In order to repay Han Xiufeng's favor for buying the original yard, Fugui spent his own money to treat the tax collectors to a drink last night. He made an agreement with all the tax collectors and saw shopkeeper Chu and Yu Youfu arriving outside Chongwen Gate with six carts.

He winked at the tax collectors he was close to, and then took the family members of the general office committee members to have a drink. The tax collectors understood and pretended to search, asked for two hundred taels of silver, and gave them a tax stamp of twenty taels.

Just like that, the shopkeeper and others entered the city with several large carts of luggage.

Han Xiufeng accompanied Duan Dazhang and followed closely. The tax collectors surrounded the carriage and pretended to search for half a stick of incense before letting them go with a stack of banknotes given by Duan Dazhang without even giving them a tax stamp.

Duan Dazhang didn't expect it to go so smoothly. He looked back in the direction of Chongwenmen and asked with a smile: "Zhixing, your friend helped me save two or three thousand taels. I can't let his help go to waste. Do you want to give me a few hundred taels?"

?”

If it were anyone else, Han Xiufeng would definitely say yes.

After all, I helped save two to three thousand taels of silver. It is natural to give three to four hundred taels of silver. But no one knows whether it has been given to the rich or not. If you don’t make money, you will not make it in vain. But the person in front of you is not someone else, but a real person.

He is a fellow countryman and the one with the greatest official achievements.

Han Xiufeng was devoted to flattery, so naturally he would not earn this money, so he smiled and said: "No need."

Duan Dazhang muttered: "I'm sorry, why don't you ask others to do things for you in the future?"

"Mr. Duan, you really don't need it." Han Xiufeng looked back behind him and explained: "Firstly, he owed me a favor, and secondly, you have already given me two thousand taels just now, and the only thing you want to see in Beijing is

He and the tax collectors just now knew about it, so they didn't have to divide the two thousand taels just now with the family members of the general office committee member and another assistant committee member."

Duan Dazhang thought to himself that the little fellow in front of him was really an honest person, so he nodded slightly and said nothing more.

…

When a foreign official comes to Beijing for an audience, he must first go to the External Affairs Office located inside the Jingyun Gate of the Imperial Palace to submit an invitation and inform the emperor that he has arrived in the capital, where he is staying, and is waiting for the emperor's summons, so Duan Dazhang asked Han Xiufeng to take the seat on the first floor.

The friends in the two carriages returned to the guild hall first.

Duan Dazhang had been a Hanlin official for more than ten years and was very familiar with the capital. Han Xiufeng had nothing to worry about and couldn't help him. He simply went back to the guild hall to settle his friends and accompanying officials, and asked Pan Er and Datou to quickly prepare the banquet.

To help him catch the wind, Yu Youfu was asked to quickly call Huang Zhongyin, Ji Yunfei and Ao Tongchen. The other fellow villagers in Beijing did not call out for the time being, because if He Heng and the others rushed back, Duan Dazhang, who was already tired from the long journey, would be overwhelmed.

When Duan Dazhang handed over his invitation to An Zhe and came to the guild hall, Huang Zhongyin, Ji Yunfei and Ao Tongxian had been waiting for a long time, and they all stood in front of the gate to greet him.

Duan Dazhang and Huang Zhongyin were both fellow townsmen of Ba County and classmates of Lishi Academy. It can be said that they grew up together when they were young. They reunited after a long separation and were so affectionate that even Ji Yunfei and Ao Tongxian couldn't get a word in. People are precious.

Knowing himself, Han Xiufeng would not be stupid enough to move forward. Seeing that the banquet was not ready yet, he apologized to everyone and then went to the kitchen in the backyard to help.

While reminiscing with Huang Zhongyin and others, Duan Dazhang, accompanied by Huang Zhongyin and Ji Yunfei, walked around in and out, returned to the main hall and sat down, holding tea and said with a smile: "Yong Ming, Bowen, I have been

I thought it was just for repairs, but I didn’t expect that you actually carried out a large-scale construction project and rebuilt the entire old building, and built it so magnificently!”

Huang Zhongyin smiled bitterly and said, "I feel ashamed to say it. We really didn't put much effort into the renovation of the guild hall, and we didn't make much effort. We don't dare to take credit. All this was done by Zhixing."

