In addition to the official network, the Liu family also has many connections in the shopping mall.
Judging from the information Zhu Minfeng obtained, the Liu family has a good relationship with several large merchants such as the Chang family in Jinzhong and the Fan family in Jiexiu. Among them, the Liu family and the Chang family are related by marriage, and Liu Shancheng's aunt married the Chang family. The second master of the family, this relative is still very close.
The Liu family has a good reputation and credibility outside the country. Even in Pingyang Mansion, the Liu family is also known as "good people". Whenever there is a famine, the Liu family often cooperates with the government to provide relief to the victims, and has won a certain amount of praise.
But privately, the Liu family is actually not a good person. The reason why the Liu family made their fortune was through bribery. After the Liu family became rich, in order to compete for business routes and obtain profits, they did a lot of dirty things secretly. Although the Liu family looks like good people when they build bridges and pave roads, in Zhu Minfeng's words, the Liu family is actually not a good person at all.
For the sake of profit, the Liu family has done a lot of plundering over the years. Let’s not talk about it in Pingyang Prefecture. Every time there is a famine, the Liu family sets up a porridge shop to relieve the victims, and on the other hand, they take the opportunity to lend money and exploit the people. The joint government annexed the land at extremely low prices.
On the business road, many merchants who had conflicts with the Liu family got into trouble for no apparent reason. There were even some ordinary merchants who were directly thrown into prison by the Liu family by taking advantage of their official connections because they blocked the Liu family's business road, and eventually their families were ruined.
They didn't know about such a mess before. They always thought that the Liu family was just a wealthy family and envied the Liu family's wealth. But who would have thought that behind the glamorous Liu family, there was such filth and darkness.
"The old Mr. Liu was not a good guy. It is said that the Mu family in Daizhou was brought down by this old guy's tricks. The Mu family was also a famous big merchant in Daizhou back then, and the Mu family and the Liu family were pretty good. How about relatives, how could the Liu family be so ruthless? The eldest young master of the Mu family went to the grassland and disappeared. The second young master of the Mu family was involved in a lawsuit and was beaten to death with a wooden board in the hall. Mr. Mu was so angry that he was heartbroken. He left immediately before recovering, and the women and children of the Mu family were even more pitiful. In just a few months, the Mu family was gone, and half of the Mu family's huge wealth was swallowed up by the Liu family."
"After the death of Mrs. Liu, Liu Shancheng became the head of the Liu family. This Liu Shancheng was also not a good person. It was said that Mrs. Liu was responsible for the troubles in the Mu family, but it was Liu Shancheng who made the decision. Over the years, Liu Shancheng used his hands to Because of the relationship, several people were forced to death one after another. These people were all small and medium-sized merchants. Their death was not counted, and most of the family property was taken away by the Liu family..."
Zhu Minfeng shook his head as he spoke. He was a member of the clan. As a member of the clan, he was naturally familiar with many dark things, but what Liu Shancheng and the Liu family did was still shocking. For money, the Liu family will do anything, including robbery and even murder and arson, which is nothing to the Liu family.
"What's going on at the Liu family?" Zhu Shenzui asked with a frown.
Zhu Minsu immediately reported to him the information he had learned. Liu Shancheng was the head of the Liu family and the head of the Liu family.
After the death of Mrs. Liu, the Liu family was controlled by Liu Shancheng. Liu Shancheng had three brothers. He was the eldest brother, Liu Shanchang, the second brother, and Liu Shanlin, the third brother. In addition, he also had two younger sisters who had been married long ago.
The status of the second and third bedrooms in the Liu family is not high, because Liu Shancheng's eldest brother controls the power of the Liu family, and Liu Shancheng is always wary of his two younger brothers and never gives them the right to touch the family business. Apart from monthly payments and dividends, the actual power in the Liu family is not as good as that of Liu Shancheng's manager.
Liu Shancheng is forty-two years old this year. In addition to his first wife, he also married five concubines, not to mention how many bed-warmers he had.
Among these wives, Liu Shancheng's favorite was his fifth concubine, Xiangyu.
The reason is also very simple, because this concubine named Xiangyu gave birth to Liu Shancheng’s only son. This son was born only when Liu Shancheng was thirty-eight years old. Perhaps in later generations, it is too late for a man to get married and have children at the age of thirty-eight. Although this is a normal thing, you must know that in the Ming Dynasty, ordinary men usually got married at the age of fifteen or sixteen, and there were not a few who got married as early as thirteen or fourteen.
After getting married, it is common for people to have children in the second year. It is normal for father and son to be only sixteen or seventeen years apart. Very few people like Liu Shancheng did not have a son until they were thirty-eight years old.
This may be the reason why Liu Shancheng has married five concubines in addition to his main wife. Liu Shancheng has been unable to give birth to a son no matter how hard he tries. He has given birth to several daughters, but no one can take charge of them. As he gets older, He became more and more anxious about the growth. There couldn't be anyone to follow up such a huge family business, right?
His second and third brothers do have a son, so it stands to reason that he can find an adoptive son.
