Chapter 183 Business
Tomorrow is a day off, so Lin Changning left work early today after watching the training.
Back home, Zhiyuan and Hesheng were sitting in the main room discussing their studies. Lin Changning greeted them and then went to the inner courtyard.
As soon as he entered, two little girls rushed up to him: "Uncle, Uncle, Mother bought us silk flowers today, do you think they're pretty?"
Lin Changning patted the two children's heads and praised them, "Of course they're cute. Go play. Your uncle has some things to discuss with your grandmother."
The two little girls nodded understandingly and walked hand in hand towards the door.
Lin Changning walked to his mother's room and said, "Mother, I'm back."
Lin's mother was making insoles for Lin Changning's shoes. Her daughter had mentioned last time that the shoes provided by the Prince's Mansion were comfortable and wouldn't cause blisters.
She took it to heart, since the ones she bought outside were never quite right, so she picked out a pair and examined them carefully.
The shoes provided by the Prince's Mansion had a thousand-layer sole with soft fabric sewn in between.
They were thick, soft, and comfortable to wear. After figuring it out, he started making shoes for his daughter himself.
It's almost halfway done now. My child is working hard away from home, and military industry can make things more comfortable for him.
Nowadays, the family is not short of money.
The two neighboring families were also colleagues from Changning, and the women from both families were quite close to their family.
When we have nothing to do, the three families often visit each other and chat, so it's not too boring.
"You're back. Go wash your hands. Ma Qianhu's wife said she made braised pork hock with soybeans at home today and will send some over tonight. Since there's meat today, I asked the stove to steam some extra rice. If you're hungry, eat more."
Lin Changning sighed and walked into the inner room. He saw his mother sitting at the table sewing insoles and sat down next to her.
The young maid was cutting up some scraps of cloth for Li's mother when she saw Lin Changning coming over and stood up to greet her.
Then he poured Lin Changning another cup of tea.
Lin Changning waved his hand: "You can go now. I have something to say to my mother."
The maidservant curtsied, stole a glance at Lin Changning, turned and left, then happily ran back to her room.
One of the maids, seeing the gleeful expressions on her young friend's face, teased, "What mischief have you been up to? Why are you laughing like that?"
The maidservant sat next to her friend and said, "It's nothing. The young master of the Lin family is really handsome and gentle. I was helping the old lady make insoles when the young master came back and secretly glanced at me a few times."
The girl next to her smiled and tapped her head: "You, you, it's fine to just look. The master is generous these days, and the work is easy. Don't get any crooked ideas just because the master is handsome and young."
The little girl covered her head and said, "I know, I know, I just thought he was good-looking and glanced at him a few more times."
Lin Changning, who was inside the room, was unaware of the girls' playful banter. She and her mother had been talking back and forth for a long time, and she didn't know how to express it.
But considering they might have to send troops out again in a few days, she pretended to be relaxed and said, "Mother, I may have to lead troops out in a few days. The court needs to mobilize troops, and my return date is uncertain."
Lin's mother was taken aback: "So fast? Our family has only just been reunited for a short time."
Lin Changning couldn't bear to see his mother's disappointed look, so he went up and hugged her, saying coquettishly, "I'm a military general, so it's normal for me to go to war. Besides, I'm so capable, so I'll be fine and come back safe and sound."
Lin's mother patted her daughter's hand: "Do your second brother and the others know?"
Lin Changning hugged his mother and shook his head: "I haven't told you yet. I want to tell you first, Mother."
Lin's mother sighed and put down her work: "Then let Zhiyuan stay a little longer, so that our family can spend more time together."
After they finished speaking, they went out together.
Just then, He Sheng, who was looking for Lin Changning, ran into Zhiyuan, who also seemed to have something to say.
Lin Changning realized that the two of them wanted to see her, so she sent her mother away: "What's wrong?"
Chang Zhiyuan scratched his head and pushed He Sheng forward: "He has something to discuss with my brother."
Lin Changning nodded and led the person towards the study: "Let's talk in the study."
Upon arriving at the study, He Sheng casually pulled out a stack of silver notes and looked at Lin Changning with a smile.
"To be honest, I have something to ask of Lord Lin."
Lin Changning raised an eyebrow at the stack of silver notes on the table, somewhat puzzled: "Just say what you want to say first, there's no need to bribe me with money."
He Sheng waved his hand: "It's not a bribe, sir. I really do have a favor to ask."
Lin Changning looked He Sheng up and down. He was dressed in rich clothes and had a fair complexion. He must be rich. Why would someone like him ask a military officer for help?
Tell me about it.
He Sheng smiled wryly: "Sir, you should know about Qingyunzui, a bar like this."
Lin Changning nodded. He had indeed heard of it, but had never tasted it. Old Ma and the others said that this "Qingyun Zui" was extremely expensive, and their entire monthly allowance for a year might only buy one jar.
He Sheng continued, “Qingyun Zui is one of my family’s wines, and it is the best-selling wine. My family earns hundreds of thousands of taels of silver from this wine every year. However, my He family does not have a reliable backer. Nearly half of the profits from the wine have to be given to the local officials. In recent years, these people’s appetites have grown bigger and bigger. If they are not satisfied, they will cut off our wine business. Therefore, I dare to ask for your protection, sir. I am willing to give seven-tenths of the annual revenue to you.”
Lin Changning clicked his tongue twice in his heart. No wonder they say that a clean county magistrate can earn 100,000 taels of silver in three years. He hardly has to do anything, and people will come to deliver money to his door.
"Why choose a fifth-rank military officer like me? Wouldn't it have been better to choose a civil official?"
He Sheng pursed his lips: "He Sheng naturally values your character, and moreover, He Sheng has already written to his father to prepare to move the business to Taiyuan."
Then He Sheng continued, "Please forgive me, sir. In the past few days, I have inquired about you. I learned that you did not abandon your comrades in times of crisis, and you are very good to your subordinates. Now, before you have even reached the age of twenty, you have already become a commander of a thousand men in the army. I believe that you have a bright future ahead of you."
Lin Changning felt incredibly comfortable from the flattery; this kid really knows how to talk.
Lin Changning glanced at his younger brother, and Chang Zhiyuan quickly chimed in, "Brother, Mr. He and Mr. He are both good people."
Someone who can play with their own younger brother must be a pretty good person.
Moreover, in this matter, their family actually benefits. The He family is willing to give up 70% of the profits, which means that their family only needs to provide a title to receive a large portion of the He family's assets for free.
This is definitely not appropriate.
Lin Changning looked at He Sheng with a smile: "Sure, if the He family is determined to move to Taiyuan, they can use the Lin family's name for both the shops and the drinks. It's not appropriate to just share the profits."
He Sheng's heart skipped a beat, thinking that Lin Changning felt the percentage was too small, so he gritted his teeth and prepared to give up 8 points.
"Three points is enough."
"How about eight points!"
The two of them spoke at the same time, and at the same time, they were both stunned.
He Sheng was somewhat shocked, and Lin Changning was also a little confused.
After hesitating for a moment, Lin Changning laughed and said, "What kind of people does Brother He take our family for? We are not bandits, how could we possibly take 8% of your profits? You provide the raw materials and brewing, and just finding a shop in between would cost a considerable amount of money. We can just give you 3% of the profits."
He Sheng blushed. He did want to seek the Lin family's protection and was prepared to grit his teeth and bleed a lot of money. However, as Zhiyuan said, Lord Lin was indeed a kind person, and he had misunderstood.
"I was being narrow-minded. Please accept these silver notes as a token of the He family's sincerity."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
