Niao Ni
Chapter 380: Behind the Ming Family's Tragic Fate
For example, grain, oil, meals, brothels; someone even said that as long as a person in Jiangnan opened their door, they would inevitably deal with the Ming family's businesses.
Within such a vast family, the internal factions were inherently complex, but the highest authority still resided with the two branches and six sons of the Ming family's main lineage. The more distant branches were only responsible for managing the lower and middle-level businesses.
Deeply aware of the harm of internal family divisions, the first arrangement made by the Old Madam Ming after taking exclusive control of the Ming family was that, apart from the eldest branch of Ming Qingda, the other five Ming family siblings only had the right to dividends. They had no power to arrange or advise on the Ming family's vast businesses and were strictly prohibited from participating in the family's businesses.
This arrangement was undoubtedly wise. At least, this forceful approach ensured the superficial unity and good cooperation of the Ming family, avoiding the same problems that plagued other families. The family has remained relatively united to this day.
However, although they could not participate in the family's businesses, the other five masters received large dividends from home every year. They couldn't possibly keep so much silver hidden under their blankets to breed little silver chickens. They had to take it outside to invest, naturally doing a lot of business in Jiangnan as well.
The Ming family used this method to gradually extend their reach further and more subtly, because the businesses of these branches still had to rely on the main branch of the Ming family. If the Ming family fell, the businesses of those five masters would also face major problems. Therefore, they would inevitably use their strength to protect the eldest branch.
So, in Fan Xian's eyes, these businesses that nominally did not belong to the Ming family's public coffers... still belonged to the Ming family. Naturally, the Overwatch Council began to harass these businesses equally.
The five masters couldn't take it anymore. They thought, "We haven't gotten much benefit from the family, and we're being implicated, making business increasingly difficult. What should we do?"
...
...
"Open your dog eyes and see who's in front of you! It's Master Four!"
Master Four of the Ming family was born to a concubine, so his status in the family was not high. Therefore, he had always liked to enjoy himself by raising birds, avoiding offending the Old Madam and his eldest brother. Relying on his annual share of silver, he did some business, opening a fruit and vegetable merchant house, dealing with the leaks from the family's fingers. Life was naturally smooth and comfortable.
But recently, he couldn't be comfortable no matter what. The merchant house was being investigated every day, and business was slightly sluggish. Although there were no serious consequences, the bad trend was clear. The officials who used to nod and bow before him rarely wanted to drink tea with him.
He understood that the Overwatch Council had been frightened by those officials.
But it shouldn't be this person in front of him provoking him. A hint of ferocity flashed across Master Four's slightly pale face. He slapped the South Barbarian in front of him, making him spin around three times in place. A red palm print suddenly appeared on his face, and a trace of blood flowed from the corner of his lips.
Master Four was the biggest fruit and vegetable vendor in Suzhou City. He looked inconspicuous, but he monopolized 30% of the fruit and vegetable business in Jiangnan, including the tribute to the palace, which was also handled by him. Calling him the "Melon King" was not a problem. Moreover, relying on the Ming family's influence, he established a guild and managed the entire Jiangnan fruit and vegetable market as a whole. Over the years, there had never been any powerful figure who dared to pick some melons and fruits from his fields to eat.
But in the past few days, a merchant had suddenly come from Lingnan, bypassing the agreement between the Ming family and the Xiong family, and selling fruits directly to Suzhou without going through Master Four.
Lingnan was hot, and the fruits were delicious. As long as the problem of long-distance transportation was solved, there was naturally a lot to gain. If that merchant knew the rules, he would first pay respects to Master Four after arriving in Suzhou, and perhaps Master Four would nod and give him some share to do. Who knew that this merchant didn't know the rules, or had something to rely on? He relied on the large quantity and low price of his goods and forcibly lowered the price of melons and fruits in Suzhou and even Jiangnan by 20% within ten days. This merchant's business also expanded rapidly.
Master Four stared at the Lingnan merchant he had slapped to the ground with a sinister smile and chuckled, "Now everyone is bullying my Ming family? Where did a mere South Barbarian get the guts?"
