Chapter Ninety-Two: The Warning (Part One)

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“The matter with Siqing Workshop has been settled with Manager Yu over there. They can supply the goods before the sixth day of the tenth month, and there won’t be any problems afterward. I have an idea…”

The Su family estate was shrouded in a heavy downpour, with raindrops falling like curtains from the eaves. In the reception room lit by an oil lamp, Xi Junyu was discussing the progress of their business with Su Tan’er. Soon, Xing’er brought over a handkerchief for him to wipe the rain off his clothes. Moments later, Juan’er carried in a tea tray, placing a serving of tea and snacks on the small table beside Xi Junyu.

“Please enjoy the tea, Manager Xi.”

“Thank you, Juan’er.” Xi Junyu smiled and nodded, then resumed talking business with Su Tan’er. “Since Siqing Workshop has already started, I think we could invest about ten thousand taels more in Yuanzhou to establish two printing and dyeing workshops and warehouses. This way, using Yuanzhou as a hub to expand outward would be almost foolproof...”

He finished speaking and awaited Su Tan’er’s response. The expansion of the Su family business usually followed similar steps. However, after taking a sip of tea, Su Tan’er looked up at him with a somewhat low voice: “Although it’s time to consider Yuanzhou, it’s not an urgent matter right now. Let’s postpone it for a while.”

Su Tan’er’s gentle tone was expected by Xi Junyu, yet her gaze was somewhat inscrutable. When they first met, she was only a twelve-year-old girl. But since she began involving herself with the family business over these past years, this young woman—now nominally a wife—had often baffled him in subtle ways.

Of course, these were just faint impressions. He believed he understood most of her character, including the pressures she bore and the efforts she made under such strain.

Several years ago, around when Su Tan’er was fourteen going on fifteen, she began working alongside him and other managers, discussing various business strategies together. Although the girl occasionally had brilliant ideas, most were somewhat clumsy and unusable. When corrected, she would smile awkwardly and exclaim in surprise, “So that’s how it is...”

Her nature was soft and humble, always courteous to everyone, never losing her temper. Even when servants made mistakes, she remained unflustered. She never got angry at the gossip spread about her because of her gender. Of course, sometimes she encountered situations she didn’t know how to handle. Then, she would remain silent, smiling faintly, pursing her lips, and patiently waiting.

Human emotions are strange—there’s no clear dividing line. Xi Junyu never knew exactly when he decided to stay on at the Su family’s cloth shop. He had grown up poor, with an early death of his mother, a sickly, alcoholic father. Gifted and clever, he had initially planned to pursue academics for a bright future. Later, when he started helping out at the cloth shop for some extra income, he never imagined he would stay indefinitely.

The intelligent excel quickly. Xi Junyu was confident he could succeed in any field, not just business. After years as a merchant, he had come to understand human nature and psychology deeply. To him, all worldly matters revolved around these changes; academic pursuits were secondary.

Even when he was just helping out at the shop, he closed several deals, earning enough to ease his family’s financial burdens. At that time, he still intended to return to his studies. But later… the reason he remained with the Su family had much to do with that girl who kept coming to the shop.

He understood clearly: coming from a poor family, pursuing the imperial examinations was fraught with difficulties and expensive connections. Having wealth felt much more tangible. He had set an ideal path for himself—to work at the Su family shop, rise to manager and chief manager, then marry into the family. Once Su Tan’er took control of the family, they could share power as equals.

By then, he had already begun standing out in the cloth business, and the fifteen-year-old girl who kept learning and growing meshed well with him. He could patch the holes in her occasional missteps. When he learned that Su Boyong and Su Tan’er had plans, he realized that one day Su Tan’er would need a husband by marriage. He was clearly the ideal candidate and didn’t mind the arrangement.

Incompetent people always rely on status or other innate factors. While these do matter somewhat, truly capable people know their own ability accounts for the largest part of their success. For him, confidence would always give him chances to shine and earn respect. His humble origins were unchangeable, so marrying into the family was nothing to reject.

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Su Tan’er understood her own capabilities, and he understood her personality. With such mutual understanding, they would be ideal partners after marriage. Some might initially judge him for being a son-in-law by marriage, but that didn’t matter. Once his abilities became evident, others would naturally look on him differently. One year, two years… facts would change everything. Su Tan’er also bore her burdens and could grit her teeth to push forward. What was he afraid of?

Unfortunately, what happened later was beyond his expectations. The Su family certainly considered him. They absolutely did. But in the end, the decision was made by the matriarch, who chose a useless scholar instead.

The Su family… chose that man simply because he was easier to control.

Sometimes, being too capable becomes a flaw. Xi Junyu thought sardonically at the time, imagining that if he were the one arranged to marry Su Tan’er, she would never have found an excuse to run away on their wedding day.

He had been confident, knowing the Su family had no real concerns about him when considering Ning Yi. But when the decision suddenly fell on Ning Yi, he was stunned. He had once considered confessing his feelings directly to Su Tan’er, but by then he realized the distance she maintained from others. She might have called him “Brother Junyu” before, but soon it was always “Manager Xi,” and that was how she addressed him consistently.

She might be gentle and warm, lively and cute, even playful and humorous, but most of the time, that girl kept a part of her mind detached, observing from the sidelines. That part might still find things amusing and curious, smiling sweetly when watching, but it always maintained an attitude of observer and learner. Smart people learn quickly when they put their minds to it—this much Xi Junyu knew from the start.

