Volume 1, Chapter 64: You Fucking Cunning Bastard

Eventually, the bidding price for that seat skyrocketed to three hundred taels of silver!

The buyer was Wang Peng, the son of a well-known wealthy merchant in the county—a textbook definition of a spoiled rich second-generation heir.

This spectacle left Zhao Defu utterly dumbfounded!

A dilapidated chair, and not even for permanent purchase, just the right to sit in it once, had been driven up to the astronomical price of three hundred taels of silver?

Have the people downstairs lost their minds?

Even with money to spare, one shouldn't spend it like this!

Fan Xiu's mouth split into a grin stretching almost to his ears. He immediately rushed down, grabbed Wang Peng by the arm, and fawned over him, "Congratulations, big brother, on securing the VIP seat! Congratulations, Young Master Wang!"

"Haha!"

Wang Peng laughed heartily, "Well said, well said! Here is a silver banknote for three hundred taels, redeemable at the Changfeng Money Shop at any time!"

"Splendid!"

With a smile, Fan Xiu tucked the banknote into his pocket, made a polite gesture, and said, "Young Master Wang, please follow me to the VIP seat!"

Wang Peng cupped his hands toward the surrounding crowd and chuckled, "In that case, I'll accept this without modesty. My good men, I'm heading up!"

With these words,

he laughed heartily and followed Fan Xiu upstairs.

Zhao Defu pulled Fan Xiu aside and muttered under his breath, "Aren't you being a bit too unscrupulous?"

Fan Xiu chuckled and said, "It's a willing buyer and a willing seller, how can you call it unscrupulous? There's more to come later! Just wait and see!"

Zhao Defu frowned.

There's more?

Fan Xiu led Wang Peng to the spot where Su Ying'er had been sitting. On the table, there were still some unfinished dishes that Su Ying'er had left behind.

Fan Xiu gave a grand wave of his hand and called out, "Waiter, clear these away!"

"Hold on!"

Wang Peng hurriedly intervened, "I'll eat these! None of you are allowed to touch them!"

Fan Xiu quickly stopped him, putting on a troubled expression as he said, "Young Master Wang, this... now you're putting me in a difficult spot! These dishes were prepared for Manager Zhao, and they're supposed to be sent to his private room!"

Zhao Defu: "???"

Me?

When did I ever reserve these?

"I'll pay for them!"

Wang Peng produced yet another silver banknote, slapped it onto the table, and said eagerly, "This whole table of dishes doesn't even add up to ten taels, but here is a banknote for one hundred taels! These dishes belong to me!"

Fan Xiu immediately pocketed the banknote and said with a beaming smile, "Splendid! Please enjoy your meal, Young Master Wang!"

Saying this,

he tucked the banknote right into his pocket!

He simply adored these young masters who were foolish and had money to burn!

In just this short span of time, he had raked in four hundred taels of silver!

As for the food Su Ying'er had eaten and the place where she had sat, he didn't care much about them; even if he weren't making a profit off this, the items would still be sitting right there anyway.

Su Ying'er was already his woman, after all, so there was no need to dwell too much on such trifles.

Zhao Defu's eyes nearly popped out of his head!

Holy crap!

In just this little while, four hundred taels of silver?

Though Wang Peng's family was well-off, spending money in this fashion meant he was bound to get a beating with a stick when he went home, right?

"Haha!"

Acting as though he had scored the bargain of a lifetime, Wang Peng happily began to dig into the food.

Zhao Defu quietly crept up to Fan Xiu, lowered his voice, and said, "Fan Xiu, this silver was earned right here in my establishment. You should share some of it with me, shouldn't you?"

Fan Xiu grinned broadly and replied, "Elder Brother Zhao, what are you talking about? I earned this with my own capability!"

"You!"

Zhao Defu said in a low voice, "I am going to be your future father-in-law, you know. Isn't it a bit too excessive not to give me a single cent?"

"When the time comes for the bride price, will you ask for less?" Fan Xiu countered.

Zhao Defu shook his head. "Certainly not! That's the money for marrying my daughter, not a single coin can be spared!"

"Then don't I need to save up? Besides, as an elder, coming straight to me for money doesn't quite seem appropriate, does it?" Fan Xiu flatly refused.

Are you kidding me?

This silver was earned through his own wit. The earnings from selling cold skin noodles, including the wholesale shipments delivered to other taverns and the supplies sent to Drunken Immortal Tavern, all went through the ledger of Zhiwei Pavilion.

And Zhao Defu actually wanted to get his hands on this silver?

Not in a million years!

Zhao Defu gritted his teeth.

Fine!

