Chapter 214
Silver in Hand
Everyone hurriedly nodded, “Please explain in detail, Chief Wu . ”
“At the moment, there are two suitable paths . The first path is to make a fortune and give Lord Li the silver taels that we need to fill the deficit . In this way, he will take our business of exchanging salt lightly and let go of the past . The second way is to submit to Lord Li, which is an indirect way to get on the First Prince’s ship, and there’s no need for us to make a fortune at present . As for the future, that will depend on the First Prince’s intentions . What do you think?”
“Chief Wu also said just now that the situation is still unclear …”
“Yeah, the situation isn’t clear . I am afraid that it is not conducive to our future development . It looks like the first way is more appropriate because we still able to earn some money in the future . Why should we put a rope on ourselves in advance?”
“That’s right . We’ll choose the first choice . ”
After listening to the opinions of the crowd, Wu Minzhi had a plan, and he was more inclined to the first way in his heart: “Although we have made our choice now, we can’t easily hand over the silver taels to Qi Ming . We have to make sure that the other party will not turn over after taking the silver . ”
“Yes, Chief Wu is indeed thoughtful . ”
“Since you all want to listen to me, then hold your anger and don’t make any mistakes in private . Let’s listen to the news for three days first, and then we can make a plan again . ”
“Alright . ”
According to Wu Minzhi’s plan, even if he wanted to give money, he would have to wait for a while . However, he did not expect that the next day, there was a rumor that a ship was salvaging things on the Xijiang River . Fortunately, he had some friends in water transportation and secretly delivered the news to him . Otherwise, things would be definitely become bad .
After receiving the message, Wu Minzhi rushed to the Chun Feng Garden only to see Qi Ming covered in dust and dirt walking in .
“Where did Lord Qi go? Why are you look so tired?”
“Sorry for the ridicule, Chief Wu . Some things are coming from below, and I went to suppress it . ” Qi Ming said with a smile .
Wu Minzhi’s heart skipped a beat . He subconsciously thought of the people who salvaged things on the Xijiang River . Could it be that those people have a friendship with Qi Ming? Or could it be that those people sent out by Li Yuanyi?
“Lord Qi, there’s something I want to talk to you about . ”
“Please come in, Chief Wu . How about you allow me to change my clothes first, and I’ll come here again for a discussion?”
“Of course . Please go ahead, Lord Qi . ”
Wu Minzhi sat in the room where he had come last time, and his mind was full of confusion . After a brief moment of absent-mindedness, Qi Ming had changed his clothes and arrived in front of him .
“Chief Wu come to find me this time, but has he figured out the countermeasures to fill the silver balance?”
Wu Minzhi became more and more uncertain after hearing Qi Ming’s blunt words . “I won’t hide it from Lord Qi . I have recently heard some rumors that merchant ships are salvaging things on the Xijiang River . . . ”
“Chief Wu, no need to worry . The river is merciless . If the thing in the water isn’t in the same place, then there’s no need to mention whether or not it’s in the water . If you go down there, will you be able to get something? Besides, Don’t the things that you fished out had sunk before?” A smile appeared in Qi Ming’s eyes as he looked at Wu Minzhi meaningfully .
Wu Min Zhi smiled along with him . “Lord Qi, we’ve thought it through, but there’s no way to control the deficit on the surface . We can only ask Lord Qi to do some hard work and think of a way secretly . ”
Qi Ming frowned, looking troubled: “This . . . Chief Wu is making things difficult for me . ”
Wu Minzhi took out a purse from his pocket . It was huge and thick . Then he said, “I know it’s so difficult to control it . Here is some tea money . Please accept it, Lord Qi . We will reward you handsomely after this is over . ”
Qi Ming sighed . “Chief Wu, my master really admires your character very much and has paid much attention to you in the Capital . With your intelligence, you should know that there is more than one way out . ”
Hearing the word ‘Master’ from his mouth, Wu Minzhi’s heart skipped a beat . He had guessed correctly . This fellow was most likely the First Prince’s aide, so he had to be more careful when dealing with him . With a troubled expression, he said, “If it were only me, I would be willing to sacrifice myself for Lord’s Master, but I represent a lot of salt merchants . I hope Lord Qi can help me explain a bit more . ”
“That’s also understandable, but the mountains are high, and the rivers are long . You can watch it slowly in the future will be enough . ” After Qi Ming finished speaking, he put away the purse on the table, “I will do my best to help you with this . Chief Wu should prepare all the silver taels in advance . ”
“Of course . Please rest a.s.sured, Lord Qi . ”
“Yes . ” Qi Ming took a sip from his teacup .
Seeing that the other party was bringing tea to see him off, Wu Minzhi said, “Thank you for your hard work, Lord Qi . Rest early . I will take my leave first . ”
“Alright . Take care, Chief Wu . ”
“Bye . ”
Waiting for Wu Minzhi to leave, Qi Ming carried his pouch all the way out of Chun Feng Garden and returned to Yi Bao Xuan .
Liu Liang was waiting in the backyard . When he saw his return, his eyes moved slightly . He then asked, “How did it go?”
Qi Ming took out his pouches, “My Lord, everything is going well . ”
Liu Liang opened the pouch and took out the banknotes . Each note was worth a thousand silver taels each, a total of one hundred banknotes .
Qi Ming sighed in admiration, “This payment of a hundred thousand taels of silver is only for my hard work . Those salt merchants are so rich . ”
“You have to be very careful . The more you act at the end, the more careful you have to be . Remember not to reveal the ident.i.ty of the Young Miss in order to avoid bringing disaster upon her . ”
“Yes, this servant understands . ”
Soon, Wu Minzhi handed the silver taels to him . “Lord Qi, we have brought the silver taels . Can you give us some words from Lord Li?”
“Chief Wu, Lord Li has made arrangements . Lord wrote a personal letter for you, and you can directly look at it . From now on, this is proof in your hands . ”
Wu Minzhi’s eyes lit up . He took the letter and carefully read the notes and seals . Finally, his heart settled down . With this letter, he was equivalent to having proof, and he was not afraid of Li Yuanyi reneging on his promise .
After seeing Wu Minzhi off happily, Qi Ming could not help but laugh, “Hopefully, after Chief Wu learns the truth, he will still be laughing like this . ”
Upon receiving the banknotes, Qi Ming did not dare to waste any time . He collected the banknotes and delivered them to Liu Liang, “Lord, I had received the banknotes . I wonder what we should do next?” If those salt merchants knew that he was not going to do anything after accepting the silver, they would definitely tear him apart .
“Mistress has made all the necessary arrangements . You can stay here and manage Yi Bao Xuan with peace of mind . You don’t have to worry about the salt merchants . Soon, they won’t be able to stand up again . ”
Qi Ming’s eyes were bright, and his heart was excited: “Could it be that Mistress wants to clean up these salt merchants?” This situation is enough to cause great turmoil . If the manipulation is not satisfying, it may upset the whole of Jiangnan . Then there will be a good show!
Liu Liang looked indifferent: “Mistress’s matters aren’t something we can speculate . Just be at ease and do your own things . ”
“Yes, this servant understands . ”