flstandardbreds Chapter 161 Gifts
Chapter 161 Gifts
Qin Jiu and An Liangchen walked out of the warm pavilion.
Remembering something, Nianyao chased after Qin Jiu and pulled him aside: "Brother Jiu, the rules of the Dahe Gang are that ill-gotten gains must be handed over and divided equally."
Qin Jiu asked, "What ill-gotten gains?"
Nianyao said, "Ninth Brother, are you still pretending in front of me? I found out very clearly from the madam that day. Nanfei spent forty-two taels, Xue Yunting spent ten taels, for a total of fifty-two taels."
The madam gave you a discount of fifty taels. You saw me after leaving Wenxiang Pavilion and then swindled five hundred taels from Yunting, right? Otherwise, why would you be so kind as to protect him?
Nanfei said firmly, "Madam is right. Ninth Brother, ill-gotten gains should be shared by all who see them."
Nianyao reached out her hand: "Ninth Brother, I don't need any more, two hundred taels will do."
An Liangchen sighed, "Jingzhao Manor truly lives up to its reputation as the number one manor in the world; their shrewd business instincts are ingrained in their very bones. Fifty taels go out, five hundred taels come back. This kind of business... It's really pointless for me, the Crown Prince, to live frugally. I might as well go trading with Ninth Brother from now on..."
Qin Jiu, swallowing bitterness like a mute, stammered, "Your Highness, I didn't..."
Nanfei interrupted him: "Ninth Brother, what are you afraid of? This is a skill, something to be proud of. Besides, the Xue family has plenty of money, you can swindle as much as you want without going too far."
Nianyao urged, "Hurry up and pay."
Qin Jiu looked at Luo An: "Young Master, I really didn't..."
Luo An came to his rescue: "Nianyao, Ninth Brother is getting married in a few days, and there will be many expenses. Consider this a wedding gift."
Qin Jiu blurted out, "For the past few years, I've been a slave to the Great River Gang, playing chess with you without fail, rain or shine. You two are incredibly wealthy, and you only give me two hundred taels? How can you possibly give that away?"
Luo An raised an eyebrow: "How much are you planning to pay?"
Qin Jiu said, "Tiger Zi received a thousand taels for his wedding. Even if I don't have ten thousand, I should still give eight thousand. The Great River Gang and Heaven and Earth will each contribute four thousand."
Nanfei said, "Ninth Brother, you had this planned all along?"
Qin Jiu replied matter-of-factly, "You only get married once, so of course you have to plan ahead."
As expected of the top accountant, his calculations are incredibly shrewd. Nianyao and Luo An exchanged glances and nodded slightly.
Qin Jiu, seeing their agreement, said, "You all think it makes sense, right?"
Nianyao asked, "What about Nanfei? How much do you plan to offer him?"
Qin Jiu hesitated for a moment, then said, "...Nanfei...let's skip it."
Nianyao said, "You look down on Nanfei? He's a first-rank general, and you actually look down on him? Looking down on him is looking down on the General of the North, looking down on the Minister of War, looking down on the Nan family, looking down on the Crown Princess, looking down on the Crown Prince, looking down on the Emperor and the Empress..."
Nianyao spoke fluently and without pausing.
Qin Jiu was completely bewildered and quickly pulled out a piece of gold: "Stop, stop, stop... two hundred taels for you..."
Nianyao took it: "As expected of the young master of Jingzhao Manor, he's generous with his money."
Qin Jiu couldn't help but defend himself: "I have no connection with Jingzhao Manor anymore. I earned all of this myself."
“Ninth Brother is very generous. If he hasn’t embezzled public funds from the Dahe Gang, then he must be running a private business.” An Liangchen said, “General Xue and Nanfei are worried about Ninth Brother’s marriage. It’s only right that Ninth Brother invites them to a brothel. Give me the remaining one hundred taels.”
They wanted to frame him and also take advantage of his misfortune. Qin Jiu struggled and said, "How could a mere hundred taels possibly meet Your Highness's standards?"
An Liangchen said, "Dongyang has always been frugal and dangerous, and with the excessive military expenditure, we have to stretch every penny. One hundred taels is a huge sum of money."
