Aoyama

Chapter 367 Tea instead of wine
The following day at Shenshi (3-5 PM), Chen Family Salt Shop.

The six second-in-commands, who were being held captive here, shouted: "Chen Yue lied to us, saying he had important matters to discuss. We came here only to be held captive here. Where is the law?"

"On what grounds has Chen Yue imprisoned us here? It's been two days! We are the second-in-command of the salt shop, not Chen Yue's servants!"

The workers at the salt shop silently endured the scolding, constantly serving them tea and water, apologizing, and treating them without any mistreatment.

But if any manager wants to leave, they can't.

On Tuesday, the shopkeeper, with a full head of white hair, sat in a rattan chair leaning on a bamboo cane and said slowly, "Speaking of which, Chen Yue should call me Uncle. Is this how he treats his elders?"

At this moment, Chen Yue's voice came from outside: "Once this matter is settled, it's fine for me to call you Uncle. But before I deal with that brat Chen Ji, you are just the second manager of this salt shop, and I am the head manager."

Chen Yue lifted the curtain and walked into the backyard, staring intently at the six second-in-commands.

After a moment of silence, the manager said on Tuesday, "Even if you are the head manager, you shouldn't have imprisoned us here."

Chen Yue dusted off the dust from his brocade robe: "Don't think I don't know. Zhou Jiye, you old geezer, went to the Humble Administrator's Garden of the eldest son's family a few days ago. Who knows what you did there?"

"And Chen Wen, the second manager, wasn't it you who went to the master's house to complain the year before last, exposing our smuggling of salt? You think you can become the head manager just because I'm gone? Dream on!"

Chen Yue sat down opposite the six people, his eyes sweeping over each of them with a sinister look: "I didn't want to argue with you in the past, but these are extraordinary times. I borrowed 150,000 taels of silver from the Second Master. I used 20,000 to buy jobs for border households, 50,000 to bribe the newly appointed Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, and 80,000 to buy salt permits at a high price. If this matter goes wrong, I will definitely not survive."

On Tuesday, the shopkeeper coughed twice: "If you had stopped earlier, you would have simply gone back to your hometown in Luzhou. I know you have eight hundred acres of land there, and you would have lived a very comfortable life."

Chen Yue sneered, “I came to the capital to seek refuge with my master. I started as a junior apprentice in a salt shop. It took me five years to earn a monthly salary, and another thirteen years to become the head manager. Now I am forty-six. Gentlemen, it took me a full eighteen years to get here, and another twelve years to secure this position. I have been working as someone’s dog for thirty years, not to go home and farm.”

On Tuesday, the shopkeeper said earnestly, "But you are no longer that shoeless country bumpkin, why gamble again?"

Chen Yue's expression softened, and he smiled: "I dared to gamble thirty years ago, and I still dare to gamble thirty years later. Otherwise, why would I be the head manager and you the second manager?"

He stood up and walked out: "Whether it succeeds or not, we'll find out today. If it succeeds, I'll host a banquet in Baishun Hutong later to apologize to everyone, and we'll make big money together in the future. If it fails, I'll have someone hand over the salt shop's private account books from all these years to the owner, and no one will live."

Upon hearing this, Manager Zhou and the others stood up and angrily shouted, "Chen Yue, you dare to hand over the account books?!"

"Chen Yue, you son of a bitch!"

But Chen Yue ignored everything and got into the sedan chair in front of the door: "Lift the sedan chair, let's go to Plum Blossom Ferry!"

……

……

As night fell, the sedan chair arrived at Baishun Hutong, where Chen Bin and his men were already waiting.

Seeing Chen Yue's sedan chair arrive, he immediately stepped forward and lifted the curtain for him: "Manager, everyone has arrived."

Sitting in the sedan chair, Chen Yue said in a deep voice, "It's not the busiest time at Plum Blossom Ferry yet. Wait until 7 PM to go. When they can't produce the salt permits or refund the money, make a scene. Make a scene at the Cold Plum Pavilion where Liu, the head of the guild, is located, and in front of the officials and nobles! Let everyone know that Plum Blossom Ferry is involved in fraud!"

