Chapter 34

For the warning from Lan Ling, the two creditors completely ignored it.

Of course, it wasn't that they hadn't seen such a large sum of money before.

As one of the largest gold shops in the capital, they had seen not just thousands, but tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of gold coins.

This was because the gold shop had royal backing, and every year, the income from the royal family's various industries would be deposited in this gold shop. Even part of the kingdom's annual taxes would enter this gold shop.

Although this shopkeeper was just a manager, he had seen a lot of money.

However, in the plan, the Suo family had no way of coming up with this amount. Even if the entire capital could come up with this money, they wouldn't lend it to the Suo family.

Moreover, both the route to Tianshui City and the route to Linhai City were already being watched. The Suo family hadn't sent anyone to borrow money from Suo Han Yi or Gui Xing Fu, and time was running out.

Unexpectedly, in just two days, Suo Lun really managed to raise this much money, and it was a full 4,300 gold coins, which was truly unbelievable. (This amount of money is equivalent to about 70 to 80 million RMB, as gold coins in this world are very valuable.)

Suo Ning Bing and Ye Jing Yu were even more completely stunned.

They knew Lan Ling had gone to the brothel to raise money, as Suo Lun had a good reputation there, so they thought Lan Ling was going to borrow money from Suo Lun's previous lovers. But they didn't think it would work, as the money of the women in the brothel was their lifeline, and borrowing even 1,000 gold coins would be impressive.

Unexpectedly, he actually managed to get 4,300 gold coins.

The shopkeeper of the gold shop, who had seen many big scenes, quickly calmed down and smiled, saying, "In that case, we are even."

Lan Ling said, "Do you have my promissory note and the copy of the deed for the mortgaged property?"

"They are all here, please take a look," the shopkeeper said, handing them over. "In that case, we will take our leave."

Watching their backs, Lan Ling suddenly said, "If you have children at home, send them away as soon as possible, or it will be too late."

The lips of the gold shop owner trembled, and he finally burst out laughing, then said seriously to Lan Ling, "Young Master, although I have no title, I manage such a large estate for His Highness. To put it bluntly, other earls and such speak to me with great caution, as if I were their superior. Isn't that funny?"

His words clearly showed that he didn't take Suo Lun, the future Earl of Tianshui, seriously at all. After all, he was close to the future king. Although his tone was still polite, the disdain and ridicule were completely unmasked.

The thin and dry gambling den owner's eyes turned cold, and he sneered, "As for us, we are specifically hired to do dirty work for important people. There are two Dragon Warriors standing guard outside my door every day. Young Master, feel free to use any means you have."

Lan Ling smiled but didn't say anything.

Sometimes, people are worse than animals. A fox that borrows the tiger's might knows it has no real power. But when a person borrows the tiger's might for too long, they gradually start to think they are the real tiger.

The two creditors, one fat and one thin, turned and left.

At this moment, Suo Ning Bing finally asked, "Little brother, how did you earn this much money in just two days?"

Lan Ling said, "By selling paintings."

Suo Ning Bing said, "What kind of paintings? Worth so much?"

Lan Ling said, "Paintings I drew myself."

Suo Ning Bing muttered, "How is this possible? Your talent in painting is quite good, but... but you are still a beginner, not to the point where you can sell paintings for thousands of gold coins."

Lan Ling smiled apologetically and said, "I'm sorry, sister. I was just pretending to learn painting from you, just to spend more time with you."

Then, Lan Ling walked into the inner room and took out a painting.

It was a portrait of Suo Ning Bing, also a portrait of Lan Kuo. She was sitting by the window, lost in thought, gazing at the scenery outside.

He had completed this painting a long time ago, and only now brought it out.

The moment Suo Ning Bing saw the painting, she was completely stunned.

It was... it was so lifelike, as if the person's shadow was imprinted on the canvas, identical to the real person.

This was a revolution in painting, something unprecedented and unmatched.

Suo Ning Bing looked at Lan Ling in amazement, never expecting his painting skills to be so advanced, unmatched in the world.

"Little brother, your talent is truly overwhelming. It is truly priceless," Suo Ning Bing murmured.

From this sentence, one could see Suo Ning Bing's simplicity and artistic nature.

No matter how good the painting was, it couldn't earn thousands of gold coins.

...

When Princess Zhi Ning received the report from the gold shop's shopkeeper, she was stunned.

Then, she immediately sent people to investigate how Suo Lun had managed to raise this much money.

In the end, they got an answer that was completely unbelievable.

Suo Lun had sold paintings, earning over 4,000 gold coins? Of course, in reality, it wasn't selling paintings, but packaging and promoting the women in the brothel, which was part of the "Nineteen Beauties of the Capital" plan that had earned him thousands of gold coins.

But the messenger came and went in a hurry, and could only conclude that it was from selling paintings.

Princess Zhi Ning was completely stunned. Even the painters in the royal palace didn't charge more than one gold coin per painting. Suo Lun had earned thousands of gold coins by painting for prostitutes. How... how was this possible?

Moreover, she had seen Suo Lun's paintings before, as he had done at least ten for her. They were quite good, but that was all.

