Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Faced with Sister Feng's murderous gaze, Jia Lian simply chose to ignore it.

Although brothels are a large industry and certainly profitable, it goes without saying how many dirty and inhumane things happen behind this seemingly glamorous business.

He doesn't have the time or energy to get involved in this industry right now, unless he reaches the pinnacle of power and one day the world is peaceful and prosperous, then he might be able to free up his hands to properly regulate and standardize this industry.

But definitely not now.

Every important matter he undertakes now, every step he takes, is preparation for his own ascent to the summit.

Compared to that, making money is not so important.

Xue Pan was scolded by Aunt Xue, and seemed to realize that his words were inappropriate. So he smiled awkwardly and pretended to go drink.

Baochai, on the other hand, knew that given Jia Lian's status, there was really no need for him to engage in business.

The Jia family was different from the Xue family. The Jia family's main wealth came from the hundreds of thousands of acres of land owned by the two mansions combined. For noble families like the Jia family, being content with being landlords was the proper path; getting involved in commerce was not something to be praised.

If the goal is to make money, then a grain shop doesn't seem like a good choice. Therefore, Baochai asked doubtfully, "It seems that Brother Lian's purpose in setting up a grain shop is not to make money."

If Brother Lian truly has this idea, I have two suggestions for you and Sister Feng to consider.

No one expected Baochai to speak up. Most of the people present agreed that although Baochai was young, she was a steady person who would never speak up unless it concerned her. She was well-versed in the art of hiding her ignorance and humility.

So much so that even Jia Lian became more serious when he heard Baochai say this, and explained: "What Sister Baochai said is true. One of the reasons why I want to set up a grain store is because I had someone open a restaurant before, which mainly deals in the resale of famous wines from all over the country. Over the years, the business has been quite profitable."

Therefore, I intend to expand the scale of the restaurant and establish a distillery to produce several types of high-proof distilled spirits, forming my own industrial brand and perfecting the restaurant's supply chain to avoid being controlled by others.

Brewing requires grain, so I thought I'd also set up a grain store to solve the problem of raw materials for brewing.

Of course, these are only secondary reasons. The most important reason is that food is the foundation of all people in the world.

Turning the pages of history, whenever great disasters befall the world, there is always an inevitability of merchants hoarding goods and speculating on prices, prioritizing profit over the well-being of the nation and its people, making life increasingly difficult for them. At such times, relying solely on the imperial court and government officials to intervene and manage the situation is likely insufficient.

Therefore, I thought that in my lifetime, within my capabilities, I could one day expand my Jia family's grain stores throughout the entire territory of the Great Wei, so that in years of good weather and peace, we could profit from the grain produced by the people, and in years of disaster, we could open our granaries wide to assist the government in providing relief to the people.

Jia Lian spoke these words to Baochai. At this point, he looked at Baochai deeply and then added, "Of course, this is just a small contribution I, as a minister of the Great Wei, want to make for the prosperity and stability of the Great Wei."

Although I may never achieve that in my lifetime, as the sage said, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. If I start trying now, who knows, I might achieve it someday? Even if I cannot do it myself, I can encourage my descendants to carry on my legacy.

I believe that as long as my will endures, one day my Jia family grain store will be able to do something beneficial for the people of this land.

If Xue Ke were here at this moment, he would surely slam his fist on the table and sigh deeply that Jia Lian had not lied to him.

If it were truly possible to do as Jia Lian said, wouldn't that be achieving the grand ambition of benefiting all under heaven through the way of merchants?

Although Xue Ke is not here, the four or five people here, apart from Sister Feng, are all from the Xue family, a century-old imperial merchant family.

Therefore, even the most dull-witted Xue Pan couldn't help but widen his eyes upon hearing Jia Lian's words, feeling that Jia Lian's image became even more towering in his eyes.

Indeed, the heavens are different when it comes to people. I was born into a family of imperial merchants, and I only ever knew that doing business could make money. I was never respected by the world because of my business, which caused my status to be far inferior to that of noble families like the Jia family, which made me very regretful.

I never imagined that business could be linked to such important matters as national affairs, the well-being of the people, and the world!

That's absolutely amazing!

Xue Pan felt that if anyone else had said such things to his face, he would have scoffed. "I'm a businessman myself, don't I know what kind of people are in business?" But since it was Jia Lian who said it, and judging from his confident demeanor, Xue Pan felt that only Jia Lian could say something he meant something he actually did.

If Xue Pan was like this, one can only imagine how others were.

Sister Feng, who initially wanted to mock and refute, became silent and even felt a sense of relief and pride.

