Chapter 291: Pen washing

North and South Liuxiang, Liulichang.

Cao Yong and the Sixteenth Prince got off their horses and walked in a stroll. The guards tied the horses to find a place, leaving one to watch, and the others were also accompanied by each other, near or far.

Except for the Sixteenth Prince and Zhao Feng and Xiaoman were in regular clothes, everyone, including Cao Yong, was wearing guard uniforms. He had to find a ready-to-wear shop nearby and replace all the guard uniforms on everyone.

Although the ready-to-wear clothes in the shop here are good, most of them are fancy in color. Others have nothing to do. Cao Yong's filial piety period has not passed, so he can only find a simple dress. There is nothing suitable. In the end, he only found a cloth Suru uniform to change it.

Although he is a little fat, fortunately he can hold up, and he doesn't look sloppy.

As soon as Cao Yong changed his clothes, he saw a young man with a hand-written folding fan coming in from the lobby, with a servant behind him. The man was twenty-five or six years old and had a smile on his face. Although he was holding a folding fan, he did not see the gentleness of a scholar. He had a bright golden temper on his hands and a few jade pendants around his waist, which looked like a rich man. When he saw people, his chin was slightly raised and his expression looked a little arrogant.

Cao Yong didn't care and cleaned up his clothes with Xiaoman's help.

Another young man quickly walked to the guest and said, "Callant, please come in quickly, what are you going to choose?"

The young man did not answer, but said nodded to the servant next to him. The servant took a step forward reluctantly, and took out a silver ingot from his arms.

The young man frowned and snorted coldly. The servant seemed to be very entangled and took out another ingot of gold.

The young man's eyes were already lit up, and the shopkeeper also came out of the counter to meet him. The young man pulled around with a folding fan and said, "It's not expensive, I'll pick two sets of the most decent clothes for you. I'll treat you to the evening!"

Seeing that he was acting in a grand manner, Cao Yong thought it was the young master of the landlord and the old Cai family who went to Beijing to take the exam. He heard that he had a southern accent, not from Zhili, so he realized that it was not.

Although I will be admitted to the Enca Department this year, the provincial examination will be held in February and the results will be released in March. Extraordinary candidates will not be able to enter Beijing in April or May at the earliest.

The young man also noticed Cao Yong. Seeing that he was dressed simply and elegantly, he thought he was a poor man who went to Beijing to take the exam, so he bowed his hand to be a greeting.

After Cao Yong finished dressing, he saw that he was polite, so he bowed his hand, which was a gift for his return, and a ready-to-wear shop was released behind him.

The young man in the shop had already gone to pick up his clothes, and the shopkeeper let the young man sit on the chair on the east side of the hall, and asked another man to serve tea.

The young man frowned, shook his head, and said to himself: "It's weird, why do you think that boy looks familiar? Is it also from Xuzhou?"

The servant next to him saw the shopkeeper walking away, Fang whispered: "Master, we don't have much money around us anymore, so we should save money!"

The young man glanced at him and said, "Too much! I'm going to visit Mr. Wu Qiao next time. Do you want to visit friends in old clothes? Then the servants are treated as the one who beat Qiufeng and are bombarded out. That's not a joke!"

The servant was speechless and silent for a while. Fang Zhi said, "Master, why didn't you start looking for Master Cheng? Now, all the money is fooled. Even if you search for Master Cheng, you will have no money to run away from the official position."

The young man waved his hand and said impatiently: "Okay, okay, let me be purified for two days. Mr. Wu Qiao is the future Hanlin master, the most precious. How could he know these tricks? I just went to have a drink!"

*

The sixteenth prince was already impatient when he saw Cao Yong coming out in a disfitable Confucian uniform, and then looked at the scholars passing by on the street, and said to Cao Yong with a smile: "Tsk tsk, 'People rely on clothes, Buddha rely on gold clothes'. This sentence is true. Looking at your outfit, there is no trace of the fourth-grade Taoist platform? Whoever looks at it will definitely think that he is a poor scholar who goes to Beijing to take the exam!"