Chen Bin responded with a low voice.

Chen Yue continued, "Make a scene for an hour first, until everyone knows about this, then go to the Shuntian Prefecture government office to report to the authorities and have Chen Ji and the others arrested and thrown into jail. Don't worry, I've taken care of everything, there won't be any problems."

Chen Bin responded again.

Chen Yue waved his hand: "Go ahead."

Chen Yue alighted from the sedan chair and casually ascended the Red Plum Tower, sitting as he had yesterday by the railing, silently surveying the entire courtyard.

wait.

In another hour, this turmoil will be over.

The sound of string and wind instruments rose from the Red Plum Pavilion, and Chen Yue turned his head to look.

Meihua Ferry has five buildings.

"Hanmei Tower" was the residence of the most beautiful courtesan. Now it has been handed over to Liu, the head courtesan who is temporarily registered here. The tower is full of maids and servants that he brought from Jinling.

With Liu Su's reputation, the guests who came and went were all prominent figures, no longer minor characters that the brothel owner could easily manipulate. Twenty percent of the profits from Hanmei Tower would be given to her.

"Hongmeilou" was a restaurant where unkempt female singers played the zither and sang songs during the banquet.

The saying goes, "If the hair isn't combed, the melon isn't broken." The meaning of their performing here is to wait for a wealthy customer who will spend a fortune to host a lavish banquet for them. From then on, the singer belongs only to that wealthy customer until he gets tired of her.

The good days for the singing girls didn't last long. The wealthy patrons would soon fall for other singing girls, and the rejected girls could only go to the White Plum Pavilion.

"Bai Mei Lou" was a brothel, a place where once-famous courtesans retired, but occasionally wealthy patrons would come to reminisce about the past.

"Qingmei Tower" was the place where courtesans lived. They sold their art but not their bodies, and scholars and gentlemen often went there for drinks.

"Mei Rui Lou" was originally a place where prostitutes lived, but now it has been turned into a place for trading salt permits by the Gelaohui (a secret society). The prostitutes who sold themselves here back then have all been returned to their slave status by the Gelaohui and given a sum of money for their travel expenses.

As for where to go after leaving Plum Blossom Ferry, the Gelaohui (a secret society) doesn't care.

At the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), Chen Yue looked down and saw Chen Bin leading more than ten employees into the building through the back door, heading straight for the main entrance of Mei Rui Lou.

After waiting for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Chen Bin led his men out of Meirui Tower and angrily said, "Yesterday I asked you if you had salt permits, and you said you did, and told me to come and collect them today. Now that I'm here, you say you don't have them? It's your Meihua Ferry's own rule to deliver within one day!"

In the darkness, someone pulled Chen Bin and said in a gentle voice, "Sir, let's talk about this in Mei Rui Lou, so as not to disturb the other guests."

But Chen Bin suddenly broke free from his opponent and ran towards Hanmei Tower: "Murder! Murder at Plum Blossom Ferry! I gave you 80,000 taels of silver, but you said you couldn't get the salt permits. I said I'd return the silver, but you said you couldn't return it now. Do you want to steal my 80,000 taels of silver?!"

Chen Yue exclaimed in shock inside the Red Plum Pavilion: "Plum Blossom Ferry has swallowed 80,000 taels of silver from its guests?!"

Upon hearing this, the guests gathered around the railing to look down and whisper among themselves.

The windows of the neighboring Hanmei Tower, which were originally closed, were now opened by more than ten people looking out.

But Chen Bin continued shouting, "The owner behind Plum Blossom Ferry is Chen Ji, a illegitimate son of the Chen family on Fuyou Street, and a centurion of the Imperial Guard. I originally thought the Chen family would have some sense of propriety, but I never expected him to try to seize our 80,000 taels of silver by trickery..."

Someone in the Red Plum Pavilion exclaimed, "The Chen family of Fuyou Street! No wonder Liu, the head of the business, left Baiyu Garden and came here. Could it be that the纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy families) of the Chen family of Fuyou Street coerced and bribed Liu?"

