Chapter 159: Brothers

“Two thousand five hundred wen.”

“Miss Jiang, do you think my head is made of tofu?”

“The Ren family’s salt fields are worth it.”

“It’s not worth it.”

“Counter offer?”

“Two thousand wen, not a wen more.”

“Two thousand two hundred wen.”

“You’re asking too much. You’ve already made quite a bit of money off me. This isn’t how business is done!”

“Fine, then don’t buy.”

“…Wait, are you really leaving? Fine, two thousand two hundred wen, no more!”

…

Lu Xian, after all, was a businessman. Even though he wanted to smash this pretty girl’s head in out of anger, he still maintained a proper smile on his face. He asked the young attendant in the pavilion to fetch the full amount in silver notes, established new contracts with Jiang Xuening, and sealed them with his own seal.

Sold at four hundred wen, bought at two thousand two hundred wen.

Selling at four hundred wen had already incurred a loss of one thousand taels compared to the original purchase price of five hundred wen per share. 

Now, buying at two thousand two hundred wen, each share represented an additional loss of one thousand eight hundred wen. For ten thousand shares, that was an eighteen thousand tael loss!

He felt like his heart wasn’t just bleeding; it was a waterfall of blood!

When handing over the twenty-two thousand taels in silver notes to Jiang Xuening, Lu Xian’s hand trembled uncontrollably.

He gripped the notes tightly, unable to let go for a long time.

Jiang Xuening couldn’t pull them away and lazily looked up at him, “Are you still buying or not?”

He squeezed his eyes shut, “Take them, take them, just take them!”

Finally, he let go. It didn’t look like a mutually agreed transaction, but rather like Jiang Xuening had forcibly taken his money, gouged out his heart, and taken his life!

Although the Ren family’s salt field’s turnaround was hotly discussed in the capital, and the price of the salt field’s silver shares was rising, it would take some time for the four hundred wen shares to slowly return to their original level.

But now was different from the past.

Using the Zhuotong well as leverage to secure half of the profits from most of the salt fields in Shu for the next five years, the Ren family’s salt fields were practically invincible. Unless a major disaster struck in the next five years, they wouldn’t collapse.

Many wealthy merchants with idle money were eager to buy the Ren family’s salt shares but struggled to find a place to buy them. The price of two thousand two hundred wen, although high compared to the past and current market price, was sure to rise above this line in time, and there would be annual dividends as well.

Lu Xian definitely didn’t lose out.

Jiang Xuening was in urgent need of money, but she didn’t necessarily have to sell to Lu Xian. 

First, she felt a bit guilty for having tricked him before. 

Second, she had dealt with him before; although he was a shrewd businessman, he was trustworthy, whereas others might cause unexpected complications. 

Third, Lu Xian was smart and couldn’t miss out on such a good deal.

So she approached him.

Now that the money and goods had changed hands, she didn’t linger and left with the silver notes.

Lu Xian, however, stared at the ten thousand silver shares that he had “lost and regained” for a long time, feeling increasingly frustrated. Finally, he slapped the table, grabbed the contract and certificates, and strode outside.

The young attendant was dumbfounded, “Where is Master Lu going?”

Lu Xian didn’t look back, “I’m going to find that bastard Xie for some answers!”

It had just rained the day before, and the streets were still wet. Some people were gathered in the alley playing cards.

When Lu Xian passed by, he heard most people talking about the matter of the arranged marriage.

Occasionally, a few barefoot beggars would run past him, each holding a bamboo stick and a broken bowl, singing phrases like “Tatar clan brings disaster to the country, the princess’s marriage; coerced the emperor, eternal retribution.”

This matter was really getting out of hand.

As Lu Xian thought about it, he developed a bit of a spectator’s mindset, thinking that the princess was unlucky this time. 

He wondered who was behind causing such a big commotion. It would be hard to explain even in the court, and it would be difficult to resolve peacefully, wouldn’t it?

