Chapter 57 Stealing the Lin Family's Opportunity

Three days later, Zhang Qian, who had fainted in the imperial court, had fully recovered.

Upon learning that he had been penalized with a year's salary forfeiture, he immediately ordered his servants to help him change his clothes. Supporting his feeble and sickly body, he limped his way into a carriage and headed straight for Lu Mo's residence!

When Lu Mo saw him arrive, he assumed Zhang was bringing good news.

Never did he expect that the moment Zhang opened his mouth, he would be asking for money.

Lu Mo's expression instantly darkened, completely shedding his previous humble attitude!

"Ask for money? You didn't even accomplish the task, yet you have the audacity to ask for money?"

"If I weren't running errands for your Lu family, how could I, a dignified Censor, have been docked a year's salary? How could I have gotten injured?"

Zhang Qian was not one to back down. Standing right in the main hall of the Lu estate, he began to argue fiercely with Lu Mo.

"Isn't the very duty of you Censors to report on hearsay and submit memorials? I merely provided you with a slight lead and a small sum of money. Whether it succeeded or failed, what does that have to do with me?"

Having already shelled out one thousand taels, Lu Mo was certainly unwilling to part with another coin. That single thousand taels had been scraped together only after thoroughly ransacking every corner of his household!

"Oh! So now it's no longer the time when you were begging me to go help your Lu family vent your anger, is that it...?"

Trembling with rage, Zhang Qian pointed straight at Lu Mo's nose and said, "If you don't hand over the money today, tomorrow I will expose your plot against the Imperial Grandson and see if His Majesty tolerates your Lu family!"

"Fine! Go ahead! Go right now...!"

Lu Mo was no pushover either. Pointing toward the main entrance, he shouted sternly, "As a high-ranking official of the imperial court, you colluded with merchants to frame the Grandson. Let's see how much better off you'll be!"

Once this matter was brought to light, it wouldn't just be the Lu family that suffered. Zhang's family would certainly come to a miserable end as well! Not only would he lose his official position, but none of their children would ever dream of entering an official career again!

Just at that moment, Lu Ben walked in from outside.

After hastily grasping the situation, he quickly pulled two hundred liang of paper currency from his robe and shoved it into Zhang Qian's arms.

His face plastered with a broad smile, he said, "I am truly sorry! My younger brother's mind hasn't been quite clear since his recovery from a serious illness. I must ask Censor Zhang to spare some face for my sake, and let this matter rest here!"

Lu Ben had served as an official in the court for several years. While he and Zhang Qian weren't particularly close, they were at least on speaking terms. Otherwise, he would never have allowed Lu Mo to seek him out in the first place!

"還是吕大人通情达理！此事就这么算了！回头好好教教你弟弟！" -> "還是吕大人通情达理！此事就这么算了！回头好好教教你弟弟！" (Translating meaning:)
"Lord Lu is indeed reasonable! Let us consider this matter settled, then! Do remember to properly discipline your brother afterwards!"

Zhang Qian glanced at the banknotes, and his expression finally softened slightly.

"Very well!"

Lu Ben nodded and escorted him all the way to the front gate.

Not until Zhang Qian had climbed into his carriage did Lu Ben return to the main hall!

"Eldest Brother! He failed to get the job done, why on earth did you still give him money?"

Lu Mo pulled a long face, sitting by the table and drinking sullen tea, feeling more stifled the more he thought about it.

Lu Ben took a deep breath, sighed helplessly, and sat down across from him. "If we didn't give it to him, what else could we do? Could we really let him blow the whistle on us?"

"He wouldn't dare...!"

Lu Mo refused to believe it. "He comes from a family of officials! Does he no longer want his official cap? Does he no longer care about his children's future? If he dares to expose us, the consequences for him will certainly be even worse than mine!"

With that, he gulped down another cup of gloomy tea.

"And what good would that do? If he falls, our Lu family won't fare any better!" Lu Ben tapped the table impatiently.

