Chapter 101: 101. You Take Over (Second Update)
Translator: 549690339
Ever since the Government Office intervened, everyone in the Wan family was worried because they knew that Zhengzheng was conceived by Wan Hui and her ex-husband.
But Zhengzheng was also a member of the Wan family by blood, born after ten months of pregnancy and suffering by Wan Hui. Why should they give him to the Li family? Was the Wan family unable to raise a child with their great wealth?
If it hadn’t been for Old Lady Li and Li Chen’s mistreatment of Wan Hui for several years, things wouldn’t have come to this. When they married Wan Hui, they promised to treat her well, but instead, she suffered countless grievances.
When Wan Hui’s brothers found out about her plight, they wished they could just scatter Li Chen’s ashes like Ning Jing did!
And who knows what kind of person a child would become if they grew up in that kind of corrupt family.
“I’ve made my father worry again.” Wan Hui looked at Wan Qiang apologetically.
Wan Qiang glared at her, “What nonsense are you talking about? That’s my grandson!” He laughed heartily, “Ning Jing and Miss Su Liang are truly our family’s blessings! Make sure you treat our honored guests well!”
Wan Hui smiled, “When Zhengzheng came back earlier, he missed Ning Jing and Su Liang a lot, and said that Ning Jing promised to come back and see him soon. At that time, both my husband and I thought Ning Jing was just trying to appease the child, but we never expected them to actually come so quickly! The guesthouse for them has been prepared!”
“Zhengzheng is bound to have great fortune in the future if he can make such good connections.” Wan Qiang said happily, “Later, you can ask if there’s anything the Ning Family needs our help with.”
Wan Hui agreed and went to find Zhengzheng with her husband Lu Yu.
At this moment, Su Liang had already been chased into the Wan family’s back garden by Ning Jing. Zhengzheng was thrilled and kept cheering Ning Jing on, “Uncle Ning, hurry up! You’re almost there!”
In fact, it was easy for Ning Jing to catch up with Su Liang, and neither of them were using their full strength. They simply had an unspoken understanding, playing along for Zhengzheng’s sake.
However, all games must come to an end, otherwise the child would only be endlessly excited and never give up.
So, Su Liang went into the Bajiao Pavilion by the lake, and Ning Jing soon followed with Zhengzheng in his arms.
Leaning against a pillar, Su Liang pretended to be trapped with nowhere to escape.
Ning Jing walked over with Zhengzheng in his arms, whose face was flushed and eyes sparkling as he grabbed Su Liang’s arm, “I caught Auntie!” He was thrilled.
The little guy did not forget what he wanted to do: He held Su Liang with one hand and tried to touch her face with the other hand that Ning Jing was holding, smiling happily.
But in the next moment, Ning Jing handed Zhengzheng to Su Liang.
She took him in her arms smoothly.
Little Zhengzheng looked at Ning Jing, then at Su Liang, momentarily baffled by the sudden change in the game’s rules. He quickly sorted out his thoughts and happily grabbed Su Liang’s hand to touch Ning Jing’s face, “Uncle Ning, don’t run away!”
A nice role reversal, the tacit understanding between the three of them was extraordinary.
Ning Jing had no intention of running away at all, and stood still, allowing Zhengzheng to use Su Liang’s hand to touch the side of his face.
Originally, this outcome was agreed upon with a glance between Ning Jing and Su Liang. He didn’t mind, and she didn’t care.
However, to their surprise, when Zhengzheng saw Ning Jing not running, he thought that touching the face was not enough and, holding Su Liang’s hand, asked her to touch Ning Jing’s nose instead.
This was a fun way adults often expressed their affection to Zhengzheng.
With a smile spreading in her eyes, Su Liang, under Zhengzheng’s command, gently touched Ning Jing’s nose. Seeing his slightly furrowed brows, she knew he was feeling awkward.
Making the Great God feel awkward wasn’t easy, and Su Liang thought Zhengzheng was amazing!
When the game ended and Wan Hui and Lu Yu arrived, Zhengzheng was being held by Ning Jing as they played with Su Liang in a game of leaf stem tug-of-war.
With two against one, Ning Jing held Zhengzheng’s hand and won.
Zhengzheng whooped with joy, while Su Liang pretended to be heartbroken.
With that, Zhengzheng climbed from Ning Jing onto the table and approached Su Liang, raising his small hand to wipe away her non-existent tears, “Auntie, don’t cry… ”
Su Liang pointed to her cheek.
Immediately understanding, Zhengzheng leaned over and gave her a loud kiss.
Ning Jing gave a cough.
Zhengzheng then turned around, climbed back to Ning Jing, and kissed him as well.