In fact, he knew clearly in his heart that when his family's business began to be suppressed by the Overwatch Council, no matter how much the Overwatch Council could really do, once this word spread and the trend was set, countless merchant forces that had been suppressed by his family in the past would begin to stir, wanting to take advantage of the Ming family's predicament to seize some benefits.
But... Master Four had no way to deal with Imperial Envoy Fan and was too afraid. How could he let a South Barbarian make trouble on his territory!
"Educate him with sticks." Master Four looked at the Lingnan melon merchant crying and begging on the ground, a look of contempt flashed across his lips.
As soon as he spoke, screams rang out again in the courtyard. Master Four's subordinates hit the Lingnan melon merchant hard with wooden sticks, making loud thuds. The poor merchant probably had many bones broken. The screams gradually lowered, and the whole person was covered in blood and fainted.
The trusted accountant next to him trembled at this bloody scene and leaned over to say, "Master Four, this person... should be from the Xiong family."
"I know." Master Four said sharply, "Xiong Bailing, that old bastard, wants to use this melon merchant to test me. If I don't fight back, he'll really think my Ming family is easy to bully."
The accountant smiled bitterly and said, "Master Four, at this time, we can't cause trouble for the family."
Master Four thought of something, and his expression darkened. He said, "The Old Madam has already begun to suspect me. If I don't act impulsively at this time, what will the Old Madam and my eldest brother think of me?"
The accountant felt countless complex emotions in his heart and didn't know what to say.
Master Four stood up from the chair, looked at the Lingnan merchant covered in blood on the ground, and said in a sinister voice, "It's not that I won't let you do business, but doing business isn't about bullying people. You can't bully me."
The Lingnan merchant had already woken up. Hearing these words, he was very frightened and nodded desperately.
"Pay 10,000 taels of silver and adjust the price back at the same time. Let's compete fairly." Master Four grinned, his laughter extremely sinister. "If you don't bully me, I naturally won't bully you either."
After dealing with this person, Master Four told people to throw the merchant out. Looking at the blood stains on the floor, he spat and cursed, "Fan Xian bullies me, and I have no way to deal with it. But who the hell are you, Xiong family?"
Returning to the room, Master Four washed his hands, rolled up his sleeves, took down a birdcage from the corridor, and began to tease the birds. He whistled, but his eyes were a little distant.
The accountant followed him timidly and whispered, "Master Four, are you saying... that the Old Madam knows about the meeting with Xia Qifei?"
Master Four's body stiffened, and he suddenly cursed angrily, "Isn't it all your bad idea! Saying to have a foot in both camps, Ming Laoqi survived a disaster and will surely have good fortune, and has Imperial Envoy support, so the family's assets will eventually be taken back by him... Telling me to meet him and speak first! Damn it, the next day I was called by the Old Madam and scolded, and almost didn't come out alive!"
He was extremely annoyed. It was not easy to calm down his emotions, and he said coldly, "The Overwatch Council is targeting our family recently. If I'm not fierce today, what will the Old Madam and my eldest brother think of me?"
The accountant was scolded by the owner and didn't dare to breathe loudly, his face drooping, "But Master Xia wanted to meet you that day. You couldn't refuse either, Master Four... Do you really not want to listen to what Master Xia had to say?"
"Seventh brother, ah, seventh brother..." Master Four thought of that suddenly emerging younger brother and felt a little strange. He had only heard rumors about the Old Madam Ming harming Xia Qifei and his mother. He and his mother were clean, so he wasn't as afraid of the other party as the eldest branch. Thinking of the words that Xia Qifei conveyed from the Imperial Envoy that day, a gleam flashed in his eyes, and he sighed helplessly, "I'm afraid of Imperial Envoy, but I'm even more afraid of the Old Madam... And the Ming family is, after all, the Ming family of our Ming family members now. If we really listen to you and join forces with Xia Qifei, with such a terrifying Imperial Envoy watching from behind, the Ming family will... become the Imperial Court's Ming family."
Master Four smiled miserably and said, "No matter how domineering the eldest branch is, we are still brothers for so many years. I am still surnamed Ming after all."
