The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 72 Wanyong Pawn Shop
"I understand, and I sympathize with your inconvenience, young master. But please rest assured, my entire Niuhulu clan firmly supports you." Kuguchi expressed his position without letting Li Yan wait any longer.

Among the princes of Kangxi, Li Yan has the closest relationship with the Niuhuru clan and has the highest status. The Niuhuru clan is powerful and is Li Yan's most staunch supporter.

Li Yan was overjoyed, knowing that although this was just a preliminary relationship, he now had a legitimate opportunity to contact these people. Would he not worry about not being able to win over all of them in the future? He had at least a dozen years to slowly develop his ability to lead troops. Couldn't these be learned? It would also make him look like he was doing his job with all his heart.

On the way back, Li Yan looked at Aldo who was very happy and asked, "Aldo, how long have you been following me?"

"My lord, after you left the palace and built your own mansion, the emperor appointed me as the chief guard of the Ten Princes' Palace. It has been more than ten years since I took the position." Upon hearing this, the smile on Aldo's face froze, and I wonder if he had a premonition of something.

When a leader in the officialdom says this, it is either when he is about to be promoted or when he is about to take on an important responsibility. Most of the time, he will only say this when he is about to do something extraordinary and important.

And often at this time, subordinates are required to show their loyalty and work hard!
Aldo was not a newcomer in the officialdom, so he was naturally well aware of this. Considering the current situation, it was not difficult to imagine that Li Yan wanted to adjust his position, so he stared at Li Yan nervously.

Li Yan said casually: "Aldo, your martial arts skills have been buried in the palace for these years. It's really a waste of talent. Are you interested in returning to the military camp to serve again?"

"Your Highness, is there something I have done wrong? Please feel free to punish me, and I will correct it. Please don't chase me away." Aldo quickly rolled off the saddle, fell to the ground, and said in panic.

Li Yan also reined in his horse, turned over and got off the horse, and helped Aldo up!

"No, Aldo, you did a great job, and I am very satisfied. Because of this, I can't just take care of myself, I have to consider your future. You can't be a guard in my house for the rest of your life, you have to have your own career."

"I am willing to serve you, Your Majesty. Even if I have to be your bodyguard for my whole life, I will be happy to do so."

Li Yan said, "Don't say that. How can I bear to do that, Aldo? You can see that I was just an ordinary prince who was idle all day long before, and no one thought highly of me. But now the emperor values ​​me, bestows me with the title of prince, and lets me supervise the Zhenghuang Banner. It can be said that I have become more and more prominent among the brothers, and others will pay more attention to me."

"I want to keep a low profile, but it is impossible. I will inevitably face strong challenges from other brothers, which requires more powerful protection. And the protection provided by a mere guard is not enough for me, so I need you to master more power, so that I can stay stable in my position as the prince."

"Besides, I also need some trustworthy people so that I can complete the task better and live up to the expectations of the Emperor."

Aldo understood what Li Yan meant and said firmly: "I am willing to follow the prince's arrangements."

"Well, you need to prepare during this period and hand over the affairs of the mansion. After a while, you will go to the Xishan Ruijian Camp and be a captain first! When you get the hang of it, I will promote you again when there is a chance in the future. What you need to do is to give me a firm grasp of the power in the army, understand?"

"Slave understands!"

After returning to the mansion, Li Yan didn't have time to rest. He thought of something else, called Li Wei, and hurried out with Li Wei and two followers.

After a while, they arrived at Wanyong Pawnshop.

Seen from a distance, Wanyong Pawn Shop is located in the most conspicuous position on Qianmen Street, right at a crossroads with people coming and going. Opposite it are several restaurants and teahouses. All dignitaries, businessmen and common people coming to Beijing have to pass through here. People who run small businesses in Beijing and people who like to get together and chat like to come here. With a large flow of people, business is bound to be prosperous.

People come to the pawnshop from time to time to pawn or buy things. The shop in the front accepts pawns and gamblers, and the shops on the side sell all kinds of accessories, some of which are items that cannot be redeemed after the due date, and some are specially imported from other places. Under the name of the pawnshop, they will also attract some bargain-hunting customers to buy.

