Chapter 12 Liquidation

Mr. Wu was not asleep yet, so he arrived as soon as he was invited. This was the first time he met Dexin. After Hu Xueyan introduced him, he had to be courteous. "Are. "Don't dare to be, don't dare to be! It's unrefined." Mr. Wu asked, "I don't know what my lord wants to ask?" "I'm looking for something. I don't know if there is any hope of success. I would like to ask Mr. Wu to do a divination for me." "Yes! One word, please." Dexin thought for a while and said, "It's just the word 'seek'." There was a ready-made pen and inkstone beside him, so Mr. Wu sat down and took a piece of paper, picked up a pen and broke down the word "mou" into two characters of "yan, mou", and then stopped to think.

At this time, Dexin and Hu Xueyan also came over, holding hookahs in their hands, and stood quietly by the table watching. "Mr. De's plan is to entrust someone to say something. This person already has it in his mind. If he doesn't say it, he is a 'some'." Mr. Wu laughed, "To tell you the truth, Mr. De said, My character is 'three-legged cat', and I don't know how to use tricks, but in terms of words, if I say it correctly, if I tear it down all the way, maybe the talk is insignificant, and I don't know." "Yes, yes!" Dexin said very politely, "It's brilliant."

"Then, Mr. De, did I get it right at the beginning? No, let's start again. Please, Mr. De, please be polite and tell the truth." "Yes, I must be telling the truth: your brother was looking for Li Dezhu from the beginning." Mr. Wu took a closer look at his face, and waited until he was sure that he was telling the truth, then he said happily again: "It's a fluke, a fluke." By the side, it means that the person who speaks must stare at the side to be effective." "Hmm, um!" Dexin kept nodding and blinking, as if she was listening and appreciating at the same time.

"Now look at this word, add a woman as a matchmaker, and a woman is required to be the matchmaker—" "Ask Mr. Wu, which side is this woman who pulls the thread?" "Good question!" Mr. Wu said, pointing to the word "letter". "There are two people here, one speaks out, and the other accepts the words. The thread is tied to the person who made the offer." "It means that this woman who is the matchmaker is not the one standing next to the words?" "good." "I understand." Dexin asked again, "I want to ask again, when will I start this project? Will it be successful? When will it be successful?"

"It depends on the wooden character under a certain word." Mr. Wu blotted out the word "wood" under "XX" and changed it into the word "Ganyan". There is no need to explain it. Dexin knew that the "XX" person he entrusted with promised, but in fact it was just a sweet person's "Ganyan" ". So he asked: "How can I get this wooden character?" "Jin Kemu," Mr. Wu replied, "If this matter was started in July and August, it would be too late." "why?" "Shenyue in July and Youyue in August are all gold."

"It's November now," Hu Xueyan interrupted, "Is November a child month?" "yes." Hu Xueyan had a little understanding of the principle of the generation and restraint of the five elements, so he said to Dexin: "The child is water, and water grows wood. Xiaoweng, hurry up." "It's too late." Dexin said, "Today is November 16th, it's only half a month away, how can there be time?" "Besides, water solidifies wood, and next month will be an ugly moon, and ugliness is earth, and wood is unfavorable to the earth." Mr. Wu continued, "It is best to start in the first month of the year. The first month and the second month are both wood , there was a setback in March, but it will be fine in April and May, and the fire in April and May is—”

"Wood makes a fire," Hu Xueyan said, "you're done." "Exactly." Mr. Wu agreed. "Gao Ming, Gao Ming, I am truly convinced." Dexin put down the hookah with a smile on her face, "I have to give you a moisturiser, if you don't give it, it won't work." While speaking, he opened the "Crouching Dragon Bag", which was tied with a blue silk sweat towel as a belt. The banner man had a lot of small bits and pieces on this belt. He looked down, untied a jade coin, and handed it over with both hands. "It's not a respect, keep it for fun."

Mr. Wu took it over and saw that it was a pure and flawless piece of suet white jade with the words "Qianlong Tongbao" engraved on it. Say "Thank you, thank you!" "That doesn't count. When I succeed in what I plan to do next summer, I will show my thanks." When Mr. Wu left, although Hu Xueyan was worried, but in order to show his concern for his good friend, he still asked with great interest, what is Dexin planning? "It's not that I want to be alone. I took the path of Baozhongtang and asked him to let my brother speak." Dexin said again, "Didn't you invite him to play in the south the year before last, so I invited him to visit the Fuchun River and invite you to accompany me You can't go on business. Do you remember that?"

"Yeah. I remember." Hu Xueyan asked, "Did you talk to him when you visited Fuchun River?" "No! At that time, I had just been promoted to the vassal, so I couldn't have such unreasonable thoughts." Dexin said, "Our second master Bao took a fancy to a boat lady on a Jiangshan boat and signaled to me that he wanted to hide all the golden houses. , and the implication is that I have my own money, and I don’t need to spend a penny. However, I just took office, how can I pull this kind of horse? So I pretended to be confused and didn’t answer. Recently, he wrote to me, and he still hasn’t forgotten this old relationship. And that boat lady only wants to choose someone. I have already sent someone to talk to her mother and father. As long as two thousand silver, Master Bao can fulfill his wish. I am still hesitating. I heard Mr. Wu's talk tonight , my will has been decided."

