Tao and Heaven

Chapter 32: A Pill Worth Ten Thousand Taels
After an incense stick of time, Zhao Feng put down his writing brush and said softly to the two men, "Thank you for coming to the palace in the afternoon under the sun."

The attitude is friendly and shows care for subordinates.

Gu Wen bowed and said something polite, but Hu Sanyuan knelt down and said exaggeratedly: "It is worth it to go through fire and water to see your Highness's divine appearance."

Seeing his funny look, Zhao Feng couldn't help but smile and said, "Hu Qing, get up quickly."

Awkward, but useful.

Although being a bootlicker is despised by others, in the eyes of the leader you are his or her sweetheart. The reason you feel awkward is just because you are not someone who needs to be flattered.

Gu Wen was neither humble nor arrogant. He did not need to make a fool of himself to win favor. He waited until Hu Sanyuan finished his performance before handing over the bathroom bill.

Zhao Feng was very happy. The water room had an annual revenue of several hundred thousand taels, but the money was not paid in one lump sum.

Pay the IOU and settle the account at the end of the year. If you need to settle the account in advance, you have to discuss it with all the major customers. Collecting money is a skill. If you send your eunuchs to do it, you may not be able to collect all the money at the end of the year, and you don’t know how much money they have embezzled.

Gu Wen's extremely high efficiency was demonstrated. With just one sentence, he quickly collected all the money.

Suddenly, Zhao Feng noticed that the bill was only 30,000 taels. He frowned and asked, "Why is it only 30,000 taels?"

Although thirty thousand taels was a good enough result, he still felt a little anxious.

When he entered the palace a few days ago, he asked for a treasure ship, but was also asked by his father to build a road within this year.

So he had to find another way. There were countless foreign forces lurking in Bianjing. These people came from all walks of life. There were countless ways to speed up cultivation, but the best methods were extremely costly.

"Your Highness, this is all the money that the water room can collect." Gu Wen bowed and replied, "The water room has two kinds of income, monthly money and annual money. The largest part of the annual money is a one-time payment for a year, usually at the end of the previous year, so there is only this much."

"Is there really no water room at all?" Zhao Feng asked again.

What was the matter that caused such anxiety? Was the palace's money exhausted?

Gu Wen became more and more curious, and replied calmly: "There is no silver that can be collected in the short term. I wonder how much Your Highness needs?"

"Of course the more the better. What else can Gu Qingke do?"

As soon as Zhao Feng finished speaking, Hu Sanyuan suddenly stepped forward and said, "I have a plan. I remember that the watermen in the water house are often in debt. They have been in debt for many years. They should charge some interest, right?"

Gu Wen's eyes were slightly cold, and he dared to extend his hand to his territory.

In recent years, there have been countless cases of wealthy families in Bianjing taking advantage of the common people, using similar methods to the way farmers outside the capital were annexed from their land. The court raised taxes on real estate, and the people had to borrow money to pay the taxes. The money houses and pawnshops first asked people to mortgage the land deeds, and then raised the price the following year.

In order to ensure that old employees do not leave, Gu Wen lends them money inside the water room with an annual interest rate of only three percent.

He didn't need the money, but he needed to give the palace an explanation. He could ensure the enthusiasm of the employees, but he couldn't not make money.

He said, "The water house and the water servants do owe a lot of money, but the total amount is only a thousand taels. If Your Highness is in urgent need of money, we can mortgage the water bills for the next three years at half price."

"Half price for three years of water bills? That's a loss of hundreds of thousands of taels." Hu Sanyuan pounced on him like a dog that had caught a flaw, saying, "The watermen have no money, but they have a house. Ask them to pay back the money. If they can't pay, take the house. There will always be some money from selling it, right?"

Why do you want to die?
Gu Wen estimated that he would find time to kill him in the next few days. It was normal for someone in his line of work to die suddenly.

Even he had been assassinated several times, not to mention people like Hu Sanyuan who were involved in gangs. Don't look at how glorious they are now, in fact, they are just rotten meat when they die, and there are many people to take their place.

"That makes sense, that makes sense."

Zhao Feng clapped his hands, quite moved. Hu Sanyuan smiled at Gu Wen, thinking that he was even more favored, and his servile appearance made people laugh.

Gu Wen said calmly, "Your Highness, if we make many watermen bankrupt today, what will the water houses do in the future?"

"Marquis Wen is worrying too much. What Bianjing lacks the least right now is idle people. We can rent houses to them, which is another source of money."

Hu Sanyuan interrupted, and his targeting became increasingly obvious.

Zhao Feng thought about it, then looked at Gu Wen and asked, "What do you think, Gu Qing?"

