Chapter 976: Money Cannot Be Borrowed

He needed funding to research demon puppets, too; in the past, he could only rely on robbery and pillage. But ever since he teamed up with He Lingchuan, he didn't even have that freedom anymore.

He needed money too; how could a few measly coins be enough to spend?

Fang Canran maintained a smiling demeanor: "That is fine. The interest rate is one percent; simple interest will suffice."

Dong Rui was dissatisfied: "Hey, I also participated in your operation in Lingxu City!"

"That is why it is only one percent; otherwise, I would have to charge at least one and a half percent compound interest."

He Lingchuan was not surprised; he knew his great achievements had earned him a good reputation at Lingshan. After all, the Rongshan Sect had lent several million silver taels to the Yuan Kingdom for the war, all for his sake.

Of course, the Yuan Kingdom had also provided high-quality assets as collateral, so Rongshan would not lose out no matter how they calculated it.

But after careful consideration, he still politely declined Fang Canran's proposal: "When I am at the end of my rope, I will ask Lingshan for help."

He had too little interaction with Lingshan and did not want to owe this mysterious organization such a massive favor—sometimes you think you only owe a favor, but to the other party, it is already considered selling your soul.

For this measly three to five million, who knows what price he would have to pay in the future? In the long run, it was not worth it.

It was best to maintain equal exchange and mutual benefit.

Fang Canran did not force the issue: "Lingshan would certainly be delighted if you settled in the east of the Mou Kingdom. Shall I introduce you?"

"That would be best!" This was one of the reasons He Lingchuan had come to Platinum Island, and now Fang Canran had brought it up himself.

This man was truly a shrewd operator.

Fang Canran needed to obtain his consent beforehand: "However, I must report your great achievements; only then will they be willing to pay attention to you."

He Lingchuan did not hesitate: "As long as you trust him."

He wanted to make contact with Lingshan and wanted to gain their attention and recruitment; this secret certainly could not be kept, so he might as well offer it up himself as a bargaining chip.

Over a hundred years ago, his ancestor Lu Xun had once represented Lingshan to establish contact with Panlong City and Zhong Shengguang; during his escape after wreaking havoc in the Heavenly Palace, he had also heard the thousand trees and leaves of the Asking Tree speak the two words "Lingshan" to him.

Regarding Lingshan, He Lingchuan felt a natural curiosity and affinity, and of course, he wanted to further contact and understand them.

"That goes without saying."

"There are people from Lingshan in the Mou Kingdom as well, right?"

"Yes, very much so!" Fang Canran paused before saying, "The secrets of Lingshan are endless; I only know a tiny bit of the surface: in fact, the very founding of the Mou Kingdom was directed by Lingshan."

Even the founding of the Mou Kingdom had Lingshan's contribution? Dong Rui interjected: "Can this be compared to the Heavenly Palace's relationship with Beijia?"

The relationship between the Heavenly Palace and Beijia was very complex, but everyone knew that Beijia served the Heavenly Gods, and thus the Heavenly Palace held a dominant position and could influence Beijia's national policy.

Why was this brother asking questions so directly? He Lingchuan glanced at him; it was a good question! He still had not figured out the relationship between Lingshan and the Mou Kingdom.

There was no help for it; there were too few people he could ask.

"It is not that close, and it certainly cannot be considered a subordinate relationship." Fang Canran weighed his words, "To this day, Lingshan still holds a transcendent status in the Mou Kingdom."

Once these words were out, He Lingchuan knew that the independence and autonomy of the Mou Kingdom were stronger than those of Beijia.

But Fang Canran followed up with the next sentence: "To this day, most officials and commoners in the Mou Kingdom do not know of Lingshan's existence. Most people who hear the name Lingshan only think it is an ethereal legend; only a very small number of people have the opportunity to come into contact with it."

Lingshan was hidden and ethereal, and ordinary people could not perceive it at all. He Lingchuan had been secretly planning in Lingxu City for so long, and it was only when he was about to leave that he accidentally heard the two words "Lingshan."

Dong Rui grasped the main contradiction: "Anyway, Lingshan has a lot of influence in the Mou Kingdom?"

"That is certain. High-ranking officials and famous generals of the Mou Kingdom basically all come from the Daoist sects, and some of these sects are under Lingshan. I have heard that when the Elders of Lingshan leave seclusion and descend the mountain, the Monarch of the Mou Kingdom personally rushes to the foot of the mountain to welcome them."

"Mr. Fang, do you know General Yutian of the Mou Kingdom, Xia Pei?"

"I have met him a few times in the past. Grand Protector Xia comes from the Hongshan sect, and the Hong sect has been a friendly ally of my Taihang Sect for many years." Fang Canran asked him, "Does Brother He have a history with him?"

He Lingchuan said nonchalantly: "Just a casual question, we have no connection whatsoever."

Dong Rui immediately added from the side: "This kid bought the Yangshan Archipelago from the hands of Xia Pei's in-laws."

"Grand Protector Xia's in-laws?"

"Xia Pei's daughter, Xia Lishang, married Lu Qinglin, the second son of the Lu family of Bailie. The Lu family does everything they can to curry favor with these in-laws." Dong Rui said quickly, "The Lu family sold the Yangshan Archipelago for eighty thousand, thinking they had taken advantage of the situation; now they are regretting it so much their guts are turning green, and who knows when they might try to snatch it back by force."

There were some things He Lingchuan found inconvenient to say, so he said them instead.

"Eighty thousand... for an entire archipelago?" Fang Canran was also shocked by this figure; he was stunned for a moment before saying, "Were the Lu family members drunk at the time?"

