Chapter 66: 066. To give is to gain (An update)
Translator: 549690339
Mai Fei didn’t show up himself and let Nian Jincheng come, not because he wanted Su Liang to believe that everything was Nian Jincheng’s idea.
The decision maker is surely Mai Fei. No matter who passed the plan on to Su Liang, this is clear, and Mai Fei himself knows it.
Nian Jincheng, referring to Mai Fei’s plan as “our plan”, doesn’t change anything about the matter itself. However, Mai Fei cares about Nian Jincheng’s attitude.
What Mai Fei really wants Nian Jincheng to do, by commanding him to come forward, is not to inform Su Liang, but to convince her to act.
Anyone could deliver the former information.
The latter, which is the key, can offend people and has a very high possibility of failure.
If the action fails, Nian Jincheng will bear the consequences.
After Nian Jincheng met Su Liang, following Mai Fei’s instructions, he completed the first step of informing her.
He thought that Su Liang would refuse next, and he would need to find a way to change her mind and get her to help.
Unexpectedly, Su Liang didn’t give Nian Jincheng any chance and directly agreed.
Thus, sort of achieving what Mai Fei wanted, Nian Jincheng didn’t make any mistakes from start to finish.
“Su Liang.”
Hearing Ning Jing calling her from within the room, Su Liang got up and went in.
Chang’an sighed in sorrow, “It’s over! The young master Ning said he was going to write down what he wanted, and he’s been writing for so long. Now he’s also called Miss Su in, how much stuff do they plan to ask from our master?”
Nian Jincheng remained silent, suddenly feeling a bit like laughing.
Today, after seeing Mai Fei, his mood had been very terrible, and he was somewhat anxious on the way here. When facing Su Liang, he felt even more embarrassed.
But the result was unexpected.
Nian Jincheng seriously contemplated that he believed Su Liang agreed to act out of a sense of justice, not to help them.
Even if Su Liang interrupted Nian Jincheng and spoke to him rudely, he would accept it, even if she really resents him.
Although he doesn’t know what Su Liang and Ning Jing plan to ask from Mai Fei, Nian Jincheng wanted to say: ask for more, don’t be polite…
In the room, Su Liang took the thick stack of paper handed to her by Ning Jing.
“I copied the medicinal ingredients in the Poison Scripture in no particular order.” Ning Jing said.
Su Liang smirked at the corner of her lips, “That’s exactly what I wanted.” Ning Jing had also written on the list:
Various precious medicinal ingredients such as ginseng and lingzhi;
A mansion in the capital city that requires a garden and a pond, with ten different fruit trees and ten different flowers planted in it;
Hundred ancient books;
Two BMWs;
One catty of tribute Dahongpao tea;
Five kinds of rare wood;
Seven precious jades;
Nine kinds of fine fabrics;
Looking at the last item, Su Liang sighed faintly, “If someone breaks the agreement and eliminates us in order not to provide these things, I wouldn’t be too surprised.”
Even Mai Fei, as a prince, may not have so many treasures himself. Ning Jing handed over the pen, lips slightly parting, “Just write whatever you want.”
Su Liang thought so too, but realized that Ning Jing had already written down everything she wanted…
Without Ning Jing coming out, Su Liang handed over the completed list to Chang’an.
The thickness of the list made Chang’an’s hands tremble for a moment. After seeing that the many pages at the front were all medicinal ingredients, he breathed a small sigh of relief.
But when he saw the ginseng and lingzhi, Chang’an’s mouth began to twitch.
When he saw “a catty of the tribute Dahongpao tea”, he was dumbfounded, “Dahongpao is a tribute tea whose yearly production is just one catty! My master got a reward last year, and it was just a liang(two)! Young master Ning, as the largest tea trader in Qian country, should be very clear about this!”
Su Liang shrugged, “Last time I made tea-flavored chicken, he complained that the tea was not good, maybe he wants to try Dahongpao tea. After all, his family is a tea trader, and he has very picky tastes.” Chang’an stared speechlessly at the sky.
Nian Jincheng stared speechlessly at the ground.
“That’s all.” Su Liang said very calmly, “It doesn’t need the fourth prince to give it now. After all, circumstances are urgent and we can’t delay. It also takes time to prepare these things. As long as the fourth prince agrees, we can sign a contract, and after the matter is accomplished, he can redeem them. If I fail, let’s forget about it.”
With that, Su Liang looked at Nian Jincheng, “At that time, General Nian can be the witness.”
Nian Jincheng nodded silently.
