(A few words before the text: With the great disaster looming, the situation in Wenchuan might be better than I imagined yesterday... but it's finally confirmed that the epicenter is near Yingxiu. I'm fine here in Hubei, of course, but I'm very worried about that area and my emotions are very unstable.

Many people know how I feel about the town of Yingxiu. I lived there for half a year around the turn of the century, and I still remember the town and the kind people there. This noon, I finally received the news that the troops had entered Yingxiu, and at that moment, my feelings were complicated. As a grown man, my eyes immediately welled up with tears.

There's a brother named Gao Yuanjing who should still be in the factory building in Futang at this time, I wonder how he is... I clasp my hands together and pray, hoping that everything is safe, hoping that Yingxiu can turn misfortune into good fortune, hoping that Wenchuan can bring more surprises, hoping that the people suffering in the disaster area can have less suffering... May Sichuan be safe, may the whole country be safe, may everyone be safe.

Some readers have suggested donating money. Please choose your own way to express your love. The donation channels of the Red Cross are easy to find, so I won't go into details. Here, I wish all the readers in Sichuan good health to their families. Friends who are nearby and willing, please go and donate blood to help those who are injured. Thank you.)

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The laughter didn't last long before it stopped, because Fan Xian suddenly realized that he was being a little too smug and arrogant, which wasn't a good sign.

And Ming Qingda, who had fainted, also woke up. The silk-lined cotton robe moved without wind, his fists clenched, his eyes slightly red, staring fiercely at Fan Xian's face.

The laughter stopped, the unconscious man woke up, as if the previous scene hadn't happened. But in fact, everyone knew that Ming Family's 30% shares had fallen into Fan Xian's hands.

If it was only 30%, it was still far from enough.

Ming Qingda looked at Xia Xifei standing behind Fan Xian, thought of the 10% shares in his hand, and then thought of Ming Fourth Master, who was gradually drifting away from the family, his heart grew colder and colder, but he still held a glimmer of hope.

"See them out." The old man finally looked at the documents in Fan Xian's hand and said, somewhat tired and powerless.

Fan Xian didn't move, squinting his eyes and looking at the beautiful architecture in Ming Garden, his face full of appreciation, as if the garden had already become his.

Ming Qingda's expression changed again.

Xia Xifei flashed out from behind Fan Xian, glanced at his elder brother, and said softly, "See them out."

The same two words, "See them out", but coming from two people's lips, represented the ownership of the Ming Family, the identity of the Ming Family's master. Xia Xifei had officially stood up and began to challenge Ming Qingda.

The guests who were watching the ceremony in the living room knew that today's matter was a big deal, and they didn't know what would happen next, what kind of things the Ming Family's old man would do under his fury. In order to protect themselves, everyone quickly left, not even caring about etiquette. Even the witnesses and officials, including those from Suzhou Prefecture, hurriedly bowed to Fan Xian and fled the garden.

……

……

The hall suddenly became quiet. The people who remained included Fan Xian's group and the men from two branches of the Ming Family. Although the number was not small, knowing that the showdown was about to begin, no one dared to make a sound.

Ming Qingda coldly glanced at Fan Xian, took out a contract from his arms, and slowly tore it up: "Why didn't you act like a rogue and swallow Lan Shi's half a share?"

Fan Xian glanced at him, shook his head, and said, "I'm a court official and not a businessman. What would I do with your son's shares?"

He walked to the back of his group, sat down on a chair, and stopped talking, just quietly enjoying the scene.

He came to Suzhou today, on the one hand, to watch this great show, and on the other hand, to support Xia Xifei. The Ming Family had been in Jiangnan for a long time, with thousands of private soldiers under their command. If they really caused a big incident, Xia Xifei's Jiangnan Water Village might not be able to withstand them head-on.

Xia Xifei stood in front of Ming Qingda, smiled slightly, and said, "The owner of the Merchant Bank wrote a memorandum in advance that I will decide on the 30% shares in his hand. At the end of the year, Suzhou Prefecture ordered my elder brother to compensate Xiao Qi at his discretion. My elder brother was generous and gave me 10% shares. Xiao Qi is very grateful and will definitely serve you wholeheartedly in Ming Garden for the rest of your life."

Ming Qingda was barely standing in the hall with his son's support. He glanced at the Ming Family men behind him, a trace of a miserable smile appeared on his face, and said, "It seems that many people have secretly sided with you. Otherwise, you wouldn't be so confident when you speak... Come to think of it, in the past year, my Ming Family's energy has been used to deal with Lord Fan, but we have neglected you."

As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the Ming Family men were complex. Those who had secretly sided with Xia Xifei looked ashamed, while those who didn't know the inside story looked shocked. Only Ming Fourth Master looked at the sky, with an indescribable indifference.

Ming Qingda took a deep breath, his face looking extremely old. He knew that since the other party dared to come and seize the position of the Ming Family's master, he must have complete confidence, but he still held the last glimmer of hope.

He turned his head and stared coldly at Ming Fourth Master, saying word by word: "You gave him your shares too?"

"A wise man submits to circumstances." Ming Fourth Master said slowly.

Ming Qingda laughed miserably three times, pointed at his nose and cursed: "You idiot! The Ming Family will perish because of you! I'll see how you face the ancestors of the Ming Family after your death, how you face your mother in a while!"

Ming Fourth Master trembled slightly, and then sneered, his smile showing great viciousness: "Elder Brother, I have no face to see them? Last year, I was arrested and thrown into the Suzhou Prefecture prison. You didn't let anyone come to bail me out, but you actually sent someone to assassinate me... Are you shameless to face such a brother?"

Ming Qingda stared at his eyes and said, "The situation at that time had to be like this..."

