Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 811 is more than just empty promises.

Chang Shun used a horse-drawn carriage to take Zhang Luan to the intersection of Andingmen Street and Tieshizi Hutong, where the main branch of the Beijing Money Exchange was located.

After Zhang Luan alighted from the carriage, he was startled to see the imposing and solemn money shop, which resembled the entrance to a government office. He asked, "What kind of plaque is that? Have we arrived at some kind of government office?"

"This is the main branch of the money exchange that the master asked me to show you."

Chang Shun was somewhat puzzled. "Has the master never been here before, and doesn't even know where this place is? I heard this place is imperial property, specially allocated by His Majesty for the Second Young Master... Next door is the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) headquarters, half a mile to the north is the North City Military Command, and half a mile to the south is the Central City Military Command. In addition, there are a large number of constables patrolling the streets. Oh, by the way, the thugs in the money shop, they're called security guards, and they carry muskets."

Zhang Luan stared wide-eyed, asking incredulously, "Why all this fuss?"

Chang Shun nodded and said, "The defenses are as tight as Taicang! However, although Taicang also has many officials stationed there, it mainly stores grain. Even if criminals wanted to rob it, the difficulty of moving the grain alone would be a major obstacle for many. But this money shop is full of gold and silver, and at the very least, copper coins... Everyone would covet it!"

"Isn't it just a vault?"

Zhang Luan was somewhat displeased. He glanced around and shook his head, saying, "Making such a big fuss! I wonder how much money it will cost just for manpower..."

Chang Shun, unsure of Zhang Luan's intentions, asked curiously, "Sir, would you like to go in and take a look yourself? But I heard that you need to make an appointment to enter the main branch."

Zhang Luan waved his hand and said, "Never mind, never mind, I'll just look from outside... Wait, didn't we say we had to make an appointment first? Why did I see someone go in?"

“Look at what you’re saying, sir. They made an appointment long ago, didn’t they?” Chang Shun said. “People who come here all have business to do, and it could even be a big deal worth tens of thousands of taels of silver. Merchants from Huizhou are known for their generosity. I heard that someone deposited 100,000 taels of silver here directly.”

Zhang Luan pursed his lips, nonchalantly saying, "I know, it must be that woman surnamed Qin, right?"

Chang Shun shook his head: "No, Manager Qin didn't deposit that much money in the bank, but... I heard the young master say that she is one of the owners behind the bank. In an emergency, for example, if someone comes in a group to run on the bank, she should be able to temporarily allocate 100,000 taels of silver to help without any problem."

"I bet her net worth is well over a million taels of silver, right? She's truly richer than a country... Those who come here to deposit money are definitely different from the owners of the money shop."

"So, am I the owner, or just a depositor?"

Zhang Luan turned his head to look at Chang Shun and asked.

Chang Shun was taken aback.

I thought to myself, "You're such a fool!"
It's true that your son is the big boss here, but the money he invests is not in the name of the Zhang family, but rather a royal investment. In a sense, this place can be considered the emperor's private property.

As for your son and how many shares the Zhang family owns, you'll have to ask your son and son-in-law.

"Wow, they have so many different styles!"

Knowing he couldn't make things too difficult for Chang Shun, Zhang Luan sighed and then asked, "After my son left the capital, who's been taking care of things here? The women of the Qin family?"

"No, Manager Qin went south with the Second Young Master."

Chang Shun explained what he knew.

Zhang Luan frowned deeply: "That woman went with my son? They..."

Chang Shun said, "That's normal. This trip is to the south to expand business. I heard there's a lot of business to be done. Nowadays, the second young master is basically in charge of the government-run salt fields. Anyway, apart from not having an official position, the second young master is no different from an official. He's like an imperial envoy in a play, and his word is law."

Zhang Luan said disdainfully, "Do you think the officials below will listen to him? He's just the emperor's brother-in-law, a relative of the empress. He thinks he can cause chaos in the local area by bringing a few Imperial Guards to embolden him? Those local bullies will teach him a lesson."

Chang Shun was speechless upon hearing this.

He thought to himself, "Why am I, as a father, always contradicting you?"
Don't you ever wish for anything good for your son?

Zhang Luan asked, "How much silver do I need to deposit into the main branch at once before I'm allowed to deposit it?"

"Ten thousand taels."

Chang Shun speaks fluently and naturally.

"How many?"

Zhang Luan was taken aback.

"A solid ten thousand taels."

Chang Shundao said, "If you don't have that much money, you can only deposit it at a branch. There are branches in all directions of the city, and there are also branches specially prepared for officials. It's located in Shipai Hutong near the Right Gate of Chang'an, adjacent to the Taichang Temple and the Tongzheng Office. The treatment there is quite good. Officials are welcomed and seen off very attentively. I heard that there are special privileges for depositing money there."

"However, few officials deposit silver there, after all, it's near the palace, and many eyes are watching... If you have too much silver, you won't be able to explain its origin when others investigate you."

Zhang Luan stared wide-eyed, unable to process what he'd just said for a long time. He muttered, "Give me five thousand taels, and I don't even qualify to deposit it into the main branch? Where is Qi Niang's money stored?"

