Soon, the group arrived, with Xu Gui leading.
Xu Gui saw Zhang Quan on the ground and immediately ordered his men to tie them up. He was secretly puzzled.
Madam Xu had instructed him to throw a note in Zhang Quan’s room, saying Zhang Quan would escape these days, and to have people watch him without alerting him. If he escaped, they were to wait until he left the weaving workshop before capturing him. After discovering Zhang Quan’s escape tonight, he immediately led people in pursuit. Arriving here, he found Zhang Quan and the small manager lying on the ground, with no one else around.
Following Madam Xu’s instructions, Xu Gui imprisoned Zhang Quan and the others without reporting to the Young Master. Today, after Madam Xu’s order, he brought them to the Xu residence.
Xu Hanzhong saw that Xu Gui had caught Zhang Quan, and he was overjoyed. Seeing Zhang Quan kneeling on the ground made him even angrier. He stepped forward and asked, confirming that the theft of raw silk and embezzlement were indeed done by Zhang Quan and the small manager beside him. He then ordered someone to lock Zhang Quan in the woodshed, planning to send him to the authorities the next day.
Xu Gui took out a thick stack of silver notes from Zhang Quan’s body and handed them back to Xu Hanzhong.
Xu Hanzhong counted them, and the joy on his face faded. He still sighed. Zhang Quan had sold the stolen silk at a low price, so the money did not fully cover the workshop’s losses.
Today, Hanren and I have already persuaded two shopkeepers, and they agreed to exchange goods. Hanzhong will continue to persuade others tomorrow. If there are buyers who are unwilling to exchange goods or defer returns, we now have money to process the refunds.”
Xu Hanyao said, “Brother, don’t forget that I still have many customers waiting for refunds.”
Xu Hanzhong nodded and placed the silver notes in front of him: “Hanyao, take what you need.”
Yu Yi, seeing the brothers finish discussing compensation, said, “Now there’s another urgent matter to resolve. We need to find good raw silk, or the workshop will soon stop working, and the shop will have no goods to sell.”
