Chapter 94: Casting Heavy Bait to Hook a Big Fish

In October, Huating County was already permeated with the biting chill of a desolate autumn.

Last night, a few muffled claps of thunder rang out haphazardly, pulling down a sky full of fine, cold rain, and in a single night, Huating was ushered into the depths of autumn.

Just past the hour of Chen (7:00–9:00 AM) today, the grand mansion of the Xu Family, located in the northwest corner of Huating County, was already bustling with activity.

The servants in the household all wore solemn expressions, shuttling back and forth like spirit geese, sweeping away the filth within the residence.

At the same time, four men were seen striding into the main hall.

Walking in front was the eldest master of the Xu Family, Xu Fan; at fifty-four years old this year, because he maintained himself extremely well, he looked to be only about forty-seven or forty-eight.

His physique had not grown stout, and he walked with the vigor of a tiger.

Following behind him were the second master of the Xu Family, Xu Kun, and the third master, Xu Ying. Both were born to Xu Jie's second wife and were quite a bit younger than Xu Fan.

Walking at the very end was a young man with elegant brows and star-like eyes, a face full of spring breezes, and a spirited air. He was none other than Xu Fan's eldest son, Xu Jie's eldest grandson by his primary wife, Xu Yuanchun.

This man was a successful candidate in the imperial examination of the second year of Wanli, and had originally served as a director in the Nanjing Ministry of Rites, but because Xu Jie had passed away from illness, he had returned home to observe the mourning period.

As the group walked in, the maids and servants in the hall saw them and hurriedly performed a salute, then stood to the side with their heads bowed.

Xu Fan waved his hand to signal for the servants to withdraw, while he himself walked first to the main seat and sat down.

After everyone was seated in order, Xu Fan scanned the room and threw out a lead to invite further discussion: "According to news from ahead, Zhang Yunxiu and Zhang Jingxiu will arrive in Huating soon. I called you all here to discuss how we should welcome them."

"How about we go to welcome them outside of Songjiang Prefecture?" Xu Ying's eyes rolled as he suggested, "We can clear the road they will take into the city in advance, ensuring there isn't a speck of dust, and we must also drive away the merchants and beggars on the roadside, so as not to ruin his mood."

"When entering Huating, we can lead him through the North City so he can see our family's shops and understand our family's strength," Xu Kun added.

"Two uncles, in Yuanchun's view, these are all superficial. If we are going to play, we should play for real." Xu Yuanchun smiled at the two of them, then turned his head to look at his father and cupped his hands: "Our family has nothing else, but we have plenty of money. Not just the Zhang brothers, but even the attendants who come with them—we should give each of them a generous gift of money first."

Taking the words of the three into his ears, Xu Fan nodded with a smile: "All good, let's do as you say. Now, let's discuss Ruoxi's dowry and how much is appropriate."

Xu Ying and Xu Kun looked at each other, their expressions ugly.

How could they not know what the eldest brother meant? That was his daughter, and yet he had called the two of them together to discuss the dowry; it was as obvious as lice on a bald man's head.

After hesitating for a while, Xu Kun said: "In my opinion, one thousand mu of land, plus a dozen or so shops, and another ten thousand taels of silver. Eldest brother, you pay forty percent, and we each pay thirty percent; that way, our family won't lose face."

"Hmm, that adds up to quite a few tens of thousands of taels of silver; it won't be an insult to the Zhang Family," Xu Ying chimed in.

Smiling and shaking his head, Xu Fan did not speak, but instead turned to look at his eldest son and asked: "Zhengfu, Ruoxi is your sister too; you tell us, how much dowry should actually be given?"

Xu Yuanchun stood up and held up one finger.

"How much is this?" Xu Ying asked, craning his neck.

"Ten thousand mu of land," Xu Yuanchun said unhurriedly.

"You're crazy!" Xu Kun exclaimed, "Ten thousand mu of land is over a hundred thousand taels of silver! To give that away as a dowry... has your brain been squeezed by a door?"

"Cough, cough..." Xu Fan's face turned dark, and he covered his lips to cough twice.

Xu Kun was about to say more, but Xu Ying pulled him back, shook his head at him, and then looked at Xu Yuanchun to complain: "Great nephew, it's not that we are unwilling, but ten thousand mu of land is truly too much; our two branches really cannot afford it."

"Third Uncle, although your branch's land cannot be called vast, it is not small either; you still have tens of thousands of mu, so don't complain to me here," Xu Yuanchun said, completely unconvinced and speaking with certainty. "Think about it, Grandfather has just passed away. If we sit on such a large family fortune without a backer, wouldn't we become fat sheep in the mouths of others?"

"But the price is too high," Xu Ying muttered.

"Is it high?" Xu Yuanchun smiled and continued, "Third Aunt is the daughter of Lu Bing, a favored minister of the Jiajing Emperor. After the Longqing Emperor ascended the throne, as the saying goes, 'new emperor, new ministers,' and the Lu Family was implicated because of the Yan Party. Lu Bing's son was sentenced to have his property confiscated and be exiled. Third Uncle, you wouldn't have forgotten who saved the Lu Family, would you?"

Xu Ying's face flushed with shame.

His family's ability to have what they had today relied entirely on that person in the Grand Secretariat who held power over the world.

"I have no objections."

Xu Ying gritted his teeth and spat out the four words. Xu Kun took a deep breath, stared at the calm and composed Xu Fan, and cupped his hands: "Eldest brother, when the old master left, you received the largest share of the family property."

"Now that Ruoxi is your daughter, it is only right that you pay the most. You pay half, and the third brother and I will think of a way for the remaining half."

"Agreed."

Xu Fan nodded in acceptance.

