Chapter 74

Hu Yan Tong frowned and said, "Third Uncle, how did you get involved with the Qi family? Be careful, Grandfather might get angry!"

Hu Yan Zheng Yan smiled bitterly and said, "This was your grandfather's idea, but the negotiations didn't work out. The Qi family only agreed to pay 10,000 strings of cash and insisted on taking the naming rights. How could that be possible?"

Hu Yan Tong whispered to Chen Qing, "The Qi family is one of Wang Bo's close allies, Qi Yun's family. My fourth aunt is Qi Yun's aunt, and my father has always been against the Qi family."

Chen Qing's heart stirred, and he smiled, asking, "What's going on? Are you planning to do business together?"

Hu Yan Zheng Yan had a very easy-going personality and never put on airs, even though Hu Yan Tong was his nephew. Their relationship was more like that of brothers.

Since Chen Qing asked, Hu Yan Zheng Yan didn't hide anything and said, "Our Hu Yan family has spent most of our money on buying land, purchasing large tracts in Suzhou and Lin'an. Now we want to open more Tiger Mouth taverns, but we don't have enough money. So we considered a partnership: we provide the land, and the other party provides the money. Today, we discussed with the Qi family: we would provide five acres of land, and they would provide 10,000 strings of cash, each taking half of the shares. The manager could be from their side, but the naming rights would be ours. However, the Qi family insisted on the naming rights, so the negotiations broke down."

Chen Qing hesitated and asked, "If I want to invest, can I?"

Chen Qing had just received 3,000 taels of silver as a reward from the emperor. He wanted to invest but didn't have a channel. It was just in time that he met Hu Yan Zheng Yan.

Hu Yan Zheng Yan smiled and said, "General Chen is Wulang's friend, so of course you can invest, but the minimum is 10,000 strings of cash."

"Uncle, what is the current exchange rate between silver and cash?"

Hu Yan Zheng Yan blurted out, "The official rate is 1:2, but the market rate is 1:5. In business, we generally follow the market rate!"

"What if I invest 15,000 strings of cash?"

Hu Yan Zheng Yan's eyes lit up, "If you're willing to invest 15,000 strings of cash, I can partner with you on the land near Fengyu Gate. We'll split it 50-50, right next to West Lake, the best location. What conditions do you have?"

"I have no conditions. Uncle, just give me a share of the profits each year."

Hu Yan Zheng Yan's face lit up with a broad smile. Not interfering in operations and only wanting a share of the profits, such a partner was hard to come by even for a thousand taels of gold.

Hu Yan Tong, however, was anxious. Chen Qing was his friend, and he couldn't make such a hasty decision. He hurriedly said, "Old Chen, let's go to the restroom!"

The two walked out of the private room, and Hu Yan Tong whispered, "We bought that land for only a little over 1,000 strings of cash. You're investing 15,000 strings of cash, don't let your head get hot!"

Chen Qing smiled, "What's it worth now?"

"It's worth over 10,000 strings of cash now, but investing in a tavern is risky. If the business doesn't do well, you'll lose your money. Think carefully before deciding, don't act impulsively."

Chen Qing realized he had been a bit impulsive. He didn't even know where the tavern was. Even if he was partnering with the Hu Yan family, he needed to be cautious.

"I know, let's take a look first!"

Chen Qing suddenly remembered something and asked, "Have you asked about your grandfather's spear technique?"

"I didn't get a promotion before, so I didn't go home. Now that I've been promoted, my father has nothing to say. I'll ask my grandfather tonight."

......

At the same moment Chen Qing was celebrating at Tiger Mouth Tavern, in Wang Bo's residence, Wang Huan slapped Wang Bo hard, knocking him to the ground.

Wang Huan was furious, "You damn fool, you dragged me into your mess. Now I've been dismissed from office, and you're happy about it!"

The slap was so hard that Wang Bo's cheek swelled up. He covered his face and said angrily, "It's your own fault for not handling things well. If you had found evidence, would it have come to this?"

"Bullshit! Chen Qing couldn't find any evidence, how could I? It was your uncle who sent me, and now he's stepping on me. Who will be willing to work for you in the future? You have to give me an explanation today. I lost my position for you, what are you going to do about it?"

Wang Bo knew he was in the wrong. He thought for a moment and said, "Let's wait a bit longer. Once the storm passes, I'll ask my aunt to have my uncle give you a position. Don't be angry with him."

Wang Huan wanted to hear that. Although he hated Qin Hui, he knew he needed Qin Hui to get back his position. He could only suppress his anger.