Hu Xueyan couldn't help being humble in his search for senior officials like this, and he felt that Dexin's approach was not right.Since we are friends, we have to give advice. "Xiao Weng," he asked, "are you clear about the situation between Bao Zhongtang and his younger brother?" "Brothers are not very harmonious, are they?" "Yes." Hu Xueyan said again, "Bao Zhongtang felt a headache when he saw him, and I'm afraid that his advice may not be effective." "No." Dexin replied, "I'm a family friend with them, and I know his family's situation. Bao Zhongtang can't do anything about his younger brother, he can only comfort him. Second master Bao just needs to talk about it in front of his brother every day. In order to avoid trouble, Bao Zhongtang could only listen to his brother."

Hearing this, Hu Xueyan had no choice but to laugh it off, but remembered one thing, and warned with a smile: "Xiao Weng, you have to keep this matter a secret, so that Master Du can find out, read a book, and come out of Jiangshan boat again." News, not worth it." The so-called "news of the Jiangshan ship again" is because a piece of news was published on the Jiangshan ship a year ago: Bao Ting, one of the "Four Admonitions of the Imperial Academy", released the chief examiner from Fujian, came and went via Hangzhou, and traveled back and forth by the Jiangshan ship. Fuchun River went up to Fujian, and on the way back, she took a boat lady from Jiangshan Ship as a concubine.Li Ciming, a well-known scholar in Beijing, wrote a poem chanting the matter, in which there is a very neat couplet: "Famous scholars in the eight banners of the clan, and beautiful people in the nine surnames of Jiangshan." It's a sarcasm.The next sentence has a different allusion. It is said that there are nine surnames of the boat owners on Jiangshan boats, all of whom were generals of Chen Youliang at the end of the Yuan Dynasty.But Bao Ting's dependent boat lady is a "white pockmark" as the saying goes. She only sees Bao Ting very close. Poetry, therefore, is very popular and passed down as a laughing stock. Of course Dexin also knew this story, and when she thought of the arrogance of the speaker, she couldn't help but feel terrified, so she said "it doesn't matter", but she secretly accepted Hu Xueyan's warning and was quite wary. Overnight, the situation changed drastically. Governor Liu Bingzhang of Zhejiang received a secret telegram from Li Hongzhang, Governor of Zhili, Beiyang Minister, saying that there was 600,000 taels of silver in Zhili flood relief, which was stored in Fukang, but there was nothing left. He called Liu Bingzhang to seize Hu Xueyan's house The pawns set up are set aside as public funds.So Liu Bingzhang immediately invited Dexin to send him a telegram and asked him what he thought. Dexin has already estimated that such a bad situation will arise, and has already thought of the last solution. "Sili's humble opinion is always to not affect the market." He said, "If you act vigorously, you will not leave any It is not the blessing of the locality to stimulate the hearts of the people. As for Hu Xueyan himself, he is still upright, so I think it is better for me to persuade him and ask him to deal with it on his own." "Why do you call it self-discipline?" "Let him open up the property list and the public and private debt accounts by himself, and hand them over to the adults, and ask the adults to make decisions for him." Liu Bingzhang originally thought that Dexin's so-called "self-discipline" was to persuade Hu Xueyan to commit suicide. After listening to Dexin's words, he realized that he had misunderstood and was relieved. "Okay! Don't worry about your brother." Liu Bingzhang asked, "When can I hear the echo?" "Tomorrow morning." When Ye Dexin went to see Hu Xueyan again, she burst into tears when she saw her sobs choked up, and she didn't say anything.Hu Xueyan was very calm, and said: "Xiaoweng, it is wrong to say that I can't see through it, and it is not right to say that I am not messy. Please ask Xiaoweng for guidance on everything." So Dexin explained why he came here, and Hu Xueyan made a promise, but made a request that he should be given two days, the reason being that he had to deal with housework. Dexin pondered for a long time and said: "I will fight with Liu Zhongcheng, at worst, I will lose a hat, and I will have to fight for you for two days. But I hope that after two days, I can hand over all the accounts to him. " "It's a deal." After Dexin left, Hu Xueyan and Mrs. Luoshi closed the door tightly and talked all night.On the second day, several actions were taken separately. First, they sent confidential telegrams to Fukang in Hankou, Zhenjiang, Fuzhou, Changsha, and Wuchang, and they were closed for cleaning on the same day; The third is to collect a handful of cash and pay off the deposits of a few close relatives and friends, and then check a batch of jewelry and antiques, roughly estimate the value, and compensate the deposits handled by Dexin.Of course, the most important thing is to list the property list. Hu Xueyan was so exhausted that he drank a glass of wine soaked in ginseng and was about to go to bed