The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

"willing!"

Wang Jinbao replied without hesitation, "I only ask that Your Excellency give my descendants a chance. As for how far they can go and whether they can enter officialdom through the imperial examination, it all depends on my own destiny and the ability of my descendants."

Don't underestimate the opportunity Chen Huai'an gave you; such an opportunity is something most people would beg for.

This is not only due to the influence of Confucianism, but also because the harm caused by collusion between officials and businessmen is too great.

Moreover, Chen Huai'an only said he couldn't help, but that doesn't mean there are no benefits involved.

Just like Wang Bai now, his children enjoy things that other children can never enjoy.

With this connection, I won't be bullied when I enter officialdom in the future.

Most importantly, Wang Jinbao understood one principle.

In the face of power, merchants are nothing but trash.

Just think back to the first year of the Zhenguan era. Back then, which of those grain merchants didn't have powerful backers? Many of them came from prominent families.

In the end, they were still exploited by Chen Huai'an.

"Alright." Chen Huai'an nodded gently. "Starting today, you will make arrangements on the Wei River and prepare more boats for transporting goods between the Central Plains and Lingnan." "I will give the orders. No one will make things difficult for you on this route."

"Huh?" Wang Jinbao asked, bewildered. "Then what do I need to do for the adults?"

"You'll find out later." Chen Huai'an didn't answer, but casually said, "Alright, you can stay with Wang Bai for now, go outside and cry for a few days first."

"Tell me how Changsun Shunde swindled you out of your money by selling you fake glass. Don't you know a lot of people like that? Let them all cry together."

Wang Jinbao: "..."

He was both amused and exasperated, never expecting that the first thing he would do with Chen Huai'an would be to cry his heart out.

Although he is indeed good at this, it was truly unexpected.

"..."

Two more days passed, and Changsun Shunde could no longer bear it.

In the past two days, people have been coming to him to borrow money so many that they've practically worn down his doorstep. He hasn't been idle either; he sent people out to inquire about the situation.

They discovered that Wang Bai was not lying after all; rumors were circulating that he was making a fortune by selling fake glass, and had cheated countless people.

Enraged, Changsun Shunde tore up his most beloved painting. "You bastards, you worthless scoundrels!" Changsun Shunde cursed, "Who is slandering me?"

"Don't let me find you, or I'll make you wish you were dead!"

"grown ups......"

Just then, another servant came to report: "The Yuchi family has also arrived, saying that their family is in dire straits and they would like to borrow some money from you, sir, to make ends meet..."

Upon hearing this, Changsun Shunde's anger intensified: "Tell him to get out, get as far away as possible!"

"Where the hell am I supposed to get the money?"

"Last time, I paid off that five thousand strings of cash with some of the silk!"

"Go to hell, you blind fool!"

The servant, feeling wronged after being scolded so harshly, left. He was just a messenger; why was he being scolded like that?

After a long while, Changsun Shunde's anger subsided a little. He sat in his chair, his expression shifting between light and dark.

"Xu Chen, go find out what's going on and see who's behind this!"

Xu Chen was his subordinate, not yet thirty years old, but very capable and deeply trusted by him. "My lord," Xu Chen hesitated for a moment, then said, "this matter is very strange. Rumors suggest that not only you, my lord, are involved, but also Qiu Xinggong, Pang Xiangshou, and others."

"These people..."

Xu Chen didn't finish his sentence, but Changsun Shunde already understood: "You mean, they came specifically for us?"

"Is it aimed at those of us who previously acquired land in Chang'an?"

"That's right." Xu Chen sighed, "My lord, your previous actions have offended too many people, most notably the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel."

"You should know that under the Equal-Field System, the land allocations near Chang'an were all personally approved by them."

"They are largely to blame for such a huge problem."

"Although Chen Huai'an managed to suppress the matter, these people are not pushovers and will not suffer in silence."

"For example, Chen Huai'an, didn't he send Wang Bai to extort money from him?"

"Extortion is the least of it!" Changsun Shunde said with a dark face. "I'm increasingly confused about what's going on here."

"Do you think Chen Huai'an is sabotaging us behind the scenes?"

This question was far too sensitive, so sensitive that Xu Chen dared not answer carelessly. After a moment's thought, Xu Chen cautioned, "If it really is Chen Huai'an, there's probably someone behind it..."

Changsun Shunde fell silent.

Is someone behind this?

Did he instruct Chen Huai'an?

There is only one person in the world who can give Chen Huai'an instructions.

Therefore, Changsun Shunde desperately did not want it to be Chen Huai'an.

"Is it likely?" he couldn't help but ask.

Xu Chen considered for a moment and said, "It's hard to say. Logically speaking, if it were Chen Huai'an, he wouldn't be so blatant as to come here and extort money. After all, if he didn't do this, it would be difficult for us to suspect him for the time being."

"But there's a problem."

"I've seen the fake glass."

"Rather than saying it's fake glass, it's more accurate to say that too much glass suddenly appeared, causing it to become worthless and thus appear fake."

"Those glass pieces are crystal clear and exquisitely crafted; they can't possibly be fake." "The person behind this must possess the genuine techniques for making glass."

"Chen Huai'an has a very distinctive characteristic: he can always come up with some strange and unusual things that are extremely important."

"Based on this alone, and considering what happened before, Chen Huai'an is highly suspicious."

Changsun Shunde closed his eyes, his voice deepening, "Continue!"

Xu Chen said in a low voice, "There is another very strange thing. The one who sold the fake glass to those people was Wei Wen. He left the Changsun Mansion in June of this year."

"The fact that the sale of fake glass was carried out on such a large scale clearly indicates that it was premeditated."

"The person behind the scenes probably already won over Wei Wen, and then pinned the blame on you."

"To be able to win over Wei Wen right under your nose... there aren't many people in the world who can do that."

Well, Changsun Shunde has completely given up.

Indeed, as Xu Chen said, there are only a handful of people in the world who can do this without being discovered by him, and Chen Huai'an is one of them.

Of course, in this matter, Li Shimin is more suspicious than Chen Huai'an.

"So... His Majesty can't tolerate me anymore?" Changsun Shunde said in a deep voice. Xu Chen said tactfully, "You made a rather wrong decision before, which was to lend money to Chen Huai'an."

"A full five thousand strings of cash. Wang Bai, along with the people from the Changsun family, spread the word everywhere. Now everyone in Chang'an knows, further confirming the fact that you are rich."

"But I didn't sell any fake glass at all!" Changsun Shunde was furious. He could recognize anything, but he couldn't recognize this at all.

Xu Chen shook his head and sighed, remaining silent.

Now Changsun Shunde is in a terrible predicament, like mud dripping down his pants.

He's already considering finding another job.

Perhaps... Chen Huai'an is a good choice.

"..."