Chapter 46

Chapter 46: Do You Want to Come With Me?

The steward had been about to ask why Shen Tang would buy Old Chu—he wasn’t exactly lovable—but the shopkeeper’s talk about “filial devotion” made him understand.

His expression warmed.

“You want Old Chu? Fine. The price is negotiable.” He lowered his voice like he was doing them a favor. “Three taels. How about it?”

The shopkeeper snapped, “Three taels? That’s too expensive!”

The steward clicked his abacus, pulled out a thick, yellowed ledger, and flipped it open. “It was five taels originally. I’m asking three because we’ve worked together for years.”

He jabbed a finger at the page. “Look. When we bought Old Chu, he cost one tael and two qian.”

The shopkeeper scowled. “How can it be that high now?”

“You think five years ago was today’s market?” the steward said with a snort. “These days you can buy a decent-looking maid for two hundred wen if you squeeze hard enough.”

He leaned back, smug. “Back then there wasn’t even a war. Buying a person cost at least five taels. A better one was ten, twenty. Old Chu’s batch had been through plague and could only be sold cheap, and even then it was one tael and two qian.”

In the entertainment quarters, markups were standard—whether it was a registered courtesan or a menial running errands. Three to five times was ordinary.

If it was a top courtesan or a promising favorite, a hundredfold markup wasn’t rare at all. Otherwise, how would they make money?

Old Chu had cost one tael and two qian. Even a “fair” resale should’ve been nearly five taels. Asking three was already generous.

And it wasn’t only for the shopkeeper’s sake.

The steward was a street man—shrewd, greedy, yes, but not without a soft spot. Hearing Shen Tang was redeeming her “grandfather,” his mind immediately spun up a whole tearjerker: fallen fortunes, separated bloodlines, reunion after years, family joy restored.

Old Chu had been in the Moonlight Tower’s back kitchen for five years. Diligent, no mistakes, quick enough with his hands.

Quiet, odd-tempered, not one to flatter or ingratiate—fine. Those were habits, not crimes.

If family had found him and wanted to redeem him, that was Old Chu’s hard days finally ending. A blessing.

No need to block a reunion over a few coins. Better to build a little virtue.

Seeing the shopkeeper hesitate, the steward sighed. “Don’t make this hard for me. If I take too little, I can’t answer to my superiors.”

The shopkeeper knew the price wouldn’t budge. He swallowed his annoyance.

Shen Tang, who’d been silent, reached into her pouch, took out several pieces of broken silver, and set them on the table. “Please weigh it. See if it’s enough.”

Her decisiveness won the steward over.

Filial. Pretty. Kind.

Old Chu would have luck, if nothing else.

The steward weighed the silver. There was a bit extra. He used shears to clip it down until it was exactly three taels, then gathered the shavings. After that, he brought out Old Chu’s indenture contract.

“It’s still early,” he said. “Little lady, do you want to go to the yamen to transfer the registration?”

Shen Tang shook her head. “No.”

The shopkeeper snorted. “He’s her grandfather. Transfer what?”

Shen Tang kept her face still, but inside she winced. Not transferring wasn’t because of any “grandfather” nonsense. It was because she herself wasn’t properly registered either.

Before, they’d only been imagining it. Now they were saying it out loud.

The steward slapped his forehead. “Right. Forgot. Still, later you should find time to get him entered as a free person.”

Shen Tang forced a small nod. “I’ll remember.”

The steward waved someone over. “Go to the back kitchen and call Old Chu. Tell him his granddaughter is here to take him home to enjoy life.”

Whether Old Chu agreed to being sold didn’t seem to matter to anyone.

Shen Tang, at least, intended to cover his food and clothes. She wasn’t some monster who bought people just to grind them down.

So when Elder Chu sat in the back kitchen, numb as he scrubbed last night’s stacked dishes and trays, and heard the shout, his weathered face twisted for an instant.

He grabbed the messenger’s arm. “Who? What granddaughter?”

The messenger laughed. “Your granddaughter came to redeem you and take you out of here. Your bitter days are finally done, old man.”

Elder Chu stood there, blank with confusion.

When he finally met his so-called “granddaughter,” his expression almost broke again.

You were calling this little young lord a granddaughter?

The steward patted Elder Chu’s shoulder, visibly moved. “Old Chu, pack your things and go with your child. Don’t keep your family waiting.”

As if a family reunion were the purest thing left in a rotten world.

Elder Chu’s face stayed stiff.

Shen Tang’s face stayed stiff too.

“I paid the redemption money,” she said. “Do you want to come with me or not?”

Only then did a flicker of guilt stab her. Buying someone without asking first… it really wasn’t respectful.

Elder Chu stared at her. “…You truly mean to take this old man away?”

Shen Tang opened her mouth and, for some reason, felt like she ought to answer carefully.

Then she thought it through. There was only one answer.

She’d paid already. Leaving him behind would be bleeding money.

So she nodded hard. “Yes. Come with me!”

Three taels!

She couldn’t let it vanish into thin air!

All this time she’d been freeloading off Qi Shan’s knowledge and cleverness—she’d never paid even three wen for it. Now she’d thrown down three full taels.

The air went stiff. Awkward.

The shopkeeper smacked his lips, sensing something off. Before he could name it, Elder Chu nodded with calm politeness.

“Very well. Let me pack my clothes. Please wait a moment.”

He turned and went to the back to gather his things.

The shopkeeper leaned toward the steward and muttered, “Did you beat that old man stupid? He looks dazed. Like he’s got some old-age sickness. Taking him home will be a nightmare. He’ll suffer.”

The steward rolled his eyes. “We earn dirty money, not blood money. If someone won’t work, we let them go hungry a meal or two. We don’t beat people for fun.”

He snorted. “Unless they run or steal, of course. Then you have to teach them.”

Old Chu had been obedient since day one. Why would anyone beat him?

—

After Gong Yun Chi finished his medicine and fell asleep, Weng Zhi and Sir Gu left one after the other.

The moment the wooden door closed behind them, Weng Zhi’s whole presence changed. The delicate sharpness of his features hardened into authority.

“I didn’t expect Brother Yun Chi would ever have a day where he answers three questions with ‘I don’t know,’” he said.

He exhaled through his nose. “Since he knows nothing, asking him is pointless. We investigate ourselves.”

He turned slightly. “Sir Gu—have someone keep watch on Shen Tang. If there’s nothing wrong with that person, so much the better.”

His voice stayed cold, almost flat. “The Shen clan had nine clans wrongfully wiped out. Shen Tang and Brother Yun Chi are proof of Zheng Qiao’s tyranny and the people’s loss of faith. When the day comes that we raise troops to punish Zheng Qiao, our cause will be righteous.”

Sir Gu’s eyes narrowed. “And if Shen Tang is a problem?”

“Then remove them,” Weng Zhi said without a flicker. “No loose ends.”

After a beat, he added, “Also—keep an eye out for news of Madam Gong’s fifth-rank grand officer. The moment you hear anything, report it.”

Sir Gu lowered his gaze and clasped his hands. “Understood.”