Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 225: The Lion Opens His Mouth
Enormous wealth? Enormous disaster, right? I never expected that the first person to come to the door would be the eldest prince!
Lu Sanlang sneered in his heart, but on his face, he still showed a horrified expression, and then quickly shook his head like a rattle: "Pretend I didn't hear what the eldest prince said. I would never dare to do such a treasonous thing! Since you helped me out before, I advise you not to be impulsive, otherwise you will reveal your flaws and let your brother take advantage of you!"
Fatty Lu is a smart man, and this is a secret known to everyone in the capital. Therefore, after the eldest prince said that important sentence, he carefully observed Lu Sanlang's reaction. If he had agreed directly, he would have been suspicious, but he felt relieved when he was advised not to let the second prince gain the advantage because he thought he was going to rebel.
He immediately said with a smile on his face: "Lu Sanlang is indeed a smart and loyal man. Don't worry. As the eldest son of the emperor, how could I do anything that goes against the emperor's wishes? But you should have seen that my second brother relied on his status and almost humiliated you and Miss Liu. If the emperor was deceived by him, it is hard to say what would happen to the world. You and Miss Liu will definitely be hated by him!"
"So, I invite you to conspire for future wealth and honor! I have the legitimate status of the eldest son. If you, Lu Lang, are willing to help me, I will never let you down in the future!"
vomit--
If he hadn't boasted to Zhang Shou that his acting skills were absolutely excellent, Lu Sanlang would have been vomiting at the words "let down" that the eldest prince had promised! He managed to stop the urge to feel sick and pretended to be touched, but he was extremely cautious: "I'm just a student. Although I'm the head of Jiuzhang Hall in name, I don't have much power."
"Oh, are you really just the head monk of Jiuzhang Hall?" The eldest prince smiled at Lu Sanlang in what he thought was a meaningful way, and then said word by word, "Aren't those spinning machines used by Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu made by you?"
"Haha, what spinning machine? I've never heard of it!" Lu Sanlang couldn't help but laugh dryly, but he was very disdainful in his heart. I thought you had found out some details, but it turned out to be the things I wanted to let you know? With such ability, you still want to plot something big. If I plot something big with you, I won't even know how I'll die in the end!
He deliberately looked away, avoiding the eldest prince's burning gaze, and then said something else: "I am just a young man with no ambition, who just wants to eat and wait for death, and who likes to do math at best. I really can't help you, the eldest prince. You've found the wrong person. There are so many talented people in the capital, you should go find them."
"Why do you have to make empty excuses? There is no impenetrable wall in the world. Even if you want to leave and hide your achievements and fame, you can't hide it. Although my second brother was stupid enough to send people to sneak into Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu's weaving and dyeing workshops, and the matter was reported to Shuntian Prefecture, he still found out some information after all..."
Seeing Lu Sanlang's attitude, the eldest prince knew that he had found the right person, so he continued to intensify his offensive, presenting facts and reasoning, and even dragged the second prince out. Seeing that Lu Sanlang was gradually hesitating, he emphasized his tone and said, "Lu Lang, don't think that Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu will be the prince consort and the groom in the future, but that's all empty. How much can they give you in return?"
Lu Sanlang finally gave in. "What can the eldest prince give me in return? To be honest, I am actually very vulgar. I don't care about future gains and losses, but only about present interests! I provided a total of ten spinning machines to Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. Do you know what the two brothers gave me? Hey, one hundred taels per machine, a total of one thousand taels, and 50% of the shares. I just need to wait for the dividends!"
The eldest prince was not angry but happy when he saw Lu Sanlang's mercenary attitude. He was afraid that Lu Sanlang would not come up with conditions. Now that he had mentioned the generous conditions offered by Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu, he felt that the fog had cleared. He tentatively said, "Then, how about you also sell me ten machines? When the workshop opens , I will also give you... 20%?" He would lose a lot if he sold 50%!
"Your Highness, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu and I are from the same school and have signed a contract. If I go back on my word, it would be embarrassing enough. And you are tempting me with ten or twenty machines. You are simply treating me as a beggar!" Lu Sanlang said as he raised his chin slightly, revealing a bit of arrogance.
