Chapter 2: The Young Master's Troubles

  After Gan Jing returned to Sha Zhou from Hei Shui Zhai, he also rectified the upper and lower levels of the Gan government. The useless elder brother only hummed a few times and no longer asked about the family business. The indecisive old father thoroughly retreated from his position as the head of the household. It is said that older generations in the family should be more partial to their younger children, but Gan's parents seemed to love their eldest son more. After Gan Jing's subsequent thunderous methods, he became even more estranged from his younger brother. Although Gan Jing took the position of head of the household, he became increasingly isolated.

  If it weren't for the elder brother's persistent urging, if it weren't for Father's turning a blind eye, perhaps things wouldn't have turned out this way today. The Gan family had long been accustomed to following Second Master's arrangements in all matters, but this time, regarding Seventh Sister taking over as manager of Guangyuan Pawnshop, they unexpectedly encountered strong opposition from that young master without precedent.

  "What a joke, a woman taking over as the manager of our pawnshop. What will people think of the Gan family? Who will still trust Guangyuan Pawnshop? She may be clever and have made some big deals, but if she becomes the manager of Guangyuan, what about the original manager?" The young master fanned himself with a folding fan and raised his leg in a challenging manner towards Gan Jing. However, he had rarely interfered with the family's affairs, so it was surprising that he jumped out to defend someone like this, which made people suspicious. At this time, Gan's father also spoke up to support his eldest son: "This matter still needs careful consideration. What Yan'er said is reasonable. After all, Uncle Gui has worked at our house for many years. If we replace him with someone else, it will be unfair to him."

  The cold-hearted person, Gan Jing also couldn't help but feel a chill after hearing this. When had his father ever protected him like this? He knew all about the dirty things that went on between his older brother and Guangyuan Pawnshop, but he had only wanted to send Qiuxi there as an apprentice. As for the shopkeeper's words, they were just a test to see how everyone would react. Unexpectedly, his older brother reacted so strongly. Gan Jing also decided to take a stand: "When did you ever care about our family business? Father, your health isn't good, don't worry about these trivial matters." As for Uncle Gui, I didn't mean to drive him away either, you're all overthinking this. This matter, I just came to inform you, not to discuss it with you." Today, the young master of the Gan family was unusually reluctant to let go, unlike his usual self who would have coldly snorted and walked away. Was he relying on his father's backing today? Or had his mother subtly pulled on her son's sleeve: "Speak softly, people outside can hear you."

  The seventh thread was actually unable to sit still from the moment that young master Gan opened his mouth. Although she was also shocked when she first heard that Gan Jing wanted her to take over as the shopkeeper of Guangyuan Pawnshop, she just couldn't bear being looked down upon by others. So she took a deep breath and stepped into the inner hall in one swift motion: "I don't know what kind of shopkeeper young master Gan has in mind, but please set out some standards so that I, who am not worthy, can thoroughly give up." Young master Gan let out a cold snort, while at this moment, Gan Jing didn't say a word and just sat quietly to the side, looking at Qiuxi with a thoughtful expression.

  Although Qī Xiǎo said so, Gān Yàn naturally understood the meaning behind her words. He snapped his folding fan shut: "Alright, if you can sell all the watermelons in the Gan family's fruit shop warehouse before sunset tomorrow, of course my second brother will be clear about it. Our Gan family has never done business at a loss. If you can do that, I won't say another word." The young master had a determined look on his face, and Qī Xiǎo didn't think the standard was too harsh. In fact, she felt a hint of mockery towards Gān Dà Shào in her heart - it's just selling watermelons, after all. But when she turned to look at Gān Jìng, she found that his expression wasn't very good. Was there more to the matter of selling watermelons than met the eye?

  "Big brother, isn't this forcing someone to do something difficult? Although it's true that now is the best season for selling watermelons, let's not mention that there are so many families selling watermelons in Shazhou City. Even if we exclude those obstacles, such a large quantity can't be done in one day, it's simply impossible. As for personnel matters, I suppose it doesn't need to go through big brother's approval." Gan Jing indeed proved himself to be a good friend, jumping out at the right time when his brothers were suffering and struggling. Although he was the master of the house and had the final say in who to use or not use, this shopkeeper also needed to do things that would make people convinced and satisfied.

