Chapter 56: Playing with the County Marquis

The name of the new County Marquis was first seen on a document from Liangzhou Prefecture.

Liu Zheng was drinking tea at the time, and when he saw the name on it, he was amused.

Qian Buqun?

Liu Zheng was actually quite familiar with this document, because when he and his father went to Yinzhou, they had carried this very thing.

"County Marquis Qian Buqun, taking office in Yangzhou on the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month; all relevant persons, go outside the city to welcome him!"

This document basically conveyed just such a meaning.

Liu Zheng laughed out loud; he couldn't believe it even if he died, that the new County Marquis who was coming was actually this fellow. Could this be considered "enemies often cross paths"?

Shen Xing also laughed from the side: "Young Master, I hear this Qian Buqun really doesn't give you or the Old Master any face!"

Liu Zheng sneered: "More than just not giving face? He practically humiliated us to the extreme!"

Qin Zhangfeng, Jiang Xuan, and Zheng Yueru, who were nearby, all looked over curiously.

Only then did Liu Zheng tell the story of how Qian Buqun had sent them two coffins when they left Liangzhou.

"This... this wretch is simply too excessive!"

"Young Master, rest assured, once he arrives, he will last at most three days in Yangzhou!"

Qin Zhangfeng was so angry he couldn't stand it.

Liu Zheng shook his head with a smile: "Why go that far? Jiang Xuan, you tell me, how should this situation be handled?"

Qin Zhangfeng glanced at Jiang Xuan and snorted coldly.

These days, wherever Liu Zheng went, he brought this young man along. This young man was also quite arrogant, speaking of the Art of War at every turn, and even acting a bit spoiled and favored, showing no courtesy to Qin Zhangfeng at all. Seeing Liu Zheng still protecting him like this, Qin Zhangfeng was naturally resentful.

Jiang Xuan glared at Qin Zhangfeng provocatively and said proudly: "Captain Qin is too reckless! This Magistrate Qian is, after all, a person from Liangzhou... If we go to make things difficult for him after he enters Yangzhou, the law will not tolerate it! I think it would be better to intercept and kill him on the road!"

A flash of intense murderous intent crossed his eyes.

Everyone was startled.

Liu Zheng was also left between laughter and tears by what he heard; he shook his head and said nonchalantly: "Three days from now, the Yinzhou Chamber of Commerce will be officially established. Notify those Powerful Clans who are interested to come and subscribe in three days; after that, we will not wait!"

Everyone was shocked to hear this.

Jiang Xuan's eyes lit up: "Excellent, Young Master, this plan is brilliant—to subdue the enemy without fighting!"

Liu Zheng shook his head: "Subdue the enemy my foot. I know that Qian Buqun; he is passable at doing business, but as an official, he is a total good-for-nothing! Rather than killing him and letting Liangzhou Prefecture send someone else, it is better to let him stay in Yangzhou honestly, understand?"

"The simplest principle: know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles!"

Jiang Xuan was left looking ashamed by Liu Zheng's words; although he was unconvinced in his heart, he had no logic to refute it.

Over these past few days, Liu Zheng had already purchased a manor in Yangzhou to serve as a place to stay, and together with Zheng Yueru, he had leased a relatively famous flower house in Yangzhou to serve as a branch of "Fengming Tower." For the past few days, it had already been closed for renovations.

He always knew that Yangzhou, after all, was not Yinzhou, so his Shen Gong Workshop absolutely could not be moved here. Yinzhou was his base camp, his lair! Furthermore, in the rules for this Chamber of Commerce, he had already written clearly that he encouraged the wealthy of Yangzhou to go to Yinzhou to build factories after obtaining patents, and he would provide significant tax incentives. Once these wealthy men heard there was such a good deal, they all agreed. The commercial taxes in this era were quite heavy.

But Liu Zheng could let a large portion of them go.

Because his goal was still to revitalize the economy of Yinzhou and leave himself a way out.

Three days later, the Chamber of Commerce subscription.

