Chapter 72

I hate my mother, who smokes, and after fighting for so long, things are finally back to normal.

The Jiangdong Lu family, which was later almost exterminated by Sun Ce, is also the family that produced the last of the four great generals, Lu Xun. This family was famous for shipbuilding and was one of the four major families in Jiangdong. They were slightly less wealthy than the five great merchants but stronger than large merchants like Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping.

"The Lu family." Chen Xi carefully considered the pros and cons. Since the four major families in Jiangdong were intermarried and closely connected, they could be said to rise and fall together. This meant that if the Lu family got involved, it would be as if all four families had extended a hand, which would not be good news for Liu Bei.

"Zizhong, do you have the confidence to keep the Lu family from informing the Zhang, Gu, and Zhu families, or to allow the Lu family to share profits with the three families but try to keep us out of it? Of course, the Lu family doesn't have to hide it." After thinking for a moment, Chen Xi looked up and said. Lu Xun's influence was slightly greater than the original plan.

"This is not difficult. The existence of the aristocratic families is for their own interests, so it's not hard to have the Lu family keep this a secret. Even if necessary, I can take the blame, as I am a well-known merchant among the merchants." Mi Zhu almost immediately agreed, and what he said was true. His status as the head of one of the five great merchant families was enough to confuse most people. Even if someone suspected, it would be hard to link it to Liu Bei.

"Alright, I'll leave this to you. Give the Lu family the sales territory in Yangzhou, and assign Shu to you. Tell Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping to quickly deal with the Zhen family. Once the Zhen family is taken care of, assign Yongzhou, Liangzhou, and Sili to them. If they can't handle it, I will reclaim Ji Province." After entrusting another troublesome task to a professional, Chen Xi felt he needed to inform Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping again to ensure they didn't get so caught up in making money that they forgot the bigger picture.

"The Zhen family?" Mi Zhu frowned. "Zichuan, do you have a grudge with the Zhen family? If the grudge isn't too big, I can mediate as an intermediary. If it's not necessary, it's best not to provoke the Zhen family. Among the merchants of the world, whether they admit it or not, the Zhen family is the strongest, even more powerful than I, a new great merchant."

"I don't want to, but the Zhen family has gone too far, so I have to give them a taste of their own medicine. What is the Zhen family's main business?" Chen Xi spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness.

"The Zhen family deals in grain, salt, horses, cattle, sheep, tea, iron, smelting, silk, hemp, and transportation. They excel in every area, but if I had to say, grain, salt, and livestock are their main businesses." Mi Zhu smiled bitterly as he introduced the Zhen family's industries, not wanting to clash with them at all.

"Truly a large and prosperous family, with so many industries. It seems it won't be easy to bring them down. What a hassle." Chen Xi scratched his head, acknowledging that if even Mi Zhu admitted their strength, they must be very powerful.

"That's why I say, if it's not necessary, don't provoke the Zhen family. The hidden strength of that family is truly overwhelming. I haven't been able to figure out their bottom line in all these years." Mi Zhu sighed, trying to dissuade Chen Xi.

Chen Xi rolled his eyes. It would be strange if the Zhen family wasn't powerful. Yuan Shao's son married Zhen Mi to ally with the powerful families of Ji Province, and later Cao Pi did the same. A family representing the wealthiest region of Ji Province at the time couldn't be just any family.

"Let's take it slowly. For now, we'll stir things up gradually. When the time comes, I'll deal with them. The Zhen family is strong, but not so strong that I fear them." Chen Xi said nonchalantly.

The Zhen family is indeed powerful, but it's clear they have poor judgment. As the top merchant, they allied with Yuan Shao, who was defeated, leaving them severely weakened. Later, they relied on Zhen Mi to connect with Cao Pi, but the struggle for the position of crown prince left them half-dead, and their resources were almost depleted. When they finally saw a glimmer of hope, Zhen Mi died, and Cao Pi no longer cared about the Zhen family.

After Cao Rui came to power, the Zhen family finally saw a light at the end of the tunnel when Zhen Mi's son became emperor. Unfortunately, by then, the Zhen family was already gone.

For a family with such a flawed leadership, Chen Xi didn't think it would be difficult to deal with them.

"Oh, right, Zizhong, I forgot to mention. You have a wide network among the merchants. You can gather them into a team. This will strengthen their ability to withstand risks, and they can adjust various resources and reduce transportation costs, lowering overall costs. As more people join, the variety of goods will increase, and with good coordination, it will save a lot of trouble." Seeing Mi Zhu's bitter smile, Chen Xi offered an idea to ease his concerns. Even if no one managed the dumping, Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping wouldn't suffer much even if they couldn't bring down the Zhen family.

"Really?" Mi Zhu's eyes lit up after a moment of contemplation. "This is a great idea. I didn't expect Zichuan to be so proficient in business."

"Alright, Zizhong, leave the business matters to you. If you can, make life difficult for the Zhen family." Chen Xi took out a document and began to review it, subtly hinting for Mi Zhu to get to work instead of wasting time.

"I'll go right away, and I'll make sure the Zhen family has a hard time." Mi Zhu laughed, not at all upset by Chen Xi's almost dismissive behavior.

"Go ahead, Zizhong. I believe in you. You will become the greatest merchant in the world." Chen Xi said without looking up, seeming to lack sincerity, but Mi Zhu laughed heartily, "Thank you for your kind words!"

Thanks to Chen Xi's suggestion, Mi Zhu realized that his network could make everyone in it very wealthy. If he couldn't bring down the Zhen family with this network, he would truly be incompetent. Naturally, he had no complaints about Chen Xi's behavior.

After Mi Zhu left with a radiant face, Lu Su looked up and said to Chen Xi, who was idly twirling a pen, "I've noticed something."

"What is it? Another case of bullying or injustice, or bandits descending from the mountains?" Chen Xi raised an eyebrow and quickly listed a few common examples.

"No, just that you seem to know everything, and you're very proficient in every area." Lu Su said curiously.

"I just talk a good game. In practice, I'm as bad as Zhao Kuo, so I'll leave the actual work to the professionals." Chen Xi shrugged and spoke honestly.

"Ha ha ha, Zichuan, you can be so humble. At this moment, shouldn't you be arrogantly saying, 'I am a genius, born with knowledge. What's the problem with knowing these things?'" Lu Su laughed, not believing Chen Xi's honesty and mimicking his previous arrogant tone when discussing future events.

"These days, no one believes the truth." Chen Xi rolled his eyes. "Get to work. Finish the autumn harvest matters today. Xianhe and Zilong will return tomorrow to review the accounts. If there are any errors, you'll have to redo them!" Chen Xi's tone turned serious as he assigned a pile of work to Lu Su, then continued to sip his tea, planning for the future.

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