Volume 1: River City Fish - Chapter 59: New Year's Eve (Part Two)

For the past few months, Wan Mang and the other brothers of the third branch had been living in anxiety and frustration.

Originally, among all the branches of the Wan family, the third branch was in the worst position because they were born to concubines and thus not favored by the old master. In the past, they could only scavenge for odd jobs behind the first, second, and even fourth branches to earn a little pocket money, possessing zero presence to speak of.

It was not until over three years ago that the old master finally nodded and allowed the third branch to independently manage a business venture, which was the bookstore. Although the bookstore business could not compare with massive enterprises like money shops, restaurants, or transport agencies, it at least provided them with a foothold. This inspired Wan Mang and his brothers to work with extraordinary zeal. Within just a few years, they expanded the Wan Family Bookstore to four or five county towns under Hengzhou Prefecture, showing ambitions to monopolize the entire book market of Hengzhou.

Therefore, their aspirations had soared over the past year, believing that once they secured the book market in Jiangcheng County, they could finally hold their heads high in utter triumph. Then, abruptly, their journey hit a dead end—they suffered a crushing defeat in Jiangcheng County, lost thousands of silver taels, and had to slink back in disgrace.

In the eyes of the third branch, all of this was the result of the first branch playing favorites and siding with outsiders, which was why they had come to complain to the family elders ever since their return. Yet, in the end, the old master had simply left them out in the cold. It was not until today, the New Year, that Wan Mang finally had the chance to voice his grievances face-to-face, burning with resentment inside.

Even though he did not dare to truly fly into a rage, he still muttered in a low voice: "We finally managed to establish a foothold in Jiangcheng County and started to make some progress, practically driving the Gu Family Bookstore to the brink of collapse. But the first branch went ahead and lent them a huge sum of silver, allowing the Gu Family Bookstore to make an instant comeback. Old Master, you really cannot be so partial..."

"Audacious!" Wan Yao, who sat by the old master's side and held the nominal position of the head of the Wan family, immediately let out a cold snort. "Do you have any sense of respect and hierarchy left? How dare you babble such nonsense here, and even blame the Old Master?"

"Grandson knows his wrong, I was just momentarily flustered..." Wan Mang realized his mistake, his face turning pale with panic, almost dropping to his knees. Fortunately, the old master waved his hand dismissively and said unconcernedly: "Alright, it is New Year's Day, so let us not frighten anyone. He only spoke unintentionally. Lang'er, you tell us why you lent money to outsiders?"

Wan Lang belonged to the first branch and had been deeply favored by the old master since childhood. At this moment, he appeared quite nonchalant, maintaining his usual carefree and swaggering posture as he smiled and said: "Isn't that obvious? The Old Master taught us long ago that doing business requires a long-term perspective. The most important thing is not immediate profit, but making friends and building a good reputation. Our Wan family's money shop has always upheld this philosophy; whoever it may be, as long as they meet the criteria, we can lend money to them. As for whether they are in competition with our own enterprises, that is entirely secondary.

"Otherwise, how could our Wan family money shop have built such a great reputation across Hengzhou? How else could merchants think of us the moment they lack funds, and how could the town's citizens safely deposit their money with us? Twelfth Brother, tell me, what if I had refused to lend them money, and word got out that we discriminate among our customers, thereby damaging our money shop's credibility and future business? Who would bear the consequences of that?"

"Hmph, you are simply quibbling..."

Wan Lang, however, suddenly turned solemn, shook his head, and said: "Twelfth Brother, you are wrong about that. For us businessmen, reputation and credibility always come first—they are more important than closing any single deal! Moreover, the way your third branch has operated over the past few years has indeed been too ruthless. Almost everywhere you went, you showed no mercy, trying to squeeze out and crush every local bookstore and shop.

"I had long wanted to remind you that such practices are bound to be unsustainable and will inevitably cause someone to make you pay the price. Sure enough, this time you hit a massive roadblock in Jiangcheng County. The business in this world can never be completely finished, nor is it something any single family can monopolize. In any industry, absolute dominance by one family is impossible. If you insist on doing things that way, failure will be your only end."

***

As soon as these words were spoken, not only Wan Yao, but even the old master's aged eyes revealed a look of appreciation. Wan Mang, however, still wore a resentful expression: "It sounds nice and easy to say, but in the end, it's just because that isn't your first branch's business, so you don't feel the pinch."

"Alright, let's leave this matter aside for now. I have said before, what business is all profit and no loss? As long as one can draw lessons from it and improve in the future, it cannot be considered a loss. As for the bookstore sector, the third branch will continue to manage it next year, but do not be as aggressive as you were this year. First manage the businesses in the county towns you have already secured, and only then think about further expansion." The old master said, then looked toward the back, "Fourth branch, tell us about your transport agency business."

After another round of Q&A, the fourth branch of the Wan family finally laid out all their business matters and gained a general understanding of the overall strategy for the coming year. By this time, it was around the third watch (midnight). Hearing the continuous sound of firecrackers outside, Wan Yao waved his hand and said: "Everyone dismiss and rest early. We must wake up early tomorrow for the ancestral worship, so make sure not to sleep in."

