Chapter 84: One Shop Left
Chapter 84: One Shop Left
"I... sold it?"
Xiang Ling just stared at Fu Xiao in shock. Even after a month, it seemed like she still hadn’t found out all of the mess that the previous owner of her body had created.
"En!" Fu Xuao gave a nod of her head to respond to Xiang Ling’s confusion.
"Why did I sell it?" Xiang Ling asked. She wanted to know what could have led the previous owner of her body to sell an entire business, though a part of her already somewhat knew the answer.
"You used to gamble a lot even though... you are bad at it. Nearly half a year ago, you lost too many times and acquired a huge debt. When the County Magistrate refused to give you money to pay off the debt, you stole the property papers of the restaurant from your first brother’s courtyard and sold it to pay your debt." Fu Xiao recited the entire story.
Xiang Ling had her forehead buried in her palm as she tried to consume this news just like she had done with several other surprises in the past. At this point, she had almost given up on the idea that the mess created by the previous owner of her body would ever come to an end. There was always something new to learn about the horror she had caused in the past.
She stayed silent and thought about what she just learned when a sudden question appeared in her mind. Looking at Fu Xiao, she asked, "You said I got the papers from my first brother’s courtyard. Was he the owner of the restaurant?"
The look that suddenly took over Fu Xiao’s face, when she heard the question, almost scared Xiang Ling from knowing the answer.
"Your first brother painstakingly started the restaurant and made it one of the best restaurants in the city. Just a few days before you... stole the papers, it was your niece’s birthday and your first brother transferred the owner rights of the restaurant to his daughter that day." Fu Xiao answered, making Xiang Ling realize that the restaurant belonged to her second brother’s daughter.
A frustrated sigh escaped Xiang Ling’s lips and she slammed her palm against the table in anger. "Just how much do I owe others?" She closed her eyes to calm down and asked, "Did I sell anything else that belonged to my family?"
"Your family used to have four shops, including the restaurant. You secretly sold three of them." Fu Xiao answered and watched as horror took over Xiang Ling’s face. Collecting some courage, Fu Xiao continued, "The clothes shop belonged to your second sister-in-law. It was her dowry. You sold it. The cosmetic shop was given by your father to Concubine Yu after all her pestering and you sold it. That caused a lot of chaos in the manor."
Xiang Ling just silently took in all the information. She could already imagine the scenes of chaos that would have taken place in the Chen Manor. She no longer wondered why the County Magistrate and his family had given up on their only daughter and left the house. The previous owner of her body was indeed a nutcase.
"There’s one shop left." She reminded Fu Xiao as she was curious to know who was able to keep their shop safe from the clutches of previous Xiang Ling.
"It’s a jewelry shop and it belongs to your mother." Fu Xiao told Xiang Ling.
Xiang Ling nodded her head slowly while staring at the osmanthus soup in a daze. She picked up the spoon and took a sip. The rich taste of the soup immediately coated her state buds and made her forget all her miseries for a moment.
"You are a quick learner, Xiao’er. The soup tastes just like I wanted it to." She praised Fu Xiao who couldn’t hold back her smile.
"It’s because you are a great teacher, My Lady." The girl replied with a huge smile.
They chatted for a little bit longer as Xiang Ling enjoyed the soup. It didn’t take long before she finished the entire bowl. As she put the bowl back on the table, Fu Xiao asked, "My Lady, the manor is back to its glory. Aren’t you going to request your family to return to the manor?"
Xiang Ling let out a small sigh before she shook her head in denial. "I already thought that this wasn’t the right time to call them back but now, after hearing about the things I have done, just renovating the manor will not be enough to bring them back. This is going to take a while."
"What are you planning to do?" The girl asked excitedly.
Xiang Ling looked at her and answered with a little smile, "I already told you. I’m going to open a restaurant but now I have an even better idea about this restaurant."
Her gaze returned to the map that was spread across the table and she once again found herself studying it closely. There were a few small villages nearby Dongzhi City that weren’t doing great these recent years, if only she could find a way to solve their issue while benefitting from it, she would be able to change her image in the County Magistrate’s eyes.
Whatever she was going to do, would not only take a lot of time but also a lot of hard work and serious planning. However, she had a family to seek forgiveness from and their forgiveness required her to work hard.
* * *
Family Tree of County Magistrate [Chen Family] -
County Magistrate of Nanxia County - Chen Jing Ting [age - 50]
Madam Sheng Yue [age - 45]
Concubine Yu Xin [age - 42]
First Young Master, Chen Hao Ran [age - 25]
First Young Madam, Zuan Hu [age - 23]
Young Miss Ming, Chen Yujin [age 3]
Second Young Master, Chen Ming [age 23] - son of Concubine An
Second Young Madam, Chao Xing [age 20]
Young Master Cao, Chen Bai Yu [age 2]
First Young Miss, Chen Xiang Ling [age 18]