came to a stop, Li Chen stepped out, but he saw dozens of commoners kneeling on both sides of the official road.Sān Bǎo came over and whispered, "Your Highness, these people are the relatives of the f...Chapter 1767: This Deal, Lord Zhao Doesn't Lose Out

Zhao Mansion.

The arrival of Zhou Ping'an and Zhou Changshou did not surprise Zhao Xuanji much, as expected.

He sat in the reception room, looking at the two people who had arrived together, and said softly: “Lord Zhou followed the prince to Gansu and Shaanxi. Now that the prince has not returned, Lord Zhou is back first. It must be that the prince entrusted him with a task and asked him to return quickly to deal with it”

"The governor's decree is wise."

Bowing deeply, Zhou Changshou performed a respectful salute and said: "Lower official Zhou Changshou, commissioner of the tax bureau, along with my elder brother Zhou Ping’an, greets your Excellency, the provincial governor."

Zhou Ping'an also followed and said, "Zhou Ping'an, I have met the provincial governor."

Zhao Xuanji's gaze lingered on Zhou Ping'an for a moment, then said, "Please take your seats. Bring some tea."

The servant brought up the tea, and Zhou Ping'an didn't hesitate. He took a sip and praised, "It's excellent Longjing tea, though it seems to be from last year."

Zhao Xuanji let out a hearty laugh and said, “Lord Zhou is also a connoisseur, able to tell at once that Longjing tea should be drunk after a rain shower. Right now, the season hasn't arrived yet, so there can be no new tea. This old man dislikes settling for less, so I can only comfort myself with the old tea sent earlier.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Zhao Xuanji immediately steered the conversation towards Zhou Ping'an, saying, "If my old bones remember correctly, there is a brilliant advisor by King Ning's side who shares your name"

Zhou Ping'an put down his teacup and replied, "It is I."

Zhao Xuanji smiled with a hint of meaning, "Your Highness doesn't seem to like you very much now."

"Ways differ, that's all."

Zhou Ping'an shook his head, clearly unwilling to say more.

After confirming Zhou Ping'an's identity, Zhao Xuanji looked calmly at Zhou Changshou and said, "You two came to my house just for a cup of tea"

Zhou Changshou let out a chuckle and said, "While it's important to have a bowl of tea, borrowing some silver is equally crucial."

Need to borrow some money

This left Zhao Xuanji somewhat stunned.

Then Zhao Xuanji chuckled and said, "Though I don't have much savings, my daily expenses and this house are all provided by the court. My salary has been saved up, so I can spare some. Zhou sir, how much do you need to borrow As long as it's within my means, I won't refuse."

"That's wonderful."

Zhou Changshou clapped his hands and laughed, then extended two fingers and waved them, saying, “This number.”

"Two hundred taels"

Zhao Xuanji laughed and said: “Although it’s not a small sum, this old man can afford it. This old man will call the accountant…”

"Two million."

Zhou Changshou said with a smile, "Governor Sheng is a high-ranking official. Taking out 200 taels of silver would be a joke."

Zhao Xuanji's face darkened, and he said, "Zhou DaRen, are you here to make a joke of this old man"

"Sighing, Zhou Zhangshou said, "My Lord Governor, let's be frank. I haven't got time for games. This time, I'm here on behalf of His Highness to borrow twenty million taels from Minister Zhao to alleviate the urgent financial needs of the imperial court. I implore you, Minister Zhao, to generously open your purse..."

"Even if I were more generous, old man, I couldn't possibly come up with that much silver."

Zhao Xuanji said faintly, "Two of you, after drinking this cup of tea, please feel free to leave."

Zhou Changshou was not discouraged at all.

Right now, it's just the stage of probing, and Zhao Xuanji hasn't shown any sincerity. Of course he wouldn't give in.

"Sir Zhao, please remain calm."

Zhou Ping'an rubbed the warm teacup in his hand and smiled, "An empire, exchanged for Zhao Dairen's 20 million taels of silver, this deal, isn't it a profit"

Let me know if you have any other text you'd like me to translate!Chapter 486: Thorough Investigation