Chapter 117: There must be an inside thief

After finishing his shift, Chen Guanlou carried wine and meat to find Master Du to report the good news, so as to avoid the old man being anxious and uneasy all day and unable to sleep well. If he fell ill because of this, the sin would be great.

The old servant of the Du family saw him and smiled until his eyes couldn't be seen, skillfully took the wine and meat, and pointed to the study, letting him go in directly; Master Du was busy inside.

These days, Master Du had been worried, fearing that one night he would fall asleep and never wake up, and his head would be moved. Seeing Chen Guanlou come to the door, his eyes lit up, and he stared straight at the other party, wanting to see good or bad from the other party's expression. Next, should he drink to be happy, or should he cry bitterly?

Chen Guanlou showed Master Du a brilliant smile.

Master Du slapped his thigh—it's done!

Seeing this smile, he knew the matter was done. Hahaha, today one should float three big cups.

"How did you handle it? Could the Sitong Bank agree to you? Hurry up and tell me; I've been thinking about it in my heart."

He greeted Chen Guanlou to sit down and asked eagerly.

Chen Guanlou said vaguely, "I found a friend, and this friend is very capable, and the backer behind him is even more capable. In short, the Sitong Bank is now unable to protect itself, and Shopkeeper Li is miserable and has no time to deal with us two small characters. By the time they resolve their current troubles, I reckon that within a few years, they won't touch this kind of shady business again."

Once bitten by a snake, one fears the rope for ten years.

When the Embroidered Uniform Guard's investigation ends, if Shopkeeper Li dares to touch the antique calligraphy and painting business of unknown origin again, he will respect the other party as a man, and he won't be far from death.

What does the old Emperor cherish most now?

Money!

Money is the old Emperor's lifeblood. Whoever touches the old Emperor's small treasury is a rebellious subject in the old Emperor's mouth. Even if it is the old Emperor's own son, he will have to shed a layer of skin, and if it's serious, he will be directly imprisoned.

The old Emperor's coldness and lack of grace are not only reflected in his attitude toward his ministers but also cold and ruthless toward his own sons. The Crown Prince was the child the old Emperor loved most back then, wanting whatever he wanted, almost picking the stars and moon from the sky to give to the Crown Prince. If there really was technology to pick stars and moon, the old Emperor would definitely not be stingy.

But how is it now? He guards against the Crown Prince as if guarding against a rebel; as soon as he sees the Crown Prince, he is full of anger, wishing he could cane the Crown Prince to death on the spot. Where is there any of the love from back then?

The Crown Prince has this treatment, so the other princes can be imagined. Only a few young princes, who pose no threat to imperial power, can get the old Emperor's smiles and praise. All adult princes, without exception, are closely watched by the old Emperor.

Under such circumstances, even if the Embroidered Uniform Guard's investigation ends, Chen Guanlou bets that Shopkeeper Li will not dare to touch this business for several years. In this way, he is naturally safe and worry-free.

Shopkeeper Li is confused; he asks himself that he did things very secretly, perfectly deceiving those above and below, so why did he alarm the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Could it be that there is an inside thief? He can't figure it out, he can't figure it out.

Manager Zhao is a smart person, "Could it be that the Chen kid leaked the news?"

"Didn't you arrange for people to tail him to death every day? Did you see him in contact with any Embroidered Uniform Guard personnel?" Shopkeeper Li asked.

Manager Zhao shook his head unwillingly; this matter cannot be said randomly, he can only tell the truth, "Didn't find anything. The Chen kid goes to work and goes home every day, a straight line. At most, he chats with the neighbors around and says hello. He is a loner, and there isn't even a woman around him."

"So, is it really that we have an inside thief?" Shopkeeper Li's eyes instantly became fierce, carrying a thick killing intent.

Manager Zhao subconsciously shuddered, feeling uneasy in his heart, "Can't be! Those who know about this business are all trusted aides. Who would be unable to think straight and go be an ear for the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Uncle, could there be other inside information about this?"

Shopkeeper Li shook his head slowly, "You don't understand the power of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. They are pervasive; who can guarantee that our Sitong Bank doesn't have an eye planted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard? For such a big business, it's abnormal that the Embroidered Uniform Guard isn't watching. It's necessary to check everyone around. Not only check the person themselves, but also check their ancestors for three generations clearly."

Manager Zhao felt as if there were nails under his buttocks, making him sit on pins and needles; his buttocks twisted slightly, wishing he could just stand up to talk. But he was worried that the movement was too big, causing Shopkeeper Li's suspicion. He knew that Shopkeeper Li had the heaviest suspicion, a cruel heart, and poisonous methods.

Those who are bank managers are not soft-hearted people. Kindness doesn't command soldiers, and righteousness doesn't command wealth; this principle still holds true for banks.

"Is this matter handed to me to handle?" Don't look at Manager Zhao being arrogant in front of Chen Guanlou; in front of Shopkeeper Li, he is like a mouse seeing a cat, not even daring to speak loudly.

He just wants to eat and drink, do simple things, take generous rewards, and not take responsibility. Checking a person's ancestors for three generations—in his view, money is secondary; the key is that there are many things, it's easy to make mistakes, and after the event, he has to take responsibility, and Shopkeeper Li will definitely clean him up.

He doesn't want to do this thing.

Say he has no ambition, no prospects—that's all fine.

Shopkeeper Li glanced at him coldly, "You, forget it, get out."

Manager Zhao felt as if he had been granted amnesty and rolled away quickly. A burst of secret joy in his heart.

Shopkeeper Li was very disappointed—mud that couldn't be supported on the wall. Young people nowadays are useless and can't compare to the fighting spirit he had when he was young. One by one, they fear difficulty like tigers and have no prospects.

However, he has plenty of people under his command; without Butcher Zhang, there are Butcher Li and Butcher Su.

In one sentence, he must dig out the inside thief, cut them into a thousand pieces, smash their corpses into ten thousand pieces, throw all the men in their family into the mine to be mine slaves, and throw the women onto the mine to be prostitutes. Never think of turning over for generations.

"Manager, Master Xiao of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is here." The servant stood at the door and said cautiously.

Shopkeeper Li stood up abruptly, "Hurry, invite him! No, I will go to welcome him personally."

He didn't dare to have the slightest neglect and hurried out the door to welcome him at the front door. Who would have thought that Master Xiao had already brought people into the front door.

If Chen Guanlou were here, he would definitely exclaim, Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Master Xiao was the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had beheaded Duan Tianlin, the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had almost sliced Chen Guanlou with a sword during the midnight curfew.

Master Xiao was in a flying fish suit, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and was imposing. His whole body carried a sky-high murderous aura, and one didn't know how many people had died in his hands.

He was a full head taller than Shopkeeper Li, staring down at the little old man in front of him, imposing without anger, "Shopkeeper Li, let's have a good chat today."

"Chat! Let's have a good chat! Master Xiao, please come in." Shopkeeper Li bent his waist and lowered his head, respectfully inviting the person into the flower hall, offering tea of better quality than tribute items, brewed with special tea picked before the Qingming Festival from a special origin that even the old Emperor didn't have the qualifications to enjoy.

The silver had also been prepared long ago, large-denomination silver notes, just waiting for the right time to send the silver notes to the other party's hands. ===== CHAPTER 118 =====