Chapter 111 Pawn
"One hundred taels of silver is indeed a bit expensive..."
Cheng Wei Yao frowned when she heard this, but she felt a little relieved in her heart. At the moment, everyone seemed to be clean-handed on the surface, and how much silver they had left depended on how much money they had in their wallets. It didn't seem strange that they could carry a hundred taels of silver with them.
However, the next sentence of the yamen runner made Cheng Wei Yao exclaim that it was a rip-off. He squinted his eyes, took a sip of wine, and then added slowly.
"Little sister, don't be too happy too soon. As I said before, this is the price per person. You have such a large family, so you're bound to spend a lot of money..."
As soon as these words were spoken, not only the Prince of Qingping's Palace, but also the people in other exile groups who were listening at the wall looked at each other in bewilderment, obviously they were short of money.
Before, my household registration was under the emperor’s control, but now I’ve been exiled to a small border town. Not only can I not even get a household registration in a city or town. It’s really pathetic!
Cheng Weiyao pursed her lips. If this was the price per person, including her family of five, the highest-end package would cost one thousand taels. Even if they settled in the town, five hundred taels wouldn't be a small sum...
"You can't laugh anymore, right? City people are nice, but they're really expensive. I think our small town is pretty good, nestled in the mountains and next to the water. You have this skill, so it wouldn't be great to stay in the kitchen and stir the wok..."
The yamen runner noticed the change in everyone's expressions and laughed happily. From the first moment he saw the exile team, he realized that this family was not ordinary.
Exiled from the capital to Qingshi Town, they were displaced all the way, exposed to the wind and sun. The other people in the exile team looked pale and thin, but the family of Prince Qingping's Mansion had fair and tender skin, and the old ones still had charm. This showed that the food they had along the way was very good.
"Brother, you're right. I'll excuse you while you're eating and drinking..."
Cheng Weiyao smiled and nodded, pretending to run to the backyard in a hurry, but in fact she saw the small door to the backyard when she was busy in the kitchen.
According to what the yamen runners had revealed, the little money they had on them was obviously not enough. Although their parents had given them some change before they left, it was still a drop in the bucket. If they wanted to settle down there, they had to find a way to get money from the warehouse at QQ Farm.
The warehouse of QQ Farm was filled with gold, silver and jade items, some from the Duke's Mansion and the local tyrant Li Dabao. After much deliberation, Cheng Weiyao finally set her sights on the jewelry that the princess had given her before.
It is reasonable for a girl to carry jewelry with her, but if she wants to save money, she can't wear something as trivial as earrings.
Cheng Weiyao's eyes were fixed on the golden hairpin in the agarwood box. There are three grades of gold: yellow gold is the best, white gold is the middle, and red gold is the worst.
Regardless of the era, gold is always hard currency. Just based on the exquisite carving and bright color, this one must be worth at least a thousand taels, right?
Cheng Weiyao's mind moved, and she observed the situation in the hall with the golden hairpin in her pocket. The yamen runners in the hall were still drinking and eating meat, and they were in high spirits. It didn't look like they would set off for a while.
Just now, when I was passing by the long street, I saw from afar that there was a pawnshop among the shops on both sides. I might as well take my hairpin and exchange it for some silver...
After making up her mind, Cheng Wei Yao quietly opened the door to the backyard. In order to prevent herself from being unable to open the door when she came back, she found an inconspicuous little stone and stuck it into the gap of the door.
The wooden door in the backyard was ajar, and from a distance it looked like it was closed. After making preparations for the retreat, Cheng Wei Yao quickly walked towards the pawnshop on Chang Street.
There are two specially made huge strings of money hanging on both sides of the door at the entrance of the pawnshop to attract customers. This is the kind of big store Cheng Weiyao is looking for.
Because in ancient times, only large pawnshops had the financial resources to accept expensive items such as gold and silver jewelry, antiques, calligraphy and paintings; while ordinary pawnshops only accepted non-precious items such as clothing.
The most important thing is that there is a large screen inside the door of this pawnshop, so what is going on inside the pawnshop cannot be seen from the outside, which naturally reduces the risk of being discovered by acquaintances.
"Miss, please come this way. What are you planning to pawn today?"
The shopkeeper saw Cheng Weiyao, a girl, coming to pawn her things and immediately asked with a smile. Most women who came to pawn their goods were buying gold and silver jewelry, so this transaction would not be small.
"Boss, please judge for yourself. I'll be frank with you. I won't sell it to you for less than that..."
Cheng Weiyao placed the gold hairpin wrapped in a handkerchief on the table and gently pushed it over. Although she was pressed for time and did not have time to ask prices at every pawnshop, she would rather lose face than make the pawnshop feel anxious.
The golden light on the hairpin was refracted by the sunlight outside, leaving a fleeting spot of light on the white wall. The shopkeeper quickly covered it with a handkerchief and made a gesture to Cheng Weiyao to come in.
"Excuse me, young lady, are you going to pawn your life or your death? Please take a seat inside."
"Sure, name a price, if it doesn't work I'll move on to the next one."
Cheng Weiyao followed in leisurely. The shopkeeper was holding a golden hairpin and examining it carefully. The luster and carving were both of first-class exquisite craftsmanship. It was no exaggeration to say that it was a treasure worth a thousand gold.
"Miss, I won't cheat you. The price of a hard-goods dragon is listed on the table. This is the most I can give you for this hairpin."
The shopkeeper stretched out his hand and gestured to the number two thousand. Cheng Weiyao frowned slightly. A gold hairpin cost two thousand taels of silver. Not to mention that it was real gold, the carving alone was more than the price.
Although she had never pawned money in an ancient pawnshop, they were all businessmen and would always try to bargain down the price. Since the pawnshop was willing to accept the money, she might as well play along.
"Shopkeeper, please take a closer look. This gold hairpin is worth more than just the price of the gold. It's a piece from the palace. I'm a woman, but I've also traveled a lot and seen a lot of the world. You run a pawnshop, and I'm half a businessman. We're both experts and know the current price... Three thousand five hundred. If you agree, we'll do it. If not, we'll just walk away."
As soon as the source was revealed, the cashier's face turned a little paler, explaining that this was not stolen goods, but most likely belonged to a wealthy family that had fallen on hard times.
The pawnshop counter is very high, and you cannot see the items behind the counter when standing in front of it. This is to make people who come to pawn their items feel awe. Generally, pawners dare not bargain with the pawnshop.
He has been in the business for over forty years and knows that this is a good item, but with the price Cheng Weiyao asked, he won't make much money!
"It's definitely a good thing, but young lady, your price... How about this, let's both compromise a little, how about three thousand?"
The person who was speaking was the shopkeeper. There were two shopkeepers in the pawnshop, one sitting and the other standing. The main role of the shopkeeper was to come out and smooth things over at this time.
"Do you keep your word?"
Cheng Weiyao raised her eyebrows slightly, looking a little hesitant.
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