gnovel Chapter 32 "What does he mean? Does he agree or disagree?"
Chapter 32 "What does he mean? Does he agree or disagree?"
Shi Wenbin held his wine glass without saying a word.
The private room fell silent, with only the chirping of insects outside the window.
After a moment, Shi Wenbin put down his wine glass, picked up his folding fan, and tapped it lightly twice on the table.
"My three managers, I have a question for you."
"Please speak, sir."
"What price did the people of Yuncheng County pay you for your grain in the past?"
Li Wanchun was taken aback for a moment: "A few hundred coins per string."
"What's the price for Chao Gai's grain now?"
"...half a percent cheaper, one string of cash is two hundred and sixty cash."
Shi Wenbin nodded: "It's a good thing that the people can buy grain cheaper. As the magistrate of Yuncheng County, I can't possibly raise grain prices just so you can make more money, can I?"
Li Wanchun opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.
Shi Wenbin smiled and softened his tone.
"I know your difficulties. Doing business is never easy. But you must understand that I did not allow Chao Gai to open this rice shop. It is true that I approved the official granary for him, but that was because he took in several hundred refugees and relieved my burden. I approved the granary, not the rice shop. What he does with the granary is none of my business, nor do I want to."
That was a perfectly watertight statement.
On the surface, he distanced himself from the matter, but in reality, he made his stance clear—he would not interfere in Chao Gai's affairs, but he would not stand up for the three grain merchants either.
Li Wanchun understood this meaning.
He raised his glass and toasted Shi Wenbin.
"Your teachings are correct. We have misunderstood."
Shi Wenbin drank the wine, picked up a folding fan, and slowly fanned himself.
Li Wanchun gave Zhao Demao a wink.
Zhao Demao understood, picked up the mahogany box from the table, placed it in front of Shi Wenbin, and opened it.
Five gold bars were neatly stacked inside the box, their bright yellow color dazzling under the lamplight.
"My lord," Zhao Demao said with a smile, "this is just a small token of our appreciation. What Chao Baozheng gave you, we can give in return. What Chao Baozheng couldn't give, we can still give in return."
Shi Wenbin looked at the box of gold, but neither reached out nor spoke.
He slowly waved the folding fan in his hand, once, twice, three times.
Qian Guangcai chimed in, "In the years you've been in Yuncheng County, our three families have never been short of gifts for you. Chao Baozheng has only been here a few days. All he can offer you are some immediate benefits. We are different. We have been rooted in Yuncheng County for over a decade. Whatever you need in the future, we will be at your service."
Shi Wenbin shifted his gaze from the gold bars to Li Wanchun's face.
"What do you want?"
Li Wanchun said respectfully, "This humble servant dares not do anything. I only wish to ask you, sir, to give us justice. Chao Baozheng's rice shop sells grain at a fixed price, which we cannot afford. If you could persuade him to raise the price, we would naturally offer our tribute."
Shi Wenbin remained silent. The folding fan stopped moving.
Li Wanchun added, "Of course, if it's difficult for you, sir, we wouldn't dare to force you. But... the grain market in Yuncheng County has always been run by three separate entities. Suddenly having an additional entity operating in this manner is simply too much for us to handle."
The private room was quiet for a moment.
Shi Wenbin put down his folding fan, picked up his wine glass, and slowly took a sip.
He's thinking about things.
He valued Chao Gai.
He is courageous, resourceful, has many subordinates, and is well-known in the martial arts world.
Such a person is a hidden danger in times of peace, but if the world becomes unstable in the future, he will be a rare asset.
He gave the official granary to Chao Gai not because he coveted those small shares, but because he was leaving himself a way out.
But not just anyone can be a backup plan.
He still needed to test Chao Gai's abilities and whether it was worth risking more.
These three grain merchants in front of me are a perfect litmus test.
Shi Wenbin put down his wine glass and looked at the three of them.
"I understand."
Li Wanchun was taken aback: "What do you mean, sir?"
"I understand," Shi Wenbin said calmly. "I understand your meaning. But I cannot make any promises to you. Chao Baozheng's rice shop is operating legally. I have no reason to allow him to raise prices, nor do I have any reason to close his shop."
Zhao Demao grew anxious: "Husband—"
Shi Wenbin raised his hand to stop him.
