Chapter 3161: Brothers are as important as Mount Tai
Rongrong, I can’t eat much, just give it a taste.
You can eat the rest later and leave it to your husband."
Gumo Rongrong hesitated for a moment, and moved her eyes firmly away from the chicken drumstick in Young Master Liu's hand.
"Forget it, I still don't want to eat. I'm afraid I'll get fat."
Young Master Liu put away his arms, looked at the beauty's pretty depressed face, chuckled and clicked his tongue twice.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Rongrong, you don't have a good taste."
Gumo Rongrong tilted her neck slightly and took a sip of the drink: "If you don't have good taste, you won't have good taste. Compared with good taste, I'm more worried about getting fat.
Husband, you better eat it."
Liu Mingzhi chuckled and shook his head. Without saying anything else, he picked up the chicken leg and took a big bite.
"Brother, how does it taste?"
Liu Mingzhi chewed the food carefully for a while and nodded with a smile.
"It tastes good, it tastes good, it still tastes the same as before.
Zhu Run, don’t just worry about me, you can eat it yourself.”
Zhu Run nodded happily, reached out and pushed the paper bag holding the lotus leaf chicken in front of Gumo Rongrong.
"Sister-in-law Rongrong, how about you give it a taste?"
"Uncle, my sister-in-law ate too much for breakfast. I really can't eat anymore."
"Well, then I won't continue to be polite to you, sister-in-law."
Then, Zhu Run pushed the lotus leaf chicken in front of Liu Song.
"Brother Liusong, you eat too."
"Together, together."
"Brother, the donkey meat in soy sauce from Lu's old restaurant is freshly cooked. You should try it while it's hot."
"Don't be hasty, don't be hasty, just do it one by one."
Liu Mingzhi casually threw the chicken drumstick aside, picked up two peanuts with his fingers and threw them into his mouth.
"Zhu Run."
Zhu Run quickly put the sauced donkey meat he had just picked up aside and looked up at Young Master Liu: "The younger brother is here. Brother, please tell me."
Young Master Liu took a sip of wine, looked at Zhu Run and said with a slight smile: "Brother, as the saying goes, you should not go to the Three Treasures Hall for anything.
You came to my eldest brother’s house to visit you today, you probably didn’t just come to have a drink with me.”
Seeing the smile on Young Master Liu's face, Zhu Run nodded with a smile and directly raised his wine bag to signal.
"Brother Yingming, let's have a drink first."
"Drink together."
Zhu Run placed the wine bag on his ankle, took out a handkerchief and wiped the grease on his hands, then reached out and touched his arms.
"Brother, I came here to drink with you. After all, we two brothers haven't had a drink together for a long time.
Secondly, I’m giving you this year’s Zhenbao Pavilion, and the dividends from the briquette business are here.”
Upon hearing Zhu Run's words, Mr. Liu's eyes immediately lit up, and he looked towards Zhu Run's arms with bright eyes.
"Sure enough, I knew right away that you didn't just come to me for a drink."
Under Young Master Liu's slightly excited gaze, Zhu Run took out a folded square roll of Sichuan brocade silk from his arms and handed it to Young Master Liu with a naive smile.
"Brother."
Liu Mingzhi suppressed the excitement in his heart and took the package from Zhu Run's hand with a chuckle.
"Approximately how much silver is there?"
"Back to brother, the dividend from Zhenbao Pavilion is 2.1 million taels, and the briquettes and stove business is 3.5 million taels.
The dividends from the two businesses combined totaled 5.6 million taels of silver."
After hearing Zhu Run's answer, Liu Mingzhi immediately looked at the silk package in his hand with a smile on his face.
"More than five million taels of silver is a lot!"
Zhu Run raised his head and took a few swigs of wine, then pointed at the package in Young Master Liu's hand.
"Brother, this year's accounts are also in the package. Please take a look."
Liu Mingzhi nodded slightly, leaned forward and picked up Zhu Run's handkerchief to wipe his hands.
"brother."
"Hey, big brother."
"Good brothers, as the saying goes, brothers will settle accounts.
We have been brothers for so many years, and you know what your eldest brother's character is like.
Brotherhood is brotherhood, business is business.
One yard owned by a yard.
Therefore, I won’t say too many clichéd polite words.”
"Little brother understands, little brother understands."
Liu Mingzhi chuckled and unwrapped the package in front of him. In the blink of an eye, five thick stacks of banknotes and two ledgers were directly displayed in front of several people.
"Rong Rong."
"I am here."
Liu Mingzhi first picked up two ledgers, and then pushed five large piles of banknotes in front of Gumo Rongrong.
