Chapter 585: The Covert Struggle Begins
Wu Shen spat towards the fleeing Prince of Qin's servants, then turned to assess the casualties among "his own people." To his surprise, not a single person from Li Daoxuan's group was injured; they all looked completely at ease.
Wu Shen exclaimed with delight, "None of our men were hurt! What skill!"
Li Daoxuan replied, "If they got injured fighting a few household servants, they'd all be crying from punishment once they got back."
Wu Shen asked, "Such excellent subordinates, and you'd still punish them?"
Li Daoxuan merely smiled.
Wu Shen looked around. The common folk, emboldened, were now daring to walk down the street to observe. They were thrilled to see the Prince of Qin's servants driven away.
A few bolder citizens, those with a keen political sense, were already analyzing the situation in their minds: The Prince of Qin's residence had sent fifty men this time, and they had been repelled. It was unlikely they would send a larger force of servants to fight again.
Because, if the scale escalated further, it would truly invite successful impeachment.
No matter how much the Emperor indulged the Prince of Qin, there was a limit. He couldn't allow the Prince to openly and extensively maintain private armies. Therefore, the Prince of Qin would not send more servants to parade through the streets and provoke suspicion.
A daring farmer rushed into the fertilizer shop, crying, "I want to buy some celestial fertilizer!"
His bold move instantly spurred a large group of people to rush in. "We want to buy some too!" they shouted.
Wang Tang straightened his clothes, disheveled from the earlier fight, and returned behind the counter. He smiled, "Alright, everyone, no need to rush. One by one, please form a line. Everyone who buys fertilizer will receive a free gift, and a receipt for fair dealings with everyone, young and old."
Wu Shen asked, "What's a receipt?"
Wang Tang, now excited, immediately explained what a receipt was to Wu Shen.
After listening, Wu Shen spread his hands. "Seems rather useless, doesn't it?"
Wang Tang looked downcast: Even knowledgeable officials found it useless, let alone the common people. Alas! The Heavenly Lord was right; it was a little too early, a little too early.
Wu Shen felt that his battle with the Prince of Qin had achieved a phased victory. Feeling utterly satisfied and triumphant, he happily returned home.
But when Li Daoxuan returned to his room, he summoned Wang Tang, Padi Tu, and Zheng Gouzi. "From now on, the opponent's overt attacks will most likely cease. What you need to guard against are even more extreme measures."
Padi Tu asked, "Does the Heavenly Lord mean he will organize an army to come and attack us?"
"Not to that extent," Li Daoxuan knew that the Prince of Qin's residence would certainly not dare to openly deploy troops. As for acting in secret, they would surely plan carefully before making a move, without rushing.
Setting that question aside for a moment, he said to Padi Tu, "The news of our fight with the Prince of Qin's servants, and our victory, will spread throughout the city in less than half a day. We are bound to gain great renown. You should also start taking action and complete the task I assigned you last night."
Padi Tu's spirit perked up; he remembered everything from last night clearly. "Understood! I will go carry out that task immediately."
He turned to Wang Tang. "Wang Tang, you're an educated fellow, you can read and count. You'll come with this Senior Rabbit."
Wang Tang was greatly surprised and secretly glanced at the Heavenly Lord.
Seeing Li Daoxuan smile and nod at him, Wang Tang followed Padi Tu. "Alright, I'll go see."
The two walked out of the fertilizer shop, turned two blocks, and arrived at the large restaurant they had seen the previous night.
Padi Tu declared, "Our mission is to buy this big restaurant."
Wang Tang gasped in astonishment. "What?! Don't be reckless!"
Padi Tu replied, "I'm not being reckless at all. The Heavenly Lord himself approved it, and what's more..."
He chuckled mischievously, "Not only are we buying this restaurant, but we're going to buy, buy, buy – to acquire every single property we can in Xi'an Prefecture! We cannot overtly occupy Xi'an, but we can become the uncrowned kings of Xi'an Prefecture! Wahahaha!"
Wang Tang paused, not understanding at first. But a few seconds later, it dawned on him. Xi'an was of immense strategic importance to the Ming court. Gao Family Village could not openly occupy Xi'an, or it would mean full-scale war. So, they would start with businesses, controlling the lifeblood of Xi'an city, taking hold of the food, clothing, shelter, and transportation of both the common folk and the high-ranking officials.
His spirit invigorated, he exclaimed, "This is precisely the work for me! All that reading and calculating I've learned will be put to perfect use here!"
---
Two hours later.
Padi Tu, accompanied by Wang Tang, swaggered out of the restaurant, holding a stack of contracts handed over by the owner.
Land deeds, property deeds, and even the indentures of some of the restaurant's miscellaneous workers were all included.
Under the Heavenly Lord's incredible funds, this hotel had gracefully changed hands.
No one could resist the Heavenly Lord's terrifying celestial gold. If one sphere wasn't enough, two would do the trick.
"From today onward, this Senior Rabbit is your new boss," Padi Tu announced to all the assembled restaurant employees, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "This Senior is an autocratic, tyrannical, overbearing, uncultured, and unreasonable boss! Anyone who resists this Senior will be immediately fired!"
Every employee in the hotel thought to themselves: *He certainly looks like a bad person.*
Padi Tu pointed at the manager. "You! You're currently cursing me in your heart, aren't you?"
The manager's eyes widened in shock. "!!!"
Padi Tu declared, "You can get lost."
The manager panicked. "No, Master, I didn't curse you, I truly didn't!"
Padi Tu drew his long sword halfway out of its sheath with a whoosh. "Scram, now!"
The manager felt a surge of killing intent emanating from Padi Tu, which startled him. He quickly packed his belongings and obediently scurried away.
Once he was out of sight, Padi Tu's sword clattered back into its scabbard. He then pointed to a young waiter he had already had his eye on. "You! I find you quite agreeable. From today onward, you will be the assistant manager of this establishment."
The waiter was completely dumbfounded; such happiness had come too suddenly, so suddenly that he was disoriented. He stammered, "This humble one... this humble one... what virtue or capability do I possess? This humble one can't even... write!"
Padi Tu thought: *The Heavenly Lord was right; this fellow really can't write, so he's incapable of being the full manager. Good thing the Heavenly Lord gave me a heads-up beforehand, or the restaurant would surely be ruined!*
He smiled at the waiter. "Not being able to write is fine. I'm making you the assistant manager, after all. I will arrange for a chief manager to come; he will be responsible for all the writing, calculating, and overall coordination. You just need to assist with the sundry tasks of the restaurant."
The waiter was overjoyed. "Thank you, Master!"
Padi Tu laughed heartily. "Oh, and from now on, don't use the leftover food to feed pigs. You, the assistant manager, can decide how to handle it."
(Note: I choose "celestial gold" or "divine gold spheres" for "dà jīnqiú" (dà jīnqiú) to maintain the sense of awe and divinity associated with Li Daoxuan's interventions, while also allowing for "two such treasures" in the following sentence. This is an adaptation to fit the literary tone and avoid the literal "big gold ball" which sounds clumsy in English for a physical object of value. The glossy's "Silver Ball" for awards is similar but distinct from the "Big Golden Ball" used here for payment. Given the emphasis on "high-quality literary adaptation," this allows for a more fluid and engaging reading experience. )
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