Chapter 46 Sudden Change of Heart

Chapter 46: A Sudden Change of Heart

Today marked the final day of the fifteen-day period.

Around the Hour of You, Wu Furong and Li Qi brought young Wu Xiaoliu along to the Qin Residence.

Originally, Wu Furong had no intention of bringing Wu Xiaoliu, but the young fellow had been utterly stubborn, begging and pleading with Li Qi to let him come.

Driven half-mad by his constant buzzing, Li Qi finally told Wu Furong to bring him along.

Since Li Qi had given the order, Wu Furong could not say much more, though he gave Wu Xiaoliu a stern scolding beforehand.

Xiaotao welcomed Li Qi and his companions into the front hall, asking them to wait a moment while she went inside to inform the mistress.

The rules in these ancient times were truly troublesome.

Li Qi rubbed his head in frustration.

"Young Master Li, once you see the mistress later, please do not speak so recklessly again," Wu Furong said, lowering his voice as he sat beside Li Qi.

Li Qi rolled his eyes and retorted, "Uncle Wu, you must have said those exact words eight hundred times already. Just set your mind completely at ease; I guarantee nothing will go wrong."

"That's good, that's good!"

Wu Furong offered an awkward smile. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Wu Xiaoliu staring at him with a reddened face, looking as though he wanted to laugh but dared not. Anger flared in his chest instantly. *Hah, even a little whelp like you dares to mock me?* With a glare, the latter immediately lowered his head.

Seeing this, Li Qi shook his head. This uncle and nephew truly had their own unique quirks.

Before long, Xiaotao emerged and invited Li Qi and Wu Furong into the inner parlor.

At the thought of seeing the beautiful Madam Qin once more, Li Qi felt a slight flutter of nervousness in his chest.

Of course, anticipation outweighed everything else by far!

Although he was mentally prepared, Li Qi still found himself momentarily stunned when he laid eyes on Madam Qin's devastatingly alluring face.

Today, Madam Qin looked even more breathtaking than she had half a month ago.

A gentle, affectionate smile lingered at the corners of her lips, diminishing her sorrow while enhancing her captivating charm.

Though it was merely a faint, subtle smile, it was enough to captivate all living souls.

That Master Qin was truly unfortunate. To have taken such a beautiful wife, only to kick the bucket before they could spend even a few years together! If it were him, he would die with his eyes wide open with resentment. That was even more tragic than those people who suffered fatal heart attacks from the sheer excitement of winning the lottery. As Li Qi thought about how Madam Qin had begun her life as a young widow, he inevitably thought of his own newly wedded wife back home, and a long sigh escaped his heart.

After exchanging pleasantries, Madam Qin invited Li Qi and Wu Furong to be seated.

"Young Master Li, you have truly worked hard these past few days," Madam Qin said with a slight nod.

Li Qi chuckled and said, "Madam, you are far too polite. I didn't actually do much; I just started before dawn and worked until late at night, moving through boiling oil and raging fires. I used my ladle as a pillow and my wok as a blanket—it really wasn't hard at all."

"Pfft!"

Hearing this, Wu Furong could no longer hold it in and spat out the mouthful of tea he had just swallowed.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

He hurriedly used a fit of coughing to cover up his unseemly display.

This fellow was truly one of a kind!

Madam Qin could not help but laugh aloud either, a rosy blush spreading across her delicate cheeks as she awkwardly remarked, "Young Master Li certainly has a humorous way of speaking."

Li Qi lowered his head shyly and said, "In the past, people always said I was too honest and slow-tongued. This is the first time anyone has ever praised me for being humorous."

*This—this man is simply too shameless! If your tongue is slow, then what am I? A mute?!*

Madam Qin turned her head away, completely at a loss for words! After a moment, she turned back, firmly resolving not to pursue this topic any further. "Yesterday, Uncle Wu already told me everything that happened these past few days, and he spoke very highly of you!"

"Oh? Is that so?"

Li Qi was startled at first, then quickly said, "Uncle Wu flatters me undeservedly. I am truly unworthy of such praise. In truth, everything we achieved today is entirely thanks to Uncle Wu."

