Chapter 83 – Laughter in the Ming Garden

Ming Qingda coldly looked at her and coldly said, “Mother doesn’t know that you used to be the courtesan of the eldest princess, but you know that I am very clear about this …… so there is no need to deliberately remind me of anything. Your Highness and I were originally on the same boat, and I’m not prepared to get off it.”

He paused, feeling that there was no need to take it out on this woman, and shook his head, “The letter was sent to the palace a long time ago, and Her Highness the Eldest Princess must have a way to stall Fan Xian’s hand.”

If Her Highness the Eldest Princess had free time, she certainly had more than enough intrigues and courtroom debates to delay the Supervisory Yuan’s advances on the Ming family.

The problem was that everyone was actually very busy right now.

The grand treasurer of the Merchants’ Money Bank sat indifferently in Ming Garden’s gorgeous flower hall, the tea in his hand untouched by a single mouthful, his right hand tied with a bandage, not knowing if he was injured in the fight the night before.

This time, this time, the day before yesterday is the Merchants Bank initiative to find the Ming family to talk about business, today is the Ming family after the ineffectiveness of the dark hand, helpless to take the initiative to request, so the attitude of this big boss is obviously also different.

Ming Qingda secretly watched the other party’s face at the back, thinking that although this big treasurer was angry, he still came, so he must be the proprietor behind the money changer, unwilling to affect the big deal between the two parties just because of the incident the day before yesterday.

He was about to lift the curtain and go out when he realized that his sleeve was being pulled by someone. Stunned, he looked back to find his most beloved son, Ming Lan Shi, with a pale face, wanting to speak.

Ming Qingda frowned and chided in a low voice, “What time of year is it now, if you have something to say, say it.”

Ming Lan Shi glanced into the hall, his face became even more ugly, tugging at his father’s sleeve to enter the back hall, then without saying a word, he flopped down and knelt in front of him.

“The child is unfilial …… please father kill the child ……” Ming Lan Shi gathered enough courage, raised his head and said, “must not let Merchants Money Bank use those Tuning Silver for shares!”

Ming Qingda was silent for a moment, slowly opened his lips and asked, “What exactly happened?”

Ming Lan Shi lowered his head in shame and said, “The child …… privately transferred a batch of silver to the Merchants Money Bank, using half a percent of the dry shares in his hands to make a bet.”

Ming Qingda sucked in a mouthful of cool air, his face became extremely ugly, but immediately returned to his composure and asked urgently, “When can you return the silver? What is the contract? Can you find a peace to transfer the deed?”

This ask is a few key questions, because the matter involves the Ming family belongs to the share of the big event, Ming Qingda simply can not wait to scold their own son, grabbed the first to ask out, I hope not to let the Merchants Money Bank and then more of this half a percent.

“Dead deed ……” Ming Lan Shi said with a crying face: “As for the return of silver …… originally thought it was three months, but now it seems, it should be a penny of capital are Can not come back, Taiping should also know about this matter, they will not be soft.”

It turns out that the Ming family has been in the wind and rain for a year, and is being pinched by Fan Xian with his inner treasury output, and is about to run out of breath. The young master of the Ming family, as he had told his father that day, had always thought that the general direction of the Ming family’s business operations should be adjusted, and only then would he not be forever toyed with by Fan Xian.

Because of Ming Qingda’s insistence, Ming Lan Shi had to secretly carry out his own attempts, and at the end of last year, he used half of his own shares in the Ming family, in exchange for the Merchants Money Bank’s current silver support, he had thought that this attempt would gain great benefits in a very short period of time, and persuade his father, but he did not think that ……

Ming Qingda’s brain buzzed, nearly fainted, half a long time before slightly gasping for breath and asked: ”What exactly is the business? And how could it not return any capital at all?”

Ming Lan Shi looked at his furious father, hesitated for a long time before he trembled and said, “It is …… the private salt business.”

Ming Qingda was stunned and did not say anything for a long time. The most lucrative business in Qing Guo will always have only three doors, one is the greenhouse business, one is the imperial merchants of the inner treasury, and one is the big dealers who sell private salt. And among these three, selling private salt has the fastest return on capital and the highest profit.

“Why can’t you return the capital?” Ming Qingda stared at his son’s eyes coldly and sternly, and said word by word: “I know that you are a calm and steady person, even if it is risky private salt, you must have a way to keep the capital …… Tell me, why can’t you return to the capital?”

“Because …… “Ming Lan Shi wanted to cry, “some days ago the salt and tea Yamen suddenly investigated the seizure, and I don’t know how they got the information, and detained all twelve ships of private salt… …I went to look for someone, but there was no way at all.”

