Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 89

With her eyes blinking rapidly, Xiao Yan'er, relying on her childlike intuition, didn't ask any further questions. She obediently said "Oh," and sat up straight in the lobby on the first floor...

Chapter 111 The Thief's Dream

On the second day after the New Year, Lu Shan led two unfamiliar men into Luqiu Pavilion, where they happened to meet the Hall Master who was coming downstairs.

"Who are these two?"

Lu Wei knew that Ah Shan usually put on a high-handed act in front of his subordinates and outsiders, so anyone who could be personally led into Lu Qiu Pavilion by him must at least have some status.

Under Tian Guang's tutelage, Hall Master Lu has now given up his bad habit of using his internal energy to probe others at the drop of a hat, and now observes these two solely from their appearance:

The man on the left has a mustache, a full forehead, and fair skin, suggesting he has never experienced hardship and comes from a wealthy family. His bright eyes are full of shrewdness, leading one to initially conclude that he comes from a family of merchants.

The man on the right was more striking, standing at over two meters tall—a giant in any era. He was bare-armed, his upper arm muscles roughly the size of two snow maidens' waists, his bronze skin seemingly scorched by fire, and his strong, powerful knuckles—all of which easily revealed his profession as a blacksmith.

"Boss, these two are the descendants of the Ji Ran family and the Zhu family of Jicheng. They used to do business with us, but after learning that most of the Luqiu Pavilion was preparing to leave Yan, they came to discuss matters."

"Ji Ran's family, Cai household" and "Zhu family's iron patterns"

"Greetings, Hall Master Lu!"

Upon seeing the attitude of Vice Pavilion Master Lu Shan, the two people behind A Shan immediately understood the identity of the young man coming downstairs and hurriedly clasped their hands in greeting.

"The Ji family? The Zhu family?"

Lu Wei's mind raced, recalling the explanations for the two terms, and he stepped forward with a smile to help the two of them up:

"So you are colleagues from the Hundred Schools of Thought. There is no need for such formalities."

"What brings you two here to discuss?"

Since it was the New Year, the disciples who were originally staying at Luqiu Pavilion had all gone home to celebrate the New Year, and there were no idle people in the pavilion. So Lu Wei simply led the two of them to sit down in a corner of the first-floor hall.

Ah Shan, being sensible, personally brewed tea for them. In his opinion, the two small sects didn't need their leader to personally receive them, but since the leader wanted to give them face, he naturally did as the leader suggested.

"We are both from minor sects and dare not compare ourselves with the Farmer's School."

Cai Hu was flattered and stood up, bowed, and took the tea from the tray brought by the deputy pavilion master with both hands. Tie Wen followed suit and did the same.

Ji Ran's family originated from Ji Ran, a nobleman of the State of Song during the Spring and Autumn Period. His original name was Xin Xing. He once took Fan Li as his disciple and taught him seven strategies. Fan Li only used five of these strategies to help King Goujian of Yue destroy the State of Wu. He was a wise man known to all the people of the seven states.

The Ji Ran family inherited the economic knowledge of Ji Ran and Fan Li, advocating that the state develop commerce, use commercial circulation to drive agricultural progress, and ultimately achieve national prosperity.

A school of economics belonging to this era.

However, because the founder Ji Ran disregarded fame and fortune, and his successor Fan Li also retired while he was still at the height of his career, this sect did not actually form a systematic faction and could not be compared with the Nine Schools and Ten Religions.

As things have developed to this day, there is the Ji Ran family in Jicheng, the Ji Ran family in Daliang, and the Ji Ran family in Xianyang. Most of these Ji Ran family members are merchants from various countries who have no power in the imperial court.

For example, Xu Qiu, whose entire family was wiped out by Lu Wei, could call himself a member of the Ji Ran family, but since he had the title of the Farmer family available, Xu Qiu would naturally use the more prestigious Farmer family.

This small school of thought has no consistent lineage; anyone who has read the books of Ji Ran and Fan Li can claim to be a descendant of this family.

As for the other casting family, as the name suggests, it is one of the Hundred Schools of Thought that inherited the art of casting. Compared to the Ji Ran family, there is not much to introduce.

However, for Lu Wei, the main reason he treated the two with courtesy was because of this heir of the Zhu family.

In Jicheng, all the craftsmen in private forging shops and some government-run forging shops were nominally disciples of the Casting Master.

Forging metal is a combination of physical strength and technical skill; without a mentor to guide you, not everyone can become a good craftsman.

