Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The manor occupied an area of seven or eight mu in the affluent part of Pingxi City. There were many courtyards inside the manor. It was a serene place filled with many trees, flowers and other plants. Only the servants, guards, and stewards stayed here usually. Even the most of neighbors didn’t know this manor belonged to the renowned Zhong Clan of Lan Province. Coincidentally, this manor was only half a street away from the manor where Yan Liqiang discovered Ye Xiao’s incident before.

The head steward led Zhong Hongzhang and Zhong Ruolan directly into the drawing room, where they washed their faces and hands. After serving up some tea, he stood solemnly at the side. Zhong Hongzhang and Zhong Ruolan sat down in the seats on either side of the clan head’s seat in the drawing room.

Zhong Hongzhang took a sip of tea to moisten his mouth, then spoke, “We saw the Yan Benevolence Hall in the city just now. Quite a few beggars and the poor were lining up to get themselves porridge at the entrance. Does that place belong to the Yan Clan?”

“Second Master, the Yan Benevolence Hall in Pingxi City was opened by the Yan Clan of Yan Fortress since more than a month ago. The Yan Benevolence Hall gives out food and clothing to help the poor and distressed every day, and also does a lot of good things for the people in the city, such as maintaining the bridges and roads here. Apart from Pingxi City, Yan Benevolence Halls can also be found in every county town of Pingxi Prefecture. All of them more or less have the same functions. In just a month, the Yan Benevolence Halls have won praises from countless people inside and outside of Pingxi Prefecture, and the Yan Clan’s reputation also soared in the prefecture…”

Zhong Hongzhang exchanged glances with Zhong Ruolan before the former said, “Alright, understood. Send someone to bring Manager He here to meet me!”

The head steward retreated after receiving his orders, then arranged people to notify Manager He, who was none other than the manager of the Zhong Clan’s Datong Monetary House in Pingxi City.

“What do you think, Ruolan?”

“If the Yan Clan is after fame, setting up only one Yan Benevolence Hall in Pingxi City should suffice. Yet, they set up one in every county within the prefecture. It’s evident that they’re not just looking for fame. From the looks of it, Yan Liqiang either sincerely wants to give back to the community after earning too much money, or he’s not satisfied with his current fame and reputation and wishes to gain more influence in Pingxi Prefecture!”

“I think so too. However, Yan Liqiang is already very influential despite his young age. After he killed Cai Yingwu with only a single arrow, everyone knows that he’s the best archer in the northwestern region. He can even subdue the Transportation Office and the Soaring Heaven Sect. Is that not enough? Regardless, there’s no way Lei Sitong will appoint him as the Pingxi Prefectural Governor!”

“Second Uncle, have you forgotten his other identity? The Emperor personally appointed him as the Qiyun Protectorate General.” Zhong Ruolan’s eyes sparkled as she spoke.

“Qiyun Protectorate General?” Zhong Hongzhang suddenly burst out laughing while shaking his head. “No matter what, there’s no way he can make the citizens of Pingxi Prefecture run to the White Stone Pass and help him fight the Shatu people. Although the Gulang Plains are quite chaotic right now, Pingxi Prefecture still won’t be able to stand against anyone from the Shatu Seven Tribes. Even if he wishes to fight the Shatu Seven Tribes, there’s no way he can do it even if Lei Sitong hires the entire Gan Province. If he wishes to rely on the people of Gan Province to help him recover the Gulang Plains so that he can secure his position as the Qiyun Protectorate General, there’s no way Lei Sitong or the imperial court would agree to this!”

“Unusual people are capable of unexpected things. If we can predict everything he does, then he’d be an ordinary person. Then there’d be no need for us to come all the way here to find him. Apart from Yan Liqiang, have you met anyone with such exceptional martial arts cultivation, knowledge in path of mechanics and the investigation of things, as well as capability in earning money at his age, Second Uncle…?”

“You have a point there, Ruolan!” Zhong Hongzhang’s face slowly turned serious as he nodded. “Perhaps I was being a little too naive. Yan Liqiang is indeed capable of unexpected and highly unpredictable acts. Manager He has lived in Pingxi City for many years so he knows every big event and trend in the prefecture. Nothing can possibly escape his eyes. When he comes later, we can have a good chat with him to get more information so that we’ll be more prepared by the time we meet Yan Liqiang!”

…

Manager He was a plump man. He had a pair of small eyes on his round face and a black mustache above his lips. From afar, he seemed like a happy-go-lucky type of person. Yet, one would be able to sense his intelligence if they came closer to him. Among the merchant groups in Pingxi City, Manager He could definitely be regarded as a famous figure. He had an unusual status and most businessmen or merchants would treat him with respect.

When Manager He heard that the Second Master had come to Pingxi City to see him, he immediately rushed there as quick as possible even though he was drinking tea with his guest at the Datong Monetary House.

Zhong Hongzhang and Zhong Roulan only had a short chat over their tea in the drawing room when Manager He arrived.

After greeting both of them, Manager He respectfully took a seat in the drawing room. Zhong Hongzhang talked to him about the Datong Monetary House for a bit, before getting straight to the point and asking about Yan Liqiang and the Yan Clan.

“Even if Second Master didn’t ask, I was going to send a letter through bird post to get some opinions from our leaders and managers back at home.”

“Oh, what’s so urgent that you were going to send it to the Zhong Clan through the bird post?” Zhong Hongzhang asked curiously.

“Well, I realized that the Yan Clan and Lu Clan of Huanglong County have been collecting wool everywhere over the past two months. It’s quite strange and astonishing to me, so I want to make sure that everyone is informed back at home!”

“The Yan and Lu Clans are collecting wool in huge quantities?” Zhong Hongzhang found it puzzling too, and thought it was a joke.

“Well, the Yan and Lu Clans are paying any price to get the wool. Although the wool isn’t sold at a high price, every jin still costs about ten copper coins so it isn’t that cheap either. The people who rear sheep were extremely excited after hearing that the useless wool from their sheep could be sold for money. So they sheared their sheep wool and sold it to Yan and Lu Clans. Some clans outside the prefecture even sheared their sheep and brought their wool to Pingxi Prefecture to sell them as they could still earn some profit after taking out the travel expenses.

“Just last month, the Yan and Lu Clans spent a fortune buying a few ranches in different counties of Pingxi Prefecture. Not only that, but they also bought a few hillsides and lands that span over more than twenty thousand hectares in total. After buying these places, there are rumors about the clans making preparations to rear sheep there, and they have sent people to buy lambs and are hiring workers. It was also rumored that Yan Liqiang was the one who instructed people to buy the wool. No merchant in Pingxi Prefecture knows what the two clans plan to do with the huge amount of wool they’ve collected.”