Chapter 559
Results and Process
The traces did not linger for a moment.
He walked straight through the Zhengyang Gate, his scarlet official robes still wrinkled, and strode towards Plum Blossom Ferry.
Pedestrians on the outer city street turned their heads to look. It was not uncommon for officials to come to the outer city in their official robes, but it was rare to see one walking alone without a carriage.
The red waves that rippled with Chen Ji's long sleeves as he walked were particularly eye-catching in the city.
However, just as Chen Ji entered the Eight Great Hutongs, he saw Qi Gong standing alone at the entrance of the hutong: "Baron of Wuxiang County... no, he should be called Viscount of Wuxiang."
Qi Gong was still wearing his old cloth shirt and simple cloth shoes with thick soles. The servants and women on both sides of the alley quietly opened their windows and secretly watched the two of them.
Chen Ji hesitated for a moment, but finally stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Lord Qi."
Qi Gong shook his head with his hands behind his back: "This old man's worthless life is not worthy of Viscount Chen's bow. Let's save it from now on."
He sized Chen Ji up and down, his words laced with sarcasm: "This is the first time I've seen Viscount Chen wearing this unicorn-patterned robe. It's obviously made by a master craftsman using kesi (silk tapestry) that the Chen family secretly commissioned. Actually, the patron doesn't need to have patterns on both sides, since no one can see the inside anyway. But without kesi, it wouldn't show Viscount Chen's nobility... However, all the officials and nobles in the capital go to such lengths, only to end up being hypocrites."
Chen Ji did not defend himself: "If Lord Qi wants to scold me, then scold me."
Qi Gong looked up at Chen Ji: "I have come today only to ask Viscount Chen a few questions. I will leave after I have finished asking them."
Chen Ji hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Lord Qi, please ask."
Qi Gong looked directly into Chen Ji's eyes: "There are rumors circulating in the market that Han Tong was captured by Viscount Chen and the eunuch faction. May I ask if this is true?"
Chen Ji nodded: "That's true."
Qi Gong seemed surprised that he would admit so immediately: "When Viscount Chen made his oath that day, he was already determined to capture Han Tong?"
Chen Ji admitted, "Yes."
Qi Gong's voice grew deeper: "Viscount Chen is honest enough, but does Viscount Chen still remember the oath he made that day?"
Chen Ji said softly, "I remember. We will share the trials and tribulations of the martial world and judge right and wrong together. If I break this oath, I will be condemned to eternal damnation."
Lord Qi solemnly said, “If you fall into this hell, from the moment you enter, for hundreds of thousands of kalpas, you will die and be reborn ten thousand times in a single day and night. You cannot even stay for a moment. Only when your karma is exhausted can you be reborn. This cycle continues.”
"knew."
After a long silence, Lord Qi said, "Since Viscount Chen is willing to accept the consequences, I have nothing more to say. But in this martial world, your name will no longer exist. Not only in the martial world, but also in the three Imperial Guards, Viscount Chen will have no future. Our paths are different, so we cannot work together."
"it is good."
Qi Gong smiled, cupped his hands and said, "Then I wish Viscount Chen a bright future and boundless success. Until we meet again."
Chen Ji cupped his hands and said, "Until we meet again."
After saying this, Qi Gong left, leaving only the whispers from the brothels on both sides.
Chen Ji took a deep breath and continued on his way to Plum Blossom Ferry.
……
……
In front of Meirui Tower, all sorts of salt merchants were coming and going, while in the main hall on the first floor, twelve accountants were clicking away on their abacuses.
A salt merchant stood in front of the counter, his voice booming: "Langfang salt permits, four ounces and three qian, give me five hundred jin."
"Alright!" The waiter held up a bamboo pole and picked down a water sign with red paper pasted on it from the wall. The red paper had the two big characters "Langfang" written on it, and below it were a few smaller characters "Four taels and three qian, three hundred jin".
The shop assistant glanced back at the price list hanging on the wall, then looked at the salt merchant outside the counter: "Sir, there are only 300 catties of the 4.3 tael salt left, but there are still 2,000 catties of the 4.4 tael salt."
The salt merchant frowned: "We've come from afar, how come your Plum Blossom Ferry is also trying to raise prices on the spot?"
The waiter chuckled and explained, "Sir, you've misunderstood. These are all salt certificates that other customers consigned to my Plum Blossom Ferry. My Plum Blossom Ferry only takes a cut from the middleman; how could I dare to set the price myself?"
The salt merchant gritted his teeth and said, "Then give me another two hundred catties of the four ounces and three thousand jin."
Just then, Chen Ji stepped into the main hall, severing the clamor that filled the hall as if with a single stroke.
All eyes were fixed on his striking crimson robes, the gold-embroidered unicorn badge on his chest gleaming faintly.
The salt merchants held their breath, some quietly taking half a step to the side, bowing and whispering, "Greetings, Your Excellency..."
Chen Ji seemed not to hear and walked straight towards the stairs.
Upstairs, the gangster was hunched over a table flipping through account books, while Erdao squatted beside him, slowly shoveling tobacco into his copper pipe.
Hearing footsteps, the man looked up: "Why is the master here at this hour?"
Chen Ji cut to the chase: "How much cash will be available in the accounts in seven days?" The member of the secret society asked in surprise, "So soon?"
Chen Ji said firmly, "It's extremely urgent."
The gang leader pondered for a moment: "Should we leave ourselves a way out?"
