Chapter 1097: Chapter 933: Is Being Smart So Impressive?

"It’s a full hundred thousand taels, and he bought these cloths for only ten thousand taels of Silver. Add to that the Silver donated by the rich merchants and the disaster relief Silver from the court, do you think he’s short of Silver to buy grain?"

The man looked down on Jiang Shouren’s short-sightedness, thinking that Gu Chengyu’s judgment was correct; merchants had such narrow vision, always focusing only on immediate profits.

Did he still plan to hoard grain for a big profit? In the past, hoarding was a sure way to profit without losing. But with Mr. Gu in Jiangnan, could such things be allowed to happen?

With Mr. Gu present, daring to collect grain is like seeking one’s own demise. Were it not for his timely arrival, how much would the Jiang Family have lost?

Fortunately, the master had divine insight, and in terms of strategy, perhaps only the master could rival Mr. Gu.

"The master said to sell off this grain quickly, stop delaying, or you’ll be crying later. Don’t make any rash moves these days; once Mr. Gu returns to the Capital, we can act freely. The court has adopted Mr. Gu’s suggestion and already sent officials from the Ministry of Revenue to prepare for establishing a chamber of commerce. Regarding the chamber of commerce, the master said there are many benefits, but the prerequisite is that you must have some status within it. Do whatever it takes to increase your influence in the chamber of commerce."

The man looked at Jiang Shouren with contempt; these merchants, all they had was Silver.

If it weren’t for the master’s intent to gather information, why would he entangle himself with such small merchants?

Jiang Shouren looked troubled. "The Xia Family has deep roots in Yingnan Mansion, and no matter how hard I try, it’s difficult to have a say among these merchants!"

"That’s not something you need to worry about. Once the chamber of commerce is established, the master will have instructions for you. Just follow the master’s directives. Establish good relations with those merchants, which can help in business and also gather information. Don’t do anything outlandish these days; don’t provoke Mr. Gu."

The man still felt uneasy and reminded him once more.

Jiang Shouren quickly complied. After all, the others were officials from the court; how could he dare to provoke them?

Moreover, the master he’s aligned with is one who excels in underhanded tricks; how could he dare disobey?

"Have you noticed any movements from that group of people I’ve asked you to keep an eye on?"

The man suddenly remembered something; Jiang Shouren wasn’t completely useless, as he could still monitor those people.

"The day before yesterday, their leader went to Ju Mansion to meet Ju Haoming. After he left, Ju Haoming opened all the rice shops the next day."

Only when he was asked to monitor the Ju Mansion did he realize that the Ju Mansion was somehow connected to that person. Silently, Ju Haoming indeed should not be underestimated!

The Ju family isn’t even ranked among the aristocratic families in Jiangnan, without heritage or connections, yet that person still took an interest.

"Keep a close watch on Ju Mansion’s movements. Report any abnormalities to me immediately. Do not have anyone follow that leader; the guards you have are too easily detected."

The man exited the Jiang Family’s mansion and casually donned his bamboo hat.

With a simple, honest appearance and coarse clothing, if Gu Chengyu were present, he would surely recognize this person as the waiter he saw at the teahouse the other day. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Lu Chen sat across from Gu Chengyu, scrutinizing him closely.

"Tsk tsk! Tsk tsk!" Lu Chen shook his head, making clicking sounds with his tongue.

Gu Chengyu put down the chopsticks in his hand and satisfactorily wiped his mouth.

The skills of the cook here were not bad. The dishes in Jiangnan were less flavorful than in the Northern region, but somewhat on the sweet side.

"It’s been two days and you’re still not over your shock? Your ability to process things is somewhat lacking." After rinsing his mouth, Gu Chengyu stood up and moved to the window.

Apart from being busy a while back, he had some free days recently.

Eat, sleep, and repeat—would he turn into a pig? Gazing at the drifting raindrops outside the window, Gu Chengyu squinted his eyes, pondering if it was time for a nap.

"I didn’t expect you would actually go through with it! I underestimated you. Tell me, how did you come up with that tiger bench?" Lu Chen asked with keen interest.

"Did I go through with it? I don’t think so! I didn’t take any action, did I? Am I such a brutal person? How did I come up with it? That’s simple! It requires no effort at all."

Indeed, it took no effort; it was all in his memory!

Lu Chen rolled his eyes at him, as if being smart was such a big deal!

"Are you really planning to let that person go?" He realized arguing wasn’t getting anywhere, so he got back on topic.

"Let him go? Perhaps. But I only said I’d remove him from that place, with conditions, naturally. Don’t we all have to work together to fulfill promises? Keeping him around is still somewhat useful. Once we’ve uprooted those people’s lair, whether he lives or dies, no one would care."

Gu Chengyu sat down in front of the luohan chair, signaling Ming Mo to set up the chessboard.

"What use do you have for keeping him?" Lu Chen naturally sat in front of the luohan chair, curiously asking.

"You want to know?" Gu Chengyu smiled and then continued, "It’s not yet time."

Lu Chen raised an eyebrow; actually, Gu Chengyu should be Xia Qing’s disciple, right? They both had the ability to infuriate people. Was being smart such a big deal?

"Aren’t you at all worried that those people might occasionally come to assassinate you? Even tigers nap occasionally. One moment of carelessness and you could be saying goodbye to this world."

Lu Chen held a white piece, his face showing schadenfreude.

"Look at this, offering me a piece right at the start? Your chess game is terrible, and you’re multitasking. Playing chess with you feels like an unearned victory!"

Gu Chengyu sighed, feeling a loneliness that comes from reaching heights unknown to others.

Lu Chen’s face turned black instantly. "I was distracted earlier; this doesn’t count. I demand a redo."

Saying this, he reached out to take the chess piece from Gu Chengyu’s hand. His fingers brushed against Gu Chengyu’s smooth and fine skin, surprising Lu Chen.

"No undoing moves, you lousy chess player." Not only was Lu Chen bad at chess, but he liked to undo moves, which gave Gu Chengyu a headache.

In fact, he originally intended to play by himself. Who knew Lu Chen would sit down? He couldn’t very well ask him to leave; that would be too hurtful to one’s pride.

"Sir! A letter has arrived from the Capital." Ming Mo just entered the study and saw Lu Chen tugging at his master’s sleeve, leaning forward, nearly lying on his master.

His eyebrows immediately furrowed, casting a sharp gaze towards Lu Chen.

This was a problem, was Lord Lu planning to make a move on his master?

However, his master was already engaged, and his master definitely liked women. Hopefully, Lord Lu wouldn’t lead his master astray.

Their master was so pure; it would be best to reduce contact with Lord Lu in the future.

No, when he returned to the Capital, he had to hint at this to the second madam. Continuation of the family line was a major affair!

Gu Chengyu hurriedly threw the chess pieces into the box. "No more!"

It turned out Lu Chen was indeed a lousy chess player, only slightly better than a beginner. If there was anything to be done, he didn’t fancy playing chess with him again.