The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 516: We Are Acquaintances
There used to be a large red gold plaque with nine dragons on a green background bestowed by the late emperor hanging in front of Rong Xi Hall, but it has now been taken down, and the furnishings in the hall have also been restrained. The large red sandalwood table with carved dragons and the three-foot-high green and blue ancient bronze tripod on the table have also been put away. The Jia family, which has lost its ancestral title, is obviously no longer worthy of displaying furnishings of such scale.

At this moment, the seventh prince Xu Wenhoutian was standing in the patio in front of Rongxi Hall with his hands behind his back, looking up at the beams under the eaves, nodding and shaking his head from time to time, muttering something.

Jia Zheng stood respectfully by the side, his expression awkward and complicated, as if he was living a year in a day. About an incense stick of time later, Jia Huan finally arrived.

The little fat boy's eyes lit up, and he came forward and asked, "Brother Jia, how are you?"

Jia Huan smiled and bowed in return: "Thanks to the blessing of Master Qi, everything is fine." After saying this, he bowed to Jia Zheng again.

Jia Zheng nodded in a reserved manner and said, "Please invite the Seventh Master nicely and don't be impolite."

He turned to Xu Wenhou and said, "I have something else to do. I will leave you now. I am young and inexperienced. If I have been rude, please forgive me, Master Qi."

Xu Wenhou waved his hand and said politely: "Please make yourself at your own pace, old man. Brother Jia and I are good friends, so there's no need to be so polite!"

Jia Zheng bowed and hurriedly left Rong Xi Tang.

Xu Wenhou breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's still more comfortable without the elders around, but the old man seems to be more uncomfortable than me."

Jia Huan said with a smile: "If I rub salt into your wounds, you will also feel uncomfortable."

Xu Wenhou asked in confusion: "Hey, why do you say that, Brother Jia?"

"The plaque bestowed by the late emperor has been taken down, and you are staring at the empty beam and shaking your head. Isn't this just rubbing salt into the wound? You are just pointing at the monk and calling him a bald donkey. If it were someone else, I'm afraid they would have been kicked out long ago."

Xu Wenhou suddenly realized and said awkwardly, "So that's it. There's a big misunderstanding. I had a stiff neck last night and my neck was uncomfortable sitting, so I stood up to stretch it out. I didn't expect that it would cause your father to misunderstand me. What should I do?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "It's okay. You are the prince after all. He can only hold back his discomfort. Don't worry about him."

Xu Wenhou could not help but grin and laugh when he saw what Jia Huan said was interesting. At the same time, he said with a bit of envy, "Brother Jia dares to make fun of me. It seems that the old master must be a very kind person."

"On the contrary, I'm just a bit more courageous."

Xu Wenhou was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, his fat body shaking, and pointed at Jia Huan and said incoherently: "You kid are trying to make me laugh to death."

Jia Huan stopped smiling and said seriously, "Seventh Master, you dare to come here at a time like this. You are quite brave."

As the saying goes, it is easy to add flowers to a brocade robe, but it is hard to help someone in need. Emperor Qiansheng was furious. He had just stripped Rongguo Mansion of its title, and confiscated Ningguo Mansion and Rongguo Mansion's first house. He showed no mercy to Concubine Jia at all. It was clear that he wanted to make an example of her. At this time, everyone in the Jia family would avoid her. Except for the creditors, no one would take the initiative to come to their house to cause trouble.

To be honest, although the Seventh Prince Xu Wenhou was a prince, he was cowardly and timid. The fact that he dared to come to visit him at this time was really beyond Jia Huan's expectations.

Xu Wenhou scratched his head a little embarrassedly and said, "Actually, I wanted to come and play with Brother Jia on the Lantern Festival, but I heard that something happened to the Jia family and the emperor's intentions were unclear, so I was afraid to come. The dust has settled in the past two days, and I heard that it has nothing to do with the old master's family, so I dared to come. Brother Jia, please forgive me, haha!"

