Chapter Nineteenth: The Heavenly King Covers the Earth Tiger

  "What's wrong, Old Cai has diarrhea? When did it start?" Dumb Yong stared at Zhao Dongjia in shock.

  "These two father and son are really something, Old Cai can't even get out of bed, and Cai Shenjie is almost the same."

  "The day after tomorrow is going out to sea, should we postpone for two days and see about Old Cai's situation."

  Cai was hesitant to get excited. Old Cai had already gone out to sea twice with Zhao Dong's family, and each ship carried goods belonging to multiple owners, which were also very valuable, so they absolutely couldn't be mixed up, therefore the accountant was an indispensable role. This time, all the goods that were going out to sea were already stored in a place outside of East City, and every time Zhao Dong's family and Old Cai disappeared, it was to go collect the goods at the collection point.

  Zhao Dongjia shook his head and said: "Now that the goods are already halfway up, this shipment is nearly 50,000 taels. How can it stay on the shore for long?"

  "Unless we let Old Cai on board, maybe it'll be over in a few days."

  Zhao Dong stared at him with a pair of eyes: "Let him get on the boat, you know if he's eaten something bad or got malaria, what if he gets diarrhea and infects everyone on the boat?"

  Yu Daren said: "This is also true, what can be done about it?"

  Zhao Dongjia walked back and forth in the house with his head down, his men were good at fighting, but only one or two could read, and there was no one who could do accounts. Even this foolish brave man had opened a silver shop and had an accounting room, but the person was very slippery. After searching for a long time, Zhao Dongjia finally found an old Cai who was relatively reliable. Now that he was ill, it was really hard to find someone like him.

  Ben Yung thought for a moment and suddenly said: "What about the new Chen accountant? He's still decent, otherwise I'll take him with me."

  "It's just a matter of time, but after all, it's still early days."

  "No matter how long it takes, what can he do when he gets out to sea?"

  "When it comes to Japan, transactions are all done on shore, with large amounts of silver changing hands. How can those who don't know the bottom line feel at ease?"

  "He has a cousin, doesn't he? It just so happens that Cai Shenjiu can't go either. When Chen Zhangfang disembarks, he leaves his cousin on the boat. At worst, they'll give him some more silver when they return. This way, it's both a favor to him and a restraint."

  Zhao Dongjia thought for a moment and agreed: "Yeah, it's also a way."

  In the store, Lu You had a disappointed look on his face. "The whole family has diarrhea and it seems that they won't be able to work for the next few days," he said. "He thinks maybe the meat they ate last night was problematic. His brother is now back home taking care of them."

  Chen Xin's face was filled with indignation, "This butcher has no conscience."

  "Who says it's not, but looking at the boss getting angry and scolding old Cai a few times, saying he messed things up. What's there to mess up in this store? If we two work hard for a few days, it should be fine."

  Chen Xindao said, "We'll just suffer a bit for the next few days and help them out. Once we're done with work, we can go visit Old Cai's family. I'll go buy some food first at noon."

  "Okay, but don't buy meat."

  Two men were discussing something when they heard the sound of the second gate opening. They looked up to see Old Wang coming out, his face expressionless as he walked into the room and said to Chen Xin: "The master is calling for you."

  "Alright, I'll go right away. Please ask Brother Wang to show me the way."

  Chen Xin followed Old Wang, it was his first time in the second courtyard, he took a glance around, this second courtyard wasn't small, but its layout was similar to other courtyards, except that the main house on the north side had been divided into one room as the main hall, the door was open, used for receiving guests. Old Wang led Chen Xin to the outside of a door in the northeast corner, this was Zhao Dongjia's study, the whole courtyard faced south and sat north, also known as Kan Zhai, the Wen Chang represented by the study was located in the northeast position.

  "Master, Chen the accountant has arrived."

  "Ah, let him in."

  Chen Xin slightly bowed to Old Wang, this kind of impolite person hates it when others are also impolite, so Chen Xin still had to go through the motions, while Old Wang as usual ignored him and turned his head to wait by the door.

  Chen Xin didn't think much of it and pushed open the door to enter the study. However, what he saw was completely different from what he had imagined. The room had a beautifully crafted rosewood desk, on which were placed the four treasures of the study, including a paperweight and a seal, but they were all covered in a thick layer of dust, clearly unused for a long time. In the center of the room, a reclining chair was placed in a rather incongruous manner. There were no paintings or calligraphy on the walls, which were instead adorned with various Japanese swords.