The accountant dared not persuade him any further.
...
...
Master Four formally rejected the goodwill offered by Fan Xian through Xia Qifei, so the response from Hua Yuan arrived very quickly at the large house he bought in the southern city of Suzhou.
The Suzhou government yamen runners pushed open the door. Under the watchful eyes of the Ming family thugs, they trembled and came to the hall, took out the summons, and demanded that Master Four follow them back to the Suzhou government to be interrogated.
"Interrogated?" Master Four, who had not expected that he would be arrested and interrogated one day, shouted at the yamen runner, "I think you're confused? Who accused me? What did they accuse me of?"
That yamen runner had no choice but to do this. Otherwise, under normal circumstances, where would he dare to offend the genuine Master Four of the Ming family? He usually wished he could kneel on the ground and lick the other party's boots... The yamen runner smiled bitterly, gave Master Four a look, indicating that there were people behind, and pleaded in a low voice, "It's a Lingnan merchant, accusing Master Four of the Ming family of bullying the market, injuring people, and ordering his subordinates to commit violence."
Master Four was stunned, and his brows furrowed. He had not expected that the Lingnan merchant would dare to accuse him, and even more that the Suzhou government would accept this case... For many years, the Ming family had been so special in Jiangnan, and the relationship between the Suzhou government and his family was so close. How could they have accepted the Lingnan merchant's complaint? Although the Overwatch Council had been harassing the Ming family recently, the biggest problem with the Overwatch Council was that it could not interfere in local affairs, nor could it directly interfere in civil affairs. The Overwatch Council could not take the lead in doing such criminal and civil cases. Therefore, he had not worried too much when he had ordered his servants to commit violence earlier.
But the Suzhou government had actually sent people!
His gaze crossed over the yamen runner's head and saw a very unfamiliar court official standing behind the officials. Judging from the official uniform, his rank was not high, and he did not look like a civil official. His eyes narrowed, and he guessed the other party's identity - it turned out that from the moment the Lingnan merchant entered the courtyard, officials from the Overwatch Council had been watching everything. No wonder the other party's response was so quick!
Master Four's eyelids twitched. He knew he had miscalculated one thing. Although the Overwatch Council could not directly interrogate him, they could watch the Suzhou government's actions. If the Suzhou government really ignored him... he was afraid that the Overwatch Council would arrest the Suzhou government officials and question them. With such a powerful deterrent, no wonder the Suzhou government dared to arrest him today.
He sneered and looked at the yamen runner and said, "What if I don't go?"
The yamen runner was about to cry with anxiety. He pleaded, "Master Four, please give the Prefect a little face."
The Ming family's servants clamored, holding wooden sticks and surrounding the yamen runners, their cold gazes intentionally or unintentionally staring at the Overwatch Council official at the back of the crowd.
The Overwatch Council official from the Fourth Bureau smiled and said, "Officials, brothers, what are you going to do? It seems that someone here... is preparing to rebel."
Assaulting government officials, disobeying the imperial court's orders, what was the difference between that and rebelling?
The Suzhou government officials knew that this person had to be arrested today, otherwise, the Prefect would not be able to give an account to the Overwatch Council. The Lingnan merchant's miserable state had been seen by people in the court, and people from Hua Yuan had also come and were drinking tea in the teahouse opposite the court. It was impossible to hide every move from Imperial Envoy Fan's eyes.
The official hardened his heart and looked at Master Four and said, "Master Four, please!"
He kept signaling to the other party with his eyes, letting the other party understand that today was different from the past. It was time to give in when it was time to give in. As for being taken into the Suzhou government, there would naturally be opportunities to turn things around.
Master Four lowered his head slightly, pondered for a long time, forcibly suppressed the anger in his heart, and understood what was going on today, and nodded.
The official breathed a sigh of relief and sighed, "Master Four, have pity on this little one."
The young Overwatch Council official from the Fourth Bureau watched this scene with a sneer at the back.
The accountant approached Master Four and said worriedly, "Master Four, what should we do?"
