Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 269 White Wolf with Empty Gloves

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While the master and servant were discussing business, Su Mingkang was thinking about Liu Ye's suggestion. The more he thought about it, the happier he became. It was a real two-birds-with-one-stone plan. It shut Chang Wei up and also brought in an extra 10% profit. This nouveau riche from Qiongzhou was truly a benefactor to the Suzhou silk industry.

He finally waited until the next day, ate some breakfast early, and began to look forward to noon. As the appointed time approached, the owners of the various silk shops arrived and met at Su's shop before heading out to Leyun Tower together.

Just as they were about to leave, an unauthorized guest barged in and blocked them inside the shop.

The newcomer was none other than Chang Wei, the man who had previously given them so much trouble. He was a lean young man with large eye bags and unfocused eyes, looking like he hadn't slept well. He was clearly a spoiled brat whose body had been drained by wine and women.

Chang Wei swaggered in with a few followers, tapped a folding fan in his hand, and said, "Oh, oh, oh, where are you gentlemen headed? If you're going to have some fun, why don't you invite your nephew along?"

Everyone tensed. Although the purpose of going to Leyun Tower was to discuss business, it could also be considered a place for drinking and womanizing. Could it be that he knew about what happened yesterday? They all looked at Su Mingkang, who slowly shook his head, signaling them to calm down and act according to the situation.

Seeing that everyone remained silent, Chang Wei sat down without any politeness and asked, "What have you all thought about what I mentioned a couple of days ago? My godfather is still waiting for my good news. Give me a straight answer, whether it's a deal or not."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; it turned out he didn't know.

After considering it for a moment, Su Mingkang realized that the business deal with Liu Ye had not yet been finalized, and it was not appropriate to use the reason they had agreed on yesterday to fob off Chang Wei. He could only send him away for the time being.

"Brother Chang, this matter is far too important; our guild needs to discuss it further..."

Chang Wei picked his teeth and asked slowly, "What are you discussing? How do you plan to squeeze me out of Suzhou Prefecture?"

Su Mingkang laughed awkwardly, "Of course not..."

"Chairman Su, esteemed leaders, let me make this clear today: I have no patience to go door-to-door in the villages to collect silk. So, each of you here can share a little with me. I'm not greedy; 200,000 catties will suffice..."

If the price had been set at 200,000 jin yesterday, it would have terrified the silk merchants. However, with Liu Ye's 500,000 jin of raw silk preceding them, the figure of 200,000 didn't seem so intimidating. One offered a 20% discount, while the other offered a 10% increase; the scales tipped in Liu Ye's favor without a doubt. Faced with the lump sum of silver, the Nanjing garrison eunuch didn't seem so frightening after all. As for the Earl of Jiading, he was, after all, far away in the capital, wasn't he?

Chang Wei continued, "I have another request: my godfather has many social obligations with the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department, and his expenses are considerable. He entrusted me with this silk business, but he doesn't have much cash on hand... You might as well lend me the goods on credit, and I'll pay you back after I sell them. I guarantee there won't be any delays..."

Everyone nearly exploded upon hearing this. It turned out that giving up 20% wasn't the most shameless part; they actually wanted to get something for nothing!

Su Mingkang suppressed his anger and said, "Brother Chang, what you're doing is not fair. Everyone knows that the raw silk business is very profitable. If we share 200,000 catties with you and still don't receive cash, are we all supposed to starve?" There was something else he didn't say: even the face of the garrison eunuch wasn't worth 200,000 taels of silver.

Chang Wei smiled nonchalantly: "Even a hair on the leg of any of you bosses is thicker than my waist. This small amount of money is not a problem for you. Since you are all here today, let's settle things and discuss how much each of you will sell to me. I will draw up a written agreement on the spot."

Yan Donglou, his face grim, wanted to step forward to argue, but Su Mingkang stopped him without batting an eye.

Su Mingkang said to Chang Wei, "Even if each family shares the 200,000 jin, each family's financial situation is different, so we still need to discuss how to distribute it, don't you think?"

Seeing that the silk guild leader had relented, Chang Wei didn't press too hard and said, "Then I'll give you two days. You must give me a clear answer after two days so I can report back to my godfather."

After he left, Yan Donglou spat in the direction he went: "Pah, what a piece of trash, a scoundrel who licks the ass of a mangy eunuch, thinking he's something special!"

Su Mingkang's expression was grave as he solemnly said, "This eunuch and his godson are trying to get something for nothing and drain our savings. Two hundred thousand catties a year, cutting the price by 20%, and still wanting to buy on credit—if they don't pay, how many times can we withstand this?"

Yan Donglou gritted his teeth and said, "We absolutely cannot agree to him. No matter how powerful the garrison eunuch is, he is still a eunuch. Does he really think he can control everything?"

Everyone chimed in, "Yes, absolutely not!"

Su Mingkang said, "This concerns everyone's life and death. We must work together to overcome this difficulty. After we return today, we should use our connections to impeach Eunuch Chang. If Nanjing can't do anything to him, we should take it to the capital and ask the officials in the court to stand up for Suzhou Prefecture. There's always a way to deal with an emperor's servant."

Everyone agreed: "That's exactly right."

Yan Donglou asked, "Dealing with Eunuch Chang is one thing, but are we still going to keep our appointment with Leyunlou?"

"Go, why wouldn't we go? With Chang Wei doing this, we're even more determined to go. Dealing with Eunuch Chang is a long-term strategy, but using Liu as a shield to deal with Chang Wei is the most urgent task."

Everyone agreed, saying, "That's right." Led by Su Mingkang, they went out, got into their sedan chairs, and headed straight for Leyun Tower.

Upon arriving at Leyunlou, Liu Ye personally greeted them at the entrance and led them upstairs.

Liu Ye chose Leyun Tower as the venue for the negotiations not to curry favor with Dong Xiaowan, but simply because he was new to the place and remembered the name. Although the madam would surely have Dong Xiaowan accompany him at today's banquet if he paid her, Liu Ye did not intend to have the top courtesan accompany him—since Dong Xiaowan cared so much about the status of a scholar and the success of the imperial examinations, why make things difficult for her?

Since Dong Xiaowan wasn't coming, Liu Ye simply didn't invite any other girls to accompany him. After Su Mingkang and the others went upstairs and sat down, each of them was assigned a pretty girl to drink with them, while Liu Ye, who had arranged the dinner, was left alone.

Although the purpose of this trip was to discuss business, it was perfectly normal to hire a prostitute to keep the atmosphere lively. Seeing that Liu Ye was all alone, Su Mingkang laughed and said, "General Liu, you are about the same age as my nephews and nieces, so I'll take the liberty of calling you 'brother.' Brother Liu is so polite, arranging girls for us all, how come you're all alone?"

Liu Ye chuckled inwardly. Yesterday, she hadn't even addressed him properly, but today she was being so polite. It seemed money really could make the devil dance. He smiled and said, "I had intended to ask Miss Xiaowan to keep me company, but she doesn't meet my standards, and she doesn't find anyone else appealing, so I'll have to sit alone."