when Dexin sent a special person to deliver a letter, which read: "Report to Deng Chengxiu during the incident. Please order the corrupt officials to fine and donate huge sums of money to meet needs, and attach a copy, please notice." The attached copy is: "The other copy is played: Wen Fukang Bank is closed, co-organized by the scholar Wen Yu of the Ministry of Punishment, kept The amount of silver in this number is more than 700,000, please order to find out the exact number, research the history, etc., and write to the Shuntian Mansion to confirm the investigation." This letter and copy were not good news, but Hu Xueyan couldn't think of anything more detrimental to him, so he put aside his sleep.When I woke up, my mind was clear, and I naturally thought of the news from Dexin, and at the same time, I thought of Wenyu—he is from Zhenglan Banner in Manchuria, and he is related to Prince Gong by marriage. The governor, but getting rich was after he became a general of Fuzhou in the seventh year of Tongzhi. It turned out that the soldiers of the Qing Dynasty entered the customs and won the world on behalf of the Ming Dynasty. However, after the death of the Nanming Dynasty, there was King Lu in the east of Zhejiang, Emperor Yongli in the southwest, and Zheng Chenggong overseas. It may also become a confidant's trouble, so we sent banner camps to garrison the key hubs of the provinces to prevent the Han people from rebelling against the Qing Dynasty and restoring the Ming Dynasty.The officer in charge of the garrison banner battalion is named "General" and the name of the place is added. If he is stationed in Xi'an, he will be named General Xi'an, and if he is stationed in Hangzhou, he will be named General Hangzhou. The powers and responsibilities of generals vary from place to place, depending on the time and place. Because Fujian first had Zheng Chenggong and his son’s naval sailors, and then Geng Jingzhong responded to Wu Sangui’s rebellion. It is an important place to use troops, so Fuzhou has a special power. Other generals, Only the banner battalion is in charge, and only General Fuzhou is in charge of the "green battalion".In addition, there is another job, which is also in charge of the Fujian Customs. At first, it was only for checking sea ships to prevent smuggling or smuggling ordnance, but later it became a special tax collector. Especially after the Opium War, the sea ban was lifted. Merchants from France, the United States, and Japan all set up foreign firms in Fuzhou, and the tax revenue of the Fujian Customs increased greatly, and it became a well-known beauty mission to also manage the customs. Wen Yu served as a general of Fuzhou in the seventh year of Tongzhi, served as the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang for ten years, and was transferred in the third year of Guangxu. He was in Fuzhou for nine years before and after.After entering Beijing, he successively served as the supervisor of Chongwenmen and the chief minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They are also errands that can make money, so there is no less than one million in Fukang's money, and he is Hu Xueyan's biggest customer. Although Hu Xueyan had nothing to do with the source of the customer's savings, it made Fukang's bankruptcy even more big news, which was not good for him.But this is also a helpless matter, Hu Xueyan can only put it aside and think carefully about the situation after the handing over of all accounts. The bills have been paid, and there is no way to clean up.isn't it?As Hu Xueyan thought about it like this, he suddenly felt refreshed. Unbelievably, he felt a debt-free feeling. The reason is very clear. Handing over all the accounts is equivalent to handing over all the finances, and of course also handing over all the debts. It is the responsibility of the public to clean up.Of course, there is still something wrong with my conscience, but I don't care about that much now. However, Hu Xueyan still had the possibility that a large amount of silk goods stored in Shanghai and Tianjin could find a way out to repay all the debts.Although Gu Yingchun was entrusted with this matter, but his appeal was not enough, he had to go to Shanghai by himself, and with Gu Yingchun's assistance, there was hope.According to this idea, he handed over all the accounts, and the debts were covered by the government for a while, which was equivalent to gaining a period of respite, and he was able to struggle with the silk goods with all his strength. Thinking of it this way, half of his worries and exhaustion for the past few days disappeared, and he slipped on his shoes and quietly went to the room to find Mrs. Luosi. She was also busy until midnight and fell asleep in less than an hour.Hu Xueyan opened the leather curtain, and a warm fragrance hit his nostrils.Mrs. Luoshi snorted slightly and was soundly asleep. Hu Xueyan couldn't bear to wake her up, gently lifted the silk quilt, and fell asleep on her side, but she woke up Mrs. Luosi, turned inside, and said in her mouth: "You really don't know how to live and die, at this time Still thinking about pestering me." Hu Xueyan knew that she had