Chapter Sixty-One: A Little Scheme

With Zhu Hao around, everything had a ready-made plan, and Yu San, acting as the executor, only needed to follow the steps sequentially.

However, Zhu Hao had made things clear in advance.

"Brother San, let's get the unpleasant truths out of the way first... This business belongs to me as the major shareholder, but you are the legal representative. If anything goes wrong, you will bear the responsibility. After all, a thirty percent profit margin isn't given for nothing... Of course, while your capital is guaranteed and you won't suffer a loss, you cannot treat this business as child's play; you must give it your absolute all."

Yu San asked with a puzzled look, "What is a legal representative?"

Zhu Hao explained solemnly, "It means you are the primary person in charge. To outsiders, you are the chief manager of the storytelling house, but the lion's share of the profits comes to me... The accounts must be crystal clear; all expenses and income must be meticulously recorded. I will come to check the books at any time. If I find any discrepancies, I will replace you without hesitation."

Yu San patted his chest and said, "Brother Hao, what kind of person do you take me for? Would I ever commit an act of betrayal for the sake of profit? Besides..."

He originally wanted to say something more, but stopped himself right as the words reached his lips.

Zhu Hao smiled slightly, knowing what he wanted to say. The gist of it was essentially: Most of my earnings still end up with your mother; if I were to turn treacherous and ungrateful just for partnering with you on a small business, not only would I lose the ability to help your mother make money in the future, but I would most likely no longer be able to establish a foothold in Anlu.

...

Yu San usually wore a frivolous smile, but he was exceptionally capable when it came to getting things done.

He had broad connections and never skimped on anything he could arrange properly on his own. If Zhu Hao needed something done and lacked familiarity with the local environment and the distribution of local powers, Yu San could well be described as a powerful helper.

After half a day, Zhu Hao felt that his money had been well spent.

At noon, Zhu Hao ate at home and told Mother Zhu that he would return to the Prince's Manor later in the afternoon. Mother Zhu asked with surprise, "Xiao Hao, you could return early tomorrow morning. Why not stay home a little longer to keep me, your aunt, and your younger sister company?"

Zhu Hao replied, "Mother, I want to return to the Prince's Manor early to understand the situation, gather useful information, and complete the task assigned by Grandmother as soon as possible. I also want to take the opportunity during my rest to play with the Prince of Xing's heir and cultivate a good relationship with him, so..."

Seeing that Zhu Hao had a mind of his own, Mother Zhu didn't harbor much suspicion and immediately nodded in agreement.

...

Without resting after lunch, Zhu Hao went outside the city to arrange for the labor force to modify the salt pans to meet the needs of salt production by solar evaporation during the autumn and winter seasons.

When he returned, it was not yet late. He called Yu San over to inquire about the rental of the venue and learned that everything was going smoothly. The vacant land itself required no rent; it was only necessary to stay on good terms with the local officials and the community head. Yu San had already negotiated the matter, and all the necessary connections had been properly buttered up.

"Brother Hao, we've already spent nearly three taels of silver. Those carpenters are working at top speed. What will we do if the silver isn't enough by then?"

Yu San looked somewhat worried.

Five taels of silver sounded like a lot, but when it actually came to setting up a facade to do business, it was still stretched thin.

Zhu Hao smiled and said, "Once the shed is built, all we need to do is hire a storyteller to come back. It won't cost much... Oh right, I remember there are storytelling venues in both the east and south of the city. Have you been to check them out?"

Yu San nodded. "I've checked them out, but hiring someone isn't cheap... If we pay a monthly stipend, working twenty-some days a month will cost three hundred cash."

"Not a single coin that needs to be spent can be saved. The quality of the storyteller directly affects the prosperity of the storytelling house, so we can't be sloppy. I'll leave the script with you. Once you recruit someone, you can start the storytelling sessions at any time. At first, when the audience is small, don't charge admission—we'll take a loss to build up a buzz, and only start charging when the story reaches a crucial juncture... If worst comes to worst, you can go up and tell the story yourself..."

At this point, Zhu Hao looked at Yu San with a beaming smile.

Yu San hurriedly waved his hands. "I don't have that kind of talent. It's safer to hire a proper storyteller, while I can just handle the odd jobs on the side."

Zhu Hao nodded. "I'll give you a script first. It's not finished yet, so you need to stay sharp and not let anyone swindle the script away from you. You can make the final call on how to arrange things."

Yu San raised his voice by an octave. "Just you watch, Brother Hao! If anyone dares to swindle our property, I'll make sure they never have another easy day!"

...

Yu San made his fierce threats with absolute confidence, but Zhu Hao knew that most of the time, Yu San was just putting on a bold front.