Sure enough, this was her man—so extraordinary, so ambitious. Even his business of selling grain could be described with such grandeur, inspiring genuine respect.

She even suddenly felt that she should strongly support Jia Lian in doing this.

It wasn't entirely to fulfill Jia Lian's ambitions, but rather, she remembered that Jia Lian still held a large amount of the Lin family's inheritance!

Jia Lian was able to give her ten chests of gold, worth 340,000 taels of silver, so he probably has much more left.

Rather than letting him squander this money on debauchery, it's better to use it for something worthwhile. Judging by his words, he wants to open grain stores all over the Great Wei; he'll probably spend all that money anyway. That's a good idea.

The key point is that even if the money is spent, the assets remain, and we can legitimately transfer the Lin family's assets to the Jia family.

Thinking about this, Sister Feng couldn't help but wonder if Jia Lian had this intention.

If that's the case, she thinks Jia Lian is quite cunning. On the surface, he speaks so righteously and insists that no one can touch Lin Daiyu's dowry or his future son's property, but in reality, he couldn't help but make the first move.

However, she thinks it's fine.

At worst, we can just treat Lin better in the future.

Thinking about all this, Feng Jie's resentment towards Daiyu gradually faded away without her realizing it.

That makes sense. Just by letting Jia Lian marry a noble concubine, the family could suddenly gain hundreds of thousands or even millions in assets. Who wouldn't be happy about that?

Moreover, Daiyu, that little maid, is so innocent-looking. Even if she gives birth to a son, she should be adopted back into the Lin family. That's quite good.

It must be said that Sister Feng is quite accurate in calculating wealth. Even though Jia Lian never told her the truth, she was able to guess the total amount of the Lin family's wealth in no time.

But she never imagined that, for Jia Lian at this time, the Lin family's assets were just a small part.

Aside from using it as a cover, Jia Lian would certainly not embezzle it unless absolutely necessary.

Given their differing calculations of their respective strengths and weaknesses, it was destined that Sister Feng would never be able to control Jia Lian's actions.

As for Aunt Xue and her daughter, they were both invigorated after hearing Jia Lian's words.

Aunt Xue was alright, but she felt that Jia Lian was indeed worthy of being trusted by the emperor; the things he considered were different from those of ordinary people like them.

Moreover, she didn't quite understand Jia Lian's concepts of "brand" and "industrial chain," but they seemed very reasonable to her. She felt that if Jia Lian got involved in business, he would definitely succeed.

For Baochai, however, it was far more than that.

Although Baochai had realized before that Jia Lian's establishment of the grain shop was not for making money and that he must have his own plans, she still did not expect that Jia Lian would reach such a level and height, to the point that it sounded somewhat unrealistic and like a castle in the air.

However, upon closer reflection, it seems that what Jia Lian said was not unfounded, but rather based on some clues and had the potential to be realized.

In times of peace, they make money from the people's grain; in times of great disaster, they use the people's grain to provide relief. What a magnanimous heart and strategic vision this is!

Although this matter sounds difficult to carry out, if he were to actually accomplish it, wouldn't it be a great achievement that would be remembered for generations to come?

At that time, fame and fortune will be within easy reach.

To use the promise of disaster relief to win over the hearts of the people and cultivate one's own prestige—such ambition makes even Baochai, who thinks about it openly, tremble with fear.

Is this something a mere subject could accomplish?

Thinking of the danger involved, Baochai felt that she was overthinking it. However, meeting Jia Lian's gaze, she keenly sensed that what Jia Lian had told them might not be entirely true, and that there might be some considerations that he couldn't say to others, which he kept hidden.

This is just one of the plans that we overheard today. Behind it all, how many of Brother Lian's schemes, unknown to us, are truly astonishing and shocking?

Second Brother Lian, is he really only twenty-one years old?

Baochai felt that she had always thought highly of Jia Lian, considering him a rare and extraordinary man. But now she realized that perhaps her vision was still too limited; Jia Lian's level of achievement was something that even the prime ministers and high-ranking officials of the court could hardly reach.

I really don't know how far Lian Erge will go in the future!

Isn't this the kind of husband I've longed for and fantasized about since I was old enough to understand things?

Unfortunately, I was born a few years too late, so I was destined to miss out.

I am already of marriageable age. If I give up participating in the selection a second time, I am afraid that I will choose a husband and get married within two or three years and then become a wife and mother.

I don't know what my future husband will be like, his character, his breadth of vision, his ambitions, or how he will compare to my second brother Lian...

In a daze, she heard her mother calling her. Coming back to her senses, she saw Aunt Xue saying to her, "Bao'er, what's wrong? Didn't you say you had a suggestion for your second brother Lian and sister Feng to consider? Why are you standing there blankly?"