Afterwards, the little guy sat on the table, clapping his hands and giggling, “Now it’s Uncle Ning’s turn to kiss Auntie! Daddy and Mommy do this too!”
Ning Jing looked at a nearby tree.
Su Liang looked at the bleak lake.
Both Wan Hui and Lu Yu couldn’t help but smile, thinking their son was so clever. They also thought that Ning Jing and Su Liang were a perfect match but, after all, they were officially brother and sister, not a couple.
“Master Ning, Miss Su Liang,” Wan Hui called out.
“Mom! Dad!” Zhengzheng stood up, eager to run forward but forgetting that he was still on the table.
Seeing Ning Jing swiftly reached out to catch him, Wan Hui breathed a sigh of relief, “He’s getting naughtier by the day.”
Wan Hui and her husband Lu Yu thanked Su Liang and Ning Jing again, telling them that their guesthouse was all set up and they should rest before the banquet to be held in their honor that night.
Exhausted from playing, Zhengzheng was carried away by Lu Yu for his afternoon nap, while Wan Hui accompanied Ning Jing and Su Liang to the guesthouse.
“If you two don’t mind, please stay at the Wan family’s house. Don’t be reserved. After the New Year, Ning Jing’s capital city exam won’t be too late.” Wan Hui looked sincere, adding, “When Zhengzheng returned, he always talked about both of you and never forgot!”
“Sister Wan, our trip here was just to see Zhengzheng. In a few days, we have to go back to Bei’an County, as there are still some matters to deal with there,” Su Liang smiled, “Otherwise, I’d really want to stay and play with Zhengzheng.”
Wan Hui looked a little disappointed, “Take care of your business first. Next year, when Ning Jing goes to the capital city for the exam, he’ll surely achieve great success. I don’t know if you two plan to stay in the capital city for a long time. My father wants to send one of us siblings to manage the business in the capital. After the New Year, my husband and I plan to go there with Zhengzheng. In the capital, we don’t have to worry about the Li family’s schemes. If you two are in the capital city, Zhengzheng will be able to see you more often. ”
This was actually a decision made just today by Wan Qiang. He believed that Ning Jing and Su Liang were extraordinary and they must maintain this relationship which would benefit both Zhengzheng and the Wan family.
Su Liang nodded, “After the New Year, we’ll go to the capital city and stay for some time, though we’re not sure for how long. If Zhengzheng is going too, that would be even better.”
Wan Hui smiled and nodded, “Then it’s settled.”
After making the arrangements, Wan Hui left them to rest, before going to tell Wan Qiang about Su Liang’s thoughts.
“At first, I thought Ms. Su Liang was just following Ning Jing’s lead, but now it seems that’s not the case, ” Wan Qiang pondered, “After the New Year, you guys should take Zhengzheng to the capital. We can’t afford any disturbances in the business there. Now that you’re going to manage it, I can rest assured.”
The room that Wan Hui prepared for Su Liang and Ning Jing exuded a low-key luxury, with antique vases and precious calligraphy and paintings, showing their appreciation and respect for their guests.
After washing up, Su Liang took a nap. When she woke up, she heard people talking in the courtyard.
Upon stepping out, she saw Zhengzheng sitting in a large box with a gold ingot in his hand, smilingly handed it to Ning Jing.
“What’s this?” Su Liang walked over and asked with a smile.
Zhengzheng immediately took back the gold ingot he had handed to Ning Jing, held his hand up high, and passed it to Su Liang, “For Auntie, a gift!” Ning Jing spoke with a faint smile, “Just now, he said they were all for me.”
“Uncle’s is Auntie’s!” , Zhengzheng waved his little head, finding the phrase a bit confusing, he corrected himself again, “Uncle, it’s Auntie’s!”
Su Liang shook her head, “Wrong.”
Zhengzheng blinked his big, black eyes and said with a giggling laugh, “Auntie, it’s Uncle’s!” Then he looked like he was saying, “Look, am I right this time? Praise me for being the smartest baby.”
Su Liang chuckled, “As long as you’re happy. Anyway, these are gifts for me.” Ning Jing picked up a piece of fine agarwood from the box and walked away.
Zhengzheng then pulled Su Liang over to show her all sorts of treasures.
That evening, Wan Qiang hosted a banquet for Ning Jing and Su Liang, treating them as distinguished guests.
At first glance, Ning Jing seemed cold and aloof, but he did not refuse the toasts. Su Liang only drank a small cup, saying she had a poor alcohol tolerance.
Host and guest had a great time.
When the banquet was over, Zhengzheng had fallen asleep in Ning Jing’s arms.
