The Heir

Сhaptеr 221: Аsking fоr Тrоuble

Front cоurtуard of thе Wang residеnсе, in thе осtagonаl pavilion.

Time rewinds tо а quartеr of аn hоur еаrlier.

Luо Jiu hаd just finishеd lunсh аnd was аbout to go rеst whеn he wаs called оut as he рassed bу thе осtаgоnаl paviliоn.

"Luо Jiu." Qin Si stoоd bу thе oсtagоnаl paviliоn with Fеng Daniu, bеckoning Luo Wеnqian.

"Oh, Qin Si." Luo Wеnqiаn rеspоnded with a cаsuаl lаugh.

"I heаrd уоu рlаn tо invest in Sifаng Вank аnd takе it over. I wоnder if оur Qin fаmilу cаn аlsо buу shares?" Qin Si got strаight to the point. Hе knew Luo Jiu's temрeramеnt—if yоu triеd to bеat around the bush with him, he'd just confuse you.

"That wouldn't be appropriate, would it?" Luo Jiu raised an eyebrow slightly. "For us, more shareholders are always welcome, but you first cheated Sifang Bank, and now you want to buy shares—that just doesn't seem right."

Hearing Luo Jiu's words, Qin Si's heart skipped a beat, but he laughed it off. "What are you talking about? There's a limit to jokes."

"Whether it's a joke or not, we all know the truth," Luo Jiu continued. "Yesterday, I received news that Lord Xuan and Lord Yan are now in the Tartars' territory, taken in by Ba Han Na Ji. I heard they were even given official positions by Anda." The Ba Han Na Ji Luo Jiu mentioned was Anda's grandson.

"What does that have to do with me?" Qin Si laughed heartily.

He understood that Luo Jiu must have found out something. However, he had been very careful in his arrangements, and even if Luo Jiu knew, he would have no evidence. Qin Si wasn't worried.

Indeed, it was he who had arranged the escape route for Lord Xuan and Lord Yan of the Weaving Bureau, who had absconded with the funds. Otherwise, the two would have been closely watched by the government and would never have escaped.

The reason he did this was that the opportunity was too good to pass up. The Qin family had always been entrenched in the north, but unexpectedly, the court suddenly lifted the Maritime Prohibition. From now on, there was no doubt that overseas markets would be the main source of profit. Moreover, with Anda's raids, even though they had connections with the Tartars, the entire northern market was becoming increasingly difficult. So, when he first arrived in Nanjing, he had proposed cooperating with Luo Jiu and the Li family, even at a loss.

But before the cooperation could begin, due to a Huizhou corruption case, Lord Hai had uprooted the Xu family, a towering tree, and thrown the Nanjing official and merchant circles into chaos.

That was when he saw his chance. If Sifang Bank collapsed, the Huizhou Merchants would inevitably suffer huge losses. After all, Wang Sifang was the head of the Huizhou Merchants Guild, and most of the Huizhou Merchants in Nanjing conducted their financial transactions through Sifang Bank.

Thus, a portion of the Nanjing market would inevitably open up. The Qin family was not short of funds, and they could even take over Sifang Bank. In other words, the chaos in Nanjing was an opportunity for the Qin family.

So, Qin Si simply added fuel to the fire by arranging for Lord Xuan and Lord Yan of the Weaving Bureau to flee north, taking a large sum of money with them and pushing Sifang Bank to the brink of collapse.

Originally, as soon as Wang Sifang got into trouble, he had been waiting for Sifang Bank to go bankrupt so he could step in with a large amount of capital. Unexpectedly, Luo Wenqian and Hu Zonglin reacted extremely quickly. Almost immediately after Wang Sifang's incident, the Merchant Guild stepped in to take over all of the Wang family's affairs, leaving him no opportunity to intervene.

He was truly a bit unwilling.Today, he had used visiting Wang Sifang as a pretext, with the aim of seeing if there was still any opportunity.

He just hadn’t expected that Luo Jiu would see right through his tactics. With that, there was definitely no chance for cooperation anymore.

Indeed, his father had been right. In the north, Luo Jiu would be the Qin family’s greatest rival. What a pity—back when Luo Jiu first ventured into the northern territories, they hadn’t managed to suppress him, and instead, he had carved out a place for himself.

