MCUS Chapter 34

Huangfu Yuchen glanced at him casually, “Why the rush? Wait until the fountain pen is truly successful.”

Yan Ge nodded earnestly, his tone sincere, “Yes, I’ll wait. I’ll truly wait.”

Huangfu Yuchen felt inexplicably upset. The way he spoke made it seem like he intentionally delayed the proclamation of the promotion. But since his mood was currently good, he didn’t bother arguing with him. He continued writing on the paper with the fountain pen until he found the perfect balance of pressure, making the characters look beautiful.

“By the way, Your Majesty,” Yan Ge said, “when the fountain pen is mass-produced, can we stamp it with this mark?” He took out an exquisite seal from his sleeve pocket, and the company’s logo was engraved on it.

“What’s this?” Huangfu Yuchen took the seal and examined it closely. He wouldn’t receive the report on affairs outside the palace from Gao Feng and Gao Yun until the evening, so he didn’t know that Yan Ge had established a company.

Yan Ge vaguely replied, “It just represents my involvement in the creation of the fountain pen. Your Majesty, it’s just a seal.”

Huangfu Yuchen raised an eyebrow, “It’s not as simple as it seems, right?”

Yan Ge touched his temple. He couldn’t reveal this yet. He was certain that once Huangfu Yuchen knew what it was for, he would try to get one over him again. Once bitten by a snake, one fears even a rope for ten years.

However, Huangfu Yuchen wasn’t foolish. “Does this seal represent you? I can allow you to use it, but how about I gift you one instead?”

Yan Ge replied tactfully, “The circle in this seal represents completeness, and the horizontal line signifies ‘number one’—”

Huangfu Yuchen interrupted decisively, “Let me think of a better one for you.”

Yan Ge couldn’t refuse, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Huangfu Yuchen pondered for a moment, looked at Yan Ge with a mysterious gaze, and picked up the fountain pen to draw on the white paper. After a moment, he asked Yan Ge, “How about I bestow this seal upon you?”

Yan Ge raised his eyes and saw a circle drawn on the paper with a strange character inside it, a character he didn’t recognize.

“I’m not familiar with this character,” Yan Ge didn’t immediately react.

“You naturally wouldn’t recognize it,” Huangfu Yuchen’s eyes were full of deep meaning as he calmly explained, “This character is my creation today. It’s pronounced ‘fei’.”

*Fei means imperial consort.

A circle enclosing a “男已” character. Could it be that Huangfu Yuchen was warning him that even if he could leave the palace every day, he couldn’t escape the fate of being his consort? Yan Ge hoped he was overthinking.

“What does Yan Ge think of using this character for the seal?” Huangfu Yuchen lifted his teacup.

“It’s wonderful! Thank you for your deep favor, Your Majesty. Your servant is both honored and amazed.” Yan Ge approached with a beaming smile, placing a hand on Huangfu Yuchen’s shoulder, his eyes filled with a smile as he softly said, “Your Majesty, why not let this servant stay in your palace today to accompany you?”

Although the inscription ‘fei’ made him uncomfortable, the seal itself was merely an external form. The crucial point was the act of imprinting. The power of the brand will bring immense wealth.

Deng Mande promptly lowered his head.

Huangfu Yuchen had just taken a sip of tea and nearly choked. “Ahem! there’s no need. We will have the seal prepared and sent to you. We still have official duties to attend to, and Yan Daying can leave on his own.” He set down his teacup and picked up the memorial, looking at it seriously.

Yan Ge curved his lips slightly, bowed, and then turned away, his footsteps unusually light and brisk.

Huangfu Yuchen put down the memorial, leaned back in his chair, and gazed in the direction Yan Ge had left. “Deng Mande, do you think Yan Daying was serious just now?”

Deng Mande hesitated and replied, “This servant doesn’t dare to speculate, Your Majesty.”

“Speak,” Huangfu Yuchen said, “We will pardon you.”

Deng Mande finally spoke, “In this servant’s view, Yan Daying has deep affection for Your Majesty. Otherwise, he wouldn’t need to concern himself with matters of status. With his ability to accumulate wealth, Your Majesty could provide him with security in the palace without a second thought.”

Huangfu Yuchen’s expression became momentarily dazed, and he was lost in thought. Then he furrowed his brow and said, “It seems that I should still try to keep some distance from him.”

Deng Mande remained silent.

After Yan Ge left, he returned to Luoxue Palace and eagerly opened the silver chest.

–“Ding. Congratulations, you have obtained an amethyst crystal.”

In front of Yan Ge appeared a purple stone larger than a washbasin, its surface radiating colorful and dazzling lights. It felt smooth and cool to the touch. The stone didn’t appear large, so he tried to move it, only to find that it was unexpectedly heavy and immovable.

“Little Jin, what is the purpose of the purple secret crystal?” he asked.

–The system immediately replied: “The amethyst crystal is a material that can be refined into treasures. However, master currently has no need for it.’”

