Protect Our Clan Leader

Chapter 720: Chapter 93: Shou Zhe’s Cunning Plan to Secure Qing’an (Monthly Pass Requested) _1

…

“You two shouldn’t look at me with such eyes.” Wang Shouzhe’s eyes look a bit innocent, “Ever since killing the ‘lewd demon’ Zuoqiu Qingyun, I’ve speculated that the Zuoqiu family wouldn’t be able to swallow this pill so easily and retaliating in secret is highly probable.”

“Thus, it makes sense for me to plan ahead.” Wang Shouzhe spoke leisurely, as if it was all trifling matter.

Qian Xuehan and Taishi Ankang exchanged glances. Wang Shouzhe’s words seemed reasonable at first. However, this guy was indeed overly cautious and meticulous.

The enemy was still in the dark, but he had already started setting up a trap, his dense net of schemes was already in place before they even started to react…

They felt genuinely sorry for the Zuoqiu family, such a prominent Rank Four Prominent Family was likely to suffer a great loss this time round.

At the same time, they felt fortunate that Wang Shouzhe, intimidating as he was, was on their side and not their enemy. Having such a reliable ally actually provided a sense of reassurance.

…

In the following days,

Longzuo and Qing’an counties were silently stirred with hidden strife.

Most of the Grade Eight and Nine Prominent Families didn’t sense the impending storm and merely felt as if something major was about to happen.

However, those of the 7th and 6th grades had a clear view of the drama unfolding.

The esteemed Prefectural Governor of Longzuo County was drubbed by his counterpart when he sought to discuss the flying carriage industry in Qing An Prefecture.

According to Wu Ding Hai, the Prefectural Governor of Qing’an county, Taishi Ankang was a man who frets over things unnecessarily. It was normal for businesses to vie for supremacy amongst themselves.

The Zuoqiu clan’s business methods might negatively impact competitors, but it ultimately benefitted the countless population of Longzuo County. Furthermore, with more competition in the commercial service industry, it actually stimulated potential, thus complacency was not an option.

The Cheng Commandery Prince of Qing An Prefecture completely ignored Taishi Ankang’s visit, excusing it off as not being home, clearly indifferent to preserving face.

After all, a Commandery Prince has the duty to protect and guard his territory, and he cannot leave his territory without an official order.

Obviously, the Cheng Commandery Prince didn’t put much thought into his excuse.

Embarrassed, Taishi Ankang returned home in disgrace.

The news spread to the National Capital and several surrounding counties, inevitably leading to mockery, painting Taishi Ankang as foolish. Why would anyone willingly loosen their grip on such a large chunk of fat meat?

And to go to the extent of going to their doorstep, wasn’t that self-humiliation?

However, the arrogant actions of Qing’an county sparked a revolt amongst a few Prominent Families and governmental offices. They boycotted the Qing Feng Commercial Firm one after another. However, the Qing Feng Commercial Firm, unfazed by their boycott, continued to slash prices while resorting to the laws of Daqian to oppose the local authorities.

If an ordinary business dared to act this way, the local government office would have cracked down on them a long time ago. Unfortunately, the Qing Feng Commercial Firm was an enterprise of a Grade Four Prominent Family, and their flying carriages were leased from Lingyun Holy Ground.

As the Qing Feng Commercial Firm’s low-price strategy continued to be executed, they began to swallow up and erode the market share of the Keep Achieving Commercial Firm in a whale-like manner.

Soon after, the Keep Achieving Commercial Firm also joined the price war. The two major commercial firms began a life-and-death struggle, constantly burning money, burning money, and then burning more money!

This indeed benefitted Longzuo County’s large and small merchants and the common people.

Due to the substantial reduction in transportation costs, it indirectly promoted trading activities. Trade between different regions became more frequent, seeming increasingly prosperous, and the market size was rapidly expanding.

Driven by human nature, everyone was happy to see the ongoing price war between the two major commercial firms. They hoped that the two firms would keep fighting, and fight forever.

Of course, this was impossible.

This was merely the two firms’ competition for market share. Once the outcome was clear, and one party was completely squeezed out, the price war would naturally end.

It seemed that Wang Shouzhe’s arrangement had already begun to take effect in secret.

…

Qing’an County.

As a well-known “land of fish and rice” in Daqian, the number of fertile fields in Qing’an county is considered the highest in Daqian, and its annual grain yield is also the largest in Daqian.

An official from the National Capital’s Finance Bureau once calculated that about 30% of the grain consumed by Daqian each year comes from Qing’an county. Even the most fertile Tianfu County among the remaining seven counties could not match the annual output of Qing’an county.

Correspondingly, the planting industry naturally became one of the pillar industries of Qing’an County.

During the harvest season, all big and small Prominent Families in Qing’an county were busy harvesting, drying, and threshing. The fields crisscrossing the farmland were bustling with activity.

The He Dong Sun Family was no exception.

The He Dong Sun Family, located in one of the five counties in the east of Qing’an county, which is the He Dong County, was a relatively strong Grade Eight Prominent Family in the area. The family had more than a hundred thousand acres of fertile land and more than a hundred hectares of fishing grounds. It was a typical example of a Qing’an Prominent Family with its primary produce being fish and rice.

On this day, like regular days, the Head of the He Dong Sun Family, Sun Chuan Xue, was sitting in an ox cart inspecting the different estates owned by his family, checking on the harvesting progress and estimating the yield per acre.

Suddenly,

Another ox cart slowly drove by on the dirt road beside him. A young cultivator lifted the curtain and greeted him, “Brother Ruicai, seeing your beaming smile, it seems this year’s harvest has been good.”

“Indeed.” Seeing the person was his younger brother-in-law, Sun Chuan Xue couldn’t help but laugh, “I’m not hiding anything from you. This year’s harvest from our family’s fields is more than 20% higher than previous years. When these grains are sold, we will earn about seventy to eighty thousand. Add to that the profits from the fishing grounds and our family’s income this year might break the hundred-thousand mark.”