Dressed as Su Peisheng

Kangxi 46 years

In early February, Wenfeng Pavilion

Su Wei had heard earlier that many Huizhou merchants were capable of poetry and literature, and they paid attention to both Confucianism and businessmanship. When I saw them today, they really lived up to their reputation.

After exchanging pleasantries, several people took their seats, and the girls served various refreshments, including a pot of Biluochun.Su Wei was not in a hurry to start a relationship with others, and deliberately pretended to be a scholar, and accompanied Wu Xuesong to listen to the music.

There was a new character in the curtain below, with a thin body and a white dress. After holding the guzheng on stage, he was silent for a long time before he stroked the strings.

What Su Wei didn't expect was that in this kind of place, a guzheng would make this person make the sound of fighting and attacking. Even the grandpa Su, who doesn't understand the timbre, sounds very interesting.

Wu Xuesong let out a long sigh of relief when he heard the end of the song with his eyes closed. He took out 20 taels of silver ingots from his pocket and put them on the plate, "The person who played this song has a strong character. The land is really pitiful..."

Boss Zhong repeatedly claimed that he was not as generous as Wu Xuesong, but he also threw ten taels of silver in.

Su Wei stared for a long time, pursed his mouth secretly, and put his hand into his purse resignedly, who knew that after digging for a long time, he only took out a piece of paper!

Opening it behind someone's back, Xiaoyingzi wrote in bright handwriting, "The lord's anger is unbearable, and the disciple's life is miserable. These external possessions are right to be rewarded!"

A stuffy breath filled his chest, and Eunuch Su coughed twice before recovering, but he didn't want to attract the shopkeepers Wu and Zhong to look over.Heartbroken, Su Caidong grabbed the jade pendant from his waist, put it on a plate, and said leisurely, "This song is quite like Jinling, and it looks vulgar if it smells of copper. The so-called beautiful jade is given to your beloved." , my younger brother is also pretending to be elegant."

Both Wu and Zhong were taken aback. Boss Zhong came to his senses first and winked at Su Wei. You must know that jade pendants don't matter, but what Su Wei said was to classify Wu Xuesong, who took the money first, into the category of ordinary people. bingo.

Su Wei pursed his lips, clenched his teeth and didn't let go, but he didn't want Wu Xuesong to come back to his senses, so he clapped his hands and said with a smile, "Okay, I heard that Su Caidong is an extraordinary person, and seeing him today really deserves his reputation."

Su Wei secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and cupped his hands at Wu Xuesong in embarrassment.

Next, the discussion between the two was a matter of course.Although Wu Xuesong looks like a Confucian, he is very straightforward when talking about business.Su Wei ordered a batch of tea as he wished, and his Jishengtang can be upgraded to a business name when the door opens in the future.

"Although Mongolia doesn't look as rich as the Central Plains, it's a good place to do business," Wu Xuesong said, holding up his tea bowl. The leather mountain treasures are all priceless when they are transported to the customs. My caravan has also gone to naturalization twice, but unfortunately the local area is controlled by Shanxi merchants, and the price is inflated, which is really unreasonable. I had no choice but to let it go.”

When Su Wei heard this, he immediately winked at Boss Zhong, and Boss Zhong said knowingly, "There is no need to be sorry for the shopkeeper Wu, isn't our Su Caidong doing business with Mongolians? My shop now uses Jishengtang leather , not only the price is fair, but the quality is also extremely high.”

"I've heard about it." Wu Xuesong curled the corners of his lips and scraped off the tea powder, but he didn't let go easily. "In the future, when I come to Beijing, there will always be times when Su Caidong is in trouble. This business is about smooth flow, and we met for the first time. , a few hundred taels have already passed on the account, so there will be a long time to come."

Su Wei swallowed hard, and secretly scolded the smiling tiger who didn't see rabbits or hawks, but kept a smile on his face and said, "That's, that's, we will come and go often in the future Wu Ji's caravan traveled all over the world, if there is any way to make a fortune in the future, please tell shopkeeper Wu not to forget my little brother."

"Su Caidong is polite." Wu Xuesong took a sip of tea, leaned back in the chair, and said with a long sigh of relief, "in the eyes of many people, this tea and silk are already a deal with a golden key, but in fact But mediocre. It’s just a pity that the threshold for a truly lucrative business is too high, and I’m just a commoner, so I can only sigh in despair.”

