Transmigrated into the Scumbag Ex-Wife of the Prime Minister - Chapter 62

As soon as Lu Huaying heard that the winery could earn five hundred taels a year just by selling the Five-Grain Liquor, her intestines twisted with regret.

First, she regretted instigating her father to withdraw from the winery back then. Second, she should have sold the liquor recipe for more money, perhaps two hundred taels.

She had truly sold it for too little.

Wang Xiufen shared her thoughts. Pinching Lu Huaying’s waist, she gritted her teeth and scolded her in a voice only the two of them could hear, “You good-for-nothing, you only sold such a good thing for one hundred taels! You’re a pig-brain!”

Lu Huaying cried out in pain and complained to Wang Xiufen, “How was I supposed to know it was worth so much? That Boss Li tricked me! I was rushing to get money for Xiao Ze…”

After listening to Qi Zhenshu’s words, Lu Sheng really didn’t want to waste any more time on these people from the second branch.

She had called the clan elder over initially to be a witness, but unexpectedly, he had now become an obstacle to reporting Lu Huaying to the authorities.

However, since he was here, she still had to give him some face, but she couldn’t let Lu Huaying off easily.

If she didn’t teach her a harsh lesson this time, who knows what troublesome things she might do in the future.

Lu Sheng stood on her tiptoes and whispered a question into Qi Zhenshu’s ear. Qi Zhenshu thought for a moment, then leaned down to reply to her. Lu Sheng’s eyes shifted upon hearing his answer. Qi Zhenshu understood and gave her a slight nod.

“Great-Uncle Zeng, the Five-Grain Liquor was originally a unique product of the Lu Family Winery. Now that the recipe has been stolen and sold, the winery’s loss is far more than just one hundred taels,” Lu Sheng turned around, cupped her hands, and said to the clan elder.

“Theft is a serious criminal offense, and given how bad the circumstances are, we should, by rights, report it to the officials. However, the thief is from within our Lu clan. If she were to be branded and exiled, it would surely damage the Lu family’s reputation in Binhe County.”

“Moreover, with such an elder above us, I fear that our Lu family descendants will be affected in future matters, whether it’s finding a spouse or taking the Imperial Examinations.”

Lu Sheng spoke while observing the clan elder’s expression. With every sentence she uttered, the elder’s face grew darker.

Damaging the family’s reputation and affecting the descendants’ careers—with these two charges leveled against them, even if the clan elder wanted to smooth things over, he had to carefully consider the consequences.

Seeing that the time was right, Lu Sheng acted magnanimously and continued, “For the sake of our Lu clan’s reputation, let the clan handle this matter.”

Before the clan elder could speak, Lu Huaying couldn’t hold back. She glared fiercely at Lu Sheng, shouting, “You brat, what do you mean!”

Handing it over to the clan meant being punished according to the clan rules. Although the clan rules weren’t as strict as the law, they would still involve a beating with the board.

“If you’re not satisfied, then don’t blame me for being heartless and having to report it to the officials,” Lu Sheng glanced at her, saying crossly.

Her attitude was clear: either punishment by the clan rules or resolution through the officials. There was no third option.

“Lu Sheng, you bastard! I’ve already compensated you with the eagle, what more do you want!”

Seeing that Lu Sheng wouldn’t let her go, Lu Huaying became furious and tried to rush forward to hit her again. This time, Lu Hualin reacted quickly and blocked her before she could advance.

“You scoundrel, you good-for-nothing woman, you even want to report it to the officials, go on, report it, report it!”

Seeing more and more people gathering, the clan elder sternly ordered his nephew nearby, “Lu Wu, Lu Lin, take her to the ancestral hall.”

After giving his orders, he turned and left the courtyard, not wanting to see the ranting Lu Huaying anymore.

It was only then that Lu Huaying truly panicked. She turned and shouted at Wang Xiufen, “Mom, Mom, please help me.”

