Lin Guan lowered his head, and in his heart, his hostility towards Lin Yong rose to the highest level. His familys old master had always been warm and gentle, and if he hadnt been provoked, he would never have revealed such malice.

  So what did Lin Yong actually do?

  Lin Guanjia didnt ask any further, but instead instructed Yaotou to reduce the dosage of the medicine by half when brewing it. As a result, Lin Yongs illness dragged on intermittently.

  Dr. Xu examined me twice and also figured it out, prescribed the same medicine as before, and reminded me of some words like "rest well and relax" and patted my butt and left.

  Two days later, not only was the balance of the auction paid off, but all goods in various stores were also cleared out and sold to takeover store owners at cost price.

  The Lin familys money filled up the five large rooms of Wutong Garden, with the Lin familys loyal servants guarding inside and soldiers dispatched by Lin Jiang guarding outside.

  Because the Lin familys wealth is well-known, there are guards stationed every ten steps outside the Lin mansion. Lin Jiang uses his identity as an observer to summon troops from Yangzhou to protect him. Even if there were thieves, when they see the heavily guarded Lin mansion, they can only retreat.

  Lin Qingwan had only slept for less than three hours for three consecutive nights, and her body was exhausted after completing the task, so she fell asleep until the sun was high in the sky. However, she didnt know that her reputation had already spread throughout Yangzhou and was flying to various states in Jiangnan.

  "This Lin familys eldest daughter is really formidable, she single-handedly sold off such a large family business, and hundreds of thousands of taels of silver passed through her hands without batting an eyelid, just like her brother, shes quite capable."

  "After all, being born into the Lin family means having a slightly weaker body, but it wont affect ones abilities."

  "And whats more, I heard that it was her idea to open the granary and distribute the grain, and with so much food, she just gave it all away."

  "No wonder Master Lin dared to give his family to her as a dowry. I think that even if the eldest house had no heir, it would not have declined."

  "Hmm, maybe not. Even if Lin Xiaojie is very capable, after a hundred years, the Lin familys main house will have no descendants and wont be able to avoid decline."

  "Its not necessarily that there wont be any descendants," someone said in a low voice, "I heard that the Lin family intends to give the eldest son an heir, and if all else fails, doesnt Lord Lin still have a daughter who can sit out her reproductive years and marry in?"

  "The eldest son of the Lin family has already been adopted, why wait until now?" Someone disagreed, "As for uxorilocal marriage, it might have been possible in the past, but now that the Lin familys property is all gone, which young master from another family would be willing to marry into our family? After all, this is the main branch of the Lin family, cant just casually find someone on the street and bring them back home like ordinary people?"

  "Yes, its just that there is a slight difference in status. It must be someone from a scholarly family, otherwise the Lin family would lose face."

  These rumors slowly drifted out of Yangzhou, flew to Suzhou, and Shang Mingjie was the first to hear them from his family school. They said that his cousin was going to get married, but no one knew who had the good fortune to marry Lins cousin.

  Shang Mingjie couldnt sit still any longer and went home to pester his elderly mother to go to Yangzhou.

  "My uncle has been ill for some time now, and the letter big brother sent back was unclear. Grandmother, wont you let me go to Yangzhou to take a look?"

  The old lady was still angry about Lin Jiangs refusal of the two childrens marriage, and said with a straight face: "You want to read books, when do you have time to go? Your elder brother is always more steady than you, with him in Yangzhou what can be worried about?"

  Shang Mingjie licked his lips and said, "Grandma, I still want to ask my uncle some questions about my homework. The teachers at home are good, but compared to Uncle, they are far inferior. There are many problems that the teachers cant answer, and they just let me figure it out on my own. But some problems I dont understand, no matter how many times I read them, Im still only half-understanding, its really frustrating."

  As for Shang Mingjies homework, the old lady hesitated, "But your uncle is ill, how can we trouble him again?"

  "Its just chatting with Uncle, wont let him overexert himself, and there are many more books in Uncles house than ours, maybe I can even see Uncles old manuscripts, which are priceless."

  Lin Jiang was once the number one talented young man in Jiangnan, and later he went to the capital city and became very famous too. I heard that even several young masters of the Fan Yang Lu family couldnt compare with him. If we can get his guidance, it would be great.

  The old lady thought for a moment, but there was still resentment in her heart.

  A long time ago she wanted to arrange a marriage between Ming Jie and Yu Bin, but Lin Jiang and his daughter thought the two children were too young and there was no need to rush, so they declined.

  She didnt rush either, thinking of letting them be together for a while and bringing it up when theyre older.

  Later, her daughter left before her, leaving her to send off the deceased with a heavy heart. Yubin had to observe mourning rituals, so she didnt bring up the matter again, thinking that she would deal with it after the mourning period was over.

  Yu Bin is still seriously ill and has not yet left Xiaolinjiang. At this time, mentioning the marriage of the two children was entirely for his and Yu Bins sake.

  She wanted to give Yu Bin a sense of dependence and also let Lin Jiang leave with more peace of mind.

  The Lin family clan is all collateral branches, and the blood relationship has long since faded. Its better to entrust the property to the Shang family for management than to let them take care of it.

  After all, she is still a member of the Fang family or at least an in-law of the Yu family, so they wont let her suffer.

  Pi Linjiang was possessed by a demon and sold all his industries to donate to the imperial court.

  Mingyuan came and said that Linjiang was a devoted heart for the public, but after all, she lived for several decades, seeing clearly and understanding, Linjiang was actually guarding against the Shang family.

  Whats said about a piece of loyalty is just fear that the industry will fall into the hands of the Lin and Shang families, so its better to disperse than leave it for Yuhai.

  Looking at his series of actions, Im afraid the only one he can trust now is his sister.