Li Yan and his group of four or five people arrived at the door of the pawnshop. Someone in the shop took the horses and invited them in!
On Qianmen Street, where every inch of land is valuable, a small shop can support a family with food and drink.

Wanyong Pawnshop actually has a special area for carriage parking. At first glance, the space is not small, and can park three or four carriages. And through the side passage, you can go to a wide courtyard in the back, which shows the strength and background of Wanyong Pawnshop.

As soon as you enter the front, you will see a spacious lobby with chairs on both sides. There are also small tables like those in later times, surrounded by chairs, where several people can sit and discuss. In the distance is a tall counter, about 1.5 meters high, with a fence directly connected to the roof, and a small door next to it for entry and exit.

The guys inside usually communicate with people outside through small windows, looking down on the guests coming and going from a high position.

By acting in such a condescending manner, it also puts pressure on the customers who come to pawn their items, and invisibly gives them an advantage in the subsequent negotiations.

This is also the cunning of businessmen. People of status never go to the counter to avoid putting themselves in an unfavorable situation.

The waiter took a quick look and saw that Li Yan and his companions were well-dressed and had an extraordinary demeanor. Especially Li Yan, who looked bossy and arrogant. It was obvious that he was the host. The one who was following behind carefully was the attendant. He came forward and greeted them attentively, leading them to the side area to sit down: "Dear guests, please sit over here. I will serve you tea right away."

"Don't bother with that. This is the Tenth Prince, His Royal Highness Prince Dun. Why don't you let the shopkeeper come out to greet him?" Li Wei stepped forward, looking serious and arrogant, and shouted loudly.

Li Yan put his hands behind his back, raised his chin, acted like a prince, looked around, and looked as if he didn't take others seriously.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Si knelt down hurriedly and saluted: "I am a humble man who does not know the real master. I am honored to meet you, Your Majesty. May your Majesty be blessed."

When the clerk at the counter in the distance heard it, he hurriedly disappeared from in front of the counter and ran to the back hall to report. After a while, the small door next to it opened and a group of people walked out.

A middle-aged man with a melon-shaped hat, a brown satin gown and a mustache said in a flattering manner, "Your servant, Hu Pingshan, the owner of Wanyong Pawnshop, pays respect to Prince Dun."

The seven or eight servants behind him also knelt down and saluted.
"Stand up, you are Manager Hu. Ninth brother has told you that this pawnshop has been transferred to me." "Yes, I have told you. Master Jiu has already ordered that the items in this pawnshop remain unchanged. Here is the account book. Please have a look, Master Shi." Manager Hu said respectfully with several assistants.

Li Yan waved his hand, and Li Wei, with two servants selected from the mansion who were relatively skillful and smart, stepped forward to take over the accounts and stood aside.

"Manager Hu, are you Ninth Brother's bondservant, or is he a hired steward?"

Shopkeeper Hu is a close confidant of the Ninth Prince. He knows that the Tenth Prince is not only in the same party with the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince, but also knew that a few days ago, the Eighth Prince gave the pawnshop to the Tenth Prince. The Ninth Prince also secretly told him to do some tricks to transfer some valuable pawned items and change the account books.

He prepared the new accounts overnight and was about to show them to Master Jiu for review. After Master Jiu nodded, he moved a batch of valuable items away.

Unexpectedly, the Ninth Master was in a hurry to find him again, and the previous plan was scrapped, and no tricks were allowed. The account books and physical objects were sorted out and handed over intactly. The words hinted that the Tenth Master had been entrusted with an important task by the Emperor recently, and the Eighth Master repeatedly told him not to offend the Tenth Master.

This left Manager Hu confused and at a loss, but he just did what Master Jiu said. Fortunately, the previous accounts were not lost, so he put away the new accounts and organized the items.

At this time, facing the Tenth Master, he was neither anxious nor flustered, and said respectfully: "Replying to the Tenth Master, I am the servant of the Ninth Master. The six assistants in this counter were all recruited from the market. The Ninth Master has given instructions, and I will wait for the Tenth Master's arrangements. If the Tenth Master does not have enough staff at the moment, we will work here first, and we will leave when the Tenth Master recruits the right staff."

