Chapter 11: Old Yan’s Financial Calculations

The moment the donkey cart stopped, the doorman at the gambling den spotted Yan Lao’er.

Before he could even collect himself, seven or eight people rushed out from inside.

They completely surrounded the donkey cart.

“Ho! Isn’t this Yan Er? You’ve even got a donkey cart now, come to pay back the money?” As he spoke, he leaned closer to the donkey, wanting to stroke it. The donkey twitched its ears and bared its large teeth, making the leader sheepishly withdraw his hand.

Better not get bitten, he thought.

I’m done for!

Yan Lao’er’s scalp tingled, and he turned in slow motion, terrified, to look at his elder brother, Yan Huaiwen, who was now able to prop himself up and sit.

“Pay back what money?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

Yan Lao’er felt like crying but had no tears. He was exposed too early, with absolutely no mental preparation!

They had still hoped to settle this gambling debt tonight with the help of the platform.

“B-Brother… I didn’t… I’m not…” Sweat poured down Yan Lao’er’s face, which flushed crimson.

Wuwuwu! A hundred mouths couldn’t explain it!

He said it wasn’t him, he said he didn’t, but who would believe him? Who?!

How unjust!

Though it wasn’t even winter yet, oh heavens, let it snow quickly!!!

“Oh dear, look at my eyesight, isn’t this Scholar Yan? Please, please, I’ve been remiss, I’ve been remiss. If you would grace us with your presence, come in for a cup of tea?” The leading man was dressed in neat, short attire, looking burly and strong, and very smooth-tongued.

“No need. Tell me what this money is about.”

“Your second brother gambled a bit at our den before, had some bad luck. It’s not much, he owes a full twenty liang of silver.”

“Is this true?”

“Look, how would we dare to deceive you? Your second brother’s IOU, written in his own hand, is right here.”

What else could Yan Lao’er say? That fellow pulled out the IOU with his signature again and feigned handing it to his brother.

His brother took it. His brother read it carefully from top to bottom. His brother glanced at him, expressionless, then turned his head away…

Old Yan must be heartbroken and disappointed.

He had been so good to his younger brother.

Everything happened at once, adding insult to injury.

Yan Lao’er fiercely wiped his face, then, throwing caution to the wind, he said:

“Brother, I was wrong, I shouldn’t have gambled!

The money is mine to owe, and I’ll figure out a way to pay it back myself.

Didn’t you grant me three days? It’s not due yet. According to the agreed-upon date, you come find me, and I, Yan Lao’er, will definitely pay you back in full.”

The man scoffed, ignoring him, and simply stared fixedly at Scholar Yan sitting in the donkey cart.

Yan Huaiwen didn’t remember what his expression had been like when he faced this sudden gambling debt in the past. Ahem, perhaps it wasn’t that he didn’t remember, but that he didn’t want to act it out the same way.

Back then, he had been dumbfounded, an ugly sight, as if he’d seen a ghost.

The bitterness of his younger brother’s foolishness, and his hatred for his pleas, and even his coercion to sell land to pay the debt.

Yes, back then, his second brother had said the same thing: Brother, I was wrong, please save me. If I can’t pay back the money, Li Shi and Er Ya will be taken as collateral… Brother, I know I was wrong, I’ll never gamble again… Brother, believe me, believe me this one time, Brother…

He also remembered Da Ya’s crying, his sister-in-law’s crying, and Er Ya’s…

He hadn’t expected that girl’s crying to be even more chilling than her elder sister Da Ya’s. With her eyes closed and mouth wide open, such a small person, yet her cries were so loud, shaking the heavens!

His head buzzed, and he almost collapsed from her crying.

Rather than the whole family living in fear, it was better to expose this matter in advance and resolve it in town.

“Our family fortune is meager, with only ten mu of ancestral land…” Yan Huaiwen closed his eyes and sighed deeply, “Help me down.”

Yan Lao’er angrily shoved aside the fawning debt collector who had stepped forward, secretly glancing at Old Yan’s expression, and carefully helped him down from the cart.

