Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Mutation

The next day, they decided to give away the rest of the reward. Wen Baotai was paid another 200,000 yen as agreed in advance, but Wen Baotai asked for an additional 50,000 yen, and actually wanted to give him 250,000 yen. This amount is a quarter of what it was yesterday, all in higher denomination pounds and smaller in size.In addition, this is the second time to pay, and with yesterday's experience, Zetaro and Nasu feel a little more relaxed. Judging from the information collected by the Japanese embassy, ​​a bribe worth one million yen may have been delivered yesterday. Today, Prince Qing did not present the second Sino-Russian agreement to the Queen Mother.

The Russian minister repeatedly urged the Chinese side to approve it as soon as possible, but the Qing government replied that the Queen Mother was ill and did not dare to submit it. This news also made Cetaro and Nasu feel much more relaxed. "It is estimated that Russia will also use a lot of gold to buy it?" Before setting off, Strataro asked Nasu. "Well. They also spent a lot of money...probably more than we spent this time!" "So, if the second Sino-Russian agreement is not ratified, aren't they uneconomical?" "Blind! You really are. What do we care about the losses of other countries? Never mind it."

"However, we spent a lot of money in Japan. Maybe we will stumble at a critical moment? This is also possible." "We needn't be so worried. You know what? Any dignitary who accepts a bribe will probably be watched." "Didn't Russia also send people to monitor the people they bought? Maybe we will lose!" "Why do you keep saying some disappointing things! You! ... But we are not Russia. Well, the spies in the second department of the General Staff Headquarters are all very capable people. I don't think there will be any mistakes." The work to be done is the same as yesterday.

The carriage they were riding in was still the one from yesterday, and the driver was still the fifty-year-old Japanese.The destination is also Iron Lion Alley.The gatekeeper is still the same person from yesterday.After they arrived, they were ushered into Yoyo Pavilion through the back door as usual. From the outside, Yoyo Pavilion is small, exquisite, unique and elegant.However, the inside looks very spacious, without partitions or screens. But one thing is different from yesterday, that is, Wen Baotai has made all preparations for the rubbings. The old paper used for rubbings, Rokuji cotton paper, fan paper, etc. are all piled up in a corner of the Japanese mat.

The three large inkstones juxtaposed together are filled with ground ink.In addition, two buckets for operation are also placed. In fact, not only Wen Baotai, but anyone who engages in rubbings must make various preparations before work.Wen Baotai was even more meticulous. After mixing the ink thoroughly, he first tried to write on ordinary paper.When Cetaro entered, he saw six or seven half-folded papers scattered on the mat, each of which was covered with thick ink. It seems that everything is ready, just waiting for the rubbings. It is estimated that after Wen Baotai accepts the money, he can easily and happily expand the book.

People who love their jobs often try to make the working conditions as perfect as possible before starting work.Wen Baotai is such a person. Same as the previous day.The three sat, and Fang Lan placed the teacup in front of them.The difference is that yesterday, Fang Lan brought steaming hot tea in a cup, but today the cup is empty.Fang Lan brought the teapot and poured tea for them one by one. Ah, I didn't notice yesterday... Cetaro muttered inwardly. According to the rules, the teapot should be poured into the teacups of the guests and hosts on the spot. In history, there have been many incidents of poisoning the dead mountain in teacups.If the poured tea is served in front of the guests in advance, it will be difficult to speak even when there is doubt.Therefore, using the same teapot to pour tea into the cups of the host and the guests in front of the guests shows that there is no poison.

Thinking about it carefully, the million yen delivered yesterday was a surprisingly large sum.Giving bribes is by no means aboveboard, and under no circumstances should it be openly given or accepted. If Cetaro and Nasu drank the poisonous tea, everything would go to waste, and the huge amount of stolen money would also disappear.Of course, such incidents are not happening now.However, one must be careful. Ce Taro took a sip of tea in relief, and said to Fang Lan: "You paid attention today." In fact, he was referring to the thing about pouring tea from a teapot.However, Fang Lan frowned.Did she understand Cetaro's intentions, or did she understand, but was unwilling to express her opinion easily?This is unknown.Of course, it may also be the restraint caused by the nervousness before work.