He didn’t notice his father’s increasingly iron green face, and explained one by one, “Those related customs yamen, have always been raised quite well by the family, and didn’t expect them to suddenly strike. Besides, Yang Jimei has always walked that line, he assured the child, there must be no matter ……”

Snapped with a crunch! Ming Qingda violently slapped Ming Lan Shi to the ground raw!

Ming Lan Shi covered his numb face, half lying on the ground, feeling blood flowing out of his mouth, looking at his father who was as furious as a sick lion, unable to speak at all.

“Yamen? Yamen! You also know that it is the Yamen! Salt and tea yamen don’t dare to find out the family …… but won’t the inspectorate force them to come and find out!” Ming Qingda lowered his voice and growled, his eyes filled with disheveled and violent anger that he didn’t dare to believe, “Yang Jimei! Do you have water in your head? That salt-selling drudge is one of Xue Qing’s dogs! It’s his garden that Fan Xian lives in Suzhou!”

A cold chill ran through Ming Qingda’s chest as he kicked his son in the face and cursed through clenched teeth, “How did I raise such a stupid loser like you!”

It took him a while to calm down and said feebly, “This private salt business can leave a handle? Carefully the Supervisory Court will behead you with this offense.”

“Please rest assured father.” Ming Lan Shi struggled to kneel in front of him, “That batch of silver was directly from the Merchants Money Bank, although Yang Jimei that dog thief knows that it was me, but the officials can’t find any evidence.”

“If the Merchants Money Bank takes your deed knot book with them to the hall …… officials will have evidence.” Ming Qingda sighed helplessly.

Ming Lan Shi suddenly had a chill in his heart, “This money bank …… won’t be Fan Xian’s, right?”

Ming Qingda’s body trembled, and after a moment shook his head in silence, “It can’t be Fan Xian’s, the Princess has checked the Ministry of Revenue in the capital, and we’re keeping a close eye on Fan Xian, he doesn’t have so much silver to make this bureau.”

This was a simple statement, but the hard work behind it was immense, the Ming family wanted to do business with the Merchants Money Bank, so of course they had to investigate the bottom of the money bank clearly, confirming that Fan Xian had nothing to do with the Merchants Money Bank. However, Ming Qingda did not expect that the results of his investigation, although good, the proprietor of the Merchants Money Bank was indeed not Fan Xian …… that proprietor was the young emperor of Northern Qi!

“Everything from prudence.” Ming Qingda tilted his head, barely controlling his emotions of defeat: “Letting out thirty percent …… is sorry for the ancestors, but it will allow us to delay for a while longer, waiting for the backhand in the capital.”

However, in these two years, the Ming family gradually decline until the final destruction, in fact, is because …… this “drag” word!

A long time later, when sitting in the hall on the Merchants Bank’s big boss yawned for the twentieth time, the Ming family’s contemporary master Ming Qingda walked out with a gloomy face.

The Grand Shopkeeper smiled faintly and said, “Elder Ming has made it nice to wait.”

Ming Qingda did not bow and salute, nor did he say the rest of the things, and said indifferently, “Bring Lan Shi’s half-percent of the shares of the Deed of Settlement, and pin away a booklet, and I will fulfill your family’s proprietor’s request.”

“Yes, Master Ming.” The big shopkeeper remained unchanged, took out a document from his pocket, and sent it to Ming Qingda’s face, it was the deed certificate left behind by Ming Lan Shi to raise the silver for the salt trade, it seemed that he had prepared for it earlier.

Not waiting for Ming Qingda to open his mouth, the big shopkeeper said softly, “That one, go back and cancel it.”

Ming Qingda nodded feebly.

In the afternoon, the major accountants of the Ming Family and Merchants Money Bank came in. The rich merchants who were invited to observe the ceremony at the strong request of the Grand Master also sat aside, and the official notary sent by the Suzhou Prefecture was also ready.

Three sheets of white paper spread on the case, an ink pen flying, in a short while, three debt to shares of the instrument will be written. The Sun Xiong Zhu’s rich merchants and Suzhou city in the rituals of the Sun Xiong look at a long time, only to understand what is written on it, can not help but inhale cold air, unspeakable shock!

Merchants money bank into the Ming family, shareholding 30%!

Although the Jiangnan bigwigs have long seen the Ming family’s dilemma, but no one expected, rich Ming family, but will be sad to such a point, actually called not the mountain is exhausted, but with four million taels of borrowed silver in exchange for 30% of the shares of the Ming family? …… merchants pondered a little more, thinking of the Ming family’s current predicament is mainly focused on the turnover of water, they immediately see this point, but also feel that the Merchants Bank this asking price is very fair.

