I fought back after reselling my engagement

Cui was very satisfied with the contents of the letter. After her husband finished writing the envelope, she personally sealed it with wax and said, "Tomorrow I will ask Madam Cui to mail it out personally. It's really a bargain for his family. Susu is such a good child. She is talented and can manage the shop and look at the account books. My dowry shop used to have a business list. Since the No. 1 grocery store was changed to 'Yunrongfang', my family has the best rouge and powder shop in the city.

After the No. 2 grocery store was renovated, it added more goods according to Su Su's suggestion. Aunt Cui said that the store bought more than 180 taels of silver yesterday, and the profit in one day was more than the profit in the previous month. "

Su Shao knew that his wife was not good at running the shop, and the maids under her were not capable. Cui was kind-hearted, and not as cunning and scheming as the eldest and second sisters-in-law. She was filial to her parents and treated her niece as her own. If it were another family, they would have taken over the shop immediately if they saw that the business was good, but she did not mention it.

Su Shao said: "The Chu family came to ask for Su Su's hand in marriage on behalf of the eldest son of the third branch of the family."

"Which Chu family? The Chu family in the Chu of Xiangchu?"

"It is his family, the Chu family, the most aristocratic family in Hunan Province. The eldest son of the third branch of the family was supposed to get married in October. His previous fiancée was named Hu. She took the Yueyang ship back to Yueyang Prefecture and jumped into the canal. Her life or death is still unknown."

"Dead...dead?" Cui heard other ladies talking about the girl at the banquet, saying that she had a very unfortunate life.

Princess Jiarou jumped off the boat, but survived the disaster. She was rescued by Princess Changle, and after recovering from the cold, she was sent to her ancestral home in Yueyang Prefecture. The person who jumped off the boat was found by the maid, but she was so deformed that she could not be identified. Hu Yuanniang was not seen alive, and her body was not found after her death.

People in Yueyang Prefecture said that the eldest daughter of the Hu family was eaten by fish in the river. The Chu family was the most prominent family in Hunan Province. Although the Hu family was a family of officials, this marriage was a very good one. Hu Yuanniang was really unlucky.

Su Shao said: "The matchmaker came to the door, but my father didn't agree."

"The Chu family's ancestral home is in Tanzhou. I heard that the people of Tanzhou are tough and fierce?" Cui was not optimistic about this matter.

Su Shao nodded and said, "In the previous dynasty, Changsha Prefecture was the capital. During the reign of Emperor Gaozu, Yueyang was changed to the capital of Hunan Province. This is related to the customs of the people in Tanzhou. There are many bandits in Hunan and Chu. The ancestors of the Chu family started out as bandits."

"Isn't the imperial court trying to deal with the bandit problem?"

"Father didn't agree to the marriage because of this incident. Everyone in Hunan Province knows the background of the Chu family. Who knows if they have any connection with bandits? You said today that you wanted to help Su Su and Su Mo get married, and I'm optimistic about it. Madam, you did a good job. When father finds out, he will praise you."

Cui smiled, her eyebrows showing but her eyes not smiling, "How can Su Su marry into the Chu family who started out as bandits? Even I look down on them. Our Su family is a clean and honest family of scholars. It's ok for her to marry someone of a lower status than a bandit leader."

If it were someone else, they would have praised the Chu family, but this couple despised them and felt that the Chu family, who came from a bandit background, were not worthy of Zhen Su.

Su Shao said, "Father told me the other day that the emperor sent an imperial decree to the Su family, saying that the Su family could take care of Qingdi County before Su Su got married. He selected a few of the sons from the family to go on a tour in the north. I plan to let Wu Lang go with them to see what he can do. It's not good for a grown man to stay at home all the time."

"When Wulang goes to the north, he must find two guards with good martial arts skills to accompany him, otherwise I will not be at ease."

"Su Mo came to look for my father, and he wanted to make friends with the branch in the capital, so he sent us 12 families of guards who were inherited from the family. From now on, the trusted guards used by the family will be selected from here. My father gave each of us brothers four families. The people from our third branch have been settled in the manor outside Yueyang City. The guards chosen for Wulang this time are selected from these four families."

