Chapter 9 The Gathering of the Rich

  For the past month, the shop on West Street No. 6 that was covered with black cloth had become the most talked-about topic among the people of Shazhou. Every time someone passed by, they would occasionally peek inside. One morning, people suddenly discovered that a hole had been torn in the middle of the large black cloth, and the golden sign inside could be vaguely seen. Some curious onlookers tiptoed to take a look, and only then did they see the four golden characters on the sign: "Dayang Department Store". The name was quite refreshing, as the shops in Shazhou City were usually called "Deyuan" or "Kelong", but no one knew what the two words "Dayang" meant. Of course, the ordinary people wouldn't know that Qiuyue had been thinking about the double-skinned milk on the lower level of Dayang Department Store since her previous life, and now that she had opened a shop, she almost thoughtlessly came up with this name. The word "Dayang" also implied a surging tide of customers.

  "How's everything going? Tomorrow..."

  "Everything is going smoothly, and tomorrow's big event for Miss will definitely not be missed."

  Under the moonlight, the old and young duo seemed to be secretly meeting like a clandestine organization. It wasn't that Qi wanted to make every encounter so mysterious, but rather that Uncle Sima was like a nocturnal deity who only liked to venture out at night. The next day was the grand opening of Dayang Department Store, and flyers had already been distributed all over the streets. The officials and business elites in Shazhou City had also received an invitation with only four characters: "Dayang Department Store". Originally, those official gentlemen, such as Wang Ye and Li Ye, could have ignored this anonymous invitation, but everyone has a curious heart. Earlier, the property at 6 West Street was purchased by someone named Sima under Zhu's assistance, and had been shrouded in mystery with black cloth for many days. Although they were used to all sorts of things in the business world, they still couldn't help but feel curious about this store.

  The sound of firecrackers, this day was originally lively on Fenghuang West Street, and now it's even more crowded with people. In the distance, a pair of lion dance teams are slowly moving towards that shop which is still covered in black cloth. Although those shops usually hire lion or dragon dancers when they open, everyone can tell that this time the scale is far beyond what's normal for a common shop opening. This scene seems to be reminiscent of the last time it was seen at the opening of Zhu's Jinxiu Building. It's said that the owner of this shop has some connections with Master Zhu, no wonder there's such a big show. The surrounding citizens are also whispering among themselves.

  Simar thought he was going to laugh so hard his face would cramp up, and the crowd of onlookers was so large that Miss's idea of distributing flyers had clearly worked. He had originally thought that those invitations sent to the nobles must have long since been ignored, but things were always unpredictable. Not to mention the many bosses who had already come over to congratulate him, he had also investigated the major shops in Shazhou City beforehand and naturally recognized this as Jiangnan Ju's Lu boss, and that was the red daughter of the silk shop. Although they couldn't compare to the Zhu and Gan families, they were still respectable figures in Shazhou. Just dealing with these people made him anxious, and it seemed like there were several sedan chairs parked not far away. He finally understood why Miss had insisted on staying at Guangyuan Pawnshop, no matter what, and had even given it a nice name, "respecting her profession".

  Inside the pawnshop, Qi Xie was leisurely drinking tea with Gui Shu. Although Qi Xie saw what Gui Shu was doing in the shop, she never said much about it. She knew that Gui Shu wouldn't change his ways just because of her words. What he said was a mix of truth and falsehood, and she didn't want to judge or bother judging. She would let Gan Jing worry about it instead. In fact, she also understood that on that day, Gan Jing had only made her his eyes and ears, or perhaps it was an ultimatum to Gui Shu and the young master of the Gan family. The meaning was clear: you can have money easily, but don't go behind my back to get it.

  But on such a good day, Qiuxu didn't want to worry about these things. As soon as she thought of Sima's current situation, she couldn't help but laugh lightly. All along, he had always been fearless and able to solve everything beautifully. This time, she wanted to see how he would deal with it. Wouldn't he just kill all those insignificant bosses in a fit of rage? I wonder if Ganjing and that Zhu Ye have received the post too, and whether they will go or not. This is Qiuxu's declaration of war.

  Across from the Pacific Department Store was a simple tea house. Those with some status would not go to such a place for tea, but it's said that this tea house not only served cooling tea, but also had an owner who was a great talker and would often make up new stories on the spot. As a result, this became a gathering place for the poor masses and street vendors. What the small boss didn't expect was that two noble guests arrived at this humble shack. Two sedan chairs almost simultaneously stopped in front of the tea house, and from them emerged two people. One was a young man in yellow clothes with a warm smile on his face, holding a folding fan with "Thousand Years of Wind Flow" written on it - clearly a young master from some family. The other was a white-clad young man with a tall and straight figure, a cold expression, and an air of not wanting to be approached. Although the style of his white clothes was ordinary, the material looked expensive. Seeing the snacks scattered on the wooden bench, he frowned slightly, seemingly afraid of getting his white clothes dirty.

  Today is a strange day, it seems that all the wealthy people have gathered together. Oh, even the county magistrate has arrived. In the hearts of ordinary people, there is no one greater than an official, so when the county magistrate's sedan chair appeared, the shock to the small boss was far greater than the sudden arrival of the two noble guests in the cool tea shop. The two people inside the tea shop also nodded slightly to each other as a greeting, looking like two strangers meeting for the first time. If Gan Jing didn't recognize the person who came, the warm and refined young man did, and if he knew later that the young man sitting with him in the tea shop was actually Zhu Ye, whom he had always hated and wanted to drink his blood and eat his flesh, would he be so angry that he would get internal injuries?

  When Sima personally added the final touches to the dragon, a burst of firecrackers sounded in front of Dayang Department Store. The black cloth was almost instantly removed, revealing an unforgettable sight that left everyone present speechless and wide-eyed, afraid to blink lest they miss something or wake up from a dream. It was as if they had entered a crystal palace, a fantasy world that surpassed reality. Even Gan Jing and Zhu Jinyan's hands trembled slightly as they held their tea cups. They couldn't help but wonder about the owner of the store, thinking that the smiling man outside couldn't possibly be the real boss. What other wonders could this mysterious owner create? The two men looked at each other with a mixture of admiration and curiosity for the mastermind behind Dayang Department Store.