Upon hearing this, Baochai turned around and indeed saw Jia Lian looking at her, pretending to listen.

Reflecting on her thoughts and her current predicament, Baochai lowered her head in embarrassment. After a moment of thought, she said, "Brother Lian's thoughts and considerations are truly admirable."

With Brother Lian's intelligence, he probably already has this in mind. My younger sister's words just now were rather rash.

"Sister Baochai, you are overthinking it. As the saying goes, two people can think of more than one. Besides, I know that you are very knowledgeable and insightful. I hope you will not hesitate to give me your guidance."

Jia Lian's humble and gentle words made Baochai feel very respected.

However, he could no longer be polite with Jia Lian and said frankly, "Brother Lian wants to set up a grain store, but is worried that he does not have any people who are knowledgeable in this field. I have two unconventional opinions on this matter."

First, if Second Brother Lian only seeks talent with expertise in this area, our Xue family's shop assistants and managers surely include some who worked in the grain trade in the past. If Second Brother Lian doesn't mind, we are willing to select capable individuals from among them and transfer them to the capital for Second Brother Lian's use.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian nodded and smiled, "If that's the case, it would solve my urgent problem, but I'm afraid it would be too much trouble for you."

Aunt Xue, who was standing nearby, quickly said it was nothing, saying that Jia Lian had helped the Xue family so much, and it was only right to repay him.

Baochai also said, "It's not really troublesome. However, given that Brother Lian holds several positions in the court, I'm afraid he won't have much time and energy to build the grain store from scratch, bit by bit."

Therefore, I boldly suggest that Brother Lian should choose a suitable grain shop from among those in Beijing and buy it directly.

If this matter can be accomplished, it would save Lian Erge a lot of time and avoid some trouble.

Of course, if Brother Lian has other considerations, then consider this my presumptuous statement.

Baochai spoke tactfully and politely, but Jia Lian listened attentively.

Then Jia Lian couldn't help but nod. As expected of "Sister Bao," who had assisted Aunt Xue in managing the family business since childhood, she indeed had a clear understanding of the ways of doing things.

Baochai meant that if Jia Lian wanted to start a grain store from scratch, the Xue family could help provide managers and employees.

However, Baochai still suggested that they directly acquire a grain store, thus saving the time spent on initial setup and avoiding trouble.

After all, the Jia family had never been involved in the grain business before, and their sudden intervention would inevitably bring many unexpected difficulties. For example, there would be competition from other businesses, and issues such as manpower, storage, and grain sourcing would all need to be established from scratch. Any one of these aspects could be subject to interference or trouble.

However, directly acquiring an existing grain store, even one that has declined, can effectively avoid these problems.

Actually, Jia Lian wasn't afraid of trouble. After all, with his current influence, all he was doing was running a grain store. Who would be determined to oppose him?

However, the fact that it could greatly reduce time was what Jia Lian valued most.

For him, time was the most precious thing. After all, time waits for no one. Xue Baochai had already come of age, and if he slowed down, he might not even get to drink the soup.

Of course, this is just a joke.

In reality, although Jia Lian is only twenty-one and looks very young, he has too many things he wants to do.

Saving time in the early stages increases the chances of success in the end.

Thinking of this, Jia Lian's gaze towards Baochai became increasingly appreciative.

He thought to himself that being able to marry this woman was an immense blessing for any man.

She is beautiful, kind-hearted, and elegant, and can even make up for any shortcomings in a man's career; she is practically perfect.

After Baochai finished expressing her views, she observed Jia Lian's reaction. She noticed that after Jia Lian seemed to understand, he looked at her with an undisguised expression of admiration.

Even though she was pleased that Jia Lian valued her opinion, her shyness as a young woman made her turn her head away in embarrassment.

Feng Jie glanced at Baochai, then at Jia Lian, her brows furrowed. She couldn't help but cough, then laughed loudly, "I think what Sister Baochai said is quite right. Why bother with all the trouble of handling things ourselves? It's the right thing to do is just buy a grain store. The staff, the grain storage facilities—these are all readily available. Even if we want to reform or innovate later, it will be easy."

Jia Lian nodded in agreement: "Sister Baochai's words have indeed enlightened me, and I thank you in return."

As he spoke, Jia Lian, ignoring Feng Jie's piercing gaze, sincerely raised his wine cup to toast Baochai. Baochai quickly stood up, bowed with impeccable manners, and then drank a cup in return.

Seeing this, Aunt Xue quickly asked the two to sit down, beaming with joy.