Despite this, the status of the blacksmith's apprentices remained lowly. As artisans, aside from the iron awls they wielded being replaced, they had no other avenue for advancement.

After hearing the accounts from the two families, Lu Wei learned why the two had come to Luqiu Pavilion.

The Ji family and the Zhu family are partners in Ji City. As a family of noble merchants for generations, Cai Hu has always had close ties with various powerful and influential families in Ji City: he would take on large and small custom-made metal objects from these powerful and influential families, and then hand them over to Tie Wen to coordinate the forging in various blacksmith shops.

According to Cai, the business wasn't big, but it was enough to support his family.

However, after the Lu brothers took over Luqiu Pavilion a few years ago, the demand for craftsmen in the farming community was extremely high, and the prices were fair. In order to ensure a stable supply, many forging shops began to work exclusively for Luqiu Pavilion.

When Cai Hu learned of this, he didn't feel that the farmers had taken away his business. Instead, he seized the opportunity and led the Ji Ran family of Jicheng to become suppliers and buyers for the Luqiu Pavilion caravan in the city, which earned them a considerable amount of money.

It can be said that over the years, these two companies have essentially become unofficial subordinate organizations of the farmers. Once Luqiu Pavilion withdraws its main business next year, the businesses of both companies will plummet, and it will not be possible to restore them to their original state in the short term.

For his own benefit and the sake of his subordinates and disciples, Cai Hu took the initiative to contact Tie Wen, whom he hadn't been in touch with for several years. The two discussed it and decided to bring the willing members of the Ji Ran family and the Zhu family into the Farmer's School.

Among them, Ji Ran's family numbered fifty-nine, accompanied by three hundred and ninety servants and household guards.

The old craftsmen of the foundry trained a total of eighty apprentices. Some of the craftsmen did not want to leave their hometown and chose to stay. Iron patterns were not mandatory.

Such a request was practically a New Year's gift for the Hall Master. Back when Amu moved the mechanical workshop to Daze Mountain, there was a severe shortage of blacksmiths, and they had to borrow people from Shennong Hall and Siyue Hall.

With the addition of the eighty craftsmen from the Jicheng Casting Family to the Gonggong Hall, and with the experienced ones mentoring a few apprentices, the number of blacksmiths in Bailuyan will soon reach several hundred.

There are no more obstacles for the government workshop to expand its production capacity!

As for the merchants like Ji Ran's family, they were naturally useful as well.

In Lu Wei's eyes, as long as someone is a person and their limbs are not completely broken, they can always play a role for him in a suitable position.

Since most of the disciples of Luqiu Pavilion in Jicheng are going to leave anyway, there's no rush to cancel those vacant positions; they can be filled by disciples from the Ji Ran family instead. Some things, if done under the guise of the Farmer Clan, would easily attract attention due to the Farmer Clan's large size, but the Ji Ran family doesn't have this problem and can proceed without hesitation.

After calmly listening to Cai Hu and Tie Wen's words, Lu Wei immediately devised a plan for how to utilize these two families.

However, we can't be too hasty. We need to lower their expectations first, so that when the actual treatment exceeds their expectations, the disciples from both families will feel grateful to the Hall Master.

------

Dao Zhi's mind is currently in a daze.

On New Year's Eve, there were many Mohist disciples in Yan, and even the Crown Prince of Yan was a Mohist disciple. Therefore, the Mohist stronghold in Ji City was very lively. The Mohist warriors gathered together and treated each other as family, so they did not feel the loneliness of wandering outside.

He, the king of thieves, was one of the leaders of the Mohist school. In terms of status within the Mohist school, he barely made it into the top ten. With the Grand Master absent, in order to amuse his disciples, he came to the heavily guarded Crown Prince's residence, intending to steal a plate of snacks to take back for his Mohist brothers to try.

Even though he walked in upright and honestly, with Prince Dan's prior notice, he could have asked for not only a plate of snacks but also a whole banquet!

But how could that demonstrate his status as the king of thieves?

Playing a prank on New Year's Eve is just typical of Robber Zhi!

Yan Dan was not in the Crown Prince's residence; he had gone to the palace to attend a banquet. The security was much looser, making it easier for Dao Zhi.

Without even needing to use his lightning-fast movement technique, he slipped into the hall using only ordinary footwork, wrapped a plate of pastries on the table in a pre-prepared cloth bag, stuffed it into his pocket, and that was it!

"Right, I already stole the target, so what's going on now?"