Chen Ji shook his head: "Leave no way out."
The man laughed and said, "That's a lot. I'll tally it up right away and give you a definite figure before sunset."
Chen Ji breathed a slight sigh of relief, then turned to Erdao and said, "I would like to trouble Erdao to go to the Ginkgo Garden of the Chen family immediately and bring Xiaoman and the little monk over as soon as possible."
Erdao threw away his pipe and got up to leave.
Upstairs, only Chen Ji and the Gelaohui remained. The Gelaohui settled accounts, while Chen Ji went outside to the railing and silently looked at the Zhengyangmen city gate in the distance.
The man glanced at Chen Ji's retreating figure, then lowered his head to check the accounts again, saying casually, "Boss, you're so ruthless with the money this time, leaving no way out. You must be just one step away from rescuing the princess. Why do you still look so worried?"
Chen Ji did not answer the question posed by the elder brother, but instead asked, "Elder brother, tell me, in any matter, is the process more important, or the result?"
The man laughed heartily, “That’s hard to say. Master, if you don’t know the outcome yet, then the outcome is important… but if you don’t care about the outcome, then the process is important.”
Chen Ji hummed in agreement.
The man from the guild looked at Chen Ji: "Does the master know the result?"
Chen Ji sighed slightly: "I understand, but the outcome may not be so good."
The gangster laughed heartily: "Master, there's not so much good and bad in this world. If you ask me, as long as you don't regret it, then it's all a good outcome."
Just then, a man carrying a cane came upstairs and announced: "Master, a group of people has arrived. They say they are Chen Xu from the Chen family. They want to take away the silver, account books, and salt permits from the Chen family's salt shop. He also said that you don't need to go down to see him. From now on, the Chen family's salt shop will be taken back into the public domain, so you don't need to worry about it."
Chen Ji knew this was the consequence of joining forces with the Secret Service. He instructed Ba Gun, "Have the accountant make sure everything is clear with them, so there are no mistakes."
He took the stick and replied, "Yes."
After the stick-wielder left, the gang leader looked at Chen Ji and said, "The Chen family is probably worried that you've misappropriated the money from their salt shop. Let them take it. Even without the salt shop's money, we at Plum Blossom Ferry have enough... How much money does the boss need, and what is it for?"
Chen Ji replied, "Buy someone from the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution)."
The man tentatively asked, "Princess Bai Li?"
Chen Ji nodded.
The gangster recalled, "I've heard about the prices at the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau). For ordinary convicts, those skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting would fetch a few hundred taels of silver, while those with beautiful faces would go for over a thousand taels, with the younger the daughter being more valuable. For daughters of high-ranking officials, the price ranged from several thousand to tens of thousands of taels, with the higher the official's rank, the more valuable they were. Previously, the relatives of that Lord Wang from the Five Cities Military Command were driven up to 90,000 taels by the Yang family of Hongnong and the Yuan family of Runan, but in the end, I don't know who bought them for 100,000 taels of silver."
The man looked up at Chen Ji and said, "If it's Princess Baili, the price will only be higher, not lower. It's not safe to not prepare several hundred thousand taels of silver. But don't worry, boss, as long as we don't encounter any stubborn people who deliberately cause trouble, the silver in our Plum Blossom Ferry account will definitely be enough."
Before he could finish speaking, a commotion arose outside Plum Blossom Pavilion: "Seal off this Plum Blossom Ferry for me!"
Chen Ji frowned and went to the railing outside the building to look down. More than ten people dressed in official robes rushed into Plum Blossom Ferry.
He recognized the person in front of him; it was Zhou Biao, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, who had been waiting outside the Meridian Gate this morning but had not been summoned to the palace.
Behind Zhou Biao were more than ten imperial inspectors, including Yang Zhong from the Hongnong Yang family.
Behind the censor was Lin Yanchu, the deputy commander of the Five Cities Garrison, who led over a hundred infantrymen, seizing any sticks they saw and sparing none.
In an instant, the singing girls in Plum Blossom Ferry screamed in terror, and people and horses fell over with their sticks.
Chen Ji came downstairs and asked in a deep voice, "What are you all doing?"
Zhou Biao, dressed in a bright red official robe with a brocade embroidered on his chest, said coldly, "Our Censorate has received intelligence that someone in Meihua Ferry is illegally selling salt permits and making money. We have been ordered by the Left Censor-in-Chief, Lord Qi Xianzhun, to come and investigate thoroughly."
Zhou Biao's voice boomed, each word striking the silent main hall. The imperial inspectors behind him all wore solemn expressions, their eyes fixed on Chen Ji.
Chen Ji stood at the top of the stairs, looking at the mess on the floor. The desk and account books had been violently overturned, the abacus beads were scattered all over the floor, and the accountant was being held down against the wall by soldiers from the military garrison.
Chen Ji frowned and asked, "Do you have a travel permit?"
Zhou Biao waved his hand: "Give it to Viscount Chen."
Yang Zhong stepped forward with a document that read: "The Censorate hereby dispatches officials to investigate, record, and decide cases, as well as the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and the Circuit Censor, to the outer city to investigate the case of the illegal sale of salt permits at Meihua Ferry. Censorate."
A "jia tie" is an official document issued by the imperial court, usually by the three judicial departments: the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate. It serves as proof for carrying out arrests and executions.
The other side came prepared and was determined to seal off Plum Blossom Ferry. (End of Chapter)