Master Four smiled sinisterly and smashed the birdcage in his hand on the ground, smashing the birdcage to pieces, feathers flying everywhere, and bird blood splattering... He said coldly, "Let's go then. In so many years, I have only drunk tea in the backyard of the Suzhou government, but I have not had the opportunity to see the real appearance of the Suzhou prison. Today, I will go and broaden my horizons."
He lowered his voice again and said quickly, "Immediately send a message back to Ming Garden and let the eldest brother bail me out... Don't worry, the Old Madam will trust me even more because of this matter."
After explaining everything, Master Four of the Ming family was invited back to the Suzhou government prison for the first time in his life.
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"It seems that the fourth brother... has no other intentions." After the news was sent back to Ming Garden, Ming Qingda sent people to clear the channels on one hand, and went into the quiet little courtyard where his mother lived on the other hand, and reported to the old lady who was sitting withered on the chair, "I will pick him up now. Although he injured a Lingnan merchant, the Suzhou government was forced by the pressure of the Overwatch Council to bring him back to the government, but the matter is not big after all. There should be no future troubles. Lord Fan can't bite the fourth brother to death with this matter."
The Old Madam Ming on the chair fell silent. Her old and deeply sunken eyes were closed, seemingly thinking about something, and she did not answer Ming Qingda's words.
Ming Qingda felt a little strange, and a chill rose in his heart after a moment.
The Old Madam Ming slowly opened her somewhat lifeless eyes and said, "The Ming family is already in a precarious situation. Lao Si first met with Xia Qifei in secret, which is disloyal. Then he acted recklessly, causing the family to worry about him, which is unfilial. Why protect such a disloyal and unfilial person?"
Ming Qingda was silent and then sad again. The established policy adopted by the Ming family for Fan Xian's aggressive offensive was to retreat in order to advance and play with tragedy. That's why he knelt in the Internal Treasury and fell ill afterward... Now the Overwatch Council is extremely threatening, and the Ming family is trembling, looking extremely pitiful indeed. And the Old Madam's meaning... seemed to be preparing to cut open a deeper wound in her own wound.
He took a deep breath and said calmly, "The situation is still under control. Lord Fan can only go around the periphery and can't get hold of our real handle. There's no need to sacrifice so much at this time... He is, after all, a member of the Ming family's bloodline."
The Old Madam Ming looked at him coldly and ruthlessly and said, "Imperial Envoy will force us harder and harder. We will eventually need to sacrifice a presentable figure in exchange for the sympathy of the people of Jiangnan and the inclination of the gentry in the world. Now that Lao Si has been taken into prison, isn't this the best opportunity? If people know that Imperial Envoy forced a master of the Ming family to death in order to extort silver, the imperial court will be shocked, and we will get a lot of benefits and time... This deal is worthwhile."
Ming Qingda's expression did not change. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Everything will be done according to mother's wishes."
He knew clearly in his heart that the fourth brother was, after all, the son of a concubine, and in his mother's eyes, he was dispensable.
The Old Madam Ming looked at him coldly and said, "Is the family's turnover so bad? Why have you been frequently transferring silver from the Merchants recently?"
Ming Qingda sneered in his heart, thinking that the seal of the Taiping Qianzhuang had always been in your hands. If I wanted to truly take the Ming family into my hands, how could I do it without thinking of other ways? He thought so in his heart, but he explained a few words very gently.
The Old Madam Ming nodded and finally said slowly, "It's just Lao Si, I'm afraid it's not enough to make the hearts of the people in the world lean towards our Ming family... Qingda, you must be prepared, perhaps you will be forced to give up the position of head of the Ming family, so that the people of the world can realize the miserable situation of our Ming family."
Ming Qingda was slightly stunned, bowed deeply, and withdrew from the courtyard.
Outside the courtyard, he smiled at his son, Ming Lanshi, who had been waiting for him and said, "Did you hear that? I said... she only loves your sixth uncle the most."
(Yesterday I wrote Fan Xian's birthday wrong, my mistake, apologies, I'm in a bad mood, so I'll talk less, and I haven't replied to the book friends on Q, please forgive me.)