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The 8th: Talking about official corruption and embezzlement is a dead end

  A Record of Officialdom

  Here is the translation:

  As they walked into Xihui Fang, Tao Ziyao saw that the alley was bustling with people coming and going, and the sedan chairs were constantly entering and exiting. Wei Fan'an told him, "The women in these sedan chairs are all courtesans who have been invited out for the evening. Just look at how many customers they'll have tonight!" Tao Ziyao listened intently, and suddenly thought back to his days in Shandong Province when he was a minor official relying on his brother-in-law's influence. He would often see high-ranking officials being escorted by their entourages, looking very dignified. When would he ever have such an experience? Now, seeing the sedan chairs of the courtesans, he felt a pang of desire to become an official.

  Tao Ziyao was lost in thought when they arrived at a house with a glass lantern hanging from the eaves and several signboards on the wall with the words "So-and-so's Study" written on them. He couldn't quite remember what it said. The others let him enter first, and he followed them upstairs. Some men downstairs called out, "Guests have arrived!" A group of women came to greet them, asking if they were there for Qiu Laoyi's gathering. When they replied that they were, the women led them in.

  Someone shouted, "Qiu Laoyi has guests!" and Qiu Wukui came out to welcome them. Everyone bowed to him, and Tao Ziyao also made a bow. The hostess asked them to take off their coats and offered tea, water pipes, and hand towels. Mr. Qiu offered them melon seeds, but only Wei Fan'an was familiar with the custom. When he asked Tao Ziyao his surname, Tao replied respectfully, "Tao." Mr. Qiu smiled when he heard this.

  Qiu Wukui then asked everyone to write their invitations. Wei Fan'an volunteered to write for him and first wrote one for Lu Guifang. Liu Zhan'guang said, "Fan'an always calls for that little trickster!" Qiu Wukui said, "Fan'an is indeed a 'drunken gentleman'!" Wei Fan'an ignored everyone else and continued writing, producing three or four more invitations. When he turned around, he asked, "So, Tao, are you going to break your vow or not?" Tao Ziyao replied that he didn't know anyone there who could vouch for him.

  Qiu Wukui said, "My humble abode is at your service, sir. You must grant me the honor of breaking your vow!" Wei Fan'an saw that Tao Ziyao was hesitant and knew that his earlier words had had some effect on him. He suggested, "Since Tao doesn't know anyone here, why don't you, Qiu, vouch for him?" Qiu Wukui agreed and wrote an invitation for a courtesan named Lu Lanfen.

  Tao Ziyao saw that there were over ten invitations on the table but couldn't quite remember how many. He noticed that Liu Zhan'guang had written one for Zhang Shuyu, probably the same person he had met at Yipin Xiang. On the table, there were also some pre-printed invitation cards with phrases like "Flying Invitation to the Honorable Sir (Old Master), please come to Xiaojin's residence in Tong'an Li..." He was amazed and asked, "Who is Xiaojin?" Wei Fan'an told him that she was Qiu Wukui's noble acquaintance. They had met earlier at Yipin Xiang, where Tao Ziyao had been introduced to her, but he had forgotten.

  After a brief moment, the hostess announced that it was time to take their seats. Qiu Wukui invited Tao Ziyao to take the seat of honor, but Tao refused repeatedly. Liu Zhan'guang and Wei Fan'an helped persuade him, saying, "Today is Qiu's special invitation, and we are not worthy of taking your place." They all urged him to sit down, leaving only one seat empty. Tao Ziyao had no choice but to take the seat.

  Qiu Wukui personally poured wine for him, but Tao Ziyao insisted on following official etiquette, standing up to make a bow. Qiu Wukui was taken aback and had to put down the wine jug to return the bow. After everyone had finished their bows, Tao Ziyao insisted on returning the courtesy, pouring wine and making another deep bow, saying "I am not worthy." Only then did he sit down to drink his wine.

