What is Pei Yan, who is being thought about by Yu Tang, doing?

He was twisting a string of Buddhist beads made of eighteen purple purlin trees in his hand, leaning on the big pillow of the Arhat bed, listening to the tit-for-tat confrontation between the Wu and Peng families.

Tao Qing was sitting below Pei Yan. Seeing this, he lowered his eyelids and whispered to Pei Yan, "What do you mean? Tell me the truth, so I can know what to say later."

Pei Yan's lips curled up when he heard this, and he replied to Tao Qing in the same low voice: "What can I do? This is not our Pei family's business! Of course, if someone thinks this is our family's business, that's fine, everyone can just go back. If there is anything, we, the Pei family, will take care of it. We, the Pei family, will never say no."

"What do you mean?!" Tao Qing was unhappy and said, "Under an overturned nest, how can the eggs remain intact? How can you say such a thing when we are trying to unite and overcome the difficulties together? If I had known that you had this attitude, I would not have come. Anyway, whether to abolish the Ningbo and Quanzhou Maritime Customs has nothing to do with our Tao family. If there is any urgency, it is not me who is in a hurry."

Pei Yan curled his lips and found that the hall, which was originally like a vegetable market, suddenly became quiet and his breathing could be faintly heard. Pei Yan looked around and found that everyone had been sitting there quietly looking at him, waiting for him to speak and make a decision.

When did he become so important?

Or did these Jiangnan families suddenly discover that he was still somewhat useful?

Pei Yan sneered in his heart but didn't show it on his face. He said sternly, "Everyone, if you have any other ideas, please speak out! Otherwise, people will talk about it, complain, or do something behind your back."

Tao Qing agreed with his point of view and said, "Once we leave this room, we must all work together to face the outside world. If there are any objections or dissatisfaction, please bear them and hide them until we get through this crisis."

Mr. Peng felt relieved after listening to this.

There is nothing to worry about the Third Prince's wealth in Jiangnan. Those who do this have only two purposes. One is to use this opportunity to strike a blow to the Third Prince, and the other is to use this as an excuse to plunder again. Whether it is the former or the latter, it is just a matter of spending a little more money for them. But if someone uses this as an excuse and thinks that the business of the Jiangnan aristocratic families is too big and suggests closing the trading port, then it will be troublesome. Guangzhou is not a big deal, as it has always been the most important trading port, but Ningbo and Quanzhou are not necessarily the same. Japanese pirates were rampant in Fujian and Zhejiang, and they were getting more and more rampant. Sometimes they would go ashore to burn, kill, and rob. Many people thought that the reason why these pirates could not stop was because they had the cover of the trading ships, making it difficult to distinguish which were the pirates and which were the ship workers. The best way was to build strong defenses, close the Ningbo and Quanzhou Maritime Customs Offices, and ban sea trade. Moreover, such decrees were tried in the previous dynasty and at the beginning of the founding of this dynasty, and the number of Japanese pirates was indeed reduced a lot.

The Peng family and the Song family did maritime business either at the wharf in Quanzhou or at the wharf in Ningbo. If the Maritime Customs in these two places were withdrawn, it would be a fatal blow to their business. However, for the Tao family, occupying the geographical location of Guangzhou, their business could be taken to the next level.

He wanted Tao Qing to mistakenly believe that the court was not only targeting the aristocratic families in Jiangnan, but also that they were jealous of their wealth, and that the court was only using the Pei family as an excuse to target them. In this way, he could use this opportunity to let the Tao family open their wharf in Guangzhou to these aristocratic families in Jiangnan.

As expected, Tao Qing fell into his trap and agreed to go along with them.

He drank a sip of tea with satisfaction, thinking that Tao Qing was still a little immature and too emotional. This was the best the Tao family could do.

What a pity for this pier in Guangzhou!

Mr. Peng was thinking about whether he could form an alliance with the Tao family through marriage, and then use this relationship to slowly expand the Peng family's business to Guangzhou.

On the other side, Mr. Song couldn't hide his joy.

He knew the power of the Pei family, but that was under the control of Old Lady Pei. Now Pei Yan followed the rules left by Old Lady Pei and did not show any extraordinary abilities. Now the Tao family and the Pei family stood together. With Tao Qing's ability, he would definitely be able to lead them through this difficult time.

Fourth Master Song suddenly gained confidence and was the first to speak out: "Don't worry, Brother Tao. We can't control others, but we in the Song family will definitely stand together with everyone. Say whatever you want to say now, and never complain once you leave this hall. If I speak too bluntly later, please bear with me here!" After saying this, he bowed to everyone in a self-righteous manner.

Master Wu tried hard not to hum.

I don't know how this idiot became the head of the Song family. The Song family is also very wealthy and powerful. He worked so hard but didn't lose it all. It's really enviable.

He thought about it and glanced at Pei Yan.

In the dimly lit hall, he was glowing white, breathtakingly handsome, and he also had the wealth and connections built up by the Pei family after generations of struggle. How could one not be jealous?

If they had such a lady, who knows how much benefit their Wu family would get?

Especially since he saw the Song and Peng families start a partnership to build ships, the Peng family is such a domineering family, but they were forced to lose their temper by the Pei family who supported the Song family. It can be seen that the Pei family is fully capable of building ships and doing maritime business. Why don't they do it? Are they afraid that they are too rich and people will be jealous and take advantage of them?

