Chapter 67 Before running away
"You can use these goods to deal with the sales. [Read full text]" Guo Yi instructed, "Check out the gold and silver used for jewelry in the warehouse. If there are any deposits, use these to pay them out first. I will also We will allocate money. You don’t have to worry.”
Shen Fan felt a lot calmer when he said that Guo Dongzhu had prepared money to deal with the bankruptcies. He had attracted many of Zizhenzhai's customers who deposited money. If they were seized, people in the government would always eat the bones but not the dregs. Lord, there is no need to think about taking it back. The face you have gained over the years will be completely lost.
"Artisans everywhere, do you want them to go home?"
"You have to maintain the situation here first." Guo Yi thought for a moment. If he started to dismiss people on a large scale now, it would inevitably make the government suspicious, and they might arrest people in advance. We must maintain the normal business model.
These local craftsmen are just working hard to get paid. Although I am very grateful to such a generous employer as Guo Yi, after all, I am a peripheral within the periphery and know very little about the secrets of Guangzhou Station. Even if they are seized, the government will not do anything to them. There is no need to rush to dismissal.
In order to prevent others from seeing that he was about to leave, Guo Yi went to visit clients in the city in a sedan chair the next day, but few people were willing to see him. Guo Yi just looked at the door and posted a message. He did this just to declare his existence.
After walking around, his luxurious sedan was carried to Ziming Tower. The place was still brightly lit. However, this Guangzhou den, which was once a place of wealth and prosperity, was now deserted, leaving only an empty hall.
Zheng Shangjie and other people who rarely show up on weekdays have withdrawn one after another. Only Pei Lixiu shows up here every day out of boredom. At this moment, she was leaning on Concubine Xiang's couch in the Ming Pavilion on the second floor, drinking alone.
She is a very lively person who loves prosperity. On weekdays, I sit in the pavilion in the middle of the second floor, watching the people coming and going in the lobby downstairs through the thin bamboo curtain, and hear the laughter, the sound of silk and bamboo... all of this is so pleasing to the eye.
Now the lobby is empty, even the ticking sound of the fountain is clear.
Saw Guo Yi arriving. Pei Lixiu greeted him with a big yawn.
"How is it? No guests?"
"No one is there." Pei Lixiu took a sip of kvass. "Only people with money came to the door."
"Can you handle it?"
"No problem. The big households have already taken the money," she said. "The small households can't spend a few taels of silver, and they don't charge interest." She also poured a glass for Guo Yi, "You can drink it too. , you can’t take the kvass away, and if you keep it, it will be an advantage for others, so just drink it all.”
"Although it's like soda, it still has a bit of alcohol, so you'd better drink less." Guo Yi took a sip and realized that it was mixed with rum. "We are ready to escape at any time. How can we get away when we are drunk?" "
"Do you think we can come back?" she asked suddenly.
"As little as three months, as much as half a year, this is still your territory."
"It's been so hard these past six months..." She looked at her red nails and said,
"Why don't you go back to Lingao? I heard that a Lingao version of Ziming Tower will be opened there..."
Pei Lixiu laughed: "Xiao Guo -" she seemed a little unfamiliar with such a title, "Can we still go back? My boxes full of jewelry, dozens of boxes of clothes; your little wife, maid... We are already incompatible with Lingao."
Guo Yi's heart tightened. This was something he had been worried about. He took a sip of kvass and said, "There's no need to think about it this way: at best, we can be regarded as a group of people who got rich first. The executive committee will not fail to understand what we did in Guangzhou..."
"You've been in the agency for too long, and you're talking in an official tone." Pei Lixiu was a little tipsy, "I don't want to go back to Lingao at all..."
"Stop talking nonsense." Guo Yi glanced around nervously. There was no one in the pavilion. "Without Lingao, there would be nothing in Guangzhou. Don't you understand this? Guangzhou is currently in crisis. Do you want to be caught in a cell, eating a board, wearing shackles, and kneeling with chains?"
Pei Lixiu flinched when she said this. She hesitated and said, "No way...I think the officials of the Ming Dynasty are quite graceful, and they are all very considerate."