"If I want to make a lot of money, if I talk to someone like Wan Yuanbao, how much do you think he will offer? I am willing to stick my neck out for my friends, so if you are not sincere, then there is no need to continue talking. I will sell you ten or twenty machines, and then you can dismantle those textile machines and make a thousand or eight hundred machines to work with the wealthy merchants in Beijing and even in Jiangnan. What about me?"
Seeing that Lu Sanlang had seen through his thoughts in an instant and said it directly, the eldest prince couldn't help but become more and more upset. He thought again and again, and finally made up his mind and made the most generous offer: "Well, if you can afford it, I will buy 100 units. If I can negotiate with those wealthy businessmen in the future, I will give you 20% of the profits! But..."
He suddenly changed direction, stared into Lu Sanlang's eyes and said word by word: "I want someone to test it first!"
Otherwise how can I be sure that you are not lying to me!
"Okay, try it!" Lu Sanlang waved his hand generously and said calmly, "Your Highness, just send a spinner here, male or female. But I have to make a deal with you, as long as the person's experiment is OK, then he can stay here for ten days. Otherwise, if this guy is so smart that he steals the essence of my new spinning machine, wouldn't I be at a big loss?"
"Okay." The eldest prince took a deep breath and agreed immediately, but then he made another request, "But there is one thing, you are not allowed to sell this new spinning machine to anyone else. I don't care what you think of, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu can't expand their scale. Within two years, you can't open a workshop with this new spinning machine. Sign the contract as proof!"
I didn’t expect the eldest prince to be so smart. Yes, he must have thought that this statement had plugged the loopholes from various angles, right?
Lu Sanlang squinted his eyes and stared at the eldest prince for a long time, and finally laughed: "I originally prepared a hundred spinning machines for Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. Now that you want to discuss business with me, I will give them one or two thousand strings of cash and some shares, which will definitely shut them up. As for me, if I wanted to open a workshop, I would have done it quietly a long time ago."
"I'll tell you the truth, Your Highness. I like to make quick money, not to bother with things! I like to do math, and other things are incidental! So, after you buy the first batch of 100 units, I won't make this thing anymore. Anyway, this thing is very simple, and you can disassemble it and copy one without any effort!"
"After you send the trial spinners here and see if they work, sign the contract. I also think contracts are more reliable!"
Seeing the eldest prince was slightly stunned at first, and then nodded with satisfaction, Lu Sanlang knew that the image he had created from the beginning to now, that he was devoted to mathematics and greedy for immediate benefits, was effective. He was about to get off the car and leave, but he didn't expect the eldest prince to grab his wrist.
"It is better to do it now than to wait for a day. I can find a spinner right away. Can your spinning machine be ready in no time? If it works after testing, I can sign a contract with you today, and then you can hand over the goods and I will pay for it!"
Tsk tsk, what the young master said really makes sense. Fortunately, he was prepared. If I really just talked about it but couldn't actually produce anything, wouldn't I be in trouble? Lu Sanlang thought so in his heart, and his face looked even more calm.
"That's great. Let's go now. You call the people and we'll go and see the things right away. However, the eldest prince had better not be violent like the second prince. My father didn't like me very much before, so of course I didn't have many masters around me. But now I have a lot more friends than before, and I have the support of the young master, who has masters to lend me."
Hearing what Lu Sanlang said, the eldest prince immediately gave up his last bit of luck. Even his arrogant second brother had to use the strategy of luring Ah Liu away before raiding the weaving and dyeing workshop, let alone him? That was someone that his father knew, the apprentice of the evil Hua Qi. How could he have nothing better to do than to provoke this guy?
However, the more he knew, the less happy he felt, especially after he ordered his confidant to find two weavers, and then followed Lu Sanlang to a seemingly ordinary house, and threatened them to go in and try the machines. He became even more impatient. To buy a hundred machines at a price of one hundred taels, for him, not only did all his savings go to waste, but he also had to sell something!
Even if he could definitely make up for it later, why should he, a prince, suffer such a loss? He, the future crown prince, the future emperor, came to see Lu Sanpang with such sincerity, shouldn't Lu Sanpang be honored and proud to offer him what he liked with both hands?
