Imperial Capital 5. Forced Purchase

Before entering the store, Ye Li frowned at the noise. Antique shops are not places where people come and go, usually quiet and elegant. The noise in this store can be heard clearly even before entering.

As soon as I entered the store, I saw a dazzling array of goods. The shopkeeper, who was dressed in rich and luxurious clothes, looked at a young man in shabby clothes with contempt. The man looked haggard and sick. His handsome face looked yellow and dry. Although his clothes were old, they were washed very cleanly. He didn't look disgusting, but rather had a touch of literati temperament. At this time, the man looked embarrassed and anxious, and even a little uneasy, "Shopkeeper, please look more carefully. This painting is really an authentic work of Mr. Wu Zhikai of the previous dynasty."

The shopkeeper glared at the man with disdain and said, "You look so poor, how could you have an authentic painting by Wu... Wu Zhikai? This painting is clearly a fake! But our shop also accepts imitations, and your imitation is pretty good, so I'll give you two hundred taels."

The man's face flushed with anger, "You...you..." Wu Zhikai was a great man from the previous dynasty. Even if an authentic painting was not the best, it would cost at least two thousand taels. If it was lifted a little more, it could be even more. The shopkeeper actually wanted to buy his family's ancestral treasure at one-tenth of the price. If he didn't really want more money, how could he be willing to sell the painting like this? "How can this be! I won't sell it!" The man rolled up the scroll angrily and was about to leave.

"Wait!" When the shopkeeper saw the man was about to leave, a trace of viciousness flashed in his eyes. He stared at the man fiercely and said, "I gave you two hundred taels to give you face! Could it be that you stole it? That's right, you look so poor, how could you have such a famous painting? Let's go to the government office."

"Go ahead and meet the official. Do you think I'm afraid of you? You, the shopkeeper, are so unreasonable in running a shop!" the man said angrily.

The shopkeeper smiled contemptuously, "Reason? Do you know who owns our store? Let me tell you, this is the business of Empress Zhaoyi's family in the palace. The fourth girl in our mansion will soon become the Princess of Li. Do you think the government will believe me or you, a poor guy?"

"you…."

"Sir, I want what you said. Two thousand taels." Ye Li walked into the store and said softly.

The two people who were still arguing were stunned. The man reacted and saw the beautiful and elegant woman in front of him and couldn't help but ask: "You... do you believe me?"

In fact, Ye Li could not tell whether the painting was real or fake. She only came to this conclusion based on the reactions of the shopkeeper and the man, as well as the guilty look on the face of the painting appraiser behind the counter. Besides, even if the painting was fake, she still bought it today!

The shopkeeper was furious when he saw that his business was ruined by a young girl. Seeing that the fabric of Ye Li's clothes was not expensive, he thought that she was not from a special family, so he said sinisterly, "Miss, you'd better not meddle in other people's business." Ye Li glanced at him and smiled lightly, "This young man refused to sell it to you, but now I sell it. How can it be considered meddling in other people's business?" The shopkeeper snorted coldly and said, "You have to buy it today, whether you want to or not! Our fourth young lady is getting married, and we are looking for some antique calligraphy and paintings to put in the box."

Ye Li sneered, "It's a good idea to sell it even if you don't want to. It just so happens that I have to buy it today. Qingshuang, give me the money."

Qingshuang cleverly took out a two thousand tael banknote and stuffed it into the man's hand. She took the painting and said with a smile, "Sir, here's the money. Go away."

The man hesitated and said, "No, the two girls..." If he left, the two girls would not be able to leave the store with the painting. Although he was in urgent need of money, he could not harm the two kind-hearted women. Looking at the shop assistants who had already passed by and blocked the door, the man shook his head firmly and said, "I don't want to sell this painting. Please return it to me, girls."

Ye Li took the painting from Qing Shuang, opened it, looked at it, nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile: "It just so happens that I want to give this "Qingjiang Wangyue Tu" as a gift. Sir, just take the money and go. I want to see if there is still law under the feet of this emperor."

"In that case, none of you should leave!" the shopkeeper threatened.

Ye Li looked at him with amusement, "Could it be that you dare to kill us?"

The shopkeeper's expression was stiff, and he said coldly: "Although I dare not kill you, I can take you to the government to be imprisoned! Come, get the lady's name card, and arrest these three thieves and take them to the government!"

