Chapter 39: Are You Going to Arrest My Father and Me?

Yan Ning asked, "So, Magistrate Wan, are you going to arrest my father and me and bring us to justice?"

Wan Siyuan hurriedly said, "No, no, no, I was just passing by."

Last time, Wan Siyuan went to the mine with Zhuo Rui; Zhuo Rui died, and he was a Seventh-Rank Official after all, yet he died without a sound.

This was too abnormal.

Afterward, Wan Siyuan was given a dressing-down by his superior; the roundabout words could be summarized as: do not provoke their family, lest you suffer a great misfortune later on.

Therefore, Wan Siyuan came today to warn them.

Seeing the small pile of Gold Melon Seeds in front of Yan Ning, Wan Siyuan was shocked, "Is this what you prepared to tip them with?"

Yan Ning nodded, "Yes, they both sang so beautifully. I haven't heard such lovely voices in a long time, so in my excitement, I scattered quite a few Gold Melon Seeds and Silver Melon Seeds for them."

Wan Siyuan thought of his superior's warning.

They must not be treated as ordinary exiled convicts.

He had been a bit confused at first, but now, seeing them spend so lavishly, he understood his superior's meaning.

What kind of exiles could carry so much gold, silver, and jewelry? It was said that as they passed through several cities, the local officials voluntarily gave Yan Ning a large sum of money, including gold, silver, jewelry, and fine silks and satins.

They even had shops in Haicheng and Shawan County.

Is this coming for exile?

This is clearly coming for a vacation.

Seeing that Wan Siyuan had no ill intent and had come to warn them not to be too conspicuous, Yan Ning thought, since she was unfamiliar with Haicheng, why not let Wan Siyuan be their tour guide?

Looking at Yan Ning's expression, Wan Siyuan always felt she was up to no good.

After a while, Yan Ning spoke, "Magistrate Wan, my father and I are new to Haicheng and would like to buy a shop, but we are unfamiliar with the area and cannot find a suitable one in a short time."

"So..."

Wan Siyuan was very accommodating; he said, "I am familiar with it. I will have someone go and inquire about where shops are for sale right now."

A smile appeared on Yan Ning's face, "Then many thanks."

However, Wan Siyuan soon frowned and warned, "I am only repeating what I have heard; shops in Haicheng are very expensive. One can cost several thousand taels of silver, and some shops go for over ten thousand."

Yan Ning's expression was indifferent, "Good, look for more tomorrow."

She still had a few large-denomination Silver Notes and wanted to use them up early; she always felt that Silver Notes were not as good as gold, silver, and jewelry, and small-denomination notes like one hundred or five hundred taels could be spent slowly.

Mainly, she did not trust those merchant firms.

Wan Siyuan studied the expressions of the two; they were going to spend several thousand or ten thousand taels of silver, yet they had no reaction at all?!

Wan Siyuan drank in silence.

This wine was also quite good; it tasted like Peach Blossom Drunk, worth a thousand gold per pot, yet Yan Ze only drank a small cup and did not want any more, saying it was a bit too sweet and cloying.

They were truly wealthy; they did not look like exiles at all.

Thinking of the situation at court, the Crown Prince had made a mistake and was thrown into the Tianlao, and the Third Prince liked to frequent brothels and gambling dens; these two looked like they were finished.

The only one left who could compete for the position of Crown Prince was the First Prince.

It was said that the First Prince was exiled only because he accidentally broke a teacup; it was not a major fault, and perhaps he would return to the Capital in a few days.

Wan Siyuan's superior was right; one must absolutely not offend them.

But the superior did not say whether one could curry favor with them.

It should be okay to curry favor, right...

Wan Siyuan's thoughts were in a whirl, and he had no heart to listen to the singing girl.

The next day, just as Yan Ning stepped out of the inn, she saw Wan Siyuan, who had a servant with him.