  Eight dishes were served at once, and after three rounds of wine, all the invited guests had arrived except for Tao Ziyao's guest. Although he was new to this circle, seeing that everyone else's guests had arrived while his own hadn't, he couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Later when all the dishes were served, the host counted and found that only Xiao Lufei hadn't arrived yet, so he immediately sent someone to hurry her up. After a while, Xiao Lufei arrived and saw Ou Wuke, calling him "Bald Old Master" without using his surname, asking "Which one is Mr. Tao?" Ou Wuke pointed him out, and together with the madam and the gentleman, they came before Tao Ziyao, saying in unison: "Sorry, Mr. Tao!" Tao Ziyao felt a bit displeased when he heard them call someone else "Old Master" while addressing him as "Young Master". Later, seeing Wei Pianren hurry over to address the madam and Ou Wuke as "New Aunt", saying: "This Mr. Tao is from Shandong Province, just arrived today after getting off the boat, please sing a couple more songs for him, tomorrow Mr. Tao will come to your place to invite you out." The madam listened and quickly changed her tone, repeatedly addressing Tao Ziyao as "Mr. Tao", saying "Please don't refuse, Mr. Tao, come over". Several people addressed him with varying degrees of respect, making Tao Ziyao extremely pleased.

  They had a meal of dry and wet rice. After listening to Wei Yuanchen's words, Xiao Lufei and the new aunt-in-law knew that Tao Ziyao was a good guest, so they sat down without leaving. When it was time to clear the table, they insisted on going to his home together. At first, Tao Ziyao refused, but later Wei Yuanchen persuaded him, and the two of them went together, with Tao Ziyao finally agreeing. The new aunt-in-law followed the sedan chair in front, while Tao and Wei walked behind. After turning two corners, they entered a narrow alley with the words "Tongqingli" written above it. They entered the third house, went upstairs, and reached Lufei's room at the top of the stairs. When the two men arrived, Lufei had already been home for some time. The new aunt-in-law busied herself: she brought out a woolen cloak, handed over a handkerchief; offered melon seeds to the master, and prepared water pipes. She called out "Sir" repeatedly, making Tao Ziyao very pleased. Without regard for Wei Yuanchen's presence, he spoke in an official tone, telling the two men about his own experiences in detail. There were also two rough-looking old women in the room who didn't understand what was being said and sat there dozing off. Wei Yuanchen first ate opium on the couch, then fell asleep as well.

  Here is the translation:

  Tao Ziyao was now without any reservations, and his words were full of excitement. All he could hear himself saying was: "We officials, who knows, today we're here, tomorrow we'll be there, it's all about analyzing scientific language logically. They divide propositions into logical and non-logical ones, but we can't control our own fate." The new sister-in-law said: "Then, sir, doing official business is just like selling one's body, isn't it?" Tao Ziyao didn't understand what she meant by "selling one's body". The new sister-in-law explained to him that it was a phrase used in brothels, and he immediately retorted: "Our daughter is the only one who can be called 'miss', how can you call someone in a brothel 'miss'?" The new sister-in-law said: "In Shanghai, we also use 'miss' to refer to prostitutes." Tao Ziyao said: "You're talking nonsense again! We officials are addressed as 'sir', but you people in the brothels are just selling your bodies, how can you compare that to our official business?" The new sister-in-law knew he was ignorant and smiled as she explained to him: "Don't worry about 'sir' or 'miss', it's all about who has control over their own body. If someone is in charge of themselves, then they're not selling their body." Tao Ziyao said: "You're just talking nonsense! Our official positions are bought with silver, we're not selling our bodies like you people in the brothels do!" He was getting angry and his face turned red. The new sister-in-law quickly changed the subject to avoid making him angrier: "Sir, you must be tired from traveling. How many days did it take you to get here? Did your wife come with you? What kind of boat did you take?" She asked these questions because she was afraid that Tao Ziyao's wife might have come with him and would have been in charge. Tao Ziyao saw the question and his anger disappeared, replaced by a smug expression: "Let me tell you, we officials may work hard, but when our luck changes, it's actually quite interesting. I never thought I'd end up in Shanghai." The new sister-in-law asked: "What brought you here? Was it a promotion or just passing through?" Tao Ziyao closed his eyes and smoked his water pipe, ignoring her question. After he finished smoking, the new sister-in-law quickly offered him another pipe. Tao Ziyao finally began to explain: "It's actually quite interesting. On New Year's Day this year, I got up early and worshiped my ancestors, then I asked someone to read my fortune using bone divination." The new sister-in-law asked: "Was it a nine-card reading?" Tao Ziyao scolded her: "Don't talk nonsense!" The new sister-in-law was scared into silence. Tao Ziyao continued: "I've always believed in the 'bone divination numbers'. This is a way of predicting one's fortune using bones, and this time it came out with two 'upper' signs and one 'middle-lower' sign. I remember the poem that came out, let me recite it for you: 'A smooth sail and timely progress, stable crossing of the vast ocean'. The first line is about my official career, and the second line hints at my coming to Shanghai. It's all predetermined by fate, isn't it?"

