Chapter 653: Establishing the Mansion

(PS: Although you should be used to it by now, I still can't help but say: from the first chapter of this book until now, there hasn't been a single chapter written to pad the word count; every plot segment definitely has its purpose.)

It was already past 6: 0 PM when the motorcade arrived in Xingcheng.

Lan Changqun had specially arranged a dinner party for Li Fei.

When he was in Datong Prefecture, Li Fei had declined the banquet Bian Jingru arranged for him, but now he accepted Lan Changqun's invitation.

Because Li Lei would be deeply cultivating his roots in Xingcheng from now on, this would also be the place where Li Fei established his Marquis Mansion.

The banquet was naturally enjoyed by both host and guests; the various officials of Xingcheng did not dare to force too much alcohol on Li Fei, though they let Li Lei drink quite a bit.

Late at night, Li Lei, Li Fei, and Li Tianyu returned home by car, while Lu Wenxing and the others stayed at the government guesthouse.

As the Chief Inspector, Li Lei could actually live in a better house allocated by the government.

But Zhang Yuqing had grown accustomed to living here and had formed friendships with the neighbors, so she was reluctant to move away; thus, the two of them still lived in the old place.

Upon returning home, Zhang Yuqing had long since prepared hot water and hot tea to sober them up for the three of them.

She had not seen Li Fei and Li Tianyu for a long time, and her eyes turned red immediately upon seeing them.

After some pleasantries, Li Fei suddenly said:

"Uncle Li, Aunt Zhang, I am going to build a Marquis Mansion in Xingcheng from now on. I want to let you move into the Marquis Mansion to live once it is built. Because I certainly won't be able to stay in Xingcheng for long, the Marquis Mansion cannot be without a master for long. If you move in, you can look after this Marquis Mansion for me."

Li Lei naturally had no objections to this; he knew that a Marquis Mansion was not just a residence—it represented many things, representing the greatest foundation for Li Fei, the Marquis of Jing'an!

He turned his head to look at Zhang Yuqing.

Hearing this, Zhang Yuqing revealed a smile and said without hesitation:

"No problem, it just so happens I haven't lived in a big house before."

After saying this, she turned her head to meet Li Lei's gaze, and the couple smiled at each other.

Seeing this, Li Fei was also very happy.

The family chatted until very late before going to sleep.

Early the next morning, Li Fei took Li Lei's car to the government building.

The Chief Administrator Lan Changqun greeted him personally outside the building, and Lu Wenxing and the others had also arrived early, standing to the side waiting.

Afterward, Li Fei took Lu Wenxing, along with Lan Changqun and Li Lei, into a reception room.

The group was going to discuss Li Fei's establishment of the Marquis Mansion in Xingcheng.

"The Central Cabinet has already issued the funds for building the Marquis Mansion for the Marquis of Jing'an, totaling one million."

Lan Changqun said to Li Fei.

If it were in Lanling City, it would be very difficult to buy a decent mansion in a good location with one million.

But in a small place like Xingcheng, one million was enough for Li Fei to build a super luxurious mansion!

After all, the average salary in Xingcheng was not even 50 yuan.

"Regarding the construction plans for the Marquis Mansion, we have already prepared several for you."

Lan Changqun took out a pre-prepared proposal and handed it to Li Fei:

"The first plan is to build a new mansion, and there are three locations available to choose from. The second plan is to purchase a mansion that has already been built; we have found five suitable sellers for you. The mansions they hold are all quite good, and they are willing to sell to you. After you buy them, you can renovate and expand them."

Li Fei understood immediately after listening.

Purchasing an already-built mansion was definitely the most cost-effective, because no seller would dare to charge Li Fei a high price; in fact, in order to curry favor with him as the Marquis of Jing'an, the prices offered would inevitably be very favorable.

Sure enough, he glanced at the proposal in his hand, and the prices offered by the five sellers Lan Changqun mentioned were almost equivalent to giving them away for free!

"Let's build a new one; I don't like using other people's things."

Li Fei said indifferently.

"Very well, it shall be done according to your wishes."

Lan Changqun's expression did not change.

Li Fei selected a location from the three that was closest to the current family residential compound of the Inspectorate.

Although Zhang Yuqing hadn't said it, he quickly realized that she would definitely be reluctant to leave the place where they currently lived.

After selecting the address for the mansion, Li Fei stopped worrying about the scale of the mansion, the specific architectural style, materials, and other details, preparing to leave them for others to handle.

Next, he wanted to talk to Lan Changqun about 'taxes'.

The Emperor had designated Xingcheng as Li Fei's fief, so Li Fei had the power to collect taxes from Xingcheng.

