The gate of the Wei Mansion was closed tightly, and Zhu Kui was not allowed to enter.
Wei Mao declined Zhu Kui's visit on the grounds that it was getting late. The gifts on the carriage were dragged back the same way before Wei Mao even saw them.
"Brother, we are all relatives, why are you so cold? At least we have connections."
On the way to the backyard, Lu Bei asked curiously.
Wei Mao had a cold exterior but a warm heart. He was not a person who did not know etiquette. His attitude towards Zhu Kui just now clearly showed that he was trying to keep his distance and chase him away.
"He is a distant relative of your Senior Sister Zhu. He is not my relative, and similarly, he is not your relative either."
Wei Mao emphasized this first, and then said, "Zhu Kui's business has cooperated with Dan Fang and provided a large amount of raw materials needed for alchemy. As Dan Fang's account book, you, Senior Sister Zhu, are also a distant relative, so you should avoid suspicion."
Moreover, with your senior sister's confused mind, if someone claims to be her relative, she will most likely fall into a trap.
"So, he's pretty good. He has a big business."
"His uncle is the governor of Qi County."
"… "
So realistic!
Lu Bei rolled his eyes and said, "Cousin, judging from Zhu Kui's name, his family should have given up power. How come he still has an uncle who is a high-ranking official?"
"There are always exceptions."
Speaking of Governor Zhu Ting, Wei Mao said with a hint of admiration: "It has nothing to do with one's origin. Some people can climb to a high position with their own abilities even if they give up their status."
"In that case, cousin, you shouldn't shove your cold butt in someone's face."
Lu Bei worried about him and said, "Maybe he will say bad things about you in front of the governor and make things difficult for you."
"No problem. I will follow the command of the county lieutenant. The county lieutenant has an average relationship with the governor."
"… "
So this is how to avoid suspicion.
…
On the other side, in the departing carriage, Zhu Kui's face was gloomy and uncertain.
He had expected Wei Mao's not-so-subtle refusal, but Lu Bei's attitude made him a little unpredictable. He smiled with his lips but not his eyes, and looked at him as if he was a passerby.
Three months ago, he used his uncle Zhu Ting's connections to squeeze out the original Danfang supplier and successfully took over the business.
In just two months, he made a fortune by simply reducing the quality of raw materials.
Not much, just a profit from the price difference.
Anyone who does business knows that the price difference means losing money to gain publicity, which is almost the same as working in vain.
As for the impact of the decline in raw materials...
Apart from the difficulty in refining high-quality elixirs, there is no other impact.
The pills produced by the Dashengguan Danfang were not high-end, and were mainly "Qi Yundan" and "Blood Replenishing Pills". Huangji Sect kept a portion of them as inventory, and the rest were sent to various places in Dongqi County.
Because it is not a high-level elixir, most of its users are grassroots soldiers. To these people, as long as it is not a useless elixir, it doesn't matter whether it is fine or not.
In the territory of Wu Zhou, all businesses with the surname Zhu did business in this way. Other businesses not surnamed Zhu would occasionally secretly reduce the quality of raw materials for a month or so.
It cannot be said that there is no business without fraud, it can only be said that all businessmen are profit-driven.
If they can do it, so can I. Zhu Kui feels at ease making this money.
He was not a person who ate alone. When there was money, everyone made money together. The alchemists working in the alchemy room all received benefits from him. No one would gossip about him, and no one would be so bored as to interfere with how the Zhu family did business. It was basically stable.
Unexpectedly, the truth was revealed.
A spy was airdropped into the alchemy room, and he spent a month refining the Qiling Pill, and every bottle was a finished product. According to Lin Bohai, the quality of each pill was exactly the same, as if it had been measured with a ruler.
This is not alchemy at all. Who in their right mind would make the Spirit-awakening Pill for a month straight
This is clearly an experiment to collect evidence!
At the beginning, Zhu Kui didn't take the spy mentioned by Lin Bohai seriously. It was not until after some investigation and testing that he realized that trouble had come.
