Joy of Life: Starting by clinging to the eldest princess's coattails!

Wu Feng smiled slightly.

He said to Wei Cong, whose face still showed shock:

"This must be Young Master Wei Cong, right? Your younger brother is incredibly rude. Rather than letting him cause uncontrollable trouble later, it's better to let him die now. What do you think, Young Master Wei?"

Wei Cong came to his senses.

He took a slow breath in and then slowly exhaled.

He forcefully suppressed the shock and anger that suddenly rose in his chest because of his brother's murder.

Looking at Wu Feng, Wei Cong felt a sense of unease he had never experienced before.

Having lived this long, he has seen ruthless people and all sorts of conspiracies and schemes.

But I've never seen anyone who's all smiles and talking one second and then suddenly snaps someone's neck the next.

The people have been killed, and now you're asking for his opinion?

The people of Nanqing... are indeed barbaric, they don't follow any rules at all, and they are no match for the aristocratic atmosphere of their Northern Qi families.

"I'm sorry to have made you laugh, Mr. Wu." Wei Cong bowed slightly and clasped his hands in a salute.

He even forced a bitter smile, "From childhood to adulthood, my younger brother has indeed caused a lot of trouble. In fact, I should thank Mr. Wu for resolving this hidden danger for my Wei family."

He felt nothing but anger and contempt for Wu Feng.

But this is Nanqing, and they need someone's help right now.

When it's time to bow your head, you must bow your head.

Moreover... Wu Feng's lightness skill just now was terrifying.

He himself was an eighth-rank official, and the guards he brought were all seventh-rank officials, but none of them saw how Wu Feng came down from the roof.

That lightness skill is terrifying.

Besides, Wei Heng was ultimately just a member of a collateral branch of the Wei family.

If you die, you die.

Wu Feng was not surprised at all by Wei Cong's flexible and adaptable response.

It would be a joke if the eldest son of the dignified head of the Wei family's business were truly a gentle and refined gentleman.

"In that case," Wu Feng sat down on the stone bench opposite Wei Cong, "Young Master Wei, let's talk about cooperation."

Wei Cong waved to the guards who were still holding their knives and looking bewildered.

The guards breathed a sigh of relief and quickly sheathed their swords.

Two people stepped forward, lifted Wei Heng's body, and quickly walked out of the courtyard.

Wei An, who had been slumped on the stone bench, finally regained some strength in his legs.

His face was still deathly pale. He leaned on the table to stand up, his voice trembling slightly: "Cousin, Mr. Wu... I... I'll take my leave now..."

He really dared not stay here any longer.

It's terrifying that someone would kill someone over a mere disagreement! All he wants now is to leave this courtyard as quickly as possible.

Wei Cong glanced at him but didn't say anything, which was taken as tacit approval.

Wei An felt as if he had been granted a pardon, and staggered away with the guards.

Only Wu Feng and Wei Cong remained in the courtyard, along with a few cups of tea on the stone table that had long since gone cold.

Wei Cong didn't speak immediately.

He reached for his cup of cold tea and took a small sip.

The cool tea slid down his throat, calming his somewhat chaotic thoughts a little.

He put down his teacup before speaking, his voice regaining its previous gentleness:

"Mr. Wu, Her Highness the Eldest Princess's purpose in holding this auction... can't be that simple, can it?"

He wanted to test the waters and gain some control of the conversation.

Wu Feng, however, had no interest in beating around the bush with him.

"Young Master Wei, there's no need for such words." Wu Feng looked at Wei Cong directly. "I'm not afraid to tell you, His Highness has granted me full authority regarding this auction. In other words, the decision of who gets the right to sell the goods from the three major workshops in Northern Qi is in my hands. Do you understand?"

Wei Cong's eyes flickered.

As if he had been prepared, his expression remained unchanged. He reached into his pocket, took out a stack of silver notes, and gently pushed them in front of Wu Feng.

"Mr. Wu, it's a pleasure to meet you. This is just a small token of my appreciation." Wei Cong said with a polite smile. "If you ever need anything in Northern Qi, Mr. Wu, my Wei family will do our best to help."

Wu Feng glanced at the stack of silver notes; it was very thick, and each note was worth five hundred taels.

Without any hesitation, he reached out and took it, then stuffed it into his pocket.

"Young Master Wei is a straightforward person," Wu Feng said.

Wei Cong's smile froze for a moment, and he felt awkward again.

Why isn't this behaving the way it should?

Normally, one should first politely decline, saying things like "How could I accept this? Young Master Wei is being too polite," and then reluctantly accept it, while giving a guarantee.

Why is this person taking it so confidently and so readily?

Wu Feng ignored Wei Cong's slight unease, pocketed the silver notes, and remained calm.

"Since Young Master Wei is so understanding, then I will state my conditions." Wu Feng looked at Wei Cong. "The Wei family wants the sales rights for the three major workshops' goods in Northern Qi. That's fine. There are two options; let's see which one Young Master Wei chooses."