  Here is the translation:

  The new sister-in-law didn't understand the poem, so she just went along and said: "The most spiritual one is Guanyin. Did you bring this poem to test me? I'll also recite it for my son. My son will be three months old soon, and if he's a boy, he'll have an official career in the future. Don't think about entering the imperial court or becoming a high-ranking official, just being like you is good enough." Tao Ziyao shook his head repeatedly and said: "What nonsense! How can your son also become an official?" The new sister-in-law asked: "Why can't my son become an official?" Tao Ziyao replied: "According to the Qing dynasty's rules, the children of prostitutes, actors, slaves, and soldiers are not allowed to take the imperial examination or become officials." The new sister-in-law said: "I don't understand. My daughter has a son who is considered my elder brother. He used to work as a comprador in a foreign firm. Last year he was appointed as a prefectural magistrate, and recently he was promoted to circuit intendant. He even wears a red hat now, and he's the head of this bureau." Just then, Little Lu Lanfen interrupted: "Auntie, is that old master talking about our family? Last time at old master's birthday party, they called my brother to come and sing, and there were several high-ranking officials with red hats. They said it was to celebrate the birthday in a grand way! Old master also invited us to come and drink wine tomorrow." The new sister-in-law said: "That's right." And then she asked Tao Ziyao: "If my elder brother can become an official, why can't my son? He's just a nephew of his."

  Tao Ziyao listened and was speechless, thinking to himself: "His family has such a wealthy person, I must come up with two sentences to surpass him and save my face." After thinking for half a day, he said: "This time I came, the governor gave me tens of millions of silver dollars and entrusted me to buy machinery. On the day I left, the governor sat in an eight-carriage sedan chair and personally sent me off to the city gate. The officials below the governor's level set up a colorful pavilion ten miles outside the city and waited there to see me off. When I arrived, the governor also rushed over. After discussing official business, he casually pulled out a four-million silver dollar check from the Bank of China from his boot page and entrusted me to go to Shanghai to help him buy four concubines. About one million silver dollars each. If it's not enough, ask me to send a telegram to ask him." New sister-in-law said: "Like Ni Gelanfen, only eight thousand foreign dollars are needed. Tao Daren, why don't you take Ni Gelanfen as your concubine?" Lanfen said: "Ni has the good fortune of being a Gelan!" Tao Ziyao's brother said: "Don't talk like that. As the saying goes: 'Marry a chicken and follow the chicken, marry a dog and follow the dog.' You married our governor as a concubine, we all have to call you Concubine." New sister-in-law said: "With a good heart, entrust Gelan Daren to be the matchmaker!" Lanfen said: "Ni will never forget Gelan. Thank you, Gelan, and I'll repay you later!" Tao Ziyao said: "It's really true, not just pretending." At this point, new sister-in-law specially poured a bowl of tea for him to moisten his mouth.

  Tao Ziyao continued, "I didn't finish what I was saying earlier. After the governor handed me the silver ticket, I put it in my horse coat pocket and got into the sedan chair. The governor wanted to toast again, but I declined repeatedly due to a headache. He led all the officials in shouting 'Bu Long Tong', 'Bu Long Tong' as they saw me off. I returned their bow with a slight inclination of my head. All I could hear was 'Bu Long Tong', 'Bu Long Tong'."

  New Aunt asked, "What's going on?" Tao Ziyao replied, "The soldiers in the camp are firing cannons to send me off, so all I can hear is 'Bu Long Tong', 'Bu Long Tong'." Tao Ziyao spoke with excitement, but didn't notice that Wei Furen had woken up from his nap and was unaware of what he was saying. All he heard was "Bu Long Tong", "Bu Long Tong", so he repeated after him, "Bu Long Tong", "Bu Long Tong".

