Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 549 Jia Baoyu, not as valuable as you think~
"Senior brother~"

Willow head on the moon, after dusk.

Lin Daiyu and Lin Dao sat side by side on the rooftop under the bright moon.

Lin Daiyu, her little head resting on Lin Dao's shoulder, sighed softly, "Father will be here in a few days."

With Lin Ruhai's arrival, Lin Daiyu could no longer easily go out for secret rendezvous.

This was hard for Lin Daiyu, who was becoming increasingly dependent on Lin Dao, to accept.

"Don't worry."

Looking at Lin Daiyu's exquisite face, Lin Dao smiled and gently stroked her, saying, "I'll take care of everything."

"Ah."

Upon hearing this, Lin Daiyu immediately smiled happily.

In her mind, there was nothing her senior brother couldn't do.

The two chatted idly about trivial matters, and time flew by in the blink of an eye.

I glanced at the sky; the distant horizon was already faintly tinged with the pale light of dawn.

"You can't come out too late in the future."

Lin Dao advised, "Staying up so late is bad for your health."

Even someone with an indestructible body can have health problems; it's truly baffling.

But Lin Daiyu liked this kind of care, and moved by the emotion, she leaned into his arms.

Lin Dao was no ordinary sheep; when a beautiful woman took the initiative to throw herself into his arms, he immediately reached out and hugged her tightly.

She looked down, searching for her cherry-like lips.

Before long, the senior and junior disciples engaged in a fierce verbal battle, arguing intensely while diligently practicing their skills.

As dawn broke, the maids in the mansion who were boiling water were already yawning and getting up.

Lin Daofang had just escorted Lin Meimei back home.

Lin Daiyu is different from married women like Qin Keqing and Wang Xifeng.

Verbal disputes have reached their limit and should not be crossed further.

As dawn broke, Lin Dao stood on the rooftop, surveying the Rongguo Mansion.

A smile played at the corners of his lips, and he quickly disappeared.

The Jia family finally managed to scrape together the silver and overcome their immediate crisis.

Although the money that could be redeemed has been returned, the deadline for the Imperial Concubine's visit to her family on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is fixed.

They must complete the villa for their visit before then, or it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor.

And repair the garden~
As everyone knows, building a garden is a bottomless pit.

The Jia family would need to spend at least a million taels of silver to repair the Grand View Garden.

A million taels!

The ransom of over ten thousand taels of silver was driving the Jia family into a frenzy.

Where can we get another million taels?
Even if the whole family were sold, it wouldn't be enough to cover this huge sum of money.

Although everyone knows that the actual expenses don't need to be that much.

But a man in the martial world...
The martial arts world isn't just about fighting and killing; it's about human relationships and social interactions.
Everyone's reaching out for their money, hoping to make a living off this project.

Who can really stop everyone from getting rich?
Even if Grandmother Jia knew, what could she do?
She's just an old woman who relies on her children and servants for support. If she offends these people, how will she survive?
Grandmother Jia is not Jia Daishan!

If Jia Daishan were still alive, he would have already taken action against the powerful servants in his mansion.

Now, no one in the Rongguo Mansion can help them.

The Ningguo Mansion next door is still in complete chaos.

Although Jia Rong inherited a title, it was already the lowest rank.

Furthermore, because he, like Xue Pan, lost the Pillar of Creation, it sparked a fierce struggle for the family property among the various branches of the Ningguo Mansion.

When it came to repairing the Grand View Garden, Jia Rong didn't contribute a single tael of silver, except for suggesting that he use the Tianxiang Tower, a place that had caused him so much heartache, for the repairs.

The palace would not offer any help, and old friends and acquaintances would all stand by and watch coldly.

Now, the only option left is to try and get help from relatives.

There were only two relatives who could meddle with him: the Xue family and the Lin family.

The Jia family only has one bargaining chip to offer.

Jia Baoyu.

"Your family is really interesting."

