The boss wanted to ask Chen Tang why he bought Old Chu, because that old guy was not likable, but when the bookstore owner said this, he understood.
His expression became more kind.
"You want to buy Lao Chu? Okay, the price is negotiable." He took the initiative to lower his psychological price, "Three taels, what do you think?"
The bookstore owner said: "Three taels? That's too expensive!"
The manager clicked his abacus, pulled out a thick, yellowed old booklet, and turned to a page: "Originally, I wanted five taels, but now I'm asking for three taels because we've known each other for many years. Look, when I bought Old Chu, it was only one tael and two taels!"
Shopkeeper: "Why is it so expensive?"
The manager snorted, "Do you think the market five years ago was like this? Now, if you want to buy a decent-looking girl, you can get her for two hundred coins by bargaining. This market was unimaginable five years ago. There was no war at that time. You would have to pay at least five taels to buy a person, and ten or twenty taels for a good one! The batch that Old Chu bought was infected with the plague, so he had to sell it at a low price, but he still got one or two taels."
According to the rules of the brothels, whether it was the prostitutes with official titles or the servants doing odd jobs, a three- to five-fold premium was the norm. If it was the top prostitute or a popular potential stock, a hundred-fold premium was common, otherwise how could they make money
Old Chu, who was sold for 1 liang and 2 liang back then, is now selling for 4 liang and 8 liang at the lowest. The person in charge just asked for 3 liang, which is very conscientious.
This is not entirely done for the sake of the shopkeeper's face.
As an ordinary citizen, he has a materialistic, cunning and greedy side, but he also has a soft-hearted, kind and gentle side.
When he heard that Chen Tang was here to redeem "Aung", his first reaction was not to take advantage of the opportunity to make a killing but to imagine a touching family ethics drama in his mind - a combination of such popular elements as the family's decline in fortune, separation of blood relations, reunion after a long separation, and sharing of family happiness.
Since being bought back, this old guy, Lao Chu, has worked in the kitchen of Yuehua Building for five years. He has been working diligently for so many years, has never made any mistakes, and is quite skillful. Apart from being taciturn and having a strange temper, he is not sociable, does not flatter, and does not please others, he has no other major problems.
Now his family has found him and wants to buy him back to fulfill their filial duty. This can be regarded as a happy ending for Old Chu after all his hard work. This is his blessing. There is no need for me to do something immoral for a little money and prevent the reunion of a family. This can be regarded as accumulating some good karma.
Seeing the shopkeeper hesitate, the manager said, "Don't make it difficult for me. If I take too little, I won't be able to report to my superiors."
The shopkeeper sighed, knowing that the price could not be negotiated any further. Chen Tang, who was silent on the side, took out a few pieces of silver from his money bag and placed them in front of the shopkeeper: "Please weigh them and see if they are enough."
The boss was attracted by her cheerfulness.
I secretly sighed that this is such a filial child.
Old Chu is beautiful, filial and kind. He will be blessed in the future.
He collected the silver and weighed it carefully. He found that there was still too much, so he took out the scissors and cut off some of the silver until there was exactly three taels of silver. Then he cleaned up the silver scraps and took out Lao Chu's indenture. He said, "It's still early now. Do you want to go to the government office to transfer the ownership?"
Shen Tang shook his head: "No."
The shopkeeper said unhappily, "What do you mean by transfer of ownership?"
Chen Tang: “…”
The reason for not transferring the ownership is purely because the original owner was also an illegal resident!
Previously, the two of them only imagined that Mr. Chu was her "grandfather", but now they are blatantly saying it out loud
The head slapped his forehead and said, "Oh, right, I almost forgot about this, but I have to find some time to make up for it later."
The corners of Chen Tang's mouth twitched: "Well, I will remember it."
The head waiter waved and called someone, "Go, go to the kitchen and call Old Chu over. Tell him that his granddaughter is here to take him home to enjoy his life."
As for whether Mr. Chu, who was sold, has any opinion...
It doesn't matter.
Chen Tang put away the yellowed contract with paper scraps on it, and secretly decided that after she had learned the skills, she would use the contract as tuition for Mr. Chu and return him to freedom. She would be responsible for the old man's food, clothing and other expenses, after all, she was not a devil capitalist.
therefore-
When Mr. Chu was sitting in the kitchen, brushing the plates and eucalyptus that had piled up last night with a numb look on his face, his weather-beaten face twisted for a moment when he heard this shout. He seemed to have tinnitus, and he grabbed the person's hand to confirm again and again: "Who? What granddaughter?"
The messenger smiled and said, "Your granddaughter has come to redeem you. The hard times for you, old man, are finally over."
Confused Mr. Chu: "..."
When he saw his "granddaughter" whom he had never met before and who appeared out of nowhere, he almost lost control of his expression again.
You call this young man your granddaughter
The person in charge patted Mr. Chu on the shoulder and said to him with emotion, "Old Chu, pack up your things and follow your child. Don't keep your family waiting too long."
Alas, the most touching and precious scene in today's world is undoubtedly family reunion and sharing of family happiness.
This scene is so touching just thinking about it.
Mr. Chu had a blank expression on his face.
Chen Tang also looked at him expressionlessly.
"I've paid the ransom, do you want to come with me?"
She suddenly felt guilty, and after thinking about it, she realized that it would be disrespectful to Mr. Chu to buy the person without permission.
Mr. Chu: "...Are you really going to take me away?"
Chen Tang opened her mouth, and inexplicably felt that her next answer should be more cautious and not be hasty.
But on second thought, this is just one choice. She has already paid the money, wouldn't it be a big loss if she doesn't take him away
So, Shen Tang nodded heavily.
"Yes, follow me!"
Three taels of silver!
We can’t let it go to waste!
In the past, she had always taken advantage of Qishan's knowledge and ink for free. She had never paid him a cent, let alone three taels.
After the words were spoken, the atmosphere became stiff and strange.
The bookstore owner felt something was wrong, but before he could figure it out, Mr. Chu reacted first. He nodded calmly, "Okay, let me pack my clothes and wait for a while."
Seeing Mr. Chu turning around and going back to the backyard to pack his clothes, the bookstore owner asked the person in charge: "Did this old man get beaten up while working here? He looks dazed and seems to have an old man's disease. It will be hard to take care of him if we take him back. He will suffer a lot."
The boss rolled his eyes and said, "We make dirty money, but we are not inhumane. If you don't work, you will go hungry. There is no need to beat people up."
Unless it's something like running away or stealing money, they won't learn their lesson unless they are beaten.
Old Chu has been very well behaved since he arrived, so why would he be beaten
The other side.
Watching Gong Cheng finish the medicine and fall asleep, Guan'er and the young man left one after the other. When the wooden door closed behind him, his demeanor changed. His delicate and somewhat mean face became more majestic.
He said, "I didn't expect that Brother Yun Chi would be clueless one day. Since he knows nothing, it's useless for us to ask him. We might as well investigate it ourselves. Mr. Gu, send someone to keep an eye on that Chen Tang... It would be best if this person is okay. The nine members of the Shen family died in vain, and this person and Brother Yun Chi are the best evidence that Zheng Qiao's tyranny has lost the support of the people. In the future, it will be justified for us to send troops to attack Zheng Qiao..."
Young man: “What if there is a problem?”
The waiter said calmly: "Then get rid of him, there will be no future troubles!"
After a pause, he continued, "Also, keep an eye out for news about the fifth doctor of the Gong family, and report any news as soon as you get it."
The young man lowered his eyes, bowed and accepted the order: "Yes."