"Then, let's start." This time, Keigo Nasu was very straightforward, and opened the suitcase with a snap. "Fortunately, we are already familiar with it. Besides, there are not many banknotes today, so it must be easier than yesterday." "Okay. Please, the calculation is also ready." Wen Baotai said. Fang Lan opened the notebook, raised the pencil to her eyebrows, and nodded silently. In short, today is much lighter than yesterday, and they seem to be very harmonious with each other. Since it only involves the conversion of the British pound to the Japanese yen, the calculation is very simple, and it is easy to cooperate with counting banknotes.

On the contrary, everyone seems to feel that they are not enjoying themselves. "The click is correct." After Wen Baotai finished speaking, Feng sat in the chair and saluted slightly. So far, Zetarou has only really felt relieved, and sighed inadvertently. Keigo Nasu slapped his knee countless times. This is a unique movement of men, and it probably shows that he has finally settled down. "The matter has come to an end, and I can talk about it. I have thought about what will happen?" Wen Baotai said while stroking his blue-shaven bald head. "Maybe what I'm talking about is discouraging. It's really not easy to deal with this huge sum of money. It seems a little fascinated."

"Ho ho ho... But, I don't see what's on your mind at all." Nasu said flatteringly. "Oh! I'm a hero!" Wen Baotai put his hand on the tip of his nose and flapped it left and right.Then he said: "On the surface, I tried to pretend that nothing had happened. Well, blind! I'm really holding back my energy. However, my heart is jumping appreciatively...you laugh! But I have evidence, then It’s just that from yesterday to today, I didn’t even get a rubbing copy. Hey, I can’t do it... I really feel like waves are being stirred up in my heart. Do you think, what kind of work can I do in this situation?”