misunderstood, so she couldn't help being funny, and she was in a different mood, so she was more interested in making jokes, so she touched Mrs. Snail's still round and soft shoulder and said, "This is called playing the piano under the coptis tree, making fun of hardship." "Go! Go! Who is having fun with you?" Even so, he turned around and held Hu Xueyan's hand. "I just thought about it." Hu Xueyan began to talk about business. "I met Liu Zhongcheng and asked him to take care of it for me. I happened to leave my body and go to Shanghai to find a way. What do you think of my plan?" Hearing this, Mrs. Luosi opened her eyes, sat up, put a fur coat on the inner bed on her body, hugged her knees, and thought carefully. "Will he take care of it for you?" "If you don't want to, you have to be willing." Hu Xueyan said, "To hand over the account is to hand over the property, and it will be sold out intact. Please let him take care of it." "You mean delivery?" Mrs. Snail asked, "We don't even have a place to live." "Of course not." Hu Xueyan said, "I came here to discuss with you, just to set a boundary." "Where is the limit?" "In—" Hu Xueyan said, "I'm looking at whether such a thing is indispensable for living at home. If it is, it can be kept, otherwise it is property, which needs to be accounted for and handed over." "There is no certain limit here. Some people eat light tea and light food and eat pretty well; some don't eat meat and don't eat. Tell me, how do you divide it?" "Of course, the flexibility here is quite large." Mrs. Snail fell silent.She always thought that it was just Hu Xueyan's business that had to be handed over, and that other than gold nuggets, gold bars, gold leaves, and cash, other private property could not be moved.Looking at it now, it is almost the same as copying a house. The thought of "scraping the house" made her feel sour, but she is also a strong and enlightened person, and she can still hold back tears and think about being serious.I just thought about it, but I couldn't come up with a clue, because as Hu Xueyan said, the flexibility of soft decorations, furniture, and other daily objects is very large. It seems that everything must be evaluated before it can be distinguished. "How can such a family property be accounted for in an instant?" Mrs. Luozhi said, "I think there are only two ways, one is to declare to Liu Futai that the accounts of private property are too trivial, and there is no way to do it for a while. It is comprehensive, one is to only open large numbers and estimate the price by yourself, for example, how many mahogany furniture, how many pieces of large fur coats, estimate the total under each item.” "I think the second way is better." "However, it is also difficult to estimate the price. For example, our living house, would you like to estimate it?" "This can only increase the cost. The number is also better." In order to make the books look good, not only the house is listed according to the construction cost, but everything else is also listed according to the purchase price.The next day was busy for a long time, everything was ready, Hu Xueyan went to see Dexin, and made an appointment to meet the governor Liu Bingzhang. "Preferably tonight," he said. "It's not something to be proud of. It's best to see few people. And, you can wear plain clothes at night." "I don't think so. This is a very open and aboveboard matter. There is nothing shameful about it. Moreover, Liu Zhongcheng was born in the Hanlin Academy, and he is very particular about these festivals. Talking about this matter at night seems to be private. He must not want to. It must be tomorrow Go to the hospital in the morning." "Yes. Good!" Hu Xueyan could only agree. "You don't need to wear plain clothes. It seems that you have committed some crime, and the small hat in Tsing Yi is guilty of the Yuanmen. However, Xue Yan, your clothes don't need to be too gorgeous." This is a hint that there is no need to wear red-topped feathers.Of course Hu Xueyan understood. The next day, he followed the rules and dressed neatly in the third-rank uniform of a Taoist priest. At that time, Dexin had already sent someone to meet him, and as soon as the notebook was handed in, Liu Bingzhang immediately went to see him in the West Flower Hall. Hu Xueyan saluted according to the official rules, and Liu Bingzhang politely invited him to "move to the kang".Usually when he came to see Liu Bingzhang, he sat side by side on the kang bed, but this day he resigned again and again, because later on Dexin would come, if he was promoted to the kang, Dexin could only sit on the chair on the east side, which would be aggrieved, so He only sat on the west chair, leaving the top seat for Dexin. At this time and here, of course, there is no need to exchange pleasantries. Hu Xueyan said straight to the point: "I didn't think about my career today. There is no way to deal with public and private debts. I need to ask adults to fulfill them." "Heavy words, heavy words!" Liu Bingzhang said, "The current situation is difficult, and everything is always based on maintaining the market and stabilizing people's hearts. Under this