Poor Lady

That night, Qi's father drank a serious crime, and did not get up until noon the next day, and Qi's mother had to stay in the room to take care of him.

As the saying goes: A drunk can relieve a thousand sorrows. Qi Surong sincerely hoped that her father could forget all pains and worries and get back on his feet. At present, they have not yet overcome the predicament, and they have not much money on hand. Even if they save again and again, they will always run out of money. They can't sit still and have to find a way to make a living.

For the time being, my father couldn't count on him. He didn't know anything except to lead soldiers to fight. With his temperament, it was impossible to pull his face out to work. The mother is introverted and weak, so she should not work hard. As for the other servants, they are employed by the Qi family, and they should be raised by the Qi family, so they can't be allowed to go out to make money, right? Anyway, she Qi Surong couldn't do such a shameful thing.

After thinking about it, he seems to be the only labor force in the family.

Qi Surong bit her pen and frowned in thought.

At this time, Ping'er came in, handed her a letter, and said, "Miss, this is sent by someone from the Song House."

"Song Mansion?" Qi Surong quickly reacted. The "Song Mansion" in Ping'er's mouth refers to Song Boyi's mansion in Xicheng, Song Zhongcheng. His wife is her mother's cousin, her surname is Zhuang, and her boudoir name is Qiao'e.

Thinking of Qiao'e, Qi Surong remembered one thing, which was related to this letter.

"Ping'er, go and give the letter to my mother." Qi Surong handed the letter to Ping'er again.

"Yes."

But after a while, Mother Qi came to the study with a bit of joy on her face, and said to Qi Surong, "Rong'er, your Aunt Qiao asked her to go to Nanshan Temple for a gathering, would you like to go with her?"

"Okay." Qi Surong nodded, and asked him to hire a carriage.

Although it is necessary to save expenses now, their mother and daughter are not suitable for public appearance for the time being, so they can only spend money.

Nanshan Temple was about two or three miles away from Wangu Lane where they lived.

Mother Qi was a little excited and a little uneasy.

Qi Surong looked as usual, and helped her mother into the temple. Under the guidance of a monk, she came to the meditation room where Qiao'e was.

"Cousin!" When Qiao'e saw Qi's mother and daughter, she immediately got up to greet them and invited them to the seat.

Qi Surong looked at her with a thousand thoughts in her heart. Although Aunt Qiao has a beautiful appearance, her eyebrows and eyes are slender and she looks a bit mean, which is why Qi Surong didn't like to see her in the last life. She believes that people with such a face must be ruthless and scheming. Therefore, when Aunt Qiao offered a helping hand to her mother, she was also regarded as a kind of ill-intentioned charity and mockery.

"Cousin, how have you been recently?" Aunt Qiao asked while pouring tea.

Mother Qi sighed and smiled reluctantly: "It's okay."

"Cousin, don't be too uncomfortable. Keep an eye out. Qiao'e believes that the Qi family's downfall is only temporary."

"Thank you cousin, I'll save it." Even so, his brows did not stretch.

Qiao'e turned her head to look at Qi Surong and said, "Surong, I haven't seen you for more than half a year. You are getting more and more beautiful."

"Aunt Qiao won the prize. In front of Mother and Aunt Qiao, Surong is just a yellow-haired girl." Qi Surong poured a cup of tea for Qiao'e herself.

A trace of surprise flashed in Zhuang Qiao'e's eyes, since she was a child, her niece had never been so polite to her. She used to be cold and arrogant between her brows and eyes, but now she shows a bit of sincerity.

Several people chatted for a while, and the atmosphere was quite warm.

After a while, Qiao'e suddenly took out a bag of things from her arms, put it in Qi's mother's hand, and said, "Cousin, Qiao'e's husband is very soft-spoken and can't help much. Qiao'e is uneasy about Qi's family. All I can do is to give some vulgar things, I hope it can alleviate the need for a while. There are not many, and I ask my cousin not to dislike it. "

"No, no." Qi's mother quickly declined, "how can I ask for your things?"

"Cousin, just accept it!" Qiao'e said seriously, "Do you want me to watch you suffer without paying attention?"

Qi's mother frowned, hesitated, and her eyes fell on Qi Surong unconsciously.

Zhuang Qiao'e also followed Qi's mother's gaze and said, "Su Rong, persuade your mother for Aunt Qiao, we are a family, why bother so much?"

Qi Surong thought for a while, then suddenly said, "Aunt Qiao, can I ask you to do me a favor?"

Zhuang Qiao'e was stunned for a moment and replied, "But it's okay to say it."

"I want to ask Aunt Qiao to help me rent a small shop. You can use anyone's name. As you know, it's not convenient for us to show up for the time being. If you want to find some work, there's nothing you can do."

"What do you mean, do you want to do business?" Zhuang Qiao'e was amazed. This is the eldest Miss of the Qi family. She has never touched the spring water since she was a child, and looked down on a businessman with a stink of copper. Now she wants to open a shop, what can she do?

Qi Surong nodded and said calmly: "Aunt Qiao, you know the current situation of our family. If there is no source of life, the whole family will be hungry. We can't rely on Aunt Qiao for our whole life, can we?"

