Back in the guest room of the Tongfu Inn, Yang Muyun took out the bag of silver from his arms and put it on the table.

"Xianggong, where did you get this money bag?" Zhou Mengnan asked.

"Picked it up." Yang Muyun smiled faintly, opened the money bag, and poured all the contents on the table. He looked through it carefully with his hand, and there was nothing but a dozen pieces of broken silver, large and small.

"Xianggong, the person who lost the money bag must be very anxious, you must find a way to return it to others." Zhou Mengnan persuaded.

"That's right." Yang Muyun put the silver back into the money bag, thinking: Those women are from Yicuilan, and the name must be a brothel in Yiqinglou. In order to return the silver bag, it was necessary to find the place, but fortunately I heard that one of the girls was named Binong, and it was not difficult to find the owner through her. "I picked up the last piece of silver on the table and was about to put it in the money bag, when I suddenly felt that the bottom of the silver ingot was uneven, as if it had been cast, and I was about to turn it over to take a look......

"Master, Miss, Lord Yao's family has just come, please go to Lord Yao's Mansion in the evening, Lord Yao will have a banquet for you." Su Yue hurriedly ran to say.

"Oh? Is it us, not you? Yang Muyun looked at Su Yue, and Su Yue nodded. Did you tell Miss Yao that I was in Huai'an? He looked at Zhou Mengnan again.

"Nope."

"Then Lord Yao is well-informed enough." Yang Muyun touched his chin and smiled meaningfully.

"That'...... Xianggong, will you come with me? Zhou Mengnan asked.

"Of course." Yang Muyun looked at the handwriting under the silver ingot, and threw it into the money bag with a "click". "Everyone already knows I'm here, and if I don't go, won't it make people feel uneasy."

————————

At the time, a horse-drawn carriage ran over the lively street of Huai'an Mansion with the sound of chariots.

Yang Muyun lifted the corner of the curtain and looked out, the sky was not dark, and there were still people coming and going on the street, and the traffic was busy.

"Xianggong, there is still some distance from Lord Yao's mansion, you don't have to be so anxious." Zhou Mengnan said to him with a smile.

"Oh, lady, I haven't seen this Lord Yao yet, I don't know what kind of person he is, can you tell me about it?"

"Xianggong-" A hint of complex color appeared in Zhou Mengnan's beautiful eyes, "The richest thing in the world is the salt class, and most of the salt produced in the world comes from the two Huai." My Ming Dynasty produces about 1.7 million taels of salt every year, and each tael of taxes is 1.7 million taels, and the imperial court's annual tax is only 8 million taels of silver......"

"Well, that means that one or two of every four taels of silver received by my Ming officials comes from the salt tax." Yang Muyun realized.

"This is only on the surface, in fact, the salt quotes held by our salt merchants were all prepaid last year."

"Withheld? What do you mean? ”

"It's that the government will send the next year's salt to our salt merchants in advance," Zhou Mengnan glanced at the ignorant Yang Muyun, and said with a wry smile: "In this case, you will have to draw three taels of silver for each introduction." ”

Zhou Mengnan paused when he said this, and said leisurely: "The two Huai'an produce 1.2 million salt productions, and the top ten salt farms in Huai'an, which Lord Yao is responsible for, account for half. Can you calculate how much money will be in his hand? ”

"When it's more than a million." Yang Muyun thought for a moment and blurted out.

"But when you go to his house, you will find that the courtyard where he lives is not big, only four courtyards, which is not as good as some ordinary salt merchants. He and his wife were modestly dressed, and the furnishings of the house were simple, with only a few elderly servants in the house. ”

"It seems that this Lord Yao is honest and honest, and he is really an example of my Ming officials." Yang Muyun praised. "Does Lord Yao only have one daughter?"

"I heard my father say that he used to have a son who was kicked out of the house because of disobedience and unfilial piety, and now he only lives with this daughter."

The two were talking, and the carriage unconsciously galloped towards a remote place in the southwest of Huai'an City.

Yao Chuxi's mansion was located in the southwest of Huai'an City, and the horse-drawn carriage ran over the downtown area, drove over a small bridge, crossed several alleys, and stopped in front of an ordinary courtyard by the bamboo forest.

Yao Chuxi wore a square scarf on his head, a white Taoist robe, led his wife and daughter, and a few old servants to greet him at the door in person.

Yang Muyun got out of the car and hurriedly stepped forward to salute: "Xiaguan District is a sixth-grade military attaché, how dare you be Lord Yao personally greet you." ”

"It should be, it should be." Yao Chuxi smiled, "Lord Yang, a young hero, the old man has admired him for a long time, and when I saw him today, he was really a talent." ”

"Where, where, Lord Yao praised it falsely." Yang Muyun glanced at Yao Chuxi, this Master Yao was about forty years old, with a clear appearance and a long beard under his chin. Mrs. Yao has a graceful appearance and wears a well-tailored paddy field suit. Miss Yao is still wearing a pink collared skirt during the day.

