Chapter Seventy-Five: Solution

  As he entered the Jade Carving Workshop, Ye Zhuo saw Luo Jing Sheng standing in front of a young man wearing a purple satin robe, his head slightly lowered and his face filled with despair. On the desk behind him was placed a piece of jade material, which was transparent to the point of being colorless except for the middle section that showed a hint of red, yet equally crystal clear, making it obvious that the quality of the jade was exceptional. At this moment, the jade material had already been carved into a circular jade plate, on top of which was a half-reclining woman, with her back leaning against a large peach. Unfortunately, the side of the peach facing downwards had been damaged by a knife cut, making it seem as if someone had taken a bite out of it, ruining the overall aesthetic.

  That young man was probably eighteen or nineteen years old, although he was dressed in finery, his face was dark and his skin was somewhat rough, the hands holding the teacup were also relatively short and thick, but rather like a person who often did rough work. However, surrounded by so many people, he was extremely calm, with his eyes downcast, slowly drinking tea, as if he hadn't seen Luo Jing standing in front of him, nor had he seen the full house of people. Another fifteen or sixteen year old servant stood to his right and spoke to Luo Jing: "...... When will your master finally arrive? Didn't you say that he lived not far from here? Won't he have heard about the big incident at Yu Zhu Fang and run away?"

  Luo Jing Sheng lightly shook his head, raised it and was about to speak when he suddenly saw Ye Zhuo enter, instantly feeling relieved. He said: "The young lady from the East House has arrived." Then with a face full of shame, he took a step forward, made a bow to Ye Zhuo, and lowered his head: "Miss Ye, I've caused big trouble for Master Dong."

  Ye Zhuo glanced at Luo Jing Sheng, not saying a word, and turned around to slightly bow to the young man. She opened her mouth and said: "This young master is polite. I am Ye family's daughter, my grandfather went out early, Uncle Li has already gone to Yu Street to look for him, he will be back soon. Please ask the young master to wait a little."

  "It was Miss Ye." The young man's eyes flashed with surprise when he saw Ye Zhuo, and then his expression changed. He stood up with a smile and returned the courtesy to Ye Zhuo, "I am Wang Chengdong, nice to meet you, Miss Ye."

  "Wang Chengdong?" Ye Zhuo thought for a moment, and then suddenly remembered who Wang Chengdong was. A few days ago, Ye Yu Zhang came to the main house to propose marriage, saying that the suitable person to marry into their family was none other than Wang Chengdong.

  Wasn't he supposed to be poor and wanted to come to the Jade Workshop to do rough work? Why is he dressed like this now, still holding a piece of valuable jade material at the Jade Workshop? Is he resentful that the Ye family didn't agree to hire him as a worker, so he came specifically to take revenge? Or was he sent by someone to find trouble for the Ye family?

  She raised her head, and without leaving any trace, she took another look at Wang Chengdong. She said: "A while ago, my uncle's grandfather mentioned that he wanted to introduce Mr. Wang to Yu Zhuo Fang to do business. However, Yu Zhuo Fang had just opened for business and the business was slow, and they had already invited Master Luo, so my grandfather didn't invite Mr. Wang again. But looking at Mr. Wang today, his clothes are not ordinary, and he took out top-quality jade material with one hand, it doesn't seem like someone who is looking for a job? Why would my uncle's grandfather say such a thing?"

  As soon as it was learned that Wang Chengdong and Ye Yuzhang were acquainted, and that there was such a connection with the Yu Zhuo workshop, the onlookers began to whisper among themselves. It turned out that everyone had been wondering why Wang Gongzi would bring his fine jade material to this small workshop, which was new and didn't have much reputation, when he could have gone to one of the many famous workshops instead. Now that Ye Yuzhang had mentioned it, people suspected that Wang Chengdong might be harboring a grudge and had come to the Yu Zhuo workshop on purpose to cause trouble.

  Wang Chengdong raised an eyebrow in surprise: "Oh? There's such a thing? I didn't ask Uncle and Grandfather to help me find something to do. It seems there was a misunderstanding. Although I'm not talented, I have some family property, and I don't need Uncle and Grandfather to help me find something to do."

  "It seems that it was indeed a misunderstanding on the part of my uncle. I, Ye Zhuo, will apologize to you, Master Wang, on his behalf." Ye Zhuo said, bowing slightly to Wang Chengdong.

  Wang Chengdong sidestepped, avoiding Ye Zhuo's courtesy, and waved his hand with a smile: "Miss Ye, this courtesy is not necessary. My uncle-grandfather can lend a helping hand, regardless of whether this matter is misunderstood or not, it's all for my good, I'm grateful enough, where does he need to apologize?" He suddenly turned serious, "However, my friend has finally found an extremely fine piece of jade material and asked me to help him find someone to carve it into a fairy presenting peaches. It just so happens that his mother is having her 50th birthday soon, and I thought of repaying the kindness by taking care of your family's business and bringing this jade material to your workshop for processing. But unexpectedly, this master actually ruined the jade material! If this jade material were mine, it would be fine, considering our kinship, you only need to compensate me with some difference in price. But this jade material belongs to my friend, and I've already found it difficult to explain to him after ruining it. I really don't dare to take it as a favor again. Please, Miss Ye, understand my difficulties, either compensate me with a piece of jade material of the same quality or pay a certain amount of silver so that I can buy another piece of jade material to make up for the loss."

  This remark was reasonable and did not reveal any flaws. Ye Zhuo turned around, walked to the desk, picked up the broken jade plate, took a look, and said: "Wang Gongzi, when is your friend's mother's birthday?"

  December 16th.

  "That is to say, there is only one month left." Ye Zhuo said.

  "It's all right." Wang Chengdong bowed his head, "So please don't make it difficult for me, let me have time to find another good piece of jade material to make up for this mistake."

  "In such a short time, Young Master Wang wants to find another red jade like this, it's probably not easy, right? Why not modify its design and carve it into other shapes. Our Jade Carving Workshop is willing to compensate for some of the price difference. What does Young Master Wang think?"

  "This is a good idea." The onlookers all nodded in agreement upon hearing it.

  "Unexpectedly, Ye Lao's adopted granddaughter is so excellent. At such a young age, she encountered such a big thing but didn't panic, handling it properly and steadily, even better than my own grandson. My grandson, who is about the same age as her, has been spoiled by his grandmother and mother to the point of being like a child." An old man sighed.

  "I wonder how old this Miss Ye is this year? Is she married?" As soon as many people around heard this, they immediately had the idea of matchmaking. A girl like this who is both beautiful and capable would be a blessing to whoever marries her.

  That old man obviously knew the situation of the Ye family very well, shook his head and said: "You can forget about it. The main house of the Ye family has no children or grandchildren, and they adopted this granddaughter to marry someone into their family. If not, how would you have gotten involved in this marriage? I would have taken a step ahead earlier."

  Everyone felt a pang of regret at these words.

  Lunch meeting, dinner meeting again in the evening, can't not go if there are leaders. So today I really had no choice but to rush out 2,000 words. Luckily Saturday and Sunday are rest days. So tomorrow will be a double update as an apology. To those who gave rewards and voted with pink tickets, thanks in advance for tomorrow.