The light of the sword is like the moon reflecting on Kyushu

Chapter 1995 The Story of Marrying into a Family

Suddenly someone shouted, "Officer Jiang has arrived!"

Then a middle-aged constable walked into the crowd's view.

His right hand rested lightly on the hilt of his sword, the blue cloth sleeve swaying slightly with his steps, and the sharkskin scabbard gleaming coldly in the afternoon sun. An old scar above his left eyebrow broke his sword-like brow in two, yet his eagle eyes shone with a chilling brilliance, the fine lines at the corners of his eyes holding the sharpness honed by years of hunting down criminals.

Liu Muxuan went to greet him, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "So it is Constable Jiang who has graced us with his presence. Please forgive me for not welcoming you sooner!"

Officer Jiang clasped his hands in greeting and said, "Mr. Liu, you flatter me! I hope you won't be offended by my lateness!"

Liu Mudan frowned and said, "Let's skip the formalities!"

Officer Jiang knew that Liu Mudan was a difficult person to deal with, so he didn't bother to lower himself to her level. He immediately clasped his hands and said, "Greetings, Madam Dan!"

Liu Mudan said, "We have already sent people to arrest that father and daughter. I hope Chief Constable Jiang will also send people to act as soon as possible! That father and daughter are the key to solving the case!"

Officer Jiang said, "Don't worry, Madam Dan, the magistrate has already made arrangements and sent men to arrest that father and daughter!"

Liu Mudan said, "That's settled then. Now let's continue our previous topic! Brothers Mu Xue and Mu Yu also want to get involved... oh no, I mean, they also want to participate in the competition for the position of family head, right?"

Liu Muxue said frankly, "That's right! As a descendant of the Liu family, it is only natural to contribute to the family!"

Liu Mudan said, "Alright! The four of us will each share our future management ideas, just to boost our popularity, and then we'll start the vote. Does anyone have any objections?"

Liu Muxuan thought to himself: Her so-called boosting of popularity is nothing more than openly promising everyone what benefits she will bring after she takes the stage. It's like quenching thirst with plums and satisfying hunger with painted cakes. Who the hell can't do that?
He immediately said, "Third Sister is absolutely right! I agree!"

Liu Muxue and Liu Muyu were well aware of Liu Mudan's intentions. But since she had already conceded and agreed to fair competition, it would seem that they lacked confidence if they did not agree with her proposal!
"Okay, agreed!"

"agree!"

Liu Muxuan said, "Third sister, you go first!"

His idea was simple: let Liu Mudan speak first, and whatever she said would become the benchmark for the other three!
Liu Mudan sneered inwardly: What's the point of playing these tricks on me?

She gave a disdainful smile. "Fine! I'll go first! Everyone here is either a relative or a friend of the Liu family. In front of you all, I'll say a few things! First, if I become the head of the family, I will guarantee that all of the Liu family's businesses will flourish and expand, aiming to double revenue in three years! Second, all of you who are members of the Liu family will have your welfare unchanged, but it will increase by 10% every year! Third, for every member of the Liu family who achieves the highest rank in the provincial examination, a reward of 3,000 taels of silver will be given; for those who become members of the imperial examination, a reward of 5,000 taels of silver will be given; and for those who achieve the highest rank in the imperial examination, a reward of 10,000 taels of silver will be given!"

The crowd erupted in excitement! The person who achieved the triple crown in the imperial examinations had accumulated a reward of 18,000 taels of silver! No one had expected that Liu Mudan would value the studies of the Liu family's children so much!
Liu Mudan said, "All other pursuits are inferior; only studying is superior! Those who excel in their studies will become officials! If a family wants to prosper, someone in the court must hold an official position! Otherwise, no matter how prosperous the family is, it may still suffer a crushing defeat and be destroyed in a single day!"

Many people nodded in agreement, deeply agreeing! No matter how much money a merchant has, he is still just a merchant, at the mercy of others. The imperial court can wipe out an entire family with just one decree!

Why do merchants go to such lengths to curry favor with officials? It's simply to use their power to protect and maintain their own interests!

Liu Mudan pressed her advantage, "I am a woman, so I know even more about the hardships women face! Pregnancy and childbirth are life-or-death ordeals for women! Therefore, if I become the head of the family, I promise that every woman in the Liu family, including those who marry into the Liu family, will receive a family compensation of two thousand taels of silver for the first time she gives birth!"

Another surge of energy erupted from the crowd!
"Holy crap! Two thousand taels for each child, what if they had ten or eight? They'd be rolling in it!"

"that is!"

