Chapter 12 Meeting Wang Ju
After obtaining Wang Yang's permission, the usually stingy middle-aged man made an exception and was generous for once. As soon as he left the mansion, he hired a sedan chair and urged two sedan bearers to jog back to the shop.
He casually threw five copper coins to the sedan chair bearers, and without even bothering to look at their ugly faces, he hurried into the shop.
Fan Zhiyu, who had been waiting in the store for half an hour, was already impatient. When he saw the middle-aged man finally show up, he immediately stood up and walked over.
"What does your boss say?"
Fan Zhiyu asked anxiously.
The middle-aged man smiled and said, "Our boss said we'll take the things."
"happy!"
Fan Zhiyu clapped his hands and laughed, saying heartily: "Get the invoice and get the money!"
The middle-aged man nodded slightly, walked up to the manager of the Ruiqi Casino and said, "The painting the boss wants is worth 20,000 taels. The money from the pawn shop is not enough, so we have to get some from the casino."
The manager of the Ruiqi Casino frowned and said, "The casino doesn't have much spare money."
The middle-aged man saw through his thoughts at a glance and couldn't help but curl his lips and said, "But this is what the boss wants."
The gambling house manager looked embarrassed and couldn't say the words. Finally, he nodded reluctantly.
"Since it's the boss's idea, I have to make it up for you."
"The gambling house offered twelve thousand taels..."
The middle-aged man smiled and reported a number.
The gambling house manager's eyes widened and he shouted in a low voice, "Twelve thousand taels? That would cost us half a year's income. How are we going to eat? Are we going to leave our brothers to starve?"
The middle-aged man had a faint smile on his face.
"It's related to the boss's career, so you don't have to take it."
There was obvious sarcasm in the middle-aged man's words. Relying on Wang Yang's support, he was clearly sure that the other party would not dare to resist.
The steward clenched his teeth, his cheeks flushed red, and he was obviously very angry.
"I'll take it!"
The middle-aged man showed a satisfied look, "Then go get it! With Mr. Fan's personality, it's obvious that he doesn't want to wait any longer!"
"snort!"
The steward snorted coldly, pushed the middle-aged man away with his shoulder and walked out.
The aisle was clearly spacious, but he chose to provoke and bump into it to vent his resentment.
The middle-aged man saw through his thoughts, but was too lazy to point it out. He had gained the advantage anyway, so why should he kill him?
After all, we all work for the boss, so it's inevitable that we'll run into each other again. You never know when you'll need help from the other, so you should always leave some wiggle room.
Although the two spoke softly, Fan Zhiyu's sharp ears could not escape his ears. He heard clearly that there was a clear disagreement between the middle-aged man and the steward.
However, Fan Zhiyu was too lazy to get involved in other people's grudges.
What he is most concerned about now is the 20,000 taels that are about to be delivered to him.
"We can gather the money slowly. I'll issue the pawn ticket first. What if you change your mind? I'll have waited in vain!"
Fan Zhiyu acted like a spendthrift and kept urging him.
"I'll do it right away."
The middle-aged man responded and turned to go behind the counter in the inner room of the pawnshop.
He picked up a pen and paper and wrote a pawn ticket.
The pawn ticket clearly stated that the "Brocade Book and Cloud Geese Picture" was worth 100,000 taels, and it was pawned to Xiangyun Pawnshop for 20,000 taels, with a redemption period of seven days.
If redeemed within seven days, the interest will be calculated at 30%; if not redeemed within the deadline, the interest will increase to 10%.
In fact, the last sentence should mean that if the property is not redeemed within the prescribed time limit, all the property will belong to Xiangyun Pawnshop.
However, due to the interests involved in "Brocade Book and Cloud Geese Picture", the middle-aged man did not dare to write like this.
Empty words can be denied, but written evidence cannot be denied.
Wang Yang said that Fan Zhiyu could be exempted from the interest.
But the middle-aged man was reluctant to give up this opportunity to make money, so he still wrote the interest on it.
As long as Fan Zhiyu doesn't pursue the matter any further, when he makes money, Wang Yang will not only not blame him, but will also give him benefits.
This is how it is in the business world. You must never miss out on the money you should earn.
After the pawn ticket was written, the middle-aged man first stamped the official seal of Xiangyun Pawnshop, then stamped Mrs. Wang Yang's private seal, and finally pressed his own seal.
All of the Wang family’s properties were registered under the name of Madam Wang Yang.
Wang Yang did this to prevent someone from using this incident to make a fuss and report him.
Once the three bright red seals are stamped, the pawn ticket becomes officially valid.
Compared to the pawn ticket issued to Song Fu by Xiangyun Pawnshop, this one with three seals is a real pawn ticket.
"Mr. Fan, your pawn ticket."
The middle-aged man respectfully presented the pawn ticket to Fan Zhiyu.
Just as Fan Zhiyu was about to take over, he shrank back slightly and said with a smile, "Master, draw..."
"Oh! You really don't want to see the rabbit before you release the eagle."
Fan Zhiyu muttered unhappily and stuffed all the paintings into the middle-aged man's arms.
The middle-aged man immediately handed the pawn ticket to Fan Zhiyu.
Fan Zhiyu took the pawn ticket and looked at the three bright red seals on the paper, feeling extremely excited.
Success!
But he didn't show it on his face. Instead, he asked the middle-aged man for money in a calm tone.
"Where's my money?"
The middle-aged man selected "Brocade Book, Clouds and Geese" from the paintings handed over by Fan Zhiyu and carefully placed it in a special box.
Then he replied to Fan Zhiyu, "Master, please wait a moment."
