Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 751 Market Stall Tax

The shopkeeper was taken aback for a moment, blinked, and then put on a professional smile, asking in return, "And you are, sir?"

He Xiaokui didn't explain much. He simply took the wooden badge that the Sun Moon Bank gave to its employees from his waist and slammed it down on the smooth counter: "The manager should recognize this."

"Bank." The shopkeeper picked up the wooden plaque, turned it over, examined it briefly, and a knowing glint flashed in his eyes. He gently pushed the plaque back in front of He Xiaokui, then opened a drawer under the counter, pulled out a finely printed banknote, and unfolded it before He Xiaokui: "This... is printed by your bank, isn't it?"

He Xiaokui glanced at the bill briefly, nodded, and said, "It's a bill from our bank. What, you've started accepting bank drafts here?"

"Yes. Last month, a regular customer booked several tables at our shop and paid with these banknotes." The shopkeeper nodded with a smile, but his eyes held a complicated expression.

Actually, he really didn't want to accept these banknotes, since they were difficult to spend directly, and even if they could be cashed, it would be an extra hassle. However, the regular customer who booked the banquet was an official, and since the customer insisted on using them to pay the bill, he could only reluctantly "accept" them after receiving a guarantee that they could be cashed.

He Xiaokui casually asked, "Didn't you take it to the bank to exchange it for cash?"

"I exchanged some," the shopkeeper replied with a smile, "but I kept a few." He said a few, but in reality, he only kept this one in his hand.

"So, your establishment trusts our bank after all. Then, manager," He Xiaokui picked up the wooden plaque and hung it back on his waist, "is that Mr. Zhang actually staying here?"

The shopkeeper's smile remained unchanged, but he still blurted out, "May I ask, sir, what business do you have with that Mr. Zhang?"

"Tsk, I say," He Xiaokui frowned slightly, his tone tinged with impatience, "Why are you asking so many questions? Just tell me if he's here or not!"

The innkeeper chuckled and replied indirectly, "Sir, if he hadn't stayed at our inn, I would have shaken my head the moment you asked."

He Xiaokui immediately pressed, "Which room does he usually stay in? I'll go and pay him a visit right now."

The innkeeper remained firm, saying only, "Unfortunately, he's not at the inn right now."

He Xiaokui suddenly became anxious, and his voice involuntarily rose a little: "Didn't you just say that he always stayed at your inn? How come you're saying he's not here now?"

"Oh dear!" the innkeeper exclaimed, slapping his thigh. "It's true he often stays at our inn, but he's definitely out right now! Would I lie to you?"

"He went out," He Xiaokui quickly asked. "Where did he go? He's old."

"I don't know." The innkeeper shook his head with a smile. "We run an inn, how can we question our guests about their whereabouts? Would we even be able to do business?"

"When will he be back?" He Xiaokui asked again, frowning.

The shopkeeper still shook his head.

boom!
He Xiaokui was getting annoyed and couldn't help but slam his hand on the counter: "You don't know this, you don't know that! I'm here on the orders of Eunuch Gao from the bank. I have serious business to discuss with him, I'm not some kind of scoundrel. Why are you so wary of me?"

The slap was quite loud, drawing the attention of several diners at nearby tables. Seeing this, the innkeeper quickly raised his hand in a roundabout gesture to indicate that nothing was amiss. After calming the curious gazes, he turned back to He Xiaokui with a forced smile and said, “Sir, you’ve misunderstood! I had no intention of being suspicious of you! Mr. Zhang really has gone out, and he certainly didn’t specifically tell us when he would return. If you’re not in a hurry, why don’t you have your meal first? Afterwards, please feel free to sit in the dining area and rest your feet. We’ll serve you a pot of fine tea and two small dishes of snacks free of charge, so you can relax while you wait. Is that alright?”

Just then, the waiter came over with a tray. On the tray was a bowl of fragrant braised pork hock, a full earthenware pot of rice, and a pot of wine, which were the dishes He Xiaokui had ordered earlier.

He Xiaokui's stomach rumbled loudly, but his expression softened: "How can I have time to wait here? The bank manager has given me other tasks!"

"In that case..." the shopkeeper continued, "Why don't you tell me the important matter first? When Mr. Zhang returns, I will relay it to you word for word. What do you think?"

He Xiaokui waved his hand, turned around and walked towards the waiter leading him to a seat, leaving behind the words, "Let's talk about it after we eat."