“Both of you may go back. Come to me after the fourth prince has made up his mind.” Su Liang said.
Chang’an collected the stack of paper and asked, “Can Miss Su’s martial arts handle it?”
“I don’t know either, let’s just try.” Su Liang said casually.
Chang’an coughed lightly, “I suppose, Miss Su wouldn’t dare to take it on unless she was confident. I’ll report back to my master immediately and we’ll get back to you.”
Mai Fei was immensely pleased to hear from Chang’an that Su Liang was willing to help.
However, as he held the list Chang’an brought back, reading from the front to the back, his face turned darker the more he read.
Nian Jincheng had returned to his own quarters, and only Mai Fei and Chang’an were left in the room.
Chang’an narrated every detail of the incident and every sentence between Nian Jincheng and Su Liang to Mai Fei.
Mai Fei stared at the “one catty of tribute Dahongpao tea” on the last paper and bit his teeth, “You mean to say, Nian Jincheng did nothing?”
“It’s Miss Su who didn’t give General Nian a chance. No one expected that she would agree so readily!” Chang’an said.
Mai Fei slapped the list on the table, glared at Chang’an and said, “You call this…readily agreeing?”
Chang’an weakly replied, “They do ask for a lot…. I knew Miss Su loves money, but I didn’t expect…”
“Loves money? She is enthusiastic about blackmailing me!” Mai Fei snorted coldly, “Does she really think I depend on her for success and wouldn’t do anything to her?”
Chang’an didn’t dare to retort.
After a while, Mai Fei calmed down from the rage the list had sparked within him, “I believe she agreed because of her inherent sense of justice. She wants to expose the crimes of Gai Yun and his father, Gai Huai’an, to the world.” Chang’an was shocked, “It must be so!”
“In other words, whether Nian Jincheng goes or not, it doesn’t matter much,” Mai Fei sneered.
“Actually, it does have some impact,” Chang’an sighed, “General Nian’s visit made Miss Su’s impression of him a lot worse, and she hardly paid him any attention afterwards.”
Mai Fei shook his head, “That’s not important. Since Su Liang is willing to help anyway, will she still step in if I do not give her what’s on this list?”
Mai Fei knew that since Su Liang had asked, if he did not agree, the outcome might not be good.
“What’s the use of Nian Jincheng? Why didn’t he persuade Su Liang to help for free?” Mai Fei said angrily, “Go and call him over!”
So Chang’an went to find Nian Jincheng.
As soon as Nian Jincheng entered, he heard Mai Fei say, “Su Liang wants so many things, you didn’t refuse at the time, you pay!” Nian Jincheng frowned, “Your Highness, I can’t afford it.”
Mai Fei snorted coldly, “How do you know I can afford it?”
Nian Jincheng shook his head, “I do not know. This all according to Miss Su’s wishes. It was a pleasant surprise that she agreed to help, I dared not haggle lest it annoyed her, and lose big because of small.” Mai Fei was furious at his words.
Put simply, Su Liang was clearly blackmailing him.
The hot potato that he originally wanted to toss to Nian Jincheng, has now bounced back into his own hand, and Su Liang has added fuel to the fire. If he accepts, he would lose his valuable possessions! Many of the items on that list can’t be acquired simply by throwing money at it!
“Damn woman!” Mai Fei cursed,
If he refuses, then it would appear as if he was not considering the overall situation. This case is extremely important to him, and he cannot give up because of some material goods, but the more he thinks about it, the angrier he gets. The always lofty prince is for the first time in his life being so beat down, it is utterly depressing!
Nian Jincheng, who was completely left out of the matter, sighed, “I have some ideas about that one jin of Da Hong Pao tea.”
Mai Fei’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Speak!”
“The tribute Da Hong Pao tea is offered every year on time by the Ning family in Xunyang. We just need to steal it from the Ning Family, then we will naturally have one jin,” Nian Jincheng solemnly said.
Mai Fei looked coldly at Nian Jincheng, “Do you know the crime of stealing tribute?”
Nian Jincheng nodded, “I do know. But it is not counted as tribute before it leaves the Ning Family. If it gets lost, it’s entirely the Ning Family’s responsibility. It was said that when Ning Jing was expelled from his family, it was because he had gotten drunk and set fire to a batch of tribute tea.”
Mai Fei’s expression shifted, “I see! It’s highly likely that Ning Jing was framed by those bastards in the Ning Family. He doesn’t just want this one jin of tea now, he wants to make things difficult for the Ning Family!”