The three brothers each got four households, but Su Shaoxian picked the best four households. The other eight households were sent to the capital and handed over to the first and second houses. It was up to the eldest and second brothers to decide how to distribute them. My father also said in the letter that these were obtained from the direct branch of the Jiangnan family, and he also reminded them that these were people who had been loyal to the Su family for generations and needed to be treated well. They were slaves in name, but in reality they were family servants.

The Jiangnan Su family has a long history. The family has family-born guards. This is passed down from father to son. Each family has its own martial arts secrets that are not passed on to others. They do not call themselves slaves, but subordinates. Their status and treatment are much better than slaves. Among the aristocratic families, they are considered to be hereditary retainers of each family, attached to the master family and serving the master family.

This kind of guard born in the family is more loyal and can share the hardships with the master.

Su Shao said: "Pick one from Qilang and Balang's side, who are about the same age as them. There is a girl of fifteen or sixteen, who I plan to marry to Susu, and a ten-year-old girl who knows martial arts will be married to Qi Niang."

"Didn't Su Su buy a girl named Qiu Ye? I heard she's good at martial arts and practices martial arts in the back garden every morning."

"Susu is often out and about, so if we have another one, the family can feel more at ease. Qiuye is a good martial artist, and many of the young guards in our family are interested in her. If Qiuye stays in our house, we will have to find another one for Susu."

This is a one-for-one exchange.

Cui snorted, "They are probably eyeing Qiu Ye's unique martial arts skills?"

"This is how the Jiangnan Su family got their guards, little by little they accumulated. I've talked to the head of the guards of the third house, and we've bought some good ones recently. We've bought a dozen of them now, including boys and girls, and those who are good at it. If we can buy all the family, we'll buy them. If not, we'll pick out the good ones and buy them in."

Su Shao took the silver and looked over it. He was quite satisfied with the new people. He handed them over to the captain of the guard for training. After they had learned martial arts well, Cui, he and the children could all have some of them around them.

Cui asked, "Qi Lang's martial arts master is the head of the family's guards?"

"Yes, he is the chief guard of my third house. He is very good at martial arts and is calm and steady in his work. His wife is the head of the farm. I arranged for the second son to be with Wulang, and the daughter to be with Qi Niang. I will train his eldest son to be the chief guard. You can only tell others that he is Qi Lang's martial arts master. There is no need to say anything else. The chief guard of the family is his eldest son."

"I see."

Her husband wanted to make use of the captain of the guard's family. As his wife, she naturally supported it. Men plan for the long term and big things.

Su Shao said, "Second sister is gone, and Su Su is the only one with your bloodline. You should hold her coming-of-age ceremony properly. This will also give face to the royal family. After all, Su Su was given the title of Princess."

"I don't need to." Cui replied, "This morning, the shopkeeper of Linglong Pavilion sent a message. Last time, Susu made jewelry for me and Qi Niang. She drew the pattern herself. The style is exquisite and has never been out of fashion for many years. At first glance, I thought it was made in the palace. I can't bear to wear it. The shopkeeper asked if he could sell the pattern to him, but Susu went out early this morning and didn't come back until dusk."

"Tomorrow, ask Susu."

Cui said, "Susu's drawings are so good that I want to open a silver shop to make jewelry. You don't know how poor this girl Qi Niang is. You said she has been spoiled since she was a child, and she has nothing good. She went to Linglong and bought a set of jewelry worth 20 taels of silver. Such cheap things are not suitable for her status. The daughter of an eighth or ninth rank official would not wear such things when going out. She has no taste. She always likes to compare with the girls in the Mao Mansion. No matter how many times I teach her, she won't change."

"I will talk to the manager and ask him to look for some silversmiths and craftsmen, and then open a silversmith shop in the name of the third branch of the Su family. Your dowry will be given to Qi Niang in the future. The three brothers Wu Lang still have some family assets, otherwise no one will marry them."