But Liu Shancheng didn't have a good relationship with his two younger brothers. They had always been wary of his second and third bedrooms, and they wouldn't even let them interfere in his business. If he adopted him from their side, how would this matter be dealt with in the future? Is this son my own? Or his brother? What if I met my ancestor that day and my adopted son inherited the family business and recognized his biological father?
Therefore, Liu Shancheng refused to adopt his younger brother's son even if he could not give birth to a son. He would rather welcome his concubines into the house one after another.
The hard work paid off, and soon after the concubine in the fifth room came in, there was finally movement in her stomach. Maybe Liu Shancheng paid enough for the sesame oil in the temple, or maybe he chanted sutras and kowtowed devoutly enough in the small Buddhist hall at home every day. Finally, it came to fruition. This fifth concubine gave birth to a son for Liu Shancheng.
The birth of his son finally made Liu Shancheng feel relieved. He felt relieved that he had a son, and the family business could be considered a follow-up. The middle-aged son Liu Shancheng was so precious that he was afraid of melting when he held it in his mouth, and he was afraid of falling when he held it in his hands. He loved him so much.
It was also because of this son that his concubine named Xiangyu had a much higher status in the Liu family than ordinary concubines, even surpassing Liu Shancheng's wife.
This concubine is not a fuel-efficient lamp. By virtue of being favored, she not only holds most of the power in the family, but also gives Liu Shancheng a pillow, making her brother the chief steward of the Liu family.
Liu Shancheng also trusted Xiangyu's brother very much. He not only made him the chief manager, but also regarded him as a confidant. Privately, the Liu family calls him the second master, which is equivalent to the second-in-command of the Liu family besides Liu Shancheng.
On the contrary, Liu Shancheng's real second and third brothers had no rights at all. Sometimes he wanted to ask for more money from his eldest brother, but Liu Shancheng scolded him before he even opened his mouth. In the Liu Mansion, their brothers' status was not as good as that of a concubine's brother.
"Liu Shancheng's wife just allowed this fragrant jade to creep up on her?" After hearing Zhu Minchu's story, Zhu Shenzui frowned and couldn't help but ask.
"Liu Shancheng's first wife is his aunt and cousin. If it weren't for this relationship and the fact that Liu Shancheng has always had a reputation as a good person outside, I'm afraid he would have divorced his wife long ago. A woman who can't lay eggs can have such a good relationship in the Liu family What status? Even if she is the head wife, so what?" Zhu Minchu shook his head and said. Zhu Minchu is an honest man and a person who values his family very much. In his opinion, this Liu Shancheng is not a thing at all.
The concubine has given birth to a son for him. It’s okay if you want to spoil him, but you can’t go too far! It is simply unimaginable that the first wife is still here, so she praises her concubine to the sky. She is so harsh on her two brothers, but she values an outsider so much.
Putting one hand on the edge of the table, Zhu Shenzui thought carefully.
The three of them had already explained everything they had found out, and he understood everything. Although there may be gaps in the things found, and it is impossible to guarantee that everything is complete, with such a short time and the abilities of the three of them, such a result is already considered very good.
The general situation is basically the same as Zhu Shenzui's initial judgment. Liu Shancheng's official relationship with the business community is very deep, and a big businessman like him would have been devoured to the bone without these relationships and connections. .
Zhu Shenzui was not surprised at all, such as robbery, murder and arson. This may seem excessive to outsiders, but for capital, it is the most normal thing. Let’s not talk about other things, let’s take Zhu Shenzui himself as an example. Is he a good person when he led people from Wangjia Village to sell salt for smuggling? You must know that he has had lives on his hands in the past two years, because sometimes if he is soft-hearted, the person who loses his life may be himself.
But then again, Zhu Shenzui and Liu Shancheng are fundamentally different. Their starting points and purposes of doing things are different. This is also the real reason why Zhu Shenzui has bad feelings towards Liu Shancheng, not to mention that the Liu family has already reached into his bowl and intends to cut off his escape. In such a situation, what can Zhu Shenzui do? Maybe let it go?
It is impossible to start from the government or the military. After all, Liu Shancheng has interests in collusion with them. In other words, Liu Shancheng is on the same side as them. They have made a lot of money through relying on the Liu family in recent years. As for other merchants, let’s not talk about whether there are merchants who are willing to fall out with the Liu family. Even if they are, they must consider whether they can defeat the Liu family.
The Liu family, especially Liu Shancheng, is not easy to deal with. If the Liu family cannot be defeated at once, the consequences will be disastrous.
After much deliberation, Zhu Shenzui felt that it would be better to start with the internal conflicts within the Liu family. Especially Liu Shancheng's two younger brothers, the second and third brothers of the Liu family.
As brothers, the second and third wives had no rights, and the concubine's brother climbed over them. How could ordinary people tolerate this? There is also the conflict between Liu Shancheng's concubine named Xiangyu and his real wife. These may be exploitable.
Isn’t there a saying that goes well? When trouble comes from Xiao Qiang, the fortress always starts to disintegrate from within. If this aspect can be utilized well, it will be an opportunity to severely attack Liu Shancheng. As long as there is chaos within the Liu family, there will be other ways to deal with Jiezhou. Think about it.