"Lord Yang, please—" Yao Chuxi leaned sideways and made a gesture of please.

"Don't dare, Lord Yao, please first." Although he lives at home, Yang Muyun does not dare to mess with the rules of the imperial court, and the Yanyun Division knows that he is from the fourth grade, and he is a brocade and a guard with six products and hundreds of households, and he can't walk in front of him no matter what.

Yao Chuxi smiled, and no longer pushed, when he entered first, Yang Muyun followed closely. Then Mrs. Yao and Zhou Mengnan entered hand in hand, and Miss Yao followed at the end.

The courtyard of Yao's house is not big, but it is quite elegantly arranged, there is a piece of green bamboo next to the wall, there are several plum trees planted in the courtyard, and under the plum tree is a small fish pond, and a group of goldfish are happily spitting bubbles in the fish pond.

Yang Muyun followed Yao Chuxi to a flower hall in the third courtyard, where there was a sandalwood Eight Immortals table in the middle of the flower hall, and everyone came to the Eight Immortals table to sit down with guests. The wine and food were brought up.

The dishes are also rich in local specialties, such as soft long fish, white cannon shrimp, steamed mutton, and barbecued pork duck......

Yao Chuxi gave her daughter a look, Yao Bichen understood, Yingying got up and walked to Yang Muyun's side, raised the wine jug and filled him with a glass of wine: "Lord Yang, you are in an important position at such a young age, and the little woman admires you very much, please drink this cup to the fullest." "The sound is crisp and pleasant, like a pearl falling on a jade plate.

"I'm ashamed, Miss has won the award." Yang Muyun drank it all.

"Lord Yang has a good amount of alcohol." Yao Bichen filled his wine glass again, poured wine for his father, and stepped aside.

"Mengnan, coming here is like going home, don't be restrained, come, eat vegetables." Mrs. Yao beckoned to put vegetables on Zhou Mengnan's plate.

"Mrs. Yao, you are too polite, I will ...... it myself," Zhou Mengnan humbly conceded.

Yao Chuxi glanced at them, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he raised his glass to Yang Muyun: "Lord Yang, the old man also toasts you." ”

"Lord Yao, it's time to break the officials." Yang Muyun hurriedly got up and bowed, and the wine glass was slightly raised downward. "How dare the lower officials be toasted by adults."

The two drank it all at once, and Yao Bichen came to re-pour the wine for the two.

"Lord Yang, you and I are not in the public gate now, so it is too obvious to call me a student, how old is the old man, how about calling you a virtuous brother?" Yao Chuxi stroked his long beard.

"Master Yao, the inner son and Ling Ai's peers have a relationship, how can the younger generation deserve it, you are the same age as your father, if you don't give up, how about the younger generation call you Shibo?"

"Then the old man will call you a good nephew!" Yao Chuxi smiled slightly: "I don't know how old my nephew is?" ”

"Thanks to Shi Bo's question, the little nephew is fifteen years old."

"Oh?" Yao Chuxi's face showed a slight look of surprise, and he glanced at his daughter, "Chen'er, this Yang Xian's nephew is the same year as you!" ”

"Lord Yang is young and promising, how can his daughter compare with him?" Yao Bichen looked admiring.

"Yang Xian's nephew-" Yao Chuxi sighed with emotion, "The old man was still studying in his hometown of Yiyang when he was fifteen years old. In the fifth year of Xuande, the old man entered Beijing to take the exam, and he ranked 19th in the top three, and was born as a jinshi. At that time, the old man was already twenty-eight years old, and he had just entered the road of eunuchs. Yang Xian's nephew is already an official of the sixth grade at a young age, and his future is really limitless! Come, the old man will toast you again! ”

"Shibo has won the award, and the little nephew is afraid!"

......

"The deeds of the virtuous nephew when he was in the southern capital, the old man has heard of it, Wang Ji Wang is the pillar of the country, and the prince and the princess Yongqing are the emperor's closest relatives, they have all been saved by you, such a great achievement, the virtuous nephew will be promoted in the near future!"

"The work of the micro end is not enough to worry about the teeth, how can it be compared to Shibo, the little nephew admires Shibosu." Yang Muyun personally poured him wine.

"Me?" Yao Chuxi smiled dumbly, "It's just an old decay, what is there to admire?" ”

"Shibo manages the salt class for the imperial court, which is equivalent to sitting on a mountain of gold and silver, and the silver taels in Shibo's hands every year are more than one million." Yang Muyun swept around, "And Shibo is poor, and he is so noble as an official, how can he not be admired by his little nephew." ”

"The virtuous nephew is overrated," Yao Chuxi sighed, "Now the imperial court is in an eventful autumn, the Great Wall is being built in the north to protect the Tatars, and the soldiers in the south are shaking the barbarians, coupled with the frequent floods and droughts in some places in the interior, the little silver that the old man levied taxes has long been insufficient, if it is not for the salt to be introduced to the salt merchants in the coming year, I really don't know how to explain to the imperial court." ”

"Shibo worries about the country and the people, and he is really a model for my generation."