  Tao Ziyao saw that he was awake and suspected that he might have overheard their conversation earlier. His face turned red with embarrassment, and he muttered to himself, "We were just talking about the camp firing cannons." New Aunt said, "Don't mention the big cannon, it's better not to startle Old Wei." Wei Furen rubbed his eyes, still half asleep, and didn't quite catch what was being said. New Aunt quickly handed him a handkerchief. Lanfen said, "Tao sir said you were startled awake." Tao Ziyao ignored him.

  Wei Huai'an wiped the sweat from his face, took out his watch and looked at it, saying: "It's getting late. Mr. Tao is just going to borrow a bed here for the night, I'm afraid I'll have to take my leave." Tao Ziyao also got up to return to the inn. The new sister-in-law tried to persuade him to stay, but he wanted to leave immediately. The two of them were in a hurry to get back because it was already late. The new sister-in-law and Lanfen saw them off all the way downstairs, opened the door, and watched as they left the alley. Tao Ziyao didn't know the way, so Wei Huai'an walked with him out of the alley, turned onto the stone road, and told Tao Ziyao to head east. They walked straight until they reached the police station, where the south side was Yipinxiang and the north side was Qipan Street, which was very close to Gao Sheng Inn. Tao Ziyao realized that Gao Sheng Inn was actually quite close to Yipinxiang and didn't need to take a rickshaw. Today, he had been cheated by the rickshaw driver and didn't know where they had gone in circles before finally arriving at Yipinxiang. It was clear that people in Shanghai were deceitful and needed to be careful at all times. He thanked Wei Huai'an and bid him farewell. Tao Ziyao returned to the inn with his servant. Wei Huai'an went to spend the night at Old Third's place, but that is not important here.

  The next day, Tao Ziyao slept in until one o'clock and only woke up then. As soon as he got up to wash his face, Wei Huanzhen came to invite him out to eat at the Yangzhou restaurant on the 9th floor of the Juhua Building. After finishing their meal, they called a rubber-wheeled carriage from the Gongyi Carriage Company and went to visit Zhang Garden together. Coincidentally, it was Sunday that day, and more than half of the friends who had been at the gathering the previous day were there. Liu Zhan'guang also came to play in the garden because his boat hadn't set sail yet. Qiu Wukao didn't arrive until after four o'clock. In the Da Yang House, everyone gathered together and sat down at two tables to drink tea. At this time, there were about fifty or sixty courtesans touring the garden, packing the Da Yang House so tightly that it was hot and lively. Tao Ziyao followed the crowd out for a stroll and unexpectedly ran into his new sister-in-law and Lanfen taking photos in the photography area. After meeting up, they were very enthusiastic and accompanied each other back to the Da Yang House. His new sister-in-law handed him a tobacco pouch. Wei Huanzhen whispered something in Tao Ziyao's ear, saying: "Since Liu Zhan'guang hasn't set sail yet, it's rare that all our friends are gathered together today. Why don't we take advantage of this opportunity to go to his house and invite him over? We can also return the favor to Lanfen at the same time, killing two birds with one stone!" Tao Ziyao had originally wanted to invite Liu Zhan'guang over but was too embarrassed to say so. After hearing Wei Huanzhen's words, he repeatedly said: "That's a great idea! That's a great idea!" Wei Huanzhen first went to inform his new sister-in-law on Tao Ziyao's behalf, saying: "Mr. Tao likes to drink and wants good dishes. Please tell the head of the household not to skimp on the food!" After finishing speaking, he also helped arrange for Liu Zhan'guang and Qiu Wukao to come over. This group of friends who were used to socializing in brothels every day would naturally not miss this opportunity.

  Here is the translation:

  Just as the new sister-in-law was about to take Táo Zǐyáo away, Táo Zǐyáo pulled Wèi Huàn Rèn along with him. They immediately got into a carriage and left Zhang Garden. Before long, they arrived at Ní Chéng Qiáo. The coachman drove six horses.

  According to the Eastern Han Dynasty's Wáng Fú's "Qián Fū Lùn", "Heaven is based on yang, earth is based on yin, people are based on...". They walked in a big circle and finally returned to Shí Lù Tòng Qìng Li mouth. After getting out of the carriage, the new sister-in-law first greeted the host family and called for a table to be set up. The two went upstairs to drink tea and smoke.

