Building a Martial Dao Celestial Family by Laying Low

Chapter 302: Chapter 298: The Plot

「The next day.」

Past noon, Qian Laibao hurried to Chen Li’s study.

Chen Li had sent for him.

"Patriarch, you were looking for me?"

Qian Laibao bowed, his attitude deeply respectful.

Chen Li motioned for him to sit down. "How’s the market for fresh cocoons, raw silk, and silk lately?" he asked.

Qian Laibao replied, "For ordinary fresh cocoons, the market acquisition price is one mace of silver per catty. Raw silk costs much more—top-grade white silk thread goes for nine maces to one tael of silver per catty. As for finished silk, it’s the same as always: twenty-five taels of silver per bolt."

Chen Li listened quietly, lost in thought.

’Cocoons for one mace of silver, raw silk for nine maces, and finished silk for twenty-five taels...’

He sneered inwardly.

’Something is definitely rotten here.’

The national policy of replacing rice with mulberry was being implemented in the four counties around Mirror Mountain. This led to a glut of mulberry and raw silk, but the number of people who could afford finished silk remained the same.

With supply exceeding demand, a price drop is inevitable.

Yet after all this time, the price of silk hadn’t fallen—it had risen. That in itself was extremely strange.

In fact, when the Court first trialed this policy of replacing rice with mulberry, Chen Li had noticed something was amiss.

’Grain is the bedrock of the nation. Why would they change things so easily and without reason?’

During the Spring Festival, he had learned a few things while chatting with Shouheng.

The Court had implemented this policy in Jiangzhou, Shuzhou, and Yuezhou. Opposition was considerable, both at Court and across the land, and the matter was fiercely debated within the He Niu Martial Arts Academy.

But the Court’s attitude was firm, and it pushed the policy through despite the pressure.

Although the Court’s stance softened slightly after a series of popular uprisings in the three provinces, its new, more ambiguous attitude didn’t change the fact that it never rescinded the policy. That alone spoke volumes.

On top of that, before the new year, the Jiangzhou Textile Bureau had suddenly increased its official tribute quota, nearly doubling the required amount.

Putting these clues together, Chen Li was almost certain: for some unknown reason, the Court was in urgent need of vast quantities of silk.

And if they had such a demand, yet weren’t forcefully promoting mulberry and silk production, a rise in silk prices was an almost predictable and inevitable outcome.

And yet, the current acquisition price for fresh cocoons was being deliberately kept low. It was clearly the work of the Noble Families who had caught wind of the situation early. They were repeating their old trick of hoarding grain before the "replace rice with mulberry" policy, trying to exploit their privileged information to wring out a profit.

This was precisely why he had sent Chen Shouheng and Zhou Shuwei to Wuzhou to exchange for silver taels—to prepare for this very situation.

Chen Li immediately gave his orders to Qian Laibao. "Start at once. I want you to buy up all the cocoons you can from the farmers within Jingshan County. Buy as many as they have. You can offer five to ten percent above the market price, but no more than twenty percent. And you must be fast."

Qian Laibao was stunned, but then his eyes lit up. "Patriarch, are you trying to drive up the price of cocoons?"

He assumed Chen Li was planning to corner the market, first driving up the local price of cocoons, then selling off the family’s own large stockpile to make an obscene profit.

Chen Li glanced at Qian Laibao, knowing he had misunderstood, but he couldn’t be bothered to explain.

’His goal was simple.’

’Corner the supply!’

’Control as much of the raw material as possible.’

This would both guarantee production for his own Textile Workshop and, at the same time, weaken his potential rivals by cutting off their access to raw materials.

As the Village Chief of the five villages surrounding Lingxi, he had a natural advantage when it came to requisitioning cocoons.

Qian Laibao’s father was also a Village Chief and had deep, tangled roots in the local community.

When it came to agricultural affairs, the local Gentry often held more power than the County Magistrate.

The Gentry were the first ones who had access to whatever the common people produced.

It was far more efficient for them to intercept the goods at the source than for those great Noble Families from out of town.

Even a mighty dragon can’t crush a local snake. This was an immutable truth.

Chen Li said, "I’ll leave the specific methods to your discretion. Just remember: be quick, but try not to be conspicuous. Don’t arouse suspicion."

Spring silkworms spin their cocoons between March and May. The earlier he intervened, the better.

"Yes, I understand the stakes," Qian Laibao said, nodding repeatedly.

Chen Li’s gaze fell on Qian Laibao. Sensing that his aura was still at Qi Realm Perfection, he asked casually, "Your Cultivation is still at Qi Realm Perfection. Why haven’t you tried to break through?"

An embarrassed, troubled look appeared on Qian Laibao’s face. "In my early years of practice," he explained, "I took it easy during my body tempering and Bone Marrow Transformation. My foundation isn’t solid; it’s a bit unstable. Two months ago, I even made a special trip to Ping County to consult my master."

"My master said that in my condition, trying to break through to the Spirit Realm would be too risky. He told me not to rush it, to spend at least another year solidifying my foundation before trying again."

Chen Li nodded. Zhou Zhen was his master and was familiar with Qian Laibao’s early training; his advice was sound and prudent.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something important, Qian Laibao lowered his voice. "Patriarch, there’s one more thing..."

His expression grew grave as he continued, "A few days ago, a group of people from who-knows-where appeared in Mirror Mountain, seeking out many of our old martial brothers from the Tiger Subduing Martial Arts Hall."

"They were asking very detailed questions, mainly about Brother Sun Zhengyi’s life, especially his relationship with Shouheng. I’m afraid there’s something fishy going on."

Chen Li’s expression was calm as he nodded.

He had already learned of this from Zhou Chengkai. The group was undoubtedly Governor He Mingyun’s confidants.

