Chapter 88

Chapter 88: The Dandies Left the Capital

Shang Xing Yu raised his brows and said, “How is it any different? You do not even have to pay silver. If it works, you will bring glory to the family. If it fails, the worst is that we earn a little less silver.”

One of them hesitated and asked, “This- Shang Er, are you serious?”

Shang Xing Yu leaned back and said, “We have nothing better to do anyway. Why not try?”

Another person slapped his thigh and said, “Then we will try!”

After a quick discussion, they decided to agree. In any case, they still owed Princess Qing Ning a favor.

If they really pulled it off, they would not just be able to hold their heads high at home. Even among all the young talents in the capital city, they would have a name worth mentioning. They would have a whole kingdom’s economic lifeline in their hands. Looking across the capital city, who else could do what they did? The more they thought about it, the more excited they became.

Shang Xing Yu spoke at once, “Words mean nothing. We will put it in writing.” He immediately ordered someone outside to bring paper and a brush.

The servant boy felt puzzled. Since when did these dandies need paper and a brush while drinking and having fun? Could it be true, like the rumors said, that they had turned over a new leaf? He did not dare ask, so he honestly brought the writing tools in.

Shang Xing Yu quickly drafted the agreement he had already thought through. There were five copies, one for each person. He had originally taken two shares of profit from Sheng Zhi Wan, but now he kept only one share for himself and gave the remaining share to Ye Rong and the other three.

Ye Rong and the others did not mind. They were not paying any silver, and all they had to do was provide people. In fact, even for that, they did not really know what they could do. Being able to split one share of profit was already a huge bargain.

If everything went the way Princess Qing Ning planned, it would not be as simple as tens of thousands of taels. They watched Shang Xing Yu sign his name on the agreement and press his handprint, so serious and careful that their playful mood also turned solemn.

After fooling around for so many years, they suddenly felt that, once they changed, they could actually plan for something big. Each of them held his own copy of the agreement, and when they wrote their names and pressed their handprints, a fierce pride rose in their chests, like the heroic feeling they had when they killed those mountain bandits.

Shang Xing Yu said, “What we talked about today is known only to the five of us here, plus Princess Qing Ning. I will speak plainly first. If anyone dares to leak it, we will split his share of profit among ourselves.” He looked hard at Zhou Yu Zheng. “Especially you. Do not go telling your father everything he asks.”

Zhou Yu Zheng swallowed and said, “I-I understand.”

Shang Xing Yu snorted. “Fine. If you really do blab and ruin the Princess’s chance to make silver, heh. Who knows whether it will even drag down your father.”

With Shang Xing Yu’s carrot and stick, Zhou Yu Zheng did not dare take it lightly. He nodded so hard it was like pounding garlic, just short of swearing to the heavens that he would keep his mouth shut.

Two days later, a merchant caravan of fewer than a hundred people left the capital city without a sound.

Zhou Yu Zheng lay in a spacious, luxurious carriage in merchant clothes, along with Ye Rong, Pei Yu An, and Shang Xiu Yuan. Zhou Yu Zheng cursed under his breath and said, “Damn it. This is the first time this Young Master has ever traveled this far. We are even leaving Sheng Kingdom. Do you think my father will send people after us once he finds out?”

Ye Rong said, “Probably not. We used to go to the estate for a month or two at a time. Besides, we left a letter this time.”

Zhou Yu Zheng’s face turned pale. “How is that the same? This time we are not going to the estate. And we never stole an official seal and stamped blank paper before.”

The carriage fell silent for a moment.

Pei Yu An laughed and said, “What are you afraid of? We did not even use it. It is just in case of emergencies. If we move fast, we might be back in a month or two. When we bring back piles of silver, see if your father still dares to whip you.”

Zhou Yu Zheng nodded, still nervous but also full of anticipation. “That is true.”

Back in the capital city, servants in several residences gradually found the letters their own Young Masters had left behind. They stared at the empty rooms for a moment, then, as if used to it, delivered the letters to their Masters.

Sure enough, a dandy was still a dandy. After behaving for only a few days, they could not sit still again.

Those confident, eager fathers who had sharpened their knives and prepared to properly teach their sons stared blankly when they saw the letters.

One Master muttered, “Going south to spend a warm winter?”

Another frowned and said, “To Yuan Zhou?”

Pei Ling Yuan’s face darkened as he barked, “That brat!” He was so angry that he immediately started to order the Deputy General to chase them down.

Madam hurried over to block him and cried, “General, General! Yu An’s health has always been poor. Even if General wants to make him practice martial arts, you should wait until spring next year. Besides, letting him go out once will broaden his horizons, will it not? It is better than leaving him in the capital city to cause trouble.”

Madam’s eyes were pleading, and what she said made sense. Pei Ling Yuan’s anger faded by more than half. “Fine. You are right. Let him go out once and treat it as learning something.”

After his anger passed, he could not help worrying again. He wondered whether that boy had brought enough silver.

Similar conversations happened in the Ye, Chen, and Zhou residences. Only the Shang Residence was different.

When Shang Tian Hao saw Shang Xing Yu’s letter, he did not even feel like reading it. Last time, after Shang Xiu Yuan returned from outside, Shang Xiu Yuan had questioned him and asked whether Shang Xing Yu killing the mountain bandits was the reason Shang Tian Hao got the assignment for the Overseas Tea Route.

Shang Tian Hao had not expected that, besides His Majesty and himself, Princess Qing Ning also knew about it, and she had even brought it up to Xiu Yuan. Xiu Yuan lost face, and then Rao’er thought of that damned Qin Meng Cen and fell ill in anger again.

If Shang Tian Hao did not still want the token from the Qin Family Merchants’ Guild, he would have wished Shang Xing Yu would run into an accident and die outside.

Naturally, Shang Tian Hao was even less willing to care where Shang Xing Yu went to cause trouble. He only swept his eyes over the letter and tossed it aside.