  Not long after, Liú Zhān Guāng arrived with two friends, followed by Qiú Wǔ Kē. At that time, it was already late in the evening. Most of the people present were eager to start playing mahjong because they had flipped the table. They quickly wrote down the scores, set up the mahjong table, and started playing.

  The host toasted each guest with wine, then everyone sat down. After a short while, the game arrived, and they sang songs, played drums, and made a big commotion. Táo Zǐyáo, who considered himself an expert, thought that the girls' singing was not good. Qiú Wǔ Kē said, "Zǐyáo must be a connoisseur!"

  There was a friend at the table who didn't understand the rules and asked to be taught. He also invited a Mr. Wū to teach him how to play the huqin (a Chinese instrument). They wanted Táo Zǐyáo to sing, but he refused. Later, when they urged him again, he took Liú Zhān Guāng aside and whispered to him, "We are officials, how can we behave like them? If this gets out in Shandong Province, it won't be good!"

  Liú Zhān Guāng called Qiú Wǔ Kē over, and Qiú Wǔ Kē called the friend over. Everyone felt that it was not fun anymore and left before dinner was even served. Táo Zǐyáo didn't mind at all.

  After drinking and sending off the guests, only Wei Huanran didn't leave. He was originally the worst of them all, seeing Tao Ziyao's official tone and knowing he was a bootlicker who wore a hypocritical mask. The new sister-in-law, although a woman, had also seen through him early on. Wei Huanran made an excuse to go out and pulled the new sister-in-law into a small room, where they discussed and came up with a plan.

  At that time, Tao Ziyao was sitting on the smoke couch in the master's room, asking Lanfen to fill his water pipe. He listened to his grand talk and said: "As a concubine of the governor, when going out, one has to sit in a sedan chair with four bearers, and there are also people carrying the sedan chair. In front of the sedan chair, there is also a red umbrella. Wherever you go, there are people serving and attending. The only fear is that the concubine should not speak ill of others in front of the master, even if it's just a few words, no one can bear it. The servants in the concubine's house include maids, old ladies, second masters, and errand boys, everything they need is available. The monthly allowance for face-saving is two hundred taels, excluding expenses for clothes, jewelry, food, and labor costs. Compared to our bureau director's salary, it's already twice as much." Lanfen asked: "Tao sir, how many months' worth of salary do you have in your account? Do you have a concubine? How much money does your concubine get each month?" Tao Ziyao was so excited about his own talk that he didn't expect this question and was speechless for a moment. Lanfen continued to ask him, but he just kept smoking his water pipe. After a while, just as he was thinking of making an excuse, Wei Ping'an and the new aunt came out of the small room, interrupting their conversation.

  Wei Huanran was about to leave, and he nodded at his new sister-in-law. His new sister-in-law understood. At this time, Tao Ziyao also wanted to follow him, but unexpectedly, a horse whip was held back by his new sister-in-law and not given to him. Tao Ziyao had no choice but to let Wei Huanran go alone. Here, his new sister-in-law also arranged for Tao Ziyao to eat porridge and study philosophy with the logician and analytical philosopher. She then sent Tao Ziyao back to the inn to take care of household chores. That night, from the time the table was set until Wei Huanran left, whenever someone came to call, his new sister-in-law would have Xiaojie Ah Jin follow them out, while she herself stayed in the house with Tao Ziyao. Unintentionally, she also said to Tao Ziyao, "Although Lanfen is already 16 years old, she is still a young lady. In terms of style and etiquette, there is no one who can surpass her." Tao Ziyao had only been here for two days, but because he was clever, he had already understood the situation from listening to others talk about it. His new sister-in-law's status was now clear to him. After eating porridge and striking two o'clock, Lanfen did not have a late-night shift, and everyone cleaned up and went to sleep. Tao Ziyao actually borrowed a bed here for the night. In short, he felt that he and his new sister-in-law were like glue, sticking together perfectly.