Wan Siyuan said to Yan Ning, "Several shops have been recorded; the cheap ones are five thousand taels, and the most expensive is twelve thousand taels."

Wan Siyuan first took Yan Ze and his daughter to see the first shop.

The location was not considered remote, but she looked at the surrounding shops, which sold fish and vegetables, and there was an unpleasant smell in the air.

Yan Ning was planning to sell luxury goods and absolutely could not come here.

Yan Ning said to Wan Siyuan, "Let's look at shops in better locations."

Wan Siyuan's servant hurriedly flipped through his notes, then led them to the side of a jewelry shop.

This shop was directly opposite the jewelry shop, next to an embroidery workshop, and there was also a cosmetics shop; the shop was quite spacious inside, and it cost a total of eight thousand taels of silver.

Yan Ning felt this shop was not bad; eight thousand taels was eight thousand taels, not expensive.

Yan Ning said to the owner inside, "Eight thousand taels it is. I will give you the Silver Notes, and then we will go to the government office to sign the contract."

The owner hurriedly said, "Hey, hey, hey, who said eight thousand taels?"

The owner sized up Yan Ning and Yan Ze's attire, "It has to be at least twelve thousand; I can give you a discount of one thousand taels now, eleven thousand will do."

Yan Ning was a bit angry, "Wasn't it agreed upon as eight thousand taels before?"

The owner revealed a smug smile, certain that Yan Ning wanted this shop, "Who agreed with you on eight thousand? Eleven thousand, not a tael less."

Yan Ning turned around decisively and said to Wan Siyuan, "Let's change to another one."

Wan Siyuan also did not think much of this owner.

They might be rich, but they were not stupid.

Seeing Yan Ning about to leave, the owner hurriedly blocked her, "Hey, don't go. How about ten thousand? I know you're just playing hard to get; ten thousand is the lowest price."

Yan Ning slapped his hand away, "Not buying it. I wouldn't buy it for eight thousand either."

How unlucky.

Better to go buy somewhere else.

Wan Siyuan said to her, "If you want a good location where wealthy young ladies and madams often go, there is only one shop that is suitable, but the shop has two floors; if you open a jewelry shop, I fear it might be a bit of a waste."

Yan Ning was not in a hurry, "Let's go take a look first."

If she could not choose a shop today, she was not in a hurry; she could let Wan Siyuan help keep an eye out.

They hadn't walked long before they arrived at that two-story shop.

It was originally a shop selling rouge and powder, but the son owed gambling debts, so he had no choice but to sell the shop.

There was still quite a bit of rouge and powder inside; the first floor was stocked with slightly cheaper items, while on the second floor, the items placed inside were several times more expensive.

Yan Ning thought that she could do the same for her Glazed Glass shop: put the simple and cheap ones on the first floor, and the exquisite and complex ones on the second floor.

She was very satisfied with this shop.

Yan Ning asked the Manager with a smile, "How much is this shop?"

The Manager said hesitantly, "How about twelve thousand taels? This is a two-story shop, and the rouge and powder inside will also be left for you; if it weren't for my employer needing money urgently, it wouldn't be sold at this price."

Yan Ning felt it was a very good deal.

Right next to this shop was a silver shop, and the largest restaurant in Haicheng was also nearby.

Twelve thousand was indeed a quite good price.

Yan Ning gave the Silver Note to the Manager on the spot, and the two went to the government office to sign the deed.

After finishing this, Yan Ning let Wan Siyuan go to the inn with her, "Lord Wan, please wait for me a moment."

As she spoke, Yan Ning handed two jars of Peach Blossom Drunk to him: "I was able to buy such a good shop today, many thanks to Lord Wan; this is for you."

Wan Siyuan looked at these two jars of Peach Blossom Drunk; Peach Blossom Drunk was 2,888 taels a jar, and Yan Ning gave him two at once, which was enough to buy a small shop.

As expected, one still needs to butter people up more.

Anyway, he was thick-skinned—scratch that, those who know the times are wise.