Chapter 1104: IOU

Only today did the Bingzhu and his people have the energy to wander around and take a look; Huaxia did not specifically guard against them, and there was no need to explain anything—even if they saw it, it would be of no use to them.

However, these past few days, the person feeling quite anxious is Chengqie, for he represents the Suiren Clan and is also the heir to the highest Nobility in Huaxia. He has already heard from others that the various Nobles of Huaxia have all prepared large quantities of grain and special fine goods as wedding gifts for Changle, yet he himself has nothing to bring out; even the grain they eat is provided to them by Huaxia.

It is not that he has nothing, nor is he poor; it is just that the Suiren Clan is too far away from him, and news simply cannot be sent in time, nor can he get his father to send things over in time.

The Suiren Clan might be a bit short on grain, but the Suiren Clan is a large tribe; there are only a few such tribes in the entire world, so how could they be poor? Various animal skins, jade, and Bronze ware, when added together, also constitute vast wealth; it is just that he cannot get his hands on them right now.

Chengqie is very anxious and very afraid that because of this matter, he will lose face for the Suiren Clan and lose face for himself and his father. Could it be that he won't attend the wedding? This is a rare sight, and furthermore, it is Changle's wedding, which one can only encounter once.

There is a person he is very interested in whom he has not yet met. Chengqie is no longer the Chengqie of the past; he wants to show himself off at tomorrow's wedding, but a clever housewife cannot cook without rice, and his younger brothers and sisters are even less able to come up with ideas, which puts him in a very difficult position.

After thinking it over, he feels the only way is to borrow, but borrow from whom? In any case, it cannot be from Baifeng's family; borrowing grain from Baifeng and then giving it back to him is too strange. He can only rely on his status to borrow from other Nobles; he trusts that they will be willing to lend to him for the sake of his face.

However, Chengqie does not know that many Nobles, so he found a servant he values quite a bit, whose name is Huang; it was named after a color, mainly because Huang and Huangpin are very similar, which makes him feel a bit of familiarity and closeness. In terms of ability, these servants are all about the same.

"Huang, take me to find the wealthiest Nobles in Huaxia; I am going to find them to borrow grain."

Huang immediately understood Chengqie's idea, but still asked: "Master, are you going to find Nobles to borrow grain, and then use it as a wedding gift for Changle Prince?"

"Of course! Although we in the Suiren Clan do not have this custom, I am a Huaxia person now, so I must be the same as what Huaxia is like. I hold the most formidable Nobility in Huaxia, so how can I be inferior to others?

It is just that I am too far away here, and news cannot be transmitted in time; otherwise, I would not need to go borrow grain."

Upon hearing this, Huang's eyes darted, and he immediately had a better idea: "Master, I have a better way; you don't even need to go and borrow from those Nobles, and it can still guarantee your face and reflect your respect for Changle Prince."

"Oh? What kind of method can you think of? Tell me about it."

Huang lowered his head and said very sincerely: "Master, you can use an IOU, which is to say, paper, to give a gift. You write the gift you want to give on the paper, and finally sign it and press your handprint on it; that will suffice."

"This is the same as a loan note, but your name and fingerprint are the best guarantee. As long as you send it over later, it will be fine, and you won't have to go and borrow from others."

Chengqie was excited and clapped his hands: "Hey, your brain works well! Good, good! I will listen to you; let's do it this way. Go find me paper and a brush; I want to write!"

Huang hurriedly bent down to look for paper and a brush. The best paper was very thick and looked like it had a good texture. After he set it down for Chengqie, Chengqie picked up the brush, but discovered he did not know how to write, and even just remembered that he did not know how to write many characters.

"Come, you write it!"

Chengqie handed the brush to Huang. Huang reached out to take it, but suddenly panicked in his heart and his hand shook: "Master, I... I do not know how to write; we Slaves are not allowed to learn how to write."

Chengqie sighed irritably: "Then what should we do? Neither of us can write, and my younger brothers and sisters certainly cannot write either. Then who should write it?"

Huang offered a suggestion: "Master, we can find someone from the Ministry of Rites; they all know how to write, and they also know how it is best to write."

"Hmm, you are right. Let's go, bring the things; we are going to the Ministry of Rites!"

"Yes!" Huang, still feeling a lingering fear, picked up the paper, brush, and ink, and followed behind Chengqie, trotting along to the Ministry of Rites.

At this time, there were not many people in the Ministry of Rites; the total number of people was not high, and most were already out on the plaza arranging the venue or checking on the music troupe, leaving only two people here writing down tomorrow's schedule.

"Hey! Is Zhigui here?"

The two immediately looked up, and seeing it was Chengqie, they hurriedly stood up: "Chengqie, you've come. Is there something you need from our Minister?"

Chengqie said with some embarrassment: "Oh, I want to write something. Since I don't know how to write, I wanted to find him to help me write it. If he is not here, that is fine; any of you can help me write it, since you all know how to write."

One of them had no choice but to agree: "Fine, come over and sit down. What is it that you intend to write? Is it a letter to Baoxi City Lord or something else?"

Chengqie sat down carelessly: "No, it's because Changle Prince is getting married, and I want to give him a gift, but I cannot get it back here for the time being, so I am giving him a loan... uh, an IOU? Is that what it's called? I will give it to him first, and when the time comes, I will have my father send it over."

The official was embarrassed: "Oh my, this cannot be called an IOU; it doesn't sound good. You can call it a gift list. Actually, everyone gives gifts this way because there are too many items and they cannot be sent over immediately; they are all sent slowly afterward. You can do the same."

"Oh, a gift list. Then help me write it; I don't know how to write this, and my Slave here doesn't know how to write either."

"Good, good," the official hurriedly agreed; this was not an important matter, and in fact, they would be doing this work tomorrow anyway.

"Huang, give the things to them."

Huang hurriedly put down the paper, brush, and ink. The official wanted to say he had his own, but seeing that Chengqie's paper was much better than what he used, he said nothing more. Sure enough, using better paper is what reflects status.

"I will write down the format first, and then you think about what you intend to give so I can add it in."

The official had already dipped the brush in ink and started to write, but Chengqie had not yet decided what he was going to give. Grain? That didn't feel right; they were the ones who had to have Huaxia send them grain!