W Chapter 84
by VolareThis time, he did.
“Regarding the matter of the shop last time, the investigation has yielded some results.”
Lin Qingyu frowned, and said in a deep voice, “It was the Qin family who was coerced, and had no choice but to use the sale of the shop as a guise to lure you in.”
Ling Xing listened carefully. It turned out that the owner behind the cloth shop, the Xu family, was suppressing the Qin family in business, wanting to completely swallow the Qin family and take over the entire cloth business in all the counties and towns under the prefecture.
The Qin family’s business was getting worse year by year. They had been gritting their teeth to support it before, but this year was the end of their rope, and they really couldn’t hold on any longer.
The Qin family’s business in the prefecture city had basically fallen into the hands of the Xu family. However, the Xu family did not interfere with the shop in Yunshui County.
They thought that as long as the foundation remained, they could make a comeback. If not, they would keep the shop in Yunshui County. Although the business there was not as good as in the prefecture city, the Xu family didn’t even look at it, but for the current Qin family, even a mosquito was meat.
Who knew that after a few days of peace, most of the Qin family were arrested and imprisoned on the grounds of tax evasion.
The yamen released word that they either had to pay the full amount to release the people, or they would be exiled to do hard labor and never think about coming back in this lifetime.
Speaking of this, Lin Qingyu paused and sighed, “Fortunately, the Qin family’s mistress, Fan Ruyan, is a remarkable woman.”
Up to this point, there were no loopholes or oddities in the development of the matter.
It just so happened that the Qin family had fallen, and only a few confidants remained among the servants in the house. Fan Ruyan, as the mistress in charge, had to personally go to Yunshui County to check on the condition of the last remaining shop.
It was also because of this that she inadvertently learned that a clerk in the cloth shop was suspected of instigating harm.
The inner quarters were no easier than the officialdom. How families get along and maintain relationships all depended on management, and everyone had a thousand and one thoughts.
With her decades of experience, Fan Ruyan keenly sensed that something was wrong.
But she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.
She kept this matter in mind and had people inquire about it.
After learning that the shopkeeper who was almost framed had some acquaintance with Magistrate Lin, Fan Ruyan felt uneasy.
The fact that the shop in Yunshui County was the only one that was saved made Fan Ruyan even more uneasy.
As she expected, something happened to her family not long after.
Half of the Qin family was arrested by the government, and the house was in chaos. All the money they could scrape together was still not enough, so they had to sell the shop.
Fan Ruyan had been managing the household for many years, and she knew very well whether the commercial tax had been paid or not.
The Qin family had always been honest and law-abiding in business. If they wanted to go far and be stable, it was impossible for them to think crookedly on this matter.
It was obvious that someone was pulling strings behind the scenes.
It was like forcing the Qin family to sell the shop voluntarily.
Going to such lengths to set up this scheme, the person behind it wanted to completely absolve themselves of any responsibility.
From beginning to end, only the Qin family appeared.
Fan Ruyan remained calm in the chaos, and pieced together all the information she knew, connecting the dots to figure out the reason.
It seemed that someone wanted to borrow a knife to kill, using their Qin family as the knife to slash at the food stall owner named Ling Xing in Yunshui County.
As long as the Qin family’s shop in Yunshui County was sold to that person, there would definitely be problems.
That Ling Ge’er wouldn’t want to suffer losses, so he would try every means to deal with the Qin family and seek justice.
To cope with this, the Qin family would also use all their strength, and in the end, it was likely that both sides would be injured.
If Magistrate Lin took action, it was possible that the Qin family would be completely destroyed.
But Magistrate Lin would also be caught with a handle because of this.
After figuring this out, Fan Ruyan was shocked. The net was indeed woven very tightly.
She didn’t know who was behind it, and knowing that she couldn’t alert the snake, she simply played along and sold the shop.
However, she made some clever changes to the amount.
After collecting information about Ling Xing, she set the amount at just the right position. If the person was smart and alert, they would be able to see that it was fake.
At the same time, she sent a message to Magistrate Lin without making a sound.
The Qin family couldn’t find any fault with this. In order to quickly exchange money to save people, this price was very appropriate.
If Magistrate Lin sent someone to investigate, they could also use this opportunity to get in touch with Magistrate Lin, beg the Lin family, and save the Qin family’s future.
If the person was not smart and didn’t see it, they would still be fooled. Then they would have a chance to meet and confront each other, and could take the opportunity to explain.