Ming Qingda lifted the brush and pondered for a moment, without making a fuss, very calmly signed his name and fingerprints.

The crowd watched this scene in silence, regardless of whether the Ming family is a friend or foe, for the Ming old master of the city and boldness, all feel incomparable admiration, a hundred years of the family, born out of 30% and outsiders, non-extraordinary people can not make such extraordinary initiatives.

On behalf of the Merchants Bank to sign the fingerprints of …… is a young man, a beautiful face, but always stood in the bank behind the young man.

The crowd did not notice his presence until this time have awakened, cast a surprised look, thinking mysterious Merchants Bank big proprietor, is this unknown young man?

Ming Qingda finally frowned at this time, said: “So you are the big proprietor of the money bank, the day before yesterday was rude, no wonder.”

No wonder he could not see, because Wang Xulang all dashing and sparse breath, really does not look like a lord of the business world, even a trace of the feeling of the superior.

Wang Thirteen Lang was slightly stunned, not knowing whether he should admit it or not, because he didn’t know whether Fan Xian would still stay behind the scenes at this moment.

Right at this moment, there was a clamor at the entrance of the Ming Garden, followed by the sound of the middle door opening wide, followed by the second door opening again, the third door opening, the clamor directly to the hall of signatures, those hurried footsteps came extremely fast, faster than the sound of singing rituals, penetrating a hint of dominance and arrogance.

Ming Qingda frowned tightly and looked outside the hall, not knowing what kind of people were coming.

The footsteps were extremely light.

Because the owner of the footsteps was in an unusually light mood.

Fan Xian, dressed in a black Supervisory Yuan official uniform, crossed the long threshold and walked in, holding a quick smile on his face. Behind him was Hong Changqing, a group of officials from the Supervisory Yuan, as well as Xia Qufei, the seventh young master of the Ming family.

He did not greet those officials and merchants, and directly walked to the front of Ming Qingda, looking at the old man with an inscrutable gaze.

I don’t know how long he had been looking at him, but Ming Qingda frowned slightly as he looked at this Lord Qinzhi, who was rumored to still be in the area of Shazhou, and asked, “Lord Qinzhi’s presence is great, so I’m sorry to have missed out on welcoming you.”

Fan Xian smiled and said, “With such an event, how could I not come, especially since this official also came to say thank you to Elder Ming.”

“Thank you?” Ming Qingda’s heart trembled slightly.

“Thank you for the thirty percent of your shares.” He attached to Ming Qingda’s ear, and with a voice that only the other party could hear, he whispered, “Merchants Money Bank …… is mine.”

Ming Qingda frowned slightly, wondering if he had heard something wrong.

Fan Xian looked at the paperwork on the case where the ink had not yet dried, the corner of his lips blossomed into a happy smile, after a year of hard work and planning, a year of patience, he finally received the results today, how could he not be happy?

Although he knew that the identity, will let the Merchants Money Bank can no longer avoid the eyes of the imperial court, but this is sooner or later, he also need to take advantage of this wind, so that the small emperor of Northern Qi earn enough to stop …… Although in the eyes of the emperor’s old man, Fan Xian may have to bear more than a million taels of silver loss, but he does not care about this.

The Ming family …… that has been running across Jiangnan for a hundred years, running across the temple and the rivers and lakes, and controlling the lives and deaths of countless people by hand, has changed its ownership today! How could Fan Xian miss such a grand and good show? Spending a million taels of silver to buy a theater ticket to be able to witness this sight with his own eyes was really worth it!

He looked at Ming Qingda, whose face was constantly changing, and thought with narrowed eyes that if Elder Master Ming suddenly fainted, then this theater ticket would be even more valuable.

It seems that the heavens heard his heart, Ming Qingda looked at the big boss of the Merchants Money Bank standing behind Fan Xian, and watched that young man hand over the deed closure book to Fan Xian’s hand, he finally figured out all the things, just that he still couldn’t figure out …… the Ministry of Households and couldn’t possibly move all the national treasury… …Where did Fan Xian rake in so much silver to set up a money bank?

Ming Qingda was trembling, his eyes slightly red, his throat mumbled twice but he couldn’t speak, his qi and blood attacked his heart, and he collapsed with a jerk of his body!

Fan Xian to the four sides of the face of the people, casually arch a salute, in this open and expensive Ming Garden Hall haha laugh.