Lin Dao, leaning against the headboard, also laughed out loud, "They really treat Jia Baoyu like a treasure."

"Can he really bring back a million taels of silver?"

"Wake up, stop dreaming."

Wang Xifeng, who was sitting beside the bed tidying up her clothes, sneered upon hearing this, "Are you perhaps jealous?"

"Ladies from noble families all vied to marry him!"

"What's your background? A peasant?"

"Even if you have money, can you still marry a noblewoman?"

Lin Dao was stunned by what she said.

For a moment, I didn't know how to respond.

The mighty Emperor of Heaven possesses vast territories.

Countless wealthy young ladies cried and begged to make his bed, fold his blankets, and empty his chamber pot, yet they dared not even dream of becoming his legal wife.

This mountainous region before us dares to say he's not worthy of marrying a noblewoman?
Lin Dao took a breath, closed his eyes, and ignored him.

There's no point in arguing with such an ignorant woman; it would be beneath my dignity.

Unexpectedly, Wang Xifeng, seeing his behavior, thought she had hit his weak spot and immediately became excited.

He switched to his sarcastic mode, chattering incessantly with a face full of excitement.

Lin Dao was also annoyed by the noise, so he simply opened his eyes, took out a silver note, and waved it in front of Wang Xifeng.

The sharp tongue stopped abruptly.

Previously, in order to raise funds, Wang Xifeng secretly sold off the Jia family's assets to Lin Dao.

Although they successfully raised the silver and alleviated the crisis.

But she knew all too well that some things, once started, never end.

Once the matter is exposed, she won't even have the chance to be locked in a dark and gloomy courtyard, living a life of quiet contemplation.

The immense pressure, the fear of the future, and the despair of life gradually warped Wang Xifeng's character.

A while ago, when she delivered the stolen set of glass tableware to Lin Dao, completing the transaction.

Lin Dao habitually took out another silver note and waved it in front of her.

"A date?"

That time, Wang Xifeng did not refuse, but hesitated before accepting the silver note.

From then on, it was unstoppable.

Basically, they always accepted banknotes, several at a time. From initial hesitation, annoyance, and embarrassment...

Now, she is so open and generous that she doesn't care about being disheveled and can banter and joke with Lin Dao.

Wang Xifeng skillfully took the silver note, glanced at him with her phoenix eyes, and bowed her head.

"Second Grandma~"

Ping'er, who was standing guard outside the door, was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

He kept urging, "Our ancestors set the meeting for the end of Shen Shi (3-5 PM), time is almost up!"

There was no response from inside the room. Wang Xifeng was too busy to speak.

By the time Wang Xifeng had washed up and cleaned up the traces, and hurriedly arrived at Rongxi Hall, it was already 5:45 PM.

The atmosphere in the main hall was gloomy, and no one really cared about her lateness.

Only after quietly asking Yuanyang did I learn that the Jia family's probing inquiries had all been rejected.

"Mr. Lin said that Miss Lin has been selected to participate in the selection of the Prince of Qin's concubines, and marriage is not discussed before that."

"Tell Aunt Xue about it."

Yuanyang lowered her voice to the extreme and said, "Since ancient times, I have only heard of betrothal gifts for marriage, but I have never heard of giving money as compensation for the marriage of a daughter."

Sister Feng was startled; he had actually guessed right.

That bastard said neither of the two families would agree, and they actually rejected them both.

She was filled with doubt and confusion.

Jia Baoyu is the younger brother of the Imperial Concubine and the apple of the eye of the Rongguo Mansion.

Given such a prestigious status, it's understandable that Imperial Censor Lin would refuse, since it was a selection of imperial concubines.

But the Xue family was just a royal merchant family, and even a royal merchant family was still just a merchant family, yet they were still rejected?

"Although Aunt Xue's words were somewhat excessive."

Meanwhile, Grandmother Jia was saying, "However, it's understandable that she's been worried about her son's injury these days, so please don't take it to heart."