This portion of taxes could be a newly added tax, or a portion could be drawn from the annual tax revenue of the Xingcheng government and handed over to the Marquis of Jing'an's Mansion.

Li Fei did not choose to add a new tax; although he could have more income that way, he did not want to increase the burden on the people of Xingcheng.

Therefore, he ultimately chose to extract one-tenth of the Xingcheng government's annual tax revenue as the income for the Marquis Mansion.

"The Marquis is truly considerate of the people."

Lan Changqun flattered him.

Finally, everyone needed to discuss the Marquis Mansion's private soldiers.

Li Fei had to pay for these people himself, and while weapons and equipment could be bought from the imperial court, Li Fei still had to pay for them himself.

"How many private soldiers does the Marquis intend to have? I will make a registration here so I can report it to the Central authorities."

Lan Changqun asked.

"Five hundred."

Li Fei said indifferently.

Five hundred private soldiers was the upper limit for a Marquis.

"As for the source of these soldiers, does the Marquis intend to recruit them yourself, or?"

"For the source of soldiers, the Inspectorate can resolve a portion."

Li Lei, who had been sitting to the side without speaking, opened his mouth:

"The Inspectorate will have a portion of inspectors submitting resignation reports."

Even with private soldiers, they still needed training; how could people recruited from the outside compare to the elite inspectors Li Lei had trained with large amounts of ammunition and actual combat?

This was equivalent to Li Lei using the imperial court's resources to train private soldiers for Li Fei.

However, this kind of operation was actually quite common in the Great Lan Dynasty; as long as one had the means and connections, it could be done.

Lan Changqun nodded and said nothing.

Actually, this kind of operation by Li Lei should not have been brought out into the open, but since the other party said it directly to his face, it actually seemed frank.

This was giving him, the Chief Administrator, a heads-up in advance.

And Lan Changqun dared not, nor would he, raise any objections.

Afterward, the group discussed a few more details and then concluded the conversation.

Next, Li Lei went to handle official business, Li Fei had the documents arranged for him by the Supervision Pavilion, and Liang Chen and the other five went to coordinate matters related to the construction of the Marquis Mansion, while he himself took Lu Wenxing and left the government building.

Qingyuan Property Management Company Headquarters.

The company headquarters building was ten stories high, the tallest building in all of Xingcheng!

This building had now become a symbol in the hearts of many Xingcheng citizens, a place that many people yearned for.

On the tenth floor, the highest level, a meeting was being held.

Those in attendance included the General Manager of Qingyuan Property Management Company, Liu Saner, as well as over a dozen senior executives.

The topic of today's meeting was—dealing with the company's rule-breaking personnel.

The framework of the Qingyuan Property Management Company was built upon the 'tiger carcass' of the now-collapsed Tiger Blade Gang.

Most of the remnants of the original Tiger Blade Gang had been killed by Li Fei!

Only the remaining portion, who were not so heinous and whose crimes were not punishable by death, were able to join the company.

Under such deterrence, at the beginning, everyone was able to 100% execute the rules set by Li Fei:

Be good property managers, do not cheat in casinos, do not lend money at interest, and do not sell opium.

But as time went on, especially since the Green-Faced Ghost King had not appeared for a long time, some people began to revert to their old ways.

After all, a portion of the company's personnel had once been members of the Tiger Blade Gang and were not law-abiding, good people to begin with.

As the agent left behind in Xingcheng by the Green-Faced Ghost King, Liu Saner had always been trying hard to maintain the rules set by the Ghost King, strictly dealing with all personnel who violated them.

But after all, he had once only been a fight manager who could barely afford to eat.

In terms of talent, Liu Saner was not very capable.

He was only able to sit firmly in the position of General Manager of the Qingyuan Property Management Company by relying on the lingering prestige left to him by the Green-Faced Ghost King.

But as an ordinary person who knew no martial arts and no sorcery, and whose abilities and talents were not particularly outstanding, it was becoming increasingly difficult for Liu Saner to suppress the Xingcheng underworld leader that the Qingyuan Property Management Company was becoming.

In recent months, he had felt increasingly powerless, and the number of personnel violating rules within the company had grown, even including some senior executives.

So, taking advantage of Li Fei's return to Xingcheng, Liu Saner seized the opportunity to convene an internal investigation meeting.

Although he did not know that Li Fei was the Green-Faced Ghost King, judging from this series of recent events, Li Fei was clearly on the side of the Green-Faced Ghost King.

That was enough!

"In the last few months, there have been many instances of serious violations within the company, and I even discovered that some people are secretly selling opium!"

