Chapter 471 - 404: Selling Land

Chapter 471: Chapter 404: Selling Land

Chen Li froze at his words.

Governor Xu Yuanzhi and the Duke of England had come and gone in a flash. Yet, from beginning to end, the man who was supposed to have accompanied them—the Patriarch of the Cao Family and Junior Minister of the Jiangzhou Textile Bureau, according to Jiang Nanyue’s intelligence—had never appeared.

This had led Chen Li to suspect that Jiang Nanyue’s intelligence was flawed.

But now, judging from Qian Laibao’s news, not only was the Cao Family Patriarch in the Liyang area, but he had also made his way to Lishui County, apparently to sell land?

’What on earth was he planning?’

Chen Li felt nothing but confusion; he couldn’t make sense of it.

Selling land, especially selling off prime farmland on a large scale, was almost always seen as the act of a spendthrift heir squandering his family’s fortune.

Back then, the Cao Family had taken advantage of the Court’s policy of converting rice paddies to mulberry fields, using all sorts of schemes in Lishui and other places. They were even suspected of secretly allowing the Lishui rebel army to create chaos in the region. After all that painstaking effort and enormous risk, they had managed to annex over a hundred thousand mu of land.

’And now they’re planning to sell off thirty thousand mu in one fell swoop?’

’Has the Cao Family gone mad?’

Of course, Chen Li didn’t believe the Cao Family had gone mad.

Whatever he was planning, it had to be huge, for the powerful Patriarch of the Cao Family to conceal his movements and personally come to a remote place like Lishui County to orchestrate it.

Selling the land was likely just a facade; there had to be a deeper scheme hidden behind it.

He recalled the Cao Family’s strange behavior during the auction for the Sun Family’s fifteen thousand mu of land in Qingshui County.

After the Cao Family won the bid, they immediately contacted the Chen Family through Cao Wenxuan, desperate to resell the land.

They didn’t seem to want the land at all; rather, they looked like they were trying to get rid of a hot potato.

Now, considering this sudden, heavy responsibility of repairing the dikes, combined with the Cao Family’s current move to sell land in Lishui...

Repairing dikes, selling land...

An absolutely terrifying thought suddenly shot through Chen Li’s mind, instantly causing a layer of cold sweat to break out on his back.

’These people... they can’t be planning to...’

’Destroy the dikes and flood the fields?!’

At this thought, a bone-chilling cold shot up from the base of his spine to the top of his head, making his fingers curl involuntarily.

If that were true, then the dike repair project Xu Yuanzhi and the Duke of England had foisted on him, as well as the Cao Family’s bizarre land sale, could all be explained in a different light!

’They probably never intended to build the dikes to last.’

’They might even be planting hidden weaknesses, waiting until next year or the year after to artificially engineer a natural disaster and turn the lands along the Lishui into a vast swamp.’

’But to what end?’

’To acquire more land?’

’But the Cao Family is selling their own land!’

’If they flood everyone else’s fields, won’t their own be ruined as well?’

’Unless... the land they’re selling is the very land they plan to abandon, or the land they’re certain will be flooded?’

’So they can buy up land later at rock-bottom prices?’

’But that’s utterly depraved!’

’Or am I just overthinking this?’

’Maybe the Cao Family simply had a huge hole in their finances and were desperate for liquid silver, forcing them to make a painful sale?’

Chen Li’s brow was tightly furrowed, and he remained silent for a long time.

Qian Laibao took the initiative to speak. "Patriarch, the Cao Family is willing to part with their land in Lishui. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Should the Chen Family... make a move and buy some?"

He analyzed, "Thirty thousand mu of prime mulberry fields. As far as I know, the Cao Family rarely leases out their land in Liyang. The deeds and tenant relationships are very clean. We could take over and manage them immediately, which would save a lot of trouble. Plus, Lishui County is right next to Mirror Mountain, which would make future management convenient. Patriarch, we can’t let this opportunity slip by."

His words pulled Chen Li back to reality. He took a deep breath.

No matter what, land was a tangible asset.

He was indeed tempted.

Pushing down his suspicions, he asked, "What’s the Cao Family’s asking price? And how are they selling it?"

Qian Laibao quickly replied, "The Cao Family is selling the mulberry fields in two parcels. One is thirteen thousand mu, priced at 650,000 taels of silver. The other is seventeen thousand mu, priced at 765,000 taels of silver."

Chen Li frowned. "That price... is steep. It shouldn’t be that high."

Land at Mirror Mountain is only thirty taels per mu, but this price is as high as fifty taels.

Qian Laibao gave a slight chuckle and explained, "Patriarch, the Cao Family is factoring the value of the mature mulberry trees on the land into the price as a crop compensation fee. I did a private calculation. Most of those trees are in their peak production period. If we were to plant our own mulberries for sericulture, it would take at least three years for the saplings to mature into a grove. Factoring that in, we’re not actually losing out at this price."

Chen Li frowned, then asked, "After the Cao Family let the news out, who has shown interest? Has anyone contacted them yet?"

Qian Laibao gave an awkward smile. "Well... as soon as I confirmed the source of the news was reliable, I rushed back to report to you, Patriarch. I haven’t had time to dig into the other details yet. Don’t worry, Patriarch, I’ll go investigate right away!"

"Investigate at once."

Qian Laibao accepted the order but didn’t leave, reporting another matter. "Patriarch, there is one more thing. For some time now, our nine Silk Shops have each been selling nearly two hundred bolts of silk per day, with the price generally stable between fifty-five and sixty taels per bolt."

He paused, then asked, "Also, quite a few major merchants have approached us, hoping to negotiate bulk deals to purchase three thousand bolts at once. The price they’re offering is fair, a flat fifty taels per bolt. Patriarch, what do you think... should we release some of our stock to them?"

Chen Li shook his head. "No. Starting today, all Silk Shops are to tighten their shipments. Daily sales of silk must not exceed fifty bolts. We will not accept any bulk wholesale business."

His gaze sharpened. He continued, "Furthermore, that batch of eleven thousand bolts of silk that Luo Pingyuan entrusted us to sell—do not sell it. You are to settle the payment with him at the cost price of forty-one taels per bolt. The funds will be drawn from the Chen Family’s accounts. Find a place to seal up that inventory. No one is to touch it without my direct order."

Qian Laibao replied, "Yes, I’ll see to it at once."

After Qian Laibao left, Chen Li suppressed his chaotic thoughts, rose, and went again to his daughter’s courtyard. He instructed Shouyue to rest quietly and recuperate during this time and not to do anything rash.

Afterwards, he sought out Liu Zongying, who was temporarily staying at the residence, and solemnly entrusted him with staying in Liyang for the time being to secretly protect Shouyue.

Liu Zongying didn’t ask any questions and simply nodded in agreement.

With these arrangements made, Chen Li delayed no longer. After packing a few things, he spurred his horse and galloped off toward Thunder Shock County.