Yi Xin as a concubine

Chapter 208: Their Own Plans

On this day, there was constant laughter in Cuiping Garden, but bursts of screams were heard from the main courtyard of the back house.

The reason was simple. Xiang Qing heard that Xin Baoer's birthday was today, so she sent someone to inquire about Chu Xingchen's movements. When she learned that he had no intention of leaving the study, she couldn't help but sneer in her heart. It turned out that men all value power. In front of power, women are nothing.

Thinking of this, she no longer paid attention to it and went to deal with the things at hand. However, before the evening, the head maid beside her leaned over and whispered to her: "There are a lot of people invited over there, and the courtyard is noisy. I don't know where they come in from."

Xiang Qing's face changed immediately when she heard this, and a surge of anger rose to the top of her head. This man really didn't take her, the mistress of the house, seriously. He welcomed so many strangers into the house without even sending someone to inform him.

Anger rose in his heart, and he was ready to commit evil. He thought that since Chu Xingchen didn't care about that side, it would be much easier for him to do something.

With a turn of his eyes, he ordered someone to find a few new servants who were unfamiliar with the mansion. When they arrived, he whispered something to them and then sent them away with a grim smile.

But she didn't expect that until the fight in the yard over there was over and the people she sent out came back, she still hadn't heard of any trouble in the yard, and she couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.

Over the next few days, Xiang Qing looked a little dazed. Several servants had disappeared without a sound or a trace, with no one seeing them alive or dead. The longer time went by, the more frightened he became.

But for many days, neither Chu Xingchen nor Xin Baoer responded to this matter. Xiang Qing knew that something must have gone wrong with those people. But since neither side came to cause trouble for her, she thought they didn't know about it. With this fluke mentality, she gradually put her worries aside.

What she didn't know was that the reason Chu Xingchen turned a blind eye was that he just regarded those people as sneaky thieves. This kind of thing had happened before, so he just dealt with it and didn't take it to heart. Naturally, he didn't tell Xin Baoer about it, so that she wouldn't worry about these little things.

Xin Baoer didn't know about this, so naturally she wouldn't make a fuss. Besides, she was so busy running around that she was away from home eight out of ten days, and even the Mid-Autumn Festival was hastily celebrated.

It was difficult for Chu Xingchen to see her. Every time he looked for her, she was either in the Xin Mansion or discussing things with a group of shopkeepers. She was very busy. In this case, even if she knew, she probably wouldn't have much experience to do.

After all matters were arranged, they would give final instructions to Steward Lin and ask them to follow the Xin family's lead in all future actions. They should do whatever the Xin family did, and they should not move unless the Xin family did.

Steward Lin responded solemnly, but there was a hint of worry in his old eyes. He always felt that the young master seemed to be arranging his funeral affairs. After hesitating for a long time, he still couldn't help but ask.

"Master, have you been feeling unwell recently?"

Xin Baoer was startled by the question, then she realized it and couldn't help laughing, until the old man was concerned about her, she said: "Don't worry, I'm fine, I just made some plans, but they haven't been finalized yet, you don't have to worry about me, take good care of yourself, you will have to worry about this business in the future. Ling Niang and the others will be back in a year at the latest."

The old man felt relieved when he saw that her expression did not seem fake.

Xin Baoer worked for more than ten days in a row to arrange all the big and small things. She finally took a break and thought about arranging a path for the Xin family to return to the top. However, the Xin family came from a merchant family and had little influence. They still needed Chu Xingchen to protect them.

He instructed Lancao to prepare some good wine and food in the evening, and asked Wei Yu to invite Chu Xingchen over. Although the Xin family originally belonged to Chu Xingchen, emperors have been heartless since ancient times, and he didn't know whether Chu Xingchen would change in the future. It would be better to take advantage of the present to make real contributions.

Since ancient times, the human heart is the most difficult to predict, let alone the heart of an emperor? Xin Baoer did not dare to gamble.