"Is it all done by Zhixing alone?"

"Why are you lying to me?" Huang Zhongyin put down the tea cup and pointed at Ji Yunfei: "If you don't believe me, ask Bowen. Bowen knows best."

Duan Dazhang felt a little unbelievable and subconsciously asked: "Bowen, it hasn't been long since Zhixing took over from Fei Er, right?"

Ji Yunfei smiled and confirmed: "Zhixing has not been in charge of this job for a long time, but as Brother Yongzhen said, the renovation and expansion of the guild hall were all handled by Zhixing. Brother Zhuo Yun, don't look at him. He is only twenty this year.

Second, he does everything smoothly, otherwise Mr. Gu wouldn't think so highly of him. Tell me, you won't believe it. The building of the guild hall, including the addition of these tables, chairs, benches and a set of utensils, only used a total of more than four thousand taels of silver, including

Buy the yard next to the old building, which is the place below us."

"It only cost more than four thousand taels!" Duan Dazhang was doubtful.

"How the donated money was spent, how the new museum was built, and I remember every detail on the credit record clearly. If you don't believe me, you have to flip through the credit record." Looking at Duan Dazhang's incredulous look, Ji

Yunfei said regretfully: "Zhixing is an upright person and hard-working, but unfortunately he is a cold-blooded person. No one was willing to give him a guarantee when he was young. No matter how good he was at school, he could not get any honors. He had to drop out of school to help in the yamen. Later, he thought about it.

Unwilling to be reconciled, he donated a job as an alternate inspection officer. This job was forced by the second master to do it. Others didn’t know that I knew it. When he first took over the club, not only did he not have even a penny in the public account, but he owed the second master dozens of dollars.

Two pieces of silver."

"Zhixing is indeed a talented person, but it's a pity that he can't take the right path." Huang Zhongyin has been coming to the club frequently these days, and he also thinks the four Han people are good.

After hearing what his two friends said and thinking about entering the city, Duan Dazhang couldn't help but smile and said: "I believe that Han Zhixing is quite good. He gave me a gift of three thousand taels before I even entered the city."

"Brother Zhuo Yun, are you kidding?" Ji Yunfei felt very strange, put down his cup and said with a smile: "I know his family background, his family background is really ordinary. From the time he came to Beijing last year to now, he has not even had one

I haven't seen him buy any new clothes. He lives frugally on weekdays, so how can he have three thousand taels of silver to honor you."

"Do you think I'm joking?"

Duan Dazhang also put down his tea cup and vividly talked about how Han Xiufeng helped him sneak into the city.

Ji Yunfei suddenly realized it and laughed: "It turns out I saved you three thousand taels!"

"Not only did he save me three thousand taels, I asked him if he wanted to give a few hundred taels to thank the Chongwenmen tax collector, and he actually said no. Tell me, he didn't even want any money, so how could I repay this favor?

"

"Zhuo Yun, you are overthinking. Zhi Xing is such a person." Ji Yunfei didn't find it strange at all and couldn't help laughing and said: "Although Zhi Xing hasn't read many books, he knows that a gentleman loves money and gets it in the right way.

You know the truth. Qian Junchen, once a creditor came to his door. Zhixing saw that he was pitiful and helped him pay back dozens of taels of silver. He then gave Zhixing a bracelet that was almost stolen by the creditor.

, I thought the bracelet was not worth a few cents and didn’t plan to take it, and I didn’t plan to pay back the money I owed Zhixing. Later, Zhixing found out that the bracelet was worth hundreds of taels, so he returned the bracelet to him."

Huang Zhongyin heard about this for the first time, and subconsciously asked: "Where are the dozens of taels of silver? Did Qian Junchen pay it back in the end?"

"I paid it back, but the dozens of taels that I paid back were the profits Zhixing helped him earn."

"Can Qian Junchen's calligraphy still be sold for money?"

"So it means that he hasn't returned it yet." Ji Yunfei smiled and said: "The most annoying thing is that in order to seek the appointment of Enke and the examiner this year, he actually sold the ancestral bracelet again.

It’s really a waste of Zhixing’s good intentions.”
Chapter completed!