GTB Chapter 10
by VolareChapter 10: You… Want to Rent a Shop?
The spring breeze was warm, and in Crabapple Courtyard, two girls were sitting beneath a crabapple tree laden with buds. On the stone table before them were plates of exquisite pastries, not much in quantity, but with a wide variety of styles.
These pastries were made by Aunt Lan in her household. She had always felt that Aunt Lan’s skill was excellent, even better than those made in the pastry shops of An Yang County. Now, if they were sold in Kyoto, they would definitely stand out.
After tasting each one, Ji Shutíng nodded, “Not bad, delicious. Then let’s open a pastry shop. Although we won’t make a lot of money, at least the capital investment is small.”
Jiang Jiuchu had already anticipated Ji Shutíng’s praise. After all, even her princess sister-in-law, who was accustomed to the delicacies of the imperial kitchens, had praised the taste as excellent.
“That’s not necessarily true. Good business can still make a lot of money. Besides, the shop doesn’t have to be that big. Maybe we can save a little on rent.”
Ji Shutíng stood up and said, “Then why don’t we go to East Magpie Street now and see if there are any suitable shops?”
“There’s no need to be so hasty! In less than an hour, it will be time for lunch. It’s not too late to go after lunch!”
“I’ll treat you to lunch outside. Let’s go! Aren’t you tired of eating the same food in the mansion every day?” Ji Shutíng said, standing up, “I haven’t had the food at Taste Immortal Pavilion for a long time, and I’m craving it.”
“Wait, it’s better for us to change into men’s attire to look for a shop.”
Jiang Jiuchu pulled Ji Shutíng into the house and took out two sets of men’s clothing that she had her maid buy yesterday.
Ji Shutíng looked at the brand-new men’s clothing in her hand and joked, “You bought more? Are you addicted to wearing them!”
Jiang Jiuchu unfastened her belt as she said, “I’m doing this for the sake of opening a shop, just in case. After all, we’ll have to show our faces a few times in the early stages. Hurry up and change!”
At the entrance of the Jiang mansion, Jiang Jiuche had just gotten off his carriage when he saw two familiar figures walking out of the mansion. He stepped forward and realized it was his younger sister.
“Jiuchu, why are you dressed as men? Where are you going?”
Jiang Jiuchu didn’t expect to run into her older brother as soon as she went out. If her brother knew she was going to open a shop, he definitely wouldn’t agree.
“Brother, we’re not going anywhere. We’re just going shopping. Um… Shutíng is treating me to lunch at Taste Immortal Pavilion. We’re dressed like this because we think men’s attire is more convenient.”
Hearing this, Jiang Jiuche thought of what Ya’er had said to him earlier. He seemed to understand why his sister wanted to dress as a man, so he instructed:
“Alright, go ahead! Come back to the mansion early in the afternoon. Don’t play too late.”
“Got it, Brother.” After Jiang Jiuchu responded, she and Ji Shutíng got into the carriage.
Inside the carriage, Ji Shutíng leaned over and whispered, “We can’t tell your parents and brother about this, right?”
“Yeah, let’s not say anything yet, otherwise my parents won’t agree. We’ll tell them after the shop is open and we don’t need to show our faces anymore.”
Ji Shutíng nodded in agreement, “That’s right. Looking at your brother just now, I can tell he definitely wouldn’t agree.”
“By the way, why do I feel like your brother is a bit strict with you, almost stricter than your parents?”
“It’s probably because I went out to play with my brother when I was young and got lost once, so my brother has been a little nervous ever since. But he’s not really strict with me, he just asks more questions and gives more instructions.”
Jiang Jiuchu remembered that after that incident, for a long time, whenever her brother took her out, he would hold her hand tightly, not daring to let go for a moment.
Hearing this, Ji Shutíng looked at Jiang Jiuchu in surprise, and then said with concern:
“Oh! So there’s a story behind this! Then you almost became a lost little beggar? How pitiful! Come here, let me give you a hug.”
