The old man of the Wu family is an old man in his fifties. Perhaps the business of the Wu family is related to scholars. The old man of the Wu family looks very elegant, and he exudes the nobility, calmness and leisure of a scholar.
But because he comes from a merchant family, he has no fame himself. Therefore, years of self-cultivation only makes him look like a scholar, but as long as you see his eyes and the occasional flash of light in them, you will understand that a businessman is a businessman after all.
Businessmen pursue profits and forget their benefits. For the sake of fifty percent profit, they dare to take risks; for the sake of one hundred percent profit, they dare to trample all laws in the world.
And the cost of swallowing up the Sang family is too low, and the reward is more than 100% simple? Even if the old man of the Wu family is given another chance, he will still grit his teeth and do this kind of behavior that can get high rewards without even investing.
In recent years, because they swallowed up most of the Sang family, the Wu family has risen from an ordinary merchant to a famous Confucian businessman in Jinzhou.
Although most of this reputation is sought after by some people who are in favor of others. Really famous people are tabooed by his greed and lack of limits in the affairs of the Sang family and do not bother to associate with him. However, this does not stop the Wu family master from being violent. With his increasing wealth, his dexterity and his ability to use money to clear the way, he gradually became a guest of the state capital. He holds a very important position in Jinzhou's upper-class circles.
Mr. Wu was always proud of himself and taught his children and grandchildren implicitly, "When the opportunity comes, you must seize it. Hesitation and hesitation will only miss the opportunity." He also said, "If I had hesitated and made up my mind back then, our family would have Where did you get such a big family fortune? You guys just lack the indomitable spirit that you had when you were a father."
The children and grandchildren of the Wu family nodded frequently, feeling that their father/grandfather was really wise.
However, they didn't know that their father/grandfather, who had always been strategizing, wise and capable, and capable of doing things with ease, was now struck by lightning, as if paralyzed, and sat motionless on the Grand Master's chair.
Wu Liangzhong gasped for air, still finding it difficult to breathe. He couldn't bear to pull open his clothes and looked straight at the anxious and flustered housekeeper, with a sinister look on his face, "Can you see clearly, is this really Sang Fuyue's kid?"
"I can't make any more mistakes, sir." The butler was sweating profusely. He went to the dock today to send the young master to Qingyang Academy to study. Unexpectedly, the young master had just boarded the boat and left. He was about to turn around and come back, but he saw Sang Fuyue standing at the bow of the boat.
The eldest son of the Sang family, such a bright and high-spirited young man, was the favorite of many boudoir daughters when he was still alive.
The eldest daughter of the Wu family naturally had a crush on the eldest son of the Sang family, and even once shouted to the master and madam that she wanted her family to help make peace. But the Sang family even rejected Master Zhizhou's biological niece, so how could they take a fancy to their own good-for-nothing eldest daughter?
Of course, the reason why he pays attention to the eldest son of the Sang family is not because of the young man's excessive popularity and handsome appearance. But it's because my master has always regarded the Sang family as a business competitor, and has always tried to surpass and suppress the Sang family.
But the Wu family was just an ordinary merchant family at that time. Even if the family had a few coins, how could it compare to the Sang family who cultivated and studied the family?
Also because the Sang family has many scholars, and the old man and the old man of the Sang family were born as Jinshi, they were naturally accepted and sought after by Jinzhou's literary circle. They are the talkers in a circle that my master cannot squeeze into. They are the organizers of the tickets that my master has worked so hard to get. There is really... no comparison at all.
If you can't compare with the older ones, then start comparing yourself with the younger ones.
For this reason, the master had extremely strict requirements for the young masters in his family. He sent them all to Qingyang Academy to study, and even made a bold statement, "Whoever can surpass Sang Nianyue in learning will be the leader of Wu from now on." The head of the family.”
This is a far-fetched statement, except that no one expected the death of the head of the Sang family. But after the Sang family was in chaos, it was his own master who made a decisive decision and coerced some shopkeepers and accountants of the Sang family. The two sides worked together and directly swallowed up almost three-fifths of the Sang family's property.
Just these three-fifths changed the Wu family's appearance and became a guest of many people.
But as glorious as it was then, it is so hectic now.
The old housekeeper wiped the cold sweat from his face and said eagerly, "Master, I can't get it wrong again. He is really the eldest son of the Sang family. He is not dead. He, he is back alive."
