Gou Zai Xianwu Wenjing Search for Opportunities

Finally, Lin Yuan inquired about the location of Zhao Jingang and the others' corpses, as he had a mirror that could be used to find the spirits and gather intelligence.

It's highly likely that Zhao Jingang has some silver hidden away. If we could find out where the dirty silver is, that would be excellent.

"After Zhao Daniu and the others were interrogated by the Zhang family, they committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Their bodies, along with Zhao Jingang's, were taken to the county government office. First, the coroner examined the bodies and registered them, then they were sent to the prefectural government for approval, and finally they were buried in a mass grave outside the city." Li Shi hiccuped.

"I see, thank you, Tingzuo." Lin Yuan saw that the corpse was in the county government's coroner's office, where there were yamen runners guarding it, and immediately lost interest in going over to take a look.

However, Li Shi's words reminded him that if he wanted to find a wandering spirit, he could go to a mass grave.

There is a mass burial site in Taoli Township, located on Yuxu Mountain across the Lishui River.

As for the mass graves outside the county town, they are too far away, and it would take a whole day to travel back and forth. As a thin and weak scholar, it is obviously inconvenient for him to go that far.

"We're both students of Third Uncle, so from now on you can just call me Senior Brother!" Li Shi said happily, putting his arm around Lin Yuan's shoulder.

"Senior Brother!" Lin Yuan immediately acknowledged a senior brother.

"it is good."

Master Xu watched the two getting close with a smile.

In the afternoon, everyone dispersed.

Lin Yuan returned to the woodshed alone.

With five taels of silver, I can rent Yingniang's house and retrieve the wine jar.

Now that Manager Zhang's case has been settled, the perpetrator has been caught and killed, and the Zhang and Li families have given up. The county government was already too lazy to touch the Hou family's case, so it will definitely not investigate it again.

Since there are no other variables, let's choose a date to start digging!

The beginning of autumn in July has arrived, but the lingering heat of late summer is still unbearable.

The floodwaters of Yuanhu Lake have begun to recede, and people along the Lishui River are hoping that the water level will drop soon.

Early that morning.

Zhao Gou'er ran over early and followed Lin Yuan to Red Willow Lane.

Lin Yuan told Master Xu about the house rental, and Master Xu granted him two days off.

Lin Yuan had arranged to meet with Shopkeeper Sun in advance for today. Worried about being ripped off, he asked Zhao Gou'er to help him save face. He didn't expect to be able to lower the price; he just wanted to avoid being overcharged.

Actually, he wanted to find his senior brother Li Shi, but Li Shi was just a minor official, so how could he be asked to do such a small thing for him?

Zhao Gou'er brought two guards with swords and bows with him this time. The four of them walked on the street, and it was truly a place that idlers would avoid.

Sun, the owner of the tea stall, was already waiting there. When he saw this group of people arrive, he instinctively ducked his head and looked them over warily. When he recognized them, he immediately forced a smile and said, "Brother Zhao, what brings you here today? Is there business to attend to?"

Zhao Gou'er invited Lin Yuan out and solemnly introduced him, "I'm here with my cousin to rent a side room. Old Sun, I heard you have side rooms for rent?"

Most people in the martial arts world address each other as brothers, but Zhao Gou'er insisted that the seniority should not be confused. So Lin Yuan and Zhao Gou'er addressed each other by their own terms of address. Zhao Gou'er called Lin Yuan "Uncle," while Lin Yuan called Zhao Gou'er "Brother."

"So we're all acquaintances. Why didn't you say so sooner, young man?" Old Sun looked slightly embarrassed and hesitant. "I was just acting as a go-between. You can discuss the details yourselves. Manager Huang is in the house. I'll lead you in."

"Please lead the way, Mr. Sun. If things go smoothly, I will reward you handsomely!" Lin Yuan said, trying to sound like a good person.

"Hey, all right!" Old Sun scurried up and knocked on the door. A servant opened it, and after exchanging a few words, the servant led everyone into the courtyard.

We arrived at the living room of the rear-facing room.

Manager Huang was already waiting. Upon seeing Lin Yuan and the others, he sized them up and finally his gaze fell on Zhao Gou'er. Seeing that he was from Lishui Pavilion, he then served tea to everyone.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, they learned that Manager Huang was a merchant who had just arrived in Taoli Town to sell medicine, and that he was from the prefecture.

"I just rented this house. There aren't many people here; only the main house is occupied, and the east and west wing rooms are empty. If Mr. Lin wants to stay, it's three taels of silver per wing room per year."

The eldest brother worked at the docks carrying sacks for a month, earning only about one or two taels of silver. He often didn't even finish a month's work, and even if he did, the hard work would exhaust him. The rent wasn't cheap.

"Three taels of silver? The whole courtyard on South Street only costs one or two taels of silver to rent, and your single room costs three taels?" Zhao Gou'er's tone was unfriendly.

Manager Huang chuckled, "I've been to South Street, the one you mentioned, but it can't compare to this place. Actually, I wasn't planning on renting it out, but Manager Sun was so eager to introduce me, so I got to meet him. I think Mr. Lin is a refined scholar; he definitely wouldn't rent to anyone else. I'm here to do business, so a little extra won't hurt me!"