"If you fall into the hands of the government, you will know how the jailer is." Lianxiangxiyuyi sneered in her heart, let alone the 17th century, even in the 21st century, walking around the dictatorship and drinking a cup of tea is enough for you. What a day pepi In the evening breeze, flowers, snow and moonlight, I forget what era it is.
Guo Yi knew that it was pointless to continue talking to her, but since she was still here and persisted, she could attract the attention of many people and achieve her goal. He took care of Pepi a few more words. Got up and went to the safe house in the back. In the safe house, Xia He is burning documents. He knew that this girl was actually a graduate of the confidential class of the General Administration of Political Security. She had received professional training and was very reliable in her work. He immediately gave her a few more instructions.
At this time, one of his servants who specialized in handling secret matters came and whispered to him: everything is ready. He just arrived at Pei Lixiu's boudoir - several sets of servants' clothes, shoes and hats had been prepared here for him to change into. He also smeared some putty on his face, then quietly opened the secret door in the room, and opened the secret door through a secret Stairs down to the backyard. There were already two security guards sent by Zhang Xin waiting here.
The security personnel of the Guangzhou Station are young people selected from the Qiwei Escort Bureau. After inspection, they secretly went to Lingao for training. In terms of organizational system, it has its own style and has little to do with Qiwei Escort Agency.
The three of them quietly left Ziminglou among a group of waiters and cooks, walked along the back alley to the street, and turned around until they reached an uninhabited place. After confirming that no one was with them, Guo Yicai sat on a car that had already been there for a long time. The sedan is waiting.
In this way, everyone knew that he went to Ziming Tower and spent the night with his concubine. There was no need to go to such trouble in the past, but now he had to be very cautious.
The sedan walked along the small street for a long time and was carried into a dark courtyard. This is a courtyard he originally purchased. When you have confidential matters to deal with, you can have a secret interview with someone here.
Today he has an appointment with Sun Kecheng - Sun Kecheng's Qiwei Escort Agency is one of the pillars of Guangzhou Station. But Qiwei's semi-independent status made Guo Yi greatly worried about their attitude. Although Qiwei's entire finances were controlled by the Guangzhou Station, most of the people inside had not been screened and reviewed by Lingao. He had to guard against Sun Kecheng or his disciples and grandchildren suddenly rebelling and turning to the government - something the Escort Bureau always pretended to do It is a "serious business" and obeys the government's instructions.
He must find out what Sun Kecheng's attitude is today. This is related to future cooperation - on the national layout plan, Qiwei Escort Bureau is also an important part.
Sun Kecheng was already waiting for him in the house. When he saw him coming in disguise, he was suddenly shocked.
"Dr. Guo, has the matter become so urgent?" Sun Kecheng couldn't care less about being polite. The news that the government is going to take action against the Australians has spread.
"We will definitely see the outcome within ten days and a half." Guo Yi did not shy away from what might happen. "Of course I want to avoid the limelight. It's just that the Qiwei Escort Bureau has always had a lot of dealings with us, so I'm afraid it will implicate you." …”
"This doesn't matter. I have my own way." Sun Kecheng waved his hand, "What should you do?"
Seeing that he looked quite sincere, Guo Yi said deliberately: "We are going to hide here for a while."
"Proprietor, don't say such rude words." Sun Kecheng shook his head, "How many people can live in this small courtyard? You have a lot of people. Why not live with me? I have bought a few houses in the countryside earlier. It’s a farm house, it doesn’t matter how many of you live there.”
Guo Yi was noncommittal, saying that there were still many things to take care of, and he might hide here for a while. Wait until the matter is settled before making plans.
"That aside, once the government goes against us, how will you respond?" he asked.
"It doesn't matter. Our escorts in the nursing home are just dealing with rich and powerful people. There is always a little bit of thinness, so there won't be a stalemate. When they took office, the woman collected the money and pointed at us to escort them back home." Sun Ke Chengdao said, "What's the benefit of investigating Qiwei and them? All the money and property in the escort agency belong to others. Do you want the adults to go out as escorts and deliver goods and open an inn?"