"At the time, the archipelago was shrouded in yin spirits, and humans could not get close." Dong Rui pointed at He Lingchuan, "Only this inhuman kid drove the yin spirits away by force."

He Lingchuan lowered his head to sip his wine.

Fang Canran realized: "So that is how it is!"

He had only been on Platinum Island for a few months and did not know much about the surrounding area.

"What can they do even if they are annoyed? Money was paid and the islands were handed over; you two sides must have had a contract, right?"

"Contracts are not important; the key is strength." He Lingchuan said calmly, "The Blade Harbor that Bailie leased to the Qing Kingdom had its agreement expire over a decade ago, yet they still cannot take it back."

"That is true." Fang Canran pondered, "Grand Protector Xia has a domineering and protective personality, and the Mou Kingdom views Bailie as a subordinate. But in the end, you buying a piece of land is only a small matter; if the dignified Xia family were to take action for this, it would be too beneath them, not to mention it is not within the Mou Kingdom. Looking back over the many years, Bailie has sold off quite a bit of territory, and we have never seen them try to take it back."

He Lingchuan said nonchalantly: "I dared to buy the islands, so I am not afraid of them taking them back."

Dong Rui added a "but": "They have not been idle behind our backs; when we buy things, they unite with merchants to jack up the prices; when we sell things, they try to obstruct us in every possible way."

Fang Canran nodded: "As the masters of Bailie, the Lu family does have some means."

He Lingchuan asked again, intentionally or otherwise: "By the way, the Lu family always claims to be descendants of immortals. So, is there any connection between Bailie and Lingshan?"

Fang Canran smiled: "What if there is?"

"If there is a connection, I will go a little easier on them when they offend me." In the Panlong world, Lu Xun had traveled across the ocean to represent Lingshan and deliver a message to Zhong Shengguang.

This at least showed that the ancestors of the Lu family had a deep relationship with Lingshan, and Lingshan trusted Lu Xun very much.

But the world is unpredictable. Has this connection continued to this day?

Although He Lingchuan's words were arrogant, Fang Canran still heard the intent to curry favor with Lingshan: "Sorry, I am not sure either."

Just as he said earlier, he also knew very little about Lingshan.

Fang Canran added: "However, looking at the reality, I think even if the two sides are connected, it is not very close."

He Lingchuan nodded: "I think so too."

In fact, looking at the attitude of the surrounding countries toward Bailie, he had already figured it out seven or eight tenths. If Bailie truly had Lingshan as its backer, how could it have been invaded and forced to pay reparations, with a large portion of its territory ceded away?

And why would the father and son of the Lu family try so hard to curry favor with General Yutian of the Mou Kingdom, constantly donating money and grain to the Mou Kingdom, and even sending their precious son to the western front?

It was just such a delicate situation.

Fang Canran changed the subject: "Brother He, what are you selling now?"

He Lingchuan sipped his wine: "Produce from the Yangshan Archipelago. This season, it is mainly palm oil."

Fang Canran said "Oh": "The palm oil produced there is truly good stuff; the restaurants and pastry shops here are all using it."

"The things on our island are naturally good; we use them ourselves." Dong Rui cracked melon seeds, "It is only hateful that Bailie is always digging at our foundations; the clients we have negotiated with are always being poached by them finding people to drive down the prices. These bastards would rather lose eight hundred themselves just to hurt us by a thousand."

Fang Canran smiled: "To accomplish great things, Brother He is a capable hand; as for doing business... back and forth, it is mostly entanglement."

Facing this successful big merchant, He Lingchuan said honestly: "I still have much to learn; all of this requires money to buy lessons."

The three of them toasted a cup of wine.

Fang Canran added: "By the way, in a few days, some distinguished guests from the Mou Kingdom are coming to Platinum Island; I will introduce them to you, it might be helpful."

He Lingchuan gladly agreed.

Fang Canran stood up and said: "The business is done; I will take you to eat. The fragrant roasted seafood on Platinum Island is a must-try! The ghost market at night is also very fun, with many strange and peculiar things."

Dong Rui's spirits lifted upon hearing this: "I was just about to go take a look."

He Lingchuan also said: "I need to purchase over a thousand sets of weapons: swords, spears, and shields; in addition, I need seven hundred sets of medium and outer armor."

Some things could not be bought through normal channels and had to be obtained through unconventional channels, such as the ghost market on Platinum Island.

Fang Canran's answer was very straightforward: "As long as the price is reasonable," it would be no problem.

Dong Rui took out a slip of paper: "This is my shopping list; can you get these?"

Fang Canran took it and stared at it intently.

He Lingchuan leaned over to look; it was densely listed.

Fang Canran pondered: "These are all uncommon materials."

"That is right, that is why I need to buy them from you. I use them for experiments."

He Lingchuan could not help but interject: "Hey, how much will this cost?"

Fang Canran casually estimated a price: "At least eighty thousand silver taels."

He Lingchuan stared: "How much?!"

Dong Rui pointed at He Lingchuan at the same time: "He is paying!"

"Hmm, no." Fang Canran waved his hand, "Sorry, I did not look at the whole thing just now. I can basically get seven or eight tenths of the things on your list, except for these three materials—"

He pointed them out to the two: "—they have always been priceless and hard to find. I will go ask someone; you two wait here."

After saying this, he strode out.

He Lingchuan glared at Dong Rui: "What exactly are they for?"

"To make demon puppets." Dong Rui looked righteous, "It is not like you do not know what I do."

If a demon puppet master does not research demon puppets, what else would they research, recipes?

(End of chapter)