Gu Wen replied, "Watermen are physically demanding and need to be familiar with the roads in Bianjing. Not everyone can do this job. If Your Highness feels that the water fee of half the price for three years is too much, you can sell it for one year first."

"Then just listen to Gu Qing."

Zhao Feng nodded. Hu Sanyuan was stunned for a moment and said quickly: "Your Highness, half price is still 100,000 taels, which is too much."

Zhao Feng seemed to have made up his mind and said, "I will follow Gu Qing's orders. Without him, the water room would not have hundreds of thousands of taels."

The emperor’s mindset is to employ people with great care.

He knew that the one who really did the work was Gu Wen, and Hu Sanyuan was at most a puppy who pleased him but could not really bring him any benefit. "Gu Qing, go and do it quickly. If you do it well, I will reward you."

"Yes.

Gu Wen glanced at the resentful eyes on the side. These rats that eat in the sewers are always so arrogant and domineering. It is destined to be so because of their dark background.

He just turned around and was about to leave when Zhao Feng suddenly stopped him: "Wait."

Turning around, I saw Zhao Feng looking troubled, breathing rapidly, sweat starting to form on his forehead, and his hands trembling slightly.

"If anything happens at Longquan Well again in the near future, please inform the Immortal Family. I am not feeling well recently."

Gu Wen was full of doubts. Before, Zhao Feng had been on high alert. He heard from the servants in the palace that he was guarding the fairy courtyard day and night and did not allow anyone else to get close.

I should be no exception. Why did he change his mind today and ask me to go see Yu Hua?
Eunuch Feng is dead. Could he have been killed by Yu Hua?

Gu Wen sensed something unusual, but he didn't ask any more questions. He just bowed and said, "Yes."

Then he walked out of the study, and his steps gradually slowed down after he stepped out of the door.

The five senses of the second level of Taoism circulated the magic power and concentrated it around the ears, and a subtle sound came.

"Your Highness, the elixir has been refined."

"Don't let anyone know, the King of the Realm will reward you handsomely."

"But if the palace finds out, I won't be able to protect you."
-
Sunset, Gu Mansion.

The matter that Gu Wen asked Jiang Fugui to investigate has made some progress. Hu Sanyuan has been frequently entering and leaving Qianfeng Tower recently. You should know that Qianfeng Tower is a secluded place where people only sell art and not bodies. Of course, buying the person back directly is another matter.

Gangsters like Hu Sanyuan don't like that place very much.

That is to say, Zhao Feng bought elixirs from Qianfeng Tower. Qianfeng Tower is indeed not simple, but it doesn’t matter. I just bought elixirs.

Jiang Fugui walked in from outside and said angrily, "This is outrageous. I don't know how that bastard Hu Sanyuan got hold of our employee's IOU and wants to take the house by force."

Zhao Feng was not stupid, but a little foolish. In the end, he was persuaded by Hu Sanyuan.

People are fickle and stupid, so a truly capable minister needs to get things done and please his superiors, otherwise his end will likely become a historical event that people will regret.

But he had no intention of being a minister, he just stayed because there was profit to be made.

Gu Wen was able to accept it and did not react too much. He checked the account book and said, "Go and find out where he lives recently."

"Ah?" Jiang Fugui opened his eyes slightly, "Master, are you going to kill him?"

It's not like he hasn't fought a simple business war before, but he wouldn't be so decisive, right? The other party was just looking for trouble at most, not to the point of being a mortal enemy.

"Besides, Hu Sanyuan's background is not clean to begin with, and he also practices martial arts. You don't have to compete with a rat now. If you are really angry, I will take people to fight."

The collective physical labor of the watermen, like the dock workers, has always been half a gang. Longqiao Water House does not need to be involved in the underworld to do high-end business, but it does not mean that they cannot fight.

Bringing people to mess up the place will at most cause a quarrel and serve as a warning to the other party.

Gu Wen was not shaken at all. Instead, he said calmly and seriously, "I have a connection with a top assassin in Jianghu. Just spend some money."

Jiang Fugui was full of doubts, but he felt relieved when he knew that the other party would not roll up his sleeves and start working like they did a few years ago when they were working passionately together.

An hour later, Jiang Fugui brought back Hu Sanyuan's address.

In the south of the city, near the gambling house.

In the middle of the night, Gu Wen took out the magic weapons he used in previous business battles: a short steel knife, a small hammer half an arm's length, and several bags of lime powder.

The former is suitable for carrying around for self-defense, while the latter is suitable for sudden killing, with one blow either killing or crippling the person.

After thinking it over, he decided to only bring a dagger. The hammer and lime powder were both used to defeat the strong with the weak, so it would be better to bring a stick.

A drizzle fell from the sky at night.

A pill worth ten thousand taels.

I am really poor and short of money.

(End of this chapter)