purpose, if there is something that can make a little difference for Xue Weng, it is also my part. thing." Speaking of this, someone outside the flower hall sang: "Lord De is here." So Liu Bingzhang stood up, and Hu Xueyan greeted him at the door. The servant opened the curtain, and Dexin entered, first saluted Liu Bingzhang, then turned around and said, "Xue Weng, please sit on this side!" Hu Xueyan's original position will be reserved for Hu Xueyan. "No, no! Xiaoweng, please sit up." The two resigned for a while, and Liu Bingzhang couldn't help saying: "There is no need to argue about the details. Xue Weng sits here, so it is more convenient to talk." Hearing this, Hu Xueyan began to sit on the Dongshou chair next to Liu Bingzhang, and asked Dexin who was opposite: "I have brought the account, should I present it to Master Liu now?" "Yes, yes, I think it's time to submit it now!" Hu Xueyan got up and took the thick stack of account books on the side, holding them with both hands, and put them on the kang bed. Dexin also stood up and helped to order them. There are six account books in total. The first is the general ledger of Fukang Bank and its branch offices ; The second book is the clearing account of the number of stalls and shelves of 29 pawnshops; the third book is a detailed account of all the fields of 11,000 mu, their locations and fields, etc.; the fourth book is the location of silk cocoon inventory The fifth is the list of miscellaneous properties, including the Hu Qing Yu Tang pharmacy; the other is the register of depositors.But the bank notes issued by various banks are listed in the first book. Liu Bingzhang only flipped through it a little, then put it down, and after Hu Xueyan and Dexin returned to their seats, he asked, "What is the total income and expenditure of these six accounts?" "According to the book, the income and expenditure are more than enough, but the debt is a real amount, and it is difficult to say that the debt is owed." "The so-called 'owed by people' includes goods." Dexin added, "Xue Weng's silk cocoons, because of fighting with foreigners, may have to be auctioned in the future. How much cost can be recovered depends on It's hard to say." "What is an 'auction'?" "This is a rule for foreigners." Hu Xueyan said, "Interested parties bid against each other. If there is a reserve price, as long as there are two bids, the call will be made all the way up until no one bids, and the host will pat the gavel." ’, it’s settled.” "In this way, foreigners can collude with each other and deliberately not bid." "Not only deliberately did not bid, but even did not bid, then we had to lower the reserve price." "Based on this, how much silver Xue Weng's silk cocoon is worth is impossible to estimate?" "yes!" "Difficult." Liu Bingzhang turned around and asked, "Look, Xiaoweng, how should we deal with it?" "Only public affairs and then private affairs, and clean up step by step." "I have no choice but to do so." Liu Bingzhang said, "I don't know what the imperial court intends, and I can only do my best on the word 'custodial' for the time being." He asked again, "Xue Weng, won't you leave Hangzhou for a while?" Asking this sentence implied monitoring his whereabouts. Hu Xueyan thought about it for a while and decided to tell the truth. "Returning to my lord, if you want to go to Shanghai, you can keep the silk cocoon from being auctioned. It is good for both public and private." "Uh, when are you going?" "It will take half a month." Liu Bingzhang nodded slightly, and turned his eyes to Dexin inadvertently, but with a look of guard and inquiry.Then he turned his face and said: "Xue Weng, in the past half month, if something happens, I must invite you for an interview, what should I do?" Hu Xueyan hadn't thought of this yet, and was stunned for a moment, unable to answer, but Dexin answered for him instead. "If there is such a situation, please tell me, my lord." "Okay!" Liu Bingzhang readily agreed, "Xue Weng, go do your business! But I hope that within half a month, you can make a plan. As long as there is no loss of public funds and no private troubles, I will Why bother?" "Yes, yes." Hu Xueyan stood up, bowed his hands and bowed, "It depends on the adults." "Serious words, serious words!" As he said, Liu Bingzhang touched the tea bowl with his hand. Goshha, who was standing at the door, immediately lifted the curtain and sang loudly: "Seeing off the guests—" As soon as Hu Xueyan left, Liu Bingzhang returned to the signing room, and then took out a roster of alternate magistrates distributed to Zhejiang by the official department, and inspected it carefully. In addition, there are two other records: one is who sent him, such as the case of a certain year and month, and the "Beijing salary" of a certain year and month; the other is the relationship between this person, which was written by Liu Bingzhang himself. Note, such as a cousin in the middle hall, a letter from a minister on a certain date, etc.Liu Bingzhang is now going to send twenty-nine candidates to serve as magistrates, and they will be considered based on four conditions. The first condition is background, and priority is given