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  "Second Young Mistress, would you like some more hot water?" asked Yin Liu after testing the temperature of the water.

  Lin Lan scooped up a handful of rose petals and wiped them on her arm, contentedly saying: "No need, this is just right."

  These days are really exhausting, the business in the pharmacy is booming, not to mention that she is also rushing around everywhere. Now she has become a beauty consultant for many officials' wives and is almost exhausted from splitting herself too thin. She still needs to make Baoning pills or something, 9,000 pills can be exchanged for an imperial bestowed plaque, she really has a guilty conscience, so this time she plans to add another 9,000 pills.

  "Second Young Mistress, our pharmacy's business is good, but it's only been open for over a month and we've already given away so much medicine. And those who can't afford the medical expenses, you've all exempted them from payment. This has spread by word of mouth, and now everyone who doesn't have money comes to our pharmacy for treatment. If this continues, won't we be losing money?" Yin Liu said, wiping Second Young Mistress's back with a handkerchief while complaining.

  Lin Lan smiled and said, "I'm just following my teacher's teachings to help the world and save people! Can't I just watch poor people suffer from illness and die because they can't afford medicine?"

  "But there are so many poor people in the world, can you afford to help them all, Second Young Mistress? Maybe some of them are just pretending to be poor to get free medicine." Silver Willow retorted.

  Lin Lan said quietly, "That's also reasonable, but from the start of opening a pharmacy, I never thought of making money from poor people. Even if I squeezed them dry, there wouldn't be much oil left. Don't worry! I have my own limits, being a good person also has to be within what I can afford."

  "Yin Liu, Mrs. is clever! Where would she make a losing business." Li Ming allowed the soft curtain to walk in.

  Lin Lan hastily lowered her body down, furrowing her brow and saying: "How did you get in? I'm taking a bath!"

  "Ah! I forgot, Old Lady Zhou asked me to go over there!" She quickly got up and bowed to the Second Young Master before hastily retreating.

  "Ah! I haven't even finished washing yet!" Lin Lan hurriedly muttered to herself, and the only response was the creaking sound of the door closing. Lin Lan cursed in her heart, this traitor.

  Li Mingyun smiled and said: "Yin Liu is getting more and more clever."

  Lin Lanbai raised an eyebrow: "Father, don't you have anything important to attend to today? Why did you send me back so quickly?"

  "When Father had guests coming over, he would let me and my older brother go back first." Li Ming Yan said as she undressed and stepped into the bathtub.

  Lin Lan yielded and complained: "I just want to take a good bath, but it's not possible."

  Li Mingyu pulled out a handkerchief. Smiling and joking: "Isn't serving her husband well? With this treatment, she should be content."

  Lin Lan pushed him away: "Go go go. Stay away from me, we'll each take our own baths."

  Li Mingyun smiled wryly: "I won't eat anymore, if I have to eat, it's you."

  Lin Lan's face turned red, and she stared with wide eyes. She muttered: "More and more unscrupulous."

  "What's wrong with you? Isn't it always me who gets bitten? Look, there's still evidence here." Li Ming Yan pointed to the circle of tooth marks on his shoulder to prove his innocence, implying that someone else had impure thoughts and was thinking crookedly.

  Lin Lan slapped him with a handful of water: "You're doomed, you're doomed..."

  Li Mingyun took advantage of the situation and pulled the person into his arms. He laughed loudly, "Alright, alright. No more fuss. Let's talk about something serious."

  "Pshaw! Don't try to fool me with nonsense." Lin Lan struggled a bit.

  "Hey, don't move! I'm not responsible if you accidentally fire the gun."

  She felt that she was already on the anvil, and Lin Lan didn't dare to be presumptuous anymore. Supporting his shoulder and keeping a distance from him, with a stern face: "Aren't we supposed to talk about serious matters? I'm all ears, speak quickly."

  Li Mingyun gazed at her porcelain-like skin, which was slightly flushed, like a ripe cherry, and couldn't help but feel stirred. He thought to himself that in two days it would be her birthday, and he felt an overwhelming urge to do something, but... let's talk about the main issue first!

  "These past few days, Old Witch sent Mr. Sun to ask around about Mr. Gu's affairs." Li Mingyun said.

  "This is really an urgent matter! Lin Lan thought: 'She's anxious, I suppose!'"

  "It's certain that she was anxious, but now I don't know if it's because of anxiety or if she heard some rumors. Anyway, on the day of Old Lady Ge's birthday, the old witch didn't even wait for the banquet to start before returning first. According to the doorman, the old witch looked extremely unpleasant and as soon as she came back, she called Sun Mr. over." Li Mingyun furrowed his brow and said.

  Here is the translation:

  "Upon hearing this, I suddenly remembered something. Yesterday, when I went to Lord Qiu's residence, Miss Qiu was indignantly telling me that Mingzhu had been speaking ill of me in front of a group of young ladies. Later, she got a good scolding from Zhiqing and the Princess of Wuyang, who especially warned Miss Huang that one should be cautious when making friends, saying that whoever marries Mingzhu will be unlucky. Lin Lan recalled this and thought it was interesting that Pei Zhiqian hadn't told her about it, despite visiting the Pei residence every day. Li Mingzhu, ah Li Mingzhu, I won't dig a hole for you, but you're so eager to dig your own grave. What can I say? Is she really the daughter of that scoundrel of a father? Why does she keep doing such foolish things?"

  "Miss Huang, which Miss Huang?" Li Mingyun asked.

  Lin Lan thought for a moment: "It seems to be Miss Huang from the family of Huang, an official in the Ministry of Works!"

