling could sew because he made his own underwear, and the rest were prepared by Yang Yu when he sent new clothes for Su Liang, so he almost never bought from outside.

But Gu Ling making his own purse was a first. Su Liang gave him a thumbs up, “Not bad, it’s much better than mine.” “Do you want it?” Gu Ling asked Su Liang.

Su Liang immediately countered, “What do you want in exchange?” “Tell me two more stories today.” Gu Ling put forward his demand.

Su Liang smiled, “Deal!”

It was late, and after telling Gu Ling two more stories, Su Liang yawned and went back to her room.

Before going to bed, Su Liang was thinking that Gu Ling might be sewing in the next room.

“Gu Ling is indeed an oddball.” Su Liang muttered to herself and went into the dreamland with closed eyes.

The next morning, Gu Ling disappeared again, but Su Liang didn’t bother about it.

When she saw the old steward again, Su Liang said she had a friend called Lin Shun, who had mentioned that the steward of his family’s orchard had once worked for the Ning Family.

The old steward’s eyes lit up, “It must be Song Qi!”

“At that time in the capital, I was with Ning Jing, and Master Lin mentioned it to Ning Jing, I just overheard, but didn’t pay much attention,” Su Liang said.

“In that case, I will have someone look for him today and see if he wants to come back,” the old steward affirmed it was Song Qi.

That day, several senior stewards of the Ning Family came to see Su Liang to vie for the position of the head housekeeper.

Su Liang asked them some questions and was not satisfied. The head housekeeper needed to have a sense of the bigger picture, have his own ideas about the future development of the Ning family, as well as possess enough boldness.

Although the Ning Family’s recruitment notice caused a lot of discussion, no outsider came to apply for a while.

However, the incident of Su Liang saving the governor’s wife was already known to everyone.

That day, someone came to the door asking for medical treatment.

When faced with the situation of healing and saving people, she couldn’t refuse.

So, an unusual sight appeared in Xunyang City.

The recent martial arts champion, newly appointed imperial physician and military commander, the new family head of the Ning Family, Su Liang, set up a temporary clinic in the Ning Family’s home and started to practice medicine.

No matter their background, if a patient came to the door, someone from the Ning Family would welcome them.

For a while, Su Liang was praised by everyone, and there was a continuous stream of people coming to seek medical treatment.

The old steward’s eyes lit up, “It must be Song Qi!”

“At that time in the capital, I was with Ning Jing, and Master Lin mentioned it to Ning Jing. I just overheard, but didn’t pay much attention,” Su Liang said.

“In that case, I will have someone go find him today and see whether he wants to come back,” the old steward confirmed that was Song Qi.

That day, several senior stewards of the Ning Family came to see Su Liang to vie for the position of head housekeeper.

Su Liang asked them some serious questions, and was not satisfied. The head steward needed to have a broad vision, have his own ideas about the future development of Ning Family, and have enough boldness.

Although the Ning Family’s recruitment notice stirred up a lot of discussion, no outsiders came to apply for the position for a while.

However, it was already known to everyone that Su Liang had saved the wife of the Governor.

That day, someone came to seek medical treatment.

When it comes to saving lives, one would not turn them away,

Thus, a strange sight appeared in Xunyang City.

The current martial arts champion, newly appointed imperial physician and military commander, the new head of the Ning Family, Su Liang, set up a temporary clinic in the Ning family’s house and started practicing medicine.

No matter their status, when a patient sought help, they will be received by the Ning Family.

In no time, Su Liang was praised by everyone, and the stream of people seeking medical treatment was never-ending..