Chapter 831 - 834: Suspicion

Chapter 831: Chapter 834: Suspicion

Huang Mu’en was the first to object. "We didn’t leave Yongchang County together, and Hou Cunjin has had limited dealings with us over the years. It couldn’t be him."

"I also don’t think it could be Master Hou. After all, our families share over a century of ties. Even if our relationship isn’t as close as before, there’s no way he would kick us while we’re down." Li Cong shook his head. "Such suspicions are completely groundless."

"You’re still speaking up for him," Wu Nanping sneered. "He latched onto Gu Wenheng ages ago. Why would he even put us in his eyes anymore?

"Over the years, you’ve all seen his business grow larger and larger, suppressing all of ours. His interactions with us recently have been nothing but superficial pleasantries."

Huang Mu’en shot back, "Mr. Wu, you are the last person in here who should be saying something like that.

"If Master Hou hadn’t helped you navigate things back then, would you even be standing here today?

"Don’t forget, we were all implicated because of you."

If it hadn’t been for the Wu family’s insatiable greed, Yongchang County would still be their stronghold.

Why else would they be forced to make such a desperate gamble here? They all knew that a single misstep would lead to eternal damnation.

Wu Nanping glanced up at Bai Jinglie, who was still seated in the position of honor, before lowering his head to hide the hatred in his eyes.

The events of the past had taught them a harsh lesson, but because of it, these families had complained relentlessly over the years.

"Alright, let’s leave the past in the past," Meng Haotian quickly smoothed things over. If they kept arguing, all the old grievances would be dragged out again.

They didn’t mind a little bickering, but Marquis Wu’an was present. He was the root cause of those past events. If they aired it all out and tore away all pretense of civility, it wouldn’t do them any good.

"Regardless, all of you need to be careful. Hou Cunjin isn’t on the same page as us anymore, so don’t reveal any information to him in the future." After finishing his warning, Meng Haotian turned to Bai Jinglie. "Whether word has leaked out or not, we need to come up with a countermeasure now."

They had invested the majority of their fortunes into this endeavor. If they succeeded, they would regain their former wealth. If they failed, the best they could hope for was to buy a small estate and become minor rural landlords.

"I’ve already told them to suspend buying up storefronts," Bai Jinglie said. The moment he sensed something was amiss, he had ordered his subordinates to halt their actions. He had been relying on his old reserves for years, so naturally, he was overly cautious.

"However, we can’t just let this drop. You should know that besides my people, there are other noble figures making moves at the same time." Bai Jinglie stared at them with a dark expression. "If this is done well, you can enjoy endless wealth and glory. But if you mess it up, I’ll have no choice but to throw you to the wolves."

Master Meng was rendered speechless.

"What? Do you really have no other plans?"

Master Meng looked at his companions. Seeing them give slight nods, he gritted his teeth and said, "We’ll have to rely on Marquis Bai for this."

Bai Jinglie suddenly let out a laugh. "You want me to use my power to seize it by force."

Meng Haotian replied, "We don’t know who you’ve allied with, Marquis, but it’s obvious the other party also holds immense power.

"Gu Wenheng is currently observing Ding You at home. As long as we control Fu County and prevent any news from leaking, the shopkeepers working under Mrs. Gu surely won’t all keep their mouths shut."

As long as they got their hands on the secret recipes, whether or not they bought those storefronts at a low price wouldn’t matter anymore.

If they possessed the real goods, why would they worry about a lack of sales channels?

Back when Bai Jinglie managed the glass workshop, he knew that soap was a consumable good. As long as the secret recipe was controlled, the business would be endlessly profitable.

At the time, he had felt deeply resentful that Gu Wenheng only offered up the glass workshop while keeping the soap recipe tightly under wraps.

If Gu Wenheng had fully cooperated with him back then, he wouldn’t have had to touch the sea trade dividends.

Jin Qianqian had no idea what was going through his head. Otherwise, she would have spat on him. Would someone with such insatiable greed really have a bottom line?

"I refuse to believe you haven’t had your own designs over the years," Bai Jinglie said, leaning back slightly. "I imagine you’ve already tried every method of coercion and bribery, yet now you suddenly think highly of me."

"Marquis, now isn’t the time to shirk responsibility," Wu Nanping said, mustering his courage when no one else spoke up. "We just don’t know what the other noble figures are thinking. If they’re afraid, then we can only stop here.

"We’ll accept the loss of all the manpower and wealth we’ve expended so far."

"You have a lot of nerve, daring to use reverse psychology on me." Bai Jinglie’s opinion of these men dropped even further. They truly were from the remote borderlands—foolish and reckless.

"Since you’re so scared of trouble, you can back out of this affair entirely."

Hearing Bai Jinglie’s words, the family heads were unwilling to give up. Meng Haotian forced an apologetic smile and said, "Marquis, aren’t we in the middle of discussing it? It’s much too early to talk about backing out."

"Then show me some real commitment," Bai Jinglie said, standing up abruptly. "I’ll keep a close eye on Fu County, so work faster.

"Stop thinking about acquiring those storefronts. Focus on taking control of the people in the workshops as quickly as possible."

With that, he flicked his sleeves and left, refusing to waste any more time bickering with them.

"He’s giving us orders," Huang Mu’en said in disbelief. "We call him Marquis, and he really thinks he’s somebody.

"Everyone in Shangjing knows he’s been hiding in the Marquis Wu’an Mansion for years like a coward, yet he acts so tough in front of us."

"If you were really capable, you would’ve said that before he left," Li Cong said, curling his lips. "Don’t forget, we are nothing but merchants, and he is a Marquis. Our statuses are worlds apart.

"This isn’t the Yongchang County of over a decade ago. It’s not a place where our families hold absolute authority."

Huang Mu’en’s face darkened at Li Cong’s reminder, but he took the words to heart.

"Then what do you suggest we do? Are we really going to make a move?" Huang Mu’en was reluctant to do such a thing. They had chosen to strike now because Gu Wenheng was at home observing Ding You, and they had managed to connect with Marquis Wu’an, who held a grudge against him. Otherwise, going against Gu Wenheng with just their few families would be like throwing eggs at a rock.

"What else can we do? Do we have a way out?" Wu Nanping was staking everything on a single throw this time, and he wouldn’t allow the other families to back down.

Over the years, the Wu family had been steadily declining. This was his only chance to turn things around.

Knowing he was right, the men calmed themselves down, leaned in close, and began to conspire.

Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace.

Reading the report in his hands, the Crown Prince was somewhat torn.

"Your Highness, we cannot ignore this," Central Palace Attendant Lü Wei stepped forward and said. "Mr. Gu is close friends with Marquis Zhou, so he naturally leans towards you.

"Furthermore, he has always enjoyed the Emperor’s favor and is universally recognized by the common people as an upright official. We must pull him to our side no matter what.

"It’s a pity his visit to the capital this time was too short. He didn’t leave us much time. Otherwise, we really should have taken the initiative to build a relationship with him."

The others agreed. It was true that Gu Wenheng was good friends with Marquis Zhou, but if the Crown Prince took the initiative to extend an olive branch, it would be even better if Gu Wenheng accepted it.

The Crown Prince, Hua Zhang, tapped his fingers against the table. "Setting that aside for now, how do you all think we should handle this matter?"