"Brother, I heard that Fan Zongyin resigned as chancellor. Is it true?"

"He did resign, but the emperor didn't approve it. He just scolded him. Fan Zongyin is really a fool. This kind of thing should be handled privately, but he insisted on debating it in the court, and ended up being publicly humiliated!"

When Wang Huan mentioned being humiliated, Wang Bo couldn't help but touch his burning face, and his anger flared up again. He gritted his teeth and said, "I'll deal with Chen Qing sooner or later!"

"You need to work harder! Otherwise, all your tough talk is useless."

"What can I do? The emperor has already met with him and appointed him as a commander..."

"Hmph! It's your own fault for not seizing the opportunity. Next month's military training competition, you haven't been to the camp for a day. What will you use to participate? You won't even make the top ten."

Wang Bo also huffed, "I have my own plans for the military training competition, no need for you to worry!"

......

As night fell, Qin Hui lay down, exhausted, but saw his wife, Lady Wang, turning her back to him, ignoring him.

Qin Hui laughed. His wife had been unhappy since he returned home, and he knew why.

"Wang Huan is just temporarily dismissed. I'll arrange a small position for him and then gradually promote him. You don't need to worry."

Lady Wang turned around and glared at her husband, "He was working for you. Even if he didn't have any merit, he at least put in the effort. How can you just dismiss him? Who will be willing to work for you in the future?"

"You're wrong. No one outside knows he was working for me. The court will only praise me for upholding justice. This time, I miscalculated. If I hadn't reacted quickly, I would have been implicated by Fan Zongyin. Don't worry, I'll compensate Wang Huan in the future."

Although Lady Wang was angry with her husband, her anger subsided when he promised to compensate.

"Husband, what exactly happened today? I heard the emperor is actually helping Chen Qing. Does he have that much influence? Even more than the chancellor?"

"Don't believe the rumors outside. They are just the views of ignorant people. If you believe them, you won't know how you'll die. How could the emperor offend the chancellor for a minor Western Army officer?"

"Then what's the reason?" Lady Wang was interested.

"I told you before. On the surface, this is about a minor Western Army officer, but in reality, it's a struggle between Fan Zongyin and Zhang Jun. Fan Zongyin became chancellor because Zhang Jun went to Sichuan and Shaanxi. Once Zhang Jun returns to the capital, Fan Zongyin is likely to be dismissed. Plus, they have opposing political views, so they have always been political enemies."

"Oh! I see. The emperor is helping Chen Qing on the surface, but in reality, he's helping Zhang Jun."

Qin Hui sighed, "I never understood why the emperor favored Zhang Jun and didn't hold him accountable. It wasn't until today that I realized the Battle of Fuping was probably planned by the emperor. Zhang Jun's defeat at Fuping was just a scapegoat for the emperor. That's why the emperor is trying to downplay the Battle of Fuping. Fan Zongyin didn't understand and insisted on focusing on Zhang Jun's defeat at Fuping, which led to his current predicament."

"It seems Chen Qing's appointment as a commander was just a stroke of luck!" Lady Wang thought of her nephew Wang Bo's complaints today.

"That's not necessarily true. It's clear now that civil officials can't fight wars, and in the end, we still need military officers. The Liu Miao incident made the emperor distrust these military officers, so he wants to personally promote a batch of young commanders. Yue Fei was promoted for this reason, and Chen Qing is the same this time. However..."

Qin Hui sneered, "Fan Zongyin is known for his narrow-mindedness. Chen Qing publicly humiliated him in the court, so he won't let Chen Qing off. Chen Qing will have a hard time in the future."

"Stop talking about Chen Qing. I'm not interested in him. Let's focus on our own nephew!"

Lady Wang said unhappily, "Now that Chen Qing has been promoted, does Bo have no chance at all?"

Qin Hui thought for a moment and said, "There is a chance. The upcoming military training competition is arranged by the emperor, and it's a big event. We must make sure Wang Bo takes advantage of this opportunity."

Lady Wang hesitated, "Today, Bo specifically came to me about this. I promised him that you would definitely help him."

Qin Hui's face darkened, "Why does everything have to be my responsibility? Can't he rely on himself?"

"Husband, if Wang Bo is given an important position, won't he ultimately be working for you? Helping him is helping yourself!"

A wife knows her husband best. Lady Wang knew her husband's biggest weakness: a shallow political foundation and too few trusted confidants. Her words hit the mark.

This is called the pillow talk.

"Fine! I'll think about it."