  Zhao Dong stood in the house with his hands behind his back and saw Chen Xin coming in. He opened his mouth and said, "Chen has been in our store for about twenty days, are you used to it?"

  "Returning home is still a habit."

  "Did Old Cai tell you about your account matters?"

  "I can do some of this, thanks to Mr. Cai's guidance and the two apprentices treating me very well."

  Zhao Dong's family was not good at talking, and after asking a few questions, the conversation stopped. Chen Xinxin had seen his personality before, so he didn't say anything rashly, and the study room fell silent for a while.

  Zhao Dongjia originally wanted to be polite, but he really felt awkward and simply didn't beat around the bush anymore.

  "Dare you go out to sea?"

  "Dare or not dare, whatever the master says goes."

  "Aren't you afraid of dying at sea?"

  "I'm also afraid, but my parents have always taught me to be content with my lot and repay kindness. Even in times of danger, I dare not forget that the master has shown me kindness, so no matter what he instructs me to do, I will try my best to accomplish it."

  Zhao Dong nodded, "Old Cai said you value relationships, he didn't misjudge you. Hmm, I heard you also have a cousin?"

  Chen Xin thought for a moment, Zhao Dongjia asked this question may have two purposes. One possibility is to invite his younger brother to the shop to ease his own mind, and the other is to tell himself that he knows he has relatives in Tianjin, so as to prevent himself from having other ideas.

  "Speaking of going back home, I have two younger male cousins who are currently living together."

  "Two? Isn't Old Cai saying one nephew?"

  "A few days ago I brought a letter back to Ji Zhou, saying that I had found a place to live in Tianjin, and this nephew of the Lu family also came with me."

  Zhao Dong furrowed his brow, this man had more than one cousin. After thinking for a moment, he said: "My boat is still short of a laborer, would your cousin be willing to come and work, after returning can get dozens of taels of silver."

  Chen Xinyi listened and understood that the Zhao family still didn't quite trust him, but this wasn't a bad thing for Chen Xinyi. Having a familiar face by his side was always reassuring, so he agreed without hesitation. "The nephew I mentioned earlier will definitely be willing to come, so I'll answer on his behalf first. Thank you for your concern, Young Master Zhao. In the future, I will definitely work harder for the Zhao family."

  Zhao Dong said: "Alright, then you go home and pack your luggage, bring your clothes, pens and ink."

  "Is that so? When will you leave?"

  "It should be the day after tomorrow, going out to sea is always a risk, you don't have to go to work tomorrow, arrange things at home, and come to the shop in the afternoon of the day after tomorrow." He also loudly instructed Old Wang outside: "Old Wang, ask Madam to take 10 taels of silver to give to Chen's accountant."

  Old Wang responded with a "yes" from outside and listened as the footsteps walked away.

  Chen Xin hesitated for a moment: "Then tomorrow won't there be only Lu You alone in the store, or else I'll come too."

  "It's not necessary, what else can be earned in the shop. You can go back now. Remember, except for your cousin, don't mention this to anyone." Zhao Dongjia stopped talking to Chen Xin and lay down on the drunkard's chair with his eyes closed.

  Chen Xin made a courtesy exit from the study, and the opportunity he had been waiting for finally arrived. He stood in the second courtyard, took a deep breath to calm his nerves, and was just feeling pleased with himself when the door of the third courtyard suddenly creaked open. Chen Xin peeked out to see a lovely face with rosy cheeks appear before him - why did she look so familiar?

  "It's you!" Chen Xin finally reacted, it was exactly the little woman he met at the Wen Temple.

  The woman also discovered him at the same time, with a look of surprise on her face, apparently not expecting to meet Chen Xin here. She pointed at Chen Xin with her right hand and stuttered: "You, you, you"

  After a moment, a look of surprise appeared on her face, she looked around to make sure no one was watching, and her two eyes turned into curved crescent moons again.

  She said in a low voice: "You little rascal, weren't you told to go to the Temple of Literature? How did you find your way to my house?"

  Chen Xin didn't have time to respond, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what it meant for him to wait at the temple, but with his master in the study right now, the priority was to clarify the identity of this woman. Given her flirtatious behavior that day at the temple, which seriously contradicted the steady image she had established in the shop, if Master found out about the details, it wouldn't be good. He needed to handle this matter carefully.

  "Who says it's your home? This is obviously my home."

  "Again with your nonsense, this house was bought by my father, how could it have become yours?"

