In the beginning, he was ranked alongside An Shigeng as a spoiled brat.

Both Hong Qigong and Zhou Botong looked regretful upon hearing Zhang Xiaoshan's words.

Such a perfect match ended in tragedy, a pity and a lament.

"Little one, since you know so much about it, you must have already looked at it, so..."

"Senior, this is someone else's secret technique. I still have my bottom line."

"If you want to cultivate, Senior Lin's maid might still be in the ancient tomb. Go find her yourself, but whatever you do, don't let me know, or else you'll be this..."

After gesturing for a moment, Zhou Botong quickly nodded.

Hong Qigong shook his head. This Zhou Botong was a martial arts fanatic. He never considered that the two families had become enemies. How could he possibly let him practice the sect's signature martial arts?

"By the way, senior, please give me the Sanskrit outline tonight. I will find someone to translate it after I land tomorrow."

In the evening, I handed over the general outline of the translation to my senior colleague.

Since the Nine Yin Manual's general outline is written in Sanskrit, it must be the most essential part of the Nine Yin Manual, saving the predecessors the trouble of finding someone else and avoiding the risk of exposure.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

This general outline is written in Sanskrit, and Huang Shang must be worried that it might fall into the hands of bad people and be used for evil purposes; it must be extremely profound.

Zhou Botong realized what was happening and was immediately filled with anticipation for the Sanskrit general outline.

Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Prodigal Son Returns Home to Lin'an Port

Lin'an Dagang.

Although it is not one of the large ports with tens of thousands of tons that came later, it extends from the estuary to the inland Qiantang River.

During this period, countless ships came and went, goods piled up on both sides of the river, and there were many laborers. The prosperity was unimaginable, and even Hong Qigong, Guo Jing and others were dumbfounded.

They had set sail from a nearby fishing village and had never seen such a magnificent harbor before.

Thousands of ships came and went, a prosperous and flourishing era.

Even Japanese samurai and sailors on cargo ships were greatly shocked.

The Ming Dynasty imposed a maritime ban, so few ships went out to sea, and it was even more impossible for them to swagger close to official docks.

"arrive"

After sailing for another ten miles or so, they entered the outskirts of Bianjing City.

At this moment, everyone's eyes lit up. On a distant dock, a row of huge arms, each ten feet tall, were carrying enormous wooden crates from ships to docks, or loading cargo from docks onto ships.

One arm can easily lift goods weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, making it convenient and fast.

Especially large cargo.

The spectacular scene was so striking that even though most people on the dock had become accustomed to it, they still occasionally glanced up at it.

“This isn’t Zhangjia Wharf; it’s his family’s business.”

Even though Hong Qigong had seen it before, he was still amazed and shocked at this moment.

Only the Zhang family possesses this arm. It looks simple, but it cannot be made without a master craftsman, and there are also issues with the blueprints.

Therefore, many businessmen wanted to imitate it, but after comparing the cost and profit, they gave up.

It could cost them thousands of dollars, or even more, to replicate an arm.

Even the most capable laborers at the docks earned only twenty or thirty coins a day, but with rest days and when the docks were not busy, they could earn at most five qian of silver a month, and six taels a year was considered a high income.

One thousand gold coins can hire one hundred laborers to work for twenty-five years.

"And that big building is Zhang's canteen, where the food is cheap and delicious."

Old Beggar has been there several times; their braised pork offal is incredibly flavorful and oily, truly exceptional. I'll take you guys to try it later.

Hong Qigong was a foodie; he could spot almost anything delicious.

Zhang's canteen was open to laborers. At first, the food was very strong, with lots of oil and salt, which was excellent food for the laborers.

Moreover, the price was cheap, and the Zhang family disdained to exploit these laborers.

Aside from the large portions of meat and fish, most of the dishes at the Red Mansion were light and healthy, and the tastes varied depending on social class.

Even so, the more you make it, the better the flavor will naturally become.

Especially the brine that has been aged for three years, the taste of the food made from it is simply superb.

The large ship slowly approached the shore. The manager, who had initially wanted to stop it, saw Zhang Xiaoshan and quickly directed the other ships to make room.

"Young Master, you're finally back!"

Looking at Zhang Xiaoshan, the manager was also extremely excited.

Those who can manage this place must be trusted confidants or elders of the Zhang family, and have a very strong sense of belonging to the Zhang family.

Moreover, given the vested interests involved, if the Zhang family lacks an heir, it will inevitably be in turmoil and its overall situation will be unstable.

"Uncle Zhang, make arrangements for these sailors and guests, and do not neglect them."

In addition, these are all partners I found in Japan. They take people around Bianjing (Kaifeng) and note down the products they need.

However, do not touch anything that is prohibited!

"Yes, young master!"

Manager Zhang naturally knew what to do, and Zhang Xiaoshan left with peace of mind.

At this time, besides Gui Yi, Liu Sheng Piaoxu, Fu Junzhuo and four Jonin were following Zhang Xiaoshan. The others were arranged by Manager Zhang.

Arriving in this bustling mega-city was a great surprise for everyone.

"Master!"

Butler Yang was already waiting at the door, while Hongxiao and Jiangxue eagerly awaited their arrival, their beautiful eyes filled with affection.

"Hongxiao, arrange a private room for Miss Liusheng and Miss Fu."

"Uncle Yang, these four are experts I recruited. Arrange four separate courtyards for them."

"I understand, Master!"

With that, Zhang Xiaoshan led his men into the hall.

Zhang Yuan sat in the seat of honor, and looking at Zhang Xiaoshan, he was immediately filled with anger.