"But now that it's over, please, you can work as you please." Nasu said. Today, Cetaro rarely speaks to Wen Baotai.He was extremely indignant.he thinks: Didn't your kid take 50,000 yuan off the hook? ... Why is it that waves are rolling in your heart? In fact, you are so happy that you don't know why. At the thought of 50,000 yuan, Cetaro became angry.He thought, even if he racked his brains to manage his ancestral calligraphy, painting and antique business, it was still a question of whether he could earn 50,000 yuan in this life. Wen Baotai is really an old and cunning guy, he easily... The more Cetaro thought about it, the more angry he became. He has always had respect for Wen Baotai, and when this incident happened, he felt that Wen Baotai had completely failed his sincerity. "Of course, I plan to make rubbings right away." Wen Baotai said happily. "It seems to me that I haven't taken rubbings for two or three years." "That's because something has delayed you and made you wait. Well, we shall take our leave now." After saying that, Nasu stood up. Cetaro stood up, rattling the chair on purpose.There still seemed to be something childish about him. Wen Baotai also stood up, but said to Fang Lan as if remembering something urgent: "Now you clean up the house. Well, put all the papers that are scattered over there into the bucket. Then clean it up, okay?... You can only work if you make the surrounding tidy." "Yes. Understood, sir." Fang Lan replied. Nasu Keigo just stepped out of the gate of Yoyokan, and immediately yawned deeply.It seemed that after the work was over, he was in a much happier mood. Speaking of Countermeasure Taro, is it considered that the mission has been completed?He was still unsettled.Even after completing the task, he still hopes to stay in Beijing for a while.On the one hand, he continued to do some calligraphy, painting and antique business, on the other hand, the image of Wang Liying often appeared in his mind. He thought that he would visit Wang's house often in the future.As for Yoyo Pavilion?Probably never set foot again. Between people, once the germs of distrust arise, the germs will grow up quickly. "Will you feel better after the task is completed?" Nasu turned around and asked Sakutaro. "Oh! I don't want to do this kind of work again." "I'm bored too." The two of them walked and chatted, and walked out of the Yoyo Pavilion.Fang Lan, who had just sorted out the waste paper, also came out.Then, Wen Baotai also appeared in front of them with a smile. "We take our leave. You still have work to do, so please be busy." Nasu said. "I'll at least send the two of you to the door...Mr. Doi Satsutaro, please come again in the future. If we are destined, we will meet again." Wen Baotai narrowed his eyes and said.The flesh on his cheeks was piled together, and his square face only seemed a little rounder at this moment.Strataro seemed to see bundles of 50,000 yuan bills in his smile. Nasu and Sakutaro walked out along the red brick wall of Yoyokan. Behind them they heard the snap of the latch. Taro clicked his tongue. He thought to himself that this man was so cautious that it was disgusting. Once a person is annoying, his every move will arouse the resentment of others. Although the only door of Yoyo Pavilion is facing the back door of Wen Baotai's residence, it is not facing directly, and the two doors are slightly staggered.According to a well-known Feng Shui master, if two doors are facing each other, it is not good for the house. After walking about ten steps, I turned a corner and reached the back door. As soon as Cetaro walked out the back door, he wanted to get in the carriage as soon as possible.Suddenly, Nasu stopped him. "Hey! Wait a minute!" "What's up?" "I forgot something." "Forget what." "Think about yesterday's situation carefully, let's go now, don't we go back empty-handed?" Cetaro froze for a moment, he couldn't think of anything he had forgotten. "We handed him the money, but we didn't get a receipt. Think about it, didn't we get a note yesterday after we handed over the money? You! Didn't you say, 'What's the use of such a note? '?" "Ah... that note..." "That's right. It's a note of 'Beijing's superb scenery is worth a million'. Didn't we get that note yesterday? Why is there nothing today? Isn't this a bit strange?" "You mentioned that, yes..." "Should we have received a note today saying 'The view is worth 200,000 yuan'?" "I don't care if I see the note or not, and it will also cause trouble for the other party." "No. Isn't the Four Treasures of the Study neatly placed beside Wen Baotai? Isn't it easy for the old man to write with a stroke of his pen? Just write by the way." "You must do that, and I have no objection." In short, Cetaro was not very enthusiastic about this matter.He originally thought that he would never go to the Yoyo Pavilion again.Unexpectedly, contrary to his subjective wish, he had to turn back now, which really made him unhappy. "Yes, we must go back again." Why is Nasu so stubborn to go again?Cetaro couldn't understand it. "But didn't the old man lock the door? He has such a strange temper." "It's okay to lock the door. We can ask him to open it immediately. It's not a big deal. Ah! By the way, let's ask that girl to handle it." They turned around and saw Fang Lan's back just in time.Then, Nasu raised his hand and called out: "Hello, miss!" Fang Lan looked back. There was a distance between her and them, and she couldn't hear them unless they shouted loudly. At this time, Fang Lan said in a clear and pleasant voice: "What's the matter with you?" After all, she put down the bucket and walked towards them. Nasu also went forward to meet her, walked up to her and said: "We forgot to ask your master to write by the way. Here, it was written yesterday." "Oh, that's what happened." She seemed to have just remembered. "He seems to have forgotten all about it. I was too confused to pay attention." "Can I please ask him to write it down. Fortunately, you are also a witness... Just simply write 'Beijing's superb view is worth 200,000 yuan'. This is just a proof. After paying the money yesterday, Mr. Wen wrote a paper It seems inappropriate not to write today. Well... If we go back and ask him to write, it will be too serious and troublesome. It would be better to ask your kind lady to help you..." Nasu tried his best to entrust Fang Lan with a gentle tone. From the perspective of Cetaro's wishes, he is in favor of this method.He really didn't want to