Seeing her being dragged out of the courtyard, Wang Xiufen anxiously tugged at Lu Hualin’s sleeve, “Da Linzi, Da Linzi, please say something for her.”

“Ah Sheng is… is right.” Lu Hualin was full of anger and wasn’t willing to plead for Lu Huaying.

“Xiao Sheng, Xiao Sheng.” Wang Xiufen couldn’t persuade him, so she turned to Lu Sheng, “Look, we…”

“Aunt, if you can cover the winery’s losses, then we won’t pursue this matter anymore.”

Lu Sheng’s single sentence instantly blocked Wang Xiufen. She didn’t even want to pay one hundred taels, so how could she compensate for the winery’s losses?

“Third Uncle!” Wang Xiufen bit her lip and stamped her foot, quickly running out the door to chase after the clan elder and his group.

Seeing the crowd walk away, Lu Hualin walked over to Lu Sheng, his face troubled, “Ah Sheng, what… what should the winery do now?”

Lu Sheng pondered for a while but couldn’t come up with a good solution. She could only comfort Lu Hualin first, “I’ll think about it when I get back. Don’t worry too much, Uncle. We can lower the price for now. We still have the Chrysanthemum Wine and the Golden Cherry Wine. Once those two wines are ready, they will be unique to our family again.”

Although she said this, Lu Sheng still had underlying worries. Without the semi-solid state brewing method as a technical barrier, it would be much easier for other families to follow suit.

“That’s the only way,” Lu Hualin sighed deeply.

He had been brewing wine for half his life, so he could instantly tell that while those two wines were new, they didn’t really have any secret recipe. It would be quick for others to learn.

“We will have other new wines in the future. As long as we introduce new products fast enough, others will only be able to imitate us,” Lu Sheng smiled to comfort him, “I will think of a method later that others can’t easily learn.”

Seeing her so optimistic, Lu Hualin also cheered up, “I’m going to the ancestral hall to take a look.”

“I won’t go.” After a morning of trouble, Lu Sheng really didn’t want to waste any more energy on Lu Huaying. She turned to Qi Zhenshu and said, “Let’s go home.”

“Mhm.”

Just as they were about to leave, Lu Sheng suddenly remembered something. She turned back to pick up the birdcage in the courtyard.

The birdcage was large, about half the length of Lu Sheng’s arm, and was covered with a thick cotton cloth, wrapping the cage tightly.

Lu Sheng lifted a corner of the cloth. Immediately, a sharp cry sounded, and at the same time, a white hooked claw swiftly darted out, narrowly missing her finger.

Hearing the noise, Qi Zhenshu also quickly walked to her side, took the birdcage, and asked, “Did you get hurt?”

“No, it didn’t scratch me,” Lu Sheng was momentarily stunned, then smiled at him, “This little thing is quite fierce.”

From that quick glance, Lu Sheng got a general idea: the eagle was small and likely still a fledgling.

“It’s an eagle, I told you. Why are you taking it?” Qi Zhenshu frowned slightly.

“It was given as compensation for our debt, of course, I’m taking it back.” Lu Sheng winked at him.

It was probably hopeless to expect Lu Huaying to pay back the one hundred taels. This bird was a bonus, and if she didn’t take it, Lu Huaying would benefit.

In Lu Sheng’s world, the Gyrfalcon was considered a rare bird. She had only ever heard of it but never seen one, so she was curious.

“It might not be easy to keep at home,” Qi Zhenshu analyzed.

Lu Sheng thought about it. Keeping a bird of prey like an eagle at home long-term was indeed unsuitable.

“Then let’s take it back first and see if we can sell it later.”

Lu Huaying bought it for one hundred and twenty taels. If she offered a discount and sold it for one hundred taels, it should work. Although it couldn’t cover the winery’s loss, it would be a small consolation.

Talking as they walked, the two left the second branch’s courtyard and, after a distance, arrived at the slope of their own house.

Seeing Lu Sheng stop, Qi Zhenshu asked, “Are you tired?”

