Wealth and glory seek stability

Jian Xi woke up with a start.

What the hell?

Did she hear it correctly?

This old emperor must have gone crazy because of poverty.

Qian Liang on the stage didn't care about that and even brought a platform with him, holding a small hammer.

He looked like an auctioneer.

"The first item to be auctioned is General Shen's sword. The starting price is one thousand taels."

The sword that Shen Nanxing brought when he came today was purely a decoration, and asking for one thousand taels of silver is too much of a price.

Jian Xi thought that there wouldn't be many suckers willing to take the photo.

did not expect--

"Two thousand taels."

"Two thousand five hundred taels."

"Three thousand taels."

Even Dongfang Wenying next to her ordered her maid to hold up a sign.

Jian Xi tugged at Dongfang Wenying's sleeve and said, "Sister, that sword is not worth so much money."

Dongfang Wenying signaled the maid to continue to raise the placards, and then said, "You don't know, this is the order of His Majesty. All the money raised from this auction will be used for disaster relief in the northwest. No matter how much, it all depends on your intention. No matter how much, you must raise your placard. This is the intention of your subjects. Generally, the placards for male guests are raised by the female guests. You see, it seems that they are doing it for Shen Nanxing, but in fact, it is all instructed by the family. There is only General Shen on the male guest side, so naturally they have to give him enough face."

Jian Xi suddenly understood.

It turned out to be the case.

There are so many twists and turns underneath.

It seems that the cheap brother is not popular. It's a real scene of social etiquette.

The price once climbed to a high of five thousand taels, and Dongfang Wenying signaled to the maid to stop.

Finally, it was bought by Lan Mei'er from Duke Lan's Mansion at a high price of nine thousand five hundred taels.

Jian Xi raised her eyebrows, seeming surprised by the result.

Dongfang Wenying looked indifferent. Jian Xi thought maliciously, "Sister, don't you have enough money? I can lend it to you, and you don't have to pay it back."

"No, it's just that I shouldn't be in the spotlight today."

Jian Xi couldn't help feeling regretful, but in fact she was still very optimistic about Dongfang Wenying.

Next it was Jian Xi's silk flower's turn.

"This is a silk flower from General Shen's sister, Miss Jian Xi. The starting price is one thousand taels."

Jian Xi was a person of little influence, and he did not have much reputation among the powerful people in the capital, so the atmosphere became awkward for a while.

"One thousand taels!"

Jian Xi asked Zi Cui to hold up the sign.

It's a donation anyway, so it would be better for her to donate it herself and save trouble.

Who knew that a stupid teammate would show up halfway through.

A Qing beside Shen Nanxing raised his sign, "Three thousand taels!"

!!!

Is this family members playing supporting roles for each other?

It's outrageous.

Qian Liang, who was watching the fun, said, "General Shen offers three thousand taels. Is there anyone who wants to raise the price?"

Sudden--

In the top few seats, someone said in a deep voice: "Ten thousand taels!"

Even if this voice turned into ashes, Jian Xi would recognize it. It was Gao Yunhuai's voice.

Since this person didn't ask the servant to bid, he just shouted out the price himself.

Does this mean that her hearing is not working well?

Jian Xi's arrogance came up.

"Eleven thousand taels."

Gao Yunhuai raised the price, "Fifteen thousand taels."

"Sixteen thousand taels."

"Twenty thousand taels."

Jian Xi:......

Well, poverty limited her imagination.

Spending 20,000 taels of silver to buy a silk flower is really a waste of time.

The money she has has to be kept for expanding the business next year, so there is not much left to move.

Let’s just let him go this time, but next time I see Gao Yunhuai, I’ll make sure he gets a good beating!

It's not that she was angry that he pretended not to know her when they met again. They had a pretty ugly quarrel before, and she couldn't accept it calmly if it were her.

Moreover, when she was in Pingjiang Prefecture, she knew that Gao Yunhuai had helped her a lot behind the scenes. She remembered that when Lei Zi first opened a shop in the capital, it was not as smooth as hers.

In the beginning, not only did she have to endure exclusion and sabotage from her peers, she also had to endure exploitation from the powerful. Her shop even faced the risk of bankruptcy several times. She had never experienced any of these before.