Zhang Xiaoshan was sent to find someone, but after finding the person, he disappeared and only returned now.

"father!"

"Hmph, so you finally know how to come back?"

Zhang Xiaoshan immediately became somewhat obsequious, but Zhang Yuan, looking at the guest, didn't take it to heart.

As for Yagyu Hyouse's loyalty to Bushido, he knew he was one of their own. The remaining four ninjas still needed to be assessed.

However, Zhang Yuan knew about the existence of the Ghost Heart Pill regarding Gui Yi.

It is understood that the ghost is a ghost corpse.

···

The Zhang family has many talented people. Before noon, Zhang Xiaoshan had already arrived at the Zhang family's main dining hall with the translated Sanskrit outline.

Originally, there were only long tables and benches here, but later, as the food improved, more private rooms were added.

Most of the customers here are small business owners from the neighborhood. Compared to ordinary braised pork offal, it costs at least 100 yuan a bowl, but the taste is excellent, and customers come in droves every day.

At this moment, Hong Qigong and the others were in the private room.

As guests of the Zhang family, all expenses here were paid by the Zhang family, so no one had any reservations.

"Senior, this is the translated outline."

The Nine Yin Manual's General Outline is the essence of the Nine Yin Manual.

Zhang Xiaoshan memorized it after reading it once, not to mention he also had a Sanskrit version.

Hong Qigong and Zhou Botong only needed to read through the general contents once to know that it was true.

It can be said that the most essential part of the Nine Yin Manual is of great benefit to their current level, allowing them to advance their strength to a higher level in a short period of time.

Such exquisite skills cannot be faked casually.

Moreover, the fact that Zhang Xiaoshan was able to find a talented man who knew Sanskrit so quickly in less than two hours demonstrates his considerable influence.

"Thank you very much, Young Master Zhang!"

Hong Qigong was overjoyed. If it weren't for Zhang Xiaoshan, with the mischievousness of the Old Urchin and the dullness of Guo Jing, they probably would never have figured out the secret of the general outline in their entire lives.

The translated outline is of great use to them, which is an unexpected bonus.

It's just a mutually beneficial arrangement.

After handing the manual to Zhou Botong, Zhang Xiaoshan left.

After all, Zhang Xiaoshan had many things to do afterward: the Southeast Asian project, the exploration of the New World, the import and export of soap...

Moreover, after taking over a large number of Silla maids, Zhang Xiaoshan also planned to open up the Red Mansion completely.

Zhang Xiaoshan was either extremely busy or completely overwhelmed with work.

"The Zhang family is a highly regarded merchant family in the Nine Provinces, and Young Master Zhang is even known as 'Ziyu' (a name implying high moral character)."

Seeing is believing!

Hong Qigong felt that Zhang Xiaoshan's ambition far outweighed his benevolence.

However, given the Zhang family's current prestige, unless something major goes wrong, no one would dare to make things difficult for them.

Moreover, Zhang Xiaoshan doesn't seem like a particularly wicked person, and he doesn't seem to have any ambition whatsoever. He just doesn't want Zhang Xiaoshan to go astray because of ambition.

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Taking Stock of the Harvest and Returning to the Red Mansion

"You brat, do you know how troublesome this batch of stuff is?"

After the banquet, Zhang Yuan's study was filled with jewels.

Zhang Yuan looked at Zhang Xiaoshan, who was beaming with joy. He knew Zhang Xiaoshan was a womanizer, but he absolutely did not want his son to become a thief.

Okay?

They committed a major crime, and they were shocked when they received the stolen goods.

Ginseng, Ganoderma lucidum, Polygonum multiflorum... plus a large sack of separately separated gems, these things are worth nearly a million gold.

Keep in mind that even the lowest quality gems cost over a hundred gold, and a million gold is after discounts on the black market.

What does a million taels of gold mean? Even the Zhang family's assets in Lin'an Prefecture are roughly equivalent to that, and in silver it would be more than 15 million taels, enough for 10,000 families of four to live on for a hundred years.

This is still the capital city, where every inch of land is incredibly valuable.

Moreover, the average industries in other places are roughly the same.

However, Zhang Xiaoshan also owns the Tianji Tower and the Tomb Raiders, which have antiques worth at least a million gold coins under his command.

Zhang Xiaoshan also took the lion's share of the business in the underworld, and his subordinates had even more shady dealings.

"Father, why worry? The Jin people are just a bunch of wolves and tigers. Leaving these things to them would only bring trouble."

Furthermore, our cooperation with the Jin Dynasty is now tied to the royal family, making it even less likely that they would take action against us without absolute evidence.

The Zhang family sold luxury goods to the Jin Kingdom, including exclusive custom-made items for the royal family, so they had no worries about the Jin Kingdom's domineering nature.

Seeing Zhang Xiaoshan's confident demeanor, even Zhang Yuan couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"What should we do with these things?"

The medicinal herbs are easy to handle; even if they aren't used for physical training or internal energy cultivation, they can be hidden away for life-saving purposes.

However, gemstones are not easy to handle. Top-quality gemstones are unique, valuable, and difficult to sell.

As long as the Zhang family takes action, the investigation will almost always trace back to them.

That's like trying to hide something obvious!

"I plan to use some of these medicinal herbs for cultivation and some to raise medicinal snakes. The gemstones will be handled directly by Uncle Gui from the Black Street. Father, rest assured, I will arrange everything properly."

Even if they go through the underworld, they absolutely won't be able to trace it back to us.