  It turned out to be the young lady of the Dong family. Chen Xin was secretly annoyed and hastily made a bow: "So it's Miss, I apologize for my mistake. I'm Chen Xin, the new accountant. The other day at the temple, I suddenly... Please forgive me, considering that I went to the temple to pray for blessings for your family."

  Miss Zhao was completely skeptical: "It's just a trick to deceive people. Why would I go ask Confucius for blessings? I'm not taking the imperial examination."

  "I'm looking for Confucius' older brother."

  "Confucius' brother?"

  "Yes, his brother is indeed Kong Fangge. I asked him to bless our master's wealth and prosperity, and the young lady's great fortune and nobility."

  Miss Zhao covered her mouth and started laughing quietly, seemingly finding it quite amusing.

  Chen Xin took the opportunity to say: "However, Brother Kong Fang has a bad habit. He can't let the person being blessed know about it, otherwise it won't work."

  Miss Zhao blinked her eyes: "Believe it if you dare..."

  Miss Zhao was speaking when the study door creaked open and Mr. Zhao appeared at the entrance, looking coldly at Chen Xin. The two of them spoke in low voices, he only heard that someone was talking, but didn't hear the content clearly. However, a young woman who had not yet left her parents' home speaking with a strange man was generally improper. In his heart, he felt somewhat displeased with Chen Xin.

  "Dad! Is this the new accountant?" Zhao's little daughter dropped Chen Xin and walked over to stand affectionately beside Zhao Dongjia.

  Zhao Dong ignored him and coldly asked her: "Do you two know each other?"

  Chen Xin feared that Miss Zhao would speak nonsense, so he hastily intervened and said: "Yes, on the day when Mr. Dong agreed to use me, I went to the Temple of Literature to pray for blessings for Mr. Dong. I happened to meet Miss there and helped her find her way, which is how we know each other."

  "Ah?" Zhao Dong's expression slightly cleared up, and he looked puzzled just like his daughter: "What blessings are you praying for at the Temple of Literature on my behalf?"

  Miss Zhao thought he was going to mention Brother Kong Fang again, and she couldn't help but smile, her mouth curling up. Her father disliked people who were oily-mouthed and smooth-tongued the most, and now it's interesting to see how Chen Xin would get a slap in the face.

  "Duanmu Zigong, a disciple of Confucius, is the ancestor of Confucian merchants and one of the Ten Sages of the Temple of Culture. Later generations worship him for blessings and pray for his protection to bring prosperity to their families and peace throughout their lives."

  Zhao Dong's scarred face finally cracked a smile. People who travel by sea love to hear the word "safe". He nodded: "I see, indeed you are an educated person, it's not easy for you to know so much. You go back to the shop first, and after I've collected the silver from Old Wang, take care of things at home."

  "Yes, I'll take my leave." Chen Xin bowed to both of them and hastily took his departure.

  Miss Zhao did not expect Chen Xin to change his answer again. Her mouth was wide open for a long time before she remembered to respond with a bow.

  Chen Xin had just stepped out of the second room when Zhao Dong's family turned around and asked her with a straight face: "Is what he said true?"

  "He indeed gave me directions, but I didn't see if he wished good fortune for Father."

  "Hum, a woman's family, how can she always be running around outside and talking to unfamiliar men."

  Miss Zhao pulled Zhao Dongjia's hand and said: "Dad, didn't I get separated from Zhang Po that day?"

  "After this, if there's nothing else, spend more time at home with your mother. In a couple of days, I'll have to leave again, don't be out all day running around like crazy."

  "Got it."

  A moment later, Chen Xin slowly walked out of the shop with the ten taels of silver that Old Wang had given him in his arms. He was lucky to have gotten away with it, and Miss Zhao hadn't reported him either. Otherwise, Master Zhao would definitely have looked down on him, and this opportunity to go abroad might have been lost. Miss Zhao was also a strange woman, speaking without rhyme or reason. When would she let him go to the Wen Temple again?

  Shaking his head, he walked along, passing by the outside of the Temple of Literature. Unconsciously, he took a glance and was shocked to see a large notice posted on the pillar of the temple's gate: "Heavenly King Covers Earthly Tiger, Meet at the Place Where the Aunt Sells Goods". It was exactly the secret code he had discussed with Miss Zhao earlier. It must have been put up two days ago, no wonder she told him to go to the Temple of Literature earlier.

  Chen Xin's mouth was agape, and it took him half a beat to come back to his senses. "This is a date? Could it be that this little girl has taken a liking to me? She looks okay, but she's also too young, not even fully developed yet. And she's really silly, doesn't even know to write down the time for the date."