If Yu San truly possessed such great capability, why was it that whenever Mother Zhu got into trouble, he was never able to help?

Upon closer reflection, however, every time Mother Zhu ran into trouble, it was related to the coercion from the Zhu family and the official authorities. Even if Yu San had some local influence, he truly didn't dare to pick a fight with officialdom.

If it were merely ordinary commoners coming into conflict of interest with Yu San, then Yu San would undoubtedly still have a few tricks up his sleeve.

Zhu Hao returned to the Prince of Xing's Manor before sunset.

Lu Song was currently leading some men to arrange and assemble a framework in the courtyard. Seeing Zhu Hao return, he was genuinely somewhat surprised.

"Commander Lu, what are you all busy with? Do you need me to lend a hand?" Zhu Hao appeared very enthusiastic.

Lu Song looked around at his subordinates, some of whom were covering their mouths and snickering.

Lu Song immediately put on a stern face and shouted, "How tall are you anyway? Stay away from this kind of work. If the frame collapses and hits you, you'll only have yourself to blame."

In front of others, Lu Song maintained his usual cold attitude toward Zhu Hao to prevent anyone from noticing their private collusion. However, once the framework was nearly assembled, he still pulled Zhu Hao aside.

"Why didn't you spend the night at home? What are you doing back so early?"

Lu Song's tone was filled with vigilance.

Zhu Hao replied, "I'm just a child, and staying at home wouldn't be of much help anyway... I want to get used to the environment here as quickly as possible. After all, I'll probably be spending most of my time living in the Prince's Manor for many years to come... Commander Lu, isn't the Prince of Xing's Manor half a home to you as well?"

Hearing such affectionate words from Zhu Hao, Lu Song felt rather surprised.

You brat, you actually consider the Prince's Manor your home?

Zhu Hao asked, "Why are you building a framework in the courtyard?"

"That's none of your business."

Lu Song gave no explanation.

Zhu Hao smiled, taking Lu Song's vigilance in stride... If you want to shake off the control of the Embroidered Uniform Guard sooner, then we should cooperate sincerely and organize the relatively less important information of the Prince's Manor. That way, we'll have something to report every ten days without truly harming the interests of the Prince's Manor.

"By the way, Commander Lu, when I passed by West Street of the Prince's Manor, I saw a long procession of carriages coming through. Judging by the specifications, it didn't belong to an ordinary wealthy household. Whose presence is gracing the Prince's Manor?" Zhu Hao continued to probe.

Lu Song glared at Zhu Hao. "Don't ask about things you shouldn't. Whatever I can tell you, I naturally will."

With that, he walked away with a dark face, looking as if he were burdened by some unspeakable secret.

Zhu Hao curled his lips in disdain.

He thought to himself: If you don't tell me, you certainly won't tell Centurion Lin either. With you guarding so many secrets in your heart, you'll wear out Centurion Lin's patience sooner or later. When that happens, it'll be a huge trouble for you when your secrets get exposed.

...

The study of the Prince's Manor.

Yuan Zonggao was reporting to Zhu Youyuan.

The Prince of Ning had sent an envoy to see Zhu Youyuan, but Yuan Zonggao had sent him away.

"The Prince of Ning has long resided in Jiangxi and has had little contact with my Huguang region. Why would he suddenly send an envoy to visit?" Zhu Youyuan furrowed his brows slightly, his face filled with perplexity.

Yuan Zonggao wore a worried expression. "This Prince of Ning has been very restless ever since he was enfeoffed as a concubine's son in the tenth year of Hongzhi. In the second year of Zhengde, he bribed close ministers like Liu Jin, Qian Ning, and the actor Zang Xian, harboring desperate scoundrels. Recently, he has been contacting powerful figures in the capital, attempting to restore his disbanded personal guards. He is truly ambitious... If he succeeds, neither Jiangxi nor the Huguang region will know peace."

"Oh?"

Zhu Youyuan didn't take it too seriously.

He himself harbored no ambitions of rebellion. Although nominally his son was the first in line to the imperial throne, he knew that even if the Zhengde Emperor were to suddenly pass away, whether his son could smoothly ascend the throne remained questionable—after all, if the Empress Dowager and the ministers entrusted with the regency were both to object, entering and taking charge of the Forbidden City smoothly would still be quite difficult.

As for the Prince of Ning...

They had never interacted in ordinary times, so naturally he wouldn't care about affairs in Jiangxi.

