"Yes, as long as the shops and land are worth 1,500 taels of silver, they can be used to pay off the debt."
He Yusheng emphasized the words "1,500 taels of silver" to remind Zhou Shi not to think she could just give him a few shops and land and get rid of him. He wouldn't fall for that.
Zhou's face gradually stiffened. How many shops and lands were worth 1,500 taels of silver? This brat is really not easy to deal with!
“Sheng’er, this Jincheng is not like this town. The shops here are much more valuable than the land in this town.”
I'll give you three shops and five acres of fertile land to settle your debt. What do you say?
He Yusheng laughed upon hearing this, "Old Madam Cui, are you here to pay off your debts or to fob off a beggar? Do you think your shop is worth more than three hundred taels of silver, and your acre of fertile land is worth one hundred taels of silver?"
Zhou gritted her teeth and cursed inwardly. When did this little brat become so shrewd? She had originally planned to give him two shops and five acres of fertile land as payment for the debt.
Based on what she just said, she has already given up an extra shop, so these three shops have already exceeded her budget.
Currently, many of the shops in the Cui family mansion have already been sold off, and there are only five shops that can be acquired right now.
Because the shops have been gradually losing money over the years, the Cui family has rented out many of them to other merchants.
After all, keeping it in their own hands would only result in losses, while renting it to other merchants would allow the Cui family to earn some rent to support the household's expenses.
Moreover, the shops owned by the Cui family are all located in prime locations in Jincheng, so it's not an exaggeration to say they're worth three hundred taels of silver.
Moreover, her shop in Jincheng is nowhere near as small as the shops in this town. It must be much larger than this shop.
Overall, it can be said to be the best in terms of both location and size.
“Sheng’er, you can’t judge the prices of shops in Jincheng by the prices in this town. When your father was alive, you often went out to do business with him. You have some experience in the outside world, right?”
You should know how valuable houses are in the city.
He Yusheng nodded, expressionless, and analyzed with the demeanor of a businessman.
"Yes, the shops in Jincheng are indeed more valuable than those in this town, but that was before the disaster struck Jincheng. After this great calamity, how much those shops in Jincheng are still worth is really debatable."
Zhou paused for a moment. What the little brat said was indeed true. The shop's contract was about to expire, but the merchants who cooperated with her Cui family had no intention of continuing the cooperation.
Not intending to renew the contract means that all of the Cui family's shops and houses will be vacant, leaving them without any source of income.
However, if they were to start their own business, the Cui family wouldn't have the ability to manage it; they would only be throwing money into it.
When Jincheng was bustling, the Cui family's business was not doing well.
Now Jincheng is in trouble. It's deserted, and all the shops on the streets are closed. The Cui family's business can't be boosted by the surrounding shops, so business is even harder to do.
Where is the bustling, prosperous scene that Jincheng Street used to be?
"Well... Jincheng is so desolate now, but that's only temporary. It will definitely get better gradually. Don't be so short-sighted, only looking at the present situation."
He Yusheng looked at Zhou Shi with a half-smile, "The major families of Jincheng have already been led away by the prestigious Luo family."
Now only your Cui family remains as a prominent family. Do you think there is any hope for Jincheng to regain its former glory?
Even if you give me this shop, I'll just resell it.
If you try to resell it, it probably won't be easy to sell.
"Now, I'm afraid no brokerage firm is willing to take over these shops in Jincheng; whether they can even be sold is a problem."
“You’re talking nonsense, kid. How could this be a problem? My shop in Jincheng is still quite valuable.”
He Yusheng was too lazy to continue playing games with Zhou Shi here.
"Since you think this isn't a problem, then you can solve it yourself. Just sell the shop, convert the money into silver, and give me the silver directly. I won't take the shop back."
Zhou clenched her hands tightly. If her shop in Jincheng were still worth this much, she wouldn't have bothered to negotiate and would have sold it for money instead.
They did this because it wasn't selling well.
The brokerage firms in Jincheng have indeed stopped accepting shops and are eager to sell off their existing shops in preparation for leaving Jincheng.
Now that the shops are stuck in her hands, it's become a problem. Which brokerage firm would be foolish enough to take over the Cui family's shops?
"How about this, I'll add two more shops for you, making it five shops and five acres of fertile land. What do you think?"
He Yusheng's expression softened slightly, and he pondered for a moment.
"Even if I take over the shops, it's not easy to rent them out now. They're not as valuable as money if they're stuck in my hands. I'll add two more shops."
Give me seven shops and five acres of fertile land, and this debt will be settled.
Zhou felt a pang of heartache upon hearing this. Although shops and houses in Jincheng were worthless now, they were still the property of the Cui family. How could they just hand over two more rooms for nothing?
If these seven shops were in the past, they would have been worth far more than 1,500 taels of silver. I never imagined that the Cui family would be selling their shops at this critical juncture, at such a bargain price.
Zhou sighed and nodded reluctantly, "Alright, let's do it this way. But for now, I can only transfer five rooms to you. The remaining two rooms will be transferred to you after the other merchants' lease agreements expire."
There's only about two weeks left, so please wait a bit.
He Yusheng stood up and said, "Then let's write down the matter of paying back the debt clearly, in black and white, without missing a single word."
Because your Cui family owes my He family 1,500 taels of silver, we hereby offer seven shops and five acres of fertile land under your name as payment for the debt. You must write down clearly which seven shops and which five acres of fertile land are being used to pay off the debt, so that no further disputes may arise in the future.
We business people are used to letting things speak for themselves with written agreements and official stamps.
Zhou nodded reluctantly. "I will begin preparing for the transfer of the house and land as soon as I return to the manor." After saying that, she stood up and, supported by her maid, prepared to leave.
She had no intention of ever seeing that brat she hated so much again.
The son of this merchant is destined to be a shrew; this ingrained bad habit can never be changed.
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