Chapter 75: New Project

Because of the matters regarding Wanfu Garden, Lady Shen specifically made time to find Wen Gu and the Shen Family brothers, Shen Qing and Shen Liu, to chat about family affairs.

Regarding the Phase I project of Wanfu Garden that Wen Gu had spoken of, Lady Shen valued it highly, yet she also felt somewhat uneasy.

It was not that she distrusted Wen Gu; it was that she was uneasy about the people on the Shen Family side.

When Wen Gu arrived, the brothers Shen Qing and Shen Liu had already come early and were chatting with Lady Shen.

Having recently started a career, which proved they were not useless and even earned them praise and recognition from their elders, the two brothers were glowing with health and riding high on success.

When chatting with Lady Shen, they were also exceptionally excited and spirited.

The questions Lady Shen asked were ones they had asked Wen Gu before, so they knew how to answer; aside from hesitating slightly when recalling, on the whole, they were quite coherent.

A rare look of satisfaction appeared on Lady Shen's face.

When Wen Gu arrived, Lady Shen did not ask him too much about Wanfu Garden. She had already learned the latest developments regarding the garden from the mouths of the Shen brothers.

Lady Shen called Wen Gu to sit by her side and said gently:

"Your cousin mentioned you are interested in calligraphy and painting, so he specifically selected a few famous scholars. Which one you ultimately choose depends on your own wishes. However, these few are quite arrogant; even if they are only teaching and not taking on disciples, they have strict requirements. If you want to gain their recognition, you must show sincerity, imitating the 'standing in the snow at Cheng's door'..."

Perhaps because the atmosphere was too harmonious, and coupled with the fact that he had indeed received quite a bit of praise and flattery recently, Shen Liu's courage swelled, and he vaguely heard something about "city gates."

He was quick-tongued and added: "I know this one, 'the fire at the city gate brings disaster to the fish in the moat'!"

Lady Shen only felt her temples throbbing, and she closed her eyes in pain.

What kind of sin had her old Shen Family committed!

The result of being uncultured and having a loose tongue was receiving a gift package of copying books.

Tears were almost streaming down Shen Liu's face as he accepted it with a sob.

Truly, he would rather be beaten with a paddle, even double the amount!

Shen Qing, who originally had a strong desire to perform, dared not speak at this moment either; he hung his head and stayed to the side, trembling with fear.

Watching this, Wen Gu felt Shen Qing looked a bit like a student terrified of being called on if they dared to lift their eyes and meet the teacher's gaze.

The two brothers, whose minds had been floating, settled down, yet they also seemed restless.

When it was time to leave, Lady Shen held back but ultimately could not resist; she called Wen Gu aside and tactfully reminded him to keep his distance from these cousins if not necessary.

She was truly worried that "he who stays near vermilion gets stained red"!

However, after the three of them left the Zhao Family, seeing that the day was still early, the Shen brothers dragged Wen Gu to the Shen Family to gather with other brothers and sisters of the clan. As for relationships, the more one spends time together, the more familiar one becomes.

Lady Shen, who had just given the warning and learned of this matter immediately after: "..."

It was still that they had copied too few books, to actually have free time for a gathering!

Completely unaware of the sense of crisis, the Shen brothers pulled Wen Gu along to introduce everyone.

Wen Gu also took this opportunity to probe the backgrounds of the Shen Family members.

The Shen Family was worthy of being former wealthy merchants; the more the environment suppressed merchants, the more they needed to find backers and allies.

It was either marriage alliances between officials and merchants, or alliances between merchants.

Not to mention wealthy merchants, other great noble families were all intricately connected; it was just standard practice.

It was said that many of the marriages here were facilitated by Wen Gu's late maternal grandfather.

The old man was truly remarkable. It was just a pity he could not see the massive opportunity for the Shen Family today.

This chaotic era had interrupted the Shen Family's original development path, but at the same time, it had ushered in immense wealth.

After the Shen clan relatives arrived in Xinzhou City one after another, they intermarried and formed alliances with several wealthy noble families who had defected to the Zhao Clan.

