Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 35 You Should Open an Oil Shop
Shen Qingzhou fell silent.

Shen Qingzhou discovered that he, who had been supporting his family alone since he was eight years old and who could navigate the various factions in the court with ease, had often become speechless since meeting Lu Jia.

"all?"

“Yes.” Lu Jia nodded. “All of them.”

Zhang Qi and his wife should have been killed long ago.

However, she did not yet have the strength to destroy them, so she could only choose to bide her time and conceal her abilities.

Separating the three Zhang brothers was a last resort, intended to keep Zhang Qi and his wife preoccupied and prevent them from causing trouble for their own family.

What Zhang Qi and He Shi did to Qiu Niang and Lu Jia was enough to warrant their condemnation; no further justification was needed.

After tonight, her perception of the second and third sons also changed.

I used to think that only Zhang Qi and his wife were despicable, but tonight I realized that the second and third sons were not innocent either!
None of them had ever imagined that Qiu Niang was not only the old man's daughter, but also a member of the Xie family, and a member of their benefactor's family!
Without Old Master Xie's support back then, the Zhang family wouldn't have amassed such a fortune. Without Old Master Xie, what would the Zhang family have to fight over?

When we drink water, we should remember its source!
That's all fine.

The most shameless thing is that they even managed to steal the inheritance that the old man left to Qiu Niang in front of everyone.

Who can tolerate this?
While Zhang Qi and his wife were bullying Qiu Niang, what did the second and third brothers, who were also younger brothers, do?!

Yes, no one is innocent.

Since they are shameless, then Lu Jia can be even more shameless for Qiu Niang.

She wanted all the money the Xie family had helped the Zhang family earn to return to the Xie family.

They don't deserve it!

Shen Qingzhou saw a familiar glint of hatred in her eyes.

He was puzzled. At this time, she had not yet experienced the pain in the Yan family, so why did she inadvertently reveal such a sharp and cold demeanor as if she had experienced vicissitudes?

He paused for a moment, then asked, "What do you want to do?"

It's certainly wrong to arbitrarily seize someone else's property. But he believed she must have her reasons for doing so.

Lu Jia's eyes sparkled: "Didn't you set a trap for Zhang Laosan? He'll definitely try to find you later, and then you, the fallen rich young master, will put on another show."

Shen Qingzhou looked at her for a moment and said, "I think you shouldn't open a rice shop; you should open an oil shop instead."

They're really good at squeezing money out of people.

From the moment we met until now, every inch of him that could be squeezed has been squeezed.

This unscrupulous businessman will surely become rich in the future; it would be an injustice if he didn't.

Lu Jia chuckled, then composed himself and said, "But this matter still needs careful consideration. I'll think about it first. You should go back first, and come find me when Zhang Laosan comes looking for you."

Shen Qingzhou glanced at her and left.

……

He Qu and the others had already returned and were waiting for him by the carriage at the street corner.

“Young master, those two people did indeed starve to death, but they were also ill. They were both craftsmen in Luokou Town who made a living by doing handicrafts, and the reason they starved to death was that they couldn’t buy rice a long time ago.”

"Can't buy rice?" Shen Qingzhou sat down as if he had heard a fairy tale.

“That’s right.” He Qu and his companion also looked very solemn. “We walked around the village and found that the two deceased were not isolated cases.”

"They are from Chenjia Village. Although the village is not so bad that there are beggars everywhere on the roadside, every household has no surplus food. When asked, they all said that rice is too expensive, and the grain shops in the rice market do not sell to the public except at certain times."

"The last time it was open to local rice shops was four months ago."

Shen Qingzhou frowned: "Why not open it?"

"Because they're waiting for a better price." He Qu gritted his teeth. "It seems like a trend has formed at these wharves along the Xiangjiang River. Every rice shop is hoarding grain in order to drive up rice prices. During the winter and spring seasons, when food is scarce, they store up the grain and sell it to grain merchants from the north and south, which will fetch a high price!"

"The local people, if they want to eat rice, either have to prepare in advance or buy expensive grain. However, the imperial court has regulations that each household cannot store more than a certain amount of grain."

"Moreover, high-priced grain is not something that ordinary people can easily afford."

A hint of frost appeared in Shen Qingzhou's eyes: "What about the farmers' own crops?"

"Those who own land are ultimately a minority; most are tenant farmers. Farmers and tenant farmers can naturally make a living, but those who have no land and rely on manual labor to survive find it difficult to make a living."

Shen Qingzhou: "Then why don't the people at Shawan Wharf lack rice and food?"

"If you can find work at the docks, the employers usually provide meals, because most of the jobs are for laborers hired by grain stores. As for other merchants, they can afford rice and grain, and besides, the food they give their workers isn't good quality; it's just leftover grain that they've cleared out from their stores."

The carriage was passing by the main street below the dock. Looking out the window, the street was still bustling and brightly lit, even though it was almost late at night.

It's truly unimaginable that behind the prosperity of the rice market, there were people starving to death.

So even Lu Jia, who lived in Shawan, had never heard of a famine in the surrounding area.

Six years later, the situation had deteriorated to the point where even the people at the docks were facing starvation.

"Have you told Lord Guo?"

"It's not too late..."

The carriage weaved through the crowd and soon left behind the starlight-like lights.

……

Qin Zhou had completely fooled Zhang Laosan. Judging from Zhang Laosan's determination to tear down the shop last night, he clearly believed that Qin Zhou was someone with great influence and was determined to stick with him.

From this perspective, it's reasonable for Qin Zhou to claim he comes from a wealthy family. He couldn't have convincingly portrayed such a situation if he hadn't witnessed such cannibalistic scenes from a young age.

Lu Jia has a vague plan for how to achieve her goal of becoming a devil.

The difficulty lies in the fact that while Zhang Laosan may take the bait, Zhang Laoer may not be so easily hooked.

Since it involves all the family's wealth, naturally all three brothers have to contribute.

She thought about it all night, and the next day, with bruises in her eyes, she arrived at the Hongtai.

As soon as she entered, the servants in the hall quickly gave her a wink, secretly pointed towards the back hall, and gestured for her to be quiet.

Liu Xiyu's voice came from the back room: "The ship from Suzhou will arrive in half a month, and the contract for 5,000 shi of rice is still pending. If we can't deliver the goods, we'll have to pay compensation! What are you all doing?"

The table inside was slammed loudly, accompanied by Liu Xiyu's angry shouts, making it impossible for anyone to breathe.

Lu Jia thought for a moment, then turned to Chen Quan, who was sitting silently on the other side, and asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

Chen Quan said listlessly, "The deadline for delivering the grain is approaching. If we don't collect enough grain, the employer will have to pay us a loss, and we'll also have our wages deducted."

It's really worrying him; he still has a bunch of kids to raise.

(End of this chapter)