Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 133: Devoting All My Heart to the King's Order
After hearing Pei Yuan's words, Yue Qingfeng's brain exploded and he got excited. He pulled out the sword in his hand with a "clang" sound.

Pei Yuan saw that the situation was not good, so he hurriedly took Yue Qingfeng away to calm him down.

Then Pei Yuan became depressed.

Why is this guy so difficult to communicate with?

It seems that there is still a long way to go if I want to make Yue Qingfeng my own personal Pikachu.

Pei Yuan has always been generous. He thinks it is not a bad thing to give Yue Qingfeng some time to calm down, so he does not force it.

When I got out of the yard, I saw four people waiting outside.

Pei Yuan called out, and the four of them hurried over and followed him into the courtyard.

Cheng Leixiang was most concerned about this matter, but he was in an awkward position and couldn't ask directly, so he winked at Song Chunniang.

Song Chunniang thought about it and looked at Cheng Leixiang without saying anything.

Cheng Leixiang bowed quickly.

Song Chunniang then asked, "Captain, is it done?"

"No." Pei Yuan shook his head and sighed, "He's like crazy. I guess we have to give him some time."

At this point, Pei Yuan turned around and ordered Cheng Leixiang, "Go get a bucket of drunken shrimps. At least let him know that I mean well. Otherwise, he will have second thoughts. If he gets upset again..."

Cheng Leixiang heard this and said quickly, "I'll go right away."

As soon as Cheng Leixiang left, Song Chunniang said, "This guy is asking for trouble. Everyone in the martial arts world knows that Yue Qingfeng hates the factory guards the most. Since Cheng Leixiang has become a Jinyiwei, why is he still bothering about it?"

Pei Yuan felt that Song Chunniang was just talking nonsense, so he asked, "If it were you, what would you do?"

Song Chunniang didn't care at all. "What else can we do? Cheng Leixiang's world doesn't necessarily have to include Yue Qingfeng, and Yue Qingfeng's world doesn't necessarily have to include Cheng Leixiang. The world is so big, so we can just go our separate ways."

Pei Yuan said, "I plan to subdue Yue Qingfeng. But I am not sure about it now, so I have to wait and see."

Pei Yuan was somewhat confident that Yue Qingfeng would bow down.

Since Yue Qingfeng could be controlled by Lu Ting, it meant that Lu Ting had done the same thing once.

If Yue Qingfeng could compromise the first time, he would surely be able to compromise the second time.

But there is a little trouble here.

When Lu Ting threatened Yue Qingfeng, he must have promised to keep it a secret for him.

Now that even they themselves knew the secret, there was no longer any basis of trust in Yue Qingfeng's promise to them.

So when I called out Yue Jinzhong's name, that guy was so stressed that he wanted to rush over and die together with me.

Pei Yuan thought for a while and was still confident that he could conquer Yue Qingfeng.

Because sometimes, as the poem says, "I am not afraid of being torn to pieces, I just want to leave my innocence in the world."

Yue Qingfeng has been living with dignity like a human being. With his strong self-esteem, how could he let the world know that he was once a eunuch?

As long as he can keep this secret, he can pay any price, even for the slightest hope.

When Cheng Leixiang asked the store to make drunken shrimps, Pei Yuan picked out the live ones and bought them.

He instructed everyone, "I will try again tomorrow morning. If I still can't make him work for me, we won't wait any longer. Let's go to the Suhang Manufacturing Office first."

Naturally, no one had any objection.

Early the next morning, Pei Yuan still asked everyone to move away and released Yue Qingfeng from the iron cage.

This time Yue Qingfeng did not attack immediately. Instead, he looked at Pei Yuan coldly and shouted, "You bastard! What do you want?!"

Pei Yuan saw that Yue Qingfeng was not very polite, so he took him back.

Then he went out and said to everyone, "Let's go, change into official uniforms and go to the Suhang Weaving Factory Office first."

The Suzhou and Hangzhou Manufacturing Office was located in the Tianxin Bridge area of ​​Changzhou County, Suzhou Prefecture.

This is the place responsible for Suzhou weaving, and its status is equivalent to the royal banknote printing factory.

The eunuch in charge of the Suzhou and Hangzhou weaving industry not only had to inspect Suzhou and Hangzhou, but also sometimes served as the tax supervisor of Changzhou and Songjiang. Theoretically, he did not have a fixed office location like an ordinary government office.

Also, because the eunuch Hu, the governor of Suzhou and Hangzhou weaving factory, often heard cases in the building of the East Bureau of Tianxin Bridge, the place was generally called the Governor of Suzhou and Hangzhou Weaving Factory's Yamen.

When they arrived at the place, Pei Yuan took out the official document and asked Cheng Leixiang to hand it over.

The military officer guarding the residence was also a member of the Imperial Guards who were accompanying him on mission. After hearing the reason, he hurriedly reported back.

After a while, the Jinyiwei came out in a hurry and said, "Eunuch Hu wants to see you."

Pei Yuan straightened his clothes and followed the Jinyiwei into the door.

