novelAbuy Chapter 130 Aunt and Nephew
Chapter 130 Aunt and Nephew
The inventory work can't be finished in a day.
On the night of the 22nd, Shao Shuyi slept directly at the warehouse, and continued keeping accounts the next morning.
He's working so hard that the Zheng family can't very well say he's "absent-off." He's busy working for the Zheng family right now, even though it's likely a one-off deal that won't happen again after this year.
Furthermore, living near the dock makes it convenient to wait for Ali's fleet to return.
"Shao She, you're pushing yourself too hard." When Mo Bei leisurely arrived at the warehouse from home, he saw Shao Shuyi bending over and carefully counting the goods.
Shao Shuyi raised his head, laughed, and said, "Since I had nothing else to do, I came to help out. Without you, these foreign goods can't be stored in the warehouse and have to be left in the yard."
"Don't rush." Mo Bei looked around, then leaned close to Shao Shuyi and whispered, "Maoqing is here."
"Shen Sen?" Shao Shuyi asked.
Mo Bei nodded.
What should I call him?
Mo Bei hesitated and said, "The Shen family all call him 'Young Master,' because 'Da She' and 'Shen She' generally refer to Rongfu Gong. As for how outsiders address him, I'm not sure."
"Da She" is indeed Shen Rong's exclusive title. He has been called that since he was a child. Even though he is thirty-nine years old this year, he is still the "eldest young master" of the Shen family.
"Actually, I met Young Master Maoqing once before," Shao Shuyi said.
"Oh? When and where?" Mo Bei asked.
"When we discussed this deal last year," Shao Shuyi said, "Zheng Yifang introduced me to Rongfu and Maoqing, and Dechang was also present at the time."
"Oh, him?" Mo Bei nodded and said, "The son of Wan Si Gong. He also has a younger brother named Shen Hanjie, who is fifteen years old and will soon be going out to gain experience." "Where will he be going to gain experience?"
"Shanghai," Mo Bei said. "The Shen family has a cotton cloth workshop in Huating, and they opened a new one in Shanghai County this year. At that time, some of their relatives will go there to gain experience and learn from them."
"The Shen family is indeed very large and powerful," Shao Shuyi remarked.
The Shen family's foundation is undoubtedly their land and property. They own land and property in various prefectures and counties along Pingjiang Road, and most of the best land in Suzhou belongs to them. Calling them "Shen the Half-City" is not an exaggeration.
Secondly, there were shops scattered throughout the area, and thirdly, there was maritime trade. Now it seems that handicraft workshops are the next direction for the Shen family's development. It's truly remarkable that cotton cloth exports are gradually exceeding imports, and the Shen family probably deserves a lot of credit for this.
"Maoqing's wife has already been chosen; she is a daughter of the Cheng family of Xiuning." Mo Bei continued, "This family's ancestry can be traced back to Cheng Pu, a general of the Sun Wu dynasty. Later, they moved to Luoyang, and at the end of the Jin dynasty, Cheng Yuantan, a member of the elite, crossed the Yangtze River to the south and served as the prefect of Xin'an, thus establishing their lineage. To this day, their literary tradition is flourishing, and generations have produced officials." After speaking, Mo Bei paused and said, "Actually, the Shen family is somewhat above their station with the Cheng family; they have spent a considerable amount of money. Do you know the two Cheng brothers of the former Song dynasty? They came from this family."
Shao Shuyi responded with an "oh," as if he had heard of it before.
By the fourth generation, the Shen family had even managed to form a marriage alliance with a prominent clan like the Cheng family of Xiuning. While the significant expense involved was undoubtedly a factor, it also indirectly demonstrated the family's improved status after generations of hard work. If the coming years continued to be peaceful and prosperous, the Shen family might have reached even greater heights. Unfortunately…
"Don't just stand there, come with me to see the young master," Mo Bei said, pulling Shao Shuyi along.
Shao Shuyi had no objection.
The two of them, one in front of the other, quickly arrived at the open space in front of the warehouse.
Surrounded by servants and martial arts instructors, Madam Shen and her niece Shen Sen were pointing and gesturing towards the harbor.
Not only were the Chongjia ships docked there, but also other returning vessels from the Ye family of Chongming. After the Maritime Trade Office completed its allocation, it issued certificates, and unloading could begin—countless riches poured into Liujia Port, then flowed through the Shen family and into the pockets of various families and officials. When Mo Bei led Shao Shuyi to pay their respects, Shen Sen was speaking: "Aunt, you said the sea is not only treacherous with storms, but also teeming with vicious bandits. I think that's true, but are they really that rampant? These five ships sailed south to Srivijaya, and didn't they all return safely? Or was it just good luck?" Seeing someone approaching, Shen Sen stopped speaking and turned to look at Mo Bei and Shao Shuyi. He scrutinized the latter carefully, somewhat puzzled.
"Young Master Shen, we meet again," Shao Shuyi said, bowing.
Shen Sen suddenly realized and said, "I remember you. You came here with Zheng Yifang last year; you were the accountant at Zheng's Greenware Shop."
"Young master has a good memory," Shao Shuyi said with a smile. "Your demeanor is even more refined than before, after a year apart."
Shen Sen cupped his hands in return.
Shao Shuyi bowed to Madam Shen again, saying, "Greetings, Madam."
Madam Shen glanced at him, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
Just as Shao Shuyi was somewhat puzzled, Shen Sen suddenly asked, "Who was that person who delivered the dried seafood here a few days ago?"
"Neighbors," Shao Shuyi replied.
"What's the scenery like in Lüsichang?" Shen Sen asked again.