Although Cao Yong is not a picky person, he is uncomfortable wearing this dress. In order to prevent moths, the ready-to-wear clothes here are repeatedly smoked with incense, and the taste is strong and pungent.

He glanced at the Sixteenth Prince and said, "I can just take a small turn and let me go back to my house to change. You are just going to the market. You are not in a hurry now?"

The sixteenth prince laughed awkwardly and said, "Hurry! Hurry! Let's go to Songzhuzhai first. I ordered a blue and white pen from the Yongle period to wash it. I happened to bring all the silver notes to pick it up today."

Songzhuzhai is the most famous Nanpaper shop in Liulichang. The paper for calligraphy and painting and the four treasures of the study are the most exquisite and complete. Cao Yong wanted to find the inkstone for Mr. Zhuang, and he was also thinking about Songzhuzhai.

Cao Yong came here for the first time a few years ago. When he saw the name of "Songzhuzhai", he felt familiar. Later, he learned that their boss's surname was Zhang. He opened his business fifty years ago. He remembered the old brand "Rongbaozhai" in his previous life. It seemed that his previous name was Songzhuzhai.

Before he could enter Songzhuzhai, he heard the noise coming from inside. Cao Yong and the Sixteenth Prince were a little surprised. When they entered the shop, they saw several scholars chattering around the shopkeeper and talking nonstop.

Cao Yong and the Sixteenth Prince heard a few words, as if they were interested in something, but the money was not enough, so they held the shopkeeper's bargaining. The shopkeeper had a bitter face and said that the thing was already in charge and it was difficult to sell it again. After a few moments, it was a bit messy.

Cao Yong was still looking at the inkstone on the shelves. Mr. Zhuang's old daughter Xiao Niu Niu is three years old. She was naughty. She was always with her father, playing with everything she saw, and wasted a lot of things.

This time, I would like to find a strong inkstone for Mr. Zhuang that can withstand the fall of Niu Niu. I can’t even ask for stone, jade, purple clay, or porcelain. Cao Yong looked at a copper inkstone with a simple shape and thought to himself that it was it. It’s hard to say whether it absorbs ink or not. It’s the key to being able to stand up for a child to fall.

The sixteenth prince became more impatient as he heard it. He waved his hand and called a guy, asking him to call the shopkeeper over.

The shopkeeper heard the young man's message and looked up. Seeing the guest's appearance, his face seemed to be pardoned, pointed to the Sixteenth Prince and said to the scholars: "It was decided by that guest. I'm really sorry to the young masters!" As he said that, he hugged the scholars and came to the Sixteenth Prince.

When the sixteenth prince saw the shopkeeper coming, he asked Zhao Feng to take out the receipt from the shop here and said, "What are you going to wash the pen that I ordered a few days ago? I'm here to pick it up today!"

The shopkeeper smiled and said, "I'm waiting for you, Master Jin, I'll get it for you now!"

The sixteenth prince nodded with a smile, and watched Cao Yong picking the inkstone, so he wanted to go and talk to him, but was stopped by the scholars.

Although most of the guards were waiting outside the shop, there were two who followed each other in close proximity. Seeing this, they immediately stepped forward, protected the sixteenth prince, and shouted to the scholars: "Stop, don't be rude!"

The scholars were frightened and took a few steps back.

Cao Yong noticed that the atmosphere in the shop was not right, so he put down the inkstone in his hand, came to the Sixteenth Prince, and whispered to ask why, but the Sixteenth Prince was also puzzled.

The scholars saw that the Sixteenth Prince was dressed in extraordinary clothes, with a warm face, but with majestic and such fierce guards followed him, and thought they were the powerful children of which family.

Everyone was worried. When Cao Yong, who was wearing a common man, came over and saw that he and the Sixteenth Prince looked like friends, they thought they were thinking about it. If they were really children from wealthy families, all with their eyes and heads, how could they have a common man?

