Chapter 364 Locked
The owner of Jinxiu Cloth Shop donated a total of 300,000 taels this time.
The purpose is to build a reputation for benevolence and righteousness, so that people all over the country will remember that Jinxiu Cloth Shop is a conscientious cloth shop and can be relied upon at critical moments.
As long as this reputation is established, even if Jinxiu Cloth Shop gets into some scandal in the future, the word "patriotism" will be enough to fool the common people.
Who doesn't make mistakes?
When he heard Ji Yun say that Duke Xue had given all their money to fill the holes in the Weiyuan Escort Agency, his heart sank.
That's not one hundred thousand taels or three thousand taels, that's three hundred thousand taels. No matter how rich he is, he can't just throw three hundred thousand taels down the drain.
In just a quarter of an hour from the time he met Ji Yun to now, two big blisters appeared at the corners of his mouth, and his mouth hurt whenever he spoke.
Ji Yun's face wasn't looking good either. He followed a group of merchants, sighing and creating an atmosphere.
"That's my wife Ben. If the hole is really filled, what shall I do?"
"No wonder Duke Xue didn't let the Queen enter the city. Is he afraid that she will be exposed if she enters the city?"
As they were talking, Duke Xue came in from outside, and seven or eight merchants from inside surrounded him. Duke Xue had been preparing himself mentally all the way, but when he saw them surrounding him, the structure he had built with great difficulty suddenly felt like it was about to collapse.
"Why are you all here? What happened?" Maintaining the proper attitude on his face, Duke Xue frowned and glanced at everyone.
Ji Yun was the first to speak up: "Duke, we have cooperated with the government to appeal to the people before, and now the donations from the people have almost arrived. Can we return our money now?"
Duke Xue frowned and looked at him, his heart skipping a beat. "According to convention, we should wait until everything is over before dividing, so as to avoid any unnecessary trouble. This is not the first time you have done this, so why are you here now?"
He looked as if he was scolding them for being ignorant.
The owner of Jinxiu Cloth Shop immediately said, "Please forgive us, Duke. We don't have to take it back now, but we don't feel at ease with such a large sum of money."
Duke Xue said, "How much is that? You just donated 300,000 taels. Don't worry, it won't be lost. I will return it to you in due time."
Everyone who does business is a shrewd person.
Everyone already had some guesses in their minds, and now what Duke Xue said made them feel that something was not right.
Thinking about the money, I became much bolder.
But before the owner of Jinxiu Cloth Shop could speak, Ji Yun said first: "Duke, I don't have much money, only thirty thousand taels, why don't you return it to me now."
Duke Xue's eyes widened and he looked at Ji Yun in disbelief.
How can you have the nerve to say such things?
Ji Yun had a helpless expression on his face. "My Lord, if it was normal times, I wouldn't dare to say this, but now I heard that the Weiyuan Escort Agency under your control had an accident while escorting the Prince of Zhao back to the capital , and all the supplies of the Prince of Zhao were hijacked by bandits. You used our money to fill the hole of the Weiyuan Escort Agency. This is so convincing that I feel uneasy."
When Ji Yun said this, Duke Xue was stunned.
ha?
Ji Yun continued, "Of course I believe that the Duke would not do such a thing, but I am still worried. The Duke, please just appease me. I will give this money to me. Next time, as long as the Duke needs it, I will support you with all my strength without hesitation."
He said it directly , and others became bolder as well. They were now comfortable saying things that they were too embarrassed to say before.
"My Lord, please give me my share as well."
"Brothers should settle accounts clearly, Duke, our deal is now complete..."
Their every word was to force them to pay. Duke Xue's face turned ugly at a visible speed. "Who told you this?"
Anger was bubbling from the top of his head, and his eyes were filled with anger .
The morale of these merchants was instantly dampened, but Ji Yun was different. He did not seem to be afraid at all and just spoke loudly when told to.
"My Lord, a patient came to our pharmacy this morning. When he was getting medicine, he mentioned something that made sense. It's not that I doubt my Lord..."
Duke Xue interrupted him and asked, "What does a doctor look like?"
Ji Yun said, "Two men and one woman were treating the woman. They were all wearing rain gear, so it was hard to see what they looked like. But the woman took off her rain hat, and she looked very pretty."
"Is that woman pregnant?" Duke Xue wanted to lift Ji Yun by the collar.
Ji Yun shook his head, "I don't know. She just had a rash on her skin. I prescribed some ointment, but I didn't check her pulse. I can't tell if she's pregnant. But judging from her figure, she doesn't look like it."
Having said this, Ji Yun suddenly took a deep breath, covered his mouth fiercely, and looked at the Duke in shock.
"You ask these questions. Are they telling the truth?"
Why are you asking these questions if it's not true?
The remaining merchants all looked at Duke Xue.
Duke Xue's face turned pale as he glared at Ji Yun. "Of course it's not true. Don't you think about it? The city gates are closed now. Where can they get the news from?"
Ji Yun said, "The city gates are closed today, how could someone suddenly spread rumors? Outsiders can't come in, and there are so many people shouting at the foot of the city wall."
"Outsiders can't come in, but the Su family army can climb over the wall and come in!" Duke Xue scolded.
Ji Yun was puzzled and said, "Even if the Su family army came in, why would they spread this rumor? How did they know about our deal? In the final analysis, we don't care whether this is true or not. Lord, we just want to get our hard-earned money back. In business, it's about give and take and make money in harmony. You are Lord, we all respect you. This is not a one-time deal. We will have many more dealings in the future. We don't want to offend you, but the amount of the donation this time is really a bit too much. You see..."
Although Ji Yun's words were blunt, they made sense.
If Duke Xue had money, he would not refuse to give it.
But he has no money.
All his money is hidden in that secret compartment.
The secret compartment was emptied out.
Furious, Duke Xue looked around at them and said, "Okay, since you want to take it back, there's no reason for me not to give it to you. Just wait, I'll arrange for someone to get the money for you."
After saying this, Duke Xue turned around and walked out.
Just as he stepped out of the door, Ji Yun said, "Oh no, he's not going to lock us up."
"Not really, brother, you think too much."
Before the owner of Jinxiu Cloth Shop finished speaking, a bang was heard outside.
The door was closed.
Click.
Lock it.