In fact, that was precisely why he was going out with Liu Zongying—to find those very people.

Since Qian Laibao had brought it up, he immediately asked, "Do you know where they are now?"

"I don’t know." Qian Laibao shook his head. "But... there’s one person who definitely knows: Wu Qiquan."

"Wu Qiquan?"

Chen Li frowned. He had never heard of this person.

Qian Laibao explained, "He was also a disciple of the Tiger Subduing Martial Arts Hall, so he’s technically a senior brother to me and Shouheng. But he’s an arrogant type, looks down on the rest of us, so we never had much contact with him."

"Years ago, he became a Guest of the Jiang Family in Songjiang Prefecture. Not long ago, I heard something big happened to the Jiang Family."

"But that Wu Qiquan is a resourceful one. I don’t know what strings he pulled, but now he’s managed to get a position in our own Jingshan County Magistrate’s Office, working for Magistrate Luo."

’Luo Pingyuan?’

Chen Li frowned, instantly on guard.

It wasn’t surprising that a former Guest of the Jiang Family would be working under Luo Pingyuan.

But Luo Pingyuan’s own attitude and position in this matter warranted careful consideration.

But the fact that Luo Pingyuan hadn’t sent someone to inform him of this beforehand was unusual.

"What is Wu Qiquan’s relationship with that group?" Chen Li pressed.

"I can’t say for sure," Qian Laibao said. "But when they came to question me, Wu Qiquan was the one who brought them, and he was being very attentive. I’d wager he’s still the one leading them around to all our other martial brothers."

Chen Li pondered for a moment, a plan already forming in his mind.

He immediately gave his instructions. "Find an opportunity to make contact with this Wu Qiquan. Tell him you have important information regarding their investigation. If he doesn’t believe you, just say..."

Chen Li paused, a cold glint in his eyes. "Pingshui Village, Sun Family property deed. That will be enough."

Qian Laibao looked surprised, clearly not understanding the hidden meaning behind those words. "Patriarch, are you...?"

"Just do as I say," Chen Li said plainly. "And remember, make it look natural. Don’t arouse any suspicion."

Qian Laibao bowed. "If the Patriarch has no other orders, I’ll get right on it."

"Go on."

Chen Li waved his hand dismissively.

...

「Dusk fell as the sun sank in the west.」

Just as the city gates were about to close, seven riders on fast horses came galloping down the main road, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The guards at the gate moved to intercept them, but the lead rider simply raised a hand and tossed them a Token.

The soldier caught it, took one look, his expression changed slightly, and he immediately waved them through, not daring to ask any questions.

Once inside the city, the seven riders made straight for the main inn.

They dismounted in single file, tossing their reins to a waiting stable hand. All of them looked tired and travel-worn.

They had just stepped into the inn’s main hall, before they could even speak.

An attendant scurried over to one of them—a proud-looking young man of about twenty-seven or twenty-eight—and whispered with an obsequious smile, "Young Master Wu, you’ve finally returned. A gentleman left a letter for you and insisted it be delivered directly into your hands."

With that, he produced a plain, unsigned letter from his robes and handed it over.

The young man was none other than Wu Qiquan.

He was taken aback by the words, a trace of doubt flashing in his eyes. He took the letter, casually tore open the seal, and pulled out the paper to unfold it.

The handwriting was scrawled and the message was brief, just two short lines.

"Brother Wu, I’ve heard of your recent labors. Regarding that which you seek, I may have something. If you are interested, please visit my shop to discuss. —Qian Laibao"

Wu Qiquan’s expression changed instantly.

He crumpled the letter into a ball in his fist and forced a smile. "Dean Wang, Brother He, everyone," he said to the other six. "My apologies, but some urgent business has come up that I must attend to. I’ll be right back."

The group was led by a pale-faced, middle-aged scholar and a richly dressed young man with a volatile, impatient look about him.

They saw the strange look on Wu Qiquan’s face, but it wasn’t their place to ask questions.

Wang Siye waved a hand dismissively. "If that’s the case, Brother Wu, go attend to your business. We’ll arrange for the rooms."

Wu Qiquan offered another apology, then turned and hurried away.

He cut through streets and alleys, making a beeline for Qian’s Silk Shop.

The silk shop was about to close for the night, and there were no customers inside.

Qian Laibao was sitting behind the counter, the beads of his abacus CLACK-CLACK-CLACKING as he tallied the day’s accounts.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up. Seeing Wu Qiquan storm in with a frosty look, his small eyes showed no surprise. Instead, they narrowed into slits as he smiled. "Brother Wu, to what do I owe the pleasure? Please, sit down. I’ll make you some tea."

"Cut the pleasantries!"

Wu Qiquan was in no mood for games. He strode to the counter, his gaze fixed sharply on Qian Laibao. "What’s the meaning of this? The letter mentioned ’what you’re looking for.’ What does that refer to?"

Qian Laibao looked up, his small eyes narrowed, his face fixed in its usual businessman’s smile. "Brother Wu, you’re a smart man. It means exactly what it says."

Wu Qiquan snorted, his voice laced with resentment. "If you knew something all along, Junior Brother Qian, why did you claim to know nothing when we questioned you a few days ago?"

"Heh heh... Brother Wu, now that’s not a fair thing to say."

Qian Laibao leisurely set down his abacus and rubbed his hands together. "As you know, my family has been in business for three generations. The first rule of business is that goods are exchanged for payment. And information... well, that’s a commodity too."

"You and those big shots of questionable origin came in here, acting all high and mighty, asking questions and offering nothing in return. If I just answered every little thing you asked, wouldn’t I be a fool? Who gives away information for free? That’s just bad business!"

"So why are you willing to play the fool now?" Wu Qiquan asked sarcastically.

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