As the situation escalated, some people even left the banquet to watch from the courtyard.

Whenever the people of Plum Blossom Ferry tried to stop Chen Bin from continuing, Chen Bin would shout that Plum Blossom Ferry was going to kill someone, forcing the Plum Blossom Ferry staff to be hesitant and restrained in front of the officials.

The gang leader stepped forward and bowed to Chen Bin, saying, "Brother, you've misunderstood something. My Plum Blossom Ferry has absolutely no intention of taking your money." Chen Bin angrily replied, "Then return my money."

The man politely replied, "I can't repay it. My Plum Blossom Ferry doesn't have that much silver in its accounts right now."

Chen Bin laughed in fury, then turned to the officials and nobles watching and said loudly, "Did you all hear that? Plum Blossom Ferry is going to seize by trickery and force today, and he himself admitted it!"

Chen Yue sat calmly by the railing of the Red Plum Pavilion. When he heard the Gelaohui (a secret society) admit that they didn't have enough money, he finally breathed a long sigh of relief and poured himself a cup of wine with a smile.

The third floor was already empty, but the singer was still playing and singing by herself.

Chen Yue's gaze inadvertently swept over the singer, and he felt that she resembled his childhood sweetheart from Luzhou. Back then, he had broken off his engagement and come to the capital alone. When he returned to Luzhou, she was already married.

He pointed at the singing girl and said, "Hey, I'll do this young lady's hair and makeup today. Put all the expenses at the Red Plum Pavilion on my tab. Consider it a 'Plum Blossom Banquet' for this young lady."

The waiter's eyes lit up: "Are you serious, sir?"

Chen Yue laughed heartily: "Could it be fake? Go ahead, tell your master that I have a great occasion today, and I'll also throw a plum blossom banquet for this young lady, so it's a double celebration!"

Just then, someone came up the stairs: "Manager Chen, what good news has come of you that makes you so happy?"

Chen Yue narrowed his eyes slightly: "Chen Ji? Why aren't you downstairs dealing with the chaos? What are you doing here?"

Chen Ji lifted the hem of his coat and walked upstairs, sitting down opposite Chen Yue.

He calmly looked down at Chen Bin, who was shouting hoarsely: "Manager Chen has been preparing this deadly trap for several days. What use is it for me to go down now? I'm just curious, why is Manager Chen so determined to kill me?"

Chen Yue picked up his wine glass and put it to his lips, sneering, "Don't blame me. In this capital, there are plenty of people waiting to step on me to get ahead. If I don't drive you out of the capital, those opportunists under my command will definitely switch sides and kick me when I'm down. Only in this way can they sit in the position of head manager."

Chen Ji nodded: "I see... Next, we should call the Shuntian Prefecture to arrest me, right?"

Chen Yue's expression changed: "How did you know?"

Chen Ji smiled and said, "Besides this path, you have no other way to kill me, do you?"

Chen Yue quickly calculated in his mind whether Chen Ji had any other tricks up his sleeve: Chen Lizun was still in Tanggu, and today no salt was being transported to Meihuadu, so Chen Ji probably didn't have any other backers...

He felt a little more at ease, then started joking again: "Don't worry, master, the family won't stand idly by. They will help you cover this debt, as long as you leave the capital obediently."

Chen Ji laughed and said, "That's fine. If I'm really forced to leave the capital, I'll go back to Luoyang and open a small pharmacy."

Chen Yue laughed wildly: "I'll pay for the money to open this pharmacy for the owner!"

Chen Ji changed the subject: "But Manager Chen's fate is not as simple as just leaving the capital."

Chen Yue was taken aback.

Chen Ji pointed downstairs: "Let's take another look."

As he spoke, the man from the Gelaohui calmly clasped his hands in a salute to those around him and said, “Esteemed readers, I have no intention of disturbing your enjoyment today, but since this matter has occurred, I will explain the cause and effect.”