to the right path. If it is a new academic Jinshi who is "available immediately after the ranking", there is no vacancy for a while, and there is no chance to even be an agent. Of course, he will send this errand first without thinking about it.Looking through the roster, there were only three people in this situation. At that time, I ticked off the roster, and there were still 26 people to be sent. Except for Jinshi from the two ranks, it is of course more advantageous to raise people than to recommend military merits and donate classes, but the second condition must be looked at, that is, the relationship between the person. Candidates, but it also depends on the third condition, have you sent any errands recently?Is Pai's mission bitter or beautiful?I have been sent a hard job recently, for the sake of "adjustment", I might as well consider it, otherwise I will take it easy. It took a lot of effort to draw up a list, and immediately sent Goshha to notify individually. The next morning, he went to the governor's office to wait for the hearing. At the same time, he copied another complete list and sent it to Dexin for reference. The twenty-nine candidate prefects and county magistrates who received the notification did not dare to neglect. Early the next morning, they all prepared their "handbooks" and gathered in the Fuyuan Hall to stand by.On this day, during the period of "Government Attendance", Liu Bingzhang met with the Fan, the Ersi, Yandao, Xundao, the capital, the first county - the magistrate of Hangzhou and the magistrate of Qiantang. Come in, Dexin is also here.The magistrate saw that the governor had seats as usual, but there were too many people and there were not so many chairs. The guards on duty went to bring some long benches, and twenty-nine "grand lords" sat down crowded together. , but there are still two people who have nowhere to go, one is angry and retreats to the corridor to listen to the news; the other is an official who is good at flattering, seeing that Liu Bingzhang is inconvenient to speak because he has not settled down yet, he feels embarrassed to keep the "Xiantai" waiting for a long time, He squatted down, with his hips in the air, and pressed his hands to his knees, as if he had already sat down. "I invite you guys to come here today, and I have an errand for you to split up." Liu Bingzhang said, "You must have seen in the "Shenbao" that Hu Guan's Fukang bank closed down, and the market was greatly affected. Fu Among Kang’s deposits, there are a lot of official funds, which cannot be unsettled. Hu Jianquan voluntarily took the twenty-nine pawnshops he opened, and asked me to seal them up to cover the official funds. Now, I will ask all the brothers to seal up one of them each.” As soon as this remark came out, everyone was surprised, but they didn't dare to ask questions. Only the man who was squatting just now, because his legs were so sore that he couldn't stand it, just pretended to speak and stood up to relax his muscles and bones. "Returning to my lord, no one has ever taken up this kind of job. I don't know how to do it for a humble job?" "Oh," Liu Bingzhang glanced at him and asked, "What's your name, brother?" "The humble surname is Ma." "His name is Ma Fengshi, from Shaanxi, and he just arrived in the province not long ago." Dexin quietly reminded him. Liu Bingzhang nodded and said, "Brother Ma's words are correct. This is the first time I have encountered this kind of errand. However, people are not born with knowledge. Have you never thought that when you return to the forest in the future, you may set up pawns to make a living? Collecting a pawn is the same as opening a pawn, except for capital verification and account checking.” "I need to ask for instructions again." Ma Fengshi asked again, "After the verification of capital and accounts, is the door closed?" "No, no. If there is nothing wrong with the capital verification and account audit, the pawnbroker will be ordered to manage the business and continue to operate as usual. All you need to do is get a certificate of stewardship and admit how much capital the pawn has, and then you can deal with the business." It was originally called sealing, but in fact it was checking but not sealing.Next, Dexin presided over the drawing of lots, and what Ma Fengshi drew happened to be Gongjidian as the general number. At that time, it was late in the afternoon and the beginning of the application, and it was seized on the same day, and the time did not allow it.Ma Fengshi came back from his official business, sitting alone in a daze, thinking in his heart that the pawn is both accounts and "pawn", and the account is the flying and phoenix characters, which are more difficult to read than Zhang Xu and Huai Su's cursive script; "pawn" However, it is all-encompassing and omnipotent. How can I check and seal it all by myself?Moreover, since Gongjidian is the head office, the scale must be very large. If it cannot be taken care of, and false leaks occur during the seizure, the responsibility is not light. Thinking of this, she frowns, and Mrs. Ma is unavoidably confused. She hastily went to the court early in the