MLMD – Chapter 9 Selling Gold

Just as Yue Yang stepped through the Gate of Time, far away in a residence within Yingzhou City, a courtyard was also filled with a tense atmosphere. Quite a few servants and maids were hurrying back and forth nervously through the yard.

Inside the main hall at the center of the courtyard, more than a dozen candles as thick as a child’s arm lit the room brightly. An elderly man in his fifties, dressed in a black silk long robe, sat in the seat of honor with his eyes closed, resting. He had a square face and an air of solemn authority; in ancient times, this was the quintessential look of an official. This man was Wang Shoucheng, the current head of the Wang family.

Standing respectfully at his side was Wang Chenglin, the same man who had led people to seize water at the Sanggan River two days earlier. Wang Chenglin no longer had his former dashing appearance. His head was wrapped up like a rice dumpling, medicinal plaster stuck across the bridge of his nose—he looked as miserable as could be.

Wang Shoucheng lifted his teacup, took a sip, and said, “Lin’er, how did the matter I instructed you to handle go?”

Wang Chenglin lowered his head and replied, “Reporting to Father, your son has already sent someone to deliver a note to the prefectural yamen, asking Lord Zheng to help apply pressure on the Yue family, but Lord Zheng has not yet replied. I also made inquiries—after that Yue Yang was taught a lesson by me at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion a few days ago, he lay unconscious at home for a long time and was on the verge of death. But for some unknown reason, he survived. The day before yesterday he even brought a group of mud-legged peasants to make trouble for me—he must have come for revenge! Father, we can’t just let this go. You must avenge me! I want him dead!”

As he spoke the last words, a vicious, venomous look flashed in Wang Chenglin’s eyes, enough to send a chill down one’s spine. It was obvious that he already hated Yue Yang to the bone.

Bang!

Wang Shoucheng slammed the teacup heavily onto the table, the crisp sound startling Wang Chenglin.

“You fool!” Wang Shoucheng glared at him and scolded, “Yesterday’s incident blew up far too much. Our Wang family alone lost twenty-three people, and the Yue family lost three as well. Even Lord Zheng knows about it now. Yesterday, Lord Zheng already sent a note asking me to make a statement on this matter. I’m worrying about how to explain it to him—and here you are still thinking about revenge! Do you think the matter isn’t big enough already?”

Wang Chenglin muttered with his head lowered, “Actually, it’s no big deal. Didn’t just a few mud-legged peasants die? Just give them some silver and send them off, and that’ll be the end of it.”

“Bullshit! If it were that simple, it’d be fine!” Seeing Wang Chenglin’s nonchalant attitude, Wang Shoucheng felt a deep sense of frustration at his son’s uselessness. He pointed at him and cursed, “You—every day all you know is fighting and killing. Have you even thought about this? The Li family and the Lin family are watching from the sidelines, just waiting for us to fight the Yue family to the death. Then they’ll seize the chance to reap the benefits. If we and the Yue family both suffer heavy losses, they won’t hesitate to step on us while we’re down. Do you still want to jump out there and be someone else’s spear?”

“Then what should we do? Am I supposed to just take this beating for nothing?” Wang Chenglin touched his nose and head, which still throbbed faintly with pain, feeling extremely unwilling.

“Hmph, of course not.” Wang Shoucheng sneered. “Do you think my son, Wang Shoucheng’s son, can be beaten for nothing? Once Prefect Zheng applies pressure to the Yue family, I’d like to see whether that old matron of the Yue family is still so stubborn. If she remains so obstinate, we’ll join forces with the Li family and the Lin family to deal with the Yue family. I don’t believe that with the strength of our three families and the support of Prefect Zheng, we still won’t be able to bring down a mere Yue family!”

“Yes! When the time comes, I’ll make that brat Yue Yang wish he were dead!” Wang Chenglin shouted viciously from the side. For someone like him, who had never been beaten since childhood, what happened two days ago was an unbearable humiliation. He, the dignified second young master of the Wang family, had been beaten by the so-called famous weakling of Yingzhou whom he had always looked down upon. This had already become a laughingstock among the major families of Yingzhou City. If he didn’t recover his lost face, he wouldn’t be able to hold his head up in Yingzhou anymore.

Watching his son’s agitated appearance, a trace of helplessness flashed across Wang Shoucheng’s face. He knew his son had been spoiled and arrogant since childhood. Such a blow was indeed hard for him to accept. If he wasn’t allowed to settle this score, he might never get over it for the rest of his life.