But if they did nothing and didn’t remind, even if they could speak later, they would have no reason to believe her.
Fan Ruyan’s calculations were accurate, and it was the best outcome. She waited for the person sent by Magistrate Lin and told them everything in detail.
It took some time to avoid the eyes and ears, otherwise Magistrate Lin would have received the message sooner.
After listening, Ling Xing also sighed. Madam Fan was indeed smart and calm.
She was also very good at calculating accounts. She actually took such a short time to figure out the details of him and the people around him, and estimated it.
He hadn’t publicly announced his income to the outside world, and neither had his family.
To calculate the income, one had to know the price of raw materials and the quantity sold. On his family’s side, there were also labor costs in the village, which was really troublesome to calculate.
Lin Qingyu rubbed his forehead, and was also a little fortunate, “Madam Fan tried every means to remind you through the amount. Fortunately, you weren’t just immersed in the joy of getting the shop at that time, and were not deceived.”
Otherwise, it would really be a case ofThe snipe and clam fight，when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits.
It wasn’t a good thing to always be on guard like this, Ling Xing asked, “Does Your Honor have any guesses about who’s behind the scenes?”
Lin Qingyu didn’t want to talk about the political struggles in the officialdom.
But on second thought, Ling Xing was indeed affected because of him, so telling him would also give the other party some understanding.
Lin Qingyu said helplessly, “Fan Tongliu, who is in charge of commercial tax in the prefecture city, is from the political enemy’s faction of the Lin family. County Deputy Magistrate Zhou Tuo has been resentful because he didn’t get promoted due to my appointment as magistrate, and has been outwardly obedient but inwardly disobedient all along.”
“I intended to knock and question him, but he acted flawlessly. Only the shopkeeper under my wife’s younger brother took it upon himself to steal your steamed bun stall recipe and was caught in the wrong.”
“I used this matter to question him, and I’m afraid that’s when he started to have rebellious intentions and has been lying dormant. This time, it should be that the two of them have contacted each other, one wants me to leave Yunshui County and become a magistrate, and the other wants me to suffer, so that the Lin family will have more stains and won’t rise so quickly.”
“These two should have hit it off and have been planning this for a long time behind the scenes.”
Ling Xing knew who was behind it, and felt much more stable in his heart.
In the end, there was nothing he could do with his power, and he really could only be careful to defend against it.
Fortunately, Magistrate Lin was a good person, and knew that it was like when a city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer. Ling Xing was that innocent fish, and Magistrate Lin was extremely generous in giving compensation.
“If you want that shop, I’ll buy it and give it to you when things are resolved. It’s considered an apology.”
Ling Xing didn’t agree and refused.
He could buy the shop himself if he scraped together enough money.
This time, it wasn’t all Magistrate Lin’s fault.
He was the one who borrowed Magistrate Lin’s name to get protection first, and he couldn’t ask for protection and then blame others entirely when something happened.
They were on the same boat, and shared the risks together.
Ling Xing said what he thought, and Lin Qingyu looked at Ling Xing for a moment and laughed.
“You can really shoulder things.”
“Well, it would hurt the relationship if we calculated it too clearly. I’ve noted this matter, Your Honor.”
Ling Xing was a little surprised. In the past, no matter what it was, Magistrate Lin would use silver or other things to pay it off clearly.
After all, favors were the hardest to repay, and there was no definite amount.
He didn’t expect Magistrate Lin to say such a thing this time.
The words had already been spoken, and it would be unkind to say no again. After thinking for a while, Ling Xing said, “Your Honor, I really have something I want to ask Your Honor to help with.”
Lin Qingyu raised an eyebrow and asked with interest, “What is it? Tell me about it.”
“After thinking about it, I still feel like I can’t swallow this breath. Why should I not be able to get this shop just because they’re playing dirty tricks behind the scenes?”
Lin Qingyu was used to seeing Ling Xing’s harmless little lamb appearance on weekdays, and was a little novel to see him looking quite dissatisfied at this time. He smiled and asked him, “Ling Ge’er has a way?”
Ling Xing smiled slightly and said mysteriously, “Of course.”
After listening to Ling Xing, Lin Qingyu chuckled, “You’re getting bolder and bolder now.”
Ling Xing kept smiling. He wasn’t getting bolder, but had gained confidence.
“Okay, I’ll take care of this matter for you.”
Lin Qingyu agreed to Ling Xing’s request and had his men send him away. He sat at his desk and sighed with a worried look.
Ling Xing had vented his anger, but he was still holding it in here.
