Capital City, Glorious Glory Bank
Pei Zi Yun had bought an ox-cart early in the morning to transport the gold over. Yesterday's lantern festival had not rained, but today it was drizzling. The drizzle brought snow with it as it hit against the tarpaulin.
From afar, Pei Zi Yun could see that the streets were bustling with people and carriages. All the shops were open, and the entrance to the bank was huge. Early in the morning, there were many people walking in and out of the bank, exchanging their money for taels of silver or banknotes.
"Stop!"
Pei Zi Yun pulled the reins of the ox-cart and stopped it at the entrance. He then jumped down from the ox-cart and called out to the servant, "Call your shopkeeper over. I have a deal to discuss."
"Dear customer, what are you doing?" The servant's eyes lit up as he walked forward and bowed with a smile.
Seeing this servant, Pei Zi Yun tossed him a tael of silver. The servant was rather agile and caught the tael of silver. Pei Zi Yun waved his hands and said, "This is your reward. Go and invite him over. If there's any trouble, I will take care of it."
Hearing Pei Zi Yun's words, the servant smiled and said, "Thank you for your reward. Please wait for a while."
The servant then walked into the shop. This was a tael of silver. Even if it wasn't a big deal, it would be worth it if he got scolded.
Pei Zi Yun stood by the side of the ox-cart. After some time, someone walked over slowly. He was dressed in a robe made of goat skin and wore an old hat. He looked to be in his forties and was holding a stove to keep himself warm. When he walked out of the bank, he looked around and saw Pei Zi Yun. His eyes lit up. The servant followed beside him and pointed at Pei Zi Yun, "Shopkeeper, this is the young master. He says he has a big deal."
The shopkeeper listened to the servant's words and looked at Pei Zi Yun carefully. Pei Zi Yun was dressed in a white robe with silver threads, and had a gold and jade belt around his waist. A sword hung by his side. He looked extremely imposing and was startled. He thought to himself that he was too young. Which family's young master was he from?
With a smile on his face, the shopkeeper took a step forward and bowed, "Young Master, what business do you have in mind? Do you want to save up money? "
The shopkeeper asked as he looked at the ox cart. As the ox cart drove over, there were deep tracks on the ground. It must have been carrying something heavy.
"Haha, shopkeeper, I am a High Scholar from Ying Prefecture. Naturally, I have big business to do. Please take a look." Pei Zi Yun led the shopkeeper and pulled the curtains of the carriage aside. Within the carriage, there were ten chests.
The shopkeeper moved his head forward and thought, "Could it be silver? That's quite a lot. "
Pei Zi Yun stretched out his hand and opened one of the chests. Instantly, it shone with a golden light. The shopkeeper looked closely and saw that it was a chest full of gold bars, stacked neatly. He sucked in a deep breath.
Pei Zi Yun opened another chest. It was another gold bar.
The shopkeeper sucked in a breath of cold air and looked around, "Young Master, cover it up. Don't let anyone see it."
Pei Zi Yun closed the chest as the shopkeeper calmed himself down, "Young Master, your gold …."
His voice was trembling as if he had yet to react.
Pei Zi Yun laughed and said calmly, "There are ten boxes here, and each box is the same. There are thirty gold bars, nine to eight pieces of gold, and three hundred taels of silver."
"Why? Can't I exchange it? Could it be that your bank is too small, and you can't keep it? "Pei Zi Yun smiled as he looked at the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper paused for sometime before biting his lips, "Young Master, of course we can keep it. It's just that you have to tell us where you got it from. If not, we won't dare to accept it!"
Pei Zi Yun laughed coldly, "This is three thousand taels of gold, not three hundred or thirty. Have you ever heard of a mansion losing a large amount of gold? There are some things that you shouldn't know. "
He then nodded, "Not all of these ten boxes can be exchanged. These four boxes can't be exchanged. As for the one thousand taels, I shall send it to the Grand Princess's mansion. The remaining one hundred taels shall be sent to Assistant Minister Ji's mansion. Do as you see fit!"
Three thousand taels of gold had been dug out from his own mansion. If that scoundrel were to find out about this, he would be in trouble. He couldn't just kill him. Now that he was a High Scholar, and had accepted the Governor's mission to deliver gifts to the Grand Princess, as long as he didn't reveal it, would these people dare to investigate?
At this point, it was a good time to use his connections to intimidate others.
Besides, even if the Grand Princess wanted to investigate, she would think that the gold was from the sect behind him.
Hearing Pei Zi Yun's words, the shopkeeper's expression changed. The depths of the capital city were not something a mere shopkeeper would be able to pry into. As long as it wasn't a big case, there was no need to ask who the mastermind was. The shopkeeper thought about this and smiled apologetically, "Dear customer, I have been rude. Please come in."
The shopkeeper then invited Pei Zi Yun into the bank. Pei Zi Yun laughed, "Shopkeeper, get someone to carry the boxes in. We shall inspect them one by one. Otherwise, when I take out the banknotes, you will say that the amount of gold is wrong. That wouldn't be good."
"Yes, yes, I have been rude."
The shopkeeper reacted quickly. He knew that Pei Zi Yun was being cautious. He then smiled and turned around to get someone to carry the boxes. Before long, a few workers came out. Four of them carried the boxes down the carriage.
The passersby who were hurrying in and out stopped in their tracks, their faces changed. Four workers carrying boxes, could it be that it was all silver? That was at least a few thousand taels of silver. They raised their heads and looked at Pei Zi Yun.
