After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 1044 Six Thousand Taels

Haijiao saw that it was still early, so he decided not to wait until tomorrow and go directly to Cheng'en Marquis Mansion to find Wu Ke tonight.

Before leaving, he went back to his room to search around, added a few silver bills, and took them with him.

So when Wu Ke saw Hai Jiao, he took two small boxes from him, one for his cousin Wu Qiong, which contained Hai Tang's letter and three thousand taels of silver, and the other for him, which contained three thousand taels from Hai Jiao. A total of six thousand taels, all of which were bills issued by the largest and most famous bank in Beijing, brand new, and still exuding the fragrance of ink.

Wu Ke was stunned: "Brother Hai, what are you doing..."

"I heard from my cousin, Grandpa Cao, and Grandpa Lu." Hai Jiao said nonchalantly, "Now that you have given in, you said you are willing to find a way to borrow money from someone. It will not delay the reconstruction of the ancestral home, nor will it delay your marriage to your sister. I thought that you are unfamiliar with the capital, who can you borrow money from? You always say that you are too embarrassed to ask the Zhou family again, so instead of forcing yourself, it is better for me, your friend, to lend you a hand! You also know that my family is rich, but I don't like to show off on weekdays, but my family background is strong enough. I can't be called rich, but I can still take out a few thousand taels of spare money. You can use these banknotes first, and when you have enough money in the future, you can slowly pay me back. Don't calculate the interest from me. We are relatives, and you are my cousin's student, not an outsider. If you talk to me, you look down on me."

Wu Ke reacted and said hurriedly: "How can this be done?!" He was embarrassed to ask for money from such close relatives as the Zhou family, let alone the Hai family? ! Hai Jiao said that the two were relatives, but in fact he only meant that they were both related to the Zhou family. In fact, they had nothing to do with each other. Even when Teacher Xie accepted him as a disciple, it was out of kindness. The Wu family... especially his grandfather, Wu Wen'an, was actually ashamed of Teacher Xie as a student, as well as Teacher Cao and Teacher Lu, two old subordinates. They put aside their past grudges, taught him to read, and cared for him for many years. He could not express his gratitude enough. They also used the excuse of opening a school to buy land from him with their hard-earned savings, but in fact they did it to help him. He didn't know how to repay such a kindness, so how could he accept money from the Hai family again...

Hai Jiao said, "Just think of it as me taking the opportunity to show my good will to you. You are no longer the impoverished orphan of the Wu family. You are the newly appointed Earl of Cheng'en by the emperor. You have got back the family property and are related to the royal family. You have a noble status and a bright future. What? Can't I, a fellow disciple, please you and take advantage of you? This little money is nothing to me, but it can be of great help to you. Why are you being so polite to me? Don't you want me to take advantage of you?"

Wu Ke waved his hands quickly: "How could that be? I..." He wanted to say that he didn't mind the Hai family taking advantage of him, but he felt that saying so seemed to be taking himself too seriously. In fact, what advantage does he have for others to take advantage of? His current status sounds good, he has both a title and a royal relative, but it's all just a facade. It looks glorious on the surface, but it's useless. With his title and the status of a foreign relative, it's impossible for him to pursue an official career through the imperial examination. After getting married, maybe he will be assigned a sinecure. He has no say in the court, and he has no one to use under him. Although many of his grandfather's former students and old friends care about him, they will not listen to his opinions on political affairs, but will only advise him to live a good life. He also has a cousin who is the elder brother of the new emperor and a noble prince of the royal family, but the other party is weak and never asks about outside affairs, let alone helps him do anything.

He had a respectable status, but he could not help his relatives and friends at all. He had to rely on them for help. Even to rebuild his ancestral home, he had to rely on the help of the Cheng'en Marquisate and General Zhou Si's family. How could such an incompetent man let his fellow apprentice and good friend Hai Jiao take advantage of him?
As Wu Ke was talking, his mood became depressed. Hai Jiao, however, seemed to have heard nothing and still insisted: "You don't have to belittle yourself. Anyway, I said I would lend you this money, and if I can benefit from it, then I can benefit from it. Don't worry about how I benefit from it, just accept the banknote. And this..." He stuffed the box of his younger sister Haitang to her, "This is from my younger sister to your sister, and it contains her handwritten letter and three thousand taels of silver. This is a friendship between the girls, and it is not your turn to refuse on your sister's behalf. If you are unwilling to hand the things over to your sister, you will really be alienated from us!"

Wu Ke was suddenly speechless, and numbly let Haijiao stuff the two boxes into his hands. He opened his mouth several times to speak, but no words came out.

Haijiao had already started planning for him: "It's almost the New Year. The government office has closed its doors, and the craftsmen outside will not come out to take on jobs. If your ancestral home needs to be renovated, it will have to be after the New Year. However, there must be many people who want to make some quick money before the New Year to prepare for the New Year. You can spend a little money to hire someone to tidy up your ancestral home first, clear away the weeds, gravel, and dirt, and it will also be convenient for the craftsmen to come in and work after the spring. During the New Year, you can also think carefully about what you want to build the house into. The key is to be fast and solid. Don't worry about the garden for now, just build the three-story main house quickly, and then you can move in with your sister, marry a wife, marry a sister, and do anything on your own land. When your family's property is back in your hands and you have more money, you can find someone to slowly clean up the places outside the main house and reorganize the garden. As long as it's far away, it won't disturb your life..."

Haijiao quickly made a list of tasks for him, and Wu Ke didn't need to follow it. He just wanted him to know how much he had to do. After listening to Haijiao's words, Wu Ke knew in his heart that he really couldn't delay any longer. This was not just his business. He also had to think about his cousin Wu Qiong and his cousin King Kang. Besides, the Zhou family had protected his siblings for many years, and he had to consider the reputation of the Zhou family. He couldn't let outsiders say that the Zhou family raised the orphan of the Wu family, but raised him into a pauper, right?
That's it.

Although Wu Ke felt embarrassed, he knew that the Hai brothers and sisters could lend him these six thousand taels, which really helped him a lot. He no longer had to shamelessly ask the Zhou family for money, or seek a loan from his cousin, King Kang. When he was in Chang'an, he had heard of the reputation of Hai Jiao's grandfather, Lord Hai Xiya, for his good business. He knew that for the Hai family, a loan of six thousand was not a big deal, and interest-free would not hurt his bones. He could accept the kindness of his teachers, so he could naturally accept the help of his friends. Anyway, he would pay it back, and he would remember this kindness and do his best to repay it in the future.

Wu Ke looked down at the two boxes, and suddenly he felt confident. The three thousand taels from his cousin could be kept for preparing her dowry. The three thousand taels he borrowed from Hai Jiao, plus the two thousand given by his teachers, some old properties returned by the court, the rewards he received from the palace, and the little money he had saved in the past few years were more than enough to rebuild a house with three or four entrances, and the rest would be enough for a decent wedding. By the time he got married, the Wu family's properties outside the capital would probably be recovered. He could sell part of them, collect a sum of money, marry his cousin off in a grand manner, and let her become a decent princess of the royal family. After these major events were completed, he and his new wife could rely on the remaining properties in their hands, and as long as they lived frugally, they could pay off the debt of six thousand taels in two or three years...

I heard that his fiancée is very capable. Although she is from an old-fashioned family of relatives by marriage, she is not the daughter of the direct bloodline and is not very arrogant. She should not mind sharing the joys and sorrows with him and enduring a frugal life for a few years...

Huang Lao will live forever! Rest in peace, sir...