Actually, what they said was very harsh; they were practically swearing.

As for the reason, it's actually quite simple.

The Jia family expressed their desire to borrow money, and they immediately asked for one million taels!
Given such demands, the fact that Aunt Xue refrained from cursing is already a testament to her good manners.

If the Xue family were to lose even their last remaining capital, they would truly become easy prey for others to exploit.

In this respect, Aunt Xue was not confused.

"You all tell me what you think."

Grandmother Jia spoke again, "Where will the money for repairing the garden come from?"

Wang Xifeng became visibly nervous, fearing that someone might suggest selling off their family property.

When the accounts are checked and so many treasures are missing, she, as the person in charge of the vault and holding the keys, will be in deep trouble.

"Now, the only option is to borrow money."

Jia She offered a suggestion: "If all else fails, borrow money at exorbitant interest rates."

For him, building the garden had only one purpose: to make money.

After all, the Imperial Concubine was not his daughter, so naturally he wouldn't care.

As long as you can get money, you can fill your own pockets by any means necessary.

As for what collateral to use, how to repay the debt, or even how to default on the debt, that's none of his business.

"Borrowing money at exorbitant interest rates~"

Jia Zheng smiled bitterly, "That's a hole that can never be filled."

"Besides, it's not a few thousand taels, or tens of thousands of taels, it's millions of taels!"

"Who can lend it to me?"

"Who dares to lend it out?"

"Even if it's a loan, what can we use as collateral? We can't just use the Rongguo Mansion as collateral, can we?"

"Well said!" Jia She laughed. "Let's use the Rongguo Mansion as collateral!"

In fact, the Rongguo Mansion did not belong to the Jia family.

Look at the plaque hanging above the main gate; it reads "Imperial Decree Constructing the Rongguo Mansion".

An imperial edict is an imperial decree and a manifestation of imperial power.

"Imperial construction" refers to construction undertaken by imperial decree, emphasizing the royal authorization of the building.

This mansion is essentially part of the Rongguo Mansion estate.

The property rights belonged to the emperor and the imperial court; the Jia family only had the right to use it.

Once the title is lost, the mansion will also be lost.

Mortgaging the Rongguo Mansion would be too much money for someone who doesn't know the trade to come up with.

Those in the know will only laugh; they're unlikely to part with any money.

Amidst the gloom and despair, Wang Xifeng stepped forward.

"Second Master does know someone who's rich and powerful."

"We might be able to come up with a million taels."

"Why don't we let Second Master go and ask?"

A person who has fallen into the water will clutch even the smallest straw tightly in their hand.

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia and the others busied themselves searching for Jia Lian's whereabouts.

At this hour, Jia Lian is enjoying emotional fulfillment in the Spring Flowers and Autumn Moon Pavilion, and is certainly not here.

Jia She cursed loudly, saying viciously that he would teach him a lesson when he returned.

Wang Xifeng was secretly delighted, having finally outmaneuvered Jia Lian.

He should be killed!
Ideally, he should be beaten to look like the eldest son of the Xue family!

Let's see how he'll go out and fool around in the future.

"Spicy Phoenix," Grandmother Jia asked urgently, "Do you know who the culprit is?"

"I dare not hope for a million taels, even a hundred thousand taels would be good."

"If all else fails, thirty to fifty thousand taels will suffice as a temporary measure."

This is truly a desperate situation.

If the family doesn't have the money to repair the garden, it will delay the imperial concubine's visit home, and at the very least, the Jia family will be stripped of their titles!

Wang Xifeng certainly knew Lin Dao.

She not only knew him, she even knew how long Lin Dao's leg hair was.

But at this moment, he shook his head repeatedly, saying, "My granddaughter-in-law is a woman; how could she possibly recognize an outsider?"

Grandmother Jia slammed her hand on the table.

"Quickly send someone to bring Lian-ge'er back!"

(End of this chapter)