xymnovel Chapter 35 There are no secrets that stay hidden forever.
Chapter 35 There are no secrets that stay hidden forever.
Still inside the Tongjifang Brick and Tile Factory, Han Ling'er has become the busiest person in the factory recently. Since there are not many bricks and tiles available now, cooking and distributing porridge has become the top priority for the entire factory.
Suddenly, the office door was opened from the outside without any announcement, revealing a middle-aged woman whose face still retained its charm: "Daughter~, look who's here~"
"Mother? What brings you here? Please sit down, I'll have someone make you some tea."
Han Ling'er was greatly surprised, because the person who came was her own mother, Liu Shi.
"Oh, no need to trouble yourself, no need to trouble yourself. I just came to see you. Hehe, my son has made something of himself!"
"What future is there in that? It's just doing odd jobs for men, like washing clothes and cooking. It's not difficult at all."
"There are no outsiders here, so why are you being so modest with me? I've heard that Wang Jun is now a favorite of the Second King, working in the Palace Guard."
They're never even in the workshop normally. Even that little Wang Lu is a favorite of the Third King and the First Prince. Tsk tsk, father and son are betting on both sides.
Han Ling'er: "What double betting? This is the Emperor's will. Lu Lang actually doesn't want to be a companion to the Third Prince and the First Prince."
Liu said nonchalantly, "That doesn't matter. In short, this huge brick and tile workshop that makes a fortune every day is all under your management, right?"
"Oh, and there's tea. I heard that the bricks and tiles this workshop produces are now being exchanged for tea. Do you have the accounts for this tea?"
"I manage everything. I only know how to do laundry and cook. As for accounting, I'm still learning. I'm far from being able to do it properly. Besides, there are other shareholders and managers in this workshop."
"What shareholders and manager? I've inquired about the so-called shareholder, his name is Pan Wulang, isn't he just a local scoundrel? As for the manager, he's an outsider even more so."
"Let me tell you, daughter, both he and his father are going to become officials, so you'll earn the money and manage the Wang family's accounts in the future. That way, your position as the first wife will be secure, and when you're old, you won't have to live at the mercy of your husband, let alone his son."
People are naturally more concerned about what they lack. Liu was Han Tong's concubine, and had been a mistress her whole life. Now that her daughter was his second wife, she was still the eldest daughter, so she valued this brick factory very much.
Actually, she was originally a respectable woman. She was originally the wife of Han Tong's personal guard. After the guard was shot to death by a ballista while taking a hit for Han Tong, she became Han Tong's concubine and felt that she had suffered a lifetime of mistreatment.
In the Five Dynasties period, it was common for men to hold official positions and women to manage accounts. Almost all of the dozens of military governors in the country did business outside, and their wives or relatives managed the accounts. In Liu's opinion, the Wang family father and son were similar, but they didn't have any relatives. So, this factory actually belonged to Han Ling'er.
Han Ling'er knew her mother's obsession and that she couldn't explain it to her in a moment, so she simply didn't explain. She just asked, "Mother, why have you come? Is there something you need to see me about?"
"Something's up."
Liu looked around, and Han Ling'er understood, dismissing all the maids around her. Then she asked very seriously, "What is it?"
"Mother, I heard that the father and son are planning to move out of their home and build a new house in Tongjifang?"
Han Ling'er nodded: "I do have this idea, but it's still just an idea. I'm short of money, mainly because it's not very convenient at home."
"I understand. Your man is a capable man, so of course he doesn't want to live in his father-in-law's house all the time, afraid of being gossiped about as a live-in son-in-law, right?"
Han Ling'er laughed awkwardly: "It's mainly because it's inconvenient. Father is the current prime minister and the Grand Secretary. His mansion is large and has many rules."
He's just started working at the Palace Guard, and if his colleagues need to see him after their shifts, or want to deliver some documents to him, it's incredibly inconvenient—they can't even get through the gates of his residence.
