Ming Dynasty: I am truly not the Emperor of Longevity

Ningbo Prefecture, Siming Post Station.

"Mo Shu, quickly take a good look at this thing for me."

After spending the night at Qingyin Tea House, Yan Shifan had just returned to his room at the inn when he summoned the servant Moshu who was staying there and handed him a wooden box.

"Young master, I remember that I did not bring it with me when I went south to Ningbo Prefecture this time."

Mo Shu opened the box, and a glass mirror that could clearly reflect a person's face appeared before him.

No, that's not right!

The frame of this glass mirror is made of huanghuali wood, not golden nanmu wood.

Moreover, it is not adorned with any gemstones.

Although the mirror is equally clear and the workmanship and patterns of the outer frame are very similar, this is not the glass mirror that the young master cherishes!

These patterns are not common. I'm at least 90% certain that the small one's frame was made by the same craftsman as the one in the mansion; it's at least a copy.

"Since you think so too, then you can't be wrong!"

Yan Shifan took the glass mirror back from Mo Shu's hand and examined it carefully.

"This glass mirror, and the one His Highness Prince Ying bestowed upon me two years ago, were definitely made by the same group of craftsmen!"

"Young master, where did this mirror come from?"

Mo Shu leaned closer and asked,

"Two years ago, after you returned to the capital, young master, you asked me to inquire around the city. I have never heard of anyone in the entire capital having a second glass mirror with such a clear image."

How come we got a second meeting so easily this time upon arriving in Ningbo Prefecture?

"You'd never guess, but this was a gift from Manager Deng, whom I met at Qingxin Tea House last night."

Yan Shifan still finds it hard to believe when he talks about it.

Last night, in order to extract information, Yan Shifan invited Steward Deng from the Lin family to drink together, and also instructed the madam to make sure that all of Steward Deng's expenses for the night were recorded in his own account.

Although the Qingxin Tea House was of a decent standard, Yan Shifan originally thought that Manager Deng had only spent a few taels of silver at most, and it was unlikely to have cost more than ten taels.

Unexpectedly, that guy had absolutely no sense of propriety.

He summoned the madam and insisted on redeeming the woman who had just played the pipa.

Didn't I boast that I would cover all his expenses tonight?

This money for redemption is naturally included!

Seeing that this person was so ignorant of social etiquette, Yan Shifan even had the urge to leave in anger.

But at that moment, two sudden discoveries made Yan Shifan change his mind!

One of them was that the person in front of him looked somewhat familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place where.

Another reason is the realization that the other party might also be deliberately testing them!

A stranger invites him to drink at a brothel and offers to cover his expenses; he must have something on his mind.

As one of the stewards of the Lin family, how could he not even realize this?

He deliberately acted recklessly to see how he would react after his plans were disrupted!

Since that's the case, it's best to play along.

Therefore, Yan Shifan directly threw twenty taels of gold to the madam to redeem the woman for Manager Deng.

Seeing that he was so cooperative, Manager Deng didn't hold back and directly asked what he wanted to get from him after investing so much.

Before Yan Shifan came to find him, he had already prepared his explanation.

He claimed to be a merchant from the capital who wanted to befriend him and purchase some rare items from the Lin family.

Hearing that it was just for business, Manager Deng visibly relaxed. He was also a straightforward person and immediately apologized for his reckless behavior earlier.

He insisted on returning the twenty taels of gold he had used to redeem the woman.

There's no reason to take back gold that's been given away; Yan Shifan knew he couldn't afford to lose face like that.

Since that was the case, Steward Deng did not insist, but instead brought out an item to give as a gift, which was this glass mirror.

According to him, this glass mirror could be sold for over a hundred taels of silver, which was roughly equivalent to the twenty taels of gold.

Moreover, the Lin family has a source of goods; if you want more, you can contact them.

"That man is just a steward of the Lin family, how could he possibly possess such a glass mirror!"

Upon hearing Yan Shifan's words, Mo Shu was also taken aback.

"Could it be that the glass mirror that His Highness Prince Ying bestowed upon the young master was also purchased from the Lin family?"

However, that mirror was of a higher grade, with a frame made of golden nanmu wood and inlaid with gemstones.

"If that's the case, then this matter becomes even more suspicious!"

Yan Shifan clearly did not agree with the ink writing theory.

"In the past few days, we have also heard a lot of news about the Lin family."

Madam Lin arrived in Ningbo and began settling down and acquiring property in the winter of the eighteenth year of the Jiajing reign.

The Prince of Ying bestowed that glass mirror upon me in the autumn of the eighteenth year of the Jiajing reign!

At that time, the Lin family hadn't even arrived in Ningbo Prefecture yet!

However, now that we've made contact with Steward Deng, we might as well play the charade to the end!

How much gold and silver do we have left from this trip?

"Young master, to make our journey easier, we haven't brought much silver or gold this time."

Mo Shu quickly replied,

"If we calculate the remaining amount in silver, it would be over a thousand taels."

However, before we set off from the capital, we deposited 10,000 taels of silver at Yufeng Bank.

The nearest branch of Yufeng Bank is in Hangzhou, which is only two or three hundred li from Ningbo. If you need it, young master, we can take the banknotes to Hangzhou to withdraw the money.

"The fastest way to build a relationship with a businessman is to close a big deal with him!"

Yan Shifan thought for a moment,

"Since the Lin family has a source of these glass mirrors, let's buy a large batch!"

This is a rare item; it's only worth a little over a hundred taels of silver. You can bring it back to the capital and either give it away or resell it to a merchant.

"We might even make a profit."

. . .

The next day.

Inside a warehouse at a dock outside Ningbo city.

"There's no need to go through all that trouble to make a trip to Hangzhou."

Manager Deng took the silver notes from Yan Shifan and handed them to the accountant standing nearby.

"Our Lin family has seen many of these Yufeng Bank's silver notes."

To be honest, Brother Ximen, my Lin family also has a lot of silver, which was transferred through Yufeng Bank.

As long as you deposit your silver into a bank in Hangzhou, you can withdraw it anywhere in Suzhou, Nanjing, Yangzhou, Linqing, or the capital.

It's much more convenient and safer than transporting large sums of silver yourself, and the handling fee charged by Yufeng Bank is also much lower than that of hiring a security escort agency.

If the banknote is verified to be correct, then we can simply accept the face value of ten thousand taels of silver.

Brother Ximen, this ten thousand taels of silver was deposited at the Yufeng Bank in the capital. My Lin family also needs silver in the capital, so we can send someone directly to the capital to withdraw it, saving even the intercity withdrawal fees.

"In that case, I'll trouble Steward Deng to verify it."

Yan Shifan cupped his hands in greeting to the other party.

"This is my first time in Ningbo, and it is very inconvenient to carry a large amount of silver with me. That's why I deposited 10,000 taels at Yufeng Bank in the capital, intending to withdraw it in Hangzhou."

"I never expected that I could use it directly at the Lin family's place without having to cash it in. It's truly an eye-opener for me."