  The old lady had never thought of moving Yu Bins inheritance, so seeing her son-in-law being so defensive against her, she couldnt help but feel annoyed, and for the past two days, she didnt even want to look at the letters sent from Yangzhou.

  "Alright, stop shaking now. Grandma has promised you, but when you go to Yangzhou, dont provoke your uncle and listen to your older brothers words. Your cousin is suffering in her heart, so be more considerate of her and dont bully her."

  Also said: "Go and tell your mother, dont let her worry."

  The old lady said here with a sarcastic tone, the second daughter-in-laws thoughts she understood the most. Previously, she had persuaded and begged with all her might, which made the other party agree to the marriage of the two children.

  But she knew in her heart that what he was after were probably the industries behind Yu Bins back.

  So after Mingyuans letter came back, Zhao Shi pretended to have forgotten everything and immediately turned black in the face. After that, she stayed in the Buddhist hall all the time and didnt come out easily. Once she came out, she would scold the servants.

  The old lady thought that her son-in-law was so guarded and refused to let Shang Jian take over the family business because of Zhao Shi. She didnt know if it was because her son-in-law had guessed Zhao Shis attitude and character, which was why he would rather sell all his property than leave it to Yu Bin.

  So at this time, the old lady was angry with Lin Jiang and also hated Zhao Shi.

  Shang Mingjie didnt know the old lady was still angry and had already cheered up, running away with a few small steps.

  At this time, Lin Qingwan had just gotten out of bed and looked at the sun hanging high outside. She then touched her empty stomach.

  Bai Mei brought in the little girl with washing things, while Bai Feng found clothes for Lin Qingwan. The two of them worked together seamlessly to get Lin Qingwan ready.

  Both were Lin Jiangs senior maidservants for Lin Qingwan and had previously served in the old mansion in Suzhou, not working at the Lin Manor.

  The parents of the two were all underlings in the Lin Mansion, and they had been staying in Suzhou to manage the farm and the other courtyard. Originally, the two were prepared as accompanying rooms for Yubin, so they learned etiquette from an early age, recognized some characters, understood some arithmetic, thinking that they would follow Yubin to her husbands house and serve as a manager for Yubin, so they were raised with great care.

  But Lin Qingyuan arrived, and the two maidservants who had been by her side, Lichun and Li Xia, could no longer stay with her for fear of them discovering Duan Ni.

  When she first woke up, her body was weak. Every day, she either lay in bed to recover or looked at the Lin familys property to understand various situations. She learned about local customs with Lin Jiang. Whatever clothes were given to her for Li Chun and Li Xia, she wore them. Whatever food was fed to her, she ate it, almost without expressing any opinions.

  So the first two months just passed by in a blur.

  But later, Lin Qingwan began to take over the affairs of the Lin family and started managing the Lins industries. The more she said and did, the less likely it was that her true nature would be revealed, so before this happened, Lin Jiang had someone bring Bai Mei and Bai Feng back from Suzhou and exchange them with Li Chun and Li Xia.

  As for Li Chun and Li Xia, they were sent back home to visit their relatives. Whether they wanted to return or continue staying with the Lin family, Lin Jiang and Lin Qingyuan followed them.

  Because they are best friends with Ruo Xiaojie and take good care of her, Lin Jiang and Lin Qingruan do not want to wrong them.

  Bai Mei was combing Lin Qingwans hair and whispered, "Li Chun and Li Xia have arrived and are waiting in the ear house. Does the young lady want to see them?"

  Lin Qingyan was taken aback for a moment and asked: "How did they come? Is something wrong?"

  Bai Fengs hands paused while making the bed and turned around, wanting to speak but hesitating.

  Bai Mei smiled and said: "They say they miss their master, so they came to pay their respects to their master."

  Lin Qingwan, however, saw Bai Fengs movements through the copper mirror and smiled lightly: "Bai Feng, have you figured out why Li Chun and Li Xia came here?"

  Bai Mei carefully combed Lin Qingwans hair, her eyes cast downward in concentration. Bai Feng glanced at Bai Mei and bit his lip before speaking: "Elder sister, I heard that theyre arranging a marriage for them, but the match..."

  She paused and said, "Its not that its bad, but theres always a flaw. Lichuns family had arranged for her to marry into a good family because the old master had promised that if Lichun didnt want to stay in the Lin family, they would let her go free, without asking for any redemption money, and even give her a dowry as a gift. Lichuns family was planning to set everyone free, but I think their savings arent much, so theyre still counting on Lichuns dowry and betrothal gifts."

  "What kind of person is he?"

  "Hes the second son of the owner of the oil shop on East Street. His family is quite wealthy, but this second son is a bit foolish. At over 20 years old, he still acts like a child, playing in the streets every day and grabbing whatever he wants to eat whenever hes hungry."

  Bai Feng said again: "The marriage arranged by Lixias family also has a flaw, the man is a butcher and hes been married before."

  Lin Qingwan furrowed her brow, "Why the rush? Lichun and Li Xia are both good girls, not only can they do needlework and cooking, but also accounting. They can even marry a small landowner in the countryside."

  "Its still for staying in Yangzhou."

  Lin Qingwan was stunned for a while before she remembered the law she had read recently, which stated that slaves who were released from their duties could not stay in the local area. They either had to be sent back to their hometown or go to a place with vast lands and sparse population.

  To stay locally, you must either have a business or be related to someone with local household registration.

  The Lin family, although generous, allowed Fangs servants to take their own luggage and did not ask for redemption money, but also gave a certain amount of severance pay. However, wanting to use this money to start a business in Yangzhou was no different from ascending to heaven.

  And this time Lins family has many more people, too many monks and not enough porridge, even the price of land in Tian Di Pu has been driven up, is someone trying to take a detour?