Yuan Zonggao continued, "Since last year, bandits have been constantly causing trouble in Jiangxi. Even Nanchang Prefecture has not been at peace, and the turmoil has even implicated the borders of Huguang. All of this may be related to the Prince of Ning; otherwise, he would have no excuse to restore or even expand his personal guards... This time he sent an envoy to visit, and after a brief exchange with the envoy, I heard much disrespect toward the imperial court in his words and promptly dismissed him... The Prince of Xing should not have any further contact with the Prince of Ning to avoid giving others grounds for criticism."

At present, the ambition of Zhu Chenhao, the Prince of Ning, was growing rapidly. During the Zhengde era, due to the emperor's reckless behavior, extreme administrative chaos had broken out in various regions.

Moreover, a large group of sycophants in the court relied on buttering up the emperor to advance themselves, seizing high positions in a short period of time and issuing chaotic decrees one after another, which caused public grievances to boil over. This gave Zhu Chenhao the opportunity to realize his ambitions.

Naturally, Zhu Chenhao wanted to win over the vassal princes in the regions surrounding Jiangxi, especially those with prestige and strength, so that when he launched his uprising, he could obtain support in terms of financial resources, materials, and even manpower, creating an effect where the whole world would rise in response.

Zhu Youyuan said, "Then leave the matter of the Prince of Ning's domain to Senior Administrator Yuan to resolve."

Yuan Zonggao cupped his hands. "I will handle it properly."

Zhu Youyuan suddenly thought of another matter and asked, "What about the two study companions and the heir's studies..."

"Your Highness the Prince of Xing may rest assured."

Yuan Zonggao said, "I have already instructed Tutor Sui to focus on teaching the heir, and only spare a small amount of time to lecture the princess and the other children, ensuring a clear distinction of priorities... If Your Highness is concerned about the heir's studies, you may summon him to test him at any time."

Zhu Youyuan nodded. "Come to think of it, I haven't tested the heir's lessons in quite a few days. Senior Administrator Yuan, please make the arrangements."

...

Night fell once again.

Zhu Hao sat hunched over his desk under the candlelight, writing. After不知道 how long, he suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion, prompting him to stand up, stretch, and leisurely walk out into the courtyard, where he sat down on a stone step.

Autumn had already arrived, and the wind was slightly chilly.

Zhu Hao looked up at the framework before him, pondering for a long time without figuring out what it was for.

The courtyard was dead silent and completely deserted. Zhu Hao stood up, walked over to the door, opened it, and looked outside. Immediately, two patrolling guards walked over, and one of them barked at Zhu Hao, "Go back inside!"

Zhu Hao said, "I heard some movement outside, so I opened the door to take a look... Did you guys hear anything?"

The guards didn't answer and immediately started to chase him back. Zhu Hao stuck out his tongue, hurriedly retreated into the courtyard, and closed the courtyard door immediately, though he didn't bolt it.

Lu Song had instructed that the guards would return to rest at any time during the night, so the door had to be left unlatched at all times.

In the vast courtyard, Zhu Hao was all alone. He walked around the framework for a long time before an idea struck him. He went back inside his room, grabbed a summer garment he no longer wore, dampened it with water, and tossed it right onto the framework.

Early the next morning, some casual laborers and guards preparing to head home discovered Zhu Hao's "masterpiece."

One of them reached out directly and pulled down Zhu Hao's garment.

"Hey, what are you brat doing?"

Just as Zhu Hao happened to come out, the guard stopped in his tracks and barked loudly.

Zhu Hao put on an aggrieved expression. "I wet the bed last night, and having no other choice, I brought the urine-soaked clothes out to the courtyard to dry. After searching around for a long time, I found that hanging it right here was just right..."

"Ah?"

Upon hearing this, the man indeed found that the clothing in his hands was soaking wet. Reacting as if he had been bitten by a snake, he instantly dropped it to the ground.

"Hahahahaha..."

The guards nearby were all clutching their sides with laughter, thinking that the man had brought trouble upon himself and ended up with urine all over his hands.

Zhu Hao hurriedly went over to pick it up. "Don't throw it on the ground."

That guard almost wanted to fight Zhu Hao to the death, yet he didn't dare to be truly impolite... Zhu Hao held a special status in the Prince's Manor and didn't belong to their chain of command. What the consequences of punishing Zhu Hao would be was something they couldn't figure out, and they didn't dare to take the risk.

"This is a grape trellis, and you actually used it to hang clothes? And you even got urine on it? Hmph, looks like the distinguished guests of the Prince's Manor will be tainted by your brat's filth when they eat grapes in the future!"

These guards were truly straightforward after all.

They weren't as scheming as Lu Song.

So it was a grape trellis!

Growing grapes in the courtyard where I live—aren't they afraid I'll poison the grapes?

It seems I won't be living in this courtyard for long!