Chu Xingchen has been in contact with various major families recently, but expecting these century-old clans to contribute money and food in this chaotic world is simply a fantasy. He has been very worried recently, and when he heard that Xin Baoer was in love, he got up and went to Cuiping Garden without saying a word.

After dinner, Xiang Qing went to her room to sew clothes for Chu Duanhong. The child had grown a lot taller recently. When she thought of the child, she couldn't help but think of how he always had to stay with that little bitch for half a day every now and then, and he spoke less and less with his mother. She felt very depressed.

The maid came in hurriedly and whispered in her ear that Chu Xingchen was called away by the people from that courtyard again. Her anger, which had already begun to grow, became even more intense.

"Pay attention to those girls with good looks that I asked you to pay attention to before," Xiang Qing asked.

The maid nodded and whispered, "They are all kept in a remote yard. There are three of them in total. You must see them."

"No, I trust you to do the job. Take good care of her. That little bitch has a delicate skin, so the person you prepare can't be too bad." Xiang Qing also lowered her voice.

"Yes." The maid nodded and quickly retreated.

Bijun and the others standing at the door did not hear anything because they were far away and the two men's conversation was low. They thought that the two men were under the eyes of the three of them every day and could not cause any big waves. Their master was busy and they did not want to trouble him with some trivial matters, so they did not report it.

When Chu Xingchen arrived, Xin Baoer had already ordered someone to set the table. Seeing him come in, her eyes lit up and she urged him, "No matter how busy you are, you have to eat on time. If you come later, I'll faint from hunger."

Seeing that she was happy, Chu Xingchen put aside his work temporarily, smiled and sat down to have dinner with her.

The two of them ate their meal quickly but warmly. They picked up some food for each other from time to time, just like an ordinary young couple.

After the meal, the two of them slowly drank the digestive tea brought by Lancao, and no one spoke first.

When the tea was almost finished, Xin Baoer finally organized her words and said, "I heard that you have been hitting a wall everywhere recently."

"Well, those old families value family interests more than anything else. National justice and patriotism are worthless in their eyes. I don't know what conditions can impress them. It's a headache." Chu Xingchen became discouraged when he mentioned this.

Xin Baoer put a stack of papers in his hand and said gently, "Don't worry, take a look at this first."

"Is this what you have been busy with recently?" Chu Xingchen took it and scanned it quickly, a look of surprise appeared in his eyes, and then he looked at it slowly.

Xin Baoer didn't disturb him, just waited for him to finish reading slowly.

"Baoer, is this really what you think? You are right, there is no heart that cannot be bought off. It all depends on whether the benefits are big enough." Chu Xingchen was a little excited.

"Those big families have gone through hundreds of years and experienced many ups and downs but have never declined. Naturally, they have their own way of doing things, and these rules of doing things are passed down from generation to generation after all. So for them, nothing can compare to family interests. As long as we grasp this point, we can negotiate with them." Xin Baoer analyzed.

"Our current predicament is that we have no money and no food, and we have no idea where to get the grain for next year. In addition, if you declare yourself king at the end of the year, the three provinces and six ministries will need talents. Scholars have been suppressed in recent years, and talents are dwindling. We will have to recruit the sons of those big families."

"Here's what I think. We won't ask them to contribute money and grain for nothing. For those who are willing to contribute grain, we promise to return their new grain at a ratio of 1:1.2 after the autumn harvest next year. For those who contribute money, we promise to give their families a few quotas to serve as officials in the royal court. We can then prepare for an assessment. As for whether they are capable of doing the job, it all depends on themselves."

The more Chu Xingchen listened, the brighter his eyes became. It turned out that the little girl could always give him surprises.

"As for how to implement it, my father and I have almost discussed it some time ago. We have also worked out the specific details. We can leave the business part to them. However, some agreements need to be signed only by you, the most powerful person."

"The Xin family is yours, so you can trust them to do things. In addition, I have temporarily handed over the Chamber of Commerce to the Xin family for management, and asked all the shopkeepers under me to obey the Xin family's command. The entire Northland will gradually become united, which should play a certain role in allocating materials and controlling prices in the future."