Even if he cast aside his elderly dignity, Fan Xiu certainly wouldn't give him much of that four hundred taels.

However, when the time came for Fan Xiu to marry Zhao Ruifei, he would definitely bleed him dry!

He would get his hands on this silver

sooner or later; there was no need to rush at this very moment!

What he cared about far more was the profit from the cold skin noodles sent out from Zhiwei Pavilion!

These noodles were being sold for one hundred copper cash each—ten portions made a single tael of silver. With so many taverns, especially Drunken Immortal Tavern, the daily earnings could easily reach dozens, or perhaps even a hundred taels!

There was no sense in falling out with Fan Xiu over this small sum of silver.

Having finished his meal, Wang Peng descended the stairs fully satisfied. Like a victorious general, his face beamed with smiles.

At that moment, there were still plenty of guests downstairs.

Seeing Wang Peng, some patrons offered flattery while others looked on with jealousy.

Yet none of this affected Wang Peng's triumphant smile in the slightest.

Upstairs.

Seeing the lingering resentment on Zhao Defu's face, Fan Xiu said, "Elder Brother Zhao, actually, I have another method for making silver."

"What method?"

Zhao Defu pressed curiously.

He had finally realized that this fellow Fan Xiu was a born swindler of a merchant!

Fan Xiu smiled slyly, pointed toward the seat Wang Peng had occupied, and said, "This seat doesn't just earn money once. If we turn this into the Pavilion Immortal VIP Seat from now on, requiring an extra fee to sit there, wouldn't that become a steady, long-term source of revenue?"

Hearing this, Zhao Defu's eyes instantly lit up.

Indeed!

Why hadn't he thought of that?

As expected, this Fan Xiu was a thoroughly crafty merchant!

Fan Xiu continued, "In this way, not only can we make money, but we can also continue using Su Ying'er to advertise, reinforcing people's impressions so they never forget that she once graced this place. How could the business of Zhiwei Pavilion possibly fail after that?"

Hearing this, Zhao Defu's expression blossomed with delight!

"Fan Xiu!"

Zhao Defu grabbed Fan Xiu by the arm and exclaimed, "You damn absolute genius! If you hadn't studied books and had instead started doing business early on, you would have already become the richest man in Zhiyuan County!"

Fan Xiu gave a light cough and said, "Keep it low profile, keep it low profile!"

"No!"

Zhao Defu declared, "I genuinely think you're incredible! Look, from now on, Zhiwei Pavilion will be left entirely in your hands to manage, and I'll add an extra ten percent to your profit share!"

Fan Xiu shook his head decisively, "Not interested. I simply don't have the time; I have many other things to do!"

Making cold skin noodles and spiced eggs was merely a means for him to earn his first pot of gold!

Once he secured that sum of money, his ties with Zhiwei Pavilion would come to an end.

Besides, he would have sufficient capital to strike out on his own.

Seeing Fan Xiu refuse, Zhao Defu grew anxious and hastily urged, "Twenty percent! I'll add another twenty percent for you! From now on, you take eighty, and I take twenty! You will be the manager of Zhiwei Pavilion, and you'll be in charge of all affairs—I will never interfere. How about that?"

He had seen it clearly now: this Fan Xiu was a golden-egg-laying turtle-son-in-law, a veritable money tree!

As long as he could keep Fan Xiu here, the wealth they would earn in the future was unimaginable!

Even with an eighty-twenty split, he would still rake in a fortune!

"Not interested!"

Fan Xiu shook his head once more. "I have too many things on my plate! Besides, I shouldn't take advantage of you—we can keep the fifty-fifty split for the cold skin and spiced egg business. Moreover, with Su Ying'er's fame, you'll be making plenty anyway!"

Zhao Defu gritted his teeth, his expression shifting rapidly.

Even with an eighty percent share of the profits, Fan Xiu was still unwilling?

It seemed this fellow still had aces up his sleeve!

Coupled with Fan Xiu's relationship with Su Ying'er, there was no telling how much more wealth Fan Xiu could generate in the future!

Zhao Defu took a deep breath, a look of resolute determination washing over his face!

If you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you catch the tiger's cubs?

It was time to make a massive gamble!

"Ninety-ten!"

With bloodshot eyes, Zhao Defu said, "As long as you stay at Zhiwei Pavilion, I'll only take ten percent, and the remaining ninety percent will be entirely yours! Furthermore, should you ever encounter any trouble in the future, I guarantee that I will mobilize all of the Zhao family's resources to help you! Fan Xiu, back when you were down on your luck, I was the one who helped you. You certainly can't forget your roots, can you?"