meet Wen Baotai again. "Well, all right. Got it. I'll go talk to him." After Fang Lan finished speaking, she ran to the Yoyo Pavilion. It seemed that she was really a lively and bright girl.Because Fang Lan was too eager, it made Nasu feel bad. "Miss! Don't be so anxious, it doesn't matter if you slow down!" Nasu said loudly. Nasu originally instructed Fanglan kindly, but unexpectedly it had the opposite effect.Because the voice came from behind Fang Lan, she was at a loss as a result, so she stopped hastily.However, she couldn't stand firmly, staggered, and almost fell to the ground.Because of her quick reflexes, only one hand touched the ground lightly.The hand slid like a pivot, she stood up deftly, and regained her original shape. Fang Lan didn't expect that she would almost fall because of this, but felt a little embarrassed instead.After she stood up, she turned her head and smiled shyly at Nasu and the others. "Oh! I'm so sorry! I just said don't be so anxious." Nasu apologized. Fang Lan slapped the sand off her hands, and said to Nasu mockingly: "Oh! That's what happened!" After speaking, she walked away slowly.At this time, it was only five steps away from the gate of Yoyo Pavilion. She went to the door and knocked hard. Although Yoyo House is a Western-style house, the gate is separated from the middle to the left and right, and the word "longevity" is written in gold powder between the two doors.Fang Lan stood under the word "Shou" and knocked on the door. She paused for a while, then knocked again. There seemed to be no reaction in the hall. "what happened?" Nasu also stepped forward. "It's so strange!" Fang Lan turned around and said, "I knock hard, but I can't lose my hearing." "Is it because he was buried in his work and didn't pay attention?" Nasu said. "But we haven't been out for five minutes... let's say he's working, and he's just cutting paper. No matter how fast it is, it won't soak the paper in water, and it's not time to concentrate on it." After Fang Lan finished speaking, she continued to knock on the door, and knocked harder than before.Maybe it was too much force, and she hurt her hands from knocking. Like this, it stopped after knocking for a while.There was still no movement in the room, not a single sound of the latch being opened. "Are you taking a nap?" Nasu asked. "My master doesn't have the habit of taking a nap." "You're talking about normal times, right? Today may be an exception. He's done with a big event, so he can feel at ease..." When Nasu said this, he felt that his words were contradictory, so he immediately remained silent. At this time, Cetaro followed Nasu to the door. Ce Taro felt that his thoughts were confused, and he thought to himself: "Could it be that there was an accident? It must be said that it is a big event, so you can rest assured. In fact, the work is not over yet. The huge sum of 200,000 yuan is still in the Yoyo Pavilion Here, no matter how daring Wen Baotai is, he can't sit back and relax during the daytime!" "Someone's going to call someone, will you?" Nasu suddenly said seriously. At this moment, as if looking back on the past, he also felt something was wrong. Fang Lan frowned tightly, her shoulders began to tremble a little.It is estimated that she also felt that something was a little strange. Just like Xi Shi, an ancient beauty, Fang Lan frowned, "Born with a hundred beauties".Her soft and plump cheeks are springy and elusive.When her red lips are tightly closed and the brows are furrowed, her expression is serious and resolute. Just now when she was called back by Nasu, a man happened to pass by.Fang Lan clasped her hands together and called out: "Old Liu! Old Liu!" Lao Liu is about forty years old.When Cetaro lived in Beijing for the first time, Lao Liu worked at Wen Baotai's house.He works a little slowly and slowly, but he has great strength, and he is indispensable for carrying heavy things.Cetaro vaguely remembered hearing that he was a relative of the old gatekeeper. "What's the matter? Fang Lan." Lao Liu asked calmly. "Master, maybe something happened." Fang Lan's voice changed. "No matter how many times I knock on the door, I can't hear him back." "Probably he was busy painting ink and didn't want others to disturb him." Old Liu walked towards Fang Lan with big strides while talking. Next to the gate there were only two small windows with iron bars and curtains.As a place for secret talks, they probably need these. Calling Lao Liu here is of no avail.He had strength, but in this situation he could neither think nor exert himself. Nasu ran to the back of Yoyokan to inspect again, but came back shaking his head. There are also two small windows behind the Yoyo Pavilion.These two windows are taller than the front two, and you can barely reach them with your arms outstretched.What's more, the installation is opaque frosted glass, even if you move a chair to stand on it, you can't see the situation inside the museum. Nasu shrank his head and said: "Oh! It's too bad that there's nothing you can do. The rear windows are made of frosted glass, so you can't see inside. Although the front windows are transparent, they are blocked by curtains, so you can't see inside." The windows of the Yoyo Pavilion are designed and installed according to the lighting requirements of the rubbings and the intention of the owner Wen Baotai.It is characterized by small windows, rather low in the front and high in the rear.Wen Baotai is a rubbing fanatic, everything is carefully designed and installed by him. "oops!" Cetaro noticed that the lower end of the curtain of the window near the gate was lifted, and there was a gap of about two or three centimeters there.From the tiny gap, he vaguely saw something under the curtain.So, involuntarily called out. "what's up?" Hearing Cetarou's ouch, Nasu hurried over and asked. "The lower side of the curtain is slightly rolled up, can you see the situation inside through this gap?" Cetaro pointed there. "It's hard. What can you see through such a small gap?" "However, what if you squat down?..." Then, Ke Tarou squatted down and looked into the room through the gap in the curtain. "If you look at it like this, it's just like looking through a keyhole. You can only see a very small part." Nasu said sarcastically over the top of Setsaro's head. At this time, Sakutaro suddenly grabbed Nasu's pants with all his strength. "What's wrong?" Nasu asked. "Just a little, as you say." "As I expected?!" "But, I saw Wen Baotai!" "Ok?"