roccoschili #127 - Land in Beijing is expensive
#127 - Land in Beijing is expensive
After washing up, Gu Caiwei had changed back into women's clothing.
She sat on a stone bench in the courtyard and personally prepared tea for Lu Jing.
She took out a tea cake imprinted with a phoenix pattern, crushed it with a tea grinder, and placed it in a tea bowl.
Then, she slowly mixed it with boiling water to form a tea paste.
Next, she added boiled spring water and stirred it with a tea whisk.
Until the tea paste turned milky, and fresh white froth floated to the surface, lingering for a long time, the tea fragrance diffused from the cup.
Only then did Gu Caiwei put down the tea whisk, pick up one of the tea bowls, and offer it to Lu Jing with a smile.
"Come, have a taste. This is Phoenix Cake, specially for the nobles in the palace. It's hard to find even in the capital."
Lu Jing took the tea bowl and took a small sip. As expected, it was clear and refreshing with a long-lasting aftertaste.
Even a northerner like him, who previously just used a thermos with hot water for tea, could taste the tea's extraordinary quality.
"Good tea."
"Even the best tea is no different from ordinary leaves if it doesn't meet someone who understands tea. It's like the flowers in this courtyard. No matter how well they bloom, if no one wants to see them, they're just admiring their own beauty."
Gu Caiwei's gaze towards Lu Jing was ardent.
"I'm not someone who understands tea. I can't even say where this tea is good."
"It doesn't matter, as long as you like to drink it. True affection doesn't need to be spoken," Gu Caiwei said, her eyes sparkling, even more charming than the crabapple flowers in the courtyard.
"Since our parting, two years have unknowingly passed. When I first received Lu Lang's letter, I thought I was dreaming. It wasn't until I read the letter back and forth several times that I couldn't help but cry with joy."
"Afterwards, I sent people to the docks to wait every day. I wasn't lying. When Xiaoqing ran to find me, I was indeed discussing a business deal with someone, but when I heard that Lu Lang had arrived, my heart immediately flew here."
"I no longer had the heart to talk about any business, so I simply postponed that deal and immediately rushed here. I didn't even have time to change my clothes, which led to that little scene at the door."
"You've worked hard," Lu Jing put down the tea bowl. "In such a short period of time, Caiwei, you've bought land for me and helped me purchase medicinal herbs. By the way, how much silver did you spend in total?"
"I have about three thousand taels of silver notes on me. If it's not enough, I also helped the Imperial City Division kill an escaped criminal before, and there's still a reward of five thousand taels to collect…"
"Does Lu Lang still want to be so formal with me?" Before Lu Jing could finish speaking, Gu Caiwei couldn't help but interrupt, "Lu Lang, don't worry. This sum of money isn't much to me now, and these things were originally a meeting gift I prepared for Lu Lang."
"Your meeting gift is a bit too expensive," Lu Jing shook his head. "One thing is one thing. Since I asked you to help, there's no reason to let you spend your own money."
Gu Caiwei bit her lip in grievance upon hearing this.
She didn't say anything, but just looked at Lu Jing with a tearful expression.
After a long while, Lu Jing couldn't hold on any longer and had to concede a step.
"The house counts as your gift to me. I must pay you for the medicine, no matter what. Don't even think about just saying a number to fool me, because I'll definitely have to buy it myself later."
"Four thousand one hundred taels," Gu Caiwei said helplessly, reading the firmness in Lu Jing's eyes.
"So expensive?" Lu Jing was stunned upon hearing this.
He had previously bought half a year's worth of medicine in Wujiang City for only one thousand taels, but now three months' worth of medicine cost more than four thousand taels, which was more than eight times more expensive.
"I asked a few friends who are in the herbal medicine business. They all told me that Fire Lantern Grass and White Eye Silkworm Cocoon were already very tight at the end of last year, and the price has been rising ever since. The stock in various stores is getting less and less."
"It's almost impossible to buy them on the market now. This package was also pieced together with the help of those friends," Gu Caiwei said.
"Alright."
Lu Jing actually knew before that the Hundred Herbs Sect was selling him the last batch of Fire Lantern Grass and White Eye Silkworm Cocoon at the original price because of his reputation.
He just didn't expect that this favor was not small, and was worth at least seven thousand taels.
Thinking about it, he couldn't help but ask again, "Then what about this house?"
"Six thousand seven hundred taels."
"… … … …"
"The saying that land is expensive in the capital has been around for a long time. In the important city, under the double towers, every inch of land is worth the same as gold. Non-relatives of the imperial family have no place to live."
"Not to mention ordinary people, many local officials who come to the capital to take office are also renting houses. Although the imperial court also provides a batch of official residences, it is not enough to distribute. The most famous of these is Lord Qi, the imperial censor."
"Although there is some suspicion of seeking fame, it is indeed a fact that Lord Qi is now a fourth-rank official, and his family has lived in rented housing in the capital for nearly ten years."
"… … Excuse me."
Lu Jing originally thought that he was rich enough now. After all, a net worth of more than seven thousand taels was an unimaginable number for ordinary families. Even in Wujiang City, which was known as the most prosperous place in the world, he could live well as long as he didn't squander it.
"After returning to the capital, I tried to find some connections, but when people saw that I was a woman and a widow, they basically didn't want to pay attention to me anymore. Later, I became a little disheartened and stayed at home for a long time."
"My mother couldn't bear to see it, so she asked me to accompany her to the temple to burn incense and relax. As a result, by chance, I met Princess Fu'an there."
"Princess Fu'an is as gentle as the rumors say. She patiently listened to my difficulties and asked me what I wanted to do. Although she didn't guarantee anything at the time, after confirming that my background was clean and what I said was true, she soon came to my door in person."
"She allowed me to bring her up when I encountered trouble in business in the future, and after I bought the charcoal kiln and burned Red Luo Charcoal, Princess Fu'an also helped me recommend Red Luo Charcoal to the purchasing eunuch in the palace."
"Afterwards, according to the usual practice, I had to give her 30% of the shares, but she didn't want it," Gu Caiwei said with emotion, "No wonder the people in the capital say that Princess Fu'an is a celestial maiden who has descended to earth, beautiful and intelligent, and is the kindest noble in the entire capital."