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Chapter 331 Young Master Zhu's Earning Money Isn't Easy
After waking up, Xu Yuan suddenly realized a problem:
Regarding my second uncle's poor judgment of character... he was not allowed to judge his own elder brother, nor was he allowed to judge Zheng Rongkui.

See the good as bad, and the bad as good.

My first impression of him yesterday was that he was imposing and had a powerful stride.

Is it just a pretty face?
To say that he rose through the ranks of the demon-slaying army would prove his ability—Xu Yuan used to believe that, but now that he understands the true nature of the "Three Offices of Strange Affairs," he wouldn't draw such a simple conclusion.

"You have to be extra careful when doing business with him."

"I might not be fooled by the scheming of bad people, but I'm afraid of a fool's sudden inspiration..."

I get up and check the almanac first.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I confirmed that there was no "no-viewing day" today.

But having a sword hanging over your head all the time feels awful.

Today's ban:
Breaking ground, arguing, painting, taking medicine.

Xu Yuan shook his head: "It's not a good day."

First, Wenxiu lost half of his abilities.

Then, the method of using external pills to quickly recover is no longer viable.

The martial arts practitioners, on the other hand, were overjoyed.

No more swearing, that's great! Our consistent principle is: if you can fight, don't talk.

I ate breakfast with Aunt Wang—mainly because Aunt Wang's breakfasts were exquisite and plentiful.

After decades apart, the Third Sister and her advisors were eager to make up for the "filial piety" they had neglected in a short period of time.

Every morning, they would bring breakfast to the Ancestral Grandmother.

There are many different styles and varieties.

All three meals a day are provided.

If it weren't for Lord Xu's prior notice last night, we wouldn't have eaten at Wuweilou Restaurant, but rather at a much more lavish banquet they had prepared.

Thinking about yesterday's dinner, Master Xu felt cheated again.

If I had known you missed my dad so much, why would I have invited you to dinner?!
My father and stepmother, that's our family matter.

Between you and my father, I will definitely side with my family, regardless of right or wrong!

Besides, you're not in the right.

"Last night's meal cost me fifteen taels of silver—this amount should be added to this deal." Lord Xu secretly noted it down.

Aunt Wang watched A Yuan eat with a smile, seemingly enjoying it even more than if she were eating herself.

Seeing which food A-Yuan liked, I kept putting it on his plate.

Aunt Wang understood that the old folks, Fei Kuoshe and Wai Miaozi, were genuinely there to show their respect for her.

However, the younger generation of the Third Sister's gang, such as Miao Yan, also run to the South City patrol room every day, of course, in order to get closer to A Yuan.

Aunt Wang wasn't angry; on the contrary, she was very proud: "Our Yuan is the most capable one!"
Miao Yan was reporting to Lord Xu at this moment: "My father has already confiscated all of Shen Qingpeng's property. He will be back this afternoon. There is silver, houses, shops and land, totaling about 450,000 taels. The detailed list is with him."

Xu Yuan smiled; finally, there was some good news.

"You did a good job."

Upon receiving a compliment from Lord Xu, Miao Yan's face immediately lit up with joy.

Just as they were finishing their meal, Zhu Zhanlei poked his head out from outside the door with a grin, called out "Brother Yuan'er" with a smile, and then slipped inside.

Xu Yuan exclaimed, "You're as slippery as an eel!" Looking behind him, he saw neither Miao Yu nor Zhu Zhanmei.

"Stop looking, it's just me." Zhu Zhanlei sat down at the table as if they were old friends, picked up a pair of chopsticks and started eating: "Your food is really good, better than what I eat at home."

After Xu Yuan finished eating and stopped, Aunt Wang stood up and said to Third Sister and the others, "You guys, help me go outside and get some sun."

The Third Sister's large group of "filial sons and grandsons" suddenly surrounded the Ancestral Grandmother and helped her out.

Zhu Zhanlei stopped eating and stared in disbelief at the backs of Aunt Wang and her group.

"what happened?"

Zhu Zhanlei swallowed the half-chewed food in his mouth with force: "Don't think that just because I'm not a cultivator of destiny, I can't see anything."

