"What's wrong, Brother Wan? Have you run into some trouble?"
Li Boyang, however, sensed something different in those words. How could an old fox like Shen Wansan easily reveal such sentiments in front of a relatively unfamiliar person?
"Mr. Boyang is indeed an extraordinary person with keen insight."
Shen Wansan didn't mince words and sat down next to Li Boyang. He poured himself a cup, drank it down in one gulp, and then said, "I have indeed encountered some trouble recently."
"With Brother Wan's abilities, this should be no problem for you."
Li Boyang smiled slightly but did not respond.
Shen Wansan was momentarily stunned. The other party was not playing by the rules. Shouldn't the next sentence be: "Tell me about it?"
He froze for a moment, unsure how to respond. However, Shen Wansan was a great merchant, and his shamelessness was unparalleled. Knowing that Li Boyang had no intention of continuing, he still spoke:
"Mr. Boyang is an extraordinary person. Since you have the opportunity to come to my residence, why don't you help me analyze this?"
He didn't directly tell Li Boyang about the problem he was facing, because Li Boyang hadn't responded to his previous question, so he could only awkwardly try to probe again.
At this moment, Liu Bowen, who was in a frenzy, had a red glint in his eyes and gave Li Boyang a malicious look.
The moment Li Boyang saw the look in Liu Bowen's eyes, he knew things were going to get bad; who knew what kind of trouble this kid was up to.
Sure enough, after Shen Wansan finished speaking, Liu Bowen interjected:
"Oh dear, Uncle Wan, this isn't the place to talk. If you want my teacher to give you advice, it would be better to go somewhere else."
“Let me tell you, my teacher appreciates elegance. Look around and see if there’s any elegant place nearby. Go there to talk, and he’ll be very happy.”
"Yes, yes, yes, my dear nephew is right. It's not convenient to talk here. Let's find another place."
Shen Wansan nodded repeatedly. Liu Bowen was speaking up for him, so how could he not take advantage of the situation?
Li Boyang glared fiercely at Liu Bowen. This kid was getting more and more outrageous, daring to even act as his master.
What utter nonsense about him liking refined places! It's obvious this kid just wants to go to brothels and is using him as a tool.
However, since Liu Bowen had already spoken for him, he really couldn't refute it, otherwise he would be making a fool of himself in front of Shen Wansan.
At this point, Shen Wansan asked again, "My dear nephew, forgive my ignorance, but where exactly do you mean by 'refined elegance'? Could you be more specific?"
Liu Bowen blushed slightly. Could he really say that directly? Could he possibly suggest that his teacher liked going to brothels, and that they should go on a pleasure boat to discuss business? He would be torn to shreds by his teacher if he did.
After a quick thought, Liu Bowen said, "For example, boating on the river, or playing the zither in a private room..."
He cursed inwardly, thinking, "This Shen Wansan is really stupid. What else could 'refined place' mean but a brothel?"
"Oh... I understand now. Don't worry, my dear nephew, leave it to me."
Shen Wansan was nothing like what Liu Bowen described. In fact, when Liu Bowen mentioned places of elegance, his first thought was of the painted boats and brothels along the Qinhuai River.
However, he wasn't a scholar, so he wasn't sure if his thinking was correct. Therefore, he checked it first to avoid making a big mistake, which would be bad.
"Fuxin, come here for a second."
Shen Wansan called out towards the outside of the living room.
Fu Xin, who was waiting outside the living room, immediately walked in and respectfully asked:
"Master, what are your orders?"
Shen Wansan whispered some instructions to Fu Xin.
Fu Xin nodded repeatedly as he listened to Shen Wansan's words, clearly indicating that Shen Wansan had given him more than one instruction.
After Shen Wansan finished giving his instructions, Fu Xin prepared to leave. Just as he reached the door, Shen Wansan suddenly said again:
"Go and give me the silver notes first, then I'll get on with it."
"Yes, sir."
After listening to Shen Wansan's instructions, Fu Xin went out.
They returned shortly afterward.
"Master, everything is ready."
He casually slipped a stack of banknotes into Shen Wansan's sleeve. Judging from the practiced way he handed over the banknotes, he must have done this kind of thing many times before.
Although Fu Xin's actions were discreet and could fool Liu Bowen, they couldn't fool Shen Wansan. The moment the silver note was handed over, the paper fluttered slightly, and Li Boyang had already discerned the approximate amount.
He sighed inwardly, thinking that Shen Wansan was indeed a true tycoon. That stack of silver notes was probably worth around 50,000 taels. It seemed that he was prepared to spend a lot of money on him.
Shen Wansan quietly accepted the silver note, then picked up the wine cup on the table and said with a smile:
"Mr. Boyang, let's have a drink first, it'll be ready in a bit. I'll drink first as a sign of respect."
Li Boyang also picked up his wine glass to indicate his presence and drank it all in one gulp.
Ten minutes passed quickly.
After finishing his drink, Shen Wansan calculated the time and said, "Mr. Boyang, it's about time. Let's set off. The carriage is ready."
"Can we set off now?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Bowen immediately stood up from his chair.
"Teacher, why are you still sitting?"