Chapter 18: The Mysterious Buyer Behind the Scenes Turns Out to Be the Crown Prince
“I say, I say.”
Having to deal with such a little devil, Qi Cong just wanted to live a few more years.
Lu Lan lifted his shirt slightly and jogged over to whisper in his ear.
“Who?”
“The heir of Duke Qingguo, Xue Zhao.”
It was him?
A gleam of sharp light flashed in Lu Lan’s eyes.
He never expected that his closest brother-in-arms, with whom he often called “brother,” would be scheming behind his back to seize his family’s estate.
I treated you as a brother, and you played tricks on me.
Well, well, very fine!
But as Lu Lan thought deeper, Xue Zhao was probably only the nominal buyer.
Xue Zhao was very close to Crown Prince Mo Ming and had tried several times to win him over to the prince's faction.
Unfortunately, Lu Lan was no fool and always found excuses to refuse.
The world was nothing more than a huge troupe of performers.
So don’t think the crown prince was some rare creature.
He was still human.
And a madman at that! Lu Lan pretended to be insane, but that regent crown prince was truly deranged.
Human lives were less valuable than weeds in his hands.
Such a violent fool—no wonder in the previous life, he was assassinated by Gu Xingwan after only a few years on the throne.
In the ninth year of the Tiansong era, Empress Gu Xingwan assassinated the king publicly, leaving the darkest stain in the history books of the Southern Chu Kingdom and cementing her notorious reputation as the “most venomous woman.”
In the last life, the Upper Pillar State Mansion was under the crown prince’s control, serving as his secret love nest outside the palace.
Everything added up.
With this in mind…
Things were about to get interesting!
“Are you working with Xue Zhao?”
After uttering those words, Qi Cong seemed deflated and just spilled everything.
“A few years ago, I lost several thousand taels of silver at a gambling house registered under Xue Zhao’s name. He then coaxed me into business together—the Qingfengyuan Pawnshop holds thirty percent of his silver shares. He said… we could join forces to scheme for the Lu family’s property.”
The idea was first proposed by Qi Xuefu, but Xue Zhao shared their intentions.
“At first, I didn’t dare. If this got exposed, it would be trouble. But Xue Zhao threatened me—if I refused, I’d only be able to play rock in every future game of rock-paper-scissors.”
Xue Zhao would break ten of his fingers.
Gritting his teeth, Qi Cong went ahead and launched Qingfengyuan Pawnshop.
Their internal motto: a pawnshop dedicated to cheating the Lu family.
Lu Lan toyed with a jade finger ring, his gaze chillingly sharp.
“How will you settle the missing accounts? Should I come to you, or to Xue Zhao?”
Qi Cong gasped for breath, trembling.
“To me. I will repay all forty-three thousand taels of silver…”
He dared not approach Xue Zhao—he would only get beaten again.
“When will you pay? Give me a firm promise.”
Lu Lan didn’t want any delays; his wedding day was fast approaching.
“Right now. Please have the heir send someone to Qingfengyuan Pawnshop to bring my father over…”
Qi Cong had already tasted Lu Lan’s cruelty; he knew any hesitation would bring no good.
Lu Lan gave a glance to the attendant beside him.
As the attendant slipped into the alley of Pigskin Ditch, word had already reached the Serene Heart Pavilion.
Upon hearing that her brother planned to repay forty-three thousand taels of silver, Qi Xuefu felt as if a knife had been plunged into her heart.
The pain was excruciating.
If not for her status as a concubine, she would have thrown herself on the ground, screaming and kicking.
Previously, because the money was tainted, Qi Xuefu hadn’t dared keep it inside the mansion. Qi Cong stored it at an outside bank.
The siblings had painstakingly built their scam, living in constant fear day and night, accumulating nearly fifty thousand taels over several years.
Only to have Lu Lan snatch the fruits of their labor.
“Wahhh…”
Qi Xuefu dared not make a scene and sobbed desperately over the table, her ten fingers gripping the cloth tightly.
Nanny Jiang rubbed her back vigorously, fearing her anger might harm her health.
“Miss, don’t let this upset you too much. Money lost can be earned again. Given the current situation, it won’t implicate you or Young Master Wu yet. That’s something positive.”
Nanny Jiang comforted her with optimism. Qi Xuefu soon pulled herself together, wiping tears and snot.
“Yes, Nanny Jiang, you’re right. My son will be more successful than Lu Lan. Once he passes the imperial exams and becomes a high official, he will surely inherit the title.”
A mother’s status depends on her son. The Duke Yuguo Mansion’s fortune numbered in the millions, and in the end, it would still be hers.
Having come to this realization, Qi Xuefu’s mood instantly brightened.
It was just a loss of over forty thousand taels—she would recover it tenfold or a hundredfold in the future.
Her eyes sharpened with venomous intent.
“Lu Lan, just wait and see. When my son succeeds, the good days for you and your mother will be over.”
In the main courtyard.
Qi Cong’s father, Qi Changgui, arrived. His frail body bent forward, scalp balding and white-haired, eyes gleaming with cunning—a man who seemed ready to con you out of your money at any moment.
Clutched in his arms was a sandalwood box, guarded as if it were his very life.