I've seen a lot of things since I was a child!
Those old servants around your elders, aren't they all sixth-rate?"

Those advisors, including Fei, have been stuck in the lower ranks for decades.

After Aunt Wang completed their training, they have all risen to the sixth rank in the past few days. However, they are getting old, and this is the end of their training for this lifetime.

Moreover, due to poor health, he was at the lower end of the sixth class.

But this is, after all, a genuine sixth-rate product!

Four or five people were willingly helping an old lady.
Zhu Zhanlei recalled that even his own great-grandmother hadn't lived such a luxurious life.

“You told me you came from a poor family,” Zhu Zhanlei said quietly, “I suspect you’re lying to me.”

Xu Yuan smiled: "Aunt Wang's situation is rather special, and it can't be explained in just a few words. What exactly did you come to see me about?"

While eating, Zhu Zhanlei said, "It wasn't me who wanted to find you; the Canal Administration sent me. They specifically told me not to bring my brother-in-law and third sister."

This kid has a knack for talking while eating quickly, and he speaks very clearly without making any food crumbs fly around.

"Although I also look down on the way those people in the Grand Canal government act, I always pay attention to the details when it comes to helping others."

So he didn't bring those two along and came to find Xu Yuan on his own.

He never even considered that without Miao Yu's company, Xu Yuan might not accept his offer.

He felt that "this young master" definitely had that kind of face!

"The canal authorities want to buy something from you, but I don't know what it is, and those bastards won't tell me."

However, their price was very high: three thousand taels of silver, plus two seventh-rate external pills.

Xu Yuan snorted coldly: "Go tell them that I have already sold that item to the Demon Extermination Army."

"Really?" Zhu Zhanlei blinked.

Xu Yuan was both amused and exasperated: "Of course it's fake! But if I don't say it like this, they... never mind, you won't be interested in explaining it to me anyway. Just listen to me, just tell them this."

"Alright." Zhu Zhanlei smiled, patted his belly, and prepared to leave, but then turned back and asked, "If things go well, could you put a thousand taels of silver in Baiyue Pavilion for me?"

Xu Yuan waved his hand: "There will definitely be benefits for you."

Zhu Zhanlei left satisfied.

Zhu Zhanlei didn't understand, but the Grand Canal government understood Xu Yuan's meaning.

They quickly discovered that there was a commander of an exorcism army in the city.

That's so easy to find out; he was staying at the post station...

Therefore, Lord Xu's judgment that Second Uncle's abilities might have been overestimated was correct.

The canal authorities got anxious and bargained with Xu Yuan several times.

Zhu Zhanlei ran errands five times in one day.

The young master cursed inwardly, realizing how difficult it was to earn that thousand taels of silver!
I used to be able to ask my family for a thousand taels of silver without even asking.

Every time Zhu Zhanlei came, Xu Yuan would go to the post station, adding fifteen taels of silver to the price charged by the Grand Canal Administration each time.

The final price that Xu Yuan negotiated with the canal authorities was somewhat unexpected.

Xu Yuan requested a shop at the Champa Canal wharf.

Afterwards, Xu Yuan went to the post station.

Uncle Er's expression changed several times upon hearing the final price: "I've been to the docks. You said that shop couldn't be bought for less than 50,000 taels."

After hesitating for a long time, he sighed helplessly, "Let's sell it to them. We can't afford that much money."

The whole thing about the Ghost King's body boils down to the fact that the demon-slaying army wanted to embezzle more silver.

Making them scrape together 50,000 taels... is worse than killing them.

The Grand Canal Administration, on the other hand, has many ways to make money, so it's naturally much more generous than the Demon Extermination Army.

He didn't use the excuse of being "family" to persuade Xu Yuan to sell to them at a low price, which improved Xu Yuan's impression of him.

Lord Xu hummed a little tune as he returned from the post station to the South City patrol post. Today, it was Old Qin guarding the gate again: "Sir, there is someone over there who wants to see you."

An old farmer, with his hands tucked into his sleeves, squatted at the base of the wall outside the gate.

Xu Yuan looked somewhat familiar.

"Sir, I am the village head of Yujing Village."

(End of this chapter)