Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 200: Chapter 194 Two Years

Lin Shoude still had some courage, despite his lack of adaptability, but with Yang Zhenshan’s suggestion, coupled with the fact that the Prefectural Government now had money and food, Lin Shoude felt that Yang Zhenshan’s proposal was highly feasible.

However, the main thing was that he was holding a grudge in his heart, and Yang Zhenshan was right; he had been driven to An Yuan City.

He had been a County Magistrate in Jiangnan for twelve years, but in the end, he could no longer stay in Jiangnan; more precisely, many officials in Jiangnan could no longer tolerate him.

Those officials had banded together to give him a promotion, from County Magistrate to Prefect, moving him from Jiangnan to Chongshan Town.

For most officials, a promotion required spending Silver, cultivating relationships, and owing favors, but Lin Shoude was different; his promotion came from others spending Silver, pulling strings, and owing favors on his behalf.

This might sound somewhat laughable, but it was the truth.

Blocking stones could be removed not only by fighting and killing but also by moving them away, and sometimes moving them was even more convenient and easier than fighting and killing.

Especially in a place like Jiangnan, fighting and killing were too damaging to the scenery; promoting someone was undoubtedly the most worry-free and trouble-free method.

Being driven out of Jiangnan, Lin Shoude was helpless, but he wanted to prove himself, prove his capability, his ability to bring prosperity to the people, and earn the court’s trust and reappointment.

He wanted his former colleagues to see that he was indeed a pillar of society.

Therefore, after arriving in An Yuan City, he was eager to achieve some results.

Soon, under his leadership, the Prefectural Government sold off the assets of the convicted officials.

Without Yang Zhenshan’s intervention, Luo Zhen secured six shops with excellent locations in An Yuan City, and Yu Qingyi also had Wu Hai purchase a manor with three hundred mu of fertile land.

Out of the six shops Luo Zhen acquired, four would be used for the embroidery business, divided into three grades: high, medium, and low. There would be two shops for the lower grade, targeting ordinary civilians, one in East City and one in West City.

The high-grade Embroidery Workshop would be in South City, where the Prefectural Government, garrison office, and Military Equipment Department resided; hence, South City was where the officials and their families lived.

The medium-grade Embroidery Workshop would be in North City, mostly inhabited by merchants, as well as some officials from outside the city with residences in North City, such as those from the garrison, who would typically choose North City when buying homes.

The four Embroidery Workshops were sufficient to cover the entire city. Although they couldn’t monopolize the market, as long as these workshops were operational, the Luo family would dominate the embroidery business in An Yuan City.

The remaining two shops would be used for the fur and medicinal material businesses.

The fur business in Chongshan Town was highly profitable, even more so than the embroidery business, but the Luo family was new to the fur trade, so the fur shop in An Yuan City was just a trial.

As for the medicinal material business, it mainly involved purchasing medicinal herbs. In the mountains south of An Yuan City, especially in Yuanhe County, there were many wild herbs and many herb gatherers. The Luo family wanted to try purchasing these herbs and selling them in Qi State City.

Yang Zhenshan had no objections to this, as Luo Zhen had already done everything he had asked for.

The blacksmith and carpenter shops did not use the Luo family’s purchased shops but were rented by Luo Zhen. These two shops focused mainly on training blacksmiths and carpenters, so the quality of business was not crucial, which made renting any two remote shops sufficient.

Inside the garrison office.

Yang Zhenshan, hearing Luo Zhen’s report, nodded with satisfaction and laughed, ”You’re becoming steadier and steadier, young man!”

Luo Zhen replied somewhat embarrassedly, ”It’s all thanks to your teachings, Sir!”

Yang Zhenshan waved his hand, ”No need to flatter me. What I said were just principles, but whether one can comprehend them and truly accept them depends on you!”

Luo Zhen used to be a rash and impulsive lad, who almost brought the Luo family to ruin due to his impulsivity and rashness at the hands of the Zhang family.

But these past two years, Luo Zhen had grown a lot. Not only had he become much steadier, but he was also no less competent than Luo Shang in conducting business.

This was a matter of the younger generation rising to take over from Luo Shang.

”If it weren’t for you, Sir, I fear I would’ve become a pile of bones by now!” Luo Zhen looked at Yang Zhenshan with eyes full of gratitude and respect.

Yang Zhenshan saw his expression and laughed heartily.

Being appreciated and respected by others was a very pleasant thing.

Especially the admiration of the young made Yang Zhenshan feel a sense of accomplishment.

”How is your father doing?”

”He should be almost ready in a while. Father has secured two shops in Jing’an Prefecture, though the locations are slightly lesser, but they already meet our needs!” answered Luo Zhen.

During this period, Luo Shang had always been in Jing’an Prefecture City.

After all, compared to An Yuan City, Jing’an Prefecture City was wealthier and more prosperous.

”That’s good.” Yang Zhenshan thought for a moment, then said, ”Have your father purchase a manor for me in Jing’an Prefecture.”

”How big of a manor?” asked Luo Zhen.

Yang Zhenshan pondered for a moment and said, ”Four or five hundred mu should be enough!”

The land in Jing’an Prefecture was much better than in An Yuan State, and the cost-performance ratio of purchasing a manor there was higher, even though managing it would not be very convenient.

”After the purchase, let me know, and I will have Wu Hai arrange for someone to manage it!”

”Sure, I will inform my father immediately!” Luo Zhen agreed without hesitation.