At that point, he realized his feelings were hard to voice, because she wasn’t as close as he had imagined.

He was a proud man. If he had approached her, the girl’s surface might have been warm and soft, even heartbroken, but the observing part of her heart would have never taken him seriously. That was something he couldn’t bear.

After Su Tan’er’s marriage, she adopted the demeanor of a wife, which he had long anticipated. The matter of status was the very reason for her marriage. He wondered how the scholar treated her behind closed doors. Su Tan’er never showed displeasure outwardly, but that scholar surely could not perceive the true feelings of his wife.

Thinking about it, he felt both amused and pitying. They never shared a bed. Though the later development surprised him, the scholar did have some scholarly merit. But no matter what, their relationship was one of superficial harmony and deep estrangement. No one but him could truly understand Su Tan’er. Behind her facade was a clear-eyed resolve born of long-standing pressure and loneliness.

To wield control over the Su family as a woman meant constant resistance. Even tears would not earn genuine sympathy. Even with the help of managers under Su Boyong’s orders, each business deal still raised doubts about a woman being the head. No matter how much she proved her ability, even at forty or fifty, or if she became a figure like Wu Zetian, people would always consider her a woman. She could only maintain absolute clarity behind the scenes.

It was cold, lonely, and pitiful. She needed someone who could truly stand by her through thick and thin. Xi Junyu liked that feeling. For now, he could only accept the reality. Complaining was useless; he must think about what to do next.

Sometimes, he felt that the deepest part of Su Tan’er’s heart was still unclear to him. She was growing, but in some sense, she was almost his protégé. For now, she was unlikely to lose control.

Regarding Yuanzhou, Su Tan’er had made her decision. He was “just the manager,” so there was no need to say more about his status. When necessary, both could converse openly. At this moment, Xi Junyu shared a few amusing stories he had heard from Manager Yu of Siqing Workshop, then analyzed the possible situations inside and outside the city based on the recent disaster victims. He knew what Su Tan’er liked to hear. Holding her tea cup, she listened intently, occasionally nodding and asking questions—her youthful curiosity unchanged over these years.

In these times of limited information, most news was valuable. When Xi Junyu spoke, it often included details she did not know.

He then casually mentioned the funeral of Xiao Chan’s father and speculated when Ning Yi might return. This was just a brief touch, implying his own presence—different from Ning Yi’s. Although it seemed some things hadn’t truly reached her heart, maybe tonight they could talk a little longer. Ning Yi would return tomorrow. He was considering whether to be frank about it.

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At that moment, Xing’er hurried in from the courtyard, holding an umbrella, looking cheerful. She nodded and smiled at Xi Junyu before running to Su Tan’er. “Master and Xiao Chan have returned.”

“Really?” Juan’er, standing behind Su Tan’er, was the first to speak. Su Tan’er looked up, smiling yet frowning slightly. “Such heavy rain, coming back so late? Did they get wet?”

“No, not really. Oh, Dongzhu, the coachman, got soaked. Master had Dongzhu wash up first, then instructed the kitchen to prepare some food. They hurried back all the way, probably didn’t eat much dinner.”

“Hm.” Su Tan’er thought for a moment. “Xing’er, have the kitchen prepare Master’s favorite dishes and a bowl of millet porridge. I’m a bit hungry too; I’ll come over later… Also, prepare some chilled white fungus soup, mainly for Steward Geng and Dongzhu to help cool off after eating. They don’t often have this. If you and Juan’er want some, prepare some as well. I won’t need it. After Master and Xiao Chan eat dinner, they probably won’t want it. Manager Xi, would you like some?”

“No, thank you. Since Master Ning and Xiao Chan are back, I have no pressing matters. I’ll take my leave.”

Xi Junyu smiled calmly, and Su Tan’er nodded.

“In that case, I’ll see Manager Xi out.”

“No need, the rain is heavy.”

“It’s fine. Also, I want to hear more about the plan for Yuanzhou that Manager Xi mentioned.” You really want to hear, huh… Xi Junyu smiled inwardly. But as he opened his umbrella and walked out with Su Tan’er and Juan’er, he continued to speak of a series of plans and points. Whether about the customs and officials of Yuanzhou or other details, he was meticulous. Su Tan’er nodded, listening attentively.

The rain roared. Walking along these roads, they could barely see the distant courtyard lights, as if the vast Su estate had only the three of them walking in the rain. Nearing the side gate, they saw people bustling in and out, all hurried. His followers waited in the gatehouse nearby. When they reached a covered corridor where they no longer needed umbrellas, Xi Junyu took a deep breath.

“Actually, over the past year or so, though the Su family seems stable, funds are being siphoned off everywhere. I understand all this clearly. You’re already preparing. This matter is too big, and if you don’t want to say, I shouldn’t have brought it up. But… it’s really huge. If you lose everything, do you fully understand what that means?”

Su Tan’er stopped walking, quietly meeting his gaze, lips pressed lightly, silent. Her eyes were complex, as if apologizing for not sharing more since she had to oversee everything. Xi Junyu didn’t mind, just shook his head and sighed.

“I don’t know when you first thought of this—maybe years ago. You want to take the palace concession, to become the imperial merchant. Is that right?” He looked at her, pausing briefly.

“Maybe it was easier a few years ago, but since last year, the Xue family has also eyed the imperial merchant position, and the Wu family is considering it too. Your ambition now faces the toughest challenge. Do you understand that?”

Under the rainy night, this was almost a stern warning. Xi Junyu’s concerns were well-founded…