Wei Cong immediately sat up straighter, his expression becoming very serious and sincere: "Please enlighten me, Mr. Wu."

"First," Wu Feng held up his index finger, "our Qingyutang will be responsible for transporting the goods from Qing Kingdom to Northern Qi and handing them over to your Wei family for sale. However, we will take 80% of the profits. Moreover, regardless of whether you sell them all or not, you must accept whatever amount of goods we supply and settle the payment on the spot. There is no room for negotiation."

After speaking, Wu Feng quietly looked at Wei Cong, waiting for his reaction.

Wei Cong's lips twitched slightly, uncontrollably.

Just for transporting goods to Northern Qi, they want to take 80% of the profit? And it's cash on delivery, regardless of whether they can actually sell it.

This is simply an unfair contract term!

Even if the Wei family has strong sales capabilities, they probably won't have much profit left in the end. They'll just be doing manual labor for Qingyutang.

His mind was in turmoil, but he tried his best to keep his face calm. He simply picked up the cold tea and took another sip to hide his expression.

"Then..." Wei Cong put down his teacup and tentatively asked, "Mr. Wu, what is the second mode?"

Wu Feng smiled slightly and held up two fingers.

"The second option is for your Wei family to be responsible for the transportation. Qingyutang only takes a 20% profit. Similarly, we will ship the same amount of goods, and you will receive the same amount, with payment settled on the spot."

"Twenty percent?!"

Wei Cong's carefully maintained composure was instantly shattered.

His eyes widened, his face was filled with shock, and even his breathing became noticeably more rapid.

Giving the Wei family 80% of the profits?!

How is this possible?!

After the great surprise came a deeper sense of vigilance and suspicion.

Where in the world is there such a good thing?

Did they just hand over 80% of their profits to someone else?

Even if this is Wu Feng's idea, Princess Li Yunrui would never agree to it!

There must be other conditions involved, and they must be very demanding.

"Mr. Wu," Wei Cong's voice was deeper than before, "this second mode... there must be other conditions, right?"

Wu Feng's smile deepened.

"Of course." He leaned back slightly, his tone still calm. "His Highness certainly wouldn't give you 80% of the profits for nothing."

"Please speak, Mr. Wu." Wei Cong's heart leaped into his throat.

Wu Feng looked into his eyes and clearly uttered a few words:

Three million taels.

"The condition is that your Wei family must give us three million taels of silver in cash upfront. Once the money is received, the contract will be signed. From then on, the sales rights in Northern Qi, as well as 80% of the profits, will belong to your Wei family."

Three million taels?!

As soon as Wu Feng finished speaking, Wei Cong's eyes widened even more, and the muscles on his face stiffened from shock.

Three million taels!

Wu Feng's appetite is too big!

His first reaction was that Wu Feng must have arbitrarily increased the number!

The bottom price Li Yunrui offered was definitely not that high.

Wu Feng is trying to make a killing off this!

"Mr. Wu," Wei Cong's voice was somewhat hoarse.

He tried to make his tone sound merely troubled, not angry:

"This amount is simply too large. Although my Wei family has been passed down for a hundred years and has some wealth, it is impossible for us to come up with so much cash all at once."

Wu Feng's expression remained unchanged, and his tone remained calm.

"Young Master Wei, you understand better than I what an 80% profit margin means in the long run."

"If it weren't for the fact that my lord urgently needs money, she would never have made this offer."

Wei Cong remained silent.

He lowered his head, looking at the tea leaves that had sunk to the bottom of the teacup on the stone table, his mind racing with calculations.

Wu Feng is right.

In the long run, the allure of an 80% profit margin far exceeds that of three million taels.

The products from the three major workshops are unique and have extremely high profit margins. As long as the distribution channels are controlled, it's like a goose that keeps laying golden eggs.

But... three million taels of silver is definitely not a small amount.

He himself cannot make this decision.

Wu Feng didn't urge him.

The time it takes to drink half a cup of tea passed in silence.

Wei Cong finally raised his head and looked at Wu Feng.

The shock and embarrassment on his face disappeared, and he returned to his gentle and polite demeanor.

"Mr. Wu, this matter is of great importance and cannot be decided by me alone. Could you grant me a few days to discuss it with my elders?"

"Of course." Wu Feng nodded readily. "But Young Master Wei, you'd better give me a definite answer before the auction begins."

"After all, the Wei family is not the only powerful family in Northern Qi."

Wei Cong felt a chill run down his spine.

"I understand," he said solemnly. "I will give Mr. Wu a clear answer before the auction begins."

Wu Feng nodded and stood up.

"That's settled then."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wei Cong felt a blur before his eyes.

Wu Feng's figure seemed to transform into a wisp of weightless green smoke, rising lightly into the air, touching the courtyard wall, and then disappearing into the shadows of the distant houses.

Wei Cong opened his mouth.

He also wanted to invite Wu Feng to dinner, and take the opportunity to build a relationship and test the waters.

Why isn't this going according to plan?