He added, "Not only the old slaves, but also many people on the dock saw them. The old housekeeper of the Sang family was following beside him. I also saw the eldest girl of the Sang family, and the eldest lady of the Sang family... Master, the person who comes here is not malicious, I still need to make plans in advance."
The old housekeeper felt sad and felt that people really couldn't do evil.
Because of the incident with the Sang family, he had not had a peaceful night's sleep in these years. Often late at night, he would dream of Mr. Sang, who was soaked and swollen, smiling coldly at him.
As God sees what he does, he has regretted it long ago. Now I just hope that the master still has some humanity and can return those properties as soon as possible if possible. Otherwise, otherwise...the consequences would be disastrous.
The housekeeper was in panic all day long, but although he was timid and fearful, his master was completely daring.
After Mr. Wu got over his initial panic, he slowly regained his composure.
He sneered, "Even if he has a long life, what will happen if he comes back alive by chance? There is no reason to spit out the things that are in my hands. He is just a young boy, huh, it's not that I underestimate him, even if If I lend him some skills, can he really make trouble in Jinzhou?"
He murmured again, "Besides, it's not like our family swallowed up the Sang family, the Luo family, and the He family were all involved. Even if I can spit out the meat that fell into my mouth, can they?"
If they haven't tasted this overwhelming wealth, maybe they wouldn't dare to think about it, but now that the thing falls into their hands, it is destined to be with them, and it can only be theirs, so where can I get it? Is there any reason to spit it out?
Mr. Wu became more relaxed thinking about this, "If it doesn't work out, where else can we go to the state capital..."
The old housekeeper thought of something and suddenly said, "Master, the eldest son of the Sang family should be an official now."
"What?" Mr. Wu sat up straight and stared at the butler with his turbid eyes. "What official position? Can you tell me clearly?"
The old housekeeper said tremblingly, "The eldest son wears court boots, and he is surrounded by masters from the military. And the eldest lady has a phoenix hairpin on her head that can only be worn by the imperial court..."
Mr. Wu's nostrils dilated and his pupils contracted, "How many grades?"
The old housekeeper recalled it carefully, but he was short-sighted and how could he tell the difference? What level of imperial concubine could the Phoenix Hairpin wear? He was able to recognize that it was the phoenix hairpin that only Mrs. Gaoming could wear. It was because he had dealt with many officials over the years and gained experience.
Furthermore, as a servant, how could he look directly at the noble? Not to mention that he had a guilty conscience and was afraid of being recognized by the Sang family, so he only took one look and hurriedly hid in the crowd.
Now being pressed by the master, the old housekeeper only shook his head in panic, "I don't recognize it, I don't recognize it."
When Wu Liangzhong heard this, his breathing became louder. He didn't know whether he was angry at the old housekeeper for being useless or because he was afraid of the coming disaster.
For some reason, he had a very bad feeling in his heart.
Businessmen are most taboo about dealing with government officials. His contacts with the government officials in Jinzhou are all done by him with money. He knew very well that those officials were not easy to get along with, and he also knew very well that if something was really wrong, they would completely burn the bridge and throw him out.
Don't panic, don't panic, things shouldn't have reached that stage yet.
Wu Liangzhong tried his best to comfort himself, but his beating heart was completely out of his control. His heartbeat was so fast that it almost jumped out of his throat, and his face was green and purple. Coupled with his ferocious complexion, he looked particularly scary.
After a long time, Wu Liangzhong finally regained his sense, "Sang Fu has only been around for a few years. Even if he is promising, how many ranks can he get? Besides, I listen to you, he seems to be in the army now. Civilization and martial arts have different paths, and knowing the state and peace Lord Tongpan, you may not agree with him."
That's what he said, but his next arrangements still proved that he panicked.
I heard Wu Liangzhong instruct the housekeeper, "I heard from my wife that Mrs. Zhizhou is looking for Dongzhu to make xiapei for the girl in the house. I have a box in the warehouse. You can send it directly. It seems that there is another box. Nanzhu, please send it along with me." He added, "The old man who has judged me is not in good health, so don't leave the 500-year-old wild ginseng in the house. Send it to the old man, just treat it as mine. A piece of heart.”