Jiang Jiuchu quickly refused, “No, no, no, I can’t handle being embraced by such a beauty.”
Ji Shutíng: “Ew~ Jiuchu, you’ve turned bad.”
The two laughed and joked in the carriage, and soon arrived at East Magpie Street.
As a result, after the two of them walked around East Magpie Street, they didn’t see a single shop for rent. Even the slightly larger shop they had seen a few days ago had been rented out.
Feeling hungry after walking around, the two had lunch at Taste Immortal Pavilion and then went to West Magpie Street to continue looking for a shop.
“Jiuchu, look, the shop in front seems to be moving things out. I remember that shop was a tea house. Are they relocating?” Ji Shutíng pointed to a shop in front of them.
“Let’s go ask.”
The two walked closer and asked the errand boy who was moving things onto a carriage, “Little brother, are you moving the tea house? Or…”
After putting the things down, the errand boy replied to the two, “You’re right, young masters, we are indeed relocating.”
Jiang Jiuchu and Ji Shutíng were overjoyed when they heard this. “May I ask if your shopkeeper is here? I would like to ask him about the shop.”
“The shopkeeper is on the second floor.” After the errand boy finished speaking, he turned around and continued moving things.
Ji Shutíng looked at the size of the two shops in front of her. “Jiuchu, isn’t this shop a bit too big?”
“If the rent is right, it doesn’t matter if it’s a bit bigger. Let’s ask first! Maybe someone has already rented it.”
As soon as the two went upstairs, they saw two people sitting by the window, and one of them made Jiang Jiuchu stop in her tracks.
Ji Shutíng took the lead and walked forward, looking at the two and asking, “May I ask which one of you is the shopkeeper?”
One of the older men, who looked nearly sixty years old, got up when he heard this. “I am. What can I do for you, young masters?”
“Old sir, we want to rent a shop. We saw that you were relocating, so we wanted to ask if you are subletting the shop?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, I’ve already sold the shop to this young master and plan to retire and return to my hometown.”
After the shopkeeper finished speaking, he turned to Song Fuge and said, “Young Master Song, now that everything has been handed over, I will go downstairs and get busy.”
Song Fuge nodded slightly, his gaze falling on Jiang Jiuchu.
“Fu… Young Master Fu, hello.”
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Jiuchu still stepped forward to say hello, but she didn’t dare to call him Brother Fu anymore.
Because the day before, her brother had sent him an invitation, but he had refused, saying that he appreciated the thought and that they didn’t need to be so polite.
This was clearly a way of declining, and her parents and brother all guessed that he didn’t want to associate with their official family.
The unfamiliar address made Song Fuge slightly stunned. After a moment, he guessed the reason.
He glanced at Ji Shutíng and then looked at Jiang Jiuchu again. “Your friend wants to rent a shop?”
Ji Shutíng was wondering how the two knew each other. When she heard Song Fuge’s question, she quickly replied, “It’s me and her renting together.”
She felt that since this person knew Jiuchu and was asking this, there was definitely hope.
“You… Want to open a shop?”
Song Fuge was a little surprised. After all, he didn’t think the Jiang family would let a young girl come out to open a shop. Looking at the two dressed as men, he guessed that it was mostly a whim, done behind their families’ backs.
Seeing Jiang Jiuchu nod in response, his eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment of hesitation, he said:
“It just so happens that I bought this shop to rent out anyway, so why not rent it to you?”
Song Fuge’s words surprised Jiang Jiuchu a little. She thought to herself, wasn’t he buying the shop to do business himself?
Also, didn’t he not want to associate with her family? Why did he take the initiative to rent the shop to her?
She immediately realized that a lease relationship didn’t really count as associating with them.
Hearing this, Ji Shutíng’s face lit up, and she quickly asked, “Young Master, how much is the rent per year?”