The workers carried the boxes into the inner courtyard and into the room. Pei Zi Yun and the shopkeeper followed behind them. The shopkeeper then instructed a servant to call for the accountant and weigh the boxes. He then ordered the guards to stand guard outside the room.
The accountant hurried over, followed by a man who was holding a scale and a stove. When the accountant and the person in charge of weighing the boxes entered the room, they were taken aback.
"Weigh the boxes!" The shopkeeper instructed. The accountant and the man with the scale started to weigh the bars of gold one by one. Some of the bars were even cut open.
The accountant stood by the side and weighed the bars of gold. When he was done, the accountant stepped forward and whispered, "Shopkeeper, these are all ninety-eight percent pure gold."
"Serve the tea!" Seeing the shiny gold all over the floor, the shopkeeper's heart was filled with excitement. This was a huge achievement. Pei Zi Yun did not drink the tea. He sat by the side as the accountant continued weighing the boxes.
Time passed quickly as the sun started to rise. The sunlight shone through the windows and into the room. The accountant stepped forward and said, "Shopkeeper, there's no mistake. It's one thousand nine hundred taels of gold."
The shopkeeper nodded his head and started counting the banknotes. He then said, "Do you think it's twenty nine hundred taels of silver?"
"Yes, twenty thousand taels of silver. Give me the highest denomination of banknotes of a hundred taels. The remaining nine hundred taels of silver, change them into fifty taels or ten taels of silver."
"No problem!" The shopkeeper replied. Before long, a stack of banknotes was handed over to Pei Zi Yun. Pei Zi Yun counted the banknotes carefully, looking at the designs and the numbers. He then kept the banknotes in his robes, "There's four more boxes. Send them to the ox-cart. I have to give them away!"
The shopkeeper instructed the workers to send the four boxes back, smiling all the way.
Seeing the ox-cart leave, the accountant walked up to the shopkeeper and said, "Shopkeeper, there's something fishy about this. If he wanted to exchange banknotes, why did he have to do it in the capital city?"
"There's something fishy about this. But what do you intend to do with this High Scholar?" The shopkeeper looked at him and laughed. He then asked, "Should we investigate this person? The origin of these two thousand taels of gold is unclear. I'm afraid …. "
"Investigate. Instruct people to follow him and find out where he is. Do not act rashly and alert him. Let the constables and constables we are familiar with go after him. We shall not interfere. If he's not clean, the constables will deal with him. If he's clean, we don't have to care.
Dealing with a High Scholar for three thousand taels of gold was not a big deal. However, it would be troublesome during the examinations. If this High Scholar were to beat the drums of the Ministry of Rites, it would be a big deal.
If they did not investigate, they would not be satisfied. Who knows, it might be a big fish.
The ox-cart continued forward, with the bailiff following behind. The ox-cart was nearing the Grand Princess's Mansion. It didn't pass the main gate, but at the side gate, someone came out to welcome them.
The bailiff opened his eyes wide and sucked in a breath of cold air, "It's the housekeeper of the Grand Princess's Mansion."
Seeing the two of them talking, the housekeeper waved his hands. An Imperial Guard came out and carried the box inside. After an hour, the young master returned.
"It's in the direction of the Ji Mansion." The bailiff was a local, and knew where the Ji Mansion was. After walking for a while, he arrived at the Ji Mansion and knocked on the door. This time, it was the housekeeper who came out to welcome him. However, he did not recognize this housekeeper. After waiting for some time, he saw the two of them smiling as they walked out. The young master bowed to them.
"Minister Ji personally escorted him out. Looks like he has some background. He's not an ordinary person." The bailiff sucked in a breath of cold air and turned around to leave. The waters of the capital city were too deep. Who knew what kind of deal was being made. If he were to get involved, he would be dead. He had to go back and inform the Ji Mansion not to create trouble for him.
Since Pei Zi Yun had given away the gold, he felt much better. He didn't know that he had just gotten rid of some trouble. The ox-cart stopped at the official's tusk, and the granny broker welcomed him.
Pei Zi Yun had twenty thousand taels of silver on him, and was very generous. He tossed a tael of silver over, "This is for you. Also, help me hire a serving maid and a cook. However, it won't be long term. They'll be paid by the day, but they'll take care of my meals."
Originally, he had his own secrets, and it wasn't easy to hire someone. But now, it didn't matter.
The granny broker smiled so widely that her eyes almost disappeared, "That's easy. The Bai Family's wife and her daughter are looking for work. The Bai Family worked for an official's household before. Since they're old, they've found someone to cook for them. Their cooking skills are pretty good. Two or three tables of banquets wouldn't be a problem for them. They're hardworking as well. It's just that the price is a little higher.
"I can give it a try!"
Although she couldn't compare to the chefs in the restaurants, it was more than enough for Pei Zi Yun. He then said, "Granny broker, since you're so efficient, I won't look for anyone else. Although that courtyard isn't bad, it hasn't been cleaned in a long time."
"Apart from the cooking maid and serving maid, you should get someone to clean it up as well. I don't want any old furniture, and throw them all out. Get me some new furniture, if it's not too much, I'll take it all."
"Aiya, thank you Young Master." The granny broker smiled and said, "Don't worry Young Master. I can command more than ten people at a time. I guarantee that before nightfall, your mansion will be clean and tidy, and everything will be in order."
Even if this deal wasn't too much, she would still be able to earn ten taels of silver.
"Alright then, I shall go to the inn to have a meal and rest. I hope that everything will be done before nightfall." As he spoke, Pei Zi Yun left.
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