"Yes." Everyone rose together and bowed three times to offer New Year's greetings to the old master, then filed out of the room one by one. A moment later, only the core decision-makers—the old master, Wan Yao, Wan Yuan, and Wan Liaoz—remained in the room.

Only then did the old master fully open his eyes, revealing a gleam of wisdom: "What do you make of this year?"

Wan Yao took the lead and said: "The various branches have worked quite hard, but the third branch ultimately lacks vision. After several months, they still haven't figured out how they were defeated in Jiangcheng County, and are merely fixated on the first branch lending silver to the Gu Family Bookstore." With that, he sighed and shook his head.

"There's little that can be done about that. After all, they have only recently entered the commercial world, and previously, shielded by the prestige of the Wan family name, everything went too smoothly for them, making them think every victory was a matter of course. Perhaps after a few more years of tempering, their situation will improve considerably," Wan Liaoz added.

Wan Yuan nodded in agreement: "Old Master, I sent someone to investigate in Jiangcheng County. Actually, the third branch was not defeated by that owner of the Gu family; someone else was plotting behind the scenes, which was why the third branch was forced to return in defeat."

"Is it that kid named Li Ling? I've already heard the first branch mention him. To have such capability and insight at such a young age is truly remarkable," the old master smiled faintly. "Such a talent—if only he could be of use to our Wan family."

"That might be somewhat difficult. I hear he recently has intentions of entering officialdom and enjoys quite a close relationship with the local magistrate."

"Oh? Then he truly is extraordinary. In any case, such a person can only be befriended, never offended. A young man who can write *The Investiture of the Gods* and come up with all those printing ideas—I truly wish to meet him and have a chat."

"Indeed. I was thinking, why not let Lang'er reach out to him? Lang'er lacks other skills, but he is quite exceptional when it comes to making friends," Wan Yuan suggested hurriedly.

"Fifth Brother, you've raised a good son. The insights he shared today surpassed those of most of our younger generation," Wan Liaoz laughed.

***

"It's only because the Old Master taught him well over the past few years that this rascal has made some progress. But that's about it; he simply refuses to apply his mind to business," Wan Yuan sighed.

"Lang'er is indeed clever, but he's still young and lacks steadfastness. He'll be fine once he's a bit older. Didn't you all go through the same phase? The same goes for your father," the old master was exceedingly fond of his grandson Wan Lang and immediately defended him before waving his hand again. "Alright, you may all disperse as well. Lang'er can be allowed to try and contact Li Ling. If they can forge a friendship, that would be for the best."

"Understood, Grandson will keep that in mind," the three household heads rose in unison and replied, before Wan Yao supported the old master as they walked out of the door...

***

Li Ling, who was furiously writing away at home, had no idea that he had already caught the eye of several key figures of the Wan family. He only felt that today his literary inspiration was flowing like... well, like a gushing spring. Not only did he write two traditional literary essays in the span of just two hours, but he also smoothly and brilliantly wrote the subsequent plot of *The Investiture of the Gods* that had been baffling him for quite some time.

This particular section depicted the upcoming climax near the end of the novel—the battle against the Seven Monsters of Meishan. In the original book, this was almost entirely a showcase for Yang戬 (Erlang Shen), who single-handedly thrashed the opposing side. Moreover, aside from their leader Yuan Hong, the other monsters were not particularly impressive, making this battle pale in comparison to the earlier阵 (formations) like the Ten Thousand Immortals Array.

This time, Li Ling made major alterations, having Nezha, Lei Zhenzi, Yang戬, and others join forces to combat them, combining various mystical arts and tactical calculations. Although it could not compare to the chaotic divine wars of the previous arcs, it possessed a distinct aesthetic appeal and successfully fleshed out several main characters.

It was not until the sound of firecrackers echoed through the alley that Li Ling paused his brush, looked up, and realized that past midnight had arrived. This meant New Year's Eve had passed, and it was now the first day of the New Year.

This realization plunged him into a momentary trance. Before he knew it, he had truly lived in this Great Yue Dynasty for a full year. The memories of his past life, aside from his family and friends, were gradually blurring. Perhaps in a little while, all of that would become nothing more than an illusory, hazy dream.

Immediately afterward, Li Ling chuckled. Although Yue'er was still holding her brush in her hand, her upper body had collapsed entirely onto the desk, with a few strands of drool trickling down the corner of her mouth, looking exceptionally endearing. When Li Ling got up to check on her, he discovered that what she had written on the paper before her wasn't the poems from the *Classic of Poetry* she was told to copy, but a page full of "Bad Brother," "Stinky Brother"...

Goodness gracious, just how much resentment must she harbor to make the little girl write "Bad brother" over a hundred times on a single sheet of paper? At that moment, Li Ling heard the little girl mumbling in her sleep: "Bad brother, writing is tiring..." and burst into laughter once more. Bending down, he scooped up her light body horizontally, muttering to himself: "Fine, I suppose I am bad for making you copy characters as punishment on New Year's Eve." With that, he carried the still-drowsy Yue'er into her room and tucked her securely beneath the thick quilt.