Transmigrated as a Cannon Fodder Wife A in Ancient Times - Chapter 82

Chapter 82

Quickly, Xi Ye took Yun Heng to an inn in Panyang City. She brought all the guards from the inn to a manor in the suburbs for settlement. After finishing these tasks, the two returned together.

Earlier, Yun Heng only hurriedly reported the general situation to Wei Lan. She had not yet given Fan Chuan’s letter to Wei Lan.

After returning to Lu Mansion, Yun Heng went to the study again. She said, “Master, we arranged everything you instructed properly. This is the Marshal’s letter. Please review it.”

Yun Heng placed the letter on Wei Lan’s desk. Wei Lan nodded at her and said, “Good. You worked hard on this trip. Go rest now.”

“Yes.”

Wei Lan picked up the envelope from the desk, tore it open, and took out the letter inside. The letter had five pages. It roughly described Fan Chuan’s current situation and future plans. Wei Lan read it carefully.

She thought for a moment. It was autumn now. Lu Mansion had previously acquired a large amount of grain. Starting tomorrow, they could prepare a merchant caravan. Under the pretense of selling grain, they could transport the grain to the Northern Desert. As for the other shops, they naturally could not sell them all at once. That would easily arouse suspicion. They still needed to discuss carefully.

Wei Lan thought for a while, stood up, and left the study. At the door, little maids stood on both sides. Wei Lan said, “Send someone to bring Madam back. Tell her I have important matters to discuss.”

“Yes, Master.” The little maid quickly went to the courtyard, found two young servants, and asked them to fetch Lu Zijin.

Lu Zijin was discussing business with several merchants from other provinces. When she heard the servant’s report, she promptly stood up and took her leave.

After all, Wei Lan rarely sent someone to find her, especially during the day. Now, sending someone urgently to fetch her obviously meant something urgent. She rode a carriage and immediately hurried back to Lu Mansion.

When she arrived at Jingchen Courtyard, she found no one in Wei Lan’s studio or bedroom. She simply headed to the study.

Wei Lan was sitting behind the desk, deep in thought. When she saw Lu Zijin return, her eyes brightened. She stood up, walked to Lu Zijin, hugged her, and acted spoiled.

“Madam, you’re back,” Wei Lan said, tightening her arms around Lu Zijin’s waist. She buried her face in Lu Zijin’s chest and rubbed it.

Lu Zijin’s lips curled slightly. She enjoyed Wei Lan’s clingy behavior. She patted Wei Lan’s back gently and said softly, “What’s wrong? Did you call me back just to act spoiled with me?”

“No, I have serious matters to discuss.” Wei Lan hugged Lu Zijin, took a few deep breaths, then reluctantly went to close the study door. She handed Fan Chuan’s letter to Lu Zijin.

“My cousin sent someone with this letter. She might be planning to rebel. She sent people to take us to the Northern Desert for settlement,” Wei Lan said.

Lu Zijin was startled. Her cousin had really chosen this path in the end?

She hurriedly read the letter. No wonder her cousin made this choice. The old emperor had actually placed spies around her to monitor her. This was indeed quite disheartening. However, the Lu family had a large estate. If they were to leave, many matters still needed handling.

Lu Zijin frowned slightly and said, “Didn’t my cousin’s people say how much time we have?”

“If the old emperor notices something, it will take at least two months. But my cousin hopes we can go as soon as possible so she can feel at ease,” Wei Lan replied.

“What do you think?” Lu Zijin looked up at Wei Lan and asked.

“We can first arrange for some people to transport all the grain to the Northern Desert. Externally, we’ll say we found a channel to sell grain to other provinces. Transporting grain takes a long time. In the next few days, we can send people to start preparing.”

Lu Zijin nodded and said, “That’s feasible. But we can’t sell all these shops at once. That will definitely attract attention. What about Lu Mansion’s residence?”

The shops were dispensable items that could be sold. But Lu Mansion’s residence was the only memory her family left her. Lu Zijin was truly reluctant to part with it.

“We can first sell a small portion of the less noticeable shops. Externally, we’ll say Lu Mansion wants to focus on the fields we excel in. As for the rest of the businesses, we can let go of what we can,” Wei Lan thought and said.

