lcionline Chapter 272 Strong forces join forces
Chapter 272 Strong forces join forces
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However, Liu Ye did not intend to let him off the hook: "Tsk tsk, Young Master Chang, this is only one hundred taels. How can such a small amount of silver be enough to pay for the medicine? I feel bad about it. Come on, please make do and give me at least three hundred taels."
Chang Wei nearly went crazy upon hearing this. Two fifty-tael silver ingots were already enough to burst his mouth; four more would be fatal.
Suddenly, he found a surge of strength and struggled to break free of the control. He quickly knelt before Liu Ye, kowtowing repeatedly. His mouth was stuffed with silver ingots, which he dared not remove himself, and could only make "woo-woo" sounds.
Liu Ye feigned surprise: "Young Master Chang, what are you doing? If you think the money is too little, you can say so. Why are you being so formal?"
Chang Wei shook his head repeatedly, pointing to the silver ingot in his mouth. Because his mouth couldn't close, a lot of saliva dripped from the corners of his mouth, dripping down.
Liu Ye nodded and said, "Does Young Master Chang have something to say?" He then sternly reprimanded the guards beside him, "Don't you all have any sense? Didn't you see that Young Master Chang wanted to help?"
Two guards, suppressing their laughter, pried two silver ingots out of Chang Wei's mouth. After the silver was removed, Chang Wei seemed relieved and lay on the ground, dry heaving for a while.
Liu Ye leisurely pulled up a chair and sat down, looking at Chang Wei on the ground with the eyes of a cat playing with a mouse.
After recovering, Chang Wei crawled on his knees to Liu Ye and begged for mercy, "Sir, please spare my life! I didn't mean to offend you. Please forgive my rudeness..."
Liu Ye shook his head: "You didn't offend me, you offended Dong Xiaowan. If she forgives you, this matter ends here. If she doesn't forgive you, you'll have to swallow the three hundred taels of silver."
He didn't intend to use this opportunity to curry favor with Dong Xiaowan, but hitting Chang Wei was tantamount to offending his godfather. In Jiangnan, offending the Nanjing garrison eunuch was never a good thing. He had to frame it as a love triangle to avoid being seen as a big deal by the garrison eunuch behind Chang Wei. Even if he found out, he would think it was just a childish squabble between juniors. Although he wasn't particularly afraid of this eunuch, in the imperial system, it was best to avoid offending people, especially vengeful eunuchs.
Chang Wei was terrified. He had tasted the taste of silver once and never wanted to taste it again. He looked upstairs and saw Dong Xiaowan wearing another garment to cover her bare arms, standing in the corridor watching everything that was happening in the hall.
He knelt on the ground and moved slightly, kowtowing several times in the direction of Dong Xiaowan, and said loudly, "Miss Dong, Chang Wei is blind and doesn't know that you are taken. I have offended you just now. Please be magnanimous and let this gentleman spare my life!"
A blush rose on Dong Xiaowan's face, and she softly said to the people downstairs, "Young Master Liu, there's no need to bother with such a petty person. I never want to see him again." After saying that, she turned and went into her room.
Chang Wei stared anxiously upstairs, fearing that Dong Xiaowan would take advantage of his misfortune and kick him while he was down. Hearing her say this, he was overjoyed and said, "Please rest assured, Miss Dong, Chang Wei hereby swears that he will never set foot in Leyun Tower again, and will avoid Miss Dong whenever he sees her. If he breaks his oath, may he be struck by lightning."
After saying that, she lowered her voice and said to Liu Ye, "Sir, Miss Dong won't hold it against me, will she...?"
Liu Ye nodded: "Since she is kind-hearted, I will let you off the hook today. Don't let me see you again in the future, otherwise I will beat you every time I see you, no matter who your godfather is, I will beat you without hesitation."
Chang Wei was almost in tears. If he accidentally bumped into him on the street, he'd get a beating too—wasn't that just bullying? But the situation was beyond his control; his priority was to escape unscathed. He stood up meekly and backed out the door, his attendants following timidly behind. Once outside, Chang Wei took off running, faster than a rabbit, seemingly afraid Liu Ye would change his mind.
Liu Ye glanced disdainfully in the direction Chang Wei had disappeared, muttering, "That scoundrel who relies on his master's power." He stood up to go upstairs, but the eerie silence around him seemed odd. Looking around, he saw that all the guests and girls in the hall were trembling with fear, afraid to even breathe, lest they get into trouble. He immediately smiled and said, "The grievances have their source, the debts have their debtors. I'll only deal with that guy. Everyone else, eat, drink, and have fun." Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall breathed a sigh of relief.
Liu Ye returned to the private banquet room, where Su Mingkang and the others had already gone back inside. He noticed a hint of fear in their eyes as they looked at him, and chuckled inwardly. This performance had not only defeated Chang Wei but also intimidated these old foxes. After all, there were very few people in Southern Zhili who dared to publicly beat and humiliate the adopted son of the Nanjing garrison eunuch.
Everyone returned to the room and sat down again. Liu Ye asked with a smile, "How did the discussion go?"
Su Mingkang glanced at everyone and said to Liu Ye, "Brother Liu, you have courage and determination. As long as we can exchange money for goods on the spot and ensure a clean transaction, we will do as you say and provide you with 500,000 catties of raw silk."
They didn't agree on Liu Ye's suggestion. Some thought it was better to take a long-term view and risk a little; others thought that a newcomer to the silk business shouldn't believe his boasts. If the deal went wrong, not only would they lose money, but they would also offend Eunuch Chang and suffer a double loss.
When the scene unfolded, everyone was stunned: Chang Wei, whom they had always feared, was utterly subdued by Liu Ye, like a mangy dog, and finally slunk away without daring to utter a single harsh word. They then realized that the seemingly foolish and wealthy nouveau riche from Guangdong they had perceived was not only a businessman but also a military commander with considerable power; anyone who angered him could lose not only money but also their life. Looking at his subordinates, they were disciplined and ruthless, clearly not mere followers, but seasoned veterans who had seen blood.
From this perspective, compared to offending such a ruthless person, taking a small business risk is nothing. Besides, Liu Ye has already incurred the wrath of Chang Wei, so he can easily sow discord between Liu Ye and Chang Wei and his eunuch. Everyone quickly reached a consensus.
Their reaction was exactly what Liu Ye had expected. "Very good. Now that the agreement has been reached, please prepare the raw silk. I will arrange for another ship from Qiongzhou to load the goods. We will have ten days to wait. Is that enough?"
Su Mingkang did a rough calculation and nodded: "If each family urges the village leaders and the head of the village to gather their stock, they can probably collect about 500,000 catties in ten days."
"Very well, I will await your good news."
Su Mingkang and the others beamed and raised their glasses, saying, "Thanks to you, brother, let's all get rich!"
Everyone raised their glasses and drank in one gulp, the atmosphere at the table appearing quite harmonious. Thus, the plan for a wealthy outsider to join forces with a monopolistic organization controlling the Suzhou raw silk procurement channels to divide up the entire Suzhou raw silk export market was born.