Chapter 919: Buying and Selling Does Not Void a Lease

A voice came from outside the crowd: "Stop!" The tone was flat, yet everyone felt a numbness in their hearts and stood straight subconsciously.

The guards opened a gap, and He He Lingchuan and Registrar Yang walked over.

"What is going on!" Registrar Yang barked. "Making such a racket and laying hands on each other, what kind of decorum is this?"

A guard immediately said, "The one surnamed Lei came here to cause trouble..."

"I'm causing trouble?" The woman's eyes widened, and she pointed at the tip of their noses. "It's clearly you bullying an honest person, and you still say I'm causing trouble?"

"Everyone move aside, move aside." He He Lingchuan beckoned to the woman with his finger. "You, come up and explain."

The girl was about seventeen or eighteen, with wheat-colored skin, slender willow-leaf brows, and burning eyes.

She was quite tall, not as fair as the girls in the interior, and her hair was braided into a thick plait behind her head, giving her a heroic air.

The guards looked at Registrar Yang, and only after seeing him nod and wave did they step aside.

As the woman jumped onto the pier, Registrar Yang spoke first: "Lei Ni, I have already negotiated with your father, and the compensation has been paid. From now on, everything on this island belongs to Young Master He. If you cause trouble again, I will have no choice but to invite you to the county jail to sober up for a few days."

"Negotiated? That's called swindling!" Lei Ni sneered. "You took advantage of my absence to trick my father into signing an agreement. Fifty silver taels of compensation—you have the nerve to even mention it?"

She pointed at the building on the shore: "We spent far more than fifty taels to renovate this supply station three years ago!"

Fifty taels of compensation? He He Lingchuan's brow twitched.

In order to receive the remaining forty thousand taels of the agreement as quickly as possible, Lu Qing'an would not be stingy with a hundred or two hundred taels of breach-of-contract fees.

He He Lingchuan believed the Lu family certainly knew which was more important. Furthermore, judging by Lu Qing'an's clothing, food, and travel, it was the standard of a first or second-tier noble family; this amount of money was mere pocket change to him.

But why did the tenant of Suoding Island only receive fifty taels? He He Lingchuan glanced at Registrar Yang and understood.

If this account were to be audited, the numbers would likely not add up.

"That was then." He He Lingchuan's playful gaze made Registrar Yang feel uneasy, and his tone softened. "Do not make a scene in front of an honored guest; come to the county office to discuss it tomorrow."

"Let's settle it now." He wanted to hush things up, but Lei Ni was not falling for it. She had to fan the flames while He He Lingchuan was present. If she missed this chance, there would be no such opportunity tomorrow; the government had plenty of ways to deal with "troublemakers."

"Either let us continue to lease the supply station, or increase our compensation!" She looked at He He Lingchuan and asked, "Is this money coming from you, or from the Does Bailie people?"

"The Does Bailie people paying..." He He Lingchuan laughed. "How do you know I am not a Does Bailie person?"

Lei Ni let out a scoff, revealing a pair of slender, white canine teeth. "How could I not know? From Does Bailie to Blade Harbor, it is widely rumored that the Yangshan Archipelago was actually bought by a huge sucker."

Registrar Yang's face changed color: "What nonsense are you spouting!"

"A fool?" He He Lingchuan pointed at his own nose. "Are you talking about me?"

"Did you buy the Yangshan Archipelago?"

"Yes."

"Then it is you. Congratulations on becoming famous in these parts; even the nearby pirates are talking about it with relish!" Lei Ni was quick-witted. "Before you spent a fortune to buy the islands, didn't you know to gather intelligence first? If the Yangshan Archipelago were so good, how would it ever be your turn to pick up a bargain?"

Even the word "pirates" had popped out. Registrar Yang gave a look to several guards; he could not let her ruin the scene. The latter immediately stepped forward two paces to drag Lei Ni away.

Just as their shoulders moved, Qiu Hu stepped out two paces, half-blocking Lei Ni: "Let her finish!"

His expression was calm, his tone was calm, but his gaze was like a tiger watching its prey. The guards felt a chill upon meeting his eyes, and their feet did not actually move forward.

He He Lingchuan had already said: "What other intelligence can you share with me?"

Lei Ni curled her lip: "Haven't you and Does Bailie already signed the agreement? Asking after signing is too late."

He He Lingchuan smiled: "Your father and Registrar Yang also have a lease termination agreement; why don't you acknowledge that?"

Lei Ni was momentarily speechless.

Registrar Yang was full of frustration. He He Lingchuan had won a point back for him, yet he was not happy at all. "Young Master He, this one surnamed Lei is no good. They collude with pirates; Suoding Island is spared from pirate raids because of it, but passing ships suffer greatly. The father and daughter surnamed Lei are full of lies and must not be trusted!"

Lei Ni raised her slender brows, her tongue not losing out: "Yang Lun, you tell ghost stories in broad daylight; aren't you afraid of ghosts knocking at your door at midnight? Come, tell me exactly how much of my compensation you swallowed?"

He He Lingchuan was slightly surprised; this little girl looked brash, but her mind was as clear as a mirror.

Just as Registrar Yang was about to counter, He He Lingchuan immediately interrupted him: "Since you know they collude with pirates, why doesn't Does Bailie arrest them for investigation, and why not revoke the lease rights for Suoding Island?"

Registrar Yang: "..."

Lei Ni said happily: "Exactly! You young master, your reaction is quite fast."