In the evening, while Ning Jing was making fire and Su Liang was kneading dough, he said, “You’ve never made me tea-flavored chicken.”
This was his response to Su Liang’s nonsense in front of Chang’an during the day.
Su Liang laughed lightly, “When there really is one jin of Da Hong Pao, I’ll make it for you.”
The next day, just as dawn was breaking and Su Liang was out for a run, she heard Chang’an knocking at the door.
“My master has agreed to the conditions that Miss Su proposed,” Chang’an said, “Please go to the county town with us, sign the contract in person, have General Nian as the witness. We also need to further plan out the details of what’s to come, to prevent any mistakes.”
“Alright. Give me a moment,” Su Liang went back to her room to change her clothes, picked up a book she had been reading, and left.
“Ning Jing, are you coming?
Chang’an: …his master is going to blow a fuse…
Upon arriving in Feiyan Town, Chang’an bought breakfast for Su Liang and Ning Jing, and they continued towards the county town.
Nian Ye sensed that his master was in a better mood after he went out yesterday, and he didn’t know what happened in between. He even asked him if he had ever heard of a dish called “tea-flavored chicken”.
Nian Ye had never heard of it. Making chicken using tea leaves was too extravagant. Tea leaves are precious.
At that time, Nian Jincheng said, “I would like to taste the tea-flavored chicken made with the tribute Da Hong Pao.”
Nian Ye felt that his master must have a fever, why else would he start talking nonsense? Tribute Da Hong Pao is only enjoyed by the royal family. Using it to cook is simply wasteful and whimsical!
When Mai Fei sent for them again, Ning Jing and Su Liang had arrived.
Nian Jincheng walked into Mai Fei’s courtyard. Just as he approached the door, he heard Mai Fei yelling furiously, “Don’t get greedy!”
Nian Jincheng paused at his steps. He had already seen Ning Jing, sitting next to Su Liang, his expression cool.
Their eyes met, and Ning Jing still looked as calm as ever. Nian Jincheng was feeling mixed, he lowered his head to adjust his cuffs a bit, “May I come in?”
“Come in!” Mai Fei’s voice was still full of anger. Nian Jincheng entered, bowed respectfully.
“Sit!” Mai Fei said darkly.
Nian Jincheng sat down in the empty space, facing Ning Jing.
“Jincheng, Prince Ning asked for so many things and still isn’t satisfied. Now he wants my Feiyun Bow. What do you think of this?” Mai Fei asked coldly.
Nian Jincheng was taken aback, “The Feiyun Bow is your cherished possession, Your Highness. However, we can’t delay the important matter. Everything is up to Your Highness’s decision, I dare not make inappropriate comments.”
“Su Liang, it’s you who need to do the things and the contract is between you and me. What do you mean by this?” Mai Fei snorted.
Su Liang sighed, “It’s indeed not gentlemanly to seize what others love. But one has to let go to gain something. Your Highness can weigh it in. Ning Jing’s intention is my intention, if Your Highness is not willing, that’s also okay, let’s just forget about today.”
Mai Fei clenched his back teeth, “What a great justification about to let go to gain! Such a big tone, seems you are very confident about the upcoming matter, great!”
Su Liang shook his head, “It is hard to say about the certainty for now, just stating the situation in advance to avoid any unhappiness later. The contract has conditions. If my venture fails, I don’t need any compensation from Your Highness. If it succeeds, then I would need Your Highness to honor your promise. I believe, Your Highness will not make a losing deal.”
Hearing Su Liang’s last sentence with deep meaning, Nian Jincheng nodded quietly.
Mai Fei could be angry, but as long as he did not chase Su Liang and Ning Jing away, it means that he can bear this.
That he would take a loss is of course impossible.
As a prince who has not been made the crown prince yet, once Mai Fei breaks the iron mine smuggling case, all the credit will be his. His identity, status, reputation, prospects will all greatly elevate!
So this is why he has left the capital to live a life of leisure, willingly come to Bei’an County, tirelessly working so much.
After a moment of silence, Mai Fei said coldly, “Alright, the Feiyun Bow is yours! Su Liang, you had better not ruin my plan. Otherwise, the consequences are something you cannot afford!”
The written contract was sealed and stamped by Mai Fei. The other party was
Llang ana Ning Jing.
Nian Jincheng, who served as the witness, also signed and stamped it.
Mai Fei stood up and looked at Su Liang, “Now, it’s time for you to show me your strength.”
Su Liang nodded calmly, “Alright..”
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