Lu Zijin nodded and said, “That’s feasible. After we leave, we can leave a few trusted people to sell the remaining shops of Lu Mansion. As for this residence…”

“This residence can only be left idle. Otherwise, selling it to anyone will bring trouble to them. When we escape, after the old emperor reacts, he will surely be furious. If he can’t catch us, he will naturally target Lu Mansion. We can only wait until my cousin succeeds. Then we can properly repair Lu Mansion’s residence. Also, the ancestral graves probably can’t stay in their original place. Otherwise, they might be affected. We need to relocate the graves quickly,” Wei Lan said while thinking.

Lu Zijin nodded and said, “Indeed. In the next few days, I’ll send people to find a hidden place to relocate the Lu family ancestors’ tombs.”

Otherwise, once they left, the emperor’s people might dig up the Lu family’s ancestral graves.

In the following days, Lu Zijin and Wei Lan became extremely busy. Lu Zijin sent people to dig new graves in a hidden forest and moved the ancestors’ coffins there for burial. Of course, they did this very discreetly. They started work just as dawn broke.

The place Lu Zijin chose was very hidden. It was practically a deserted, uninhabited wilderness.

Meanwhile, Wei Lan was organizing a merchant caravan. She gathered half of the young servants from the mansion and some from the manors in the suburbs, totaling fifty people. She asked these fifty people to transport the grain to the Northern Desert. Wei Lan appointed Hang Shuyao as the leader, instructing her to deliver all the grain to Fan Chuan for handling. These young servants would also stay in the Northern Desert afterward.

Since the amount of grain was large enough to fill a granary, they needed to be extra careful during transport. However, with Hang Shuyao overseeing, as long as they took the official roads, there should be no issues. After all, the north was relatively stable. Rebellions mostly occurred in the Jiangnan region.

Transporting so much grain out of the city naturally attracted some attention. Wei Lan went to the bookshop at this time. The first shop they planned to sell was the bookshop. Wei Lan asked Qu Qiushui to sell all the books in the shop at a 20% discount and informed them that Lu Mansion intended to sell all its bookshops.

Qu Qiushui became anxious. Finding a stable job these days was not easy. Moreover, the bookshop’s business was so good. Why sell it?

She voiced her doubts to Wei Lan and said, “Master, our bookshop is clearly doing well. It makes a profit every month. Why sell it?”

Wei Lan looked at her, her face turning cold, and said, “We naturally have our considerations. Lu Mansion has too many businesses. Madam and I discussed it. We plan to sell all the smaller businesses and only operate the large-scale ones. But don’t worry, I will give you an extra month’s salary.”

Qu Qiushui wanted to persuade further, but seeing Wei Lan’s cold face, she dared not say more. She could only agree. They were essentially being dismissed by Lu Mansion. But at least they could get an extra month’s salary, which was better than nothing.

Meanwhile, Lu Zijin also began selling some of Lu Mansion’s smaller shops. For a time, people in Panyang City started speculating.

During these days, Wei Lan and Lu Zijin were busy separately. At noon, Wei Lan often went to a tavern to eat. She deliberately avoided private rooms and casually sat on the tavern’s second floor. Sure enough, within moments, someone came to strike up a conversation.

“Hey, Boss Wei, why aren’t you eating in a private room?” A merchant in his forties came over to chat with Wei Lan.

Wei Lan stood up and smiled at him, saying, “Private rooms feel stuffy, so I decided to eat in the main hall.”

“That’s true. The weather is indeed stuffy. Boss Wei, I heard your Lu family is selling some shops recently? Don’t mind me being nosy, but are you short on cash? If you’re tight on funds, I have some spare money. I can lend you some to tide you over,” the man said with a smile.

“That’s not the case. Madam and I discussed it. Lu Mansion’s business scope is large but too scattered. In the future, we won’t do those other businesses. We’ll focus on grain, cloth, and taverns. The rest, we don’t want to deal with anymore. They take too much effort. Also, my wife and I plan to have a baby this year. We don’t have time to spend on miscellaneous matters,” Wei Lan said casually, making it up.

This man was clearly not here to help but to probe her intentions.

“So, you’re really selling the bookshop?” the man asked again.

Wei Lan nodded and said, “Naturally. If Boss Liang is interested, you can sit down and talk with me.”

“Oh, I was just thinking that. This meal is on me. You and your wife are so young yet already leaders in Panyang City’s business world. My son is your age but hasn’t achieved anything. I want to find something for him to do. The bookshop business seems good,” Boss Liang said while ordering dishes.