Zhuang Qiao'e hesitated for a moment, then said: "Opening a shop is at risk of losing money. If Rong'er is willing to help her family, why don't I recommend you to work at Jingxiang Embroidery Workshop. This embroidery workshop is run by a friend and will never treat you badly. you."

Qi Surong knew that Aunt Qiao couldn't trust her, and was worried that she didn't know how high the sky was, and she could only end in a tragic end.

In the last life, Aunt Qiao also proposed to let her go to Jingxiang Embroidery Workshop to be an embroiderer. She refused at that time, but due to the pressure of life, she finally gave in. However, this compromise made her regret too much.

The identity of Miss Qi's family used to be a symbol of dignity, but now it has become the target of ridicule and ridicule by others. Generally, Xiu Niang would not dare to speak rudely to her. After all, she used to be a nobleman of a famous family. Even if she is now down and out, she is a little more dignified than them. But she is arrogant and domineering, and she is obviously doing the same job, but she always looks down on others, so that she is isolated by other embroidered mothers. She didn't care about being isolated, but when she really got into trouble, she understood what it meant to be alone.

Luo Yanyi, the daughter of Shang Shu, used to be one of her best friends. Said to be girlfriends, in fact, it is only because of their status that they often communicate with each other. Among the noble girls, she has always been on the top, as long as she is there, other girls can only succumb to it. She enjoys the honor of the stars and the moon, but she doesn't know how many people hate her.

The news that she was working in the embroidery workshop was quickly learned by Luo Yanyi. So, she brought several other girlfriends to challenge every day. They mocked, insulted, made things difficult, and even sent people to besiege her on her way home, beat and kicked her, and bullied her to the extreme.

But the pain on her body was far less than the shame and anger that her dignity was trampled on.

In the end, she left the embroidery workshop and stayed in the room all day, unwilling to face outsiders again.

But the matter is not over yet, the mother took over her work and went to the embroidery workshop every day to work. She has a mild temperament and never likes arguing with others, but the eldest young ladies have not restrained in the slightest. For the sake of her family, my mother endured it abruptly. I thought that with such forbearance, the suffering would one day pass.

Unexpectedly, a few days later, the mother returned home with blood on her hands, and she no longer held the embroidery needle steadily.

Qi Surong closed her somewhat sour eyes, gently held her mother's hand, and tried her best to suppress the anger and remorse in her heart.

She said, "Aunt Qiao, do you think it is suitable for me to work in the embroidery workshop?"

"This…"

"Qiaoyi," Qi Surong picked up the bag of silver and said sternly, "this money is your initial investment, and I will give you a corresponding share in the future. I only hope that you can help me rent a shop, The store doesn’t need to be too big, but the location has to be good.”

"What store do you want to open?" Zhuang Qiao'e continued to ask without answering directly.

"Xiu Zhuang."

"'Embroidery' village? Do you buy or sell embroidery?"

"No, no." Qi Surong smiled, "Not only embroidery, but all kinds of clothing."

Zhang Qiao'e frowned and said, "Tell me specifically?"

"I'm planning to open a tailor-made boutique for the nobility, selling everything from headwear, clothing, accessories to all kinds of embroidery."

"In this case, I'm afraid it will require a lot of capital, right?"

"I thought about it carefully. If I only receive one or two orders a month, my mother and I will be enough."

"Only one or two orders a month?" Zhang Qiao'e said incredulously, "Wouldn't this be a loss?"

Qi Surong smiled and said, "What if there are at least a thousand taels in one order?"

"Thousands of taels?" Zhuang Qiao'e pondered for a while, considering the spending power of the capital's noble children, several thousand taels is not unusual, but the reputation of the shop must be sold first, otherwise everything is empty talk. People in the capital place the most importance on their reputation and face, which is by no means something that ordinary people can impress.

"Aunt Qiao, what do you think of my outfit?" Qi Surong asked suddenly.

Zhuang Qiao'e looked intently, and saw Su Rong in a plain satin skirt with a blue bottom, intertwined branches and collars, butterflies and flowers blooming on the sleeves, a finely embroidered gold-encrusted brocade bag hanging from her waist, and a yellow wishful knot hanging down. Look at her bun again, with clouds hanging down silk, hairpins and flowers on the temples, simple and complicated, elegant and beautiful. If she has eight points of color, with this dress, it is ten.

"Outsiders only know that I am proficient in piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, but they don't know that I am actually good at embroidery and hairpins." Her embroidery skills were passed down from her mother, and her talent is quite high. The dress is always the most special among the ladies. It's just that she has never shown off her skills to anyone. She thinks this is the work of inferior people. Rather than making fun of it, it is better to make others think that their family has the best embroiderers and craftsmen in the world.

Zhuang Qiao'e was taken aback again. She felt that her sullen face was very different from before. Whether it was her demeanor or her temperament, she was less domineering and arrogant, and more calm and mature.

If it was before, she would definitely not agree to her request to open a shop, but at this moment, she is a little shaken.

She asked, "It's not difficult to open a store, but how are you going to make your store famous?"

"Aunt Qiao, if I remember correctly, it will be the Queen's birthday in a month, so you will definitely attend, right?"

"You mean..." Zhuang Qiao'e's eyes lit up.

The corner of Qi Surong's mouth also showed a slight smile.