Hot flashes

The next day, a different storyteller was used.

The man was talking about current affairs. Suddenly, the conversation veered towards the money exchange.

"...Do you all know which is the largest money exchange in Jiangling City?"

Someone below chimed in, "Guangjuhao, I guess."

The storyteller slammed his gavel: "That's right. Guangju Bank has been open for thirty years, and every household deposits money there. But do you all know that Guangju Bank has been acting a little strange lately?"

The room fell silent.

The storyteller lowered his voice: "I have a friend who runs a shop next to Guangjuhao."

He said that for the past two weeks, the back door of Guangjuhao had been constantly filled with members of the Xie family. The boxes they carried in were heavy, but the boxes they carried out were light. "Just think about it," he said, "what was inside those boxes?"

Someone said, "It's silver."

The storyteller said, "What was carried in was silver, but what was carried out?"

The man froze.

The storyteller said, "My friend secretly counted. In the past half month, he carried in more than thirty boxes and carried out more than twenty."

More than twenty boxes, what were they filled with? Think about it, if it was silver, how could it be so heavy to carry in but so light to carry out?

A buzz of discussion arose from below.

Someone said, "Are you saying that the Xie family took away the silver from Guangjuhao?"

The storyteller didn't answer, only saying, "I didn't say anything. I was just telling a story."

He patted the gavel and then changed the subject.

That night, the news spread throughout half of Jiangling City.

The next day, the number of people at the entrance of Guangjuhao was 30% higher than usual.

They were all there to inquire. Some said they wanted to withdraw some money, some said they wanted to deposit some money, and some just stood at the door watching without saying anything. The clerk at the counter was so busy he barely had time to breathe, but he still had to keep a smile on his face.

Accountant Feng stood behind the counter, his hands on an abacus, his forehead covered in sweat.

On the third day, they changed the storyteller again.

This is about a murder case that occurred in the south of the city a few years ago.

"Do you all remember that three years ago, in Liujiazhuang, south of the city, there was a tenant farmer surnamed Zhou whose entire family of five died overnight?"

Someone below said, "I remember, it was said to be a fire."

The storyteller shook his head.

"A fire? Think about it, a fire could kill five people, and not a single one of them could escape?"

The room fell silent.

The storyteller said, "I have a friend who used to work in the county government. He said the fire started suspiciously. The Zhou couple had injuries. The coroner examined them and found they had been beaten. Of the three children, two burned to death, and one... was strangled to death."

Someone below gasped.

The storyteller continued.

"Whose land did Zhou, the tenant farmer, rent before his death?"

No one spoke.

The storyteller himself answered, "It's Liu the rich man's son. Who does Liu the rich man work for? The Xie family."

It became even quieter downstairs.

The storyteller said, "The case was reported, and the magistrate said it was a fire. The victim had no one to sue, so the matter was closed. But think about it, everyone, those three children, the oldest was only eight, the youngest three. Who did they offend to deserve being strangled?"

The teahouse was so quiet you could hear the crackling of the charcoal fire.

The storyteller sighed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, there are some things in this world that we can't see, we dare not see. But does not seeing them mean they don't exist?"

He patted the gavel, and the proceedings ended.

That night, the whole of Jiangling City was talking about that old case.

Some said they had heard about what happened back then. Some said that Liu the landlord was still alive, still a lackey of the Xie family. Some said that if Zhou the tenant farmer were alive today, he would have children going to school by now.

On the fourth day, a queue formed at the entrance of Guangjuhao.

It's not for depositing money, it's for withdrawing money.

Dozens of people stood at the door, clutching silver notes, waiting to exchange them for silver. The clerk at the counter came out and said that there wasn't enough cash in the vault today, and asked everyone to come back tomorrow.

Someone in the crowd shouted, "You said it wasn't enough yesterday, and you still say it's not enough today? Is the treasury empty?"

After those words were spoken, the line grew even longer.

On the fifth day, the queue stretched from the entrance of Guangjuhao all the way to the street corner.

On the sixth day, the line stretched to the street corner.

On the seventh day, Zhou Heng was sitting in the school when Chen Shen came in to deliver a message.

"Young master, Guangju Ship can't hold on any longer."

Zhou Heng raised his head.

Chen Shen said, "The Xie family sent someone to deliver the silver, but it was intercepted before it reached its destination."

Zhou Heng was stunned for a moment.

"Sniped it?"

Chen Shen nodded and lowered his voice: "It's people from the governor's office. They said they received a report of smuggling silver and detained it for inspection."

Zhou Heng remained silent for a while.

He lowered his head and chuckled softly.

"Young master?"

Zhou Heng raised his head, something flashing in his eyes.

"It's nothing," he said. "Keep watching."

Chen Shen responded and turned to leave.

Xie Mansion.

Xie Xun sat in his study, listening to the reports from his subordinates, his face growing increasingly grim.

"...The governor's office said someone reported it, so they detained it for inspection. By the time the investigation was completed, the silver would have already been..."

Xie Xun raised his hand, and the man shut up.

The study remained quiet for a long time.

Xie Xun's second son, Xie Cong, stood to the side, his face ashen.

"Father, Zhou Heng is going too far!"

Xie Xun remained silent.

Xie Cong continued, "A mere Hanlin scholar, relying on His Majesty's favor, is stirring up trouble in Jiangling. He's setting up schools, printing textbooks, bribing storytellers, and inciting the people to run on banks—Father, if this continues, the Xie family's century-old legacy will be ruined in his hands!"

Xie Xun remained silent.

Xie Cong stepped forward and lowered his voice: "Father, I have an idea."

Xie Xun raised his eyelids and looked at him.

Xie Cong said, "Zhou Heng only has a few guards around him. The men we employ aren't just sitting around doing nothing. Let's take advantage of the night and go all out—"

Xie Xun finally spoke.

"You want to kill a high-ranking official of the imperial court?"

Xie Cong was taken aback.

Xie Xun looked at him, his gaze filled with many things.

"Do you think this is the previous dynasty?" he said. "Do you think the one sitting on the dragon throne is some pushover like the late emperor?"

Xie Cong said, "But what about Zhou Heng—"

"Then Zhou Heng," Xie Xun interrupted him, "is His Majesty's man."

Xie Cong was stunned.

Xie Xun stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to him.

"Do you think Zhou Heng handled the money exchange business alone?" he said. "Do you think Zhou Heng could mobilize those people in the governor's office?"

Xie Cong's expression changed, and he remained silent for a long time.

Then he spoke, his voice even lower.

"Father, if it really is that person... then is there any hope for the Xie family?"

Xie Xun remained silent.

Outside the window, the sky was heavily overcast, as if it were about to snow.