In addition, he also sent bits and pieces of things to other powerful families in Jinzhou. He gave some young masters fine horses, some antique calligraphy and paintings, and some greedy ones. He had been too lazy to deal with them before. At this time, he also asked people to go over and get in touch, saying that he was willing to give them. shares in the shop.
After one operation, everyone was pulled onto his warship. Wu Liangzhong finally felt better and felt that he should be stable.
Wu Liangzhong breathed a sigh of relief and quickly sent someone to find out what rank Sang Fuyue was now, where he was serving, what kind of backers he had behind him, etc.
When he was anxiously waiting for the servant to report back, he did not expect that the servant who went out to inquire about things had not returned yet, but the gift-givers were returning home one after another with the things they wanted to give away.
The boys were trembling, but they still brought the message. "The steward of the Zhizhou Prefecture said that they understand the master's wishes. But the palace has found the Dongzhu needed for the Xiapei, so they are worthy of the master's gift." Also sent back was the box of Nanzhu. Two boxes of valuable jewelry were held in the arms of the boy cautiously, looking so dazzling.
The servants who went to Tongpan Mansion also said with fear, "The old man in Tongpan Mansion has improved. The wild ginseng is very tonic, but it is not good for the old man's health. Besides, the mansion also has several branches of wild ginseng, so it's not good to covet it anymore." The master has carefully collected the good things, so I went to the master's house and asked the villain to keep the things back."
After saying this, the boy timidly glanced at the angry-eyed master.
Mr. Tongpan is the most greedy. In order to facilitate things, and to integrate into the upper class circles of Jinzhou City, my own master often sent things to Mr. Tongpan’s house in the past. Be it jewelry, calligraphy, paintings, beauties or BMWs, I am willing to spend a lot of money on them. As a result, Roubaozi beats the dog, and there is no return.
However, maybe he was afraid of pushing people into a hurry, or maybe he had other plans. The Tongxuan Mansion did not finish the matter and asked the servant to pass on a private message.
The young man looked at the other people waiting nervously in the flower hall, and then at the master above him.
Wu Liangzhong waved his hand and everyone left, and then the boy carefully said what he was going to say.
"The steward of Tongxuan Mansion asked me to tell you that the creditor is here to find us, and we will pay back what is due."
"What else?" Wu Liangzhong's eyes were about to burst, and he no longer had the dignity and calmness of a scholar.
"Also, and the steward said, that person is from Minzhou, his rank is above Lord Tongxuan, we can't afford to offend him."
Above Lord Tong San? Can't afford to offend?
Wu Liangzhong's heart plummeted to the bottom.
He seemed to be unable to bear the blow any longer, so he closed his eyes and passed out completely.
Not to mention that the Wu family was in chaos, but that Sang Nianyue and Lei Shuanghan had just entered the dilapidated house. They didn't even put away the things they brought. Someone had already sent greetings and greeting cards in the room. Come.
Most of the people who sent the greetings and invitations were officials from the Jinzhou Yamen, and most of them were people who were in favor of others. What's more, they are those who have benefited from the "scattered" wealth of the Sang family over the years.
When Sang Nianyue heard her brother's scoffing voice, she couldn't help but look at her sister-in-law curiously, "How come these people have such good ears and eyes? We just settled down at home, and they sent someone over quickly. Did the news of our return spread so quickly? ?”
Chang Minjun chuckled and explained to his sister-in-law.
It turned out that it was not the news that spread quickly, but that Lei Shuanghan had someone send the news after they docked.
"Sending a message?" Sang Nianyue wondered, "Who are you sending the message to?"
"To the magistrate's office."
Normally, when civil and military officials go home to visit relatives, they only need to report to their superiors and get permission. However, the current imperial court has strict control over officials, and they are also worried that officials will go and do shameful things in private under the guise of visiting relatives. Therefore, when officials return to their hometown to visit relatives, the yamen where the officials are located will issue a ticket. For outing letters, when the official arrives at his hometown, the parent official in his hometown will issue a letter of acceptance. It means that this official is really going home to visit relatives, and he has already arrived home, and has not gone to other messy places.
The main one is someone who knows your itinerary inside and out.
Lei Shuanghan had a bad impression of Jinzhou officials. He came back with the intention of finding trouble and killing people, so naturally he would not alert others. Therefore, he should have sent a letter to Jinzhou early, but it was not until the passenger ship arrived in Jinzhou that he leisurely asked someone to go to the Yamen to register.
