Chapter 368: Minister Shen’s Thoughts
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Also, we also need a place to settle our workers in advance.
“It will save me the trouble of having to buy workers at the last minute every time 1 need extra hands in the future.” Even if they used a brokerage in the capital, it was not always possible to get a suitable worker every time.
“Yes, Lord Marquis,” Liu Ling answered.
Qin Xiaoyao looked at Liu Ling again and suddenly recalled what her precocious disciple had said earlier.
“Do you know Song Rui?” she suddenly asked.
She didn’t pay much attention to it before, but now that she thought about it,
Liu Ling and her husband did look too similar.
Liu Ling was startled.
When he saw Qin Xiaoyao’s eyes fluctuate, he quickly regained his composure.
“Is it that Young Master Song from the Prime Minister’s residence?” he asked Qin Xiaoyao.
Only then did the suspicion in Qin Xiaoyao’s heart dissipate.
“Mm-hmm,” she replied.
“That person has been very famous recently. I’ve naturally heard of him.” As he spoke, a smile appeared on Liu Ling’s face.
“I heard that Young Master Song is not only very talented but also very handsome. Unfortunately, 1, Liu Ling, am not fated to meet him.”
Qin Xiaoyao glanced at Liu Ling again before retracting her gaze.
“You’ll have the chance to meet him sooner or later.”
Ignoring Liu Ling’s surprised expression, Qin Xiaoyao changed the topic.
“Continue to keep an eye on the workshop and put in extra effort for the next few days.
“When the manor has been purchased and the workshop is moved over, arrange for people to guard the manor. At that juncture, you can take some time off to work on the expansion of the porridge shop.”
“Yes, Lord Marquis,” Liu Ling answered again.
Qin Xiaoyao nodded.
She chatted with Liu Ling about the business before allowing him to leave.
At this moment, in the study in the Prime Minister’s residence.
As soon as Minister Shen returned to the residence, he summoned Song Rui to the study for a chat.
After Song Rui arrived, he bowed respectfully to Minister Shen.
However, this time, Minister Shen was not as enthusiastic as before and did not allow Song Rui to straighten up.
The atmosphere in the study was very tense. Minister Shen’s displeasure was particularly obvious at this point.
Song Rui remained calm and maintained his bowed posture, but his expression did not change.
After an unknown amount of time, when Song Rui felt his waist and legs go numb and he could barely hold on, Minister Shen finally spoke.
“No need for formalities.”
Song Rui’s eyes flickered. He put down his cupped hands and straightened up.
“Thank you, my lord!” he replied calmly.
Minister Shen glanced at Song Rui and saw that his expression was normal. A sense of admiration welled up in his heart.
However, the more this was the case, the more he could not suppress the anger in his heart.
“Today, the Emperor and the Empress summoned you. Do you know what the Empress is thinking?” Minister Shen quickly asked.
He did not expect that the Empress would also take a fancy to the person he had taken a fancy to.
Moreover, she wanted to snatch his man and give him to Princess Xiangyang as her prospective marriage partner.
If it was just someone he thought highly of, and the Empress took a fancy to him later, not only would he not stop her, he would even offer that person up with both hands.
However, he really liked Song Rui.
Rong’er was his only daughter, and he wanted Song Rui to marry into his family so that he could raise him as his son. This was to pave the way for him to inherit everything in the Prime Minister’s residence and uphold the glory of the Shen family.
He was prepared to entrust the future of the Shen family to Song Rui.
How could he let go of such a person so easily?
However, this matter concerned the Empress.
If Song Rui was tempted, he would have to let go even if he didn’t want to.
What annoyed him was that after the Empress’s interference today, his authority to suppress and control Song Rui had undoubtedly weakened.
Previously, he had the absolute advantage, and Song Rui could only rely on him if he wanted to stand out.
And he was willing to let Song Rui marry into the Shen family and take their family name. It could be considered a great gift to Song Rui, and also the best way for him to rise to the top and enter the Imperial Court as an official.
However, now, the Empress had also extended an olive branch to Song Rui.
Now that his future son-in-law Song Rui’s reputation was already known, and he was also favored by the Empress, if he really joined the Empress’s camp, the Shen family’s residence would really be helpless.
Not only would he be helpless, but if Song Rui really became the son-in-law of the Empress, he would probably have to show that guy a fair amount of respect.
At the thought of this possibility, Minister Shen became more and more irritated, and even felt a little disgusted.
When had he, Shen Ming, ever helped other people achieve their aspirations without gaining any benefits for himself?
Song Rui’s eyes flickered, and he quickly cupped his hands and bowed to Minister Shen again.
“I have some guesses. However, I don’t dare to think too much about it,” he said in a neither servile nor overbearing manner.
Minister Shen’s eyes became stern.
“I’ll allow you to think too much. What are you going to do?” When he asked this question, Minister Shen’s eyes had already narrowed.
Song Rui paused.
Then, he raised his head to look at Minister Shen before lowering his head again.
Following that, he cupped his hands and said, “I’ve already expressed my feelings to the Empress. My heart already belongs to someone else.” This was clearly a rejection.
His heart indeed belonged to someone else.
He only had his wife in his heart, and his heart and eyes were occupied by that woman.
However, when these words reached Minister Shen’s ears, he simply assumed that guy was referring to his own daughter.
The reason he took a fancy to Song Rui was not only because of his ability but also because his daughter treated Song Rui differently from other men.
His daughter was famous for her talent. Even though she was engaged to the Meng family previously, the engagement was later annulled by him.
In spite of this, with the powerful influence of the Prime Minister’s residence, there were still many families who wanted to propose marriage to his daughter.
However, none of those families caught his eye, and he did not plan to let his daughter marry out of the family.
He and his wife had mentioned the matter of taking in a live-in son-in-law to his daughter before, but his daughter had always been pining for that fellow Meng Xuan.
His wife had arranged many young masters from reputable families for her, but she didn’t take a fancy to any of them. On the contrary, she kept begging them to help her reunite with Meng Xuan.
Of course, he wouldn’t allow that.
It was under such circumstances that Song Rui appeared next to his daughter.
Although this person’s family background wasn’t good, he was very talented and skillful in handling things.
Most importantly, his daughter didn’t reject this person. In fact, she treated him differently from the other men.
Although he was not a woman, he believed that a person like Song Rui could easily capture a woman’s heart if he had the intention.
He was already prepared to find a husband for his daughter.
The Prime Minister’s residence was rich and powerful, so there was no need for a live-in son-in-law to have an influential background.
It was even better if the son-in-law had a lower social status. It was more convenient for him to control the son-in-law.
With him watching from the side, he was not afraid that his son-in-law would rebel.
After meeting Song Rui, he actually had such thoughts.
After a few rounds of probing and discovering Song Rui’s talent, he was even more tempted.
Therefore, when his wife came to him to talk about this matter, he consented immediately.
He even allowed his wife to talk to Song Rui about marrying into his family.
After receiving an affirmative answer, he began to pave the way for Song Rui and groomed him as his future son-in-law.
However, he did not expect that Song Rui would not only develop very well but even exceeded his expectations. In the end, the Empress suddenly intervened.
Fortunately, Song Rui still had feelings for his Rong’er and had politely rejected the Empress.
When he thought of this, Minister Shen’s expression became more relaxed.
“Princess Xiangyang is still young. The Empress only had such thoughts in a fit of excitement. You mustn’t take it seriously,” Minister Shen said.
“Yes, my lord,” Song Rui replied respectfully.
When Minister Shen saw Song Rui’s reaction, he was pleased.
“Rong’er is devoted to you, and I also treat you as my son..”