Chapter 31 Chapter 31 is settled.
Even in criminal cases involving murder, unnatural death, etc., the Dali Temple has the right to decide to open the coffin and conduct an autopsy without obtaining the consent of the family.
However, people are deeply influenced by the concept of "resting in peace", and the Dali Temple has no report or verification record that Mrs. Rong and her parents died in an accident. The case has been going on for several years, and it is not the family members who raised the doubts. It is difficult to take action based on the words of an outsider, Brother Liang.
"Unless the Rong siblings give in, or unless new evidence is found, we can only put it aside for now." Chen Yan shook his head and said bluntly.
Lin Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Look at it from a positive perspective. Maybe Brother Liang heard some rumors and misunderstood."
This isn't impossible; rumors are one of the most uncontrollable forces in the world. In Linzhi, a woman was rumored to have committed suicide simply because she smiled at a peddler while shopping. Furthermore, her good looks sparked rumors that the peddler's behavior was improper, driving her to suicide. Fortunately, her family arrived in time to rescue her. When her family members confronted them, the rumormongers steadfastly argued, "That's not true. How could a woman commit suicide out of guilt?" It's truly a muddled mess, impossible to explain.
Fortunately, the county magistrate was wise. After learning about this, he summoned the man to the yamen to investigate the case. He sentenced him to thirty strokes of the cane and ordered him to pay thirty strings of cash as compensation to the victim. Only then was the matter settled.
Upon hearing this, Chen Yan let out a long breath: "I hope so."
The next day, Fan Ya Ren came to deliver a message saying that Rong Xiao Niang agreed to rent the house, but required a one-time payment of 20 strings of cash per year for five years, which means a total of 100 strings of cash.
At the same time, Fan Ya Ren told them that Rong Xiaoniang did not take the shop off the market, but continued to list it for sale. However, in order to get rid of it as quickly as possible, Rong Xiaoniang lowered the price by another twenty strings of cash, and the current total price was three hundred and thirty strings of cash.
"One hundred strings of cash for five years, or three hundred and thirty strings of cash if you buy directly." After seeing off Fan the dealer, Lin Sen returned home and consulted with his wife and daughter, "What do you say?"
“I just think the storefront is a little small.”
"If it's twice as wide, the price will have to double." Lin Sen was helpless. Yesterday, Fan Ya took them to see more than ten houses. Together with the ones they saw before, the ones they saw themselves were not as good as this one in terms of location and area, and they cost about 400 guan.
Liurong Restaurant is located diagonally opposite the Dali Temple. To the east are the Sinong Temple, Weiwei Temple, Shangshu Bureau and Shangnian Bureau, while to the west is the Taichang Temple. A series of government offices are all on the same road.
If you walk north, you will see more government offices and the imperial city. If you walk south, you will see a residential area. After passing through the residential area and crossing the bridge, you will reach the starting point of Zhouqiao Night Market.
Although this place is not as prosperous as Zhouqiao Night Market, fortunately, this is the only street nearby where you can shop. Almost all the officials and even the runners working in the yamen live here, so the customer flow is stable. The most important thing is that this place is close to the government residence, so there are many patrol runners, and there are soldiers patrolling day and night, so safety is guaranteed.
The price offered by Rong Xiaoniang was low because the store was small, the furnishings were old, and the location was neither good nor bad.
Song Jiaoniang gritted her teeth and said, "Then let's go with this one. Sign a five-year contract. When we've saved enough money, we can buy a big shop!"
"Right, right, right. Five years from now..." Lin Sen smacked his lips and fantasized for a moment: "Maybe by then we'll have saved enough money and can move into a big shop like Furongzhuang."
Song Jiaoniang couldn't help but smile just thinking about it: "Who knows, Sister Zhi has already found her husband!"
"Oh, maybe I'll even have grandchildren!" Lin Sen thought about it and almost laughed out loud.
The couple's imaginations ran wild, but Lin Zhi was speechless. She forced a change of subject: "Dad, Mom, what do you think, why don't we just buy it?"
"Huh?" Song Jiaoniang was stunned. "Didn't you say yesterday that leasing was fine? Why are you saying you want to buy it outright now?"
"Are you worried about someone buying the shop?" Lin Sen thought of this and hurriedly explained, "I asked Mr. Fan, and he said that the sale does not affect the lease. Even if Miss Rong sells the shop to someone else later, it won't affect our use. At least she should wait until the five-year lease is up before signing a new contract with our family, or notify us in advance to take back the house and give us time to move."