The soldiers guarding outside stopped Cheng Leixiang and others again, saying, "The weaving office is not allowed to bring soldiers in."

Pei Yuan frowned and said unhappily, "There are two Jinyiwei general flags and two Jinyiwei small flags outside. They are all military officers who are here on missions ordered by the king. Which one can't come in?"

The Jinyiwei who delivered the message earlier was slightly surprised. He looked at the bald head of Monk Daigo and felt a little strange.

However, he did not ask in detail and just said, "The two general flags should follow. Not everyone can see Eunuch Hu. The two small flags should stay in the gatehouse and drink tea first."

Pei Yuan had people in his hands, so he was not panicked. Two was enough.

As long as he is under someone's roof, he won't worry about it.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Leixiang and Song Chunniang hurried over and followed Pei Yuan.

The Jinyiwei knew that Eunuch Hu was in a hurry, so he led the way hurriedly.

Song Chunniang muttered in a low voice, "This eunuch is quite arrogant."

Pei Yuan was afraid that she would get into trouble, so he turned around and glared at her, warning her, "Don't talk nonsense. The eunuch who is in charge of the Suhang Textile Factory has the same status as the eunuch who is in charge of the Imperial Household Department, which is almost the same as the second assistant of the cabinet. Watch your tongue."

Song Chunniang stuck out her tongue and said nothing.

Passing by a small gate, a soldier stopped me in front of me, "Waist badge!"

Pei Yuan threw his ivory card over. The soldier took a look and asked, "Deputy Captain Pei Yuan?"

Pei Yuan nodded.

The soldier looked at Pei Yuan for a few times, his eyes fell on the crossbow, "You can't bring weapons."

Pei Yuan hasn't even started dealing with Eunuch Hu yet, so he naturally can't weaken his momentum.

He stared at the soldier and said, "Look carefully, this is an ivory waist badge! I am a captain of the Jinyiwei of the evil-suppressing captaincy. Even if it is the imperial palace, I can enter with a sword and protect the emperor."

After hearing this, the soldier looked at the ivory card for a few seconds and felt a little unsure.

Pei Yuan looked coldly at the Jinyiwei standing beside him, "Should we go ask Eunuch Hu?"

The Jinyiwei was obviously knowledgeable. He went up to take the badge and returned it to Pei Yuan. He then said to the soldier, "The factory and the guards have always been one. Compared to your people in the Beijing camp, maybe Eunuch Hu is more willing to trust Captain Pei."

Pei Yuan looked at the Jinyiwei and saw that he was wearing a cotton armor without patches, so he asked, "Are you a general?"

The Jinyiwei officer was somewhat surprised. He looked down at his uniform and saw that he was no different from an ordinary Jinyiwei soldier. So he asked in astonishment, "Captain Pei, why do you think so?"

Pei Yuan smiled and put away the badge, "Because you at least have the knowledge of a general flag." But he thought to himself, isn't this nonsense?
Isn't it because you are also a general flag that you make such a detailed distinction between the general flag and the small flags?
If you are just a centurion, then those below you are all ants. How can you have the leisure time?

The Jinyiwei chief flag bowed and said, "Captain Pei, please."

Pei Yuan walked in with a knife in hand, and Cheng Leixiang and Song Chunniang behind him also handed over their badges.

The soldier asked the two people's names again. Song Chunniang kept in mind her official status and answered honestly, "Song Tie."

After what happened just now, the soldier no longer cared about the embroidered spring swords on the two men.

Pei Yuan followed the Jinyiwei flag-gatherer and walked around for a while before he found a warm room in the garden behind.

When I got there, there was already a thin old man in casual clothes waiting there.

The general flag of the Jinyiwei introduced, "This is the eunuch Hu who is in charge of the Suhang weaving!"

Pei Yuan hurriedly stepped forward and saluted, "I am Pei Yuan, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei of the Zhenxie Thousand Households, and I am here to see Eunuch Hu."

Eunuch Hu raised his hand and said kindly, "No need to be so polite."

He patted his casual clothes with a smile and said, "We are the supervisors here. Although we call it a government office, we are here to enjoy our retirement. We don't need to go to the government office, and there are no trivial matters to take care of. Captain Pei, don't be so reserved."

Pei Yuan naturally did not dare to treat this eunuch Hu as a freeloader, and quickly flattered him, "Eunuch Hu assists in the finances, comparable to the minister of finance in the palace. How could this humble official not understand the hard work he put in?"

Eunuch Hu laughed out loud, "Okay, it makes me feel comfortable just listening to it."

Pei Yuan felt more at ease when he saw that Eunuch Hu had a broad-minded personality and was not difficult to deal with.

Eunuch Hu looked at Pei Yuan again and said, "I have heard about your story. You have done a great job."

Pei Yuan was shocked, not knowing how true or false this was.

Only then did he realize that he had been careless. Could this Eunuch Hu have any connection with Xiao Jing?

Pei Yuan thought about it and answered carefully, "As a soldier directly under the emperor, since I have received the king's order, I can only do my best."

What Pei Yuan wanted to express was also very simple.

