The Prodigal Son

Let's go back eight years.

Shi Zhen has been accompanying the Crown Prince on his southern tour for more than two months.

Logically speaking, this should be an unparalleled honor for historians.

After all, among so many merchants in the world, only the sons of the Shi family were able to accompany the Crown Prince on his southern tour.

Moreover, it was the Crown Prince who specially invited them.

This honor is something that others can only dream of.

But for some reason, Shi Dingyuan has been feeling uneasy lately.

He didn't know where this unease came from, but he had a feeling that something big was about to happen.

This unknown unease made Shi Dingyuan extremely restless, and he kept pacing back and forth in the pavilion in the courtyard.

"father!"

Just as Shi Dingyuan was getting increasingly agitated, Shi Yi grabbed Shi Wang and strode over.

Hearing the sound, Shi Dingyuan turned around and saw Shi Wang being pulled like a chick by Shi Yi. He immediately frowned and asked, "What trouble has this brat gotten into this time?"

Shi Dingyuan had four sons and three daughters.

But his youngest son died of illness before he was even ten years old.

Shi Wang is now his youngest son.

Shi Zhen was born of the principal wife, while Shi Yi and Shi Wang were born of concubines.

However, although Shi Dingyuan valued his eldest son Shi Zhen more, he did not treat his two sons born out of wedlock with much discrimination.

The Shi family's vast fortune cannot be supported by just one son.

In the future, Shi Zhen will enter officialdom and succeed the Salt Commissioner of Liangjiang.

He also had a clear direction for raising his three sons.

The eldest son, Shi Zhen, is being groomed for a career in officialdom so that he can eventually succeed me as the Salt Commissioner of Liangjiang.

The second and third sons are being groomed for the business world, with the intention of taking over the family business in the future.

His idea was good, but things in this world always go against our wishes.

Shi Yi is quite capable, skilled in both literature and martial arts, and he manages many of the Shi family's businesses.

However, Shi Wang had a lot of bad habits. When he was young, he didn't study or practice martial arts properly and spent his days indulging in brothels.

He's in his thirties now, still a carefree slacker, always out partying, and you never see him all day long.

Shi Yi, his face dark, shoved Shi Wang forward and said irritably, "Tell your father yourself!"

"Just say it, why are you putting it off?"

Shi Wang glanced at Shi Yi with displeasure, then said nonchalantly, "So what if I lost 50,000 taels of silver at the casino? It's not a big deal!"

The Shi family was the wealthiest in the world; what was a mere 50,000 taels of silver to them?

Shi Dingyuan was already in a bad mood, and seeing Shi Wang's indifferent appearance, a sudden surge of inexplicable anger rose in his heart.

Snapped!

Shi Dingyuan slapped Shi Wang hard across the face and roared, "You wicked child! Get over here right now and kneel in the ancestral hall to reflect on your actions! If you dare to gamble again, I'll break your legs!"

Gambling was a major taboo for Shi Dingyuan.

He's bold enough to spend a fortune, yet he knows nothing of poverty when he has no walls to live in.

He had warned his family members long ago that anyone who dared to get involved in gambling would face severe consequences.

As a result, the other members of the family listened to him, but his own son treated his words as nonsense!

He lost 50,000 taels of silver in one go, and he still dares to act like nothing happened?

Yes, the Shi family is large and powerful; a mere 50,000 taels of silver is nothing to them.

But if this continues, even the largest family fortune will be squandered!

Shi Wang, rubbing his throbbing face, was furious, but dared not jump up and fight his father. He could only stubbornly shout, "Fine, I'll get out! As long as you don't mind the humiliation, I'll leave!"

After saying that, Shi Wang simply lay down on the ground and rolled towards the ancestral hall like a pupa.

Seeing Shi Wang rolling around on the ground, Shi Dingyuan was so angry that he stomped his feet, his old face turning pale and then red.

"Third brother!"

Shi Yi, his face dark with anger, roared, "Get up right now! Do you want to drive your father to his death?"

Shi Wang couldn't get up, and while rolling around, he said, "Look how filial I am! He told me to get out, so I got out!"

Shi Yi was furious and was about to pull Shi Wang up when the steward rushed over with someone.

Seeing Shi Wang rolling on the ground, the butler was both amused and exasperated, and quickly stepped forward to help him up, "Third Master, what are you doing? Get up quickly!"

"Ignore him!"

Shi Dingyuan roared, "He's not afraid of losing face, and neither am I!"

"Third Master, get up quickly!"

The butler gently tugged at Shi Wang, but seeing that Shi Wang really couldn't get up, he didn't say anything more and hurriedly led someone to Shi Dingyuan. "Master, the eldest young master sent an urgent letter back, saying that he wants to hand it to you personally."

Urgent message?

Hearing the butler's words, Shi Dingyuan's unease intensified.

The eldest son was accompanying the Crown Prince on his southern tour. For him to send an urgent letter at this time, and insist that the letter be delivered directly to him, must mean something serious has happened.

After handing the letter to Shi Dingyuan, the steward quickly led the men away, not forgetting to persuade Shi Wang before leaving, "Third Master, the ground is cold, don't lie down! If you're hot, I'll have someone bring you some ice."

Shi Wang remained silent and continued rolling out.

Helpless, the butler could only lead the people away quickly.

On the other side, Shi Dingyuan had already opened the letter.

Upon reading the contents of the letter, Shi Dingyuan felt a sudden dizziness and stumbled.

"father!"

Shi Yi reacted quickly and helped his father up.

Shi Wang, who was about to roll towards the ancestral hall, saw that something was wrong and hurriedly got up, rushing forward, "Father, what happened?"

Shi Dingyuan gripped the letter tightly, gritting his teeth and growling, "To the study!"

The two brothers exchanged a silent glance and quickly helped Shi Dingyuan walk towards the study.

"Old Ghost, stay outside and guard the area. Don't let anyone near!"

Before entering the study, Shi Dingyuan growled in a low voice at the old servant sweeping the courtyard.

"yes!"

The old servant responded indifferently and continued sweeping the floor.

Upon entering the study, Shi Yi helped Shi Dingyuan sit down, and Shi Wang quickly closed the door.

Only then did Shi Dingyuan hand the letter to Shi Yi.

Shi Wang was filled with curiosity and followed suit.

Shi Yi instinctively tried to push Shi Wang away, but seeing that his father didn't stop him, he tacitly allowed Shi Wang to read the letter with him.

Upon reading the contents of the letter, Shi Wang's expression changed drastically, and he looked back and forth between his father and brothers in terror.

The historian was secretly mining gold in Nanping Mountain, and he was completely unaware of it.

Crucially, Shi Zhen also stated in the letter that the Crown Prince had received information that someone was secretly mining gold in Nanping Mountain, but he did not yet know who it was.

Currently, to avoid alerting the enemy, the Crown Prince has revealed this matter to the public, and only the Crown Prince and a few people around him know about it.

The Crown Prince planned to deal with this matter when he returned to the capital after his southern tour.

Now, the Crown Prince has begun his return journey from Longshan County.

The situation is extremely critical. Once the Crown Prince finds out about the gold mine, with his power, he will inevitably trace it back to the Shi family.

If the investigation leads back to the Shi family, they will face utter destruction.

Now, the only way is for him to stall the Crown Prince while the Shi family's elite warriors are deployed to find an opportunity to eliminate the Crown Prince and those around him who know the truth.

Following the letter was Shi Zhen's detailed plan...