After saying that, he served tea to the guest, with an expression that said, "Take it or leave it."

Zhao Gou'er knew that the merchants in Hongliu Lane all had some background, but he couldn't figure out Manager Huang's background for the time being. He planned to go back and inquire, but he didn't dare to use force on the spot, so he looked at Lin Yuan.

Even if it cost five taels of silver, Lin Yuan would still rent it, but he wanted to save some money: "Is a short-term rental possible?"

Shopkeeper Huang chuckled upon hearing this, scrutinizing Lin Yuan with a slightly playful expression: "Half a year?"

"Alright." Lin Yuan then asked, "May I choose a private room?"

"Go."

Immediately, Lin Yuan led Zhao Gou'er through the hanging flower gate into the backyard. They walked around and looked around, and soon found the location where Manager Zhang had buried the wine jars. It was in the outhouse north of the west wing, with a high wall behind it. The location was between the two.

Everything was as before, just like the scene in the mirror.

Lin Yuan made a decision immediately and returned to the back room to see Manager Huang.

"Let's draw up a written agreement!" Zhao Gou'er said first.

"As it should be."

The two parties immediately wrote a written agreement, agreeing to pay six months' rent as deposit and six months' rent as payment, and signed their names.

Lin Yuan handed over the silver, and Manager Huang had his servant weigh out three taels of silver.

After the transaction was completed, each person kept a copy of the receipt, and Manager Huang explained the relevant matters to Lin Yuan.

As they were leaving, Lin Yuan gave the shopkeeper five qian of silver as a token of his gratitude. The shopkeeper was extremely grateful and treated everyone to a bowl of coarse tea.

The brokerage fee is usually about half of the first year's rent.

However, the broker's introduction is considered to have a guarantee. The shopkeeper Sun would definitely not get that much if he introduced it privately. In addition, with Zhao Gou'er involved, five qian of silver is actually quite a lot.

Leave the tea stall.

Zhao Gou'er sighed, "Brother Lin, I just gave Old Sun too much money. Even if I don't give him a single cent, what can he do? I tried to signal to you, but you ignored me."

"I promised him before, so it's not right to take advantage of him for nothing. With you guys here, I can naturally give him less, or even refuse to give him anything at all. But he will definitely resent it. This guy lives diagonally across the street from me, and he can see me coming and going from my house. If he finds a loophole in my plan, that would be bad." Lin Yuan, who wanted to befriend Zhao Gou'er, added a few more words of explanation.

"Oh." Zhao Gou'er seemed thoughtful, but still felt that Lin Yuan was timid and afraid of trouble.

Lin Yuan saw through his thoughts and said no more. Zhao Gou'er had his uncle Tingzuo as a backer, so he could treat Shopkeeper Sun as he pleased and was not afraid of retaliation. But he himself did not have that.

As for the favors from Master Xu and Li Shi, they can only be used for important matters.

noon.

Lin Yuan invited Zhao Gou'er and two guards to a small, run-down restaurant. They ordered several dishes, both meat and vegetarian, and drank some cloudy wine, spending five qian and two fen of silver.

The two guards were very satisfied with their meal. They were considered to be performing corvée labor, and the pavilion did not provide meals. They all toasted Lin Yuan.

Even though Zhao Gou'er followed Li Shi for many years, he couldn't eat out every day, especially during these famine years. Half a tael of silver was enough for an ordinary person to live on for a long time. Eating with one's own money and eating with public funds are two different feelings.

Zhao Gou'er said somewhat embarrassedly, "Brother Lin has gone to so much trouble this time!"

"Don't mention it." Lin Yuan didn't mind at all. He would be going to the Li residence to learn martial arts with Zhao Gou'er in the future, and they would need Zhao Gou'er's help. "Did Senior Brother say when we can go to learn martial arts?"

"I heard from my uncle that it'll be in the next couple of days. If I can go, I'll come and call you, and we can go together." Zhao Gou'er was very excited.

"Um."

After the meal, everyone dispersed, and Lin Yuan returned to the Xu family home.

Five taels of silver have been reduced to less than one tael; money really doesn't last long.

He took off his long gown, which had helped him a lot these past few days, and carefully washed and dried it.

Then he packed his bags. He didn't have much stuff, so he finished quickly. He practiced calligraphy in the woodshed for a while, and when school ended, his long gown was almost dry. He then took it off and went to pay his respects to Master Xu.

Master Xu glanced at the long robe Lin Yuan offered, but didn't take it. He smiled and stroked his beard, asking, "Have you rented a house yet?"

"It's rented..." Lin Yuan placed his long robe on the table and briefly recounted what had happened. "I plan to move in later. I'm sorry for causing my mentor trouble during this time."

Upon hearing that it was Hongliu Lane, Master Xu narrowed his eyes slightly and glanced at him a few more times: "If you don't like living outside, you can always come back. Take these clothes and wear them. Xu Shan has plenty of clothes, one more won't make a difference."

A silk robe costs several dozen taels of silver, while this cotton and linen robe, though not as expensive, still costs several taels of silver.

"Thank you very much, Master!" Lin Yuan said without being polite, though he was a little unaccustomed to Master Xu's increasingly generous attitude.