The Bully 014

Nian'an swallowed hard, then after a moment asked, "Master Lin, what do you want me to do?"

Lin Kunyuan smiled. "I want you to obediently become his son, and then..." He made a slashing motion across his throat. "That way, after he dies, you can inherit his estate." He knew very well that those officials only cared about profit; they didn't care who was in charge.

Nian'an's eyes lit up. That's right, why hadn't he thought of that? It had to be Master Lin, so clever indeed!

Only, he couldn't even get into the West Suburb.

The reason was a large sheet of paper pasted on the bridge leading into the West Suburb. It read, "Nian'an and dogs are not allowed to enter." The character for 'dog' had a cross drawn over it, and next to it was a portrait of him, drawn with striking likeness.

Now, there were even soldiers guarding the entrance to the West Suburb, so when they saw Nian'an, they unhesitatingly chased him back.

Fang Zhiyi was also amused. Still trying to play your double-agent games with me? I won't even let you through the gate, let's see how you play then.

Sure enough, Lin Kunyuan had anticipated some difficulty and had even prepared a few schemes for it, but he never expected it to be this difficult—he couldn't even get into the West Suburb!

Before he could figure out his next move, the other party's retaliation arrived.

First, a fight broke out in one of his shops. When the soldiers came to arrest those involved, the scuffle was a bit rough, and the shop was smashed to pieces.

Another shop had a customer who claimed to have bought a fake, holding up a tattered strip of cloth. The soldiers who rushed to the scene promptly sealed the shop.

Even his dye workshop was sealed shut because the smell was too strong.

When Lin Kunyuan tried to seek out County Magistrate Hu, he learned that Magistrate Hu had been transferred away just the day before, citing an urgent order from above.

"And the new county magistrate..." Lin Kunyuan asked, unwilling to give up.

A yamen runner glanced at him. "The new magistrate has gone to pay a visit to Master Fang."

Lin Kunyuan was stunned. Master Fang? Then he remembered Fang Zhiyi.

The runner, having received favors from him before, offered advice: "A word of advice, it'd be good to just kowtow and apologize."

Lin Kunyuan's face turned dark with rage.

He stormed back home, only to see his daughter giggling as she was being amused by Nian'an. His blood boiled instantly.

"You little bastard! Take this!"

Nian'an was beaten again, this time by the man he considered his future father-in-law.

After that, Lin Kunyuan realized his plans could no longer keep up with the changing situation. The reputation of that small area, the West Suburb, grew increasingly prominent. Many visiting dignitaries from other regions would pass through the city and head directly to the West Suburb.

He heard that Fang Zhiyi had also opened up something called 'investment recruitment.' He didn't understand what it meant, but from what people said, it involved opening women's vocational training schools and establishing branches of the Mianyue Workshop everywhere. Anyone who passed the assessment could become a branch manager.

Many people rushed over upon hearing the news, even boosting consumption in the city itself. The usually quiet inns were almost fully booked.

Lin Kunyuan wanted to go too. He had made up his mind: he would pay a high price to secure this 'manager' position, and once he learned the ropes, he would immediately start his own business!

But he didn't expect that when he reached the bridgehead, the person guarding it carefully examined his face and immediately blocked his way.

"Why are you stopping me?" Lin Kunyuan was annoyed. Although his business was currently in shambles, his family fortune was still substantial.

The man simply pointed behind him. Lin Kunyuan looked over and felt his blood pressure spike instantly.

Beneath the original paper forbidding Nian'an entry, his own name, Lin Kunyuan, had been added. Beside it was another portrait.

Fang Zhiyi couldn't even be bothered to use a new sheet of paper!

That day, Nian'an once again became Lin Kunyuan's punching bag. It wasn't that Lin Kunyuan didn't want to drive him away, but he had spent money to get him here. Even if he tried to send him back, no one would take him. He could only keep him as a servant, assigning him all the dirty and hard work. And on days like this, he could also beat him up to vent his anger.

He didn't notice the resentful glare in Nian'an's eyes. His admiration for Master Lin had already turned to hatred after the first beating, and he also came to hate Lin Yanqing, who had watched the spectacle.

She didn't even help him! That hypocritical woman!

After venting his anger, Lin Kunyuan wanted to send someone to deliver gifts to Fang Zhiyi. Yes, he was scared. Seeing the current momentum of the West Suburb and the stream of dignitaries coming and going, Lin Kunyuan felt a chill in his heart.

But everyone he sent came back shaking their heads. Fang Zhiyi accepted the gifts but indicated the matter was not over.

Whenever this happened, Nian'an, while working, would feel a cold chill run down the back of his neck.

"Fang, you're going too far!"

After his last shop was taken from him by Fang Zhiyi through strong-arm tactics, Lin Kunyuan finally erupted again.

He couldn't understand why Fang Zhiyi refused to let him off. He was just doing business—what merchant didn't want to make money?

But things had come to this. Lin Kunyuan decided to seek connections higher up. He refused to believe Fang Zhiyi could have won over every single official in such a short time.

And so, Lin Kunyuan took his family's remaining wealth and began making the rounds, from the county to the prefecture. Relying on the connections he had built over the years, he managed to meet with some officials. Things would seem promising at first, but as soon as they heard it was about Fang Zhiyi, they would immediately throw him out, gifts and all.

Lin Kunyuan became desperate. Gritting his teeth, he traveled north and found a distant cousin. Through many twists and turns, he managed to connect with a third-rank official. After offering sufficient benefits, the official agreed to have a meal with him.

"You said you want to deal with whom?"

"Fang Zhiyi."

"Never heard of him."

Lin Kunyuan was almost moved to tears. Finally, someone who didn't know Fang Zhiyi!

"Tell me, where is he from, what does he do?"

"A local bully in our county, he runs... gambling dens!" He thought of this term.

The official nodded. "A bully, a scourge on the local community, running gambling? Don't worry, I'll take care of this for you."

Lin Kunyuan was overjoyed. He felt his decision to travel north was absolutely correct.

Just you wait, Fang Zhiyi. You will pay the price.

However, his fantasy lasted only until that evening. The door to his room was kicked open. The cousin who had dined with him that afternoon glared at him furiously. "I treated you as family, and you actually tried to harm me?"

Lin Kunyuan was bewildered. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" The cousin rolled up his sleeves. At his signal, two servants grabbed Lin Kunyuan.

After a slap across the face: "Let me tell you what's wrong! If I helped you with this, I wouldn't live to see tomorrow's sun!"

Lin Kunyuan was wronged. "Fang Zhiyi is just a bully, how could you..."

"I don't know who Fang Zhiyi is, but have you heard the name Huang Weixing?"

Lin Kunyuan had some vague recollection.

"Today he informed me that Fang Zhiyi is his teacher and the influential figure backing him! Do you know who stands behind Fang Zhiyi?"

Lin Kunyuan stood there dumbfounded.

His cousin continued, spittle flying: "Three first-rank officials in the imperial court are his backers! And you tried to trick me into dealing with him? I..."

If it weren't for their familial ties, Lin Kunyuan would have died there that very night.