Seeing that the matter was settled, Xu Fan and Xu Ying did not want to stay longer; they simply cupped their hands and invited each other to leave.

In an instant, only the father and son, Xu Fan and Xu Yuanchun, remained in the hall.

"Zhengfu, is ten thousand mu of land really a bit too much?" Xu Fan said, feeling a pinch in his heart. "When Ruling got married, we only gave one thousand mu of land. If we give Ruoxi ten thousand, won't she come back and tear the house down?" "Father, if you don't risk the bait, you won't catch the fish. Only by casting heavy bait can we hook this golden son-in-law," Xu Yuanchun replied immediately.

"But this price is truly too high. What if he eats our bait and runs away?" He had been concerned about his son's face earlier and hadn't said much, but now that he thought about it, it really hurt.

"We have heard that this kid is very promiscuous, keeping over a dozen women outside, singing and dancing every night..."

"Who did you hear that from?" Xu Yuanchun was stunned.

"Sigh, who else would I need to hear it from? Those wealthy playboys, which one of them isn't rotten to the core..." Xu Fan stopped halfway, suddenly realized, and hurriedly cut off his words.

In his eyes, there was no fish in the world that didn't eat cats, but there were certainly no shortage of cats that stole fish.

And Ruoxi had such a soft and weak personality; she would surely be bullied to death.

While Xu Fan was deep in thought, Xu Yuanchun chuckled and patted his chest, guaranteeing: "Father, rest assured. According to news from my contemporaries in the capital, Zhang Yunxiu is not as unbearable as you say."

"Moreover, he is a close minister to the Emperor, and he was also selected as a Bachelor of the Hanlin Academy in this imperial examination."

"But..."

"Father! Put your heart at ease. The more generous we are, the more they will be in the wrong, and they won't be able to mistreat Ruoxi in the future." Xu Yuanchun stood up, paced back and forth in the room, and then suddenly looked at his father and said, "Grandfather often taught us while he was alive that there are thousands of ways to profit in this world, but there are only three types in total."

"The lowest grade is 'violent profit,' relying on trickery and deception to get rich; it vanishes as quickly as it appears, and this kind of profit is not long-lasting. The middle grade is 'commercial profit,' reaching all corners of the world and becoming the wealthiest in the land, just like that Shen Wansan of the past; however, that is merely being a merchant, which counts for nothing."

Speaking to this point, Xu Yuanchun paused, and when he spoke again, his words were sonorous: "The highest grade is 'power,' dwelling in the heights of the imperial court, bestowing favors for ten generations, turning clouds and rain with a flip of the hand, becoming a person who is below one but above ten thousand, governing the world."

Merchants are merely vassals to the powerful.

Xu Fan felt as if he had been enlightened; he was stunned for a moment before tentatively asking: "If our family brings out ten thousand mu of land, after your mourning period ends, will you be able to serve in a key government office in the capital?"

Xu Yuanchun smiled and nodded: "Look at that River Patrol Censor Wang Zhuan; he was originally a man in the pocket of Grand Secretary Zhang, and now hasn't he become a regional lord, in charge of the world's grain transport ships?"

With this, Xu Fan swallowed a reassuring pill.

"Good, then we will go all out this time. If we are going to gamble, we gamble big."

"Father is wise."

On the other side, a team escorted by over a hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards was advancing rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, they reached the territory of Suzhou Jiading.

Inside the carriage, Zhang Yunxiu and Zhang Jingxiu sat facing each other, each leaning against the side panels.

As the carriage swayed, their bodies rocked along with it, and Zhang Yunxiu's expression grew increasingly unsightly.

"You don't need to be nervous; the Xu Family daughter must certainly be good-looking," Zhang Jingxiu said, thinking he was worried, and smiled to comfort him. "When taking a wife, one seeks virtue, not just charm. With the teachings of Grand Secretary Xu, sister-in-law Ruoxi surely won't be lacking."

Zhang Yunxiu did not reply.

He did not care what the woman looked like; what he cared about most right now was how much of a dowry the Xu Family would give his future wife.

Two hundred and forty thousand mu of land—with such a massive fortune, if he didn't squeeze them for a sum, he would feel he had let himself down.

Just as he was thinking this, the carriage slowly decelerated and then came to a stop. Zhang Yunxiu lifted the curtain and asked outside, "Han San, why have we stopped?"

Han San rode his horse back, dismounted, and said, "Fifth Young Master, Eldest Young Master, we are about to enter the territory of Songjiang Prefecture. Shall we rest here for today and wash off the dust of the journey?"

"That works." Zhang Yunxiu nodded and looked at Zhang Jingxiu, "What do you think, Eldest Brother?"

"How could I possibly command your men? You make the call."

Zhang Jingxiu laughed heartily, then held onto the front frame of the carriage and stepped down.

Zhang Yunxiu gave a bitter smile and followed him out of the carriage, then Han San reported again, "Young Master, the brothers I sent on fast horses to scout for that Xu Guangqi you asked me to find have already located him."

"Oh?! Is he still in Shanghai County?" Zhang Yunxiu became excited.

"He is. I've already sent men to pin him down, just waiting for you to go to Shanghai County to..." Han San spoke with great animation, but Zhang Yunxiu kicked him and cursed, "I only told you to find him, who said anything about pinning him down?"

"I was just afraid this fellow would run off and you wouldn't be able to see him when the time came," Han San said, his face full of grievance.

If this guy ran off, wouldn't you just end up scolding me anyway?

Zhang Yunxiu looked embarrassed, slowly turned his back, and instructed Han San, "Just send people to keep an eye on him. Remember to keep a good attitude; do not disturb him."

"Yes."

(End of chapter)