  He stayed for seven or eight days, either being invited by others or inviting others himself, and the gatherings never stopped. Every day, he would sleep in until two or three o'clock before getting up. After his new sister-in-law finished her morning grooming, they would have breakfast together. After breakfast, it was always a horse-drawn carriage ride, initially with Lanfen accompanying him, but later even Lanfen was not brought along. When they went out, they would either visit the Zhang Garden or take a stroll around the block. Whenever they arrived at major roads like Renchang Xiang, Zhentai Chang, and Hengdali, they would always get off the carriage to buy silk fabrics, watches, or rings, spending hundreds of dollars each time. This did not include the money spent on jewelry, pearls, and other accessories. At first, whenever he went out, Tao Ziyao would always bring several hundred silver yuan from the bank, as well as one or two hundred dollars in foreign currency and cash. Later, since all the families were familiar with him, they knew that Mr. Tao was a generous guest, so even if he didn't have money, they would still be willing to lend it to him. Previously, the clothes Tao Ziyao wore were considered old-fashioned by his new sister-in-law, so she specially called in several tailors to make new clothes for him at home. At the same time, she also made some fashionable clothes for herself. If calculated carefully, the total amount spent was not small. Tao Ziyao was completely enchanted by his new sister-in-law and spared no effort in trying to please her. According to his calculations, within ten days or so, the expenses for wine, social gatherings, and other miscellaneous items were only over a hundred yuan. However, the money spent on buying things and making clothes already added up to three or four thousand yuan. Adding other expenses, the total amount spent was around two-fifths of the twenty thousand he had brought with him. After calculating this, he felt relieved and continued his extravagant spending habits as before.

  One day, the wife of the new brother-in-law was celebrating her birthday and had invited a group of people to the hall for a banquet. Only he was alone, sitting at a table with four pairs of chopsticks, and some unfamiliar faces were also brought in to drink wine. Wei Fengan saw that his money was being spent like flowing water, without any care, and thought to himself: "His money will soon be used up, if we don't take action now, when will we?" The next day, he went to discuss with Ou Wukou. Ou Wukou said: "This kind of longevity celebration is not worth it, let's just swindle him." Wei Fengan asked: "What method should we use to swindle him?" Ou Wukou replied: "It's easy. You go and tell him that tomorrow the company ship will set sail, he wants to buy machinery, and ask him to come with me. We are all our own people, so we'll give him a good deal." Wei Fengan and Ou Wukou were originally partners in crime, and they quickly went to the Tongqingli neighborhood to find Tao Ziyao. At that time, the new sister-in-law was sitting in the guest hall window combing her hair, while Tao Ziyao sat beside her eating tangyuan. As he ate, he watched her comb her hair. Just as he was lost in thought, someone shouted "Guests are coming up!" He quickly hid his feet, but when he saw it was Wei Fengan, he relaxed. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Wei Fengan pulled him into the main room and sat down with him to discuss buying machinery. He said: "Don't look at this matter as easy, it's actually not simple. I heard Ou Wukou say that tomorrow there will be a company ship setting sail, if we don't send the goods then, we'll have to wait for the next batch, which will take many more days." Tao Ziyao repeatedly said "thank you" and asked: "Has my servant arrived?" The housekeeper called out loudly, saying "Tao sir's servant has arrived!" The servant came in, and Tao Ziyao handed him a key, instructing him to go back to the warehouse, open the trunk, and retrieve a paper package from inside. The servant quickly returned with the package, which Tao Ziyao opened, taking out an invoice that listed several machines, but he didn't examine it closely. He handed it to Wei Fengan, who asked: "Is this the invoice?" Tao Ziyao replied: "I don't know what's in here, originally I wanted to ask Ou Wukou for advice, let's go see him now." Wei Fengan said: "Let's go together." The new sister-in-law asked: "What urgent matter is it that you're entrusting to Charwei? Can't it be done by yourself?" Wei Fengan replied: "It's fine, I'll just ask him a question, and then we can part ways." The new sister-in-law gave him a glance with her eyes, but didn't say anything else, continuing to comb her hair. Tao Ziyao wanted to go, but after hearing the new sister-in-law's words, he felt a bit lazy about going. Wei Fengan said: "If you don't go, that's fine too. I'll just ask him to open an account for you, and send it to the foreign country. The silver will be paid by you later." Tao Ziyao replied: "That's natural, the price is limited." Wei Fengan said: "This is a fixed price from abroad, we can't control whether it's expensive or cheap." As he spoke, he put on his horse coat. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Tao Ziyao pulled him aside and said: "Don't hide it from me, brother, this time I'm serving as an official, but the travel expenses given by my superiors are just a token, not enough to cover our costs. If we can open up more business, that would be great." Wei Fengan saw his expression and understood, so he didn't ask further. He said: "Today, let's entrust Ou Wukou to send the letter, and he'll fix the price for you. Just sign a contract with the foreigner tomorrow, and it will be done." With that, he took his leave.