First of all, Lu Bei’s origins were mysterious. He arrived at Dasheng Pass at night, and within two days, he entered the alchemy room through Zhu Yan’s introduction.
Zhu Yan also handled the household registration for him during this period, and he knew there was a problem at first glance.
Secondly, according to Zhu Kui's spies in the alchemy room, Lu Bei rarely goes out. He has been in Dashengguan for a month and only goes between the Wei Mansion and the alchemy room every day. He has no social activities, no entertainment, and has not even gone out for a walk.
The most terrifying thing is that the alchemist in the alchemy room repeatedly mentioned Yunshui Tower, and someone even made an invitation, but this guy didn't take any action at all.
There are generally two types of normal men: one is lustful, and the other is very lustful.
If a man fails to do the above two points, it is enough to show that this man is abnormal!
Zhu Kui also asked Zhu Yan about this, but she only said that Lu Bei was a distant relative of his and would not say anything further.
This month, Zhu Kui had no appetite. Just when the stock was used up and he was about to provide normal raw materials to the alchemy room, Lu Bei suddenly left and went to the military camp overnight.
This news was like a bolt from the blue to Zhu Kui, and then...
There was no news afterwards.
After calming down, Zhu Kui realized.
Yes, his last name is Zhu, the Zhu of Wu Zhou. It is not a big deal to rebel and get your head taken away, so he will not be severely punished if he is caught. Lu Bei collected evidence and threatened him just to take advantage of the opportunity to make some money.
As expected, after waiting at the gate of the Wei Mansion for a few days, Lu Bei showed up on his own initiative.
What puzzled Zhu Kui was that everyone knew it and they had met each other, so why would they refuse his gift
Too little
You didn't even take a look, why do you say it's a small amount
Zhu Kui did not understand. Considering that Wei Mao, who held military power, was present, he thought that Wei Mao also wanted to get a piece of the pie, so he asked the driver to turn the carriage around and go to the residence of the prefect Zhu Ting.
…
The prefectural government.
The prefect Zhu Ting was about forty years old. He had a gentle appearance like a scholar and had a physique similar to Zhu Kui, both of them were tall and strong.
After hearing the cause and details of the incident, Zhu Ting did not move his hand holding the tea. He took a sip of the hot tea and said calmly, "I will say hello to Lin Boxian at the Huangji Sect. You accept the punishment and make up for the lapse, and the matter will be over."
Lin Boxian is the manager of Huangji Sect in Dashengguan. He has a very high level of cultivation. Zhu Ting and he are close friends regardless of age difference. The fact that Huangji Sect can get along well with the government in Qi County has a lot to do with the close personal relationship between the two.
"Uncle, what should we do with that spy and Wei Mao? Just leave them alone?" Zhu Kui asked cautiously.
"It's definitely not okay to just leave it alone. Go to the Wei Mansion tomorrow morning to deliver an invitation. Tomorrow night, you will accompany me to Mingyue Tower to host a banquet for General Wei. As for the spy..."
Zhu Ting pondered for a moment and said, "Give him some benefits so that he won't work in vain. If he is greedy, tell the Huangji Sect the truth and cut the Gordian knot. Don't create trouble again."
"Wouldn't that mean my business would be gone too?"
"hehe."
Zhu Ting sneered twice when he heard this, and slammed the teacup on the table: "Don't take small profits and give up big benefits. If you lose your business, you can still do it again, but if your reputation is ruined, you will lose everything. Do you understand?"
“Uncle is right.” Zhu Kui lowered his head and accepted the instruction, not daring to talk back.
"By the way, is there any news from your elder brother?"
“Not yet.”
Zhu Kui shook his head and added, "Calculating the time, he should be back in a few days."
"When he comes back, ask him to come see me. I have something for him to deal with."
"I see."
Zhu Kui nodded seriously, without asking what was to be dealt with, took Zhu Ting's handwritten invitation, and hurriedly left the prefectural government.