How much business does the Pei family have?

Master Wu touched his chin and felt that he had to personally take action to make the Wu family and the Pei family marry. As long as the Wu family and the Pei family became in-laws, at least he would be able to make the Song family watch from the sidelines in the area from Taihu Lake to Suzhou.

Mr. Wu thought about it in his mind and decided to be the last to speak and listen to what others had to say first.

Mr. Peng didn't take the Wu family seriously at all. They were just a rising star for a while, but they only rose to prominence in the past two years thanks to Jiang Hua. The Wu family should listen to what they said, so they ignored the Wu family and said directly to Pei Yan: "What does Gu Chaoyang mean? Isn't the Gu family a Jiangnan family? He was ordered to come to Jiangnan Road to investigate the case of the third prince. What does he want to do? What does the Gu family mean? Didn't he come to visit you first when he came to Jiangnan?"

He was asking Pei Yan.

Although the Gu family is a big family in Hangzhou, with generations of officials and scholars, they have fallen into decline in recent years. There are few children in the family who have become officials of the fourth rank, not to mention the chores. In the eyes of the Peng family, it is just enough to make a living, and there is no need to appear in such occasions.

The Pei family had just married the Gu family, and the girl from the Gu family married the eldest grandson of the Pei family.

Pei Yan once again felt the trouble of marrying into the Gu family.

He said calmly, "Gu Chaoyang is better as the historian. Master Peng, you also said that the Gu family is also a Jiangnan family. He can't do such a thing as forgetting his ancestors, unless he doesn't want the Gu family to stay in Jiangnan. Speaking of which, although our gathering this time was hosted by our Pei family, it was the idea of ​​the Peng family. I just want to ask, should we solve the case of the third prince first? Or should we solve the issue of abolishing the Maritime Customs Office first? Gu Chaoyang happens to be here too. If necessary, you can ask him to come and have a chat. Let's brainstorm!"

Mr. Song Si thought it was a good idea: "People are afraid of meeting each other. If there is anything, it is better to talk about it in person!"

He just didn't believe that Gu Chaoyang would dare to make a decision that would be detrimental to the Jiangnan family in front of everyone.

Mr. Peng looked down on Mr. Song in his heart.

He is even afraid of Gu Chaoyang, who has just entered his career. What can he do?

If you knew he was such a fool, he would have built a ship with the Wu family.

It's too late to regret now!

"Then please ask Gu Chaoyang to come over and have a chat." Tao Qing made a prompt decision, "If you have anything to say, let's talk it out in person. It's better than guessing behind your back."

Pei Yan said nothing.

Gu Chaoyang came to him to talk to him about the marriage between Miss Gu and Pei Tong. He might not be optimistic about this marriage, and wanted to support Miss Gu, so he took the initiative to explain his purpose and asked him if he needed help.

Then give him a place to perform.

He called Pei Qi, who was guarding the door, and asked him to go and get someone.

Pei Qi responded and left.

Master Wu told Pei Yan about Old Master Pei: "The mourning period will end in September, right? Taihu Lake is a bit far from here. Please send me a message in advance and come to pay respect to him when the time comes."

Because of Pei Laoan's high seniority, Wu Da Laoye and Song Si Laoye became brothers. From the perspective of the Song family, Pei Laoan could barely be considered Wu Da Laoye's elder. But Jiangnan noble families often intermarry, and there are even cases of aunts and nieces becoming sisters-in-law. In terms of marriage, the man is always considered the one who is considered to be related.

Pei Yan had been in close contact with Jiang Hua for some time, and was very familiar with the Wu family's methods of flattery. He treated the Wu family's people with a certain degree of politeness and a certain distance. He smiled and said, "I will definitely let you know in advance when the time comes."

Mr. Wu then talked about the business at sea: "The ship has been launched for testing, and it feels pretty good. I originally wanted to sail from Ningbo. If the Maritime Customs Office in Ningbo is closed, wouldn't our ship have to be towed to Guangzhou? That would be a big loss." As he spoke, he smiled bitterly.

Pei Yan disagreed.

The Wu family also has water transport!

You can't go through the sea or take the Grand Canal, but you can take a detour via the river.

Mr. Peng, who had been listening to their conversation, immediately asked, "How is the canal business this year? I heard that the harvest in the two lakes was poor. Where did the salt money go?"

Mr. Wu didn't want to talk much about his family's flagship business, and he hesitated with Mr. Peng for a long time but couldn't say anything.

Fortunately, Gu Chaoyang came, leaving the two no time to fight each other.

Gu Chaoyang told everyone that Wang Qibao, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, had also come over. "He came with Wei Sanfu. Wei Sanfu was in the open, and he was in the dark. I don't know where Wang Qibao has gone now."

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

Wei Sanfu was a well-known eunuch in the Imperial Household Department, and he was deeply trusted by the emperor, otherwise he would not have been sent to Jiangnan. But this Wang Qibao was the emperor's great companion when he was in the palace, a true confidant, a big shot in the twenty-four yamen, and he would not leave the capital easily.

He has come along this time too, I'm afraid this is not as simple as the case of the third prince!

You know, the third prince grew up on Wang Qibao's back when he was a child, and Wei Sanfu is said to have always been very close to the second prince in private.

Mr. Peng has a headache.

He was not afraid of these princes asking him for money, but he was afraid that these princes would force them to take sides.