"No, that's not it." Lin Zhi frowned. She did not mention Chen Yan's investigation of the case, but mentioned Rong Xiaoniang's temperament.
Rong Xiaoniang was easily persuaded, and after a few words of persuasion from Qi Niang yesterday, she began to waver. But today, she agreed to rent the shop while simultaneously lowering the price, indicating that the party who persuaded her to negotiate was determined to sell the shop.
Linzhi didn't know who was hiding behind the scenes, but he couldn't help but feel wary - in later generations, there were many news reports of people trying to raise prices or even send people to cause trouble when the shop was doing well.
"Secondly, this house has a great location and a nice layout, but the furnishings inside are too old. If we want to reopen, we must renovate and redecorate it."
"It takes a month to decorate a house. If the other party sells the shop during this month, what should we do if we want to take back the lease?"
"How is this possible?"
"Dad, of course it's possible." Lin Zhi sighed.
Even though the current laws and regulations are complete and the imperial court has introduced many policies to protect the rights of landlords and tenants, the fact that any repair or renovation of a rented house requires the landlord's consent is enough to cause trouble for the Linzhi family.
At that time, if they don't want to rent the house, they will have to pay a sum of money.
Upon hearing this, Lin Sen and his wife frowned, a hint of hesitation on their faces. Recalling Rong Xiaoniang's behavior yesterday, they had to admit that their daughter's considerations were indeed well-founded.
But...it costs three hundred strings of cash to buy a shop?
Of course, the two wanted to buy the house so that they could have a legitimate place to stay in Bian Jing. The problem was that they only had 300 strings of cash in total. If they used these 300 strings of cash, they would have to use the money given to their daughter to buy things and even for subsequent purchases.
Both of them remembered the solemn promises they had made and felt very uncomfortable.
Lin Zhi only needed one look to know what her parents were brooding over. She felt both angry and amused, saying, "My parents and I are family. What's yours and mine? Besides, why bother arguing and haggling over such a small sum of money?"
If there were other children in the family, Lin Zhi would take care of them but would also have her own thoughts. But the Lin Sen couple had been married for over twenty years and had only one daughter, Lin Zhi.
They treated Linzhi with all their heart, and Linzhi was willing to do the same. Moreover, now was an important moment for the whole family to support each other, relieve each other of worries, and work together to gain a foothold in Bianjing.
After hearing what their daughter said, Lin Sen and his wife finally put aside their pride and took their daughter to find Fan Ya Ren, and booked the house that day.
While waiting for the Rong siblings to move, the three of them discussed various matters and went about their business separately the next day.
Song Jiaoniang was responsible for going to the silk shop to buy cloth to make bedding and other items, while Lin Sen hired a carpenter to repair the beams, custom-made furniture, and sold the old tables and chairs. The total cost of both was about five strings of cash.
"Rent still accounts for the bulk of the expenses. Look at all these things, and it only cost five strings of cash." After Lin Sen finished calculating the bill, he couldn't help but be shocked, and felt even more painful about the housing prices in Bianjing.
He closed the account book and asked Song Jiaoniang, "Speaking of which, why hasn't Sister Zhi come back yet?"
"Sister Zhi said she wanted to go to the nearby markets to check out the prices of various ingredients, spices, and sauces. She even asked Shopkeeper Zhang to call a donkey cart this morning. I don't think she'll be back until dark."
While the couple was chatting, Linzhi was walking around various grocery stores and spice shops, with the paper in her hand filled with various information.
Because her records were so detailed, some shop assistants even thought she was in the same industry. After much persuasion, they finally believed that she had opened a new food shop and came to inquire about the prices of various items in advance.
Soon, Linzhi finalized the plans for several butcher shops, vegetable and fruit shops, and then began to think about spices and condiments.
Both were expensive, and the pressure to stock up was high, so there were far fewer shops than in other industries. Linzhi thought for a moment and headed to Guo Silang Teahouse. She ordered a pot of scented tea and three plates of melon seeds and fruit. A waiter quickly brought the tea and fruit, leaning over and asking with a smile what she needed them to do.
This is how teahouses are nowadays. From asking for help to buying things, to even acting as a broker, as long as you have money, you can buy all the services.
"I want to inquire about the situation of the spice shops in Bian Jing." Lin Zhi pushed forward several shops that he had taken a fancy to and asked in particular whether these shops had any problems with short weight or quarrels with others.