Xu Wenhou chuckled twice, looking inexplicably honest, which warmed Jia Huan's heart. The fact that the other party could be so frank showed that he really regarded him as a good friend.

"It doesn't matter. Wolves, insects, tigers and leopards all know how to seek good fortune and avoid danger, let alone humans. It's understandable!" Jia Huan said with a smile.

Xu Wenhou was delighted when he heard this, "That's good. I don't have many friends, and Brother Jia is one of them. By the way, I heard that your family owes a lot of foreign debts. I still have some money on hand, all earned from the ice cream business in recent years. If you need anything, just ask. I can still take out 40,000 or 50,000 taels."

Jia Huan felt warm in his heart again. He didn't expect that this little fat guy was so loyal, so he said, "Not for the time being. I'll find you if I need you. By the way, has the Seventh Master moved out of the palace now?"

Xu Wenhou shook his head in annoyance and said, "Not yet. I guess I have to wait until after Grandpa Emperor's birthday before my father will issue an edict to confer me the title of prince. But it will be soon, in about a month. Hehe, by the way, the imperial examination will be held on the eighth day of next month. Brother Jia, are you ready to pass the exam?"

"Thank you for your good wishes, Master Qi. Let's go inside and sit down to chat. I just happen to have a business deal that I'd like to cooperate with Master Qi." Jia Huan said as he extended his hand to invite him.

Xu Wenhou immediately became interested. He went into Rongxi Hall with Jia Huan and sat down. He asked, "What kind of business is this? It's not another snack like ice cream, is it? Although this thing tastes good, it makes you fat. My father has forbidden me to eat it now."

"This time it's not food. Do you know what honeycomb coal is?" Jia Huan said as he poured a cup of tea for Xu Wenhou.

Xu Wenhou nodded and said, "Of course I know. This suddenly appeared before the New Year and is now also used in the palace. The stove is quite useful, but it is better to use silver frost charcoal for heating. That thing still has a strong smell."

"That's natural. Although honeycomb briquettes are smokeless, they contain a lot of impurities, especially sulfur, so the smell is a bit strong. But they are cheap and durable, much better than burning coal mud directly."

Xu Wenhou was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up and he blurted out, "Could this honeycomb coal be made by Brother Jia? No wonder I was wondering why this thing suddenly appeared and became in short supply. Could it be that this is the business Brother Jia was talking about?" Jia Huan nodded and smiled, "That's right, Master Qi, are you interested?"

Xu Wenhou rolled his eyes, and a hint of shrewdness appeared on his chubby face. He said, "Tell me about it first."

Jia Huan then introduced the cost and profit of honeycomb coal, as well as the market prospects. When Xu Wenhou heard that the annual profit in the capital and its surrounding areas alone was 300,000 taels, his eyes widened and he said in a lost voice, "Really?"

Jia Huan nodded and said, "The capital and its surrounding areas have a population of over one million. If we were to supply all the honeycomb coal, theoretically we could do it. Of course, this is difficult in practice, but if we could capture half of the market, an annual profit of 100,000 taels would be no problem."

Xu Wenhou was very excited when he heard this. Although he was cowardly and timid, who would resist money? He immediately said, "Then I will pay 50,000 taels of silver and take 50% of the shares. Brother Jia, do you have any objection?"

"Uh...deal!"

The reason why Jia Huan invited Xu Wenhou to join the business was mainly to have a backer. After all, this business had high profits and would definitely attract the attention of the powerful and even the court. The Jia family could not always eat alone. Secondly, the Jia family was really short of money, and thirdly, they wanted to quickly occupy the market.

Originally, on New Year's Eve, Jia Huan, Jia Lian and Jia Rong had agreed to expand production. However, accidents happened one after another. Jia Rong was beaten to a cripple by his father Jia Zhen, and then Jia Lian was arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guards. Naturally, the plan to expand production was shelved.