Once this news spread, the entire Yangzhou fell into a strange and peculiar atmosphere.

"This... three days later?"

"Isn't that the day the new County Marquis takes office? We should be waiting at the city gate!"

"This Young Master Liu is..."

The Powerful Clans couldn't sit still. Although they had already decided to join Liu Zheng's Chamber of Commerce, the fundamental reason was that this Chamber of Commerce did not conflict with the County Marquis Mansion. One side was an official, the other was doing business; they were like well water and river water, not interfering with each other.

These Powerful Clans still wanted to please both sides and offend no one in the end.

But you, Young Master Liu, insist on going against the County Marquis?

How is this supposed to make them act?

Isn't this forcing us to take a side?

Some Powerful Clans were still hesitating.

After all, Liu Zheng's arrival had brought great changes to Yangzhou.

Meanwhile, Zheng Yueru was already riding a War Horse, galloping without stop back to the Zheng Family in Yinzhou.

Then she gathered all the people of the Zheng Family and made a shocking statement.

"Grandfather, this Chamber of Commerce is a heaven-sent opportunity for the Zheng Family; the Zheng Family should invest all its wealth into the Chamber of Commerce!"

This sentence was like throwing a bomb into the Zheng Family. Others stood up one after another, hurling all sorts of abuse at Zheng Yueru. Even Zheng Sheng was startled by Zheng Yueru: "Yueru, what do you mean by this?"

"Father, isn't Yueru trying to drag our Zheng Family down with her?"

"You must have had a secret affair with that Young Master Liu!"

"What kind of nonsense Chamber of Commerce is this? The risk is so great, you, you, you, you..."

"Absolutely not!"

The people of the Zheng Family were filled with righteous indignation.

Zheng Sheng also said: "Yueru, I have just read the document and contract regarding the Chamber of Commerce; the idea is indeed bold, but it may not be feasible. But since it hasn't been verified yet, is it too reckless to invest the entire family's strength?"

Others also chimed in one after another.

Zheng Yueru sighed with a bitter smile.

She knew it would end up like this. Most of the things these people said to refute her were the same: that the Zheng Family relied on the Empress, so why would they need someone else's channels and resources? There was no commercial firm under heaven with more stable channels than the Zheng Family's!

Frogs at the bottom of a well!

Arrogant and ignorant!

Immersed in that comfort, they could never walk out.

Zheng Yueru took a deep breath and said: "Grandfather, this matter must not be delayed! Not to mention that our Yinzhou Zheng Family is merely a branch of the Liangzhou Zheng Family, but just consider the current Emperor..."

She gathered her courage and said, "He is already on the verge of death. When that time comes, the Empress will have to be buried with him. Who will protect our Zheng Family?"

As soon as these words were spoken, they were met with a barrage of angry curses. They called her bold, rebellious, and a loose-tongued bringer of disaster, claiming she dared to recklessly discuss the Emperor's health, which was a crime punishable by the execution of one's entire clan. The people of the Zheng Family had never liked Zheng Yueru to begin with, and after Liu Zheng's "Natural Inheritance Law" was introduced, their resentment toward her had escalated directly from mere prejudice to hatred! Thus, seizing this opportunity, they wished nothing more than to destroy or cripple Zheng Yueru!

"All of you, shut up!"

Zheng Sheng roared, and the others fell silent as if they were cicadas in winter.

This elder, who held the most authority in the Zheng Family, looked at Zheng Yueru quietly. In truth, everyone knew that once the old Emperor died, the world would fall into chaos. And this year, the old Emperor was already seventy-three years old! As the saying goes, seventy-four and eighty-three are thorns in the eyes of the King of Hell! In this era, living to seventy-four was already a long life. Just as Zheng Yueru said, once the Emperor passed away, what would Empress Zheng even be? A mother's status depends on her son, yet this Empress Zheng had given birth to a son who was not only not the legitimate eldest son, but had also been slow-witted since childhood. There was certainly no hope for him to inherit the throne.