"That's right." Guo Yi nodded, "But I'm afraid it won't be so easy to get through the challenge."
"Proprietor, you can rest assured about Qiwei." Sun Kecheng nodded, "Without proprietor, you would have helped us at that time. Qiwei was just a small situation where the family was precarious, and now it has become a big name in Guangzhou. . Hundreds of people live by eating, and Qiwei is always grateful. Although Qiwei dare not violate the king's law, he is not a fool who only knows how to kowtow - we all know what is right and wrong in the world. It seems like..."
Although he understood Sun Kecheng's attitude, and he was quite confident about Sun Kecheng's character, Guo Yi still did not dare to leave the most important part to him for safekeeping - just because he was reliable did not mean that everyone under him could rely on him. After much consideration, he decided to let Sun Kecheng take care of the local craftsmen, and at the same time hide some of the staff and heavy goods transferred from Lingao.
He also asked Sun Kecheng to prepare a secret escape route. The two parties agreed on a secret code so that they could communicate with each other in case they needed to escape.
But when he really had to run away, he still didn't dare to completely trust them. The Foreign Intelligence Service has already called and is preparing to send a response team composed of a mixture of special reconnaissance teams and intelligence personnel to Guangzhou, ready to use force directly to help them escape if necessary.
However, there are no signs of dealing with the seizure of the Guangzhou Station. The Guangzhou government seemed to intend to give Guo Yi and others sufficient time to consider the objects of their donation. They simply ignored the three purple-branded industries. At the same time, there was an endless stream of people from various families coming to discuss their contributions. Tian Da came to urge them almost every day, but Guo Yi simply avoided seeing them.
"Master Tian is here to pay his respects." The person at the door reported to him.
Lu Yizhong was about to go out, but he had to sit down again. He sighed:
"Please quickly"
He has been busy these days with dispatching the army, and he is very busy every day.
After the meeting decided on the strategy for dispatching troops, He Rubin meant to be "cautious". He had worked in Guangdong for many years and knew a little bit about the climate and geography of Hainan. He knew that summer was about to start and faced the problem of the rainy season, and there would be typhoons in early autumn. Therefore, it is recommended that we simply wait until October before setting off. At this time, autumn grain has arrived, and it is convenient to raise food and grass along the way. The autumn weather is crisp and clear, and diseases are less likely to occur when troops are marching and stationed.
But Wang Zunde meant to "fight". At this time, the food and wages for departure had been prepared, and He Rubin could no longer shirk it, so he had to decide to leave some troops in early June.
People outside Guangzhou were shouting, armies from all walks of life were gathering, and there were many military affairs to be handled. Lu Yizhong was already very busy, and he also had to deal with Tian Da who came to him every three to five days to ask him to "transfer the matter of Ziming Tower" It's done." I couldn't help but moan in my heart - I regretted that I shouldn't have done this business. Originally he was more than 90% sure, but as soon as Guo Yi heard the news that the imperial court was going to send troops to Lingao, he would be frightened out of his wits and obediently offer his property to Tian Da. Not only did he please Tian Guozhang, but he could also get a benefit from it - Tian Da had originally promised him a benefit of three thousand taels of silver after his success.
Unexpectedly, Guo Yi refused to take the hard way, and looked like he would fight to the end. Not only were the three stores open for business as usual, but even Tian Da and others saw him once and never saw him again.
Tian Da then came to him from time to time and made noise, asking him to arrest Guo Yi and others immediately. Force him to contribute his property.
The idiot Lu Yizhong cursed secretly after hearing his "high opinion". But I was also helpless - this "idiot" was telling me what to do, and I had to keep smiling.
It's easy to arrest people - he just needs to tell Nanhai County. But if one person is arrested, the property will be sold to the government and it will be sacrificed. As for who will win after becoming an official and selling, that's another matter. After all, Tian Guozhang is far away in Beijing. Not everyone can buy it.