Liu Mudan sneered, "Who said having ten or eight babies would make you rich? Dream on! Childbirth is so dangerous for women! I've said it before, I'll only reward the first child! The reward will be halved for the second child, 1,000 taels! The reward will be halved again for the third child, 500 taels! After the fourth child, there will be no reward! Also, the reward is only for pregnant women, men are not eligible for this reward!"

Crickets started chirping again in the crowd.

"Damn, she's just rewarding those women! We don't get anything!"

"What's the point of having a baby if you can't get anything out of it!"

"You can't think of it that way. If your own woman gives birth, she may get the money on the surface, but can she really control it? In the end, it'll still end up in our pockets, won't it?"

"Hehe, then I need to get my wife to give birth quickly! I already have one child, so I can only get 1,000 for the second one, what a loss! Look at Liu Shuyao and the others, they still have the chance to have a third child and can get 4,500 taels!" "Who told you to get married and have children first! I think Aunt Dan is more reliable, I'll choose her later!"

"Yes, Aunt Dan is reliable!"

Almost everyone has already made their own decision!
They were going to throw the beans to Dan Gu!

Liu Mudan laughed, "Big brother, it's your turn!" She could clearly see everyone's expressions! She was very pleased with herself!

Liu Muxuan's face, which had been extremely ugly, now turned into a cold laugh.
"My statement is similar to that of my third sister: to ensure that the family's interests will not be harmed, to ensure that everyone's interests will steadily increase, and I can also fulfill the other terms, such as the rewards for those who achieve the highest honors and the compensation for women who give birth. I would also like to add that I also have close relationships with many officials, so at least in the court, there is no resistance, only assistance!"

People whispered among themselves.

"Isn't this pretty much what Dan Gu said? There's nothing new about it, it's boring!"

"Yes, if that's the case, I'd choose Aunt Dan! At least Aunt Dan knows business, and none of the managers can fool her!"

"Exactly! The reason why Xuanbo waited for Dan Gu to finish speaking before he spoke was because he knew he couldn't win against Dan Gu. So he let Dan Gu speak first, and then just copied her words, changing the form but not the substance, without any originality!"

Officer Jiang said, "Please continue, everyone. I need to check on the rest of the dead!"

The so-called other dead refer to the Six Fiends of the Azure Dragon and Mr. Yao!

Liu Muxuan said, "Zhu Wu, take Constable Jiang over there and take a look!"

Zhu Wu calmly said from the platform, "Sword Slave, go!"

Sword Slave immediately said, "Captain Jiang, please come with me!"

Liu Muxuan looked displeased: "Why don't you go?"

Zhu Wu said in a serious tone, "Because I also want to run for the position of family head!"

"What?!" Many people exclaimed in surprise!
Liu Muxuan sneered, "You? What qualifications do you have to participate in the election?"

Liu Mudan also retorted sarcastically, "Zhu Wu, what are you doing, a son-in-law? Do you even have the right to speak here?"

Zhu Wu said, "Stop calling him a son-in-law. Isn't a son-in-law a daughter's son-in-law?"

Liu Mudan scoffed, "He's a son-in-law! So what?"

Zhu Wu said, “A son-in-law is half a son! When my father-in-law was alive, he publicly declared more than once that I was also his son and had the right to inherit his family property! So after he passed away, I have the same inheritance rights as Changfeng, Polang, Yunfan, Canghai, and Ruyan! According to his last wishes, since Ruyan and his brothers are no longer alive, I am the sole heir! However, I respect my father-in-law's brothers and sisters, and I respect Ruyan's elders, so I will not mention the will today. Let's do it your way, fairly, justly, and openly, to compete for the position of head of the Liu family!”

Liu Mudan's face instantly turned ferocious. "Zhu Wu! Who here doesn't know that your father-in-law treats you like a thief? You actually said that he publicly declared you to be half his son and that he would give you a share of the family property. Do you think anyone here will believe your nonsense?"

"I believe you!" Everyone frowned and looked towards the source of the voice. They saw Lin Chenming, dressed in a gray-white scholar's robe, standing with his hands behind his back, his elegant demeanor exuding an indescribable air of nonchalance and composure.

It turns out he was the elder brother of Liu Mubai's wife, Lin!
His two sons, Lin Xinghan and Lin Gaoxiang, stood behind him.

His younger brother, Lin Songquan, stood to his left, and behind Lin Songquan stood his two sons, Lin Juncai and Lin Xingchi.

Liu Mudan said coldly, "Today is the day to elect the head of the Liu family. What are you Lin family doing here causing trouble?"

Lin Songquan said, "The Liu family? Without my Lin family, where would the Liu family come from? Have you all forgotten the story of Liu Mubai marrying into my Lin family?"

Everyone was greatly surprised!
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