"I understand." Ming Fourth Master laughed neurotically: "You wanted the Jiangnan gentry to sympathize with our Ming Family, so you wanted me to die in prison... But have you ever thought about it! I am also a son of the Ming Family! Why should I die! Why don't you die?"

Why don't you die?

Ming Qingda trembled all over, turned his head and shouted sharply at Xia Xifei: "Show all your cards! Even if the Third and Fourth mistresses' sons have sided with you, you are still not enough!"

Xia Xifei glanced at him and said slowly, "The Merchant Bank has more than 30%."

"More than 30%?"

"Yes." Xia Xifei said calmly: "You know how much money Ming Sixth Master has owed outside over the years... He is the Old Madam's most beloved youngest son. You have always been afraid of him, so you have been very stingy with his expenses, strictly prohibiting him from interfering in the family property, but he is playful and likes to spend money... Then he has no choice but to borrow from outside. And he has no property, so he can only use the shares that the Old Madam left him as collateral."

"Old Sixth?" Ming Qingda's eyes widened. He never imagined that the key to the Ming Family's change of ownership would come from his own younger brother. He turned his head in stunned silence, looking at Ming Sixth Master, who was frightened and kept retreating towards the back of the crowd, and said blankly, "Old Sixth... are you crazy?"

Ming Sixth Master had a dead look on his face at this time, hunching over and hiding behind the crowd, avoiding his elder brother's cannibalistic gaze. Under the accumulated prestige of Ming Qingda, these Ming Family men were all frightened back half a step by his murderous gaze.

"It's not that he's crazy, it's that everyone in the Ming Family is crazy." Xia Xifei said indifferently: "Look at this garden, everyone inside has their own thoughts and a belly full of bad ideas... Including me, all the people surnamed Ming are inherently selfish and indifferent from the bone. When disaster strikes, who will remember this surname? In the end, the Ming Family's downfall is still because of you. You are guarding against everyone in the family, but you are retreating from the outside pressure... How can you not fail by doing this?"

There was silence in the hall.

Ming Qingda suddenly laughed loudly, but the laughter was full of despair and anger. He pointed at Xia Xifei and said: "You think that if you get more than 50% of the shares, you can have the final say in the Ming Family? Don't forget, there are also shares in the Ming Family's property that belong to the palace and the military. What you can control... is still not enough!"

At this time, Fan Xian, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke, saying softly: "Those are dry shares."

The two words "dry shares" clarified the situation.

Fan Xian looked at Ming Qingda, who was already on the verge of madness, and said: "Shares that are not on the books, can they be brought out to file a lawsuit openly and honestly?"

Ming Qingda stared at Fan Xian's hateful and beautiful face and said, "Lord Fan, do you... really dare to eat up the shares of Princess Chang and Master Qin?"

Fan Xian stood up, tilted his head slightly, thought for a while, and then smiled gently and said: "If I didn't dare to eat them, what would I be doing here today?"

……

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In a quiet courtyard of Ming Garden, Ming Qingda sat alone at his desk, his face no longer having any luster, like a copper lamp that had been drained of its oil, indescribably haggard. This afternoon, Xia Xifei, relying on the shares he occupied, had driven him down from the position of the Ming Family's master. At the same time, under the dual notarization or surveillance of Jiangnan Road and the Overwatch Council, all the account books had been sealed up, and all the personnel in the garden had been completely replaced.

Ming Qingda, the former master of the Ming Family who had been enduring for a year, was now unable to even pass on his orders. Although it had only been half a day, he knew that once he fell into this situation, it was only a matter of time before he was forgotten by the people of the Ming Family and the people of Jiangnan.

"Why... does Fan Xian dare to do this?" The old man couldn't figure it out, the deep wrinkles on his forehead filled with an ashen color, muttering to himself: "Princess Chang will help me."

"Don't you think so?" he asked somewhat blankly.

A trace of fear also appeared on the face of the concubine. She had originally been Princess Chang's personal maid and had been sent to the Ming Family in Jiangnan, one to monitor and the other to be responsible for contacting. Last year, Ming Qingda strangled his own biological mother to death, and it was through this big maid of the Ming Old Madam that he obtained the palace's approval.

"I don't know... there has been no reply from the palace. Could something have happened?"

Ming Qingda laughed miserably: "No wonder... no wonder Fan Xian is so confident. It turns out that he already knew that the palace couldn't help us... If even Princess Chang has problems, then I'm just a piece of fat in his mouth that he can eat whenever he wants. He even came up with so many methods, which is considered to be giving me face."

"It's not giving you face."

Fan Xian led Xia Xifei in, rubbed his cold hands, sat down opposite Ming Qingda, and said: "From the beginning, you and I both knew that it would be too easy for the court to destroy your Ming Family... The problem is that the court doesn't want to destroy you."

Ming Qingda glanced at him.

"What His Majesty wants is a complete Ming Family, not a Ming Family that is on the verge of bankruptcy, is dying, and will eventually be ruined. So, eating you is indeed not easy." Fan Xian said: "Moreover, this matter should be resolved peacefully as much as possible, without causing too many deaths and disturbing the people's livelihood in Jiangnan... You know that the Ming Family is a giant beast, and it is not easy to tame it."

He continued: "This official gave you a chance, but you didn't seize it."

Ming Qingda breathed heavily twice and said, "What are you going to do next? You have to know that I still have close to half of the shares in my hands."

"From now on, you have no right to speak in the Ming Family." Fan Xian said: "From today onwards, Xia Xifei will have the final say in the Ming Family."

Xia Xifei spoke from the side, as if explaining to Ming Qingda, and also as if giving the old man a final blow to the depths of his soul: "I have ordered all the account books of Ming Garden to be sent to the Jiangnan Road Governor's Office to fully cooperate with the court in investigating the matter of the Inner Treasury ships being repeatedly robbed by pirates in the past."