Liu Saner said sternly from the main seat.

His gaze swept over everyone present, and then he distributed a pile of documents he had prepared in advance on the table:

"This contains a detailed record of the list of all rule-breaking personnel and the specific incidents over the past few months; everyone, take a look first."

The dozen or so senior executives lowered their heads to look at the documents in their hands, and the complexions of quite a few changed.

"Liu Saner!"

A man in his forties with an imposing aura suddenly raised his head, picked up the document in his hand, and called him by his full name:

"What is the meaning of this?"

A powerful aura, enough to make ordinary people tremble with fear, radiated from this person and pressed down toward Liu Saner.

This person is named You Xiaofeng, originally a martial arts master of the Tiger Blade Gang, and is now the deputy director of the company's Wubao Force.

Oppressed by the martial artist's aura, Liu Saner's face turned pale instantly.

"You Xiaofeng, watch your tongue!"

A man sitting in the first seat to Liu Saner's left glared at You Xiaofeng without showing any weakness.

He is 'Gold-Breaking Hand' Xiang Du, once the right-hand man of Shangguan Xiao at the Qingyuan Fist Stronghold, and is now the only martial support Liu Saner has among the senior management of the Qingyuan City Management Company.

You Xiaofeng ignored Xiang Du and continued to stare down Liu Saner:

"Half of the names on this list of yours are my people. What is the meaning of this? Are you targeting me?"

Although his face was pale, Liu Saner forced himself to steady his mind and gritted his teeth:

"They are all company personnel; if they violate the rules, they should be dealt with!"

"Give me a break!"

You Xiaofeng sneered, "They are all the backbone of the company. How much merit have they earned for the company? You say you'll deal with them, so you just will?"

Liu Saner: "I am the general manager of the company, and I have the authority to deal with anyone!"

"Hahahaha!"

You Xiaofeng laughed loudly, "You, this general manager, are a joke. You have no talent in literature or martial arts. Besides sitting here every day and pointing fingers, what else can you do?"

"You Xiaofeng!"

Killing intent radiated from Xiang Du as he stared fixedly at the other man.

You Xiaofeng stared back without showing any weakness: "Xiang Du, others may fear you, but I certainly do not!"

Xiang Du was previously the only Force-Refining martial arts master at the Qingyuan City Management Company, but now, there is more than just him.

"You two."

Just then, a senior executive wearing gold-rimmed glasses suddenly spoke, "We are in a meeting; there is no need to be so tense. Do you intend to have a fight right here on the spot?"

You Xiaofeng snorted coldly, and Xiang Du did not speak again.

This senior executive wearing gold-rimmed glasses is named Xu Rui, who is in charge of the 'city management' portion of the Qingyuan City Management Company's business. He manages the largest number of people in the entire company, so his words naturally carry great weight.

He looked at Liu Saner with a look of contempt:

"General Manager Liu, I know your intentions, and everyone sitting here today can see them too. You are merely trying to borrow the prestige of the Marquis of Jing'an while he is in Xingcheng to clear out internal personnel and eliminate dissenters."

Liu Saner's expression was solemn: "I am only acting according to the company's rules."

Xu Rui shook his head, and more than half of the people present also showed expressions of disdain.

"General Manager Liu, I call you General Manager, but you must remember that you were once just a fight manager, and it was only by luck that you were favored by the Ghost King, who let you be the company's general manager.

Ask yourself, does the company's growth to its current scale and its current influence really have much to do with you?

If you were sitting in the general manager's seat, or if a dog were sitting in your seat, would there really be much of a difference?"

"Hahahahaha!"

You Xiaofeng laughed unscrupulously, and many people present also laughed.

Liu Saner's face flushed red, and he clenched his fists.

Xu Rui adjusted his glasses, looked at Liu Saner with a contemptuous gaze, and said word by word:

"You must remember, you are just a dog of the Ghost King. The Ghost King may not even value you much, let alone the high and mighty Marquis of Jing'an. Do you really think that just because the Marquis of Jing'an has come, he will back you up?

Don't be naive. The company was propped up by us. Even if the Marquis of Jing'an really comes, he will only value us!"

Xu Rui looked at Liu Saner, whose face had turned deathly pale again, and shook his head pitifully:

"So, General Manager Liu, do not overestimate yourself. This company is not yours to decide."

Bang!

As soon as his voice fell, the door of the conference room was pushed open violently, and a company member shouted excitedly:

"The Marquis of Jing'an is here!"

"What did you say?"

"The Marquis of Jing'an has already arrived downstairs at our company!"

(End of chapter)