Having dealt with Lu Huaying for so long and worrying about the winery, Qi Zhenshu clearly sensed the fatigue in Lu Sheng.

He looked up the slope and asked, “Do you want to go home and rest for a bit?”

When they moved to the county, they bought new furniture, so their old furniture was left behind, which meant they had a place to sit and rest.

“Mhm, let’s go back and sit for a while.”

Passing by the Niu family, Qi Zhenshu asked Lu Sheng to wait outside and went into the courtyard himself.

After a short while, Qi Zhenshu emerged, holding a plaster.

“Hold out your hand,” Qi Zhenshu slightly raised his chin.

Lu Sheng was momentarily surprised, her eyes growing brighter. She smiled with curved eyebrows and held out her hand.

In fact, after that confession which wasn’t quite a formal declaration of feelings, their lives seemed largely unchanged from before. However, Lu Sheng could always detect subtle changes in Qi Zhenshu.

Qi Zhenshu was willing to be closer to her, for example, he would wrap his arm around her every night to sleep.

Qi Zhenshu was more gentle and considerate towards her, just like today, where he would come to find her out of worry, remember the injury on her hand, and get medicine for her.

Qi Zhenshu rolled up her sleeve, seeing a large, slightly swollen area of red skin. He couldn’t help but frown, “It’s all swollen like this, and you just said you were fine.”

“The Niu family’s plaster is made by Auntie herself from foraged herbs. It’s especially good for reducing swelling.” He said this while tearing open the plaster and carefully applying it to Lu Sheng’s wrist, “You’re usually so quick-witted, why didn’t you know to avoid it?”

Qi Zhenshu’s words sounded like a reprimand, but every sentence was filled with care and concern.

Lu Sheng didn’t feel unhappy at all after hearing this; instead, her pair of round eyes were almost closed from smiling.

“You mustn’t lift anything with this wrist for the next few days.”

As he spoke, Qi Zhenshu paused, turned over her palm, and his furrowed brows remained tight, “Do you feel any pain in the bone? Maybe you should go to Doctor Ding to see if there’s any bone injury.”

Having known him for so long, Qi Zhenshu was usually very reserved with his words unless it was about serious matters. Hearing him talk so much, Lu Sheng actually found this side of him particularly endearing.

Seeing no response from Lu Sheng for a while, Qi Zhenshu looked up at her, only to see Lu Sheng staring blankly at him with a slight smile.

“What are you smiling at?” Qi Zhenshu asked, puzzled.

“Feeling happy, so naturally I’m smiling,” Lu Sheng laughed.

Qi Zhenshu didn’t understand. He thought that after such a big incident today, Lu Sheng should be worried, so why would she be happy?

“Did you think of a new method?” Qi Zhenshu guessed.

“Not really.” Lu Sheng was too embarrassed to share her private thoughts with him, so she went along with his words to change the topic, “But I’ll definitely think of something.”

Once she had time, she would seriously consider modern brewing techniques; she was sure to find a method with a technological breakthrough.

“Mhm, you can take your time thinking when we get back.” Qi Zhenshu was still worried about Lu Sheng’s hand injury, “Let’s still go to Doctor Ding and have her check it.”

“I heard you. It’s just a bit swollen, no bone injury. No need to go to Doctor Ding.” Lu Sheng curled her fingers, hooking them with Qi Zhenshu’s hand, and smiled, “Qi Zhenshu, let’s go home.”

“Mhm.” Qi Zhenshu reached out to take the birdcage from her hand, “I’ll carry it.”

The ‘home’ Lu Sheng spoke of wasn’t up the slope but a turn in direction, heading out of the village.

Looking at their clasped hands, Qi Zhenshu belatedly realized what Lu Sheng’s ‘happy’ was referring to.

A faint blush appeared on his pale cheeks. Qi Zhenshu pursed his lips and turned his head to look at the trees along the road.

The weather was warming, everything was reviving. The withered branches from winter were sprouting tender green buds, full of vibrant life.

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