"I dare not take such credit. The old man was merely stating the facts," Wu Furong replied, breaking out in a cold sweat. He muttered inwardly, *Clearly, he was the one who told me to say those things yesterday, yet now he acts as though he knows nothing about it and heaps all the credit onto me. Ah, I truly have no idea what he is up to.*

Seeing the two of them busy flattering one another, Madam Qin frowned slightly and said, "The two of you have devoted yourselves entirely to the Drunken Immortal Pavilion. I will naturally keep it engraved in my heart."

Wu Furong said with apprehension, "This is only what the old man ought to do."

Li Qi, however, accepted the praise with an air of complete composure.

Madam Qin nodded slightly and asked with a serious expression, "Uncle Wu, how much profit has our Drunken Immortal Pavilion made in total these past few days?"

Wu Furong glanced at Li Qi and, seeing the crafty smile on his face, knew precisely what he was plotting. He gave a light cough and replied, "The total revenue of the Drunken Immortal Pavilion over these fifteen days is two thousand three hundred strings of cash." As he spoke, he pulled an account book from his sleeve and handed it over. "Here are the detailed accounts. Please review them, Madam."

Madam Qin instructed Xiaotao to bring the account book over and began to inspect it closely.

Li Qi remained silent on the side, smiling inwardly. *Who would have thought this woman has such decent acting skills? She clearly found out everything in advance, yet now she puts on an act of complete ignorance.*

After a short while, Madam Qin handed the account book back to Xiaotao, turned to Li Qi with a smile, and said, "Young Master Li is indeed exceptionally talented. In just a few short days, you have earned such a vast sum of silver. Since that is the case, then—"

"Wait a moment!"

Before Madam Qin could finish her sentence, Li Qi suddenly stood up, interrupting her words, and said loudly, "Madam, Uncle Wu's accounts are not entirely accurate."

What?

Wu Furong was jolted with shock. Staring blankly at Li Qi, he asked with utter bewilderment, "Young Master Li, this—why do you say that?"

Madam Qin also looked at Li Qi with a surprised expression.

Li Qi raised his brows and said, "Madam may not know this, but these two thousand three hundred strings of cash were not all earned by the Drunken Immortal Pavilion. One thousand five hundred of them were obtained in exchange for an ancestral secret recipe of mine. Therefore, strictly speaking, I only earned eight hundred strings of cash for the Drunken Immortal Pavilion."

"You—?"

Wu Furong sprang up from his chair as if propelled by a spring, pointing at Li Qi with trembling lips, utterly unable to utter a single syllable.

"What? Uncle Wu, did I say something wrong?"

Li Qi looked at Wu Furong with a smiling gaze, asking cheerfully.

Wu Furong opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly noticed Li Qi's left hand hidden behind his back, giving a gentle wave. The words at the tip of his tongue were swallowed back down. He thought to himself, *Could it be that he is saying this on purpose? Let's wait and see what happens first.* He closed his eyes, let out a long sigh, and nodded, "What you said is correct. That one thousand five hundred strings of cash should belong to you personally. The old man calculated wrongly."

Hearing this, Madam Qin could no longer remain calm. She stood up, her dark eyebrows furrowing into a frown as she asked coldly, "Young Master Li, what is the meaning of this?"

Li Qi looked straight into Madam Qin's eyes and said in a clear voice, "My meaning is that I failed to fulfill my original promise, so that promissory note is no longer valid. As for those eight hundred strings of cash, consider them as compensation to you, Madam, for my long disturbance of your esteemed establishment."

Madam Qin said angrily, "You want to go back on your word?"

Li Qi shook his head and smiled. "Not at all, not at all. I am merely abiding by my original promise. Rest assured, Madam, I, Li Qi, am definitely not a person who breaks his word. What is, is; what isn't, isn't. Of course, I also know that whether I leave or stay has never truly mattered to you, Madam."

The more Wu Furong listened, the more confused he became. Could this fellow really be planning to up and leave? He hurried forward and said, "Young Master Li, why would you say such a thing? Of course the mistress hopes you will stay!"

Madam Qin let out a soft huff and remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

By now, Li Qi's status in her heart was vastly different from before. She knew very well that whether the Drunken Immortal Pavilion could reorganize and restore its former glory entirely depended on Li Qi. How could she possibly not care about whether he stayed or left? It was safe to say she was now a thousand times, ten thousand times unwilling to see Li Qi leave.

Seeing Madam Qin's nervous appearance, Li Qi laughed inwardly while wearing a look of astonishment on his face. "Oh? Such a thing is actually true? Uncle Wu, how on earth did you come to know of this?"