After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

At dusk, Yang Tinghe and Yang Tingyi finished their shift and went home.

The two entered the gate one after the other. Yang Tinghe paused, his gaze sweeping across the hall.

The furniture that was sold a few days ago has now been put back in its original state.

The mahogany eight-immortal table in the front hall, the Wu-style landscape painting on the wall, and the huanghuali round-back chair he often sat in—all of them have returned.

His favorite purple clay teapot was also on the table.

Yang Tinghe was overjoyed and carefully held the pot in his hands, admiring it.

Yang Tingyi followed behind, looking around, and whispered, "Brother, Shen'er's business is quite large. He redeemed the goods so quickly."

Yang Tinghe hummed in agreement and put the pot down.

The two changed their clothes, and Yang Tinghe instructed someone to call Yang Shen to the front hall for dinner.

Yang Shen walked in carrying a package and bowed, saying, "Father, Second Uncle."

Yang Tinghe pointed to the chair next to him: "Sit down and let's talk!"

Yang Shen sat down, placed the package on the stool beside him, and waited for his father to speak.

Yang Tinghe pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "I heard your brick kiln business is doing quite well?"

Yang Shen nodded: "Thanks to my father and second uncle, I've earned some money so far."

Yang Tinghe nodded: "Making money in business is a good thing, but you must remember that the way of merchants is ultimately inferior. You should focus your energy on studying for the imperial examinations."

Yang Shen lowered his head: "Father's teachings are correct."

Yang Tinghe looked at him earnestly and said, "Our Yang family is a scholarly family. Your grandfather's generation started studying, and by the time of your second uncle and me, we finally produced two Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations). If you can pass the exam, our family will have three Jinshi. How glorious that will be!"

Yang Shen looked up and said earnestly, "Father, don't worry. There are still two years until the autumn examinations. I will study hard and won't fall behind in my studies."

Yang Tinghe's expression softened slightly, and he turned to Yang Tingyi, saying, "I've heard that the imperial court may be sending a group of officials to the Hetao region. What do you think?"

Yang Tingyi was taken aback and put down his book: "Hetao?"

Yang Tinghe hummed in agreement: "Although things aren't very peaceful over there, they're much better now. The promotion path is much faster than in the capital. Do you want to try and get one?"

Yang Tingyi thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "If elder brother thinks it's okay, then it's fine."

Yang Tinghe said, "Then I'll keep an eye out for you. You should also make preparations in advance. It's not as safe over there as it is in the capital, so think things through carefully."

Yang Tingyi replied, "Thank you, elder brother."

Yang Shen sat to the side, listening to the two talking without interrupting.

After finishing his business, Yang Tinghe turned around and took out a package.

Inside, there were three sweaters, neatly folded.

Yang Shen glanced at it, paused for a moment, and then remained silent.

Yang Tinghe's face showed a hint of pride. He picked up a sweater and shook it: "This is called a sweater. It's the most fashionable garment in the capital right now. I heard it's made of wool, lightweight and warm. Many high-ranking officials and nobles are wearing it now."

Yang Tingyi took it, examined it from all angles, and then squeezed it: "It's indeed lightweight. How much does one of these cost?"

Yang Tinghe said, "Three hundred and fifty coins."

Yang Tingyi clicked his tongue: "It's not expensive."

Yang Shen finally couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "Father, where did you buy this sweater?"

Yang Tinghe said, "You don't know, these sweaters are in high demand right now, and most people can't even buy them. I had to use my connections to get three of them."

Yang Shen opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

Yang Tinghe frowned slightly when he saw his expression: "What's wrong?"

Yang Shen sighed and said softly, "Father, have you been deceived?"

Yang Tinghe was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

Yang Shen pointed to the sweater: "In this sweater shop, a regular sweater costs between fifty and eighty coins. Even those mixed with cashmere are only between one hundred and fifty and two hundred coins. Yours... is just a regular sweater, without cashmere."

The smile on Yang Tinghe's face slowly disappeared.