Wei Lan listened with a smile, but in her heart, she was calculating prices. Lu Mansion had four bookshops in Panyang City. Each bookshop was about 140 square meters. The price for each shop was roughly 6,000 taels. Of course, that was the minimum price. Considering the renovations already done and the reputation of Lu’s Bookshop, Wei Lan’s bottom line was 40,000 taels for all four shops. Naturally, selling for more would be even better.

Boss Liang smiled at Wei Lan again and said, “Boss Wei, how much silver do you want for these shops?”

Wei Lan thought for a moment and said, “My four shops are large and in good locations, all in the bustling district. If Boss Liang is serious about buying, you can name a price. If it’s suitable, I’ll sell directly.”

The man’s eyes darted around, and he smiled, saying, “How about 7,000 taels per shop?”

Wei Lan heard this and immediately shook her head with a smile, saying, “Too low. We genuinely want to sell, and you should know Lu’s Bookshop is very popular in Panyang City. I want to sell, but I don’t want to sell cheaply.”

As Wei Lan spoke, she began eating. She ate on her own. The man across from her said, “Then 8,000 taels, Boss Wei. What do you think of 8,000 taels?”

Wei Lan still shook her head and kept eating. When she was almost done, she stood up to leave and said, “Boss Liang, I’m sorry. I have things to handle this afternoon, so I’ll take my leave.”

“Hey, Boss Wei, let’s talk more. Don’t rush off,” the man said, anxious to keep Wei Lan.

Wei Lan looked at him and said, “Boss Liang, I won’t beat around the bush. I can’t sell these four shops so cheaply. You should consider other options.”

With that, Wei Lan left with Xi Ye.

Meanwhile, at Chen Mansion, Chen Zhou had been quiet for a few days since the last incident. However, he had been sending people to monitor Lu Mansion’s movements. Naturally, he heard that Lu Mansion was selling its smaller shops, keeping only the lucrative businesses like cloth, grain, and taverns.

Chen Zhou cursed in the study, saying, “Wei Lan and Lu Zijin are truly arrogant. Their Lu’s Bookshop clearly makes money, yet they insist on selling it. What a pair of fools.”

Su Er’s eyes darted around, and he said, “Young Master, why don’t we buy Lu Mansion’s bookshop? That way, we can make a big profit.”

“Nonsense, do you think I need you to tell me that? Bring a few guards with me. I’m going to buy Lu’s Bookshop today,” Chen Zhou said with a sinister smile. He had no reason to refuse such a juicy opportunity.

Wei Lan stayed at the main store of Lu’s Bookshop in the afternoon. Several merchants came to inquire about the price, but Wei Lan was dissatisfied with their offers. The highest offer was only 9,000 taels per shop. These people clearly wanted to wait her out, hoping she’d sell at a lower price.

Wei Lan was not in a hurry. Lu’s Bookshop had a reputation. If these people didn’t buy, others would.

Sure enough, in the afternoon, Wei Lan unexpectedly saw Chen Zhou.

Seeing Chen Zhou, Wei Lan’s face broke into a smile, and she said, “Cousin Chen, what a rare guest. Why are you here? Come in quickly.”

Chen Zhou got goosebumps from Wei Lan calling him cousin.

He glared at Wei Lan suspiciously. They had been at odds before. How could Wei Lan smile at him now?

But he genuinely wanted to buy the bookshop. He had also sent people to inquire. Lu Mansion had already sold a few dried fruit and pastry shops, which showed they were serious about selling these stores.

“Wei Lan, I came today to discuss serious business with you. I heard you want to sell these bookshops?”

Wei Lan nodded with a smile and said, “Exactly. Is Cousin interested in buying my four shops?”

Chen Zhou stepped back and corrected her, saying, “Just call me by my name.”

Enemies meeting made eyes burn with rage. Wei Lan calling him cousin made Chen Zhou uncomfortable all over.

Wei Lan smiled, unbothered by Chen Zhou’s attitude, and said, “Cousin, you’re being distant. After all, we’re family. You’re not still holding a grudge over past matters, are you? That’s too petty. We’re relatives, so why make things hard, right?”

Chen Zhou was almost furious. Nonsense, every time they clashed, he was the one who suffered. He even spent fifteen days in jail. How could he not hold a grudge against Wei Lan?