The middle-aged man bent down and pulled out a wooden box with iron corners from under the counter. He unlocked it and opened the lid, revealing a box full of gold bars. He pushed the box in front of Fan Zhiyu with a distressed look on his face, "Master, these are gold bars worth seven thousand taels. Count them!"
Fan Zhiyu picked up a gold bar, shook it in his hand, and looked at the purity. He curled his lips and said, "That's it. 80% gold, not really good gold. But I'm short of money right now, so I don't have time to argue with you. I'll give it to you at a discount."
The middle-aged man smiled and said, "Eight Yellow, Nine Purple, Ten Red, Purple Gold, and Red Gold are all things from the palace. My lord, you are of noble birth, and your aunt is the current queen mother. How much you have seen of the world is incomparable to a lowly person like you."
The 80% gold I can offer is already the best gold on the market."
Fan Zhiyu was too lazy to continue arguing with the other party about the quality of the gold. It was just free money anyway.
He slammed the table and shouted, "There are still thirteen thousand taels!"
The middle-aged man carried out ten boxes from the counter, each box containing one hundred taels.
Fan Zhiyu asked his followers to move it.
After a while.
The gambling house manager entered the shop alone.
The middle-aged man was surprised to see that he had nothing in his hands. "Where's the money?"
The steward said sullenly, "Outside."
When the middle-aged man heard this, his heart tightened.
He suppressed his uneasiness and asked Fan Zhiyu to leave the pawnshop.
As soon as I stepped out of the door, I saw a dozen people surrounding a large cart that was piled high with copper coins.
"this……"
Fan Zhiyu was stunned when he saw so many copper coins.
The middle-aged man glared at the steward fiercely and asked, "Why don't you take the gold bars? Are you doing this on purpose?"
"The only valuable things are in your pawnshop. In our gambling house, we only have copper coins."
The middle-aged man glared at him again and was about to step forward to apologize to Fan Zhiyu.
Fan Zhiyu glanced coldly at the middle-aged man and the gambling house manager, and said in a low voice with a stern face, "You are so brave! I will let you go today!"
Fan Zhiyu said that, not bothering to look at them again, and turned to his men, "Take my money, let's go!"
The men excitedly carried the copper coins onto the cart.
Fan Zhiyu sat on the shaft of the cart and crossed his legs.
His followers drove the skinny horse around with shouts and calls.
A carriage loaded with a large box of copper coins paraded through the streets, attracting the attention of passers-by.
There was no panic, no looting or plundering.
Copper coins were the legal tender in circulation during the dynasty.
Although gold, silver, and silk can be used as money, they are still not considered real currency. When making large transactions, several carts of copper coins are often needed to settle the bill, and the common people have long been accustomed to it.
Those who dare to parade around the streets with a cart full of copper coins are all high-ranking officials, and ordinary people cannot afford to offend them.
Before noon, the news that Fan Zhiyu was driving a car loaded with copper coins spread to all the taverns along the street.
Song Qianzhao was sitting in a tavern by the river, sipping sweet wine and looking at the ships coming and going on the river. When she heard the news, she smiled happily.
"Eat quickly, we still have important things to do."
Xunjiu was imitating the pedantic scholar at the next table, counting the broad beans, stuffing them into his mouth one by one, and savoring them slowly. When he heard that Song Qianzhao was leaving, he immediately became flustered.
"Master, please wait for me!"
Xunjiu shouted as he poured the entire plate of broad beans into his lapel, tied his belt tightly to ensure nothing would leak out, and then trotted to catch up with Song Qianzhao.
After the two men left, the Song Mansion attendant grabbed a handful of copper coins from his purse and scattered them on the table, then quickly followed.
Fan Zhiyu's matter has been settled, and now it's her turn.
Song Qianzhao, along with the Song family's entourage and Xunjiu, walked along Chunshui Street and arrived at Ruiqi Casino.
"Hey, Master, are you here to try your luck?"
The thugs standing at the Ruiqi Casino were immediately brightened up when they saw Song Qianzhao in gorgeous clothes, and they came forward to greet him enthusiastically.
Song Qianzhao raised his lips and said, "I heard that there is a man named Wang Ju in your gambling house?"
The gangster was obviously stunned for a moment, looking Song Qianzhao up and down, and said with a subtle expression: "Do you know our Second Master?"
"If the Wang Ju I'm talking about is your Second Master, then we have a long-standing friendship."
Song Qianzhao said this with a smile on his face.
The gangster grinned and said, "So you are the guest of the Second Master. Please come this way. I will call the Second Master for you."
Song Qianzhao nodded slightly and followed the other party into the gambling house.
Two dark blue curtains hung at the door, completely blocking out the scene inside.
As soon as he lifted the curtain and stepped in, a pungent smell mixed with sweat and foot odor hit his nose, making Song Qianzhao almost retreat.
She endured the discomfort, held her breath and walked in, and finally she got used to the turbid air inside.
If it wasn't something important, she wouldn't even want to set foot in such a place.
The gambling house was noisy and bustling.
They are all people from all walks of life, ordinary people or street thugs.
There was not a single distinguished personage, or one who was well-dressed.
The gangster took Song Qianzhao to the box.
There were also quite a few people in the box. Judging from their clothes and the belongings they brought, they were obviously of higher status than those outside.
They were gathered at the gambling table, fighting hard.
The gangster led Song Qianzhao into the box, informed the manager inside, and then left.
Outside the box, where Song Qianzhao couldn't see, the gangster sneered disdainfully: "Another fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered, what a fool."
Song Qianzhao in the box didn't know that in the eyes of others, he had become a stupid fat sheep that could be slaughtered.
She sat in the box for a while, then the door curtain was lifted and someone walked in.
The man looked around and finally stopped at Song Qianzhao. He then asked excitedly, "Is it nephew Song?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