No matter what Lu Yizhong's explanation was, Tian Da always forced him to let go - after all, he was just a slave, relying on the power of the father-in-law and pretending to be powerful, and he had no influence at all in Guangzhou city. It will be difficult for officials to get things done as long as they shirk and muddle through.
Lu Yizhong originally wanted to continue to deal with him, but unexpectedly this person actually made another request:
"I have heard for a long time that Pei Lixiu from Ziminglou is a stunning woman from Australia. In addition to dedicating the property to Guo this time, this woman will also be dedicated to the father-in-law."
Lu Yizhong couldn't laugh or cry, why did he fall in love with someone else's concubine again. He has seen this Pei Lixiu many times. She is already a woman in her mid-twenties. Although she is delicate in appearance, she is a little thicker after all. Just that height makes him much taller than the average man. How could Tian Guozhang be interested in such a barbarian woman? It couldn't be that Tian Da wanted it himself.
Thinking that he was advising on military affairs these days, he actually had to make suggestions for a slave to steal a woman. Lu Yizhong felt great disgust in his heart.
It's absolutely ridiculous
He originally wanted to coax him back after some perfunctory talk. Suddenly he thought: It is not possible to arrest Guo Yi - once he arrests a person, he will lose his property and official position, but it does not matter if he arrests his concubine. No matter what the crime is, he will be arrested and brought back. This is to scare the monkeys and force Guo Yi to sacrifice himself.
As for whether Pei Lixiu will return the property to its original owner in the end, that is none of his business.
"This is easy, it's all on me." Lu Yizhong agreed.
"Seriously?" Tian Da had been coaxed by him many times recently and was very worried about his credibility.
"Seriously." Lu Yizhong nodded, "After three days, I will naturally hand over the person to you. You have this little beauty, and you are afraid that the troubled son Guo Yi will not obediently offer his property? This is his heart and soul."
"Okay, I'll trust you this time." Tian Da slapped the table, "I'll come here in three days to pick up someone." He sneered, "Lu Zanhua, don't break your promise,"
Lu Yizhong beat Tian Da away and immediately wrote a note in the study:
"I'm about to get Pei Shi Lixiu of Ziminglou Guomen, Nanhai County will know" is the monogram written below.
When the ink was dry, he called a servant and ordered him to take it to the Nanhai County Yamen.
That night, Chunliu was taking care of the back door - now the manpower of Ziming Building has been greatly reduced, she had to take care of the back door herself, waiting for information from the traffic officer. Yan Maoda, Zhang Xin and others have all gone underground. However, the communication between them has not been interrupted for a day. The news was all delivered by traffic officers.
The traffic officer is disguised as a hawker carrying a load and selling snacks. He never enters the door. Chunliu knew that this hawker would pass by here every night, but whether there was any message to send depended on the windmill on his load. If it was inserted on the left, there would be no news. If it was inserted on the right, she would buy some food and bring back the secret message to Pei Lixiu.
The vendor just passed by. Chunliu was about to close the door and go to sleep, when suddenly a black shadow hid from the wall. Chunliu had been trained to do this, so he immediately jumped behind the door and called out a coded signal.
"The sky is dry and the things are dry"
The code is a signal to identify the incoming person, and also alerts the security personnel behind the door and in the backyard to be aware of someone approaching.
The person who came didn't respond to the signal, but barged straight to the door. No matter that the door was about to close, he directly stretched his feet in.
"Don't close the door," the visitor shouted urgently.
"Who is it?" Chunliu asked.
"I am - Wu -" The visitor quickly took off the gauze on his face.
"Is it you?" Chunliu almost shouted - isn't this Wu Zhixiang? She quickly gave a signal to the security personnel not to move out.
This Wu Zhixiang is a frequent visitor to Ziminglou. He often comes to Pei Lixiu to show his courtesy, and also deposits a large sum of money in the cabinet of Ziming Tower to collect interest. However, it has been more than a month since he suddenly brought someone to withdraw the money half a month ago.
"What's wrong with you?" Chunliu was in shock: This son of an official and a scholar, what was he doing secretly visiting in the middle of the night wearing such clothes?
"Is Miss Pei here?" he asked without even taking a breath. x! ~!
