Chapter 4: Pawnshop

  Entering Le Ping County Town, what enters the eyes are all low and simple wooden bungalows. There are not many pedestrians on the road, their clothes are tattered and worn out, they all look listless.

  At this scene, Chen Chu couldn't help but feel: No wonder the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out in the late Eastern Han Dynasty! Looking at the appearance of these common people, they are indeed extremely poor. In such a situation, those with ulterior motives can indeed stir up the common people! Moreover, Pingzhou's territory should be considered relatively better off in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, and it was not affected during the Yellow Turban Rebellion. If Pingzhou is like this, other places are even more so.

  The people in the city suddenly saw Chen Chu, a person with such strange clothes and hairstyles, and they were only slightly surprised for a moment before ignoring him. Everyone was struggling to make ends meet, who had the extra energy to pay attention to these unrelated things?

  Chen Chu carried two boxes of medicine and wandered aimlessly around the small county town, stopping in front of an inn.

  Chen Chu looked at the sign of Yue Lai Inn and thought: I should find a place to stay first.

  Chen Chu was worried again, he didn't have the money of this era at all, how could he stay in a hotel? He had dozens of 100-yuan RMB notes, but these things were equivalent to scrap paper now.

  Wait! Chen Chu suddenly thought of the look on the old farmer's face when he gave him a 100-yuan bill earlier, his shocked and delighted expression. Chen Chu felt a spark in his mind, perhaps he still had a way to get some money.

  Just as Chen Chusheng was hesitating, the innkeeper noticed Chen Chu standing at the door and came over to greet him.

  "Sir, are you going to stay at our inn?" asked the shop assistant with a bow.

  Chen Chu finally came back to his senses and hesitated for a moment before saying: "Excuse me, young man, is there a pawnshop in this city?"

  Although Chen Chu didn't say he wanted to stay in the shop, the shopkeeper wasn't annoyed and replied with a smile: "Of course there is a pawnshop, and it's also opened by the big businessman Wei Hong, with a reputation for integrity. If you want to exchange some silver money, going there won't be wrong."

  Who is Wei Hong? Chen Chu felt somewhat familiar with this name, but for a moment he couldn't remember who this person was. The reason why Chen Chu had some impression of this person was that in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it mentioned that the Xiaolian who funded Cao Cao to recruit righteous soldiers was Wei Hong. Cao Cao relied on Wei Hong's funding to recruit over ten thousand righteous soldiers and also purchased a large amount of grain and military equipment. From this, it can be seen that Wei Hong's family assets were enormous. However, Chen Chu had little interest in these non-military figures in his past life, so he only had that impression, but didn't know who he was.

  Chen Chu nodded and asked: "Then how should this pawnshop go?"

  The fellow pointed to a small alleyway on the left side of the inn: "Walking along that alley, you'll see it in an instant."

  Chen Chu turned his head and took a glance at the small alley on the left, then imitated the ancient people's etiquette, cupping his fists in greeting to the shopkeeper and said: "Thank you, young man." Then he walked towards that alley.

  As expected, after walking for a short while, Chen Chu saw a pawnshop.

  Chen Chu walked straight in, and there was only one clerk inside the pawnshop. Chen Chu said to the clerk, "Clerk, I want to pawn some goods."

  The fellow didn't even lift his head, stretched out his hand and said: "Bring the things you want to pawn, I'll appraise them first." His tone was somewhat arrogant.

  Chen Chu was unfazed, having spent a few years in sales in his past life, he had long been accustomed to such scenes.

  Chen Chu took out two brand new 100-yuan bills from the inner pocket of his shirt and handed them to the other person, "This is a treasured family heirloom, can you appraise its value?"

  The shop assistant was initially nonchalant and scoffed at Chen Chu's so-called family heirloom, but after holding the two 100-yuan bills for a moment, his face suddenly showed a look of astonishment.

  The shop assistant's attitude suddenly changed by one hundred and eighty degrees, and he asked respectfully: "Sir, these two pieces of jade are extremely valuable. I'm just a small shop assistant and can't make decisions on my own. I need to ask the boss to come over. Please wait for a moment, sir."

  Chen Chu nodded, and immediately the shop assistant took the two 100-yuan bills and quickly walked into the back room.

  After a moment, the shop assistant came out again, "Sir, our boss would like to have a word with you in the back room." At this time, the shop assistant's attitude was even more respectful.

  However, Chen Chu hesitated, after all, he still didn't understand the underlying currents of this era, let alone this pawnshop. Although the inn's servant said that the pawnshop's backstage boss had a good reputation, who could guarantee that it wasn't just an illusion? Judging from the reaction of the pawnshop attendant, his two 100-yuan bills were extremely valuable in the eyes of people in this era. If the other party harbored intentions to rob him, he would probably be doomed as soon as he stepped into the back room.

  The fellow saw Chen Chu hesitating and felt very surprised in his heart, so he asked: "Sir, is there something on your mind?"

  Chen Chu furrowed his brow, and in his heart, he suddenly made a ruthless decision. Who cares! He would take a gamble, and everything would be left to the heavens to decide! As the saying goes, wealth and honor are sought amidst danger!

  Thinking of this, Chen Chu smiled at his companion and said: "Nothing, just trouble you to lead the way."

  "Please, sir, this way," said the shop assistant, leading Chen Chu into the back room.

  Warm reminder:

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