"However, I will not take his side. In business, everyone has their own abilities. If you can make him raise the price himself, or make him go out of business, that's your ability. As long as no one dies and the higher-ups are alerted, I can pretend I don't know anything."
That was said with great tact.
On the surface, no one helped, but secretly they created an opening for the three of them.
Li Wanchun understood, and a sense of relief washed over him. He quickly raised his wine cup. "Thank you, sir! We, your humble servants, would like to offer you a toast!"
Shi Wenbin picked up his wine glass, clinked it with the three of them, and drank it all in one gulp.
He put down the cup, stood up, and straightened his robes.
"I have official business to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Li Wanchun quickly stood up to see him off: "Please take care, sir. I will see you downstairs."
"No need." Shi Wenbin picked up the folding fan, walked to the top of the stairs, suddenly stopped, and looked back at the three of them.
His gaze lingered on Li Wanchun's face for a moment, then swept over Zhao Demao and Qian Guangcai.
"My three managers, I have only one piece of advice for you—leave some room for maneuver in your actions. Chao Gai is not someone to be trifled with."
After saying that, he turned around and went downstairs.
The footsteps gradually faded into the distance.
The three people remaining in the private room looked at each other in bewilderment.
Zhao Demao swallowed hard. "What does he mean? Does he agree or disagree?"
Qian Guangcai frowned and said, "He told us to do it ourselves, as long as no one dies, he won't interfere."
Li Wanchun sat back down in his chair, picked up his wine glass, and slowly swirled it around.
"It's not that he's indifferent; he just doesn't want to get involved personally. Didn't you hear it? His last sentence—'Chao Gai is not someone to be trifled with.' He wasn't warning us; he was testing us."
Zhao Demao asked, puzzled, "Testing what?"
Li Wanchun sneered, "Let's test how capable Chao Gai really is. If Chao Gai is a fool, he'll collapse under our pressure, and then you, sir, will naturally stop protecting him. If Chao Gai is truly a tough guy and manages to hold us off, then you, sir, will realize you didn't misjudge him."
Qian Guangcai seemed to understand something: "You mean, Shi Wenbin is using us to test Chao Gai's true colors?"
Li Wanchun nodded.
"So we have to do this, and do it well. We can't let Chao Gai think that Shi Wenbin is behind this, but we also have to make him feel the pain."
He put down his wine glass and looked at the two of them.
"Have you ever heard of the Black Tiger Gang?"
Zhao Demao was taken aback: "The Black Tiger Gang? You mean the Black Tiger Gang from Xiawazi in the north of the city?"
Li Wanchun nodded.
Qian Guangcai frowned and said, "I heard that the leader of the Black Tiger Gang is named Meng Zhanpeng, nicknamed Black-Hearted Tiger, and he has sixty or seventy men under his command. They do whatever makes money, from casinos and brothels to loan sharking. This guy is ruthless and difficult to deal with."
"It's precisely because he's ruthless that we need him." Li Wanchun put down his wine glass. "We're not sworn brothers with him; it's a cash transaction. He takes the money to do the job, and we pay to avoid trouble."
Zhao Demao rubbed his hands together: "But what if things get out of hand and the authorities get involved..."
"Didn't Master Shi say that as long as no one dies, he'll pretend he doesn't know anything?" Li Wanchun glanced at him. "Besides, the bigger the commotion, the better. If it gets bigger, the people won't dare to buy grain from Chao's shop anymore."
Qian Guangcai thought for a moment and nodded: "Manager Li is right. So... when shall we go see Meng Zhanpeng?"
"Tomorrow," Li Wanchun stood up, "I'll go find a middleman to make connections first thing tomorrow morning. You all go back and prepare the silver, try to scrape together two hundred strings of cash."
"Two hundred strings of cash?" Zhao Demao gasped. "That much?"
Li Wanchun glanced at him: "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub. If Chao Gai doesn't fall, the losses for our three families will be far more than two hundred strings of cash."
Zhao Demao remained silent.
Qian Guangcai nodded: "Alright. I'll offer eighty strings of cash."
Li Wanchun said, "I'll contribute eighty strings of cash. Manager Zhao, you contribute sixty strings. It's settled then."