stingy landlady

Chapter 198 Lin Qian Brings Back His Wife

The Prince of Zhenbei continued:

"Lin Qian, you know my situation! The court is definitely wary of us. If there is enough food, that person's seat will be in jeopardy."

They send imperial envoys to check on us every few days, just because they're afraid we're getting too comfortable!

Lin Qianchong, the Prince of Zhenbei, cupped his hands and said:

"Your Highness! Now that I have left the army, it is not appropriate for me to discuss matters of the military and the court! Let's talk business; the sofas I brought are selling quite well!"

Your Highness, since Guizhi trusts me, then I will not have come in vain. I will certainly consider the well-being of Guizhi and my brothers.

"Your Highness, let's have someone sign a contract. We'll still share the profits from this sofa in the future."

The Prince of Zhenbei laughed heartily:

"Lin Qian, Lin Qian! You're so ruthless! Xu Hong always comes trembling with fear when he asks for a share! He's terrified that I'll try to bribe him with people and land again!"

With that kind of courage, I don't know how he managed to lead troops into battle back then.

The Prince of Zhenbei teases Lin Qian:

"Hey? Lin Qian! You've got some nerve, directly asking me for a share. Aren't you afraid I'll send over a few thousand more men?"

Lin Qian smiled slightly.

"Your Highness! You don't really want Guizhi to gain the favor of those important figures, do you? By spreading people out like this, aren't you just doing what the higher-ups want?"

Your Highness! These brothers under my command are only able to live a peaceful and stable life thanks to Guizhi! Of course, it is also inseparable from Your Highness's guarding of this place that the people can live and work in peace!

Your Highness! The income from this wardrobe and sofa is but a drop in the ocean for the Prince's mansion. But after being divided among us, it's the foundation for our livelihood!

Your Highness! Please don't worry too much about our little bit of money! After all, Guizhi is still a young girl, and it's truly not easy for her!

"Hmph! You still have the nerve to say that! All these grown men are less cunning than a little girl!"

"Your Highness! Treat us with sincerity! Guizhi has been sincere to us, so it is only right that we repay Guizhi with our loyalty!"

"Alright, alright! Lin Qian, go find the manager and sign the contract later. While you're at it, take the dividends from the past few months back to Guizhi! So that Wang Guizhi won't be sleepless and afraid to come and ask for them! Hahaha!"

The Prince of Zhenbei couldn't help but find it both amusing and funny, thinking of Guizhi's anxious, scratching-headed expression and how Xu Hong always seemed afraid of being pressured into giving him money, yet dared not ask for it.

"Your Highness! The sofa business is doing quite well in our county, and there's also Guizhi's many fields! We're afraid that some people with ulterior motives might covet these valuables!"

We humbly request Your Highness's permission to borrow the power of the Prince's residence and, for once, act as a figurehead.

"Will they take advantage of this to bully and monopolize the market? Or falsely convey some kind of imperial decree?"

"Of course not! Your Highness! I was only trying to protect myself! After all, Guizhi is far too weak as the owner."

"Having neither power nor influence, I fear we cannot protect our dwellings and peaceful lives. Your Highness! You know, even a lowly yamen runner could make things difficult for her, and Guizhi would have no way to resist."

The Prince of Zhenbei raised an eyebrow:

"Lin Qian's words have a hidden meaning! Is someone really making things difficult for Guizhi?"

Lin Qian then read Guizhi's letter to Xu Hong, in which she mentioned that Li's third sister's husband was a yamen runner. She also recounted how her attempt to give Guixiang to the county magistrate's brother-in-law as a concubine had failed, and how she feared future retaliation.

The Prince of Zhenbei could no longer contain his rage.

"These yamen runners and county magistrates are far too arrogant and domineering! Don't tell me that you can't handle such a trivial matter!"

"Your Highness! This involves the government, and besides, we have all left the army. We are afraid that the government will say that we veterans are causing trouble! If we could use Your Highness's influence to give us a warning and a lesson..."

No one dared to make things difficult for Guizhi's family anymore!

"Alright, alright! I'll certainly borrow your power! Otherwise, if my good son knew that Guizhi's family had been bullied, he would definitely run back to demand justice!"

These two are like they're under a spell, fiercely protecting Guizhi!

Lin Qian chuckled dryly.

"It concerns Your Highness's family affairs, so I dare not interfere! Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness! I will certainly give the county magistrate and his assistant a good talking-to when I return."

We farm honestly and do business uprightly; we certainly cannot tarnish the title of Your Highness!

The Prince of Zhenbei waved his hand.

"Never mind! When Guizhi's two older sisters get married, I should certainly send them generous gifts as well. How about this!"

"We can't favor one over the other. How about we give each person fifty acres of land as a gift? Lin Qian! That's quite a lot!"

Lin Qian smiled bitterly:

"Your Highness is wise!"

"Of course, that's a brilliant idea. How many people can fifty acres of land support? They may not have Guizhi's skills, but they should still be lacking guards and farmhands."

Anyway, their wedding is still a long way off. We can arrange the manpower later, so let's leave it at that!

Lin Qian immediately took his leave:

"Your Highness! This subordinate takes his leave!"

"Okay! Go! Do a good job! We'll talk about the future later!"

Wanrou from Huanghua Village made an excuse and left first, leaving Lin Qian's wife and Guizhi alone. Lin Qian's wife took out three thousand five hundred taels of silver and handed it to Guizhi.

“Miss Dong! This is what Lin Qian asked me to give you before he left! He explained that two thousand taels of this money was for income from wheelchairs and prosthetics.”

"This 1,500 taels was from the sale of a prosthetic eye. They gave me 2,000 taels initially, and Lin Qian used 500 taels to buy glass for making the prosthetic eye, distributing the rest as rewards to the craftsmen."

Guizhi asked curiously:

Do you know who's so generous?

Lin Qianjia's detailed account:

"He was the son of a marquis in the capital. He and a few others went hunting together, but someone shot him with an arrow that missed and blinded him in one eye."

You'd be lucky to escape with your life, but this young master is obsessed with his appearance and pride. He throws tantrums and makes a scene every day after his eyeballs were removed.

The imperial physician then introduced that they had prosthetic eyes! The craftsmen carefully crafted prosthetic eyes based on the young master's eyes, and when worn, they looked quite good unless you looked closely.

"It's better than having only one eye and looking frightening!" The young master was delighted, asked the price, and upon hearing it was two thousand taels, agreed without hesitation!

Guizhi happily put away the silver notes, and casually took out one hundred taels, saying to Lin Qian's wife:

"This is what they call 'no business on ordinary days, but when it does, it feeds you for a year!' This hundred taels isn't much, it's just a token of my appreciation. Not long after you got married, Aunt Lin came back here with Uncle Lin."

It's definitely inconvenient that Uncle Lin isn't home. If there's anything, you can tell me if I'm home; if not, you can talk to Wanrou. You'll get used to things gradually!

Lin Qian hesitated for a moment, then accepted the silver note. He said:

“Master! I shouldn’t accept this in principle, but it’s your kind gesture! So I’ll accept it. I don’t lack money; my dowry is enough for my expenses!”

Although it's a bit far, I still have cash on hand.