She is not such a noble person who would pretend to be superior after receiving benefits from others.

However, Gao Yunhuai this time is completely different from when I met him four years ago. He is less arrogant and more mature.

The help he gave her was just enough, without any gift from a superior.

It was just a simple favor between friends, and it was right within her acceptable range.

But the behavior of this victim today is really puzzling.

Spend 20,000 taels of silver to buy an ordinary silk flower.

That's it.

If you have money, just build it.

Anyway, she doesn't suffer any loss.

Dongfang Wenying raised her eyebrows slightly, "I didn't realize you were so popular. It's such a generous price, and it's the price asked by the Fifth Prince." It was obvious that she knew the person behind the bamboo curtain well.

Jian Xi pretended to be surprised and asked, "Is that the fifth prince?"

"Sister, don't you know? There are two bamboo curtains over there. Behind one is the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince, and behind the other is the Fifth Prince. Just wait and see, there will be something exciting to come." Dongfang Wenying gloated, as if she was very curious about the scene that would follow.

Jian Xi blinked, not knowing what Dongfang Wenying was referring to.

Dongfang Wenying tapped Jian Xi's nose and said, "Please don't make that expression. Beauty is the root of trouble. I am not a man.

As for that Lin Yun, his reputation in the capital has become very famous these days, and everyone knows him. The dispute between him and the crown prince is hard to describe in words. "

"Why is it so hard to explain?" Didn't Lin Yun like Shen Nanxing before? How could she have fallen in love with someone else after just a few months?

"I won't say any more. You'll know when you see it."

Dongfang Wenying's eyes were full of gloating.

Jian Xi also became curious. Royal secrets! This was much more exciting than hearing it from other people.

"The next item to be auctioned is the phoenix hairpin that belonged to Lan Mei'er from Duke Lan's Mansion. The starting price is one thousand taels."

The phoenix-head hairpin could only be made by the palace's internal craftsmanship department. When Lan Mei'er took this out, she was undoubtedly telling everyone that she was already the designated candidate for the Crown Princess.

In order to save face for Duke Lan's Mansion, the male guests began to push for a higher price.

The price climbed to five thousand taels, and the voices of the crowd began to fade away.

Xuanyuan Qiyuan's annoying voice sounded, "Why? This phoenix hairpin was given to Miss Lan by Concubine Shu. Your Highness the Crown Prince won't raise the price?"

Crown Prince Xuanyuan Chaocheng gritted his teeth and said, "Fifth Brother, you are overstepping your authority."

Xuanyuan Qiyuan said in a pretentious tone, "Alas, the Lan Guogong Mansion has produced military commanders for generations. Your Highness cannot fail to give face to the Lan Guogong Mansion. Nine thousand taels!"

Qian Liang stretched out his hand and immediately said, "His Highness the Fifth Prince offers nine thousand taels. Is there anyone who can offer a higher price?"

Anyone with a discerning eye could tell that the Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince were competing with each other, and no one dared to bid at this time.

Lan Mei'er sat at the table, appearing calm and composed, but in fact her handkerchief was almost torn to pieces.

Obviously, this marriage was decided personally by His Majesty and Concubine Shu, so who is the Crown Prince showing this to?

Lan An sat below Xuanyuan Qiyuan and said with a nasal voice, "Thank you Fifth Prince for your favor, otherwise I would have lost all my face." Just now, an ordinary silk flower was priced at 20,000 taels. This phoenix hairpin had a special meaning, but it was not even as good as a silk flower. Lan An was so angry that he gritted his teeth and shouted, "Fifteen thousand taels!"

Qian Liang's eyes lit up, "Duke Lan's Mansion offered 15,000 taels, is there anyone who can offer a higher price?"

Fight for it! Fight for it! The more people who fight for it, the less the burden on the Ministry of Revenue will be. Your Majesty has instructed that the court will have to allocate at least 100,000 taels of silver for disaster relief in the current severe drought in the northwest.

But even a good cook cannot cook without rice. The national treasury has been running into deficit every year, so there is no extra money to go out for relief. I didn't expect that half of the money had been collected at the beginning. This trip today is really worth it.