Thinking of this, Wang Shoucheng sighed helplessly and said, “Lin’er, you’re already twenty-one this year—it’s time you matured. Look at your elder brother. He’s only three years older than you, yet he’s already a seventh-rank Left Remonstrant Official. And you? Even your xiucai title was something I had to grease many palms to get for you. But what about you? All day long you just call friends, drink wine, and visit brothels. Can’t you do something proper for once?”

“I go to brothels to make connections with people from the Li and Lin families,” Wang Chenglin argued in a low voice. “Getting to know them will benefit me in the future too.”

“You… you!” Wang Shoucheng looked at his still-unrepentant son and could only let out a long sigh, thinking to himself, Forget it. The Wang family is wealthy enough—consider it raising one more idle person.

With that thought, Wang Shoucheng said to Wang Chenglin, “Lin’er, as soon as it’s daylight, take my calling card and go to the Li family and the Lin family. Invite both family heads out. I refuse to believe… that they’re willing to just watch their fields dry up and die…”

As Wang Shoucheng’s words fell, a faint red glow had already appeared on the distant horizon. The sky was beginning to brighten.

Yue Yang knew nothing of the open and hidden struggles unfolding outside. At this moment, he had already changed into modern clothes, carrying a travel bag on his back as he walked along the most prosperous pedestrian street of Pearl City. Only his shoulder-length long hair drew quite a few curious looks.

Although Yue Yang lived in the suburbs—two full hours’ drive from the city center—he could barely be considered a resident of Pearl City. Still, he had never been to this pedestrian street, famed for its sky-high land prices. After all, for a loser like him, this world was far too distant. The price of any random item here was enough to make people like him retreat in fear.

Strolling down the street and looking at the dazzling array of goods, Yue Yang felt a sense of temporal dislocation well up inside him. Just a few hours ago, he had still been in a feudal era regarded by modern people as primitive and backward. Now he was in modern society, watching girls in ultra-short skirts and pencil pants come and go on the street, feeling the prosperity of the modern world. The sensation made him feel as though he were trapped in a dream from which he had not yet awakened.

Suddenly, Yue Yang stopped in his tracks. He glanced at the antique shop beside him with the sign Jubaizhai and, after a moment’s thought, walked toward its entrance.

“Hello, sir. Welcome!”

The moment he stepped inside, Yue Yang heard two pleasant female voices. Two tall female attendants in bright red qipao bowed to him simultaneously. Yue Yang nodded slightly in acknowledgment and walked leisurely toward the main hall opposite.

After entering the luxuriously decorated hall, Yue Yang saw several people dressed in various styles, accompanied by sales associates, examining some of the displayed collectibles. At the very back of the hall stood a large wooden counter, behind which stood a pretty young woman. Without pausing, Yue Yang headed straight toward the counter.

Seeing him approach, a beautiful lobby manager in a black professional suit behind the counter nodded to him, revealing eight pearly-white teeth as she smiled and asked, “Sir, welcome to Jubaizhai. How may I assist you?”

Seeing this, Yue Yang nodded inwardly. For Jubaizhai to reach this level really wasn’t by chance. Earlier, as he walked down the street, his shoulder-length hair had drawn countless strange looks, yet here everyone seemed completely unfazed—clearly a testament to the store’s excellent staff training.

Thump!

Yue Yang set the travel bag on the wooden counter, producing a dull thud, and then said, “I have a batch of gold ingots here, smelted by the imperial court during the Tianqi reign of the Ming dynasty. I wonder if you’re interested.”

Hearing the heavy sound of the bag hitting the counter, a trace of surprise finally appeared in the beautiful manager’s eyes, though it vanished in an instant. Maintaining her smile, she said, “Of course. If the origin of your gold ingots is legitimate and they are indeed from the Tianqi era, we will naturally purchase them and offer you a price satisfactory to both parties. May I ask you to open the travel bag?”

“Of course.”

After receiving confirmation, Yue Yang pulled open the zipper of the travel bag.

Creak—

As the bag opened, a dazzling burst of golden light instantly blinded quite a few eyes. Even several customers who had been browsing elsewhere in the hall were startled; after hesitating briefly, they also walked over.

Yue Yang pointed into the bag and said, “Miss, there are a total of ten gold ingots in my bag, all smelted during the Tianqi era. Each weighs ten taels—converted to modern units, that’s 333 grams each. What price can you offer? And I should remind you: these ingots were specially ordered by the eunuch Wei Zhongxian, who commanded the Imperial Household Department to smelt them to celebrate his fifty-fifth birthday. They even bear auspicious inscriptions. Whether in terms of historical value or aesthetic value, they are extremely high—and there are very few surviving examples. So I hope you can give me a reasonable price.”

As Yue Yang finished speaking, before the beautiful lobby manager could respond, someone beside them stepped forward.