"This saline land is rich in reeds and grasses but has little farmland. It is rich in fish and salt," Shao Shuyi replied.
"I heard there are many bandits?"
Shao Shuyi nodded and said, "(Later) since the Yuan Dynasty, the number of bandits has indeed increased day by day."
Shen Sen turned to look at Madam Shen and laughed, "Aunt, you speak in the same tone as me."
Shao Shuyi looked at Madam Shen.
Madam Shen turned her head slightly to look at the port with its rows of masts, without saying a word.
Shen Sen smiled and said, "I'll go check on the goods first. You can handle the rest yourself; there's no need to tell me anything more."
He paused for a moment, then said to Shao Shuyi, "I've been waiting for you in Liujiagang for two or three days. If there's anything urgent next time, please let me know in advance." After saying this, he headed towards the warehouse, surrounded by his entourage.
Mo Bei glanced at Shen Sen, then at Shao Shuyi, and then at Shen Niangzi, his expression slightly embarrassed.
Shao Shuyi chuckled inwardly; he'd been warned by a mere teenager. This meeting seemed to have been a bit of a failure.
"Did you hear that?" Shen Niangzi's voice came from the wind.
"I heard you," Shao Shuyi replied, composing himself.
"Maoqing is the eldest grandson of the Shen family. There's no reason for him to wait for others, only for others to wait for him," Madam Shen said. "Furthermore, the journey from Liujiagang to Lüsichang takes no more than a day with favorable winds. Including the time spent buying fish, it should take at most seven or eight days to return. Yet you took half a month. What's the reason for that? Where were you on the day the dried seafood returned?"
Shao Shuyi looked around, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.
Madam Shen waved her hand, signaling everyone to disperse.
"To be honest, I went to Jiangyin," Shao Shuyi said.
Madam Shen turned around, looked at Shao Shuyi, and said, "Went to sell smuggled salt?"
Shao Shuyi nodded, then shook his head, and said, "I've stored the smuggled salt away."
"You're quite honest," Madam Shen said. "I wanted to ask you this yesterday, but I didn't have the chance."
"The lady has been kind to me, so I dare not hide it," Shao Shuyi said.
"If you were truly this honest, you wouldn't have been smuggling salt behind my back," Madam Shen said calmly.
"I have always treated people with sincerity," Shao Shuyi said. "Nowadays, there are countless people smuggling salt. Even seafarers transporting grain north will secretly hoard salt within the limits of the salt quota permitted by the court. Merchants who bring goods to Huaidong rarely return without smuggling salt."
Upon hearing this, Madam Shen's expression softened slightly, and she asked, "What did you do with the money you earned from smuggling salt?"
"If we raise some brothers who will share life and death with us, we won't be without anyone to rely on in case of trouble in the future," Shao Shuyi said. "If Madam needs anyone, just give the word."
After a moment of silence, Madam Shen said, "If anything happens to you, I won't help you."
"I dare not implicate Madam," Shao Shuyi said.
In reality, it was impossible for Shen Niangzi to be implicated. If something happened, people would most likely not pull strings to get him out of jail, so this statement doesn't really make much sense.
"From now on, you must think thrice before doing anything," Madam Shen said. "And you must not hide anything."
"Yes," Shao Shuyi replied, "I would rather deceive the whole world than lie to you, Madam."
"That sounds nice," Madam Shen glanced at him and said, "It's all just grandstanding and empty talk."
Shao Shuyi chuckled awkwardly, then looked around before lowering his voice and saying, "I earnestly hope that Madam will keep this a secret and not spread it around."
Madam Shen slightly raised her chin, remaining noncommittal.
Shao Shuyi seemed a little anxious, and hesitated to speak.
Madam Shen turned around, looked at the blue sky and white clouds in the distance, and said, "Go back to your work first, and we'll see how you perform in the future."
"Oh, okay." Shao Shuyi seemed a little preoccupied, bowed, and left.
Madam Shen quickly got into her carriage and left. She was always very busy, but she was in a pretty good mood today.
She now understands a little why a rift developed between Zheng Guozhen and Shao Shuyi.
This man appears to be steady and honest on the surface, but in reality he is unruly and difficult to fully control.
However, now that she has come to Liujiagang, far away from the Shen family's traditional business in the heart of Jiangnan, she needs someone by her side who moves between light and darkness.
Let's wait and see how it goes.
"Springtime brings the fragrance of a hundred flowers..." Shao Shuyi hummed a little tune as he went straight to the warehouse.
The warehouse was getting more and more crowded.
After Shen Sen arrived to oversee the operation, several more people who looked like accountants joined in, their abacuses clicking away as they meticulously registered each item and compiled a register. Shao Shuyi stayed there for more than a day, until the afternoon of the 24th, when Mo Bei pulled him aside and said, "I told you before that if the Zheng family resells 60% of the goods, the Shen family is willing to pay 13,000 ingots of Zhongtong paper money to buy them, thus both parties benefit. You might as well go back and report this to Zheng Jingli and see what he says. This matter will also benefit you; I haven't yet mentioned it to the person from the Zheng family who was on the ship."
"Okay." Shao Shuyi readily agreed, nodding his head.
There were originally two people from the Zheng family who accompanied the ship. One was Fang Anyang, who reportedly contracted malaria in Srivijaya and died despite medical treatment. The other was Zheng Guozhang, who was also suffering from an illness and left in a hurry as soon as the ship docked, so that he didn't even have a chance to say goodbye.
Shao Shuyi quickly took his leave, first returning to the antique shop to reorganize the product catalog he had copied, then taking the letter and conch shell, stuffing them all into a cloth bag, and driving towards Taicang.