And now, with the Maritime Prohibition lifted, coupled with Luo Jiu’s capture of the Military Saber Market, and Li Zhenniang recently helping him obtain the method for crafting Japanese Swords, Luo Jiu’s rise to power had become inevitable.

Thinking of this, Qin Si’s expression darkened.

Meanwhile, Luo Jiu narrowed his eyes. Qin Si was clearly refusing to admit anything, and for now, he truly had no evidence. However, as long as it was done by a person, there had to be a flaw. In the end, he would find a way to uncover this matter, but for now, there was no need to say more.

So he calmly addressed Qin Si, “Qin Si, make yourself at home. I’m busy and won’t be entertaining you.” With that, he turned and walked through the front courtyard, bypassed the hallway, and entered the study on one side. The parties investing in the shares had now been confirmed, essentially consisting of the Luo Family’s Yi Hou Sheng Firm, Hu Zonglin’s Hu’s Firm, Wang Cuiqiao’s Huiyuan Bank, and the Merchant Guild’s collective shares.

There were many things to handle—share allocations, contracts, agreements, and so on. He had no time to waste arguing with Qin Si.

“As you wish,” Qin Si shrugged, watching Luo Jiu leave.

“Fourth Master, does this mean the cooperation we previously agreed upon is off?” Feng Daniu asked from the side. Naturally, he was referring to the initial discussions of cooperation between Qin, Luo, Li, and Feng Daniu.

Qin Si nodded with a grim expression. Under these circumstances, cooperation was clearly impossible. This time, he had tried to gain an advantage but ended up losing instead.

Just then, he noticed a woman not far away at the entrance of the hallway, holding a tea tray with a teapot and cups, speaking to a young woman in a pale yellow dress.

“Qing’er, take the tea over,” Madam Hu pointed toward the study at the end of the hallway. Needless to say, the young woman in the pale yellow dress was her stepdaughter, Hu Qing’er.

Hu Qing’er flushed red, unwilling, and softly protested, “Mother…”

“Listen to me. This is for your own good. Where else would you find a family like Luo Jiu’s?” Madam Hu said. Over the past two days, she had exhausted all her words with this girl, resorting to threats and persuasion, but the girl had remained stubbornly unwilling, which truly annoyed her.

“Go in now. I’m watching. After all, your marriage will be arranged by me,” Madam Hu glared. The threat in these words was quite clear—if Hu Qing’er didn’t comply this time, she wouldn’t have a good future.

Hu Qing’er’s eyes reddened. She stood frozen for a long moment before finally picking up the tea tray and walking step by step toward the room Luo Wenqian had entered earlier.

She didn’t come out for quite some time.

Qin Si began to understand what was happening, especially when the woman called two more people and headed straight for the study at the end of the hallway. Then, seeing Li Zhenniang and the woman from the Wang family also heading toward the study, he realized Luo Jiu was in trouble.However, this presented an opportunity for him. Since the Ink Competition that day, he had indeed developed some thoughts about Li Zhenniang. Of course, that wasn’t the main point. What mattered was that the Li family had a good relationship with Wang Cuiqiao, who was originally a Sea Bandit. Going Overseas was a trivial matter for her people, and Li Zhengping also traveled between the Two Oceans, having already established quite a few Overseas Connections. Back then, when he wanted to collaborate with the Luo Family and the Li family, it was precisely this that he valued. Now, if the matter between Luo Jiu and Li Zhenniang fell through, it would be his chance.

Thinking this, he stepped forward as well. He imagined the scene that would unfold soon—it was sure to embarrass Li Zhenniang. Then he could play the hero saving the beauty. His calculations were ringing clear as a bell.

By now, the crowd had reached the study.

Madam Hu signaled to Ma Sao beside her, who then stumbled toward the door as if she had been walking too fast and couldn’t stop herself in time, crashing right into it.

Unexpectedly, the door swung open with just a light touch. Unable to regain her balance, Ma Sao tumbled to the ground instead.

“What is this? Have you no manners?” At that moment, a somewhat aged yet stern voice, suppressing anger, rang out from inside the room.

“Old Madam, is that you? When did you arrive?”