"Well, Brother Nine is a man of integrity. This is Li Wei, a man from my house. You take him with you first. Once he's done his job, you can go back to Brother Nine. How do you think that works?"

"Do as Master Shi ordered."

"Ok!"

Li Yan nodded in satisfaction, and after giving instructions, he kept the two servants behind to help them check the items, familiarize themselves with the techniques, and master the pawnshop's operating procedures. Then he left with Li Wei.

On the way, he told Li Wei: "Li Wei, you should work in the pawnshop for the time being to gain some experience. We will make arrangements when we find a suitable manager."

"Yes, Master Shi, I will do it well." Li Wei responded carefully!

"The people in this pawnshop are all Brother Nine's people. When you are familiar with them, you will fire them all and leave no one. What you need to do is to figure out the operation of the pawnshop in the shortest possible time. The two people assigned by the mansion have worked in the shop before, so you don't have to worry about this."

Li Wei and Gao Fu were both people accepted by Li Yan when he went to Jiangnan. They were both smart and cautious, but Li Yan knew that Li Wei was more reliable and had better luck.

Gao Fu was worse off. Not only did he fail to marry Cui'er, but because of his indecisiveness, he was taken advantage of by the Eighth Brother and eventually passed away. Li Wei's fate was a miracle. He rose from a small beggar to the high position of a provincial governor.

One cannot help but sigh at the unknown fate!

Li Yan had some thoughts in his mind, shook his head, and began to explain again: "The most important thing is to compare the account books with the things in the warehouse one by one to ensure that there are no mistakes. Do not allow these people to take anything out of the warehouse, understand?"

"I know." It was Li Wei's first time to go out on business, and he felt a little uneasy.

"Also, I'm going to give you a task that you have to pay attention to. It's something only you can know. When you check the warehouse, see if there is a large box left by Ren Boan, the Jiangsu Salt Inspector. If you find it, report to me calmly." Li Yan accepted Wanyong Pawnshop just for Ren Paian's Records of Officials, which was crucial to the subsequent plans.

Li Wei suddenly realized that this was the most important task in the mind of the Tenth Master. He quickly kept this matter in mind and agreed to it without hesitation.

Li Yan returned to his previous days. Although the emperor's ban had been lifted and he was given a job, Li Yan still repeated his previous life. He had developed a casual habit.

He did not wander around because he could go out at will, nor did he stay in Lao Ba's house with Lao Jiu all day like before. He just went to Xishan Ruijian Camp every now and then to build relationships with officers at all levels there, and then find out the soldiers, money, food, equipment and training in the army, so as to have a clear idea of ​​the specific strength of this team.

In addition to running back and forth, he spent the whole day studying Confucianism and the Four Books and Five Classics with Wu Sidao. Wu Sidao also understood Li Yan's thoughts and wanted to accumulate more knowledge and experience for future governance, so he taught seriously.

The two often discussed academic matters and the gains and losses of policies of past dynasties together, and sometimes they would argue fiercely because of their different opinions.

Although Li Yan did not care much about government affairs, he knew that several important things had happened in the court recently. In addition to reusing Li Yan, Kangxi also let the 13th Prince Yinxiang supervise the Ministry of Justice and the 14th Prince Yinzhen supervise the Ministry of War.

Moreover, after careful consideration, the emperor decided to reinstate Crown Prince Yinreng. This decision left the civil and military officials in the court at a loss, as there had been no precedent of deposing and reinstating a crown prince since ancient times.

Mr. Wu guessed that the emperor was worried that the Eighth Prince would take risks, so he wanted the Crown Prince to check and balance the Eighth Prince, and then gradually disintegrate the power of the Eighth Prince's party.

If Li Yan, Old Thirteen and Old Fourteen are reused again, there will definitely be big moves.

As expected, not long after, an imperial edict spread throughout the country, saying that the emperor would inspect Jiangnan! In Beijing, the crown prince was in charge of the state, assisted by the minister of the upper study, Ma Qi, and the princes.

(End of this chapter)