Yan Ge, having played online games before, understood his explanation. Perhaps his expectations were too high after acquiring the Flowing Sand Sword Technique, so he felt somewhat disappointed this time. However, the system would definitely not give him something useless. He placed the crystal back into the backpack, setting this matter aside for now, and then turned and left the palace.

Upon returning to the company, he had someone replace the signboard. The name “First Company” remained the same, but the numeral “one” in the lower right corner of the logo circle was changed to “fei.” Just the thought that all future products associated with him would bear his company’s mark filled him with joy. As for the meaning represented by “fei,” he deliberately cast it aside, both consciously and unconsciously.

Yan Ge sat behind his desk, asking Xiao Chuanzi and Zhao Cheng, “How is the investigation that I assigned you progressing?”

Zhao Cheng had gradually understood over the past few days that the Young Master was training Xiao Chuanzi. His main responsibility was to protect Xiao Chuanzi from being bullied. Thus, he remained silent.

Xiao Chuanzi replied, “Master, it’s already been investigated.”

“Very good,” Yan Ge nodded in satisfaction. “Next, you two need to open a small shop and sell spicy hot pot and barbecue.”

“Spicy hot pot? Barbecue?” Xiao Chuanzi looked perplexed.

Yan Ge first explained to him what spicy hot pot and barbecue were. “I will give you the recipe for the seasonings later. Remember, the shop shouldn’t be too small but also doesn’t need to be too big. It should be able to accommodate around ten tables. As for the name, think of it yourselves, but make sure to include the company’s logo on the signboard. For vegetarian dishes, charge one coin for two skewers; for meat dishes, the price will be determined by the ingredients and portion, with a minimum of two coins per skewer. It’s fine to incur some losses in the first three to five days.”

Xiao Chuanzi was even more confused. “And incur losses too? Master, I’m completely baffled. Even if there are no losses, how much money can we earn by selling dishes at such low prices?” He truly couldn’t understand. Liuxian Pavilion’s reputation had already been restored, and it was developing better and better, earning tens of thousands of taels. Opening this small shop might earn a dozen or twenty taels at most. The Young Master was someone who aimed to make big money, so why bother with this?

Yan Ge didn’t explain further and only said, “You will understand why we’re doing this in the future. You can also think about the reasons behind it. If you truly figure it out, I will reward you. Zhao Cheng, the same goes for you.”

Zhao Cheng was pleased. “Thank you, Young Master, for giving me the opportunity. I will definitely ponder it carefully.”

Yan Ge turned to Liu Rong and said, “Go and bring Wan Xiang and Deng Mama here.”

“Yes.”

Currently, the company had not yet entered the right track, and Wan Xiang and Deng Mama were handling some miscellaneous matters in the residence.

“Young Master.”

“Greetings, Young Master.” Deng Mama performed a standard bow.

Yan Ge said, “I want the two of you to investigate how many clothing workshops there are in the city, which ones are thriving, and which ones are on the verge of closing. Pay attention to the quality and sales of clothes in each workshop. It would be best if you could make a detailed record.”

Wan Xiang was still a bit confused, but Deng Mama understood.

Yan Ge didn’t say much more. If Deng Mama was clever enough, she would give Wan Xiang some hints.

In the afternoon, Gao Feng, who was in charge of monitoring Old Li, returned.

“Young Master, the boss was worried that you didn’t have enough manpower, so he sent someone to replace this subordinate,” Gao Feng explained. It wasn’t appropriate to address him as “Emperor” outside the palace, so he simply followed Yan Ge’s example and referred to him as the “boss.”

Yan Ge immediately developed a slightly better impression of Huangfu Yuchen. It was true that he didn’t have enough manpower by his side, and Gao Feng’s return came at just the right time.

“This is what that person brought along,” Gao Feng said.

It was a small silk-wrapped bundle, and from its shape, it seemed to contain a box.

Yan Ge took it and opened it. As expected, there was a delicate brocade box inside, and when he lifted the lid, a beautiful jade of emerald green color lay within.

–“Master, this jade is valuable! It’s worth at least two thousand taels!” Yan Jin admired it for a while before speaking.

Yan Ge guessed what it was and turned the jade over. He saw that there were already inscriptions at the bottom, with the characters “男” and “已” tightly enclosed within a circle. These two characters were written in seal script, and the carving turned out surprisingly well, harmonious and aesthetically pleasing.

Since he couldn’t refuse, he could only accept it. He put away the jade seal and said to Gao Feng, “You returned at just the right time. Later, you and Gao Yun will accompany me to a better calligraphy and painting shop. We need to promptly address the matter of the maps.”

“Yes.”

That evening, when Yan Ge returned to the palace, he brought a gift for Huangfu Yuchen. It was a set of lifelike clay sculptures of the twelve zodiac animals. They were not valuable in terms of monetary worth, but their novelty made them precious.

Huangfu Yuchen placed them on the display shelf in his study, so he probably didn’t dislike them.