morning, saying that she has an errand, and it seems that this year can be passed.Don't you think it's such an air when you come back? Isn't it strange? This time, it is unavoidable to ask the reason. Ma Fengshi sighed and said, "I sent an errand that I have never done before to seize the Gongji Dian of Hu Caishen. The pawn is still open as usual just to check the accounts and verify the capital. You think, I don't even think about it." If you don’t even know how to fight, how can you handle this job?” Mrs. Ma had a different idea, "I came to Zhejiang as a backup, and I only sent one errand to pay my salary. I live on pawns, and Chao Feng's face is really ugly." She said cheerfully, "I never thought you would send this errand, let me also vent my anger. " Ma Fengshi broke his face and smiled, "A real woman's opinion." He said, "This job has no benefits, but bad luck." "How can you be unlucky?" "Account checking and capital verification! If we tamper with it, the responsibility will be on my head in the future, and I can't afford to walk around!" "I don't understand what you're talking about." Mrs. Ma thought for a while and said, "Why don't you go ask Brother Yang for advice?" This reminded Ma Fengshi.It turned out that this "Brother Yang" was the book office of the Renhe County Lifang, and he lived not far away. Ma Fengshi and his wife were very easy-going and did not underestimate his status. They usually called "Brother Yang, Brother Yang" very affectionately.Yang Shuban was flattered and took good care of Ma Fengshi. He was the busiest when the Taiwan Academy tried to release rankings every year. Some sons of local rich masters were selected as scholars, and they invited guests to congratulate them. So Yang Shuban will come to tell Ma Fengshi to put on his official uniform and go to be a congratulatory guest. He will have enough wine and food, and the host will have a red envelope, at least two taels of silver.There are always seven or eight opportunities like this a year, and Ma Fengshi has benefited a lot. Therefore, after hearing Mrs. Ma's words, he looked sad and called his son to invite "Uncle Yang".Yang Shuban happened to have no social engagements that day, so he arrived as soon as he was invited, and asked what was the matter. "I have an errand, and I don't know what to do. My wife still has an idea, and said to ask Brother Yang for advice." "Oh, Mr. Ma," Yang Shuban called him according to the rules, "what's the job?" "Seize the pawn shop." Yang Shuban was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Congratulations, congratulations! Mr. Ma, you are having a good year." As soon as this remark came out, Ma Fengshi's expression was both surprised and happy and asked: "Brother Yang, what do you say?" "Let me ask first, should Mr. Hu Da's pawnshop be closed down?" "yes!" "Which one?" "Gongji." "Hey! Mr. Ma, you have become fatter and fatter this year." Ma Fengshi was happier, but also more confused. He scratched his head and asked, "I, I can see it, but I can't eat it." "How do you say that?" Yang Shuban immediately showed enlightenment again, "Oh, Mr. Ma, you mean, you don't know how to start, don't you?" "That's right." Ma Fengshi said immediately, "I want to make everyone fat. Brother Yang, you are Zhuge Liang, and I am Liu Xianzhu." "Don't dare, dare not! When I think about it, I have a friend who can definitely help—" "Brother Yang, you Lingyou, can't you find it today? You have to know that you have to do it early tomorrow morning." Yang Shuban thought of a friend, Zhou Shaotang.Ever since he "speaked on stage" in front of Fukang Gate and rescued Hu Xueyan, he became very famous. Ma Fengshi also knew that there was such a person, and he was happy to ask him for advice, but he was afraid that there would be too little time. Must be seen in action. "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter!" Yang Shuban looked at the sky and said, "It's just right to go at this time, he is having wine at the Longhe Hotel at the entrance of Dajing Lane." Dajing Lane is at the foot of Chenghuang Mountain. There is a huge sweet water well. Opposite the well is the Longhe Hotel. Zhou Shaotang drinks there every evening. , Even if he is not there, he will know his whereabouts. At present, I am walking in the car and walking to Longhe. At that time, the lights are on and Longhe is going public.The peddlers and pawns eating "counter wine" leaned against the counter and each had a bowl, leisurely. Many of them knew Yang Shuban and greeted them one after another.Yang Shuban answered, and walked inside—the inside was an open hall with more than a dozen square tables, and 70% of the seats were already occupied. Yang Shuban stopped and looked at Zhou Shaotang. He didn't find Zhou Shaotang, so he asked a clerk for questioning. . "Mr. Zhou has been here and gone. However, he will come again after a while." The man asked, "Do you always wait for him, or leave a message?" "I'll wait for him to heal." So they picked a table in a secluded place, and the two sat down, ordered wine and drank slowly. After drinking the third bowl of wine, Zhou Shaotang came. "Shaotang, Shaotang!" Yang Shuban got up and called