Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 552 The entire Rongguo Mansion—people and property mortgaged together!
"Broken?"

Lin Dao, who was holding a grape, suddenly paused, "It really broke?"

"Is that even a lie?" Wang Xifeng, nestled in his arms, laughed incessantly. "You didn't see it; when the jade shattered, Rongxi Hall was in complete chaos!"

For Wang Xifeng, she had long since given up on everything.

She's always the happiest when she sees others suffer.

Especially his aunt, Madam Wang, who had previously refused to help him in his time of need.

"The second wife was pretending to faint, but when she saw the jade shatter, she vomited blood on the spot."

Wang Xifeng became more and more excited as she spoke, twisting and turning incessantly.

I never imagined that watching others suffer could be so satisfying.
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became, and the more joyfully she twisted and turned.

"This jade can really be broken?"

Lin Dao was also puzzled.

In the original story, this jade was dropped twice, but it didn't break.

Some people say it's made of plastic and won't break.

Some people say that it was protected by the Fairy of Illusion, which is why it couldn't be broken.

But now it's broken, I really don't understand.

"Logically speaking, there was no plastic in ancient times."

"Ordinary jade will break if it is bumped, let alone dropped."

"Scientifically speaking, it is a special material."

"To put it unscientifically, it's because it's blessed by the magic of the Fairy Disenchantment."

"It didn't break when I dropped it before, but it broke now, so it shouldn't be a problem with the materials."

"Could it be that Fairy Jinghuan's blessing has failed?"

This world is essentially centered around Jia Baoyu.

Now that the mystery surrounding this central figure has suddenly vanished, will the world collapse?

Lin Dao wasn't worried about being trapped himself; he was worried about his sister Lin being implicated.

"Don't go too far!"

Wang Xifeng's furious shouting woke Lin Dao.

"I'm working so hard, why are you like a stone, not reacting at all?"

Are you even a man?

Upon hearing this, Lin Dao smiled but remained silent.

For him, there was no need to argue about such matters; action was all that mattered.

He moved!
Half an hour later, Lin Dao went out to look for Lin Meimei.

Because of Jia Baoyu's matter, Lin Ruhai immediately took Lin Daiyu away, saying he would do anything to make her stay.

Who knows what that crazy kid will do?

What happened to Jia Baoyu after he went mad?

Even without watching, it's clear that Jia Zheng, in his rage, will certainly put on a good show of his fatherly fury!
"Senior brother~"

Lin Daiyu was overjoyed to see Lin Dao appear in her boudoir.

She hurried forward and nestled into her senior's arms, saying, "I thought I'd never see you again~"

“My father replaced all the maids and nannies around me.”

"Zijuan and the others were left at the Rongguo Mansion, while Xueyan was assigned to the kitchen."

"Now I am surrounded by people that my father brought from Yangzhou and Suzhou."

Zijuan is a member of the Rongguo Mansion, so it's understandable that she stays there.

Xueyan, however, was a maid in the Lin family. Being transferred to the kitchen clearly indicated a lack of trust.

Lin Ruhai's abilities are beyond question.

He had noticed Lin Daiyu's unusual behavior as early as when he was in Yangzhou.

Now that we've returned to the capital, we must make proper arrangements.

In his understanding, without the help of maids and nannies, it would be extremely difficult for a young lady from a wealthy family to send a message out.

The only unexpected thing was that Lin Dao had a system, and Lin Meimei had even cultivated immortality.

Lin Daiyu was filled with grievances and didn't give Lin Dao a chance to speak.

Her little mouth opened and closed, chattering away incessantly.

“My father made me study needlework diligently at home and read the ‘Admonitions for Women’ and ‘Rules for Women’ carefully.”

"He also arranged for tutors to teach and practice etiquette all day long."

"Senior brother, I'm so tired~"

Lin Dao frowned slightly.

Lin Ruhai's actions were clearly intentional.

Ultimately, it all points to the King of Qin choosing a concubine.

It's obvious that he was certain Lin Daiyu would conceive, which is why he made this arrangement.

It must have been the emperor who privately revealed clear information to him.

From a traditional etiquette perspective, Lin Daiyu, whose parents were both deceased, had a very low chance of being chosen.

But when faced with a choice, etiquette and rules must give way.

Now is the crucial moment for the emperor to seize power, and Lin Ruhai, a capable, loyal, and devoted minister, is a confidant that the emperor must firmly win over.

Having figured this out, Lin Dao not only wasn't angry, but actually smiled.

If I were an ordinary time traveler with nothing, I'd probably be completely lost right now.

But I, Lin~the Emperor of All Heavens~the Immortal Master's Personal Disciple~, am a cheat code~
Lin Meimei suddenly fell silent, and Lin Dao subconsciously looked down to look.

Lin Daiyu, no longer acting coquettishly, nestled in his arms and began sniffing him with her delicate nose.

In an instant, alarm bells rang in Lin Dao's mind.

Lin Ruhai and the selection of concubines were all forgotten.

'No way, I just took a shower!'

'Although I paid another silver note while taking a bath, but...'

At times like these, men's IQ surpasses that of Einstein.

Lin Dao immediately raised his hand, lifted Lin Meimei's face, which was filled with confusion and annoyance, and lowered his head to kiss her.

After a heated exchange, Lin Daiyu's eyes glazed over, and she completely forgot all her previous thoughts.

"don’t worry."

After the verbal argument ended, Lin Dao gently stroked her hair and said, "I'll take care of everything."

"Ah."

Lin Daiyu had no other thoughts; she left everything to her senior brother.