Chang Shun said, "I don't know, could it be at a branch? Sir, isn't it inappropriate for you to keep asking about things that even a lowly person like me wouldn't know? Who deposited the silver, who helped deposit it, you should go and ask them..."

"Pooh!"

Zhang Luan walked towards the carriage, cursing and swearing, "You know nothing, what use are you?"

Chang Shun looked aggrieved: "No, I've told you everything I know, sir... It's just that the questions you raised are things only the parties involved would know. I'm not the manager of the bank, how could I know those things?"

Upon reaching the carriage, Zhang Luan stopped and asked, "Then let me ask you, besides the second son, does anyone else in our Zhang family deposit silver in a money exchange?"

"do not know."

Chang Shun was very honest, shaking his head like a rattle drum. "Madam doesn't seem like someone who would save money. As for the eldest young master, why don't you go back and ask him? There are only a few people in charge in our family, so you should ask the one who can manage things... I also have people in my family working at the bank, but they are mostly out there soliciting business and are not responsible for managing the accounts."

"Useless things."

Zhang Luan was still cursing, but his brows and eyes had relaxed, as if he had accepted Chang Shun's answer.

Clearly, the youngest son handled matters by separating public and private affairs, and did not involve the Zhang family members too much in business matters.

Or rather... each performs their own duties.

……

……

Zhang Luan had too many questions in his mind.

He had originally planned to go home to reunite with his wife and children for a meal, but his mouth seemed to have a mind of its own, and he still had Chang Shun drive him to the other courtyard first.

Upon entering the villa, Zhang Luan immediately summoned Qi Niang. "I only have three hundred taels of silver. It's already quite good that I was able to deposit it into the bank smoothly."

Qi Niang said, "Whether it's the main branch or a branch, with the banknotes in hand, I feel much more at ease... Master, is there anything else you want to ask?"

Zhang Luan asked, "If someone steals your silver notes, can you go directly to the bank to withdraw the money?"

Qi Niang shook her head: "No, there must be a signed receipt, and it's best to go to the bank in person to transfer the money. If you can't go to the bank in person, you need a guarantee... But I heard that they will issue another kind of banknote in the future, which is different from this kind of fixed-term banknote with interest. You can directly exchange the banknote for silver, but the total value of one banknote will not exceed one hundred taels. I heard that there are also several kinds of banknotes, such as fifty taels, ten taels, five taels and one tael, to facilitate circulation in the market."

"A banknote that can be used directly as silver? What's the difference between this and the imperial banknotes printed by the court?"

Zhang Luan frowned and said, "If it's used as illicit funds or forged, wouldn't that be a huge problem?"

Qi Niang explained, "It's very different from silver notes. Generally speaking, the number of silver notes printed is only the amount of silver available, and everything is in accordance with the amount of silver. The money houses won't issue them indiscriminately. In addition, as the second young master also said, those silver notes that can be directly exchanged for silver will use various anti-counterfeiting features, such as security threads, watermarks, and some patterns will have embossed designs. In addition, there are special paper textures, so they can't be faked."

Zhang Luan sneered and shook his head, saying, "You're still too naive. People can even forge ancient paintings, so how could they not forge mere silver notes? You're dreaming!"

"Hehe, why are you suddenly interested in these things, sir? Weren't you not coming today?"

"I asked with a smile," Qi Niang asked.

Zhang Luan looked somewhat embarrassed and flicked his sleeve, saying, "There are some things I don't understand, and that makes me uneasy. Is that so strange? What, you don't welcome me here?"

Qi Niang quickly replied, "How could that be? I wish you, Master, could come every day, so that this courtyard would have a pillar of support. I was worried that the mistress might be unhappy... However, since you're here, Master, you can go back later. I'll go and make the arrangements for you now..."

"No, no."

Zhang Luan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his lower back and immediately stood up, saying, "I've already told my family I'd be going home for dinner, so I won't be eating here. I made a detour here because I wanted to ask you personally... After all, you've deposited money in the bank before and have firsthand experience, so it's more appropriate for me to ask you."

"This business is too big. I estimate that there are probably hundreds of millions of taels of silver lying in the bank right now. I'm just afraid that kid can't handle it... I took some time to go to the bank today and hey, the scale of it was terrifying. There may be some secrets in it that I can't figure out!"

"Alright, that's all for now. I'm going back now. I'll come back tonight... maybe a little later. You can make arrangements then."

……

……

Nanjing City.

Two days after Zhang Yanling arrived, he finally met Duke Zhu Yi of Cheng.

Zhu Yi was the grandson of Zhu Neng, the Prince of Dongping. Zhu Neng was a famous general during the reign of Emperor Chengzu. In the first year of Jianwen's reign, Zhu Yi followed Zhu Di in the "Jingnan" uprising as the deputy commander of the Yanshan Central Guard. He participated in the battles of capturing the nine gates of Beiping and the battles of Zhengding, Hutuo River, Baigou River, Jiahe River, and Lingbi. He helped Zhu Di capture Nanjing and seize the throne. For his merits, he was awarded the title of Right Pillar of State, Left Commander of the Left Army Commandery, and was enfeoffed as Duke of Cheng.

