Chapter 645 - A Secret, What Was Shopkeeper Xing Hiding (1/2)
Not many people were on the stairs. It could be seen that there were more samples than the first floor and the material was much more gorgeous. There were as many people sitting beside and picking embroidery as there were downstairs. These customers were enjoying tea and chatting while shopping. Xiuning Workshop was getting more and more praised by the customers in this aspect.
It was just a suggestion. Mo Xuetong did not expect Shopkeeper Xing to be such a business talent and so smart. She also did not expect there was such a clever man among the secret guards. Mo Xuetong praised him in her heart. Her gaze landed on Shopkeeper Xing who was leading the way, and a hint of darkness appeared in her eyes.
“My Lady, please!” Shopkeeper Xing brought Mo Xuetong into a small private room and asked her to sit down.
Along the way, Mo Xuetong found that those private rooms were all occupied, but this one was empty. It was facing the window, so she could see the street below clearly. It was a leisurely room. The door was open, and there was a faint fragrance in the air, which was a little familiar.
“My Lady, there have been special people coming these days. They don’t seem to be locals. They came to Xiuning Workshop and looked around. I don’t know what they were doing. They seemed to be looking for something and suspected Xiuning Workshop.” Shopkeeper Xing didn’t hesitate this time. Although he cast a glance at Mo Lan and Mo Yu, he still said it directly.
These two maidservants were Consort Xuan’s trusted subordinates, so he did not ask them to avoid while talking.
“Someone came to probe again and again?” Mo Xuetong’s lively eyes paused for a moment, and a trace of surprise flashed in them. “Shopkeeper Xing, your men haven’t made any unusual movements recently, have they?”
Shopkeeper Xing thought for a while and replied, “Don’t worry, My Lady. For so many years, we have been very careful and have never been exposed. Even when we had money problems, we didn’t make money casually. Now that Xiuning Workshop has such a good business, we don’t need to do anything else at all, so we will be fine.”
Mo Xuetong keenly caught the meaning in his words and asked, “Then when Xiuning Workshop’s business was not good, did you do something to make money?”
In her past life, Mo Xuetong had not figured it out either. 100 people were not a small group. Furthermore, they were all skilled in martial arts. Mo Xuetong was very suspicious that these people were really willing to be at peace. Could they really wait when they didn’t have enough to eat and wear?
Even though the secret guards were hidden in the dark and did not stand out in front of others, at the very least, they were not lacking in money. However, her mother’s secret guards were not doing as well as ordinary people. Were they really willing to accept it? Thus, Mo Xuetong was certain that they would have other ways of earning money.
In her past life, everything she owned had been controlled by Sima Lingyun. Even her last store was in his hands. However, why was there still some money in her hands? This was definitely not the reason why Sima Lingyun and Mo Xuemin had let her off. The source of the money was rather suspicious.
Now, Mo Xuetong could almost be sure that some secret guards were not necessarily engaged in a legitimate business. With their powerful martial skills, they were originally talents cultivated for the Empress’s daughter, the n.o.ble princess. Chosen from so many contestants, few of the 100 people were willing to be ordinary.
Hearing Mo Xuetong’s straightforward question, Shopkeeper Xing explained with an awkward expression, “My Lady, Madam was in poor health and didn’t meddle too much in the business. She left the entire shop to me. As a man, I really didn’t know much about embroidery, so I didn’t run it well. So, sometimes, when we were really short of money, Yan Yue would take some people to do other things and temporarily solve financial difficulties.”
“What did you do?” Mo Xuetong took the tea that Mo Lan handed her, lifted the lid and blew it lightly as she glanced at Shopkeeper Xing from the corner of her eyes. Yan Yue should be the deputy leader of the secret guards. She had heard Shopkeeper Xing mention him. Mo Xuetong did not ask Yan Yue to come to see her because she did not plan to order the secret guards to do other things.
Shopkeeper Xing paused and gritted his teeth. “My Lady, I’m only responsible for making money with Xiuning Workshop. If we didn’t have enough money, Yan Yue would become a killer to earn money. But now, we don’t have the money problem, so Yan Yue has already ceased this job.”
To kill people, and being a killer? Mo Xuetong was slightly stunned, but then she calmed down. That was what she had guessed. It seemed that Shopkeeper Xing and Yan Yue were in charge of two different ways in the same group. It seemed that the 100 people not only had powerful martial skills, they were of other use. No wonder Bai Yichen had put in so much effort to marry the Fifth Princess.
An organized team of 100 secret guards was much stronger than a team of 100 scattered masters.
“Could it be because of this that you have been targeted?” Since Shopkeeper Xing had admitted it, Mo Xuetong did not force him anymore. Instead, she asked in accordance with Shopkeeper Xing’s train of thought.
Shopkeeper Xing frowned, shook his head, and said with certainty, “That’s impossible. It’s been some time. Yan Yue and the others are regular escorts now. How can they be targeted?”
Mo Xuetong did not pursue the matter further when he said in a certain tone. She only asked Shopkeeper Xing to pay more attention to these people. It would be best if he could get someone to keep an eye on where they came from. In that way, they could at least follow the clues and find the people behind the scenes. Otherwise, Shopkeeper Xing and his people who could not be seen would not know when they would die.
Therefore, they must be more vigilant than common people!
Although the matter happening in the past had faded, no one knew when it would be brought up again. Shopkeeper Xing and his people had always been worried. In terms of vigilance, Mo Xuetong was sure that there was no need to remind them. However, she still mentioned it worriedly. As a result, Shopkeeper Xing promised again and again that they would be more careful.
After chatting with Shopkeeper Xing for a while, Mo Xuetong and her maidservants wandered around the shop casually and bought a few embroidery items. Then, she got into the carriage waiting outside with her maidservants and refused Shopkeeper Xing’s request to send them to the door. She only claimed that it was a special period, so it was better to be careful.