Before Chen Bin could react, the gang leader continued, "Yesterday, a group of people came to Meihua Ferry to consign 20,000 Jinling salt permits. Immediately afterward, this customer came and bought those 20,000 salt permits, with a deadline of one day for delivery. Because it was a consignment sale, those 20,000 salt permits are not in our hands. Today, we went to the address left by the seller, only to find that the seller had already disappeared."

The onlookers also realized that this was a setup deliberately orchestrated by someone.

“No need to twist the truth,” Chen Bin sneered at the person opposite the gang leader. “Since you can’t produce the salt permit, just return my money. Didn’t I give you real gold and silver?”

The officials and nobles watching chimed in, "Yes, even if you've been set up, just return the silver to them."

The man shook his head: "No need to pay it back."

Chen Bin laughed heartily: "Then what are we talking about? Let's meet at the Shuntian Prefecture!"

The man waved to the person behind him and said, "I said there's no need to return them because my Plum Blossom Ferry happens to have 20,000 salt permits. Although the seller ran away last night, my Plum Blossom Ferry can still make up for the lost salt permits."

Erdao led his men to carry several large boxes into the crowd and placed them on the ground.

Chen Bin scoffed, "What I need are salt certificates from Nanjing, don't try to make up the numbers with other salt certificates."

The member of the secret society said calmly, "Naturally, it's a salt certificate from Nanjing."

Chen Yue suddenly stood up and went to the wooden railing: "How is this possible?"

Chen Bin hurriedly opened the box and took out stacks of salt certificates to examine them. After a moment, he subconsciously turned to look at Chen Yue on the Red Plum Tower, his eyes filled with unconcealed terror.

Chen Yue, no longer bothering to remain calm, immediately asked from afar, "Is it a salt certificate from Jinling?"

Chen Bin replied dryly, "Yes!"

Chen Yue suddenly turned to look at Chen Ji, who slowly poured him a cup of new wine: "Manager Chen, I'm afraid you're not in the mood for the 'Plum Blossom Banquet' today. Have a drink to calm your nerves. But remember to pay for this meal when you leave."

How many salt permits does Chen Ji actually have? He has hundreds of thousands.

A few days ago, Bai Long secretly came late at night, bringing with him more than ten boxes of salt certificates. These salt certificates were given to the inner court by Emperor Ning every year, and were used to make money for himself.

These salt-granting areas were all among the wealthiest regions in the Ning Dynasty. Not to mention 20,000 Nanjing salt permits, even 50,000 could be produced from old documents.

After pouring wine for Chen Yue, Chen Ji looked up and smiled, "Manager Chen, after coming to the capital, a very good elder taught me a lesson: in this capital, rules are not important, business is not important, what matters most is whose talent you are... You chose the wrong opponent."

Chen Yue staggered back to the table, his face ashen: "Since you had salt permits, why didn't you take them out sooner? Why did you have to make a scene in front of officials before you took them out?"

Chen Ji pointed downstairs: "No rush, let's take another look."

At this moment, the gang leader handed the salt certificate to Chen Bin, then clasped his hands in a fist and said to the onlookers, “After this incident, Meihua Ferry has learned its lesson. From today onwards, to prevent a recurrence of today’s incident of shirking payment, all those who consign salt certificates at Meihua Ferry must first pay a 20% deposit, which will be returned in full within seven days after the salt certificate is handed over.”

Chen Yue's pupils suddenly contracted. He turned to look at Chen Ji opposite him: "No wonder you only take one per thousand as commission. It turns out you never intended to slowly earn money from the beginning, but instead wanted to use this 20% deposit for circulation!"

With this rule in place, Plum Blossom Ferry could instantly amass hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. If Plum Blossom Ferry were to become the largest salt trading center in the Ning Dynasty, sellers might be able to pledge millions of taels of silver there.

Chen Ji sat upright and slowly poured himself a cup of tea: "I didn't have an excuse before, after all, the court wouldn't agree to such a large sum of money... But now it's all good, thanks to the head manager for bringing me a ready-made excuse."

He sat in the lamplight with a smile, raising his glass to Chen Yue: "Let's toast the head manager with tea instead of wine."

(End of this chapter)