Chapter 106: The Ruthless Actor (14)
Mr. Zhan was initially skeptical about the Fifth Concubine's words.
But thinking back carefully, the third concubine gave birth to a mixed-race child, the fourth concubine had no children, and the fifth concubine was the child of an adulterer...
The more Mr. Zhan thought about it, the angrier he became. He flew into a rage and called the second wife over and gave her a good scolding.
The second wife gritted her teeth and refused to admit the evil deeds she had done.
Anyway, the Fifth Concubine had no evidence, so the Second Concubine naturally made herself sound as wronged as possible.
In a rage, Mr. Zhan forced himself to sit up from the bed and wanted to slap her.
But before he could even sit down, he coughed up blood and gasped for breath. He was rushed to Renji Hospital for treatment.
...So the second wife followed the fifth wife's fate and was confined to her room.
The second wife had been in charge of the Zhan family's internal affairs for many years. She had prestige and connections, but she was only under house arrest. In the eyes of ordinary people, as long as she was alive and her son was still alive, she would have no worries about her chance of turning things around.
Although the second wife spoke tough, she was actually very panicked inside.
Ever since she was frightened silly by the sudden appearance of the evil spirit of the baby girl in the fifth concubine's room that day, she has been unable to eat or sleep. She always feels that there are two bottomless eyes staring at her from behind.
The second wife's two daughters did not know that their mother had done many bad things. They all felt that the second wife became sensitive and suspicious because she was suspected and accused by her father.
"Mom! You must be seeing things wrong. We have so many Zhan family ancestors looking after our house, there won't be any dirt here!!"
But the second wife held the jade Buddha statue and the Buddhist scriptures in her arms, startled and dazed, her eyes completely dull, and she kept muttering to herself.
"You are still young...you don't understand..."
No matter who comes to comfort me, whether it's my daughter or my son, it's useless.
Because of this, the second son, Zhan Deyun, went to the hospital to plead for his mother, but was scolded and beaten by Master Zhan and kicked out of the ward. He was told that he could only manage the bank's accounts and not interfere in family affairs.
Now the entire Zhan family is in chaos. Without a backbone, the right to speak has fallen into the hands of the fourth concubine, who was previously the most despised by the servants.
But Shisui didn't worry about it. She just ate when she was hungry and drank when she was thirsty.
The little power of the concubines and maids in the house is nothing. This is just the first step.
The opium traded between the Zhan's Company and Colonel Davis is the most important thing...
…
"Jue'er, what are you busy with?"
Shi Sui suddenly appeared in Miao Jue's room.
There were a lot of books piled on the desk in Miao Jue's room.
There were also a few pieces of paper, one line in foreign language and one line in Chinese, which looked like an agreement or something.
"Ah, Fourth Sister... A few days ago, Master Deyun and I met with Colonel Davis and drafted some terms. I'll translate the foreign text into Chinese, and we'll go sign it in person tomorrow."
Miao Jue looked a little nervous. He picked up the papers, placed them upright on the table, and turned the back of the papers towards Shi Sui, clearly not wanting her to see them.
But it's too late.
The moment Shisui entered the room, she took in all the contents of the agreement.
The above stipulates that the two parties will trade on the last day of each month. Each time, the Zhan Company needs to take at least 500 pounds of opium, and 30% of the payment needs to be paid in kind with sugar, rice, wine, etc.
But the price of opium was clearly written in black and white to be decided unilaterally by Davis.
Robber!!
What kind of crap is this?!
Isn't this a completely unfair clause?!
...But Shi Sui also noticed that Miao Jue was doing something secretly.
"You little girl, you've learned to have evil thoughts~"
Shi Sui unexpectedly snatched the paper from Miao Jue's hand and pointed at Miao Jue's translation.
"500 pounds is equal to 227 jin. Are you referring to kilograms or jins? Are you being intentionally vague?"
One kilogram is equal to two catties.
At this time in Shanghai, when the word "jin" is mentioned, 99.9% of Chinese people will think that it refers to the "shijin" that has been used for many years - this 99.9% definitely includes Zhan Deyun.
But the British will naturally think it is "kilogram".
Precisely because of this information gap, neither Zhan Deyun nor Davis had any objection to this place when signing the agreement.
But when the actual delivery comes, disagreements will arise and the relationship between them will be provoked.
Shi Sui originally wanted to be more direct and let Zhan Deyun and Davis conflict, but since Miao Jue had her own ideas, Shi Sui just went with the flow and gave her a chance to exercise.
Miao Jue blushed when Shi Sui revealed her secret thoughts. She quickly closed the door and confessed to Shi Sui.
"The Zhan family is only interested in profit, but I really don't want to see us being controlled by a bunch of British people! ... Fourth sister, you are the head of the family now. If you want to beat me or punish me, I will accept it!"
"You did such a great job, what's there to punish?" Shi Sui patted Miao Jue's shoulder, telling her to relax. "If gangs want to sell it, that's the underworld's business, but something as harmful as opium must not be released from the Zhan family, who hold the title of Vice Chairman of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce."
Allowing the Zhan family, who are involved in the legitimate business world, to openly sell opium, what's the difference between that and declaring opium legal?!
Miao Jue clenched his fist excitedly: "I knew it! Fourth sister, you care about the people and serve the country and the people!"
"Wait... this is not just my responsibility..." Tokiho looked away and barely looked out the window.
Shi Sui has the power to fight against ten thousand people alone, so she must grasp the "scale" of it.
She not only wants to punish the wicked, but also to push those who belong to this world and truly want to rewrite history onto the stage, creating opportunities for them and allowing the tide of the times to flow in the right direction...
"We're not the only ones who care about the people and work for the country." Shi Sui's eyes lit up as she encouraged Miao Jue, "There are many patriotic young people out there... Even if they can't fight the enemy in person, helping them secretly like you is a great deed."
Shi Sui's words made Miao Jue's blood boil.
She clutched the agreement in her hand and said excitedly, "Fourth sister, I understand! I——"
Just when Miao Jue was about to make an impassioned speech, the chief steward of the Zhan residence came to find Shi Sui, the head of the household.
The chief steward bowed and said, "Fourth Madam, the master's birthday is in two weeks. According to past practice, we would have held a family banquet, but under the current circumstances, we cannot..."
"No what?!" Tokiho said firmly, "Birthdays must be celebrated in a big way~"
The chief steward hesitated helplessly, "But the master's health hasn't improved yet, and the second and fifth wives are... Even if we do it, it will be deserted by then. It's better to..."
"Who's in charge of the Zhan residence now, you or me? If I say we're going to do it, then do it well! The more lively the better!"
"...Okay, Fourth Madam, I understand." The chief steward could only accept the order and leave.
Every year on his birthday, Mr. Zhan’s eldest son, who was raised in Hangzhou, would come back to reunite with the family.
As a family, we should be neat and tidy.
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