  "A gentleman's word is difficult to retract." Qī Xiāng responded with a full heart. In order to avoid gossip and truly become independent, Qī Xiāng could no longer stay in the Gān estate. Fortunately, he had made a fortune from that foolish rich man last time, and after deducting expenses for the westward journey, there should still be plenty left. The top priority now was to find a place to live, and only after settling down could he think of ways to deal with that self-righteous Gān family young master.

  Gan Jing naturally knew what Qi Xi was worried about when she insisted on moving out, so he just asked Ah Guan to temporarily follow Qi Xi. Although Ah Guan also enjoyed following this clever and resourceful Qi girl, he gradually felt that Young Master Gan might be starting to distance himself from him. Song Xiaoshi naturally followed Qi Xi as well.

  Originally, they thought it would be difficult to find a house near the "city center", either exhausting themselves or spending a lot of money, but unexpectedly things went very smoothly. At the tea house, they met Wang Laoban, who was planning to move, and when he saw Ah Guan accompanying Qi Xi, he gave a fair price and told Qi Xi that she could move in as soon as she paid the rent. Only then did Qi Xi understand, or perhaps this was Gan Jing's true intention for having Ah Guan follow her - after all, whenever something happened on Sha Zhou, those people would have to give Young Master Gan some face.

  Having solved the problem of accommodation, it's time to think about how to break through the difficulties of Ganda Xiao. Song Xiaoshi became more and more mysterious, Ah Guan was frowning all day as if he was more anxious than himself, but Qi Mei was not worried at all, she had already planned everything out. This little thing shouldn't be difficult for a modern person like her. So that day, under Ah Guan's astonished gaze, they strolled around Fenghuang West Street for a long time and ate all kinds of famous snacks in Shazhou, seemingly completely forgetting about the appointment.

  The next day, Lian Gan Jing was also personally guarding the Gan Ji fruit shop. Seeing Qi Xiu's outfit, he secretly sighed. Even if you take charge yourself, can't you still make this warehouse of watermelons disappear? Those in the know felt that Qi Xiu's prospects were not optimistic, but Ah Guan had a relaxed expression, completely different from yesterday.

  Almost everyone doing small business on the streets of Shazhou City knew they had to rush to the early market, but at this time, Qi Xi took Gan Jing to Tianfu Teahouse for tea. Gan Jing was puzzled but didn't ask, and the two chatted idly, not realizing that the sun had reached its peak. Only then did Qi Xi smile and follow Ah Guan out of the teahouse.

  "Watermelons for sale! Five cents each, guaranteed sweet!"

  "Selling watermelons, two cents each, cheap sale, want to buy hurry up!"

  Two adjacent watermelon stalls under the Tianfu Teahouse have already attracted a crowd of people, with samples of cut open watermelons displayed in front of each stall. Someone asked: "Your two families' watermelons seem to be of the same variety, how come your family only sells for 2 cents, while your family's is selling for 5 cents?"

  "I'd be happy to sell it for five cents."

  "Hey, isn't cheap better?" The two watermelon vendors, one raising the price was Qi Xi, and the other selling cheaper goods was naturally Ah Guan. Unexpectedly, Ah Guan's acting skills were not bad, and when the onlookers heard it, they all shouted: "Buy the cheap one!" And rushed to Ah Guan's stall. Qi Xi didn't get angry, but instead waited for Ah Guan's watermelons to sell out while eating a watermelon herself. Indeed, after comparison, Ah Guan's watermelons sold out quickly. At this time, Qi Xi shouted again: "Don't miss it if you're passing by! Sweet Xixi watermelons, three cents each! Don't hesitate, or you'll miss the chance!"

  Those who originally bought watermelon from Ah Guan's stall, upon hearing this, lit up their eyes and turned back to surround Qi Mei's stall: "Didn't you just sell it for five cents each? How did it become three cents now?"

  "No way, just adapting to market demand." Then there was another rush, and in no time the watermelons on Qiuxi's stall were all sold out. Ah Guan was indeed impressed by Qiuxi. The logic is actually very simple: people like to take advantage of bargains. At first, it was because Ah Guan's watermelons were cheaper, and later when Qiuxi lowered the price of her watermelons, everyone felt like they had taken advantage of a bargain. As a result, those who originally only wanted to buy one might end up buying several more just to take advantage of the deal. Everyone thought they had gotten a good deal, and Qiuxi easily resolved Gan Dashao's difficulties. Gan Jing, who was sitting in the teahouse, finally let out a sigh of relief: "This girl really has some skills."