Su Wei blinked his eyes, and said in surprise, "Isn't the profit of tea and silk not enough? The shopkeeper Wu refers to—"

Wu Xuesong turned to look at Su Wei, slightly bent his mouth, dipped his finger in the warm tea, and wrote the word "salt" on the table.

Su Wei's expression was slightly trembling, and a dozen thoughts flashed through his mind. Before he could speak, the door of the private room over there was gently pushed open.

"Guest officials are interrupting you," the shopkeeper of Wenfeng Pavilion walked in with a bowed body, and cupped his hands at them. .”

Su Wei didn't realize it for a while, and was stunned, but Wu Xuesong's eyes lit up and said, "Oh? Is it the one who played the zither just now?"

The shopkeeper nodded, and stood aside, a person walked slowly outside the door, still dressed in white.To Su Wei's surprise, the person who came was actually a man with a bamboo hat on his head and a black gauze curtain on his back. When Su Wei looked down from above, he subconsciously thought it was a woman.

"Xiaosheng Muci has met some young masters," the visitor hugged his zither, and bent over them, his indifferent expression showed a sense of being neither humble nor overbearing.

"It turns out that Mr. has only one name," Wu Xuesong said with a smile, "The Zimo that the shopkeeper just called is Mr.'s name?"

"Yes," Mu Ci lowered his head and didn't say much.

Wu Xuesong seemed to be full of interest and said, "Mr.'s zither is really good. The sound of Jin Ge pierces my ears like thunder. I also have a good understanding of the rhythm. It's just that in front of Mr., it's a bit stretched..."

Seeing Wu Xuesong pulling Mu Ci to sit down, looking like he was going to have a long chat, Su Wei immediately wondered whether he should leave first, but then found that the shopkeeper of Wenfeng Pavilion had been waiting at the door, as if waiting for something , the heart is even more strange.

"Su Caidong," Boss Zhong winked at Su Wei several times in a row, before Su Wei came back to his senses.

Boss Zhong lowered his voice and leaned into Su Wei's ear and said, "Take him!"

"What?" Su Wei turned his head in a daze.

Boss Zhong sighed with hatred for iron and steel, "Didn't you see that shopkeeper Wu is very good at this? The shopkeepers of Wenfeng Pavilion are waiting. The jade pendant you gave today probably costs more than eighty taels Well, the shopkeeper must think we've hit it off."

Su Wei's eyes widened in astonishment. Thousands of alpacas whizzed by in his heart. After tossing and turning, after shaking the earth, Eunuch Su's complaints merged into one sentence, "I didn't bring any money."

"What?" Boss Zhong was also stunned on the spot, and after a while he waved his hands and said, "Then your jade—"

"It's because I didn't bring any money, so I got the jade." Su Wei grabbed the conversation, and said as if thinking of something, "By the way, are you familiar with the treasurer of Wenfeng Pavilion? Help me get the jade pendant back later, okay?" ?”

Boss Zhong, who has come and gone in the business field for decades, was the first time he didn't know how to deal with the person in front of him. In the end, he had to take two deep breaths, secretly took out a few bank notes from his pocket, and stuffed them in. Su Wei said, "No matter what today, you must either redeem someone or enclose them. Otherwise, it will be difficult for you to get through the customs in Wuji. Not to mention the fur business of Jishengtang, Wu Xuesong just Are you not interested in the written words?"

Su Wei pursed his lips, pondered for a while, and made up his mind to come forward and said, "Shopkeeper, I wonder if Mr. Mu is placing the order with you, or is he committing himself to Wenfeng Pavilion?"

Mu Ci, who had been listening to Wu Xuesong with his head down, raised his head at this moment and looked towards the door.

The shopkeeper bowed to Su Wei, "If you go back to the guest officer, Zimo has signed a contract with the shop, and usually lives in the small courtyard at the back. If the guest officer likes Zimo's piano, you can—"

"I'll redeem him." Su Wei took out two bank notes, a total of 100 taels, he made up his mind, and simply did it neatly, "Are these enough?"