  Xuanjuan: A type of seven-character chant book.

  He walked to Wuke's place. Wuke immediately asked, "How's business? Has the account been opened?" Wei Xianzhen handed it over for him to see. After Wuke finished looking at it, he said, "Is this really it?" and smiled again, saying, "This confusing account can't be taken abroad. Moreover, each machine has some extra parts that need to be accounted for separately." Wei Xianzhen said, "He originally asked me to ask you to help him sort it out. Brother Wuke, in my opinion, the business is only worth twenty thousand silver coins. He wants to ask you to help him cook the books and swallow his words, speaking unclearly with a twisted tongue. I'm afraid that Lanfen's account will be affected by this." Wuke said, "He's not very smart, but he does have a way of making money. However, since he asked me for help, go tell him that I understand everything, the account is ready, and the contract is prepared. Ask him to come sign tomorrow, and we'll take care of it for him." Wei Xianzhen said, "Are you really going to help him? His silver coins are stored in the bank. Earlier, when I came out of Tongqing, I went to the bank to ask around, and a total of only twenty thousand silver coins were transferred from Shandong. He said that he took out several thousand last week. Lanfen's new sister-in-law has a diamond ring and a golden armlet. It seems like he's really using his money for something else. We shouldn't help him with the machine, or we'll be left empty-handed when the time comes." Wuke said, "You're really too cautious! Let him come sign first, and then he can go wherever he wants. We won't lose out either way." Wei Xianzhen understood his words and that night rushed to Tongqing again to inform Tao Ziyao, telling him that everything was ready and all he needed to do was come to the bank at eleven o'clock tomorrow to sign.

  The next day at 10 o'clock, Wei Huanren rushed to Tongqingli to wake up Tao Ziyao, got him to wash his face and eat some snacks, and then went together to find Wu Ke. The new sister-in-law had a bun on her head and was barefoot, and she insisted on personally braiding Tao Ziyao's hair before letting him go. At that time, the two of them arrived at the foreign firm, where Wu Ke received them with great courtesy. After they sat down, each of them was offered a Ryosong cigarette. From the drawer, he took out an account book and looked at it, which showed a total of 22,000 taels of silver. After signing his name, half of the amount was paid first, and then the contract was read aloud to him. Tao Ziyao couldn't understand foreign languages, so he listened as Wu Ke read it aloud, and didn't find anything unusual or have any objections. He asked Wei Huanren, "Is this account correct? What about the matter you entrusted me with yesterday?" Wei Huanren then asked Wu Ke. Wu Ke said, "This is a contract between our firm and Mr. Zi Wong, which will be rewritten after the silver is paid in full." Tao Ziyao was relieved. Wu Ke then took him to meet the foreigner, shook hands, and the foreigner said a few words in his language. Tao Ziyao didn't understand, so Wu Ke translated for him, but it was just some polite phrases. They signed their names on the spot. Wei Huanren followed them to transfer the silver. Tao Ziyao thought to himself, "There's only 14,000 taels of silver left in our storehouse now, and we're transferring 11,000 taels, leaving only 3,000 taels behind. Later, when the machines arrive in Shanghai, we'll still need to find another 11,000 taels. Although there's a shortage now, fortunately, Governor Fu had mentioned earlier that if it wasn't enough, we could telegraph for more at any time." So he went back to their storehouse, wrote a silver note, and entrusted someone to send a telegram explaining the situation and requesting another 15,000 taels. The friends in the storehouse drafted the telegram and asked him to review it, but there was nothing much to say. After they bid farewell and left, they found Wu Ke and handed over the contract clearly. On that day, they set up an altar at Tongqingli, because Wu Ke and Wei Huanren had helped them, so they invited the two of them to sit in the upper seats.