If Lu Mo were investigated for colluding with imperial censors and framing the Grandson, their estate would inevitably be implicated. By then, his daughter—the Crown Princess—would have a difficult life, and there was no guarantee that his grandson Zhu Yunwen wouldn't fall under suspicion as well.

At that point, the trouble would be monumental. It wouldn't be something that could be resolved with just two hundred liang!

"I just can't swallow this anger...!"

The more Lu Mo thought about it, the more frustrated he became. With a wave of his hand, he swept all the tea sets on the table straight to the ground, shattering them into pieces.

"Why should we have to pay him extra when the task wasn't even completed?"

"Sigh! Let it go. Who can we blame when we currently have so few people in the court who can speak with any weight!"

Facing this, Lu Ben was equally helpless.

However, once his grandson ascended the throne, everything would change completely!

"As long as the green mountains remain, there's no need to worry about firewood! Money lost can always be earned back; we must plan everything for the long term!"

Lu Ben walked to the entrance to call the servants in to clean up, while patiently offering advice. He wanted to prevent Lu Mo from acting on impulse and dragging their entire branch of the family down with him!

...

As the weather turned cooler, the winery grew bustling and steamy every day.

The first batch of potent liquor was successfully brewed and delivered directly to the imperial palace.

Ever since Old Zhu had tasted the strong liquor, he never touched the tribute wine from the Lin Family Winery again. Just as Zhu Yunwen—no, Zhu Xiongoying had said, it tasted like horse urine, watery and completely devoid of flavor!

As for the sign of the tribute wine, it was now hanging proudly outside the Hongwu Winery.

By now, almost the entire city of Nanjing knew that the Hongwu Winery was owned by the Imperial Grandson himself.

Lacking the prestigious brand of tribute wine, the business of the Lin Family Winery plummeted drastically. With no other choice, they had no option but to post a public notice announcing that the tribute wine would now be sold to the general public.

"Oh? Does this mean we can finally drink the same wine that only His Majesty gets to enjoy?"

"Well, yes, but since the Lin family is no longer brewing the tribute wine, does that mean other wineries have better brewing techniques than the Lin family?"

"Hmm! I heard that the Hongwu Winery has hung up the sign for the tribute wine!"

"But the Hongwu Winery has never sold wine before! Why don't we go buy some from the Lin Family Winery first to try something new?"

"Very well then...!"

After discussing the notice posted on the street, the townspeople flocked toward the Lin Family Winery.

The errand boy sent out by the Lin family saw the crowd surging toward them from all directions and hurriedly ran back to report the news.

"Master! Master! The townspeople are coming toward our place!"

"Indeed! The marketplace is packed as far as the eye can see, with at least a hundred people!"

"Master! Your strategy is truly brilliant; our shop is thriving again...!"

The errand boys gave thumbs-up all around, praising Lin Wannian.

Bearing a bruised and swollen face like a pig's head, Lin Wannian curled the corners of his mouth slightly. "Just a child, possessing nothing more than brute strength, yet he wanted to vie with me in business? How utterly presumptuous!"

However, the shop assistants and laborers waited in the shop for a full two quarters of an hour, yet the surging crowd never arrived.

Lin Wannian couldn't help but wonder, "Didn't you say the townspeople were already heading our way?"

"Yes! As soon as we posted the notice, the townspeople were discussing coming over! They even said they wanted to taste the wine His Majesty used to drink! Why is there not a single person here?"

The errand boy found it equally strange. Just moments ago, a vast sea of people had been walking directly toward them. Now, not only had no one entered the shop, but even the pedestrians passing by outside had dwindled!

Filled with suspicion, he peered outside along the doorframe.

Seeing was believing, and what he saw gave him a terrible shock. He hastily called out to Lin Wannian, "Master, come take a look!"

In a panic, Lin Wannian scrambled down from his chair and rushed toward the entrance.

Following the direction of the errand boy's finger, he saw that every street intersection was blocked with people. Everyone seemed captivated by something, clustering together in tight circles.

If he guessed correctly, these townspeople were the very ones they had attracted with their public notice. Yet somehow, they had all become jammed at the intersections, and not a single one had made it to their shop!

"Let's go! Let's go see what is happening!"