As the saying goes, the business world is like a battlefield, where speed is of the essence. The market is there, and if you don't occupy it, others will. Once the copycat version of honeycomb coal comes out, you will be in a very passive position. So Jia Huan did not consult the two shareholders, Jia Lian and Jia Rong, but decided to cooperate with the seventh prince Xu Wenhou.

Of course, Jia Huan holds 60% of the shares and is the absolute majority shareholder. He has every right to make his own decisions, and I believe Jia Rong will not object. As for Jia Lian, he is still in jail, and it is still unknown whether he can get out. Even if he regains his freedom in the future, he will have to hold back his dissatisfaction.

However, Jia Lian is also a man who knows how to handle things. The seventh prince will soon become a prince, and having a prince to support him can only be a good thing. As the pie gets bigger, his share of the profits will also increase significantly. Why not do it?

To be honest, Jia Huan didn't expect Xu Houwen to be so generous and invest 50,000 taels at once. A 50% stake was very fair, so he agreed without hesitation.

Just as Jia Huan was about to discuss the details of the cooperation to increase production with Xu Wenhou, the latter waved his hand and said, "Brother Jia, you can decide how to produce and manage the business yourself. Just remember to give me half of the money you make."

Then he rolled his eyes and said with a chuckle, "But I will send someone to help with the accounting later. Is that okay with you, Brother Jia?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "That's exactly what should be done. This is the rule."

Xu Wenhou laughed, stood up and stretched his neck, saying: "That's it, I haven't eaten donkey meat and salted duck for a long time. Money is endless, and the only thing in the world that cannot be missed is delicious food. Brother Jia, please go, I'll treat you!"

Xu Wenhou dragged Jia Huan's hand and walked out without saying a word. As soon as he walked out of the door, he saw several people coming towards him. They were dressed in scholar's robes and scarves. They were Lu Xiangsheng, Liu Yi and Zhang Zhilong.

"Ziming!" Lu Xiangsheng and others saw Jia Huan from afar and immediately quickened their pace to meet him.

Jia Huan also hurried forward and said happily: "Jiandou, Senior Brother, Senior Brother Zhang, why are you here?"

Lu Xiangsheng said, "We have been in seclusion in the academy for a while. We just learned yesterday that something big happened in your house, so we agreed to rush into the city to see you, Ziming."

Zhang Zhilong nodded and said, "Yes, the imperial examination is coming up soon, so we hope nothing will go wrong."

Jia Huan felt warm in his heart and smiled, "Don't worry, it won't affect me."

Liu Yi nodded and said, "That's good. Is Ziming planning to go out?" He glanced at Xu Wenhou behind Jia Huan, and suddenly his expression changed slightly. He quickly stepped past Jia Huan and bowed respectfully to Xu Wenhou, saying, "Liu Shouzheng, I meet His Royal Highness the Seventh Prince."

Lu Xiangsheng and Zhang Zhilong were both surprised. Jia Huan was also surprised and asked, "So the eldest brother knows... the seventh master?"

Xu Wenhou muttered uncomfortably, "His old man is my teacher, how can I not know him... Well, since you are all Brother Jia's friends, then come together. But Liu Shouzheng, you have to treat us this time. This is called the son paying for the father's debt!"

Liu Yi nodded and said, "Okay, what would you like to eat, Master?"

"How about Zuiyuezhai?" Xu Wenhou asked.

Liu Yi's face turned slightly pale, and he bowed his head and said, "Okay!"

"Let's go!" Xu Wenhou turned around and got on the carriage.

Seeing that Liu Yi looked unhappy, Jia Huan thought that the food at Zuiyuezhai was very expensive. He was about to say that he would pay for the meal, but Zhang Zhilong leaned close to his ear and whispered, "The thousand-layer cake produced by Zuiyuezhai was Miss Qi Wanruo's favorite when she was alive."

(End of this chapter)