He looked down at the sweater in his hand and asked, "How do you know all this so clearly?"

Yang Shen remained silent for a moment, then honestly replied, "Because this sweater was made by my son, and my son is the owner behind the sweater shop."

Yang Tinghe was stunned.

He turned to look at Yang Tingyi, who was also stunned.

The two exchanged a glance, then looked at Yang Shen together.

Yang Shen took out his package, opened it, and revealed two even lighter garments inside.

"Father, Second Uncle!"

Yang Shen handed over the garment: "This is a pure cashmere coat, priced around five hundred coins. Cashmere is scarce; nowadays, besides His Majesty and the Empress, only a few others in the capital can afford to wear it. I brought it back for you specially."

Yang Tinghe took the cashmere sweater in a daze and touched it with his hand.

Yang Tingyi also came over, touched it, and exclaimed in amazement: "This cashmere is indeed better than wool! It's so light and soft, and it feels warm to the touch."

Yang Tinghe pondered for a long time, then looked up at Yang Shen: "Your business?"

Yang Shen nodded: "Yes! It's that equity structure document from last time, the one you saw, Father."

Yang Tinghe was silent for a moment, then asked, "Does His Majesty know that you are doing business with the Crown Prince?"

Yang Shen said, "Of course His Majesty knows. Moreover, His Majesty has invested an additional 50,000 taels. Now His Majesty and the Crown Prince own 60%, making them the major shareholders."

Yang Tinghe fell silent again.

He looked down at the cashmere sweater in his hand for a long while, then put it away and said, "Alright, let's eat!"

Yang Shen picked up the bowl and couldn't help but say, "Father! Second Uncle!"

The two stopped picking up food with their chopsticks and turned their heads at the same time.

Yang Shen said, "His Majesty has a share in our family business. This matter should not be publicized. Do not tell anyone, otherwise it will have a bad impact."

Yang Tinghe nodded: "Understood."

After saying that, he picked up the bowl and called out, "Laifu, go get a bowl of rice."

Yang Shen got up, took the bowl to serve rice, and said, "Laifu has been very busy lately, having to take care of the businesses at the brickyard and the textile factory. Sometimes he can't manage it all, so he stays out."

Yang Tinghe nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

The three were eating quietly when Laifu pushed the door open and came in.

He was panting heavily, and there was sweat on his forehead.

"Master, Second Master, you're both here!"

Yang Tinghe asked, "Why are you in such a panic? What's wrong?"

Lai Fu looked troubled and said, "There's been a bit of a problem with the business!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Tinghe put down his chopsticks and bowl: "I've finished eating. If it's business, you can talk to the young master!"

Yang Tingyi quickly finished the rice in his bowl, then got up and left.

Lai Fu took a breath and lowered his voice, saying, "Young Master, news has come from Xuanfu that our batch of wool has been stolen."

Yang Shen was stunned for a moment and asked, "Robbed them? What do you mean? Who dares to rob Mongols?"

Lai Fu shook his head and said, "It wasn't robbery, it was that someone offered a higher price to buy the wool and bought all the Mongolians' goods."

Yang Shen pondered for a moment, then asked, "How much?"

Laifu said, "A pound of wool costs six coins, and a pound of cashmere costs sixty coins."

Yang Shen then asked, "How much inventory do we have left in our warehouse?"

Lai Fu thought for a moment and said, "We received a total of 16,000 catties of goods, of which 4,000 catties have been spun into yarn, and the remaining 10,000 catties are still piled up in the warehouse."

Yang Shen said, "Since someone is competing with us for raw materials, let's stop ordering for now and focus on processing our existing stock in the coming days."

Laifu asked anxiously, "Young Master, what should we do then? We can't just keep not restocking, can we?"

Yang Shen glanced at him and waved his hand, "We'll talk about the future later. You should eat quickly; you've had a long day."

Laifu opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something.

Yang Shen had already put down his chopsticks and said, "I'm going to sleep."

"Well... alright then, young master, you should get some rest!"