Through the open door, the study was clearly visible. There was no Luo Wenqian in sight—only an elderly woman with graying hair. Seated beside her was Hu Qingjie, who had entered earlier and was now helping the old woman massage her legs.

As for this old woman, it went without saying—she was none other than Old Madam Hu.

“Is it so strange for me to be here? Not only have you all failed to be of any help to the Wang family, but you’ve also caused nothing but trouble. I’ve heard all about it back home—you’ve thoroughly shamed the faces of both the Hu and Wang families. Enough. Since the Merchant Guild has taken over the matters of Sifang Bank, and the men of your families are managing affairs, you womenfolk should stop stirring up trouble. All of you, come back with me shortly.” Old Madam Hu spoke calmly, though her suppressed anger was palpable.

After all, such shameless matters could only be dealt with behind closed doors at home. Family scandals should never be aired in public.

At this moment, observing Old Madam Hu’s expression, Madam Hu—who knew her mother-in-law best—understood perfectly: the calmer the old lady appeared, the angrier she truly was.

She couldn’t comprehend it. She had clearly watched Luo Wenqian enter this room, hadn’t seen him leave, and hadn’t noticed Old Madam Hu arrive either. Yet now, it was as if a living person had vanished into thin air.

However, by this point, Madam Hu realized that her schemes had likely been seen through entirely. This time, she had utterly humiliated herself.

“Did you hear me?” Old Madam Hu asked sharply, her voice rising when Madam Hu failed to respond for a while.

“Yes, I’ll go pack my things right away.” Madam Hu replied, her face pale, before bowing and turning to return to her room.

At this moment, most people had no idea what had happened. They assumed it was about the incident a few days earlier when the young men of both families had caused a disturbance at Yi Hou Sheng. Although the youths had acted excessively, everyone understood—after all, the losses had been substantial.

Seeing Old Madam Hu’s demeanor now, many remarked on the Hu family’s strict governance and dignified bearing, truly a family of great stature.

Zhenniang, however, said nothing. She merely glanced at Madam Wang, but that single look flushed Madam Wang’s face crimson with shame—as if to say that despite being an elder, Madam Wang’s words were utterly unreliable.Madam Wang was nearly bursting with frustration this time. She had clearly seen everything with her own eyes, yet she never expected Old Lady Hu to appear in the end. It was obvious that Madam Hu had also been outmaneuvered by someone else.

As for who that someone else was, it went without saying—it must be Luo Jiu and that girl from the Li family. No wonder the girl had been so composed earlier.

As for the actual situation, Li Zhenniang knew it well. This study had been specially chosen by Luo Wenqian. Behind the bookshelf in the study was a small side door. Luo Wenqian had entered the study and then slipped out through that side door, while Old Lady Hu had entered through it. In this way, a farce was quietly averted.

"Madam Wang, your aunt told me that your husband is unconscious and my daughter is also ill. We haven’t been able to entertain you properly. I’d like to invite you to my place to keep an old woman like me company for a while," Old Lady Hu said, having dismissed her own disappointing daughter-in-law, and now turning to Madam Wang.

"There’s no need to worry about entertaining us. In fact, I’ve been the one imposing. It would naturally be wonderful to accompany you, but I’ve been away from home for some time now and am concerned about matters there. I’ve already booked a boat ticket to return to Huizhou tomorrow, so I’m afraid I must disappoint you, Madam," replied Madam Wang. She had no time to spare for Old Lady Hu, and she doubted the old lady truly wanted her company either. The situation was clear to everyone. Now that Old Lady Hu had spoken, she could hardly insist on staying and had no choice but to leave for now.

"Oh, very well then. I wish you a smooth journey," said Old Lady Hu.

"Thank you, Madam," Madam Wang replied with a curtsy before leading her people away.

"Miss Li, please take me to see my daughter," Old Lady Hu then said amiably to Li Zhenniang.

"Of course, Madam, please," Zhen Niang curtsied and stepped forward, beckoning to Hu Qingjie. Together, they supported the old lady to Hu Shi’s room.

As Zhen Niang helped the old lady out of the room, she happened to pass Luo Wenqian, who was approaching from the opposite direction. The two exchanged a knowing smile.

Qin Si, observing this from the side, felt somewhat vexed. These two were not so easily outmaneuvered.