"How dare you! Be careful or I'll chop off your claws!" Qingshuang stood in front of Ye Li and knocked down a fellow who wanted to catch Ye Li. She glared at the shopkeeper and said, "You dog slave, open your dog eyes and see clearly. This Shen Dexuan belongs to my lady!"

Everyone was stunned again. The shopkeeper's face turned pale and he looked at Ye Li with some suspicion, "You...you are..."

Ye Li looked at him steadily and said calmly, "My last name is Ye, and I am the third in line."

"Miss Third?" the shopkeeper cried out, his face suddenly turning ugly.

Ye Li handed the scroll in his hand to Qingshuang, glanced at the surrounding employees and said coldly: "Why don't you step aside? Don't you want to do it anymore?" Several employees looked at the shopkeeper gloomily, then looked at Ye Li and stepped aside.

The shopkeeper reacted quickly. After a moment's hesitation, he stepped forward and said with a smile, "Miss San, why are you here?"

After leisurely walking around the store, Ye Li turned around and pretended not to see a waiter quietly slipping out the door. He asked, "The name Shen De Xuan was proposed by my uncle himself. What is Shen De? The shopkeeper must not know, Master He, please tell me."

The painting appraiser who was hiding in the counter came out tremblingly and whispered, "Reply...Reply to the Third Miss, Uncle hopes that we who deal in antiques pay attention to morality, be careful in what we say, do, and be careful in our morality."

"Well said. So... what are you doing? Selling genuine products as counterfeits?"

The shopkeeper argued, "Miss San doesn't know how to do business. We are here for the business of Shen De Xuan. Business is not easy these days."

Ye Li sneered, "I really don't know how to do business, but I also know that the most important thing in business is trust. I also know that a man cannot stand without trust. Without credibility, who would do business with you? Moreover... your business... now Shen Dexuan's account is in a terrible state."

"I…"

Ye Li said to him coldly: "You don't need to explain. From now on you don't have to do it. As for what happened with the previous accounts, you'd better explain it to me clearly. If it's clear, those who are willing to stay can stay if it has nothing to do with you, and I will reward each of you with fifty taels of silver. If you are still unclear, you can stay in the big jail. I'll see if your master will come to get you out!" Several men hesitated. They had heard that the third lady was going to marry Prince Ding. Now that the shop was back in the hands of the third lady, it was natural that she would go to Prince Ding's mansion as a dowry. If they explained it, they could still go to Prince Ding's mansion, but if they didn't, they would go to jail. Besides, fifty taels of silver was not a small number, it was almost equivalent to their two years' salary.

When the shopkeeper saw everyone was shaking, he hurried forward and shouted, "Miss San, I am Madam's person, you have no right to chase me away."

Ye Li smiled, "Sorry, this Shen De Xuan is mine. After you have explained the store's account clearly, you can go back to where you came from. If you can't explain it clearly... it's useless even if you are the Madam's brother. Could it be that everyone in your Wang family likes to take other people's things and treat them as their own?"

“You…you…” The shopkeeper’s face turned red and white.

Ye Li stopped looking at her and turned to look at the young man standing there in shock. She had known for a long time that the shopkeeper of Shen De Xuan had been replaced by Wang's youngest brother a few years ago. "This young man, I failed to control you and let you suffer this humiliation. Please forgive me."

"No... No, it's okay." The young man waved his hands a little awkwardly. He had never thought that this quiet and elegant girl would be the owner of this shop. After thinking about it, although he felt that it was a bit nosy, the young man couldn't help but said: "Since the girl is the owner of Shen Dexuan, please... take more care. What if..." If I hadn't met this girl today, I'm afraid I would have been wrongly imprisoned. Judging from the behavior of the shopkeeper, this is probably not the first time.

Ye Li was not angry either, she nodded and smiled, "Thank you for your reminder, young master. I have just taken over this shop and I will definitely discipline her strictly in the future. I see that you are reluctant to part with this painting, so you can take it back first. I will consider the money as a loan to you, and I will return it to you later when it is convenient."

The man shook his head repeatedly, but in his heart he was reluctant to part with this family heirloom painting. He said, "I won't accept the reward if I have done nothing for it. I only ask that you keep this "Moon Over the Clear River" for two months. I will definitely find a way to pay you back within two months."

Seeing that he was so determined, Ye Li smiled and said, "I will leave this painting in the store. You can come and redeem it anytime. Qingshuang, add another 100 taels as compensation for this young master's sin."