Chapter 22 Task 1

  Niu Dalì felt that this time he had truly earned face, not only making Qiú Lǎo Jiǔ lose face, but also gaining the respect of a neighbor who was even higher than his uncle. He sat back in his chair and said to Xú Yuán Zuò: "From now on, come every month to help me with my accounts, and I'll treat you to dinner."

  "No money?" Xu Yuansuo replied while continuing to eat without delay.

  "Neighbors and fellow villagers, talking about money is so common!" Niu Dalì said disdainfully.

  "How can I give you money if I don't have any?" Xu Yuansuo said while eating.

  "Are you giving me money? What's the money for?" Niu Dalì was taken aback.

  "You find me a job, I take the pay and share it with you, isn't that the rule?" Xu Yuansuo scooped up a bowl of carp soup and gulped it down, then replied, "You don't know?"

  "Hah, hah, hah……" Niu Daliren burst out laughing: "You and I are neighbors, like brothers. This is the rule for outsiders, how would I dare to take your commission?" However, he didn't realize that his words had already acknowledged the precondition of giving Xu Yuansuo silver.

  Xu Yuansuo disagreed: "Even close brothers have rules to follow." He wiped his mouth, stood up and loosened his belt, glanced at Qiu Laojiu, and whispered to Niu Dali: "Qiu Laojiu owes me a debt from the bet earlier. How about I sell it to you for five taels of silver?"

  "Huh?" Niu Dalì didn't react in time.

  "He said let him do whatever he wants." Xu Yuansuo innocently said: "I don't have anything for him to do, you probably do. Looking at his physique, moving bricks and carrying goods, I suppose he's very capable."

  Niu Dalì suddenly gasped heavily and turned his head to his brother beside him: "Go get me five taels of silver!"

  Xu Yuansuo didn't expect Niu Dalie to be so bold, and he secretly thought: Indeed, coming into money quickly is the best!

  Qiu Laojiu saw Xu Yuansuo and Niu Dalie whispering to each other on the side, occasionally glancing at him with their eyes, making his whole body feel itchy. He remembered the previous bet, wanting Xu Yuansuo to wipe his butt clean and wait... That kid wouldn't also be plotting against Laozi, would he? If so, even if it means losing face, he must get rid of him!

  "Old Nine, about the bet earlier, I've already asked Big Brother Dalu to collect on my behalf. Let him tell you." Xu Yuansuo had received a five-tael silver ingot from Niu Dali, which seemed genuine enough. He walked up to Avenging Old Nine, clearing himself of any wrongdoing in the process.

  Qiu Laojiao secretly let out a sigh of relief, at least he knew that Niu Dal was fond of women. He looked at the back of Xu Yuanshuo and felt an increasingly ominous feeling in his heart.

  "Old Nine, should we..." The little brother next to Old Nine made a beheading gesture.

  "Get out!" Old Chou kicked him away: "We have our own rules when we fight! You don't follow the rules, what's the difference between you and those rascals outside?"

  That little brother nodded and agreed, but in his heart he was not convinced: Aren't we just a bunch of rascals?

  Niu Dalì laughed loudly and stepped forward, saying: "Jiuge, this time I owe you one, let me treat you."

  Qiu Laojiu gritted his teeth: "Speak."

  "Dongjia Bridge on the other side of the kiln..." Niu Dalì chuckled.

  Qiu Laojiu has now really moved to kill, and even Niu Dalì, the nephew of the head of the household, is no longer spared.

  "Brother Nine, if you can't afford to gamble, I won't make it difficult for you." Niu Dalì continued: "It's just that we can't help but go to the head of the line and complain for a few days."

  Qiu Laojiu was so angry that he gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do about this nephew of his.

  Xu Yuansuo didn't know the rules of the pawnshop, and he didn't dare to gamble on the extent of the employees' faith in those rules. He put away the silver and left the pawnshop, not even daring to look back as he ran towards the Xu family mansion in the city. It seemed that the Xu family should be able to protect him; otherwise, Anliu wouldn't have obediently left after hearing the name of Xu Gonglao.

