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Lu Xin was awakened by his men. Before he could even get mad, he heard the news of a warehouse fire. It was like a bucket of ice water was poured over his head. Lu Xin suddenly woke up, his face pale, and he jumped out of bed. "Why is there a fire? Where are the patrol servants? Where is the steward in charge?"
After all, he was from an aristocratic family. Who had ever seen Lu Xin lose his composure like this? The attendant trembled and said tremblingly, "Yes, we were robbed. I heard that a group of people rushed into the warehouse, killed and injured the guards, and set the raw silk on fire with kerosene..."
There's no need to elaborate further. Raw silk is inherently flammable, and with kerosene added, it would be reduced to ash in an instant, leaving no time for rescue.
Lu Xin staggered, then slumped back down. This news didn't seem real, as if he'd been dreaming a nightmare. But the next moment, he raised his head, his eyes bare. "That's our dock, the Lu family's warehouse. Wasn't there anyone outside raising the alarm? How did the thieves get in so easily, and why did they choose today?"
The attendant opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He knew what the other party suspected. Without an insider, such a clever move would have been impossible. To reach the warehouse unimpeded, one must have at least been familiar with the surrounding terrain, bypassed each checkpoint, and even understood the patrol patterns. The fact that they chose today, neither too early nor too late, was even more sinister. If it had been two days earlier, the silk would not have been stored; if it had been two days later, it might have already been delivered to the Wu family. Choosing tonight, however, meant someone must have tipped off.
Yet, even with that being said, who dared to speak up? This was a huge order that had burned an entire season's worth of raw silk, and they had already signed a contract; if they didn't deliver, they would have to pay double the price. This was a plan to rip Lu Xin, and even the entire Lu family, off to their grave. Which family in Jiangdong had such audacity?
Lu Xin had no intention of waiting for anyone to respond. He just stared straight ahead fiercely, then squeezed out two words through his teeth: "Wu!"
This order was given to them by Wu Tianming, and the people doing business with the Wu family were from Panyu, major customers backed by the Red Flag Gang. Could this be a trap, just waiting for him to fall into it? Wu Tianming was so bold, did he think that without his brother's protection, the Lu family would become a soft persimmon to be manipulated at will?
Seeing that Lu Xin only uttered two words and stopped talking, the attendant who had been waiting for a long time finally plucked up the courage to ask, "Fourth Master, do you want to go to the warehouse to take a look?"
Lu Xin seemed to have just come to his senses. He stood up again, walked around the room a few times, and then said sternly, "Go and inform each room to hold a meeting in the main hall later."
Their main clan lived together. Besides himself, who ran the business, there were several other branches that handled other matters. Now that something so serious had happened, he definitely couldn't handle it alone. He had to quickly consult with his uncles and brothers to figure out how to respond and how to explain it to the clan elders. The main clan couldn't fail before his brother arrived!
Just as Lu Xin was gritting her teeth in hatred towards Wu, Wu Tianming was also shocked by the sudden news: "Did Lu's warehouse really catch fire? The warehouse where Shengsi was kept?"
After receiving his subordinate's affirmative reply, Wu Tianming felt dizzy and reached out to hold on to the edge of the table. Now was the time to collect the silk. If Wu was like this, Lu must have been too. No one knew better than him what the warehouse fire meant.
Could this be an accident? Among the Jiangdong clans, no one had ever signed a pre-determined contract, yet they had bucked the norm and signed a deal with the Lu family, a massive 1,500 dan (approximately 1,500 dan) of silver. Now that the silk was gone, who would Lu Xin suspect first?
A chill ran down his spine, and anger welled up in his heart. Wu Changming finally understood that he had fallen into someone else's trap. If he hadn't coveted the readily available grain route, why would he have been so foolish as to sign a contract with Fang Ling? If raw silk hadn't been unavailable on the market, why would he have sought out Lu Xin?
But now that the incident had happened, I was afraid that the entire Lu family would not believe him. Thinking of this and the possible counterattack from the Lu family, Wu Tianming felt his heart sink.
The next moment, he cursed: "Do you really think that the Wu family can be bullied?!"
Without waiting for anyone to ask, he shouted, "Prepare the car, call for help, I'm going to Pengyue Restaurant!"
This was beyond the steward's expectations, and he hurriedly said cautiously, "Why don't we go to the Lu Mansion to check first?"
Wu Tianming sneered, "You've fallen for a trick, are you going to play tricks on me again? Let's go to the restaurant first and see if that Fang guy is still there!"
As long as Fang Ling was still around, things weren't beyond redemption. He didn't want to be used as a pawn for no reason, causing both the Lu and Wu families to suffer losses.
With Wu Tianming's instructions, everyone moved quickly and soon arrived at the restaurant. Dozens of Wu Mansion servants surrounded the area, while Wu Tianming himself arrived in front of Fang Ling's rented elegant pavilion.