The shopkeeper looked down and said with an embarrassed smile, "To tell you the truth, Zimo's zithers are monotonous, but they are still very popular with customers. Although the rewards are not as generous as the others, there are always a few taels of silver a day. .Our small shop does not do those pickled meat business, and the food used by the singers in this shop is more expensive-"

"Okay." Su Wei squinted his eyes. Isn't it just too little? This money is enough to buy a car of maids outside, "300 taels, how about it?"

"Ouch," the shopkeeper took the banknote and bowed, "Zimo is also lucky. Today, when I see someone who rewards people with jade, I will know that a real scholar has come."

"Okay, okay, go get Mr. Mu's body deed," Su Wei waved his hand, turned around and sat on the chair, it cost 300 taels, he was a little dizzy...

"It's still cool for Su Caidong," Wu Xuesong smiled, "I also intended to help Mr. Mu get out of this place, but Su Caidong rushed ahead. That's fine, Su Caidong gave this beautiful jade to his beloved, and we will wait for you." It's not as good as this."

"It turned out to be the jade pendant from this guest." Mu Ci got up and walked to Su Wei, and bowed to the ground, "Zimo thank you here."

"Uh, no thanks, no thanks," Su Wei waved his hands again and again, but he began to cry secretly in his heart. This man is considered to be out of the sea of ​​suffering, but it is still unknown whether he can survive tonight.

"It's a worthwhile trip for us to get together," Boss Zhong said with a smile, "Since shopkeeper Wu likes Mr. Mu's zithers, he will often come to Beijing in the future. Maybe we can also wash our ears."

Wu Xuesong also smiled when he heard the words, glanced at Mu Ci and said, "Then I have to rely on Brother Su's light."

Su Wei curled the corners of his lips stiffly, and cupped his hands at Wu Xuesong, "It's easy to say, easy to say..."

After listening to Mu Ci play another song, it was getting late, and they got up to say goodbye.

Mu Ci only packed a simple package, followed Su Wei out of Wenfeng Pavilion with his kite in his arms.

Ku Kui jumped off the shaft of the car, but when he trotted over, he was startled, and said in a low voice, "Grandpa Su, this is—"

Su Wei hissed once, coughed twice, turned around and pointed to the carriage and said to Mu Ci, "Young Master Mu, get in the carriage first, I will take you to your place of residence."

Mu Ci lowered his head and got into the carriage by himself. Seeing the curtains being drawn down, Su Wei sighed, "How can this be fixed?"

"Su Caidong!" Boss Zhong sent Wu Xuesong away, turned around and came back.

Su Wei had no choice but to cheer up again, went up to greet him and said, "I'll send someone to deliver the bank note to you tomorrow."

"That's not the case." Boss Zhong waved his hand, glanced at the carriage behind and said, "Master, how do you plan to arrange it?"

"Eh..." Su Wei frowned and thought for a while, "Let him go to Jishengtang to be an accountant. He looks very elegant, and he should be able to make plans."

Boss Zhong stared blankly, and said with disbelief, "You asked him to be the accountant? Have you forgotten how much money you spent?"

"I remember," Su Wei's eyes were very round, "300 taels is enough to buy servants for a whole house—"

"Okay, okay," Boss Zhong took two big breaths, "You redeemed him not to work for you, but to serve Wu Xuesong. Later, you will set up a yard near Jishengtang, and then buy Two young servants will take care of you, and when Wu Xuesong comes to Beijing, take him to live there, and your business will most likely be completed."

"That's it." Su Wei frowned, "I thought it would be enough for Mu Ci to play a couple of songs while eating. Looking at it this way, am I not a pimp?"

"What is pimping?" Boss Zhong frowned, then waved his hands and said, "Isn't that what people raise horns for? Many families in Beijing set up yards outside just to greet them. This It is cleaner than the Goulan courtyard outside, and you are not afraid of causing trouble. Let me tell you, many of these rich businessmen from the south are good at it. You listen to me, that's right."

"Oh, then I'll think about it..." Su Wei scratched the back of his head, because of Wu Xuesong's word, he agreed in a moment of enthusiasm.Looking back now, I always feel as if I have been led into a ditch.

After Su Wei got into the carriage and drove up the long street, Boss Zhong lost his expression and walked to his shop.Yinxiang Silk and Satin Village was not far from Wenfeng Pavilion, and when Boss Zhong stepped into the threshold, the lights were still on in the house.