In short, there was not a single poor person among this group of Shen clan relatives at present.

When these cousins came over, they played with various objects in their hands; Wen Gu could not appreciate the beauty of those items, but he could perceive their opulence.

The atmosphere was just right, and someone began chatting about Wanfu Garden, which was in its initial construction stage; Wen Gu took out a blueprint he was carrying.

"Almost forgot, there is one more thing today."

Wen Gu opened the blueprint.

"Jingxing Fang and Qingyun Fang still need something built; you all take a look and see if this project should be merged into Wanfu Garden? If you have no interest, I will hand it over to another project."

"Let me see." Shen Qing walked over.

Wanfu Garden had let them taste the benefits, so they were also very curious about what Wen Gu had brought out.

The drawing was only a sketch, drawn very simply, looking like a long aerial path connecting Wanfu Garden and Qingyun Temple...

"Qingyun Temple?" Shen Liu asked curiously.

"The formulas that Qingyi Daozhang has been submitting one after another—the authorities have already allowed him to build a large temple."

Wen Gu explained to everyone.

"Besides Alchemy, Qingyi Daozhang is also skilled in refining Repelling Evil Incense. When the time comes, if the distinguished guests of Wanfu Garden are interested, they can go directly to Qingyun Temple via this long bridge.

"Qingyun Fang has many kilns and artisan workshops, and much dust and debris; if they do not wish to go over from the ground, they can walk the aerial path. It is similar to a flying bridge or a Covered Walkway, just an extended version."

The Shen Family members listened attentively. They believed what Wen Gu said.

The father and son of the Zhao Family had always had a poor impression of monks and Daoists, but now that they could allow Qingyi Daozhang to build a large temple in Qingyun Fang, it showed that Qingyi Daozhang was indeed exceptionally capable.

Perhaps this would also be the only Daoist temple in Xinzhou City in the future!

Wealthy families and nobles certainly had a need to worship gods; currently, they all had Buddhist halls and Daoist altars in their own homes, but if Qingyun Temple were built, they could openly go there to burn incense and pray for blessings.

It did sound very good indeed; if it could be merged into Wanfu Garden and built together, it would further highlight their status.

Shen Qing was just about to agree when someone asked cautiously: "With the current market regulations, is building this a violation?"

Shen Qing gave a start and hurriedly followed up: "Right, right, it looks very good, but whether it can be built is a big problem!"

Wen Gu smiled calmly: "I have already reported it to my cousin and received approval; it can be built."

"Cousin agreed?!"

Shen Qing's spirits were greatly lifted, and the others were the same.

Receiving approval meant recognition!

"We can do this!" Shen Liu slammed his hand on the table.

Shen Qing looked at the long bridge on the blueprint; compared to the complex building complex of Wanfu Garden, this long bridge did not look very difficult.

It was just a small project.

He nodded and said, "Incorporate it into Wanfu Garden!"

Wen Gu pointed at the long bridge on the blueprint and continued, "The first phase of the Wanfu Garden project won't be built in a short while, so we can build the first section of this long bridge first—that is, the section spanning Jingqing Alley..."

"It's nearly three stories high. Building a structure might exceed the standards, but if we compress it slightly, hitting the limit at two and a half stories, and build a Covered Walkway, it might become a landmark building in the city this year. This thing also has some other advantages..."

As Wen Gu explained, he also answered questions from the others.

The crowd gathered together and conspired loudly.

Shen Qing looked on with appreciation: "You kid really has a lot of ingenious ideas!"

Wen Gu said modestly, "It is not my own invention; I just saw a lot during my Study Tour."

What Wen Gu said truly moved many of the people present.

With so many people, there was a buzzing sound of discussion; if the voice wasn't a little louder, it was impossible to hear clearly.

Shen Qing found this group of people to be a nuisance and waved his hand: "Alright! You all go back and consider it first; we have important matters to discuss!"

After driving the others out, they continued their conspiracy.

Wen Gu said, "If we rush the work, this section might be completed before the New Year."

The Shen brothers were surprised: "That fast?"