Seeing that Cao Yong seemed to be easy to talk, a scholar stepped forward and said to Cao Yong with a little pride: "This young master, we are the candidates of the current exam. We are going to thank Master Fang tomorrow and are looking for a thank-you gift. If you don't make any trouble, can you ask your friend to transfer the pen to wash it, so that we can fulfill our respect for teachers."

Although the scholars in front of him all looked kind and were polite, Cao Yong was impatient when he listened. Why did he take this for granted attitude? Even if he was a new juren, he would not care about it and would be so distracted.

He glanced at the Sixteenth Prince, and the Sixteenth Prince also showed impatience on his face. However, since the other party was polite and thoughtful, Cao Yong also said politely: "We are looking for this thing to give gifts, and we have no intention of transferring it."

While speaking, the shopkeeper had already taken the pear wood box and wanted to wash the pen on the shelf. A scholar was unwilling to give up and reached out to stop him, just touching the shopkeeper's arm.

The shopkeeper's hand shook, and the blue and white pen washed and slipped to the ground, and immediately broke, fragments scattered all over the ground.

The shopkeeper was so distressed that tears were about to come out. He squatted down and pinched it in his hand. While standing up, he trembled with his lips: "Nine hundred taels, this is Nine hundred taels!"

The scholar also knew that he had caused trouble. He was so scared that he stepped back, but the shopkeeper grabbed the sleeves. He heard the shopkeeper say, "This young master, this was originally the thing that Master Jin has decided. The young man has already told you that he is still alive and is so endless. Now the things are broken. What do you think?"

The scholar came with his classmates. It was everyone who had collected money to buy the gifts tomorrow, but even if everyone had a total of no nine hundred taels. Now that he was in trouble, he was also panicked, his eyes flashed, and he muttered, "It was the shopkeeper's mistake, how could he come to find me?"

But he was ungrateful, and even the scholars who followed him felt embarrassed. One of them had just followed everyone and didn't say anything. He now came out and said to the shopkeeper: "Shopkeeper, don't be anxious. Since we have caused damage, we will just ask the shopkeeper to make money. It will definitely not be a dilemma for the shopkeeper!"

The shopkeeper first heard the scholar in front of him cheating and refused to admit it. He was angry and angry. When he heard that they agreed, his face was better.

He put down the scholar's clothes, walked to the sixteenth prince, bowed with guilt, and said, "I'm really sorry for Mr. Jin. We will pay the deposit twice immediately. If the master still wants to find a pen to wash it, there is an ivory pen in the shop. It was originally sold for 1,500 taels. If the master likes it, the shop would like to offer 900 taels of silver."

Although he almost shed tears for the blue and white brush that was only 900 taels, he was unambiguously reducing the price by 600 taels.

The scholars next to him were resentful and thought that the shopkeeper was deliberately making things difficult for the moment; Cao Yong secretly praised him and complained that he could not manage it for hundreds of years, pay attention to reputation and not seek small profits. This should be the trick to be able to operate this shop for a long time.

The Sixteenth Prince was defeated by these scholars and his face turned much darker. It was better to hear what the shopkeeper said, so he nodded.

The shopkeeper was a little worried about the scholars, so he winked at the two young men outside, and then quickly walked into the inner room to get a pen and wash it.

The two young men stood at the door, guarded the other side, staring at the scholars with caution.

These scholars were bored and were also irritated. They wanted to get angry, but were stopped by the older man. Several of them whispered, as if they were collecting money.

Seeing that the Sixteenth Prince was a little depressed, Cao Yong asked, "But I want to give... the old man a birthday gift?"

The Sixteenth Prince glared at the scholars over there and nodded.

Cao Yong thought for a while and said, "I remember that there seemed to be a similar blue and white brush washing in my house. The gift I received a few years ago was useless. I just collected the warehouse directly. Let's go and look for it later!"

After hearing this, the sixteenth prince waved his hand and said, "It's just my wish to give this. Emperor... Where does the old man lack this? Even if there are no blue and white ones, the same is true for ivory ones. At most, I will be scolded for being extravagant!"

Cao Yong smiled and said, "No such thing. It's not just a gift to make the elders happy, but how can I still scold me? I'm also on the side of me. Why are you polite? Anyway, it's given by someone else, and I'm too lazy to do research. I have to use the gifts, so you can just use it!"