"Watch the money and don't let the wind blow it away."
"Yeah, yeah, I know."
"Brother, Liu Song, you two continue to drink. After I take a rough look at the accounts, I will continue to accompany you."
"Okay, big brother."
"Yes, I understand, little one."
Young Master Liu walked aside with two books of accounts, picked up a dead branch, and squatted directly on the snow that had not yet melted beside him.
When Aunt Mo Rongrong saw her husband like this, she immediately picked up a wine bag and pressed it on top of the banknote, got up and walked towards Young Master Liu.
"Husband, why don't I go back and get you some pens, ink, paper and inkstones."
"No, just give me a rough accounting of the accounts."
Hearing her husband's answer, Gumo Rongrong nodded her head helplessly: "Okay."
Liu Mingzhi took a deep breath and opened the account in his hand with concentration.
Under Gumo Rongrong's surprised gaze, Mr. Liu slowly turned over the accounts in his hand with one hand, and gently waved the dead branches on the snow with the other hand to write.
It took about half a stick of incense.
Young Master Liu frowned slightly as he looked at the numbers on the snow, stood up, walked to the bench, and sat down carelessly.
"Zhu Run.
"Big brother, little brother is here."
Liu Mingzhi casually threw the account book on the bench, looked at Zhu Run with both helplessness and emotion, and raised his wine bag to gesture to him.
"Brother, let's have a drink first."
"Okay, little brother respects big brother."
Young Master Liu raised his head and took a few sips of wine, picked up a few peanuts with his fingers and threw them into his mouth.
"Brother, there is nothing wrong with the accounts, but there seems to be something wrong with the dividend you gave to your eldest brother."
Zhu Run's face froze, and he laughed bitterly.
"Brother, I."
Liu Mingzhi took out the tobacco pouch from his waist, looked at Zhu Run with a complicated expression, and let out a long sigh.
"Oh, brother, why are you doing this?"
Seeing Liu Mingzhi take out his tobacco pouch, Zhu Run immediately lifted his cloak and touched his lower back with his backhand.
"Brother, wait a minute."
"Huh? What's wrong?"
Zhu Run smiled and took out a paper bag from behind, and handed it to Young Master Liu with a playful smile.
"Brother."
"Zhu Run, what are you doing?"
Zhu Run casually placed the paper bag on the bench and took out his tobacco bag from his waist with a smile on his face.
"Brother, this is the high-quality tobacco that my younger brother bought specially for you on the street."
As Zhu Run spoke, he quickly opened the paper bag, picked up a handful of tobacco and stuffed it into Young Master Liu's smoking pot.
"Brother, try how it tastes."
After Liu Mingzhi lit a pot of shredded tobacco with a fire stick, he stared at Zhu Run's cloak with a strange expression and looked at it carefully.
"Zhu Run, how many things are you hiding on your body?
You brought something else to me, please take it out quickly."
Zhu Run turned around and blew out a puff of light smoke, then lifted up his cloak and twisted it around a few times.
"Brother, it's gone, there's nothing else."
Liu Mingzhi lowered his head and exhaled hot breath into his palm. He frowned slightly and picked up a pile of banknotes and waved them in front of Zhu Run's eyes.
"Tell me, what happened to the extra one million taels of silver?"
"Hey, brother, why are we brothers talking about this?
Drink, drink, come, come, I respect you."
Liu Mingzhi waved his hand, held up a pile of silver notes in his hand and said directly: "Brother, if the dividend you give to your eldest brother is only an extra one or two hundred thousand taels of silver, I will have a good drink with you.
I accepted it.
However, the dividend you gave to your elder brother is more than one million taels of silver.
The gap between this number and the number agreed upon by our brothers is really huge!"
Zhu Run waved his hand indifferently and happily pushed the donkey meat on the side forward.
"Brother, stop talking about this, stop talking about this, drink, drink."
Liu Mingzhi dropped the pile of silver notes in his hand on the silk, raised the wine bag and drank a lot.
"Zhu Run, if you still regard me as your eldest brother, explain the matter clearly to your eldest brother."
"Brother."
"explain!"
After Zhu Run pondered for a moment with a complicated expression, he looked at Young Master Liu and said, "Brother, since you issued the new decree three years ago.
Not only are there more and more officials and merchants under the control of the court, but private caravans of all sizes are like crucian carps crossing the river.
In this way, the business cooperation between us brothers will be... just..."
Liu Mingzhi looked at Zhu Run's depressed face and said calmly: "Zhu Run, eldest brother, as the king of a country, I know these things better than you.
Big brother just wants to know what’s going on with the extra dividends?”