out, pulled him over and said, "We've been waiting for you for a long time. Let me introduce you first. This is Master Ma." Zhou Shaotang is a very outfield person, and he was very polite and perfunctory to Ma Fengshi for a while.When the wine was brewing, Yang Shuban began to explain the purpose of his visit, and Ma Fengshi immediately raised his glass to respect: "I don't know anything about pawnshops, and I don't know what to do when I take this job." He said, "It all depends on Mr. Zhou's guidance." "It's easy to say, easy to say." Zhou Shaotang replied while working on his stomach.He and Tang Zishao of Gongjidian are just acquaintances, but Xie Yunqing of Fukang is very familiar with him, and his recent past is even closer. From Xie Yunqing, he knows many secrets of Gongjidian next door. It was Tang Zishao's secret. Zhou Shaotang looked down on Tang Zishao very much. At the same time, because he and Hu Xueyan were poor and humble friends with different feelings, so Tang Zishao suffered such a heavy blow in Hu Xueyan. In danger, he took advantage of the fire to rob, made a big deal of money in the Gongji Code, embezzled it secretly, and made great injustice.Now there is such an opportunity for Ma Fengshi to check the accounts, how can he miss it? "Master Ma, people say that Zhou Shaotang is a big talker and not solid in doing things. Therefore, I don't want to say much about the seizure of the Gongji Code. I only have one sentence. Master Ma thinks what I said If you have a clear understanding, I will guarantee that you will do a good job." Zhou Shaotang paused and said, "This sentence is called: 'Looking at the account is worse than looking at the warehouse, and capital verification is worse than inspecting the goods.'" Ma Fengshi was taken aback, because Zhou Shaotang's two opening remarks were quite abrupt, and there was a hint of complaint, so he murmured, "Mr. Zhou, we are meeting for the first time today, and I never said those words—" “啊，啊，误会了误会了。马大老爷，我不是说你，也不是说杨大哥，不过因为今天正好有人这样子说我，顺便一提。”周少棠又说，“马大老爷，你不是要我指点？我刚才那两句话，就是把'总筋'指点给你看，你要看清楚，想透彻。” 原来刚才那种近乎牢骚的话，是周少棠为引起对方注意的一种方式，经此折冲，马逢时已将“看账不如看库，验资不如验货”十二个字深印入脑中，当即作出受教的神色说道：“周先生，你这两句话，从字面上说，就有大学问在里头，索性请你明明白白地开导一番。” “言重、言重。”周少棠问道，“马大老爷，典当的规矩，你懂不懂？” “我刚才说过，一窍不通。” “那就难怪了——” “老周，”杨书办忍不住了，“你不必城头大出丧，大兜大转了。马大老爷明天去查封，要留意哪几件事，请你细说一说。” “是的。”马逢时接口，“还有，一去要怎样下手？” 周少棠心想，查封胡雪岩的典当，是为了备抵存在阜康的公款，能多保全一分，胡雪岩的责任即轻一分，因此，能将唐子韶在公济典侵吞的款子追出来，对胡雪岩就是最直接、也最切实的帮忙。转念到此，他决定插手干预。 于是他问：“马大老爷去查封公济典，有没有委札？” “有。不过交代是抚台交代，委札是藩台所出。” “那一样，都是宪台。”周少棠又问，“领了封条没有？” “领了。” “几张？” “两张。” “怎么只领两张呢？” “我以为查封是封前后门，所以只领了两张。”马逢时又说，“后来想想不对，抚台交代，查封归查封，当铺还是照常取赎，既然如此，封了门，岂非当主不能上门了。” “不独当主不能上门，公济的人也不能进出了。”周少棠想了一下说，“不过不要紧，马大老爷今天就去刻一个长条戳，上面的字是：'奉宪谕查封公济典委员候补知县马'。凭这个长条戳，马大老爷自己就可以封。” “嗯，嗯，”马逢时一面想一面点头，“我应该有这个权柄。” "Of course there is." “周先生，”马逢时问道，“明天我去了，第一步做什么，第二步做什么？请你给我说一说。” “这，这要看情形，现在很难说。”说着，周少棠望一望杨书办。 一直很冷静在旁听的杨书办，知道该他说话了：“马大老爷，我看你要请少棠去帮忙。” “是啊，是啊！”马逢时一迭连声地说，“我就有这样一个打算，不过不知道合不合公事上的规矩。” “怎么会不合？譬如马大老爷你'挂牌'放了实缺，起码要请刑名、钱谷两位师爷，现在请少棠去帮忙，也是同样的道理。” “是，是！这个譬仿通极。”马逢时双手举起酒杯，“周先生，请你帮忙。不过，惭愧的是，现在还谈不到什么敬意，只有感恩在心里。” 于是商定几个步骤，其实也就是周少棠在发号司令，马逢时要做的是，连夜将长条戳刻好，第二天一早在开市以前，便须到达公济典，首先要贴出一张告示：“奉宪谕查封，暂停营业一天。”然后分头查封，最要紧的是库房跟银柜。 “这就要看账了。'看账不如看库，验资不如验货。'此话怎讲？因为账是呆的，账面上看不出啥。到库房看过，再拿账来对照，真假弊病就一目了然了。” “是，是。请教周先生，这姓唐的有哪些弊病？”马逢时问。 “我也是听说，到底如何，要明天去看了才晓得。”周少棠说，“第一种是满当的货色上动脑筋，当本轻、东西好，这也有两种脑筋好动，一种是掉包，譬如大毛的皮统子，换成二毛的，还有一种——” “慢慢，周先生，请问这个弊病要怎么查？” “容易。一种是看账，不过当铺里的账，总是好的写成坏的，所以不如估价。”周少棠说，“朝奉的本事就在看货估价，绝不会走眼，大毛是大毛的价钱，二毛是二毛的价钱，你拿同样的货色来比较，问它同样的当价，为啥一个大毛，一个是二毛？他说话不清楚，里头就有弊病了。” “我懂了。请问还有一种呢？” “还有一种说是赎走了，其实是他占了满当的便宜。要查封这种弊病也不难，叫他拿销号的原票出来看，有，是真的赎走了，没有，就是当主根本没有来赎。” 处理满当货的弊端，马逢时大致已经了解，但是否还有其它毛病呢？问到这一点，周少棠的答复是肯定的，而且词色之间，颇为愤慨。 “这个姓唐的，真是狗彘不如！今日之下，他居然要趁火打劫，真正丧尽天良。” 原来唐子韶从阜康出事以后，认为胡雪岩之垮只是迟早间事，公济典当然也保不住了，既然如此，且趁眼前还能为所欲为之时大捞一笔。 “他的手法很毒，不过说穿了一个钱不值，弄个破铜表来算是金表，一当十两、八两银子，马大老爷，你说，这是不是放抢？” “太可恶了！”马逢时亦是义形于色，“在满当货上动手脚，还可以说是取巧，因为东家的本息到底已经收回了，只不过没有占到额外的好处而已。像这样子，以假作真，以贱为贵，诈欺东家，是可以重办他的罪的。” “当然应该重办。”周少棠冷笑一声，“他自以为聪明，假货要到满当没人来赎，盘库日验货，才会发现，那时他已回徽州老家了，你就告他，他也可以赖，说当初原是金表，不晓得怎么掉包了。也没有想到，偏偏会遇到你马大爷，又遇到我，不等满当，就要办它一个水落石出，这叫'人有千算，天只一算。'” 谈到这里杨书办插嘴了，“唐子韶总还有同党吧？”他说，“朝奉是很爱惜名誉的，如果有为唐子韶勾结、欺骗东家这个名声在外，以后就没有人敢请教他，只好改行了。” “老杨，你问得好。唐子韶自然有同党，不过这个同党，同他的关系不同，是他一手提拔起来的外甥。” “嗯，嗯！这就是了。唐子韶预备卷铺盖了，当然也要带了他一起走。” “一点不错。”周少棠转脸说道，“马大老爷，你明天去了，就要着落在唐子韶的外甥身上，追究真相。要格外留心最近的账，拿当得多的几笔，对账验货，如果货账不符，再问是哪个经的手，第一步只要这样就可以了。” “你是说当时不要追究？” “对，当时不要追究，因为当时一问，唐子韶一定有番花言巧语，打草惊蛇，不是聪明的办法。” “那么，怎么是聪明的办法呢？” “把唐子韶的外甥带走，另外找个地方去问。那些小后生禁不起吓，一吓什么都说出来了。”周少棠又说，“最好到县衙门里借两名差役带了去，威风更足，事情也就更容易办了。” “是，是。这倒容易，仁和县的王大老爷，我很熟。”马逢时越听越有兴趣，很起劲地问，“问出来以后呢？是不是再传唐子韶来问？” “用不着你去传他，他自己会到府上来求见。” "How did you see that?" “这——”周少棠迟疑了一会，说声，“对不起！我先同老杨说句话。” 他将杨书办拉到一边，悄悄问他跟马逢时的关系，杨书办据实以告，周少棠便另有话问了。 “快过年了，马大老爷当然要弄几个过年盘缠是不是？” “当然。”杨书办问，“你的意思是要他敲唐子韶一笔？” “不错。不过，公私兼顾，他可以同唐子韶提条件：第一，要他拿原当赎回去，这是公；第二，要弄几两银子过年，数目他自己同唐子韶去谈——或者，同你谈。如果唐子韶不就范，报上去请他吃官司。” 杨书办盘算了一下，觉得其事可行，笑笑说道：“你对胡大先生倒是满够朋友。” “贫贱之交不可忘。”周少棠掉了句文，虽然有些不伦，却不能说他这句话不通。 两人再深入地谈了一下，自然而然地出现了一种演变，即是襄助马逢时的工作，由周少棠移转到杨书办身上。不过周少棠仍在幕后支援，商定他在阜康钱庄对面的一家安利茶店喝茶，公济典近在咫尺，有事随时可以接头。 等相偕回到原座，周少棠作了交代，“马大老爷，”他说，“你同杨书办很熟，明天请他陪了你去，有啥话说起来也方便。其中的窍门，我同杨书办说过了，这桩差使，一定可以办得漂亮。”说着起身告辞而去。 其时已是万家灯火，酒客络绎而至，热闹非凡，说话轻了听不见，重了又怕泄漏机密，杨书办提议另外找个地方去喝酒。 "Where?" “你跟我去，不过，”杨书办声明在先，“马大老爷，到了那个地方，我不便用尊称，一叫马大老爷，露了相不好。” “不要紧，你叫我老马好了。” “最好连姓都不要用真的。你们老太太尊姓？” “姓李。” “我就叫你老李了。离这里不远，我们走了去。”