Qin Jiu had always been frugal, but today he had no choice but to admit defeat. He resignedly took out two silver ingots: "Your Highness's diligence and thrift are a blessing to the people of Dongyang."
An Liangchen took the gift in his hand, weighed it, and handed it to Lixia: "Ninth Brother is Dongyang's son-in-law, and a son-in-law is half a son. If Dongyang is in trouble, Ninth Brother has an inescapable responsibility. Consider this gift as Ninth Brother's military expenses for Dongyang."
Although it's just a drop in the ocean, the sentiment behind it is great, and I don't mind. Master Luo, Chief Xue, please deliver the eight thousand taels of silver directly to the Duke's mansion; the Duke of Liang will then transfer it to the Imperial Household Department.
What's going on? She took two hundred taels, but ended up losing four thousand... no, eight thousand taels?
Nianyao said, "Luo An, the journey from Chongming Island is too far, I'm afraid it won't be in time. Let's just transfer the money from Heaven and Earth."
Luo An agreed: "They're all in the inner treasury, Your Highness can order them yourself."
An Liangchen was speechless and left with Qin Jiu.
Nianyao complained, "Is this the Crown Prince? This is a money-eating beast."
Nanfei chimed in, "That's right, they eat people without spitting out the bones."
Luo An was very objective: "As long as you two don't provoke him, that's fine."
Nianyao and Nanfei said in unison, "What did I do to offend him?"
Luo An said, "If you hadn't schemed against Qin Jiu, none of this would have happened?"
Nianyao pouted: "That day, Qin Jiu actually dared to run away with Yun Ting right in front of me. I was being polite by not slashing him twice."
Nanfei chimed in, "That's right, that's right, they should be chopped twice."
“If you have nothing to offer…” Nianyao suddenly remembered that she had also said this to Luo An, and changed her words, saying, “If you have something to say, say it quickly, don’t flatter me.”
Nanfei said, "Madam, you and the young master haven't seen the Emperor and Empress for a long time. They must miss you very much. Let's go to the palace together to see them."
Without a second thought, Luo An said, "I'm not going."
“Young master, you are truly heartless, actually watching me die without offering any help.” Seeing that Luo An remained unmoved, Nan Fei sighed, “As a dignified first-rank general, I should be ready to die for you. Young master, if I am beaten to death, remember to burn paper money for me, burn as much as you can, the more the better.”
"You won't die." Luo An saw him feigning pitifulness and said, "Let me give you an idea. Send Qin Jiu two thousand taels as a congratulatory gift to fund the army, and Qin Jiu and the Crown Prince will help you."
"I'll be a hero again in eighteen years, what's there to be afraid of?" Nan Fei strode away proudly.
Luo An turned back to the warm pavilion and sat down: "According to Dongyang tradition, newly married daughters cannot spend the Spring Festival at their parents' home. The eldest princess cares a lot about these etiquettes. It is expected that as soon as the wedding procession arrives in Bianjing, the Duke's mansion will start making preparations for the wedding, and the bride must be sent out before noon."
Nianyao responded with an "oh".
Luo An asked, "Are you spending the Spring Festival in Bianjing or going back to Chongming Island with Ninth Brother and the others?"
Nianyao thought for a moment and said, "I'll go with you. If you want to stay in Bianjing, I'll stay here with you. If you want to go back to Chongming Island, we'll go back together."
Luo An looked at her without saying a word. Nian Yao suddenly had a thought: "What? Is something wrong?"
Luo An said, "After the Spring Festival, Duo Yi and I will go to the northern desert with the envoys from the northern desert."
Nianyao picked at her ear: "What did you say?"
Luo An said, "Jing Chen is in the northern desert. I have to go and rescue him."
Nianyao's eyes welled up with tears, and she could no longer bear it: "It was the same last time we went to Hengshan, and it's the same this time. You've always been like this, coming and going as you please, doing whatever you want."
Luo An, in your life, have you never even known the meaning of the word "discussion"? Or do you think it's enough to discuss things with others, there's no need to discuss them with me? What am I to you?
An Liangchen asked you to protect Yan Zeyu, so you secretly took Yan Zeyu away. An Jingchen is in danger in the northern desert, so you went to rescue him alone. Each of them is more important than me. Since that's the case, let's get a divorce, and you can live with them..."