Then Gu Yuzhi seemed to realize something, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared. He poked Xie Changshi's hand, covered his lips with his hand, and whispered, "Xie Changshi, if everything is included, is the rent more expensive than if nothing is included?"

His business hasn't even started yet, and renting a place is already taking up a large portion of his treasury funds.

Chief Secretary Xie looked around, then squatted down and said, "The furniture in this house is made of good materials, so it's normal for it to be a bit expensive."

Gu Yuzhi's face scrunched up even more: "If we rent for two years, will we still have any money left?"

Originally, Xie Changshi's monthly salary was calculated to last until next year. Once the house is rented out, will he be unable to pay the monthly salary?

Chief Secretary Xie said, "We can discuss renting for two years, but the rent will be paid annually. That way, if the place is suitable, Your Highness won't be under too much pressure."

Wow, you can do that too!

Gu Yuzhi nodded and said, "Then please go quickly, Chief Secretary Xie."

Chief Secretary Xie turned and walked to the old servant and Prefect Qi: "My master is quite satisfied with this house. Now it's just a matter of rent. If the rent is right, we won't look at any other houses."

Prefect Qi was not surprised by this result. After all, in Changzhou Prefecture, this was the only place that rented out such a house. He turned to the old servant and said, "Your master should have told you about the rental. With me as your guarantor, you can rest assured. Just give me the lowest price."

The old servant bowed repeatedly: "Yes, yes, the master instructed that if it's suitable, it will be eight hundred taels of silver a year. But the furniture must be well taken care of; if it's damaged, you'll have to pay for it at the original price."

Compared to housing prices in the capital, eight hundred taels for such a large, three-courtyard house, fully furnished, is really not expensive.

However, Chief Secretary Xie did not immediately agree: "Eight hundred taels is a bit expensive, perhaps we can lower the price a bit more?"

The old servant looked troubled, then glanced at Prefect Qi without leaving a trace. Thinking of what his master had told him, he gritted his teeth and said, "Seven hundred taels is the lowest price the master has given. It can't be any lower. If it's less, I won't be able to explain it to the master."

Seeing that Prefect Qi remained silent, the old servant continued to bow and scrape, saying, "Prefect, please don't make things difficult for me. I'm just a servant, and I really can't make decisions for you!"

They were all servants, just with different social statuses. Chief Secretary Xie didn't intend to make things difficult for anyone. It was already quite an achievement to negotiate down a price of one hundred taels, so he said, "I'll go ask my master."

Gu Yuzhi had been listening nearby. When Xie Changshi said he wanted to ask him, he understood that the price was about right. However, he didn't know how much silver was left in the treasury. He whispered to Xie Changshi, "Xie Changshi, now that I've spent seven hundred taels of silver, will I still be able to do small business?"

If he spends so much money at once and doesn't find a way to make more, he'll be starving in the northern desert.

Xie Changshi hesitated for a moment: "It should be possible."

Gu Yuzhi breathed a sigh of relief, but fearing that others might notice that she actually liked the place, she tried her best to keep a straight face and said, "Then let's book it here."

Hearing Gu Yuzhi say this, the old servant breathed a sigh of relief, then said somewhat helplessly, "The rent is seven hundred taels, but since the house is fully furnished, a deposit of one hundred taels is also required."

Fearing that these people might misunderstand, the old servant hurriedly said, "Don't worry, as long as everything is in good condition when you cancel the lease, the hundred taels will be refunded."

The old servant glanced at Gu Yuzhi with his cloudy eyes, then quickly looked away, not daring to say another word.

Xie Changshi had mentioned the deposit system for renting a house to Gu Yuzhi before, so when the old servant brought it up again, he wasn't surprised, but he felt a little like crying.

The deposit is so expensive! He's lost another hundred taels of his available treasury silver!

Seeing that Gu Yuzhi had a bitter face but did not object, Chief Secretary Xie understood and nodded to the old servant: "Alright." He turned to Prefect Qi: "Prefect Qi, be a witness."

Qi Wenhan readily agreed and immediately instructed his servants to fetch a familiar broker.

The old servant welcomed everyone to the main hall and prepared hot tea before going to the gatehouse to retrieve the rental agreement that had been prepared in advance. The agreement did not specify the rent or term, but it was stamped with Master Chen's personal seal, indicating that Master Chen had made several preparations before leaving.

Chief Secretary Xie took the contract from the old servant, glanced at it quickly, and found nothing amiss. After the broker Qi Wenhan had found came to confirm the contents were correct, Gu Yuzhi affixed his personal seal under Chief Secretary Xie's guidance.

After receiving the deed, the sense of bewilderment that had been felt when his elder brother, the emperor, bestowed upon him a fiefdom in the northern desert resurfaced in his mind.

He understood that from this moment on, the capital city would truly have nothing to do with him anymore.

Gu Yuzhi subtly moved closer to Chief Secretary Xie, her small hand clutching the jade pendant at Chief Secretary Xie's waist, which made her feel much more at ease.

Both parties agreed to hand over the room early the next morning. The old servant followed the others back to the inn. Xie Changshi took out eight hundred taels of silver notes from the storeroom and handed them to the old servant in front of Qi Wenhan.

After thanking him repeatedly, the old servant followed the constable beside Qi Wenhan to the money exchange.

Qi Wenhan remained in Gu Yuzhi's room, sitting below Chief Secretary Xie. After pondering for a while, he said, "Your Highness, we wonder when you will have time. All the officials in Changzhou would like to hold a welcome banquet for you. From now on, we will have to rely on you in the northern desert."

Upon hearing this, Gu Yuzhi looked at Chief Secretary Xie.

If he remembered correctly, his mother had told him before he came that local princes were strictly forbidden from interfering in local affairs and from having close relationships with local officials, but since Prefect Qi said it was a welcome banquet, it seemed inappropriate not to attend.

Most importantly, they also needed to ask Prefect Qi for a map of the northern desert to find a suitable place to build their prefecture.

Chief Secretary Xie thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness is still young, so there is no need for a special welcome banquet. The Mid-Autumn Festival will be here soon, and Your Highness can host a banquet then."

Qi Wenhan dared not let Prince Wen pay, so he quickly stood up and waved his hands repeatedly: "No, no, Changzhou Prefecture also holds a banquet every Mid-Autumn Festival. Please, Your Highness Prince Wen and Chief Secretary Xie, do us the honor of attending."

“In that case, we’ll listen to Prefect Qi.” Chief Secretary Xie smiled. “I hope Prefect Qi will prepare a map of the northern desert, as His Highness wishes to personally select his fiefdom.”

The meaning behind these words is quite clear: His Highness Prince Wen is likely looking for a place that is uninhabited and uncultivated.

There are quite a few such places in the northern desert, but those suitable for human habitation need to be carefully selected.

Qi Wenhan planned to take a good look at the map when he got back, circle the suitable places, and then walk around on behalf of Prince Wen to select the best locations before handing the map over to Prince Wen for a decision.

After thinking it through, Qi Wenhan nodded repeatedly: "Yes, I will definitely deliver it."

Having said what needed to be said and done what needed to be done, Qi Wenhan soon took his leave.

Chief Secretary Xie followed him out of the room and instructed his men to start packing, so that they could all move into the new house at the auspicious time tomorrow.