Chapter 141: Chapter 141: Entering the City

After spending nearly half an hour, the Qi Family’s group finally passed the city gate inspection completely.

Among them were thirteen new members who had joined recently.

These thirteen people were now each draped in mismatched fur cloaks.

They weren’t pretty, but at least they were quite warm.

Once inside the city, these thirteen individuals followed behind the group, neither standing out nor speaking out of turn, behaving properly.

“Mr. Yin is waiting for us on the first floor of the inn ahead. Fourth brother, what should we do now?”

Qi Ercai gestured ahead, then looked at Qi Quanjin.

Qi Quanjin thought for a moment, then asked, “Second brother, be upfront with me, how much did we sell the ginseng for?”

Qi Ercai looked around, and seeing no outsiders, lowered his voice and said, “A total of one hundred and fifty taels, enough for us to settle down.”

“What?”

Qi Quanjin was shocked, “Th-that much?”

“Shhh, keep your voice down!”

Qi Ercai hurriedly wrapped an arm around his younger brother’s neck, “After selling the ginseng, Mr. Yin advised that if possible, it’s best for us to find an inn, tidy ourselves up nicely. This way, when we go to the government office, we won’t be easily bullied.”

“Ah, that’s doable.”

Qi Quanjin was now preoccupied with the thought of one hundred and fifty taels.

Good heavens, his daughter’s random act was worth so much!

Seeing Qi Quanjin still somewhat stunned, Qi Ercai shook his head helplessly and went to discuss the idea of finding an inn with the elders.

No one had stayed indoors for a long time, and now everyone genuinely wanted to be in a room.

Suffice it to say, just blocking the wind was enough to entice everyone.

Taking advantage of a moment when people weren’t paying attention, Qi Zheng quietly inquired about the ginseng sale, and Qi Ercai quickly responded.

Learning that it sold for one hundred and fifty taels, Qi Zheng was also taken aback, but he quickly reminded Qi Ercai, “Let Dalang, fourth brother, and Mr. Yin know about this, but let’s not spread it around just yet.”

The ginseng belonged to the Qi Family. Selling it for one hundred and fifty taels meant it was naturally the Qi Family’s.

However, this money would be used to settle everyone in.

The saying goes, ’A bushel of rice creates gratitude, a peck of rice creates enmity.’ If people found out about such a sum, they might have other thoughts, which wouldn’t be worth the trouble.

Qi Ercai instantly caught on and hurriedly went to inform Qi Quanjin.

Qi Quanjin, who had by now calmed down, immediately agreed to this upon hearing it.

As for fourth brother, Qi Ercai wasn’t worried, but he hastened to inform Qi Dalang.

Qi Dalang was honest; should his mother find out, it was likely the entire family would know soon.

Unexpectedly, after Qi Ercai found Qi Dalang and gave him the reminder, all he got in response was a single sentence: “Uncle, would you please take the silver off me first?”

Tell others?

He was so nervous now that he didn’t dare to breathe deeply.

Earlier, as they exited the city, he had waited closer to the city gate inside.

But even so, he was so nervous he didn’t dare move, worried that if he shifted, the silver would fall.

Now, he just wanted to hand over the heavy silver quickly so he could hop around to warm up.

Qi Ercai almost laughed out loud, patting Qi Dalang on the shoulder: “Kid, you’re tall but your courage isn’t. Take the silver to your fourth uncle, and make sure nobody sees.”

“Huh? Oh!”

Qi Dalang realized and awkwardly walked toward Qi Quanjin.

Qi Quanjin was currently discussing their plan with some of the elders when he noticed Qi Dalang approaching in a strange manner, and he became a bit concerned, “Dalang, what’s going on?”

“Fourth, fourth uncle, c-could you come over here?”

Qi Dalang didn’t dare to approach, seeing so many people around.

Qi Quanjin felt even more puzzled.

Once they were beside the carriage and away from the others, Qi Dalang swiftly handed the silver ingot he had hid in his arms to Qi Quanjin.

“Fourth uncle, please take this silver! I can’t walk properly holding so much silver.”

Qi Dalang’s face was red with urgency.

It’s impressive that he could blush even in such cold weather.

Qi Quanjin finally understood his nephew’s unusual behavior, unable to hold back a chuckle, “Alright, hand it over then! Now move around a bit and don’t get frozen.”

“Got it!”

Now without the burden of silver, Qi Dalang felt an indescribable sense of relief.

Qi Quanjin didn’t keep the silver on himself; he found his wife and discreetly handed it over when no one was looking.

Yi Meng felt the cold, hard silver in her hands, surprised for a moment before quickly understanding. She casually put it into the space.

There was no safer place under the sky than that space.

Soon, another silver ingot was handed over to Yi Meng by Qi Quanjin and stored away as usual.

Qi Ercai initially thought it would be safer for everyone to carry the silver separately.

But seeing Qi Quanjin with fifty taels of silver still looking composed, as if he hadn’t taken anything at all, he thought his fourth brother was quite reliable.

Having fifty taels of silver on him without blinking an eye.

Unlike himself, though he acted composed when talking to Dalang, he was actually extremely nervous.

So, the remaining silver should be entrusted to his fourth brother!

Qi Quanjin kept thirty taels of broken silver and copper coins, handing the fifty-tael silver ingot over to his wife.

No choice; his wife’s space was exceedingly safe, and Qi Quanjin couldn’t think of a more suitable place to hide silver.

The couple’s thoughts were perfectly aligned.

The Qi Family chipped in to book an inn to settle down.

At least stay for a day, allowing everyone to ease up, and decide the next steps later.

When they found Yin Cheng, he was having breakfast.

Though calling it breakfast, it was merely a pot of hot tea.

He did want to eat something, but eventually decided it was better to eat with everyone and thus ordered a pot of tea.

A pot of tea costs ten Copper Coins.

It wasn’t high-quality tea leaves.

Fortunately, there weren’t many diners around, or else his ten Copper Coins usage of space might have prompted the waiter to directly chase him out.

When Qi Ercai and Qi Quanjin came to find Yin Cheng, they also inquired about the cost of lodging at the inn.

A shared room cost fifty Copper Coins per person per day, while a private room started at two hundred Copper Coins.

After discussing, the group decided to book four private rooms for the women and children in the group.

As for the rest, they would all stay in the shared room.

Additionally, twenty Copper Coins were given as a tip for the waiter, asking them to boil more hot water for everyone to properly wash their hands and faces.

Having a bath was out of the question.

The private room was warm enough for a bath, but it required too much water, and without more Silver Coins, the waiter wouldn’t do it.

“We’ll make do for today, let’s split up into two groups,”

At the dining table, Yi Meng said to Qi Quanjin, “Brother Jin, you take some people to handle the paperwork at the government office. Second brother, could you help inquire around the city and see if there are any courtyards available for rent? We’re not asking for luxury; just a place out of the wind and rain for us to settle temporarily.”

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