Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

Chapter 296 How to Distinguish

After Shen Chuning returned to the mansion, she quickly changed into simple and comfortable clothes and stepped out of the house again.

This time, it was Qixia who followed her.

The master and servant walked along the way and soon arrived at the Yun family teahouse.

As soon as she stepped into the teahouse, the owner came forward and led Shen Chuning with a smile to an exclusive private room that was usually closed to the public.

This is the place Shen Chuning often uses to discuss important matters. The environment is quiet and elegant, and confidentiality is excellent.

When Shen Chuning gently pushed open the door of the private room, she saw Cui Shi had been sitting in the room waiting for a long time.

Seeing Shen Chuning appear, Cui Shi hurriedly stood up and bowed to her respectfully.

Shen Chuning slowly took off the veil on her head and handed it to Qixia who was standing beside her.

Qixia carefully took the veil and put it away properly, then tiptoed out of the room and closed the door.

Afterwards, she quietly waited outside the door to prevent anyone from approaching without permission and disturbing the two people who were discussing something inside.

"Miss, I heard that you have begun to shrink other businesses in the Huguang area. I wonder if our Hengfu Bank also has a corresponding shrinking plan?" Cui Shi asked cautiously.

Shen Chuning said casually, "There's no need for that right now. When the other shops on the street close, we can just follow the crowd and close them down."

Cui Shi frowned, a look of worry on his face, and hurriedly said, "Miss, are we really not considering closing the bank early? According to the intelligence I've gathered, the eldest prince is very likely to rebel. If that really happens... I'm afraid we'll suffer heavy losses!"

Shen Chuning nodded slightly, acknowledging Cui Shi's concerns. However, she remained calm and composed, confidently replying, "I am of course aware of the eldest prince's intentions to rebel, but now that His Majesty has seen through his plot, I doubt he will cause much trouble."

Thinking back to his previous life, Xiao Yuanqi failed to succeed even when everything was ready and Emperor Jing was completely unaware, let alone this hasty rebellion.

As for why we can infer that he will act hastily, it is because he stole the defense map of the capital.

The defenses of the capital city have always been changed and adjusted regularly. If he cannot take action in the near future, the defense map in his hand that he has painstakingly obtained will become a piece of waste paper.

After a moment's thought, Shen Chuning then instructed, "Withdraw some of the cash from the banks in Huguang region in the near future."

Cui Shi nodded repeatedly and replied, "Yes, I understand! I will immediately arrange to send the silver to Sichuan after I return. According to your previous instructions, we have successfully dug out a mountain at the junction of Sichuan and Weinan to store the silver."

Shen Chu stared at the map before him, carefully considering the relative positions of Sichuan and Huguang. After some mental calculations, he said, "The two places aren't that far apart. There's no need to withdraw too much silver, though. Right now, we just need to be wary of someone taking advantage of the chaos to rob or smash our shops, causing unnecessary losses. We can send more people to strengthen the security of the larger shops. I don't think there will be any major disturbances."

Cui Shi responded respectfully, "Don't worry, young lady. I will handle this matter properly. I just don't know when our shop can reopen after this chaos has subsided."

Shen Chu pondered for a moment before replying, "We can close down in line with our peers, but we must reopen earlier than them. As soon as the troops sent by His Majesty have the situation under control, we'll reopen immediately. Initially, there might be a lot of people coming to exchange silver, so you'll need to calculate the time and ship the silver back in advance. While this puts some pressure on us, it will help establish a good reputation and will undoubtedly benefit the future development of Hengfu Bank."

Upon hearing this, Cui Shi couldn't help but show his delight, praising it wholeheartedly, "This is a brilliant plan! This operation will indeed greatly help to enhance the reputation of Hengfu Bank. I'm sure that by then, the amount of silver deposited in our bank will be able to increase significantly, and our business will be able to expand further."

However, Shen Chu unexpectedly shook his head slightly to express his opposition.

She said solemnly, "At present, all Hengfu Banks in Dayong need to gradually reduce their scale and stop expanding."

Although Cui Shi had long known that Hengfu Bank was a trap set by Shen Chuning and that its final outcome would be closure, now was a good time for development, so why was it going to close?

He asked the doubts in his heart.

Shen Chuning replied, "It's not about clearing out all the deposits, it's just about clearing out the idle money of ordinary people."

Cui Shi frowned, "How can we tell the difference?"