"To share the emperor's worries and solve problems for the court, the old man dares to be conscientious and conscientious." A hint of strangeness flashed in Yao Chuxi's eyes, "The virtuous nephew is on an errand in Nandu, and now that he has come to Huai'an, he must be on business, and the old man is the landlord, I don't know if there is anything that the old man can help?" ”

"Shibo is too worried," Yang Muyun raised his wine glass and touched it lightly on his wine cup, "Neizi came here alone, and the little nephew was very relieved, so he asked the secretary for leave to come to Huai'an and his party, and when she finished all the matters, the little nephew will return south with her." ”

"I see." Yao Chuxi looked at Zhou Mengnan and saw that her cheeks were dizzy, and there was indescribable tenderness and sweetness in her eyes. "The virtuous couple is deeply affectionate."

"There may be deep love, but not righteousness." Zhou Mengnan's beautiful eyes flowed, "Uncle and Mrs. Shibo have been with each other for decades, and they respect each other like guests, which is what the younger generations respect, Xianggong, do you say yes?" ”

"Shibo, little nephew toasts you, please-" Yang Muyun turned his gaze to Yao Chuxi in embarrassment.

"The virtuous nephew is young and romantic......" Yao Chuxi glanced at his face and coughed lightly, "The eldest husband is informal, virtuous nephew, please-"

......

The guests and hosts talked happily, and before they knew it, the night was dark, and Yang Muyun temporarily left the table under the pretext of going out for convenience.

When he returned, he saw Yao Bichen leaning under the tree in the courtyard, looking at a crescent moon in the sky.

"Miss Yao—" Yang Muyun coughed lightly.

"Lord Yang—" Yao Bichen seemed to have just recovered from his contemplation, and his body trembled slightly.

"Neiko is commensurate with Miss Sister, Miss doesn't have to see the outside like this, Xiaosheng Yan Gong is a brother, if Miss has something on her mind, can you tell Xiaosheng."

"I'm fine......" Yao Bichen's eyes flickered. Unexpectedly, in Ganlin Temple today, the person who made Sister Zhou's attention lose his mind was actually Lord Yang. ”

"Oh-" Yang Muyun said in her heart that she had thought of this, "Uchiko was with Miss at the time, and it was inconvenient to recognize Xiaosheng, so please don't be surprised." ”

"No, no—" Yao Bichenyu shook his hand lightly, "Lord Yang is serious. ”

"Uchiko said that together with the young lady, she was fortunate to meet Master Jin Chan of Ganlin Temple today, but this master's eyes looked forward to Shenfei, and his speech and demeanor seemed to be a little frivolous......"

"Snort-" Yao Bichen smiled, "Maybe Sister Zhou is too beautiful and made the master move his heart, right?" ”

"It seems that the young lady often goes to him, and she is no longer surprised by this master." Yang Muyun knew she was joking.

"My mother and I often go to the temple to listen to his lectures, Master Jin Chan has always been solemn to outsiders, and he speaks more humorously in front of Sister Zhou, probably because he is with me!"

"Then Lord Yao often goes to the temple with you?"

"No, ......" Yao Bichen shook his head slightly, "Father hates monks and Taoists the most, so he will never go to places like temples." ”

"Since Miss is a frequent visitor to the temple, she must be very familiar with this temple, why do the monks in the courtyard temple still see Miss so much today?" Yang Muyun said leisurely.

"Lord Yang thinks too much, this matter is because I am abrupt, there is a forbidden place in the temple, not to mention outsiders, even ordinary monks in the temple are not allowed to enter." She paused for a moment as if to say to herself: "It must not be him, but how can that figure be so similar to him?" ”

"Virtuous nephew—" Yao Chuxi also came to the courtyard at some point.

"Uncle Shi, the little nephew is not strong enough to drink, so he stopped in the courtyard for a while, and it happened that the young lady was also in the courtyard, so he talked a little more." Yang Muyun explained to him.

"Chen'er, your mother has led your sister Zhou back to the room to talk, you should also accompany them!" Yao Chuxi said to his daughter.

"Yes, father." Yao Bichen turned around and went to the inner courtyard.

"Shibo, the little nephew can't drink anymore." Yang Muyun bowed deeply, "It's late at night, and it is inconvenient for me and Neiko to disturb here more, so we should leave——"

"Don't worry, it's rare for a virtuous nephew to come to the old man's place," Yao Chuxi held up his arm, "Besides, Mrs. Ling is still talking to Humble Jing in the room, if you don't want to go back to drink, just drink a cup of tea in the old man's room!" ”