The shopkeeper raised his voice behind him, his enthusiasm undiminished: "Please eat and drink well! If you need anything, just let me know!"

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A moment later, a waiter came out of the kitchen carrying a tray containing the last dish He Xiaokui had ordered—a steaming plate of stir-fried cucumber with pork. Stir-fried dishes, unlike stews, are best eaten fresh, so they take longer to arrive. The waiter was heading straight for He Xiaokui's table when the manager called him back as he passed the counter.

The shopkeeper beckoned to the waiter and pointed to the counter, indicating that he should place the plate on it. The waiter did as instructed, and the shopkeeper then waved him away to attend to other matters.

Then, the shopkeeper turned and opened a ceramic jar in the corner of the counter. He used a wooden spoon to scoop out a full spoonful of stir-fried beans, glistening with oil and exuding a fragrant aroma of salt and pepper, and carefully placed them into a small porcelain dish. He then turned around and scooped out a pot of clear, undiluted wine from a wine jar behind him, which was covered with red paper. He placed the wine and the fragrant stir-fried beans together on a plate containing stir-fried dishes.

After doing all this, the shopkeeper personally picked up the tray, walked around the counter, and headed toward the table where He Xiaokui was sitting alone.

He Xiaokui was engrossed in eating his braised pork hock, but his ears were perked up, listening intently to the conversation between the diners at the next table about Korea and the Beijing garrison. Suddenly, a shadow blocked the sunlight from his view. He looked up and saw the same innkeeper standing in front of him with a tray.

"Sir, here's your stir-fried pork." The innkeeper smiled and first placed the plate of bright green stir-fried vegetables with shredded pork steadily next to the pork hock. Then, he placed the new wine next to the wine that He Xiaokui was drinking.

Looking at the extra pot of wine, He Xiaokui asked in confusion, "Shopkeeper, I only ordered one pot of wine." The shopkeeper didn't answer, but instead smiled and made a "shh" gesture. Then, he placed the plate of glistening, fragrant, and spicy fried beans in front of He Xiaokui.

He Xiaokui was taken aback, then understood, and a smile appeared on his face. He pushed the newly brought wine jug away a little, leaned forward slightly, and asked in a low voice, "Shopkeeper, is there something you want to ask?"

"Hehe, you have a good eye, sir." The innkeeper casually handed the empty plate to a passing waiter, then, without any ceremony, sat down in the empty seat opposite He Xiaokui. He uncorked the fine wine, took an empty bowl from the table, poured himself a full bowl, and then refilled He Xiaokui's bowl. "I have a small matter I'd like to ask you about, sir."

He Xiaokui picked up his wine bowl and took a large gulp, the rich aroma of the wine spreading in his mouth. He then used his chopsticks to pick up a few roasted beans and put them in his mouth, chewing them with a crunching sound: "Just ask away."

The shopkeeper's smile widened, and just as he was about to speak, He Xiaokui slowly added, with a hint of teasing: "But don't get your hopes up too high. As for me, I'm afraid I don't know much about this or that either."

The shopkeeper's smile froze for a moment, looking slightly embarrassed. He quickly explained, "Oh! You're joking, sir. As for what happened with Mr. Zhang, there's really nothing we can do. He's a person specially summoned by the Emperor himself. How could our little shop dare to inquire about his whereabouts? If we offend him, our shop can't afford the consequences."

He Xiaokui grunted and then asked, "What about his family? I can talk to them too."

"Family?" the shopkeeper asked, puzzled. "What family?"

“Tsk. His family members who came to Beijing with him,” He Xiaokui gestured, “such as his personal servants, or his nephews and younger relatives who traveled with him.”

The innkeeper shook his head: "No. He always comes to the capital alone, without even a servant, let alone any nephews or nieces. Even the donkey cart he rides in when he comes to the capital was hired by the post station."

"How could this be?" He Xiaokui was genuinely surprised. "Isn't he the prince's tutor? With such high status, he doesn't even have a servant to attend to him?"

The shopkeeper was taken aback, then lowered his voice and said, "Sir, don't you know? He was exiled for forty years and has only just been released and brought to the capital."

"Exiled for forty years?!" He Xiaokui was taken aback, his voice even changing slightly. Although he worked at a bank, he was ultimately just a low-level waiter. He neither read the official gazette nor paid much attention to current affairs. He knew almost nothing about things that weren't being talked about in the city.