With my senior brother's abilities, there's nothing that can stump him.

Before long, the sound of the discipline mother's urgent shouts and knocking came from outside the door.

Lin Daiyu, with a furrowed brow, stepped forward to open the door, and the supervising nanny peeked into the room.

"Miss, I heard some strange noises coming from inside the room, so I came to check." This is the difference between an experienced nanny and an inexperienced maid.

An inexperienced maid might have said, "Miss, I hear a man's voice in the room!"

That would be a huge offense, and if it flares up, you'd be in deep trouble.

Lin Daiyu did not stop her, and turned to sit down on the chair.

She picked up "Admonitions for Women" and flipped through it, saying, "Since that's the case, you can read it yourself."

The discipline nanny chuckled twice, but resolutely walked into the room and searched around.

Their experience was invaluable; they wouldn't abandon the search just because the girl was feigning nonchalance.

After a thorough search, nothing was found.

After all, Lin Dao had gone to another dimension, and even a Great Luo Golden Immortal couldn't find his trace.

"Did you find it?"

Lin Daiyu put down her book, glanced sideways at them, and spoke in a cold tone.

"Maybe a cat ran off."

The supervising nanny smiled and bowed, "This servant will go and chase all the cats away."

They are very cautious.

Because Lin Ruhai had previously hinted that there were some things about the young lady that couldn't be said openly, and that they had to be kept strictly confidential.

After the old woman closed the door and left, Lin Daiyu stomped her feet angrily.

'What King of Qin!'

I'll slap you right on the ground!

Rongxi Hall.

This was the first time Lin Dao had stepped into the main hall, a symbol of the glory of the Rongguo Mansion.

He stood tall and straight, with bright, alert eyes.

Looking around, it felt like a spring outing.

Others might revere the glory and power of a family that is the ruler of two states, but that doesn't apply to Lin Dao.

"My name is Lin Dao."

"Greetings, Madam."

"Alright, alright." With a worried expression, Grandmother Jia forced a smile and said, "Please sit down."

After Lin Dao took his seat, Grandmother Jia first tried to establish a connection.

"I am very pleased to learn that Lian-ge has such a good friend as you."

As the saying goes, "At home you rely on your parents, but when you're out in the world you rely on your friends."

"If Lian-ge can make more friends with outstanding people like you, we elders can rest assured."

The Jia family is at their wits' end.

The Grand View Garden must be completed before the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

Otherwise, he would be guilty of deceiving the emperor.

We've tried every possible avenue, but nothing works.

The Xue family held onto their silver tightly, refusing to part with it no matter what.

As for the Lin family, Jia Baoyu suddenly smashed his jade, which disgusted Lin Ruhai.

It's good enough that we can maintain our friendship, let alone want to borrow money?
dream!

With nowhere else to turn, the friend of Jia Lian introduced by Wang Xifeng became their last straw.

"Madam, you've overreacted."

Lin Dao wasn't in a hurry, so he just went along with the pleasantries.

After a long conversation, Grandmother Jia finally couldn't resist getting to the point.

"As you probably know, my Rongguo Mansion is currently facing an urgent matter."

"We urgently need funds to build a villa for the Imperial Concubine to visit her family."

"I've heard you're quite wealthy. Would you be willing to lend me some assistance?"

"If you can alleviate the Rongguo Mansion's urgent crisis, you will surely repay us handsomely in the future!"

Even at this point, they're still thinking of getting something for nothing, using some imperial concubine to demonstrate their power.

This move was completely useless against Lin Dao.

He simply put down his teacup and responded.

"I can lend you money, but you need collateral."

"My money didn't come from thin air."

It certainly didn't come from thin air. Although silver is cheap in the modern world, it still costs money to buy.

In different times and spaces, it was either obtained through confiscation of property or through business.

It's all hard-earned money!
Jia She coughed, still wanting to stir up the breeze of the Duke's mansion and extort some more money.

But when Grandmother Jia gave him a sharp look, he immediately became obedient.

Before meeting Lin Dao, Grandmother Jia naturally inquired in detail about Lin Dao's background.

The details about Jia Lian and Wang Xifeng are vague.

They only said he was very rich and very capable.

But Lin Ruhai told Grandmother Jia very seriously.

'Unless absolutely necessary, never provoke this person.'

This person may have some inexplicable connection with Wei Xiaobao, the traitor to the imperial court.

Lin Ruhai is a smart man. The things Lin Dao did in Yangzhou, especially the killing of Jiang Chun, were all very clever.

And on the return journey, along the way, he took Lin Daiyu to do chivalrous deeds, as well as many other things that happened in the capital.

When he had some free time, he carefully considered the matter and was able to figure out the key points.

The reason he didn't report Lin Dao was partly because Lin Dao was his savior.

If you report your savior, you'll be a terrible person from now on; you'll be condemned by the whole world.

Furthermore, Lin Ruhai had carefully examined the relevant events and found that Lin Dao had demonstrated extraordinary abilities far exceeding common sense.

There's absolutely no need to offend someone with such great power.

Grandmother Jia was unaware of the specifics.

She believed Lin Ruhai's words and even thought that Lin Dao was helping the rebels to dispose of stolen goods.

This kind of person is not to be trifled with.

"Our household urgently needs one million taels of silver," said Grandmother Jia, staring at Lin. "What do you think we can use as collateral?"

Lin Dao glanced at everyone in the hall and gave a nonchalant response.

"The entire Rongguo Mansion~"

"Pawn both the person and their belongings!"

"I'm not afraid of you defaulting on your debts."

"I will use armed force to collect debts!"

(End of this chapter)