Recalling this, Dao Zhi shook his head violently to clear his mind and see his current situation:

First, there was no one around, and the environment seemed to be a dark little room. Everything in front of me was hanging upside down from the ceiling, which meant that I was in an upside-down state.

His body was bound tightly with strips of cloth, his arms and legs could not be stretched out, and his whole body even felt a dull pain and swelling. The murderer was really ruthless!

"But to think you can limit me, the King of Thieves, with just these things is to seriously underestimate me!"

Dao Zhi's eyes darted around, and he took out a tiny piece of iron from the knuckles of his left hand. He easily sliced ​​open the strips of cloth on his body, spun 180 degrees, and landed steadily.

Next, all he needs to do is leave the deserted hut and he will escape!

That's it? How did I get arrested back then?

A memory flashed through Dao Zhi's mind again in an instant:

After stuffing the snacks into his pocket, Dao Zhi immediately left. As he passed two charred houses, he sighed with regret at the scene, when he suddenly noticed a woman standing in the ruins, which piqued his curiosity.

"Hey, young lady, judging from your clothes, you don't seem to be from the Crown Prince's residence."

He raised an eyebrow and immediately leaned closer to get a better look. There weren't many female thieves in his line of work, and tonight he'd actually encountered one!

Then, his memory went blank...

"How could I forget at such a crucial moment!" Dao Zhi smacked his head, his eyes widening. "That woman must be the Yin-Yang School's Dongjun that the Grand Master mentioned!"

"This woman is dangerous. If I'm not careful, I might not even be a match for her. I must tell the Grand Master immediately!"

Dao Zhi had heard a little about the matter between Yan Dan and Dong Jun of the Yin-Yang School, but the Grand Master did not go into details. He only told him that Prince Dan was in a dangerous situation and that he was trying to resolve the hatred.

In retrospect, the giant's attempt to resolve the situation has undoubtedly failed, and due to bad luck, he has been taken hostage.

"He only used such a simple method to trap me instead of killing me. How come it seems that this Dongjun of the Yin Yang School might still have feelings for Prince Dan?"

With random thoughts running through his mind, he carefully approached the door and stood there, pressing his ear against it. He heard no sound, not even a breath. He was safe!

After opening the door as silently as possible, only half of his head was sticking out. Upon seeing the scene behind the door, Dao Zhi's pupils trembled violently:

In the pitch-black hut, a person hangs upside down from the rafters, and that person's face is none other than his own!

"What... what's going on..."

He frantically raised his hand to touch his face: the person hanging was 'Robber Zhi,' then who was 'I'...?

He felt a throbbing pain in his head and lost consciousness once again...

"Humph!"

In the real world, Yan Fei's face was cold as she placed her hand on the forehead of an unconscious man, Dao Zhi, whose expression was ferocious and appeared to be in great pain.

A deep blue Yin-Yang technique flowed smoothly from Yan Fei's palm, seeping into Dao Zhi's consciousness:

"Do I still have feelings for Yan Dan? Yes, I have far too many 'feelings' for him!"

"We must return it, little by little!"

...

"Giant!"

On the morning of the second day after the New Year's banquet at the palace, Yan Dan waited in the main hall for the arrival of the Six-Fingered Black Knight.

He already knew about Dao Zhi's disappearance last night, and Black Knight guessed that Dao Zhi was most likely taken away by Dong Jun of the Yin Yang School, so he came directly to the Crown Prince's residence.

"A plate of snacks has gone missing from the manor. Brother Daozhi was indeed here."

Yan Dan frowned, but the Six-Fingered Black Knight did not blame him. Instead, he said in a deep voice, "Dong Jun's ultimate goal is still His Highness the Crown Prince. His Highness still needs to strengthen his defenses."

“I can sense the aura of Yin-Yang magic here. She left it intentionally. Dao Zhi will be fine for now.”

"So, launching a city-wide manhunt would put Brother Dao Zhi in danger... What does the Grand Master think we should do?"

Yan Dan clenched her fists until they turned pale: Fei Yan couldn't possibly be unaware that he was going to the palace on New Year's Eve; capturing Dao Zhi was something she did intentionally...

"Your Highness need not worry. As the leader of the Mohist school, I will take responsibility for every Mohist disciple."

Black Knight discreetly sensed the information remaining in the Yin-Yang technique, turned around, and said calmly, "Your Highness is the Crown Prince of a country, and I hope you can devote more of your attention to the people of Yan."

"The Lord of the East will not personally attack His Highness, but this is not good news!"