But Chen Zhou genuinely wanted to buy these four bookshops. His family was in the bookshop business. Now that Lu Mansion was exiting this market, if the Chen family bought these four shops, they would dominate. Chen Mansion could gradually rise through the bookshop business.

Because of this, Chen Zhou forcibly held back his anger and said, “You have a point. I came today sincerely to buy these four bookshops. How much silver do you think is appropriate?”

Wei Lan nodded and smiled, saying, “Cousin, to be honest, many people have come to ask about the price since this morning, but I haven’t agreed yet. Since we’re close relatives, just give me 60,000 taels total. That’s 15,000 taels per shop. What do you think?”

Chen Zhou nearly exploded hearing this price. Why didn’t Wei Lan just rob people on the street? She dared to ask for 60,000 taels right off the bat.

“Are you messing with me?” Chen Zhou growled through gritted teeth.

“Tch, Cousin, you’re judging a gentleman’s heart with a petty mind. I sincerely want to sell to you. If you think the price isn’t right, you can bargain, right? We’re relatives, after all,” Wei Lan said, looking at Chen Zhou with a sincere face, acting very reasonable.

Chen Zhou felt something was off but couldn’t pinpoint what. After all, the four shops were real. Wei Lan’s price was high, but she seemed genuinely willing to sell the bookshops.

Chen Zhou took a deep breath to avoid dying of anger from Wei Lan. He thought about her offer and said, “Fine, since you put it that way, I’ll name a price I can accept. How about 11,000 taels per shop?”

Wei Lan made a bitter face, looking troubled, and said, “Cousin, your bargaining is too harsh. Even though we’re relatives, you have to let us earn some silver. Besides, Lu’s won’t do bookshop business anymore. You’ll definitely make a lot.”

Chen Zhou bit back a curse and said patiently, “12,000 taels per shop, alright?”

Wei Lan sighed and said, “Alright, Cousin. Since you’re sincere, 13,000 taels per shop, no more bargaining. If it’s lower, I can’t do it. I’ll just wait for others to buy.”

Chen Zhou’s face darkened, but he still wanted to buy these shops. If someone else bought them, others might seize the lead in Panyang City’s book business.

“Fine, but I don’t have that much silver on me right now…” Chen Zhou wanted to delay, planning to think it over after returning. Wei Lan was tricky. He had fallen into her traps several times and didn’t want to be fooled again.

“Oh, Cousin, then I can’t help it. You must have heard we’re expanding the cloth business. We need silver to buy goods now. I’ll sell the shops to whoever pays first,” Wei Lan said with a bitter smile, acting troubled. In her heart, she was thrilled. Her psychological price for the four shops was 40,000 taels. Selling to Chen Zhou at 13,000 taels per shop meant 52,000 taels total, 12,000 taels above her target. How could she not be happy?

Moreover, this had another benefit. Her calling Chen Zhou cousin must have spread by now. Soon, people would remember the Chen and Lu families were relatives. When she and Lu Zijin escaped, if the old emperor wanted to catch related people, he could only go after Chen Zhou’s family. After all, Chen Zhou was their cousin.

While they talked, another boss came to ask about the price. Seeing Chen Zhou there, he said, “Boss Wei, have you sold the shops yet?”

“Not yet. My cousin wanted to buy, but he thinks it’s a bit expensive. Let’s talk. I’m easy to deal with. Whoever pays me first, I’ll sell to them right away. We can take the deeds to the City Lord’s Mansion to change the names,” Wei Lan said with a smile.

Chen Zhou’s face flushed and paled. He stood up quickly and said, “Wei Lan, didn’t you just say you’d sell to me? Why talk to someone else?”

Seeing Chen Zhou approach, Wei Lan said, “We don’t have to talk. Send someone to get the silver now. I’ll feel at ease once I have the silver. I’m like that. Even with close relatives, accounts must be clear. A righteous person like you, Cousin, surely understands.”

Chen Zhou’s forehead throbbed with anger at every “cousin” from Wei Lan. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, “Su Er, go to the mansion’s account and withdraw 52,000 silver.”

Su Er quickly agreed, “Yes, Young Master.”

He hurriedly left.