"Su Caidong is gone?" Wu Xuesong was sitting behind the square table, cutting the candles on the table with one hand. "This man is really strange. He has the courage and insight to do business. But he doesn't care about the rules of dealing with merchants." Little is known."

"It's not really strange," Boss Zhong beckoned the waiter to close the shop door, and sat down in front of Wu Xuesong, "If this person is really serving that noble man, he certainly doesn't have much contact with our business. Such an achievement is also a genius in business.”

Wu Xuesong pursed the corners of his lips, and said with a slight smile between his brows and eyes, "Is he tempted by that word?"

"That's natural." Boss Zhong nodded, and then he was a little puzzled, "If Brother Wu wants to cooperate with Su Caidong, just say it, why bother to make such a big circle."

"I just want to borrow his hand to ask for a lead." Wu Xuesong lowered his head and sipped his tea. "If we open up the conversation, with his background, what else can I gain from this deal? Just let him think I don't know his identity. I can put on Wu Ji's airs. In order to cooperate with me, he can only get whatever he wants. Looking at his attitude of redeeming people today, I really don't want to be too exposed and public. Xi Laishun's It’s not a big deal, I guess I was pushed into a hurry. Anyway, no one announced it to the world with great fanfare, so you and I just have a suspicion in our hearts.”

"But," Boss Zhong frowned, "The companies that fought against Ji Shengtang before didn't end well. I'm afraid that we'll let him know our real intention—"

"What are you afraid of? If you don't tell me and I don't tell you, who will know? What's more," Wu Xuesong put down the tea bowl, "Do you know how much profit the Lianghuai Salt Industry has? We just need to show a little bit through our fingers, and it will be enough to block him." Talking. Now, for the sake of that nobleman, I have also opened up an extra source of income for him. I didn’t trick him or harm him. It’s just a lure, and I’m entitled to use it as a tuition fee.”

At the same time, on the other end, Su Wei asked people to drive the carriage to the small courtyard that the fourth elder brother had set up for him before.

"No one lives in this courtyard now, but my people often come to clean it." Su Wei led Muci into the small courtyard, "I'll ask someone to send a boy over later, if you have anything to do, just tell them. "

"Thank you Mr. Su," Mu Ci nodded to Su Wei, but his face was expressionless.

Su Wei stood there for a while, dragged his fingers in embarrassment and said, "Your...then what..."

Mu Ci raised his head to look at him, his eyes were clear.

Su Wei's face turned red, he pursed his lips and said, "Do you know how to plan?"

When I returned to the palace, it was already a curfew.Su Wei dawdled into the East Courtyard, where the fourth elder brother was practicing calligraphy behind the desk.

"Come here!" Seeing the corner of the clothes flashing at the door, the fourth prince immediately said in a cold voice.

Su Wei thought that heaven and man were at war, and finally gritted his teeth and stepped over the threshold.

"I just came back at this time, what do you think should I do?" The fourth elder brother walked away without raising his head.

"Confinement for a month, follow the master every day," Su Wei replied very obediently with his head down.

The fourth elder brother was stunned for a moment, and raised his head to look at someone, "What's wrong with you? You are so self-conscious, have you been wronged outside?"

Su Wei shook his head again and again, shaking his head and rubbing against the fourth prince, "That, master, that, I—"

"Why are you hesitating? Say something if you have something to say," the fourth elder brother frowned.

Su Wei swallowed heavily, looked at the fourth elder brother hesitated for a long time, and said with a sigh of relief, "I bought a famous actor!"

The room fell into a terrible silence for a while, Su Wei looked at the staring eyes of the fourth elder brother, and gradually shrunk his neck.After a while, in the silence, there was a sudden click.

Su Wei looked down and saw that the Huzhou writing brush held by the fourth elder brother was broken with a thick finger!

The author has something to say:

Uh, little Suzi can't do pimping.

Yinwo is the license issued by the Qing Dynasty government to merchants to sell salt. Only when merchants have Yinwo can they receive salt Yin, buy salt and sell salt.A salt coin can buy a certain amount of salt, which is similar to a food stamp, and salt tax is required to receive the salt coin.The salt industry in the Qing Dynasty was a huge profiteering industry because the government allowed salt merchants to raise prices.Moreover, Yinwo is not something you want to have, it is basically monopolized by a group of powerful people.That's why Wu Xuesong wanted to use Su Wei's hand to get Yinwo.