Yan Huaiwen slowly pushed him away, looked up at the Shunyi Pawnshop’s signboard, and slowly walked in.

Shunxin, Shunyi.

Listen to these names; it was clear the gambling house and the pawnshop were one business.

Yan Lao’er, with a long face, hesitated for a moment, then followed him inside.

He heard his brother say, “Yours isn’t the only pawnshop in town. My second brother’s debt of silver liang, according to market price, three mu of land would be enough to offset it.”

“Scholar Yan, that’s layman’s talk. Top-grade land is seven liang per mu, but that’s in a good harvest year. It looks like this summer will see reduced production. If Heaven doesn’t show favor and doesn’t bestow a single drop of rain, this land will be downgraded, calculated as medium or even low-grade. Furthermore, this humble establishment is a pawnshop; pawnshops have their own rules. No matter what is pawned, it must be discounted and calculated separately. But the good thing is, there are no delays or debts, and payment is in cash, isn’t that convenient?”

Before the pawnshop’s second manager could reply, the head manager quickly walked out from behind and took over the conversation.

Scholar Yan, whether intentionally or not, hit the nail on the head.

Indeed, Shunyi wasn’t the only pawnshop in town. If because of them, people went elsewhere to sell their land, that would be bad news.

They had been eyeing Scholar Yan’s land for more than a day or two, you see.

“Other items are hard to sell, but I’ve never heard of land being hard to sell. Land is always in demand, not something that has a price but no market. If I were to spread the word that I wanted to sell land, it could be concluded today. Head Manager, that talk might fool others, but don’t try to fool me,” Yan Huaiwen said unhurriedly.

“You’re right, but you only wish to part with three mu. Selling land piecemeal like this, wealthy families might not want to bother. When selling land in the countryside, first you ask relatives and friends, then neighbors. You probably know you might not find a suitable buyer right away. Pawning it with a pawnshop is most convenient. We don’t inspect the fields, we don’t measure the land; as long as you have the land deed, we can immediately go to the yamen to process the deed division. If you don’t have time to go, just a handwritten note, and we will go ourselves; Scholar Yan doesn’t need to appear in person.” The head manager smiled broadly, polite and courteous, certain that Scholar Yan wouldn’t want to go to the yamen himself.

After all, for a person with scholarly honors, pawning or selling ancestral property was not honorable.

“What’s the price?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

“Five liang per mu,” the head manager immediately replied.

If someone else had come today, not Scholar Yan, but some other person who owed a gambling debt to the place opposite, it would be absolutely impossible to pawn it for this price here. He would at most give four liang.

But Yan Lao’er still owed too little, only twenty liang, it wasn’t enough!

Yan Lao’er panicked: “Three mu isn’t enough, it needs to be four mu?”

That would mean squandering four mu of land, nearly half of the family’s assets.

Old Yan was truly not wronged in dividing the family property with him; it served him right!

Yan Huaiwen shook his head. “Rather than being pressured to lower the price, I might as well sell all ten mu of land together. After deducting my second brother’s gambling debt, there will be a surplus, and then I can buy other property.”

“Ah? Sell it all?” Yan Lao’er was shocked. Was Old Yan really so open-minded?

But thinking about it carefully, putting aside sentimental attachment to ancestral property and just considering it in terms of money, this was indeed the method with the least loss.

Ten mu of land, seventy liang. Deducting the twenty liang debt.

That leaves fifty liang in hand.

He could look around and buy a piece of land, not too good, just average, and maybe even buy another ten mu back.

Old Yan’s financial calculations, excellent, excellent!

Wait a minute!

Holy crap!

Wasn’t Old Yan planning to leave? Preparing to flee from famine!!!

He already had a destination, some Guanzhou, he said…

Aiya!

He couldn’t take land on the road, but he could take silver!

Accidentally hit the mark?!

Old Yan decided to take the initiative, rather than waiting for debt collectors to come to the door.

(End of chapter)