They asked me to transport the silver, but the court said that it’s okay for you to use tricks, but you can’t be shameless!
Eunuch Hu praised, "It's good to do your best."

Then he continued, "I heard from Lu Ting that you guys made peace?"

Lu Ting?

Pei Yuan thought about it and realized that it was probably because he was delayed for a day because of Yue Qingfeng that Lu Ting's messenger arrived faster than him.

He noticed that Eunuch Hu spoke casually about Lu Ting and wondered if the two men had some friendship.

Right.

There would be no correspondence if there was no friendship.

Pei Yuan thought about the pros and cons, and tried to say something that could be used for both offense and defense. "Eunuch Lu and I are both doing this for official business, and we have no personal grudges, so there is no point in making peace. Moreover, Eunuch Lu saw that I was working hard and admired me very much. He wanted to let me serve under him, but Captain Han did not agree."

Eunuch Hu smiled and said, "He mentioned it to me. He also asked me if I wanted to return to the court to be a real official. However, although he is smart, he can't understand it."

Eunuch Hu took the opportunity to ask directly, "Are you here to collect tax silver this time?"

Pei Yuan saw that they were talking about serious matters, and he hurriedly said, "My team is still behind. It was Captain Han who reminded me to go to see Eunuch Hu first to ask for some advice, so I went ahead."

Eunuch Hu shook his head and sighed, "I don't have any strategies. What do I know? I have silver here. You can take it away at any time with the official documents. Once you leave this door, it has nothing to do with our family."

Pei Yuan secretly called him an old fox.

Given Eunuch Hu's experience in running the business in Suzhou, it is impossible for him to not understand the ins and outs involved.

But this guy obviously doesn't want to get involved in any muddy water.

Pei Yuan was a little disappointed, and then said, "I came here to talk about the silver."

Eunuch Hu smiled and said, "As for matters related to the escort of silver this time, feel free to ask. We will not hesitate to do anything that His Majesty asks us to do."

Pei Yuan said, "I want to see the size of the silver, what it is stored in, and how much space it takes up, so that I can arrange for its transportation."

Eunuch Hu thought for a moment and said, "That's exactly what should be done."

After that, he said, "Then follow me, I will take you to the treasury to have a look."

Pei Yuan hurriedly said respectfully, "There is no need to trouble Eunuch Hu, just find a few people to accompany you."

Eunuch Hu waved his hand and said, "I have nothing to do anyway, so I'll just use this as a way to kill time."

As he spoke, he put his hands behind his back and walked slowly forward.

Several young and strong eunuchs immediately came out from the hall next to them and followed Eunuch Hu.

Pei Yuan originally planned to do something with the silver when he looked at it later and steal a piece of it to take out, but he didn't expect that Eunuch Hu would go there in person.

He gestured to Cheng Leixiang and Song Chunniang and asked them to follow him.

Pei Yuan followed Eunuch Hu, looking around as he walked.

This building is said to be a government office, but in fact it is just an office area set aside from a weaving and dyeing factory.

There was a large area not far away where noisy sounds were coming from. It should be the weaving and dyeing workshop of the craftsmen.

The relatively heavily guarded house on the other side was the warehouse where silk and cotton fabrics, as well as the silver earned from sales, were stored.

It might be an exaggeration to say that there is a guard post every three steps and a sentry every five steps, but just the doors made Pei Yuan feel that the tightness was a bit outrageous.

Perhaps because he saw Pei Yuan looking around, Eunuch Hu said casually as if chatting with his family, "This is the most important source of income for the palace, so we have to keep a close eye on it. In order to prevent collusion between the inside and the outside, even the soldiers here were specially transferred from the Beijing camp by our family."

Pei Yuan quickly flattered, "My Lord, you are very thoughtful."

Eunuch Hu pointed to a warehouse not far away that was guarded by many soldiers and said, "We're here."

The young and strong eunuchs hurriedly took out a key, unlocked the chain on the door, and pushed the door open with great effort.

Pei Yuan glanced at Eunuch Hu.

Eunuch Hu entered the storeroom first and ordered the eunuchs to open the silver boxes.

The eunuchs took out the keys again, opened the copper locks on the silver boxes, and opened the lids one by one.

Pei Yuan looked around and saw boxes of silver ingots placed in front of him. The shiny silver objects with a dim glow made Pei Yuan's heart surge.

Here is eighty thousand taels!

My eighty thousand taels of silver!

Pei Yuan suppressed his excitement and gestured to Eunuch Hu, "Can I take a look?"

Eunuch Hu raised his hand and said, "Feel free to look at it."

Pei Yuan then stepped forward and took the silver ingot in his hand.

Pei Yuan had been dealing with silver since he was a child, so he could tell that the silver was of high quality. He weighed it in his hand and said hesitantly, "I know this is a bit presumptuous, but this is a serious matter. Can I take out a piece of silver and ask someone to check it?"

"Oh?" Eunuch Hu's eyes fell on the silver, then looked at Pei Yuan, and after a while he said, "Haha, our family only pays the 80,000 taels of silver, and doesn't ask anything else."

(End of this chapter)