If only he could catch these two old foxes by the tail.
Unfortunately, the guards he sent out hadn’t been able to succeed even now.
Their skills were still not up to par.
He heard from people in his family that the imperial guards in the palace were the real deal.
They could enter and exit the residences of various officials silently, and the Emperor could have whatever he wanted to know delivered to him the next day.
If he could have one or two imperial guards to use, neither Fan Tongliu nor Zhou Tuo would be enough for him to deal with with one hand.
Oh well, he should just think about such good things to satisfy his cravings.
He had to send more people to keep an eye on them.
He didn’t believe that he couldn’t find out anything!
…
The business in Ling Xing’s shop was getting better and better, and the number of food stalls in the county was visibly increasing, most of which had learned from Ling Xing.
When these stall owners first saw Ling Xing, many of them were embarrassed to look at him.
Later, when they saw that Ling Xing didn’t care, everyone’s attitude towards him was extremely good.
When they saw him from afar, they would poke their heads out to say hello, no matter how busy they were.
Money could never be earned enough, and Ling Xing also knew that he couldn’t monopolize it.
It was better for everyone to make money in harmony, and the relationship didn’t need to be too close, just not distant.
The common people’s ideas were simple, to be fed and clothed well.
It wasn’t easy for everyone to earn money, and making a living was the top priority.
Because of Ling Xing, many people benefited, and his reputation among the merchants in the county became greater and greater.
Many people were grateful that Ling Xing didn’t hold a grudge and was willing to let them learn the food he made so that they could make a living.
They really remembered the good in their hearts.
It was also because of this that Zhou Tuo couldn’t even tamper with the food in Ling Xing’s shop.
No one could believe him.
The Qin family’s shop was a good trap before, but Ling Xing didn’t jump into it, which was a real waste.
It was really impossible to start again if he wanted to find a way.
Zhou Tuo couldn’t understand why Ling Xing didn’t want that shop!
There were still quite a few people looking at the Qin family’s shop. No matter how great Zhou Tuo’s influence was in the county, he couldn’t stand up to the people who came to see the shop from the prefecture or state city.
The masters behind these people were not people that he, or Lord Fan, could afford to offend.
A good plan ended up being nothing.
In the end, the Qin family’s shop was bought by someone from the state city.
In Ling Xing’s small courtyard, a person was sitting in the main room. This person was wearing fancy clothes, had a beard, and had a kind face.
It was the steward who bought the Qin family’s shop for the master’s family.
Ling Xing was signing the contract with him.
The favor that Ling Xing asked Lin Qingyu to help with that day was to ask him to find someone with a status that could suppress Fan and Zhou.
Even if they couldn’t suppress them, it was fine as long as they weren’t within the jurisdiction of these two.
Lin Qingyu found a friend from the state city who he had a good relationship with. Fan Tongliu’s hand couldn’t reach the state city, so he couldn’t manage it.
According to what Ling Xing said, he bought this shop in their name.
He would rent it to Ling Xing first, and then sell it back to him when things were resolved.
Things progressed smoothly, and Fan and Zhou didn’t even have time to react.
After signing the contract, Ling Xing smiled and sent the person away.
Returning to the house and looking at the contract with the clear black and white writing, he felt a lot of emotions in his heart.
His original fermentation recipe had really exchanged for a way out for him.
As long as the Lin family didn’t fall, he could follow them to find life from despair.
The Qin family’s shop began to be renovated.
The team was ready-made, and Ling Xing had prepared the drawings long ago, so the renovation was very fast.
The shop was next to the restaurant, and Zhou Tuo soon learned from his wife’s younger brother, Liu Yuansheng, that Ling Xing was leading people to renovate the shop.
He realized that he had been tricked, and smashed several sets of teacups in anger.
Since things had come to this, no matter what he did, it would be useless.
Now, he couldn’t send anyone to tamper with the things in the shop anymore.
Liu Yuansheng was so frightened that he trembled. He leaned forward until Zhou Tuo sat down tiredly, and then suggested, “Brother-in-law, otherwise, after he opens, I’ll find some petty thieves to go to that shop? Although they can’t really damage anything, they can at least scare that Ling Xing.”
They were all small tricks, and Zhou Tuo didn’t care about them.
He wouldn’t have nodded in normal times.
Right now, he felt as uncomfortable as if he had eaten a fly, and he was very suffocated.
It would be good to disgust Ling Xing a little.
“I’ll leave this matter to you.”