In the fourth year of the Yongle reign, Emperor Chengzu appointed Zhu Neng as General Who Conquers the Barbarians, ordering him to lead an army to conquer Annam, and personally saw him off at Longjiang. In October of the same year, Zhu Neng died of illness in the army camp while en route to Longzhou. He was posthumously granted the title of Prince of Dongping and the posthumous name of Wulie.

Zhu Yi's father, Zhu Yong, inherited the title of Duke of Cheng and served four emperors, eventually rising to the rank of Grand Tutor. In the fourteenth year of the Zhengtong reign, he accompanied Emperor Yingzong of Ming on a northern expedition against the Oirat Mongols, serving as the vanguard and dying in battle at Yaoling. His entire family was known for its loyalty and bravery.

At this time, Zhu Yi had been the Duke of Cheng for thirty-five years and had served as a meritorious official in Nanjing for twenty-three years, making him a true local strongman.

Previously, because Zhang Yanling's whereabouts were a top secret, Zhu Yi did not know the purpose of Zhang Yanling's trip south.

It wasn't until Zhu Yi received the emperor's personal letter that he learned of the arrival of such an important figure in Nanjing. He rushed to visit before nightfall when he closed his doors to visitors.

The two met not at a post station or an official residence, but at a courtyard that Zhang Yanling had temporarily rented on the banks of the Qinhuai River, which was also where he contacted various merchants in Nanjing.

"Young Master Zhang has come all the way to Nanjing, so I should do my best to be a good host."

Zhu Yi was very polite to Zhang Yanling, and said with a smile, "I met your father once in the capital. When His Majesty ascended the throne, your father made great contributions. Now, the fame of you and your father is known throughout the streets and alleys... I really hope to do something for you to repay the Emperor's grace."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Lord Zhu is too kind."

Zhu Yi had several personal attendants bring in a large box to the room. When it was opened, it was found to be filled with several hundred taels of silver, gleaming brightly.

"Young Imperial Brother-in-law, please don't think it's too little."

Zhu Yi smiled and pointed to the silver box, saying, "Consider it a small gift from your uncle."

Zhang Yanling said, "Lord Zhu, you are being too polite. I am a guest from afar and should have paid my respects at your residence first. However... although I am the emperor's brother-in-law, I do not yet hold a title. Without proper recognition, my words are not appropriate, and I am embarrassed to visit you. You have even personally delivered these gifts, which makes me feel truly ashamed."

"Alright, I'll pick a time in the next couple of days to visit you. I hope you'll do me the honor of seeing me."

"What are you saying? We're family, why be so formal? If I hadn't been staying in Nanjing for so long, I might have become your father's best friend."

Zhu Yi said with a fawning expression, "I had already arranged accommodations for you, Young Master Zhang, near the old imperial city. Do you think it would be necessary for you to stay there?"

Zhang Yanling had already foreseen the grand spectacle that Zhu Yi would make when he arrived.

In addition to the large wooden chest specifically for storing money, the gifts brought included many clothes and bedding items, which were not placed in chests but carried directly on trays, as if deliberately displayed to the world.

Several pretty young women followed behind, it seemed... they were treating Old Zhang with the same hospitality they would show him.

Who would have thought that this young imperial brother-in-law was still just a naive boy, perhaps unaware of the allure of women? Now Zhu Yi was too embarrassed to call the woman in.

"no need."

Zhang Yanling waved his hand and said, "Actually, I won't stay in Yingtian Prefecture for too long. Next, I will go to Ningbo Prefecture in Zhejiang Province... There are several fleets going out to sea this time. I just picked one up at Longjiang Port, and another one has just returned. However, the port they arrived at is Ningbo Port. I have to go and see for myself."

"It would be better if someone accompanied you."

Zhu Yi pondered for a moment and said, "Although my son is usually busy with official duties, now that you, my dear nephew, have arrived, how can I not take the time to accompany you? If you are worried about communication difficulties, you can send my grandson instead."

Zhu Yi has a very thick skin.

Having finally encountered an imperial envoy from the capital, and given the new emperor's ascension to the throne, the Chengguo Duke's mansion was not very familiar with the current emperor's preferences or the current court's situation, and was somewhat far removed from the center of power... Why not take this opportunity to curry favor with Zhang Yanling, the emperor's favorite, who is known throughout the court and the public, and get him to say a few good words for him to his brother-in-law?

Zhang Yanling said, "When I go to Zhejiang, I need someone to accompany me. If Lord Zhu could arrange for someone to help me, that would be wonderful."

Zhu Yi laughed and said, "His Majesty has already issued the decree, and besides, we are all family. How can we be so formal? Did you hear that? When you go back, tell my son to come and accompany my nephew Zhang on his trip."

"If there's anything that needs assistance in Yingtian Prefecture, have him coordinate it! This is an imperial envoy, so make sure he's on his best!"

(End of this chapter)