Wan Hui had originally planned for Zhengzheng to sleep with Ning Jing tonight, but instead, Ning Jing handed the child back to Lu Yu.
After returning to the guesthouse, Ning Jing said to Su Liang, “Don’t forget about that matter.”
Su Liang shook her head, “I haven’t forgotten.”
Late at night, Su Liang and Ning Jing secretly left the Wan Family and went to the inn where the Li family was staying in Qingyang City.
Li Chen had arrived the day before and had arranged with Wang Zhifu yesterday to visit the Wan family today.
His goal had not yet been achieved, so he had not left yet.
Su Liang and Ning Jing walked around the area near the inn and stopped at a certain place. Ning Jing said to Su Liang, “Wait here for me.”
Su Liang took out a bamboo tube and handed it to Ning Jing, “Try the sedatives
I made.”
Ning Jing took it and quickly disappeared.
About half an hour later, Ning Jing came back carrying a person. He and Su Liang returned to the Wan family together.
The night was quiet.
The light in Ning Jing’s room in the guesthouse was still on, and Su Liang was there too.
Someone was lying on the floor, it was Li Chen.
Initially, Ning Jing had told Su Liang to “arrange” for Li Chen to practice acupuncture on him, but since Li Chen was afraid of dying and had someone nearby to protect him, Ning Jing decided to take matters into his own hands for safety’s sake.
Ning Jing took out a pack of silver needles, which had been specially prepared for his practice.
One needle pierced, Li Chen didn’t move a muscle.
“The sedative works well,” Ning Jing said.
“Good. You can practice your touch now,” Su Liang replied.
So, on Li Chen’s body, Ning Jing practiced almost all the acupuncture techniques Su Liang had taught him, except for two that were too stimulating and might wake him up.
To become proficient, he went through it all once, then started again.
Before dawn, Ning Jing sent Li Chen back, without anyone’s knowing.
The next day, when Li Chen got up, his whole body ached. He had dreamed of being stabbed with needles all night, it was like seeing a ghost.
Su Liang and Ning Jing didn’t kill Li Chen because if he died in Qingyang City, the Wan family would undoubtedly be suspected of being behind it.
On that day, Old Lady Li came to visit again, saying she wanted to have a good talk with Wan Hui, who didn’t even let her in.
Su Liang gave Wan Qiang a prescription for a medicinal diet and also wrote two medicinal diet recipes that were beneficial for coughs, asking him to try them out.
As for the plan to cooperate against the Li family, Wan Qiang expressed great interest. When he learned that Su Liang was close friends with the young family head of the Yang Family, Yang Yu, he was overjoyed. He said that he had a good relationship with Yang Yu’s late father, and the two had many business dealings in the past.
If they wanted to deal with the Li family, they needed to start with their largest ceramics business to shake their foundation.
Although the Wan, Ning, and Yang families were not experts in the business, neither was Li Chen. What mattered were the artisans employed by the Li family.
The artisans could be tempted away if offered enough money.
And what the three great businesses had most was silver.
Therefore, Su Liang’s proposal was in line with Wan Qiang’s intention. It was something he wanted to do but couldn’t achieve on his own as the Wan family.
But he also voiced his concerns, “The wealth of the Wan, Ning, and Yang families is already enough to attract the attention of the court. If the three of us openly unite to devour the Li family, it wouldn’t be a good thing. Some people don’t like to see close relations between our families.”
Su Liang understood Wan Qiang’s meaning, “I didn’t think enough about it.
Uncle Wan is right.”
Wan Qiang shook his head, “Miss Su, don’t misunderstand. I’m not against your proposal; it’s just that the three families can’t openly cooperate. The idea of taking the Li family’s property and giving it to Zhengzheng is also not appropriate. I understand that you have no ulterior motives, and you are doing it for the Wan family and for Zhengzheng’s sake. But for this matter, I think it would be most appropriate for you to take over the Li family.”
Su Liang was stunned, “Me?”
Wan Qiang nodded, “Since Miss Su and Ning Jing haven’t gotten married yet, you’re not considered a member of the Ning family. Even if someone finds out about your relationship with the Wan and Yang families, it won’t be a problem. You can act as a fourth party; our three families will fully support you in replacing the Li family, becoming one of the four major merchants. Miss Su, you don’t have to worry, and I will handle this matter with the Ning family head and the Yang family head. Originally, you were the link between our three families. Just think of it as a thank you gift from the Wan family, and don’t refuse.”
Seeing Su Liang frown, Wan Qiang joked, “In this way, when Miss Su gets married to Ning Jing, they will be a perfect match, on equal footing!”
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