While speaking, the shopkeeper had already come over with a sandalwood box and opened it in front of the Sixteenth Prince, with an ivory carved pen to wash the characters.

The sixteenth prince held it in his hand and looked carefully. He was indeed extremely exquisite. He said to Cao Yong: "How are you looking?"

It was the first time Cao Yong, who had seen the ivory pen, nodded and praised: "It's a good thing, it's worth 1,500 taels of silver."

The sixteenth prince smiled and said, "It's good that you like it! You're right. Since you're giving gifts to celebrate your birthday, you won't be scolded. Since there's something you don't need to do, I won't be polite to you, but it's not easy to take advantage of you. I'll trade this ivory for it. It's just a gift, which is more decent."

Cao Yong knew the sixteenth prince's personality, and he had the arrogance of the Tian family in his bones. He was not a person who liked to take advantage of the situation. He replied with a smile: "That's good, it's just a few advantages!"

The sixteenth prince asked Zhao Feng to settle the remaining silver and gave the shopkeeper another ten taels of silver as a reward.

The shopkeeper hurriedly thanked him, washed the pen and handed it over to the 16th Prince's entourage.

The scholars had raised all the money on their bodies, but they couldn't get all eight hundred taels. Everyone was anxious, and a sharp-eyed man saw someone passing by the door and hurriedly called out: "Brother Youjie, stay!"

I saw the master and servant coming in at the door, who were the two people Cao Yong met in the garment shop just now.

The young man holding the fan had already changed into a new set of brocade clothes from head to toe. When he saw a few scholars calling him, he was very flattered and smiled and walked in to greet the scholars.

Those scholars ate in a pit, pointed to the fragments on the ground, and whispered the reason, and finally they had to borrow money.

Cao Yong really had no good feelings for the scholars in the house and was too lazy to pay attention to their ugly appearance. He just thought it was cheaper and just pulled a rich man over. He turned around, pointed to the copper inkstone, and inquired about the shopkeeper.

Although it is made of copper and is not a good inkstone, it is an antique in the Jin Dynasty and the price is not cheap. The shopkeeper offered 800 taels.

Cao Yong estimated it and paid back four hundred taels directly.

The shopkeeper was stunned and finally smiled bitterly and gave a reserve price of 700 taels.

Even the Sixteenth Prince was stunned when he heard this, held back his laughter and said to Cao Yong: "Have you bought something? Where can I save the price at such a price?"

Xiaoman also pulled Cao Yong's sleeves and whispered: "Uncle, this is not what bargaining is. 10% or 20% is nothing. If it is more than 50% and the merchants still sell it, then their price is inflated. Aren't they profitable businessmen?"

Cao Yong made a mistake and smiled embarrassedly, and ordered Xiaoman to get the silver note to the shopkeeper.

In the past, he rarely bought things himself. Even if he had occasional occasions, he was mostly with Chu Yu. Every time Chu Yu was happy to bargain, and he just smiled. When buying things alone, because they were not valuable items, Xiaoman and the others paid the money directly, and there was no bargaining. After finally buying an antique inkstone, his price cut made a joke.

The scholars there had already discussed it with a whisper, as if the remaining hundreds of taels of silver were bought by the young man in Jinyi. However, the money on their master and servant was not enough, as if they were still around a hundred taels.

The young man in brocade clothes was simply so he took off his new shirt immediately, took off his gold ring from his thug, took off his jade pendant from his waist, and handed it to his servant, saying, "Let me find a pawnshop!"

Several scholars were so ashamed that they spoke to each other, saying that they were looking for another way, and there was no need to do so.

The young man in brocade pointed to the fragments on the ground and said seriously: "You have no close relationship with me, Li Wei. I did this not just to ask some people to accept Li Wei's love. It's just that there are rules in this business. If the money is not enough, the shopkeeper's job will not be saved!" As he said that, he took a bag from his arms, turned over his old clothes, and put them on.
To be continued...