After all, public opinion is like water.

The emperor sitting on the throne doesn’t necessarily need to distinguish between loyalty and treachery, but to maintain stability, he must win the people’s hearts and act according to their will to achieve great governance.

At this time, Xie Wei had just finished his court session and was drinking tea after changing out of his court robes.

Lu Xian arrived just in time.

He walked in without being invited, sat directly opposite Xie Wei, and smiled as he glanced at Jian Shu standing beside him. 

He asked, “How’s the investigation going?”

Jian Shu, who had been by Xie Wei’s side for many years, lied without changing his expression: “We only started investigating yesterday and haven’t found any clues yet, but it’s highly likely that people from other salt farms in Shu are secretly involved.”

Lu Xian kept smiling: “Oh, it seems difficult to investigate?”

Jian Shu inexplicably felt a chill down his spine. 

He paused before saying, “Indeed, it’s not easy to investigate.”

Lu Xian chuckled, took out the certificate for ten thousand silver shares from his pocket, and placed it on the table, clearly seeing Jian Shu’s face change and his head bow down immediately.

“I thought Master Jian Shu was blind and didn’t recognize it.”

He poured himself a cup of tea, took a sip, and implied: “Xie Ju’an, look at you, you have Jian Shu and Dao Qin under your command, yet they can’t handle such a small matter, always without any progress. It wasn’t until the real person came to me today, offered a high price for me to buy back the silver shares, that I found out who was behind it. Why don’t you just kick these two out? If they can’t even do this, what’s the point of keeping them around to eat for free?”

Xie Wei looked at Jian Shu: “Did you hear what Master Lu said?”

Jian Shu: “…Yes.”

Taking the blame was no big deal; he was used to it.

Xie Wei then looked at Lu Xian, and said calmly: “If they can’t even handle this, how can I count on you to help if you fall into trouble in the future, breaking an arm or a leg?”

Lu Xian: “…”

Why did it feel like Xie Wei was insinuating that he was incompetent in business and blaming others?

He sneered: “People say that a man forgets his brothers once he has a wife. You’re quite something, Xie Ju’an. You don’t even have a wife yet, and you’ve already sold out your brothers clean!”

Xie Wei also laughed, as warm as melting snow: “Isn’t it because Brother Lu is worth something?”

Lu Xian: “…”

How infuriating!

He slammed the table and stood up: “Xie, today I, Lu Xian—”

Xie Wei said calmly: “Have you thought about what Jiang Xuening is doing with so much money?”

Lu Xian was instantly stunned.

Originally, he wanted to cut ties and sever all relations, but this interruption made him forget entirely. 

He frowned and became serious, “When I handed her the banknotes earlier, I was also thinking about this. Normally, this girl shouldn’t lack money, having tens of thousands of taels at least. Yet every time she messes with silver shares, she’s short of cash. What is she up to? Do you know?”

Xie Wei replied, “Did you see or hear anything when you arrived?”

Lu Xian said, “There weren’t many people when I came. What could I hear in the market? Just talks about the arranged marriage…”

At this point, his eyelid suddenly twitched.

He was startled, a sudden fear rising within him. “Is Jiang Xuening behind this?!”

Not just Jiang Xuening.

There’s also Xiao Dingfei aiding her.

Xie Wei lightly tapped the rim of his teacup with his finger and said, “More or less.”

Lu Xian felt something was off. “Why would a girl awaiting marriage get involved in such matters? Moreover, causing such a big commotion, if things go wrong and it’s exposed, who knows if the Xiao mansion won’t retaliate? Anyone who wants to live peacefully in the capital wouldn’t provoke the Xiao clan. This doesn’t make sense. Unless…”

At this, he suddenly glanced at Xie Wei.

Xie Wei looked at the tiny tea leaves floating in his cup, remaining silent for a long time, knowing full well what Lu Xian left unsaid—

Unless Jiang Xuening doesn’t plan to stay in the capital any longer.

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