"Did you see Suo Lun's paintings?" Princess Zhi Ning asked.

"I did," the person replied.

"What do you think?" Princess Zhi Ning asked.

"Masterful, divine, like a soul's reflection," the person said.

"I don't believe it. Even a god's painting wouldn't be worth ten gold coins," Princess Zhi Ning said firmly. "Prepare the carriage, I want to see it myself."

Half an hour later, Princess Zhi Ning's carriage appeared outside the Yuhua Pavilion, and the first thing she saw was the huge poster of Ye Xiaomao under the bright lights.

She was completely stunned.

Although the woman in the portrait seemed vulgar to her, the painting itself was truly masterful, a soul's reflection, something she had never seen or heard of before. The black stockings and pointed high heels on the painting even made her heart stir, making her want to put them on immediately.

Princess Zhi Ning was also skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, but in terms of painting, she was far behind.

This was a revolution in painting. She never expected that Suo Lun, the wastrel, would have such talent.

After returning from the Demon Mountain Range, she had challenged him twice and lost both times.

Suo Lun, the wastrel, had actually won against her twice? How was this possible? Wasn't he just an incompetent, uneducated rich kid? Had she misjudged him?

"Have you investigated clearly? Is it that lowly woman, Yiman Man, who is helping Suo Lun?" Princess Zhi Ning asked.

"Yes," the eunuch beside her said.

"Act tomorrow. Send this woman to the beggars' den," Princess Zhi Ning said coldly. "Remember, don't let her die. Make her pregnant and have a bunch of beggars' children."

"Yes," the eunuch said.

"Also, get rid of that so-called Art Committee and the Nineteen Beauties of the Capital," Princess Zhi Ning said. "Send that Ye Xiaomao to Zhi Wei as a gift. Hopefully, he will play with her for a while, not kill her in less than two days."

"Yes," the eunuch said.

...

That night, Lan Ling had just fallen asleep for less than an hour when he was woken up by Ye Jing Yu.

In the living room, an eunuch was sitting there, and Suo Ning Bing was sitting beside him.

"Prince Zhitin, please come with us," the eunuch said, retracting his pitying gaze from Suo Ning Bing when he saw Suo Lun come out.

Prince Zhitin was currently the Suo family's biggest supporter. Lan Ling had been waiting for this summons for a while.

In the luxurious mansion, Lan Ling met the obese Prince Zhitin.

"Did you earn over 4,000 gold coins by selling paintings?" Prince Zhitin asked.

Lan Ling was taken aback, then nodded, "Yes."

"How did you do it?" Prince Zhitin asked. "The women in the brothel aren't fools. A painting wouldn't sell for more than two gold coins."

"Your Highness is wise," Lan Ling said. "In fact, the painting was just a medium. The key was the new styling and promotion of the women in the brothel, making them instantly famous and increasing their value by tens or even hundreds of times."

Then, Lan Ling detailed the entire plan for the "Nineteen Beauties of the Capital."

After listening, Prince Zhitin burst out laughing, "You truly are the master of the pleasure quarters. Send Ye Xiaomao to my mansion tomorrow. I want to see if she is as alluring as they say."

"Yes, Your Highness," Lan Ling said.

Prince Zhitin asked, "Did you deal with the two creditors who came to your house?"

"They have been dealt with," Lan Ling said. "I am ashamed that I almost compromised Your Highness's dignity."

Then, Lan Ling suddenly bowed deeply, "There is one thing I must ask Your Highness to agree to."

Prince Zhitin frowned. How could this wastrel be so impolite, asking for a favor right after he showed him some kindness?

Lan Ling said, "Please take care of the Art Committee and the upcoming Nineteen Beauties of the Capital. In the future, the Art Committee will be under your management."

Prince Zhitin was taken aback.

He could tell that this so-called Art Committee and the Nineteen Beauties of the Capital were a small money tree, with significant profits in the coming years. Suo Lun was actually giving it to him?

"Why?" Prince Zhitin asked. "To inherit the title, your family has already bribed me. You don't need to bribe me again."

Lan Ling said, "Yiman Man from the Yuhua Pavilion helped me, indirectly disrupting Princess Zhi Ning's plan. Princess Zhi Ning will definitely take action against Yiman Man. Therefore, I ask Your Highness to protect the Art Committee and Ye Xiaomao."

Prince Zhitin's face trembled slightly, and he patted Lan Ling's shoulder with his thick hand, "Suo Lun, you have a bad reputation, but you are a good person."

Then, Prince Zhitin said, "Go to the Yuhua Pavilion and bring Yiman Man and Ye Xiaomao here. I will be hosting a banquet tomorrow and need their help."

"Yes," the eunuch immediately obeyed.

Lan Ling bowed deeply again, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your protection."

Prince Zhitin sighed, "You, a small wastrel, and I, a big wastrel, can only do such things to protect the beautiful and the talented."

His words were filled with melancholy.

Then, Prince Zhitin said, "By the way, do you want me to have your two creditors killed to avenge you?"

Lan Ling shook his head, "No need. Tonight, I will make their master kill them with his own hands."

Prince Zhitin was stunned. Make Princess Zhi Ning kill them? How was that possible?