Zhu Run hesitated for a moment, raised his head, drank the remaining wine in the wine bag, and then picked up another wine bag.
"Brother, as the number of official, merchant and private caravans under the imperial court increases, our income will naturally become less and less.
My little brother is worried...worried..."
Before Liu Mingzhi could finish Zhu Run's words, he reached out and interrupted him: "You are worried that I might not be satisfied with this year's dividends.
So, you foolishly gave me a few percent more of the dividends that should have been yours, right?"
"Brother, if you hadn't supported me back then..."
Young Master Liu frowned and interrupted Zhu Run again: "I didn't ask you to mention what happened back then, so I'm just asking you, is that so?"
Zhu Run looked at his elder brother Liu Mingzhi's frown, and nodded hurriedly with a nervous expression.
"That's right."
Liu Mingzhi drank the rest of the wine and lifted up a wine bag again with a complicated expression: "Zhu Run, Zhu Run, let me tell you what you are good at."
"Brother."
Liu Mingzhi ate two pieces of donkey meat with soy sauce and walked towards the lakeside with his dry tobacco bag.
"Zhu Tou, when we brothers first met, that's what I called you, eldest brother.
Now, brother, can I still call you that?"
Zhu Run looked stunned for a moment, then nodded hurriedly after he realized what he was doing.
"Okay, of course."
Liu Mingzhi walked to the lakeside and stopped, staring calmly at the sparkling lake.
"Zhutou, do you like silver?"
Upon hearing the elder brother's question, Zhu Run's face was stunned for a moment.
"ah?"
"Ah what? Just tell my brother if you like it or not."
Zhu Run hesitated for a moment and then replied calmly: "I like it."
"Liu Mingzhi glanced back at Zhu Run, smiled slightly and nodded.
"Zhutou, not only do you like silver, but my eldest brother also likes silver.
Or it can be said that there are very few people in this world who don’t like silver.”
"Brother."
"But, I drank too much, but money can't buy it back.
For example, the friendship between us brothers."
"Brother!"
"Rong Rong."
"Hey, I'm here."
"You immediately count out one million taels of silver notes from those piles and return them to Zhu Run."
"Yes, I know."
Zhu Run saw Gumo Rongrong leaning over to pick up a pile of banknotes, and immediately walked towards Young Master Liu who was standing by the lake.
"Brother."
Liu Mingzhi turned around and looked at Zhu Run with a faint smile.
"Brother, if you still think of me as your elder brother, then swallow what you want to say.
In about half a month, it will be the Spring Festival.
Those extra hundreds of thousands in banknotes should be considered as the New Year's money given by you and your sister-in-law to your nephews and nieces."
Hearing Young Master Liu's words, Zhu Run looked helpless and said: "Brother, these extra banknotes are my wish, why should you do this?"
Liu Mingzhi gently took a puff of dry smoke and raised his hand to pat Zhu Run's shoulder.
"Good brother, as I said just now, every code belongs to the same code, and brothers will settle the accounts clearly.
If you gave your eldest brother a gift worth more than one million taels, he would accept the gift from you without saying a word.
But these banknotes don't work.
Because these banknotes are not just banknotes, they are also an agreement between us brothers.
The sage said that if a person has no faith, he will not be established.
Brother, you don’t want to break the rules just because of a little money, do you?”
Zhu Run was silent for a moment with a complex expression, then nodded with a wry smile.
"Brother, I know I'm wrong. I know I'm wrong."
"You bastard, just know you're wrong. If you dare to do this to me next time, be careful, I'll have you kicked out with sticks."
"Yes, yes, I promise there will be no next time, I promise there will be no next time."
Liu Mingzhi smiled and nodded, then put his arm around Zhu Run's shoulders and returned to the bench.
"Good brother, sit down."
"Thank you, brother. You can sit down too."
"Rong Rong."
"Hey, I'm here."
"Have the banknotes been counted?"
Gumo Rongrong turned sideways slightly and immediately handed a small stack of silver notes in her hand to Young Master Liu.
"Husband, count them."
Liu Mingzhi took the ticket and placed it directly in front of Zhu Run.
"There's no need to count. A few more or a few fewer ones don't mean anything at all."
"Okay, I understand."
"Brother, do you still want to count?"
Zhu Run took the banknote and put it into his sleeve without even looking at it, and then gestured with the wine bottle.
"A good big brother, a brother is as important as Mount Tai.
Money is important, but compared to our brotherhood.
What does it matter if gold and silver are transferred to these things?
Big brother, sister-in-law Rongrong, brother Liu Song, let’s have a drink together.”