As night fell, the people had been inside for a long time. Apart from the sound of the machines running, there was no other response in the room. The eldest prince did not care that Lu Sanlang was waiting calmly beside him, and shouted impatiently: "Is everyone dead? No one has said a word for a long time!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the noise inside stopped. After a while, two spinners came out in a hurry, one after the other, but they looked at each other and neither of them spoke.
In anger, the eldest prince shouted angrily: "Are you dumb? What about the spinning machine?"
The two spinners were suddenly taken out of their homes. When they heard that the eldest prince had summoned them, they were already scared out of their wits. When they tried the machine, they were also in a panic at first. When they found the amazing speed, they were shocked. At this time, frightened by the eldest prince, one of the older ones hurriedly shouted: "Reporting to Your Highness, that spinning machine... that spinning machine..."
He stuttered and couldn't find a good adjective for a while, and then the eldest prince glared at him, and he immediately spoke fluently: "That spinning machine is simply amazing, there are so many spindles!"
Another young spinner was not much better under the stern gaze of the eldest prince. He swallowed hard and said hesitantly, "No... That's right, I really didn't expect it to be so fast... It's several times faster than we used to spin! When the master inside explained it just now, I didn't believe it, but it really is that fast!"
In order to prevent Lu Sanlang from bribing the famous spinners in the capital, the eldest prince had already ordered the guards to find the lowest and least famous ones. Seeing that two people confirmed the information at the same time, he took a deep breath and finally looked at Lu Sanlang and smiled: "Okay, okay! Lu Sanlang, you really have real skills. I will stay with you. I want one hundred spinning machines!"
Lu Sanlang immediately smiled widely: "Then let's sign a contract!"
The two spinners knew that they were of humble status, and seeing that the eldest prince ignored them, they did not dare to say a word, fearing that they would anger the big man and cause a disaster. When they saw Lu Sanlang taking the eldest prince to the side room, they could not help but stamp their feet and shrink their hands to keep warm, but suddenly they heard Lu Sanlang's voice.
"You two, go inside and continue to use the spinning machine. You will have to stay here for a few days, but I will not treat you unfairly. All the cotton yarn you spin with the spinning machine here will be given to you as your reward!"
The two spinners were stunned at first, then their faces turned red with joy, and they hurriedly ran to the main room where the spinning machines were placed. The eldest prince turned around and watched this scene, and the last bit of doubt in his heart was dispelled.
These two guys should know how much yarn can be spun in just a few days, but they are still so eager to work, which shows that they believe that those few days of work will bring them a lot of rewards!
When Lu Sanlang saw the eldest prince suddenly smile, he knew that his last trick had worked. He smiled and invited the man into the house, and then he and the eldest prince had a conversation to finalize the contract. When it came to discussing the place to receive the goods and pay the money , the two of them argued for a while, and finally Lu Sanlang readily agreed to deliver the goods and collect the money ten days later.
After watching the eldest prince and his men leave, Lu Sanlang stood alone in the yard. He coughed and called out, "Ah Liu!"
Although he didn't hear the answer, Lu Sanlang knew that what Ah Liu meant must be to stop talking nonsense and just speak directly, so he cleared his throat immediately.
"The person has already left, but this place is too far from the Imperial College. You can't stay here forever, right?"
"I'll just stay overnight."
Seeing that Ah Liu did not show up, but his voice came through clearly, Lu Sanlang breathed a sigh of relief, and then he could not help but feel warm. Ten thousand strings of cash... Although the dividends that Tingyu Cottage gave him every year were actually quite considerable, and this year would probably exceed this number, that kind of windfall was different from the money he earned with his own hands.
Moreover, Zhang Shou also warned him that Weinan Earl Zhang Kang's secret operation of Tingyu Xiaozhu might have happened in recent years, but there must have been other similar places before, just not with this name. Even if Zhang Kang thanked him for saving his life, he'd better find a chance to return the 40% stake. In this case, after this deal, he would just return the stake to Zhang Kang.
Even though even if he earns the eldest prince's ten thousand taels, it won't belong to him alone, but this sense of accomplishment is really wonderful.
As for offending people in the future... haha, he didn't intend to trick any specific person, so who made the eldest prince come to him first?
