The Great Song Dynasty: You were put in charge of teaching, and you produced a whole bunch of prime

After hearing the gatekeeper's report, Jiang Lin not only didn't panic, but actually burst out laughing.

"Hanging? These old fogies have learned the trick of crying, making a scene, and threatening to hang themselves?" Jiang Lin shook his head, patted his clothes, and said, "Let's go watch a show."

Qian Duoduo panicked, her legs trembling uncontrollably: "Headmaster, this is no laughing matter! If a southeast branch were hung at our courtyard gate, it would be a huge murder case, and the imperial court would definitely send people to investigate!"

"What's the panic? Anyone who really wants to die would have already found a crooked tree to end their own life. Coming to my academy gate this early in the morning to put on a show for me is clearly just an act." Jiang Lin sneered and strode out.

Li Gefei and Qian Duoduo quickly followed suit.

The main gate of Jingshi Academy was already packed with onlookers.

On the tall archway, several snow-white ribbons fluttered in the wind. The head of the Lin family and the heads of three other major grain merchants from Jiangnan stood shakily on a few broken benches, their necks in nooses, howling at the top of their lungs.

"Jiang Lin! You heartless, living devil! You've ruined our family's livelihood!" The Lin family head was disheveled, his old face scrunched up, showing no trace of the former tycoon of Jiangnan.

"My century-old legacy has been ruined by you! Even if I die here today, I'll haunt your bedside as a ghost every day!" The other family head cried so pitifully that it was almost unbearable.

The common people below, however, were not impressed at all, pointing and scoffing.

"Hey, isn't this the great philanthropist Lin? How did you end up in this state?"

"Bah! What kind of philanthropist? These are the bloodsuckers who drove grain prices up to five hundred coins the other day! Jiang Shanchang is doing this on behalf of Heaven, he deserves it!"

Jiang Lin strolled leisurely to the foot of the archway, his hands behind his back. He looked up at the Lin family head, who was swaying precariously on a bench, and casually whistled.

"Oh, Patriarch Lin, this white silk fabric is quite nice, isn't it? Suzhou embroidery, right? You're bankrupt and you're still so particular about your quality of life?" Jiang Lin made no attempt to hide the sarcasm in his tone.

Upon seeing the person in charge, the Lin family head nearly coughed up blood in anger. Pointing at Jiang Lin, he cursed, "Jiang Lin! You villain! The Lu family clearly paid the breach of contract fee for us, so why are you still seizing our rice shop and granary! Are you trying to wipe us out?!"

"Seize your rice shop? Patriarch Lin, did you sleep without a pillow last night and get water in your brain?" Jiang Lin sneered.

"When you signed the contract, what did you use as collateral? All the properties under your names! You paid the penalty for breach of contract, but to borrow money to fill the hole, didn't you mortgage all your properties to the Lu family? I seized the rice shop; that was to collect debts for the Lu family! You are now penniless paupers, understand?"

Upon hearing this, the head of the Lin family's legs went weak, and with a "crack," he almost fell off the bench along with himself.

He knew, of course, that he had lost everything. Although Master Lu had offered three million strings of cash, the condition was that he would take over all their territory. Now they didn't even have a house to live in, and their entire family was starving on the streets. With nowhere else to turn, they resorted to this self-inflicted injury at the academy's gate.

"Jiang Lin...you...you will die a horrible death..." The Lin family head's mental defenses completely collapsed, and he howled in despair.

Jiang Lin had watched enough of the show and sighed, somewhat losing interest.

"Alright, stop making a fool of yourself here. Get down here already." Jiang Lin waved his hand dismissively. "If you really die here, I'll have to pay someone to clean the floor and buy a coffin. It's bad luck."

The Lin family head stood frozen on the bench: "You...you're willing to let us go?"

Jiang Lin ignored him and turned to Qian Duoduo: "Go and bring out a few chairs. Offer seats to these former family heads."

A moment later, the chairs were brought over. The Lin family head and the others cautiously pulled their necks out of the white silk, slunk off the stools, and collapsed onto the chairs like wilted eggplants.

Jiang Lin sat opposite them with an air of authority, looking at this group of once arrogant local tyrants of Jiangnan. His tone was calm but carried an undeniable sense of oppression.

"Your money and businesses are gone. But you still have some leftovers in your minds. You've been deeply entrenched in Jiangnan for so many years; the trade routes, connections, and grain procurement channels—these intangible assets cannot be taken away by the Lu family."

The Lin family head shrank back like a frightened bird: "You... what exactly do you want?"

"As I just said, I'm going to open the Great Song Jiangnan Grain Reserve Bank." Jiang Lin pointed back at Li Gefei behind him, "This is the bank manager. But for the bank to expand, we need to set up branches in various prefectures and counties to collect grain from individual farmers. You old hands have spent your whole lives in the grain trade; this is your comfort zone."

The Lin family head's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets: "You want us to work for you?!"

"What? Feeling wronged?" Jiang Lin raised an eyebrow. "If you don't want to, then forget it. The door's over there, the bench's still warm, go ahead and hang yourself. But let me give you a friendly reminder: you're penniless right now. The Lu family is already lucky they haven't killed you. If you die, your wives and children will most likely be working as prostitutes in some brothel tomorrow night."

These words were like daggers, each one piercing the heart, like a rusty, dull knife, cruelly cutting through the last shred of dignity left in the Lin family head. He trembled violently, tears streaming down his face.

"I...I'll do it..." The Lin family head kowtowed completely to the ground. "As long as Jiang Shanzhang gives me some food and keeps my whole family from starving, my life...belongs to Shanzhang from now on!"

Seeing that the leader had already slid down to his knees, the other family heads quickly followed suit and knelt down as well, kowtowing repeatedly.

Jiang Lin's lips curled into a satisfied smile.

This was exactly the effect he wanted. Although these aristocratic family heads were insatiable, their business acumen in this era was absolutely top-notch. Bringing them down to earth and then recruiting them as laborers for the academy was far more cost-effective than killing them outright.

"Very good, a wise man submits to circumstances. Now that you've joined our Jingshi Group, you're family." Jiang Lin stood up and dusted off his clothes.

"Qian Duoduo, take them to sign labor contracts. From today onwards, they are bank customer managers. Their base salary is two strings of cash per month, plus performance-based commissions for attracting deposits. If they do well, they will receive a year-end bonus; if they don't, they will be directly laid off and sent back to society at the end of the year."

"Alright! Headmaster!" Qian Duoduo suppressed a laugh and led the group of former big shots into the courtyard like a group of newly bought farmhands.

Standing aside, Li Gefei watched this bloodless co-optation drama and was already in awe of Jiang Lin's methods.

"Headmaster, your tactic of killing them by destroying their spirit—you rob them of their property and then exploit their labor to count your money… I've learned my lesson!"

Jiang Lin reached out and patted Li Gefei heavily on the shoulder, his tone long and drawn out: "Gefei, broaden your horizons. Remember, capital has no tears. Turning once-powerful enemies into cheap labor for the 'blessed 996' work culture—that's the basic operation we capitalists should be doing. Come on, let's go back and continue the meeting!"