Reborn in a Noble Family - Chapter 171
Chapter 171 Guidance In Words
However, it was ambition that prevailed over uneasiness. Fourth Master Qiao said with a serious expression, “Your Highness, the grass-dwellers are here to surrender.”
“Oh?” Duanmu Qing looked at Fourth Master Qiao unsurprisingly.
Although he had instructed Wang Qi to come into contact with Fourth Qiao, his goal was not for Fourth Qiao to surrender.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like people from Jincheng. After all, his eyesight was indeed inferior to merchants in the capital. If it wasn’t for the fact that the structure of the capital couldn’t be changed easily, he wouldn’t have retreated and begged for more. He would have come to Jincheng to look for resources that could be used.
However, Jincheng had its benefits.
The economy is not inferior to Jiangnan, the terrain is dangerous, and the environment is unique …
Otherwise, Marquis Zhen Yuan would not have defended this place for years.
Of course, there was also the main reason why he chose Jincheng.
The smile on his face deepened as he raised his fingers and picked up the teacup in front of him.
Fourth Master Qiao nervously looked at the ground, cold sweat dripping down his forehead, and he didn’t dare to breathe.
Before the teacup could reach his mouth, Wang De said on behalf of his master, “Fourth Master Qiao, have you … thought it through?”
“Your Highness, Lord Wang, the grass-roots people are sincere in their surrender. That little thing from the Qiao Clan cannot enter Your Highness’s eyes, nor can it help Your Highness greatly. However, it is somewhat useful. The Qiao Clan still has some reputation in Jincheng. After accumulating for several generations, they still have connections and connections in the shopping mall.”
Fourth Master Qiao didn’t say anything else.
What could he say?
Saying that Qiao Yi would be able to help the Third Prince in court in the future?
Qiao Yi was only a child now, and when he could stand in court, it was unknown how old it would be.
Even mentioning the Qiao Clan, he felt guilty. The Qiao Clan was not his yet.
Therefore, everything he said now was empty, but he had just drawn a cake.
Originally, he wanted to wait a bit longer. The noble didn’t say anything, so he didn’t move. However, when he learned that the Third Prince was leaving Jincheng, he didn’t have any news on his side. Can he not be anxious?
“Fourth Master Qiao,” Wang De said again, “if you follow my Highness, then you will be one of my Highness’s people. If you succeed, you will also ascend to the heavens. If you lose … do you know the consequences?
After all, Wang De was somewhat underestimated, so he spoke straightforwardly.
This time, he followed the Third Prince to Jincheng. He was obviously visiting the mountains and rivers. In secret, there was naturally something important. Of course, it was not what outsiders had guessed. What was the point of coming to Jincheng to find a suitable development and rope in the resources that could be used?
To tell the truth, the Third Prince was indeed interested in Jincheng’s economy and terrain, but he would not be so stupid as to openly form a party for personal gain. Only their own people knew of the purpose of coming to Jincheng, but it was not what the outside world had guessed.
“Lord Wang, naturally, the grass-roots people know. The grass-roots people admire His Highness’ ability and vision. They believe that the dynasty can achieve glory in His Highness’ hands, so they want to follow His Highness and do their bit for His Highness’s grand plans.”
Fourth Master Qiao thought that his words were very good, but he didn’t know that this nonsensical flattery was very funny in Duanmu Qing’s eyes.
Fourth Master Qiao scratched his stomach and said a few words, but he finally fell silent.
In the business world, he was used to being praised by others, as long as he wore an unfathomable appearance and listened to the flattery of others with a smile and no words. Now, if he had come to flatter the noble, there was no other word than to spit out all the flattery he had heard.
Fourth Master Qiao was determined to follow the Third Prince when he realized his shortcomings.
As long as he got close to the Third Prince, his identity would not be as simple as “Fourth Master Qiao”. Even his majestic big brother would have to lower his head and bow in front of him. When he gained momentum, what did Qiao Family have to do with eldest branch?
He held his breath in his heart, so he was exceptionally persistent.