Perhaps he heard the noise outside, the door opened quickly. Seeing that it was Fang Ling himself who came to greet him, Wu Tianming's eyes were filled with anger: "Did you do what happened with the Lu Group?!"
Young Master Fang smiled slightly and took a half step back. "Brother Wu, why are you doing this? Come in and talk first."
As long as the person was still there, Wu Tianming walked in without a word. However, before he could open his mouth, a figure caught his eye. It was a young man in a brocade robe, graceful and elegant, with the noble bearing only found in the noble family. His appearance left Wu Tianming speechless.
Without waiting for him to speak, the young man bowed and said, "My name is Lu Jian, nice to meet Uncle Wu."
It really was Lu Jian! Even after not seeing him for several years, his appearance and demeanor couldn't be fake. Wu Tianming had thought that Lu Jian was behind this, but he hadn't expected that he had already arrived in Yuhang!
"Uncle, please take a seat. Fang Ling, go and pour some tea." Lu Jian acted as if he didn't notice Wu Tianming's loss of composure and asked everyone to sit down at the table.
Wu Tianming actually sat down, his mind racing with thoughts, he could barely stand. Meanwhile, Mr. Fang, previously intelligent and unrestrained, acted like a servant, pouring tea for the two of them and quietly retreating behind Lu Jian.
Looking at this scene, what else could Wu Tianming not guess? He felt a bitter taste in his mouth. After a long silence, he said, "Did you arrange all this?"
Lu Jian smiled slightly: "I have shares in the Panyu weaving factory. It's such a big deal, so naturally I have to come and see it in person."
This wasn't just a simple matter of "taking a look." Wu Tianming reached out and pointed at Fang Ling: "Did you find Zhou Zhenglun and ask him to introduce this guy?"
"Uncle, you see it clearly." Lu Jian continued to smile.
"What about Gu Sanlang?" Wu Tianming asked again.
"The Gu family is the largest silk merchant in Jiangdong. If they lose a competitor, they will probably be overjoyed." Lu Jian said slowly.
This was incredibly hypocritical, yet somehow, the burning anxiety in Wu Tianming's heart slowly receded. This wasn't a scheme orchestrated by just one person; it was a joint effort by the Zhou, Gu, and this abandoned Lu. Otherwise, how could he have been so easily deceived?
What about now? What if it wasn't his Wu family facing the Lu family? Wu Tianming clenched his fists and frowned, "You went to such great lengths and cheated the Lu family out of such a large sum of money. What was your purpose?"
"Of course, it is to take charge of the family business again and share my father's worries." Lu Jian's smile was flawless, as if what he said was something natural.
Wu Tianming's mouth twitched. "Sharing his father's worries," indeed. With such a catastrophic incident, it was doubtful whether Lord Lu could maintain his position as clan leader. This was clearly an attempt to trample the clan underfoot and usurp its power.
But is this feasible? It certainly is. They already have leverage over the Lu family. Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver might not be much for the Lu family, but with these turbulent times and several other aristocratic families eyeing them, if they speak up for the eldest son of the Lu family and push this matter forward, they might even be able to seize the opportunity to get a piece of the pie. That's the Jiangdong Lu family; even a small amount of money would be enormous. And with Lu Jian a member of the Red Flag Gang, how could they worry about a lack of access to food supplies?
Wu Tianming fell into deep thought and seemed unable to express his opinion for a while, but Lu Jian was not in a hurry at all. He slowly picked up the teacup and took a sip.
After a long while, Wu Tianming finally said, "After all, the four Jiangdong families are of the same blood. It is imperative that we seek justice for our nephew, but we must not lose our dignity."
Propriety? What kind of propriety could a noble family have? Isn't it true that when killing someone, one's hands should not be stained with blood, and when eating meat, one's posture should not be ugly? And this was exactly what Lu Jian wanted. As long as the Wu family could stand on his side, it would be a piece of cake to influence the Gu and Zhou families.
So he smiled and nodded: "Uncle, don't worry, this kid will be fine. Besides, I heard that bandits are rampant recently, and I'm afraid the Lu family doesn't have the energy to cause too much trouble."
So he was behind the scenes? No wonder Lu's warehouse, so large, was burned down so easily. Perhaps all the staff were diverted to suppress the riot, giving them the opportunity. No, maybe Lu Jian had already planted spies in the Lu company, waiting for the right moment to act, so he could be so efficient.
Alas, how could Lord Lu expel such a capable and talented son, who was also a legitimate son, from the family? Compared to his younger brother, he was much stronger than him.
However, at this moment, it was unnecessary to talk about all this anymore. Wu Tianming changed the subject: "Then, can we postpone the signing of the contract for a while..."
The tension when they entered the room turned into a gentle breeze in an instant, and the two of them continued discussing the trading of raw silk and grain as if nothing had happened.
Standing behind Lu Jian, Cheng Xi lowered his eyes slightly, as if he was completely unconcerned about the conversation between the two, even though it involved several noble families, immense power, and countless gold and silver.
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