Wei Lan quickly smiled apologetically at the other boss, saying, “Uncle Wang, sorry. My cousin reserved it first. He’s sent people to get the silver. Since we’re relatives, I have to give him some face. Sorry to you.”

Boss Wang’s mouth twitched. He thought back to when Wei Lan treated Chen Zhou like a grandson in court. Why hadn’t she thought about their family ties then?

But he couldn’t say that out loud. He and Wei Lan exchanged pleasantries and left.

Wei Lan was in a great mood, waiting for Chen Zhou’s people to return with the silver. In less than half an hour, Su Er hurried back. He held a silver box in his arms. Su Er quickly presented the silver notes to Chen Zhou, saying, “Young Master, the silver notes are here.”

Chen Zhou took a deep breath, opened the box, and handed it to Wei Lan, saying, “Now these four bookshops are mine, right?”

“Cousin, hold on. I need to count first,” Wei Lan said. She took the stack of silver notes and started counting. She checked their authenticity, confirmed they were real, and handed them to Xi Ye behind to keep safe.

Seeing Chen Zhou glaring at her as if he’d kill her the next second, Wei Lan smiled and said, “Cousin, don’t look at me like that. We’re business people. When verifying silver notes, we must count clearly in person. A reasonable person like you surely understands.”

Chen Zhou was almost exploding with anger. He wanted to smash plates and bowls now. But since he’d spent the money, he held back and said, “Can we go change the deeds’ names now?”

“Yes, yes, absolutely. Let’s go now,” Wei Lan said, pulling out four deeds and leading Xi Ye out of the bookshop.

Chen Zhou gritted his teeth and followed with his people. The clerks and managers in the bookshop found the scene surreal. Since when were Wei Lan and Chen Zhou so close? Calling him cousin so warmly, outsiders might think they were very close.

At the City Lord’s Mansion, after Wei Lan explained their purpose, the officials there immediately changed the ownership names for the four bookshops. Wei Lan handed the four deeds to Chen Zhou in front of the officials.

“Cousin, we’re square now. Whether you keep or dismiss the staff in these four shops is up to you. I’ve given them an extra month’s salary. The rest has nothing to do with me. The four shops are yours now. Oh, right, the signboards need to be taken down. I’ll send people to remove them now.”

Without waiting for Chen Zhou’s reply, Wei Lan briskly led her people to remove the signboards.

Wei Lan took her people to the main store of Lu’s Bookshop. She had the young servants climb ladders to take down the signboards. Wei Lan watched below with a beaming smile, feeling especially cheerful.

Lu Shihua and a few friends were shopping. Seeing the signboards being removed, they went to check the commotion. They spotted Wei Lan. The girls rushed over to her.

“Sister Wei Lan, are you changing the bookshop’s signboards?” Lu Shihua asked.

“No, we’re not running the bookshop anymore. We sold it to someone else,” Wei Lan explained with a smile.

“What? What about us? We still want to read the stories you wrote,” another girl said with a bitter face.

“You can often visit Lu’s Tavern in the future. If I find new dishes, I’ll have the chef write them on a board and display them. I’ll go there often too. We can still meet,” Wei Lan said, comforting them with a smile.

“Why so sudden? Wasn’t it doing well before?” Lu Shihua asked again.

“Lu Mansion’s businesses have always been too scattered. Madam and I discussed it. In the future, we’ll concentrate on three areas, aiming to grow big and become a top merchant in the Great Zhou Dynasty. As for those miscellaneous shops, we’ll sell them soon,” Wei Lan said. She said this to let Lu Feng know through Lu Shihua’s mouth. This way, their actions seem less suspicious to the authorities.

These were Lu Mansion’s own assets. Even if the authorities knew, they had no right to interfere. Wei Lan made such a big fuss to show they were open and upright, avoiding suspicion.

“Alright, then we can only find you at Lu’s Tavern in the future,” another girl said sadly.

Chen Zhou came over at this moment. Seeing Wei Lan having the signboards removed, his temples throbbed. How eager was Wei Lan?

Wei Lan ignored him, leading her people to remove one signboard and then another. Chen Zhou gritted his teeth and said, “Immediately get people to make four new signboards and put them up. Also, dismiss all the clerks inside. I don’t use people who worked for Lu Mansion.”

“Yes, Young Master,” Su Er said, immediately going to arrange it. Their young master’s face was terrifyingly dark, clearly furious at Wei Lan.