"Madam, please wait a moment." After hearing this, the servant immediately passed the message inside. Soon, a waiter with a green scarf on his head and wearing a cotton short shirt and trousers of the same color came to Linzhi.
The clerk bowed and slowly began to talk about the spice shop. Lin Zhi soon learned that the major condiment and spice shops in Bianjing City had a tacit agreement: all spices were sold at a fixed price, with discounts only given to a few large customers.
The downside is that new food shops like those in Linzhi cannot even sell on credit in the first few years.
The advantage is that their supply is stable and sufficient, and the price fluctuations are very small.
After Linzhi had an idea in mind, he asked about the other shops.
The clerk carefully explained the pros and cons of each store. Compared with large stores with stable supply and abundant funds, small stores are more willing to offer discounts and promotions due to inventory backlogs. At the same time, they also sell rare spices and condiments. For example, there is a store selling salted plum fish sauce produced in Chaozhou, etc., to expand their influence.
Lin Zhi listened with great interest, taking careful notes. The clerk in front of him talked incessantly until he reached the last shop, Hu Ji Spice Shop, where he paused with a look of hesitation.
"Is there something wrong with this Hu Ji?"
"My dear lady, this shop... should be closing soon."
"Closing down? I think their storefront is quite big?" Lin Zhi recalled and asked.
"Don't worry, my lady. Our shop is well-known for doing things properly. All this information has been verified."
Linzhi simply took out a handful of copper coins from his wallet and gave them to the waiter as an extra reward, asking him to explain in detail.
The clerk was overjoyed and talked about everything. Soon Linzhi learned that Hu's Spice Shop had been passed down for three generations and was originally considered a time-honored brand in Bianjing.
But unexpectedly, three months ago, Hu Dalang disappeared on his way to Quanzhou Shipping Company to purchase spices and there has been no news of him since.
When he did not return by the appointed time, the Hu family discovered what had happened. They hurriedly reported to the authorities and searched for him. They then sent people to look for him, but they both fell ill due to their anxiety.
Hu Dalang's wife, Mrs. Lu, had to take care of her parents-in-law and her children. In just two or three months, she went from being a beautiful woman to being haggard.
"Mrs. Lu is the daughter of a butcher and has never handled spice business before. So, within a few days of the news of Hu Dalang's suspected disappearance and death spreading, some old customers switched to other shops."
"If you cancel the order, you'll lose a lot of money. If you keep the goods and can't sell them, you'll also lose a lot of money."
"Plus, that young man lost a large sum of money when he died. According to my shopkeeper's calculations, I'm afraid his family has run out of funds and can no longer continue."
After a pause, the clerk continued, "I heard that her family has listed the shop for sale for 2,800 guan (approximately 2,000 guan), and that they are going to Quanzhou with their entire family to look for Hu Dalang."
Linzhi thanked him, got up and left the shop. Instead of going to another spice shop, she went straight to Hu's Spice Shop.
It's not that she didn't believe the information provided by the teahouse, but Linzhi felt that since Hu's Spice Shop was planning to transfer the shop, it would definitely clear out the inventory in advance. Maybe she could take this opportunity to buy cheap and good quality spices.
Soon, Lin Zhi entered Hu's Spice Shop. She surveyed the area, noticing the vast expanse of the shop, overflowing with spices. Lin Zhi approached and examined it carefully, raising an eyebrow. The jars and cans stacked in the corner were polished to a high shine, even the lowest jar untouched by dust.
She thought about it, then went to the counter next to her and grabbed a handful of star anise to examine. The star anise had neat shapes, was dry and had no wormholes, had a strong fragrance, and was in excellent condition.
Wait? This doesn't seem like something someone with no knowledge can do.
Just as Lin Zhi was in shock, the woman sitting behind the counter stood up and said, "Young lady, what can't you find? I'll find it for you."
This woman was Mrs. Lu. Although she looked young, the fatigue and haggardness between her brows made her look a little old.
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "I just came in to take a look."
The woman's expression remained unchanged as she said softly, "Then I will not disturb you. You can ask me any questions you have."
After saying that, she stepped back decisively.
Seeing this, Linzhi became more curious. She took another look around and found that all the spices she saw were well preserved and did not show any labels indicating price reduction or promotion.
Hey! Could it be that the teahouse is lying?
Lin Zhi was genuinely curious and called out to Madam Lu, who was about to return to the counter. "Please stop, Madam. I heard you're interested in selling your shop."
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