  "You must go out of town and melt these thirty taels of silver into five-tael small ingots."

  Xu Yuansuo had just entered the house when he received a task handed over by Xu Cheng. Thinking about it, there were only two strong women who came to clean every day in the old mansion, a live-in gatekeeper, and Xu Cheng's family themselves. Who else could this errand be given to except for Xu Yuansuo?

  Xu Yuansuo had just escaped the tiger's mouth and was about to enter the wolf's den, so he naturally felt a bit apprehensive. However, his pursuit of career completely suppressed this fear.

  "Big shopkeeper," Xu Yuansuo asked with a smile, "which silver store are you going to?"

  Xu Cheng looked at him and said, "Do you have any connections?"

  Where is there a familiar silver shop around here?

  Xu Yuansuo shook his head and said frankly: "This is my first time entering the city."

  Xu Cheng indeed relaxed a lot and said: "Then find a reputable one. This silver has great use, don't let people cheat you!"

  Xu Yuansuo held the silver and retreated, the first thing to do was to find a gate child to borrow a steelyard, and weigh the two 15-liang large ingots by himself. Sure enough, there were a few more coins in the weight, it seemed to be within the normal error range.

  "Early to go and early to return." The gatekeeper's age was also advanced, speaking a mouthful of Songjiang dialect that Xu Yuansu always took half a beat longer to understand.

  Xu Yuansuo responded to the call, but in his heart, he was worried about the silver shop. Since communicating with Dai Tianyan, he no longer had unrealistic fantasies about the Great Ming. This is not a country of gentlemen where everyone has a bottom line. On the contrary, the underworld has become very mature, and other illegal industries will only flourish - all decadent societies start from "deception" and develop into violent crime.

  It seems that going to Anliu's shop is actually safer than going to other people's homes.

  First of all, the impression he left on An Liu Ye was not bad - at least they didn't have any grudges.

  Secondly, An Liu Ye is a person who knows what's important and what's not. Thirdly, with Niu Da Li as an inside helper, An Liu Ye has to consider his reputation in front of the younger generation.

  Finally, if Wan Yi Liu tricked him, he could still go to a financial company in the underworld and work as an accountant, so he wouldn't starve.

  Of course, the last one is really a last resort!

  With the sun on his head, Xu Yuansu finally had a chance to take a good look at this prosperous city. The shops on both sides were truly comprehensive, covering all aspects of people's livelihoods, and it was not difficult to buy all kinds of daily necessities. Although it was the second year since the opening of the port in Yuegang, exotic goods from Nanyang also appeared on the shelves under various brand names.

  Xu Yuansuo had wanted to avoid the shops that were in the way, but before he could find someone to ask where An Liu's silver shop was, he saw a familiar figure waving at him from afar.

  It's just Niu Dalish.

  "Have you come to see me for something?" Niu Dali had avenged his grievances against Lao Jiu, and the monthly rent would increase by a lot, so he was in a great mood. As for Xu Yuansuo, who brought him good luck, he naturally showed him a friendly face.

  "I'm looking for An Liu's silver shop." Xu Yuansuo said: "This is my first task, I don't dare to mess it up."

  Niu Dalie hesitated for a moment and said: "My uncle's silver shop has a higher fire expense than others..."

  "It doesn't matter if the fire is a bit expensive, the key is that it can't be adulterated." Xu Yuansuo said: "As long as he openly collects money, I'm not afraid of being unable to account for it. What I fear is that fake goods are mixed in, and that would ruin me for life."

  Niu Dalidao said: "You can rest assured of this. His family's fire expenses are high, but they still have business. It's precisely because the shop is clean. Come with me."

  He led the way forward while educating Xu Yuansuo: "When you work for the boss, if you only look for clean shops, where will the kickbacks come from?"