Yang Zhenshan didn’t mention anything about the Silver.

He and Luo Shang had an understanding; how much the Luo family made each year and how much they gave to Yang Zhenshan was already settled.

As for whether this amounted to collusion between officials and merchants, Yang Zhenshan didn’t care at all.

He did not allow the Luo family to resort to cunning and brute force, nor did he help the Luo family persecute the innocent, and certainly did not commit any acts that were against the heavens and reason. Even if it was collusion between officials and businessmen, so what?

Furthermore, such matters are hardly surprising in Da Rong.

Many families of officials have close relationships with merchants, and some even deliberately support merchants with the aim of amassing wealth.

Compared to them, at least Yang Zhenshan did not use any despicable means.

After Luo Zhen left, Yang Zhenshan sat in his study, lost in thought.

Currently, everything was on the right track, all was proceeding in an orderly manner.

In terms of official duties, the training at City Gate Castle continued uninterrupted, and the garrison camps outside the city were also being renovated—all was progressing according to Yang Zhenshan’s plans.

On a personal level, the development of the Luo family was stable and steady, and the Yang family was undergoing a gradual transformation.

From their heritage to their wealth, the Yang family was slowly accruing more.

Everything was developing in a good direction.

However, among these developments, there were a few hidden dangers, the biggest of which was the collusion-with-the-enemy case. Although publicly, the case had concluded, in reality, there remained an unknown force behind the scenes, which was very likely the Prince Qing Mansion.

Regardless of whether it was Prince Qing Mansion or not, Yang Zhenshan was more or less implicated in it.

Taking those gold and silver items and supplies wasn’t much of a problem; after all, the force behind the scenes wouldn’t brazenly search for those things. As long as he was careful, he wouldn’t be found out.

His involvement in the matter was actually with the Secret Martial Guards. If the Secret Martial Guards needed to use him in the future, he would inevitably have to assist, from which he could not extricate himself.

Fortunately, there had been no movement from the Secret Martial Guards for now, and Yang Zhenshan could enjoy a relaxed period of time.

After considering the tasks ahead, Yang Zhenshan’s mood became much lighter.

Aside from the matter of the Secret Martial Guards, there was nothing else that required too much of his concern.

In the days that followed, Yang Zhenshan lived a leisurely and contented life.

Going to and leaving government office punctually every day, he handled the limited number of official duties. Every other day, he would visit City Gate Castle to check on the soldiers and, every five or six days, he would head out of the city to the garrison and the horse ranch.

Although sometimes this meant traveling back and forth, for Yang Zhenshan, going on regular outings was a relaxing activity.

While Yang Zhenshan leisurely strolled around, the new Prefect Lin Shoude was extremely busy.

After selling off the assets of the removed officials, Lin Shoude entered a frenzy of construction.

Building roads, repairing city walls, fixing ditches, renovating the government office—whatever caught his eye as unsatisfactory, he would fix.

Although this did seem to suggest a waste of money, the large amount of silver expended brought tangible benefits to the common people.

When the common folk went to work, they could earn a minimum of twenty copper coins a day, and sometimes even up to thirty.

Twenty to thirty coins a day might not seem much, but for those families with four or five able-bodied workers, having two or three people working could bring in about fifty coins a day, earning at least one or two silvers a month.

It was extremely difficult for ordinary people to earn extra money, so having such an opportunity to work was truly a great blessing for them.

With money earned, people would start buying various living necessities. Those who previously skimped on eating meat would occasionally indulge, and those worn-out clothes could finally be replaced with new ones.

With silver coin circulating, the whole business environment of An Yuan City began to flourish.

Walking down the bustling streets, Yang Zhenshan watched the passersby, a faint smile always playing on his lips.

”Grandpa, look, Jinxiu Workshop!”

A little girl dressed in a light blue Luo skirt stood beside him, pointing to Jinxiu Workshop nearby, her eyes curving with joy as she called out.

This little girl was Yang Qingwan.

It was the twenty-eighth year of the peaceful era; two years had passed, and Yang Qingwan was now six years old.

The little girl had grown up and become even more lively and energetic. Every time she saw Yang Zhenshan, she would stick to him and ask him to take her out shopping.

The passing of two years had left almost no trace on Yang Zhenshan. He looked up at the signboard of Jinxiu Workshop and smiled, asking, ”Want to go in for a look?”

”Mhm!” The little girl nodded vigorously.

”Alright, Grandpa will take you in to see!”

Saying this, Yang Zhenshan led Yang Wanqing into the grand entrance of Jinxiu Workshop.

Jinxiu Workshop in South City was definitely the most luxurious shop in An Yuan City, with gilded signs for the storefront and ceramic tiles for the floor inside, reflecting the entire shop as extraordinarily bright.

The shop was split into two floors: the first floor for fabrics and embroidered goods’ counters, and the second floor designated for VIP guests.

The moment Yang Zhenshan stepped into Jinxiu Workshop, a young girl wearing a crimson Luo skirt came to greet him.

Upon seeing Yang Zhenshan, the girl was momentarily surprised, then quickly bowed respectfully, ”This girl pays respects to the garrison officer!”

Yang Zhenshan gave her a glance, ”Which garrison are you from?”

”This girl is from the East Yan Dun garrison!” the girl said.

Yang Zhenshan nodded. The clerks of Jinxiu Workshop were all women because the main customers of Jinxiu Workshop were female.

Most of these female clerks were from the garrisons under the jurisdiction of the garrison office.