Even if they didn't understand many things, they knew that this kind of flying bridge could not be built in a short time.

Wen Gu said, "The prerequisite is to move the prefabricated parts from the Wanfu Garden side over here."

The Shen brothers thought about the pros and cons; anyway, the prefabricated parts being made now were only for next year, so it was fine to allocate them here first.

Shen Qing agreed: "If it can be finished before the New Year, you can move all of them over! That 'landmark' you just mentioned is great! Wanfu Garden hasn't been built yet, so let everyone see the long bridge of Wanfu Garden first!"

Wen Gu said, "The timber and prefabricated parts can be used directly. The technical breakthroughs made by several workshops in Qingyun Fang recently can also shorten the construction time. If we rush, it might be possible."

Shen Qing and Shen Liu pulled Wen Gu aside to chat in detail about the Wanfu Garden project and how to solve the problems they were facing.

Some things didn't even need to pass through Wen Gu's hands; if Zhou Shan and the others put their heads together, they could get it done.

As for technical problems, Wen Gu had even recruited a Daoist Priest! He was also a talent; many difficult problems could be solved just by throwing them at him!

But as for the Shen brothers, although they had many people around them, and they certainly enjoyed it when that group of people flattered them, they found that when it came to actually doing things, few were reliable!

Even the construction supervisor was chosen after much selection, and in the end, they picked someone under their father.

Therefore, the two brothers specifically pulled Wen Gu out today to chat again, and also to sincerely ask for advice:

"How did you recruit those talents?"

Wen Gu also answered sincerely: "Win people over with virtue, win people over with reason!"

However, speaking of the talents at hand, Wen Gu was actually not satisfied with the current number of personnel.

It was not enough!

Nowadays, more and more people with status were coming in and out of Jingxing Fang, and Zhou Shan and the others couldn't keep them in check.

So, Wen Gu asked about Pei Jing, who had been brought over by Shen Qing earlier, regarding some matters of the Pei Family. The excuse was that he wanted to ask Pei Jing to revise the design drawings.

The Shen brothers were originally thinking about what "reason" and what "virtue" meant, but upon hearing this from Wen Gu, they immediately shifted their attention.

"His family, huh!"

Before Shen Qing could speak, Shen Liu beside him had an expression that said, "I know the gossip about his family."

There was no one else here, so they could speak freely.

"The two in the main branch of the Pei Family are both quite capable. Although their biological mother passed away early, Pei Jun—that is, Pei Jing's older brother—was already doing well before, and after moving to Xinzhou City, he became even more impressive; he became the chief officer of the Patrol Guard Division!"

"As for Pei Jing, his body isn't as strong as his brother's; I heard it's because he had a dangerous illness when he was young. If the world were peaceful, he could have taken the imperial examinations to enter the officialdom, but it's a pity; he read so many books with nowhere to use them."

Shen Liu clicked his tongue twice, looking very regretful.

"The worst part is that they have a father who holds them back!"

Shen Qing also had a look of great disdain, pointing and gesturing:

"When his father was young, the family was managed strictly, and he was still decent. Later, when there was no one above him to manage him, the older he got, the more absurd things he did. The dangerous illness Pei Jing had when he was young is rumored to be related to Old Master Pei; the father-son relationship has always been disharmonious."

Seeing Wen Gu lost in thought, Shen Qing worried that he would be scared off by the affairs of the Pei Family and that it would affect his social circle, so he said:

"There are plenty of such things in high-ranking families; what's in his family wouldn't even cause a ripple if brought out. Moreover, their old man is now at a disadvantage and can't stir up trouble. If you want to find Pei Jing to revise the design drawings, just go!"

After chatting for a while about the sordid affairs of high-ranking families and listening to Wen Gu's vision for the grand prospects of Wanfu Garden, this small gathering ended.

Both sides of the meeting were very satisfied.

Wen Gu returned to Qingyun Fang first to give Qingyi Daozhang some encouragement with the long bridge project—

In the future, the wealthy families will be able to reach your Qingyun Temple directly, so hurry up and strive again to build the Danguan as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)