Chapter 2

Under the attentive care of Xiao Xiangxiang, Fang Jifan rinsed his mouth and had just finished his breakfast when the famous doctor arrived.

The doctor had a ruddy complexion and a look of satisfaction. Upon hearing that the young master's brain condition had improved, everyone in the mansion praised him as a divine doctor. Though he humbly protested, he was inwardly delighted.

As usual, he carried his medicine box and smiled as he greeted Fang Jifan, "Greetings, Young Master. You look much better. Let me take your pulse first."

Fang Jifan felt a bit of instinctive fear towards this doctor. After a moment's thought, he looked at him with his nose in the air and said, "I'm already much better. Why take my pulse? You old dog, get lost."

"Ha... ha..." The doctor laughed dryly. As a doctor, being called an old dog was indeed an insult, but despite the slight displeasure, he still smiled with relief and said, "Indeed, Young Master, your condition has greatly improved. I am... very... very..."

"Get lost!" Fang Jifan had figured out his way of survival. The more arrogant and tyrannical he was, the happier and more relieved people were. This was truly a... divine world.

"Alright, alright." The doctor was not at all angry. He turned to Deng Jian and instructed, "If the Young Master shows any signs of illness again, report it immediately. I... I will take my leave, take my leave."

Seeing the doctor leave with a satisfied look, Fang Jifan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Having just escaped a crisis, Fang Jifan felt empty and lonely again. Was he destined to pretend to be a scoundrel for the rest of his life?

No, living like this was no fun. He had to achieve something great. But for now...

Fang Jifan stood up and said, "Xiao Deng Deng..."

Xiao Deng Deng was Deng Jian's nickname, but clearly, Deng Jian was not very pleased with Fang Jifan calling him that. He responded with a pained expression, "What does the Young Master need?"

Fang Jifan smiled and said, "Come, accompany me for a walk around the mansion."

"Sure." Deng Jian quickly fetched a Xiangfei fan and a flamboyant sachet, and said in a way that seemed to be seeking approval, "The Young Master always likes to carry these when going out..."

Fang Jifan's face turned black. Did the owner of this body have such tastes? He smiled and let Xiao Xiangxiang tie the sachet to his waist. He played with the Xiangfei fan, opening and closing it. On the fan was a poem: "Do not spare the golden robe, but cherish the youth. When the flowers are in bloom, pick them while you can, lest they wither and you pick only the branches."

The poem had a good meaning, but Fang Jifan knew the owner of the fan had a malicious interpretation of it. He inwardly cursed, "Damn, pervert."

Though he despised it, he still had to live on.

He mustered his spirits and followed Deng Jian out of the bedroom. Only then did he truly see the scale of the Nanhe Mansion, and he was amazed.

The mansion covered a vast area, at least fifty acres. The roofs of the buildings were densely packed, with three main courtyards and numerous rooms, including the main hall, front hall, back courtyard, side rooms, and storage rooms. Fang Jifan was quite satisfied. He subconsciously waved the Xiangfei fan, but the only flaw was that the mansion... was quite old, at least a hundred years, and looked quite worn.

He couldn't help but say, "This house needs repairs."

"Repair... repair the house..." Deng Jian exclaimed in surprise.

Fang Jifan slapped his head. "You dog. The reason the Young Master is ill is because this house is too old. Renovate it, understand?"

Deng Jian smiled again. "The Young Master is right. The Young Master means the mansion has too much yin energy? I understand, I understand, but... renovating the mansion will cost a lot of silver."

Fang Jifan raised an eyebrow. "The prestigious Nanhe Mansion, short of silver?"

"Short!" Deng Jian's answer surprised Fang Jifan. "The Young Master usually doesn't manage affairs. The mansion has thousands of acres of good land in the outskirts of the capital, but after all, what is grown is grain. The Lord has some stipends and rewards, but the actual silver is not much. It's all in the form of our Great Ming's treasure notes."

Treasure notes... Fang Jifan understood. These were the unique paper money of the Great Ming, but unfortunately, the government had printed too much, making them almost worthless.

He suddenly remembered that this was a characteristic of the economy in this era. Land was valuable, but wealthy families mostly leased it to tenant farmers, who paid in grain. The grain was stored in granaries and sometimes exchanged for money, but with such a large estate, the Nanhe Mansion had many expenses, so there wasn't much cash on hand.

Pretending to be crazy and foolish wasn't a solution. He needed to be independent. Only by being independent, such as having money, could he avoid being controlled and constantly pricked with needles.

Besides, did he really want to be a wastrel for the rest of his life?

No! Fang Jifan felt that in his previous life, he was a top student and a model youth. He needed to be strong and independent.

But what to do without silver?

Fang Jifan squinted his eyes and suddenly became excited.

There was a way to make money!

It was March 17th of the 11th year of the Hongzhi era.

About half a month later, Fang Jifan vaguely remembered that the local gazetteer of Tongzhou recorded that dozens of ships carrying ebony had sunk in the northern part of Tongzhou. Moreover, ebony was increasingly favored by the nobility during the Hongzhi era, causing its price to rise continuously. Fang Jifan remembered that the price of ebony had soared to unprecedented heights.

Ebony was already rare, and large shipments were usually transported together. The sinking of these dozens of ships meant that the market would soon face a severe shortage of ebony.

Fang Jifan's eyes lit up, and an idea popped into his head: stockpile ebony.

But... silver... Even before the price doubled, the price of ebony was already frightening. He squinted his eyes and asked, "How much silver is left in the mansion's accounts?"

Deng Jian shuddered and looked at Fang Jifan in panic. "There shouldn't be much left, at most a few hundred taels of silver. Young... Young Master, you... you want to..."

Hearing about a few hundred taels, Fang Jifan was deflated, but soon he had another idea. Without silver, the Fang family had land. If...

He changed his mind. No, no, selling land... He was well-versed in history, and the thinking of the ancients was different from that of modern people. In their eyes, selling land was something only destitute families and wastrels did, and it would be a disgrace.

Hmm... wastrel...

Am I not the textbook example of a wastrel? Is there anyone in Beijing more wasteful than I, Fang Jifan?

Fang Jifan's eyes brightened, and he shouted, "Call the steward and the accountant!"

The power of the young master of the Fang family was still strong. In no time, the mansion's steward, Yang, and the accountant, Liu, arrived. Both were out of breath and looked at Fang Jifan with wide eyes.

Fang Jifan sat with his legs crossed. Though he was sitting, the two men did not dare to stand higher than him, so they bowed, making him appear even taller. Looking down at them from a height, he felt quite like a young master.

Fang Jifan asked, "How much land does the mansion have?"

"Outside the city, we have 2,370 acres of land, and there are also several mountains, totaling a few thousand acres," Yang reported, trying to curry favor. He had been concerned about the Young Master's illness and was now eager to see if he had truly recovered.

"How much silver can it be sold for?" Fang Jifan's next question almost choked Yang.

Yang's first reaction was not worry but a slight raise of his eyebrows. He exchanged a glance with Liu, the accountant. Ah, the Young Master's illness... has indeed greatly improved. The Fang family is fortunate!

Think about it, the Young Master could actually think of selling land for money. In Beijing, who else but our Young Master could speak so boldly? Our Young Master has truly returned!

Seeing the satisfied looks on their faces, Fang Jifan felt the world had gone mad. He had to tap the table with the handle of the fan. "I'm asking you, how much can it be sold for? Inventory it all and send a message to the brokers. Sell the land, all of it, not a single acre should be left."