He He Lingchuan could not be bothered to deal with Registrar Yang any longer and continued: "Alright, both islands have been vacated and inspected; we should return to the harbor. Isn't Old Master Lu still waiting for me? If we wait until dark to return, who knows what other trouble we might encounter."

Hearing this, Registrar Yang felt a tug in his heart. What was this Young Master He implying? He He Lingchuan did not even look at him, only saying to Lei Ni: "How about this, I ask and you answer. If your answers are true, I will let you continue to lease the supply station on Suoding Island."

"Really?" Lei Ni was overjoyed, but then her eyes rolled. "How much is the rent?"

"How much was the rent you originally paid to Does Bailie?"

Lei Ni was dissatisfied: "You are the new island owner, why refer to the old one?"

Registrar Yang, standing to the side, blurted out a number.

"That is the amount; you can pay half of that from now on." He He Lingchuan waited until her eyes lit up before adding a "furthermore": "You must also hand over fifteen percent of your profits to me, but this money will only be collected starting two years from now; the subsequent expansion and renovation of the supply station will also be decided by me. If the place is expanded, you must pay rent according to the actual leased area."

Lei Ni's face darkened, clearly deeply skeptical of his layout and aesthetics, but thinking about the two-year tax-free period, it was still very tempting. The money Does Bailie used to collect was twice as much as what He He Lingchuan asked for. So she reluctantly said: "That works too."

"Standing here chatting is boring." He He Lingchuan pointed at the pleasure boat. "I am going back to Blade Harbor; you can tell me on the way."

Only then did he turn back to look at Registrar Yang: "She is coming back to the harbor with us, no problem, right?"

This was not a question; it was a statement.

Registrar Yang had a bitter taste in his mouth: "I, I am afraid she might act wildly and hurt you."

What if this woman started spouting nonsense after getting on the boat? He He Lingchuan pointed at the guards behind him: "With so many grown men here, can't you protect me?"

Having said that, he smiled at Lei Ni: "Miss Lei, please board the boat."

The final payment had not yet been received, so He He Lingchuan was the client. With only the final step remaining, Registrar Yang naturally had to try his best to meet his demands.

Lei Ni looked at He He Lingchuan, then at the pleasure boat, knowing she had no right to say "no."

She poked Qiu Hu's shoulder: "Big guy, move aside."

Whoa, it felt like poking an iron plate.

This fellow was six feet tall, but his presence seemed to be six zhang high. He stood with his feet in a firm stance, and it was unclear how he managed to block the entire pier.

Only then did Qiu Hu step back two paces to let her pass. He walked to the seaside himself and re-tied the cable of her small boat to the pleasure boat.

The pleasure boat soon started moving, carrying dozens of people and towing Lei Ni's small boat toward Blade Harbor.

The sea breeze had shifted at noon, and now the return trip was with the wind, so the boat traveled very fast.

Once on the deck, He He Lingchuan pointed at the snacks and tea on the low table: "Miss Lei, help yourself to whatever you want to eat. Old Master Lu is treating."

The food and wine on the pleasure boat were, of course, provided by Does Bailie.

Lei Ni thought that since she was here, she might as well make the best of it; besides, she was a bit hungry after rowing for most of the day to get back to the island. She simply sat down and reached out to grab a piece of almond walnut cake.

Delicious! The pastry was delicate, and the nutty flavor was exceptionally rich.

He He Lingchuan personally poured her a cup of tea; she picked it up, downed it in one gulp, and rinsed her mouth.

These rich people were truly wasteful, leaving a table full of snacks untouched. She saw that the pastry skins of two sugar rolls were a bit hard, so she quickly comforted them with her own stomach.

While eating happily, she inadvertently turned her head and saw that sturdy man staring straight at her.

The gaze was not fierce, but it was a bit piercing.

Only then did Lei Ni remember that it wasn't just this sturdy man; everyone around was watching her.

The speed at which she took the snacks slowed down immediately.

As if sensing her embarrassment, Qiu Hu withdrew his gaze and turned his back to stand by the ship's rail.

"What do you want to ask me?" He He Lingchuan sat with his legs crossed, smiling without saying a word. Lei Ni waited and waited, so she had to bring it up herself.

"How many people are in your family?"

The question was so irrelevant that Lei Ni was stunned for a moment before saying: "Two, my father and me. My mother passed away from illness a few years ago."

"There are so many businesses in Blade Harbor, why did you choose to open a supply station in the Yangshan Archipelago?"

Very few people did this kind of work; there were only two supply stations in the vast archipelago. For such an overly niche business, ordinary people wouldn't even have the concept of it.

Lei Ni turned the teacup in her hand: "My father lost money in every other business he tried, but he wouldn't give up; he still wanted to do business. We didn't have much money left, and after looking around, only the rent on Suoding Island was cheap. I didn't expect that he would actually see some improvement after working here for two years, so we renovated the supply station. And then..." She glanced at Registrar Yang, "... you all came."

"Is the supply station business very good?"

"Not bad." Lei Ni subconsciously glanced at the sea; her small boat was still floating behind the pleasure boat. "It provides enough for us to eat and dress warmly, and there is even a small surplus."

He He Lingchuan pointed toward Suoding Island: "There is another supply station there; you are in competition with them, right?"

"Yes!" Lei Ni frowned. "Did they also sign an agreement and leave?"

Registrar Yang replied: "They did. They were very straightforward; they signed that day and left that day."

Lei Ni was eating maltose, and when she heard him say this, she laughed, almost choking.

"What kind of junk was their place? Young Master He, did you see it? They could get away with some money, so of course they were eager to do so!"

(End of chapter)