"Yes," the shopkeeper picked up another bean and put it in his mouth, lowering his voice even further, "I heard that the place he was often exiled to was Xuwen, the southernmost point of the world, a place of miasma and suffering!"

"Why were you exiled?" He Xiaokui's curiosity was completely piqued, and he couldn't help but ask.

The shopkeeper felt a sense of unease and couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you a bank clerk? You work for the palace, how come you don't even know this?"

He Xiaokui's face flushed red, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He forced a smile and waved his hand impatiently, saying, "I have so many errands to run around all day long, how can I have time to inquire about these old stories? If you want to talk about it, then talk about it; if you don't, then forget it, I'll ask someone else!"

"Hey, hey, don't be in such a hurry, sir!" The innkeeper quickly stopped him, lowering his voice and saying, "Actually, there's nothing that can't be said. This old Mr. Zhang is actually the second son of Lord Zhang Wenzhong! When the Zhang family suffered misfortune, he was implicated as well. Now that His Majesty is wise and has exonerated the Zhang family, he's come back!"

When Zhang Sixiu was exiled, He Xiaokui wasn't even born yet, and didn't even know who "Lord Zhang Wenzhong" was. But to avoid being looked down upon and suspected again, he immediately nodded in a pretentious manner, forcing a look of sudden realization on his face, and even dragged out an "Oh—": "No wonder! No wonder Lord Gao asked me to inquire about his old house, so that's what happened!"

Following up on the conversation, the shopkeeper asked with a hint of probing, "Are you inquiring about his old house?"

“Yes,” He Xiaokui nodded, “Eunuch Gao asked me to inquire about the location of his old house.”

"What does this mean?" the shopkeeper still didn't quite understand.

He Xiaokui shoveled a mouthful of rice into his mouth, then took a big gulp of wine, wiped his mouth, and speculated with an air of seriousness, "Now that the injustice has been redressed, the palace will probably buy that house back and return it to him."

"Ah, I see!" The shopkeeper nodded in understanding, then eagerly picked up the pot of fine wine and filled He Xiaokui's wine bowl. "When he comes back, I'll keep an eye out for your business and try my best to find out the location of his old house! As soon as I have any news, I'll send someone to inform your business immediately. What do you think?"

He Xiaokui paused for a moment, then chuckled and asked with a touch of worldly shrewdness, "What does the shopkeeper hope to gain by going to so much trouble to help? If he moves to a new place and leaves, won't you lose a distinguished guest who stays here for a long time?"

The innkeeper chuckled and took a sip of his wine: "Hey! What you're saying, sir. We innkeepers are in the business of short stays and quick departures. Even if your esteemed establishment doesn't return the house to him, he'll eventually settle down in the capital and move out. Our humble inn is just doing you a small favor to build a good relationship, so it'll be easier to talk to you in the future! Don't you agree?"

He Xiaokui smiled, said nothing more, picked up a small spoon, scooped up a full spoonful of fragrant salt and pepper beans, and started crunching them. While chewing, he mumbled, "Alright. What do you want to ask, shopkeeper? Tell me now. If I know, I'll definitely tell you."

The shopkeeper had been waiting for this very sentence, so he immediately leaned closer, his tone confident: "Sir, you certainly know!"

"That's not necessarily true." He Xiaokui swallowed the beans in his mouth, took a sip of wine to smooth his mouth, waved his hand and shook his head, saying, "I'm just a servant and errand boy. If you want to ask me about those complicated and important matters from above, I'm afraid I can only make things up for you."

"Oh dear, sir, you've misunderstood!" The shopkeeper quickly waved his hand. "How could a mere shopkeeper like me dare to inquire about what's going on in the sky? I just wanted to ask about the door tax."

"Door tax?" He Xiaokui was taken aback and subconsciously said, "Our bank is a business within the palace, so we don't need to pay door tax."

The shopkeeper couldn't help but roll his eyes inwardly—duh! You don't need to tell me that!
The shopkeeper cursed inwardly, but outwardly he still forced a smile: "I didn't ask whether your bank pays a gate tax. I wanted to inquire about the matter of the gate tax being paid by silver notes instead." He lowered his voice even further, leaning forward to pour wine for He Xiaokui, "Weren't there rumors recently that the gate tax in the capital might be changed to be paid by your bank's silver notes in the future? If this is not a problem, could you please tell me about it, sir? If it is true, it would be good for our shop to be aware and prepare in advance, wouldn't it?"

(End of this chapter)