  Li Mingyun suddenly realized: "So that's how it is."

  "What did you think of?" Lin Lan asked curiously.

  "That official, Huang, has been embezzling public funds and lining his own pockets for years. His family's wealth is quite substantial, but they claim it's all from their wife's family's tea business. That's why Mr. Gu used the Huangs as bait to lure in Old Lady Wu back then. It must have been on the day of Old Lady Ge's birthday that Old Lady Wu asked Mrs. Huang about it and got anxious." Li Mingyun analyzed.

  Lin Lan couldn't help but worry: "Will their plan be affected?"

  "It's not that serious, knowing where the problem lies, Mr. Gu can just come up with another excuse at that time." Li Mingyan said casually.

  "Hmm! Mr. Gu is helping us out, let's hope he doesn't get into trouble because of it." Lin Lan said with a thick accent.

  Li Mingyun smiled slightly and said, "How could it be possible to tire him out with lawsuits? It's also underestimating my husband's abilities. This time we must strike the old witch with no defense at all. We not only want to take back the shop and the villa that my mother left behind, but also make Father let go of his anger once and for all."

  "Can Father replace the old witch and take care of the stall? He won't sell the stall to pay off debts, will he?" Lin Lan asked skeptically.

  "Don't worry, the industries in the capital are not something Father dares to mess with casually. If he does, the officials at the Imperial Censorate will catch wind of it and immediately pounce on any clues. Moreover, Father can't afford to lose face like this, so he'll have to use his own money to cover up the losses. The problem is, there's more than one place that needs covering up." Li Mingyu sneered, pausing for a moment before continuing, "Father has long been fed up with the old witch. Once the Shanxi incident blows up, Father will absolutely not tolerate her anymore. The day when the old witch packs her bags and leaves is not far off."

  Lin Lan let out a long sigh: "I've been waiting for this day for a very long time, I'm thinking, should I add more firewood to the old witch and make her destruction even more thorough?"

  Li Ming allowed a smile and said: "Alright! What's another good idea?"

  Lin Lan's eyes rolled, and she smiled: "I'll use a trick to invite you into the pot, I'll also come up with a trick to hook the willing, isn't Liu Niang already pregnant? I just need to spread the word that Liu Niang is carrying a boy, guess if the old witch will go crazy? If she still has a shred of humanity, then it's fine, but if she's completely black-hearted, no one can save her."

  Li Mingyun smiled and said: "You must grasp the measure, don't let Liu Niang's child in her belly suffer, the child is innocent."

  Lin Lan shot him a glance: "Am I such an unscrupulous person?"

  Li Ming allowed a smile and said: "I'm just reminding you."

  "The water has cooled down, I have to get up." Lin Lan said and was about to get up, but was tightly hugged by Li Mingyu, who whispered ambiguously in her ear: "I'll help you warm it up..."

  Lin Lan's ears turned red as she scolded: "No need to be so kind... Ah... This rascal..."

  The next day, Ding Ruoyan and Lin Lan went to Ninghetang to pay their respects. Han Shi was absent-minded, Chun Xing came back and forth to chat, saying that the gifts for Huang Furen were all ready.

  Ding Ruoyan's expression was slightly unusual, and she seemed to want to say something but stopped herself.

  "Have Zhao prepare the carriage," said Mr. Han, nodding his head. "I'll go pay my respects to the old lady and then we'll set off."

  Lin Lan said: "Could it be that the old witch wants to come in person to ask about Shanxi?"

  Only then did Ting Ruoyan softly ask: "Is Mother going to visit the Yellow family of the Ministry of Works?"

  Mr. Han smiled faintly: "Yes! Yesterday I heard that Mrs. Huang was unwell, so I went to visit her."

  Lin Lan immediately requested: "Madam Huang's body is not feeling well, why don't daughter-in-law go with mother instead?"

  Mrs. Han was about to refuse Lin Lan's request, but then Ding Ruoyan hesitated: "Mother... I think it's better not to go to the Huang family."

  Lin Lan and Han Shi were astonished. Ding Ruo Yan rarely spoke at home, so how could she say such a thing today?

  "Why?" Mr. Han wondered.

  Ding Ruoyan looked at Lin Lan and then at the maid in the house, with a difficult-to-speak expression.

  Han's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that Ruo Yan knew something, but didn't want to say it in front of everyone? She then said to Lin Lan: "There's still work to do at the shop, go ahead and go first!"

  Lin Lan suspected that something was amiss, and wondered if Han Shi's visit to the Huang residence wasn't just about other matters. Since Han Shi had intentionally tried to get rid of her, she couldn't bear to linger and listen in on gossip, so she bid farewell first.

  Lin Lan stepped out the door, and the maid inside was also chased out. Lin Lan deliberately slowed down her pace, waiting for Cui Zhi to walk over, and asked in a low voice: "What did Madam go to the Huang's house for?"

  Cui Zhi replied in a low voice: "It seems to be for Miss Biao's marriage."

  Lin Lan was stunned, and now she finally understood. The old witch had actually wanted to form an alliance with the Huang family through marriage. No wonder that day, the Princess of Wuyang specially warned Miss Huang. Lin Lan's mouth curled up in a cold smile. It seemed that the old witch still didn't know about Mingzhu's good deed. Otherwise, even if she had thick skin, she wouldn't have had the courage to come and humiliate herself like this! Ding Ruoyan, oh Ding Ruoyan! You shouldn't have stopped me. If not, the old witch would definitely have been carried back home vomiting blood today.

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