"Oh, that's fine. I'm here because I want you to talk to him and tell him that you can't bear to part with me. Ask him to ask your dad to let me live with you."
"what?"
"What do you mean? There are only three people in your family. Those two are a father and son, and they are both top-notch smart people. I'm just worried that you'll be mistreated. I can also help you manage the servants in the house, especially the kitchen. I've been managing the kitchen in our family for over ten years."
"Would Father agree?"
"Your man says that your father will agree? Do you think he's the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard? Grand Secretary, ha, what use is he besides sounding good?"
The world changes every day. Who knows how many more years this so-called Great Song Dynasty can last? Your father is getting old, and in the future, our vast Han family might all have to rely on your husband to support it. He said your father would definitely agree.
"But... how can I tell him?"
"Good daughter, I beg you, please talk to him properly. I've been a concubine my whole life, and now even you're married. I can't stand that house anymore. Please let me stay at your house."
Their family is so small, do they really need me? I'm family, after all, I can help.
"this……"
Han Ling'er was still in a dilemma.
His father is still alive, so how can a mother-in-law live at her son-in-law's house?
Besides, their ages aren't appropriate. Although Wang Jun was shrunk after transmigrating, he's still over thirty, and Liu Shi... is also in her thirties.
To be honest, the two of them actually look more compatible together. Wouldn't it be awkward if they lived at home together? Of course, she trusted her husband and her own mother, but she was a little afraid of gossip from outsiders, and even more afraid that Wang Lu would look down on her.
She was born out of wedlock, and when she married Wang Jun, she knew that her father had used force to some extent.
But Liu was, after all, her biological mother, and the youngest daughter born of a concubine. The two had relied on each other since childhood, and she had always known about Liu's inner turmoil. She couldn't bring herself to refuse, and after a long while, she could only nod and say:
"Alright then, I'll explain, but it might not work out, and things won't happen that quickly. He doesn't have much money to build a house right now."
"How could he not have money to build a house? All the tea in Kaifeng is with him; he must have made a lot of money in the past month or so."
Han Ling'er opened the account book: "Do you want to see how high the grain price has risen in Kaifeng? He still has to treat so many people to meals every day, and he collects tens of thousands of catties of mud every day."
But we simply couldn't burn it all, and we didn't have that much coal. We're almost bankrupt. The unburned mud in the backyard has piled up into several large mountains.
Madam Liu scoffed, saying, "With grain prices rising, shouldn't he be making even more money? Don't think I don't know. Half of Kaifeng's grain is in your hands. The longer the grain grows, the more he profits. What, you didn't know that?"
Han Ling'er was shocked: "Mother, how did you know about this? How could you possibly know? The Emperor has decreed that hoarding and speculation is a capital offense!"
"This would be a capital offense for others, but who is your man? He is the Second King's confidant, and it was the Second King who ordered him to do this."
"Mother, this is no small matter; it could cost you your head! Besides, he didn't even make any money. He used it all to promote the Second King's reputation!"
"Mother, given the Second Prince's character, if this matter becomes common knowledge in Kaifeng, how could he possibly care about Brother Jun?!"
"Don't worry, it won't come to that. It's not like everyone knows. I heard about this from your father. Although your father's title of Grand Secretary sounds impressive, he has the qualifications and connections."
Besides, don't forget, most of the workers in this brickyard are related to your father. It's not surprising he knows something.
Upon hearing this, Han Ling'er finally felt relieved, but her worry deepened. She said, "If you don't want people to know, don't do it in the first place. Too many people know about this, just the workers who transport the grain back and forth..."
I'm terrified. Jun-ge is useful to the Second King now; he's his confidant, and he's there to help him gain fame. But if this matter really comes to light, his good reputation will turn into a bad one, and the Second King...
"Oh, Mother, we really didn't make any money from this; on the contrary, we lost a lot. Taking such a huge risk was all for the sake of the Second Prince."