  It's just that time flies like an arrow, and days pass like a shuttle. From the day I sent the telegram from the hotel, counting up to now, it should have been at most three days before getting a response, but now it's already seven or eight days. Luckily, he's been enchanted by his new sister-in-law every day, so he doesn't feel anything. But when he counted on his fingers, he couldn't help but become flustered. If it were up to him, he definitely wouldn't reject her. Perhaps the governor is busy with official duties and hasn't had time to respond yet, which is possible. However, it's unlikely that he would completely ignore it. As a result, he feels like there are fifteen buckets weighing on his heart, making him anxious. Luckily, his new sister-in-law is eloquent and able to explain things away. Later, after waiting for half a month, there was still no response. Looking at the money here, more than two thousand has been spent. His new sister-in-law still wants to marry him, saying that she's willing to be a "two-headed" wife. She doesn't care about his social status, as long as he can give her a set of pearl jewelry, which is worth at least one or two thousand dollars. The rest of the clothes and accessories are not included. Truly, public and private matters are pressing in on him, making him restless day and night.

  Several days passed, and after counting the days, it had been twenty days since the telegram was sent, but there was still no news. He was so anxious that he couldn't bear it, so he had to send another telegram to urge him to pay. Another telegram was also sent, asking his brother-in-law to persuade him from the side. On the third day, a reply was received from his brother-in-law, saying that Fu Xian had asked for sick leave and Fan Xian was acting on his behalf. The machine had been entrusted to a foreigner to handle, and the price was very cheap, and it came with a guarantee, so he was told not to bother with it anymore, and he was urged to return to the East immediately. When Tao Ziyao received this telegram, he felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head from top to bottom, and he was anxious beyond measure. Coincidentally, Wei Fuchen came to visit him, so he told him about this matter, thinking that he would go with him to negotiate with Tong Wuguang, saying that the machine was not needed, and asking him to return the money. Wei Fuchen said: "Since we have signed a contract with foreigners, how can we go back on our word? If the account had not been sent out, it could still be retrieved, but now that more than twenty days have passed, I'm afraid it has already arrived in the foreign country, so how can it be retrieved?" Tao Ziyao said: "Send a telegram to stop it." Wei Fuchen said: "It's easy to say! The other party is not someone you can play with, and I don't dare to speak out of turn."

  Tao Ziyao saw that he was unwilling to return the machine, and his heart became even more anxious. From that day on, he wrote letters in the inn for two days without going to Tongqing's place. The new sister-in-law sent a young girl to the inn to persuade him to go, but he refused, and when she urged him again, he said: "It's not that I don't want to come, it's just that my heart hasn't been feeling well these past two days; once my affairs are settled, I will naturally come." The young girl went back and told the new sister-in-law. The new sister-in-law knew that things were not going well and was delighted to take advantage of him. Seeing that the young girl couldn't persuade him to come, she had no choice but to come to the inn herself to invite him. Although Tao Ziyao said he would go with her to Tongqing's place, his heart was still not at ease. He couldn't resist the new sister-in-law's sweet words and eventually took out the remaining silver from the machine shop to repay her. Later, only a few hundred taels were left. The people in the machine shop were extremely selfish and calculated the remaining money, wrote a receipt, and sent a student to give it to Tao Ziyao, taking back the receipt and severing all ties with him from then on. Furthermore, Wei Fanrang heard that things were not going well and, although he didn't allow him to return the machine, thought that if he wanted to find another one, it would be impossible. He went to discuss with Ou Wukui. Ou Wukui said: "Can he really not come up with the money? You go tell him: If the machine arrives and he doesn't come out with the goods, although we are friends, foreigners don't care about relationships, and in the future, there may be lawsuits; it's better to let him handle it." Wei Fanrang went to tell him again, taking the opportunity to ask for news and urge him to send the silver. Tao Ziyao was truly at a dead end and had no choice but to send another telegram to his brother-in-law, explaining that the foreigners would not return the machine and asking him to mediate. Who knew that when he received the reply, Tao Ziyao was shocked beyond measure! To know what was said in the telegram, please listen to the next part of the story.

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