According to the laws of the Longyan Dynasty, being buried with the deceased was a real possibility!

When that time came, what would the Zheng Family do?

Who would protect them and keep them safe?

Zheng Yueru saw very far ahead; how could these freeloaders compare to her?

"Yue Ru, how much certainty do you have?"

Zheng Sheng pondered aloud.

The others changed color one after another, sitting in agitation.

Zheng Yueru said firmly, "Ten parts!"

"Good, then if we stake the entire Zheng Family, what of it?"

Zheng Sheng laughed heartily.

Zheng Yueru was overjoyed; once the old man made the decision, it didn't matter what anyone else said—it was already useless.

This time, the Zheng Family planned to subscribe to five hundred thousand taels of silver in shares!

It could be considered betting their entire fortune!

……

At this time, in Yangzhou City, the Cheng Family.

Cheng Dai was soaking his feet in hot water, his face full of worry.

He had been the most active participant in welcoming Liu Zheng into Yangzhou, yet at this moment, he hesitated.

This Young Master Liu was truly too capable of stirring up trouble!

At a time like this, he wanted to openly oppose the County Marquis?

"Master, this matter must be handled with caution!"

"Indeed, that County Marquis was sent by Liangzhou. Although Liangzhou is currently resisting the Barbarians and cannot spare the time, who can say they won't settle accounts later?"

Several people nearby offered their advice one after another.

Cheng Dai nodded, deeply agreeing.

People of this era still held a deep-seated fear and obedience toward the government.

Cheng Dai was not stupid; he knew Young Master Liu wanted the Powerful Clans to take a side, and that trying to please both parties was certainly impossible.

"Fine, three days from now, the Cheng Family will beat drums and sound gongs to welcome the County Marquis!"

……

"The Cheng Family, is it?"

Liu Zheng received the news of Cheng Dai's decision immediately.

To this, he only gave a faint smile.

Different people make different choices; he would not blame him for this. For a Chamber of Commerce to choose to go head-to-head with the County Marquis Mansion, it was already good enough that some were willing to follow him; he could not force everyone to stand on his side.

It was just that…

It had to be said that Cheng Dai's choice was a grave mistake.

Regarding this, Liu Zheng felt it was very necessary to give him a little knock.

In the blink of an eye, three days had passed.

On this day, a crowd had long since gathered outside the gates of Yangzhou City.

Although today was for the Chamber of Commerce subscription, as the person holding the "Suppression of Bandits Order," Liu Zheng did indeed need to hand over work to the new County Marquis. Therefore, he had also been waiting here early.

At midday, the procession of Qian Buqun finally arrived.

Cheng Dai led a group of people, waiting obsequiously.

Looking from afar, Liu Zheng could not help but laugh out loud.

This fellow's display was quite grand; it seemed he had spent his own money to prepare this noisy procession. At a glance, there were dozens of horses, dressed in red and green, with suonas and trumpets, making it look just like a wedding procession. As for Qian Buqun, he sat in a four-horse carriage, much like a leader from later generations inspecting work, his corpulent body standing at the front of the carriage, wearing a proud smile as he waved to the commoners on the street.

"The County Marquis has arrived!"

"The County Marquis has arrived!"

For some reason, Liu Zheng suddenly remembered the scene when he and his father entered Yinzhou. At that time, he had ridden a horse and shouted until his throat was hoarse at the city gate, yet no one had come out.

Thinking of this, he had not yet spoken.

With a *whoosh*, Qin Zhangfeng raised the Divine Arm Crossbow behind his back, and a practice crossbow bolt flew out, striking one of the horses squarely in the eye.

Consequently, the horse was startled, and the carriage overturned.

Qian Buqun's spherical body rolled down in a wretched state, shouting for help.

Everyone at the scene burst into loud laughter.

【Author's Note】

The requests for updates hit a new high today, so there will be three big chapters! However, due to the review process, the updates might be delayed.