“You’re quite talkative,” Duanmu Qing finally said. “However, this prince never leaves useless people. Why … why are you staying by my side?”
“Your Highness” Fourth Master Qiao’s forehead was covered in cold sweat as he spun his tongue.
Duanmu Qing said frivolously, “The property of the Qiao Family is in Changfang’s hands. What do you want to cooperate with me for? Don’t talk about errand-running. There is no shortage of errand-running people around Your Highness.”
Fourth Master Qiao felt even more uneasy.
The Third Prince did not show any signs of getting angry, so everything could be discussed.
However, what the Third Prince said was correct. Even if he surrendered now, he could not afford to negotiate.
Duanmu Qing inadvertently said to herself, “In the future, the Qiao Family branch, the ones in Fourth Master Qiao’s hands …”
Fourth Master Qiao was ashamed.
Wang Qi had a pawnshop in his hand that could help the Third Prince wash away the shameful silver, but he had a half-dead restaurant in his hand. If it weren’t for his big brother taking care of his friends in the business, with his little connections, not to mention making money, even the staff in the restaurant wouldn’t be able to support him.
“Your Highness, don’t worry, the grass dwellers will definitely use the entire Qiao Family’s strength to assist Your Highness,” Fourth Master Qiao swore confidently.
No matter how serious his expression was or how cautious his tone was, Duanmu Qing sounded like he was boasting.
Merchants always liked to draw cakes. Although not all of them were exaggerated, he would not make promises without seeing the actual results. Moreover, he only wanted to borrow Qiao Lao Si’s hand to make contact with Gu Family in western Sichuan.
He had always wanted the Gu Clan in West Sichuan, so what did it have to do with the fourth room of the Qiao Clan?
How could he care about the Qiao Clan?
But Gu Family in west Sichuan …
He shook his teacup. The teacup was a lifeless brown color that had long since cooled down. He looked at the teacup and replied with his diaphragm.
“The current Qiao Family is in eldest branch’s hands. Although Qiao Xingbang is still in northern Sichuan, the Qiao Clan’s Clan Head’s Seal and Vice-Seal are in Qiao Yunxi’s hands. She is now the president of the Jincheng Chamber of Commerce and has more power than Fourth Master Qiao. If you really want to cooperate, Your Highness would rather look for Qiao Yunxi.”
“Your Highness!” Fourth Master Qiao was nervous. He did not care about etiquette. He raised his head and directly looked at Duanmu Qing’s cold gaze. He was shocked in his heart. He hurriedly lowered his head and his hands in his sleeves trembled.
Duanmu Qing smiled and said, “Fourth Master Qiao, don’t worry. I’m just casually chatting with you.”
“Yes, Your Highness.” Fourth Master Qiao said with difficulty.
“I don’t blame Your Highness for being snobbish. Fourth Master Qiao is a businessman, so he naturally knows that interests are paramount. This is different from doing business. If you succeed, you can earn money. You can’t lose money. I, this … will definitely kill you.”
Fourth Master Qiao couldn’t help but tremble.
Duanmu Qing smiled faintly. “However, right now, this prince is in the midst of employing people. I can’t wait to receive the full assistance of Fourth Master Qiao. Tomorrow, this prince will return to the capital. This prince will leave this matter to Gu Jinxuan.”
Fourth Master Qiao was delighted.
The Third Prince was showing him the way!
Fourth Master Qiao left the courtyard nervously.
“Wang De, do you have something to say?” Duanmu Qing was in a good mood and rarely spoke to his subordinates in a friendly manner.
Wang De was an old man who followed Duanmu Qing. He was also the mother’s family of Imperial Concubine Cao.
After Imperial Noble Consort Cao entered the palace and gave birth to Duanmu Qing, he chose a smart person from his mother’s house to follow Duanmu Qing. The master and servant were also very friendly, so in front of Duanmu Qing, Wang De had something to say.
“Master, he’s just a businessman. Why do you need to see him personally?”
With Qiao Lao Si’s status, not to mention meeting the Third Prince, even he wouldn’t be able to meet him. Therefore, he really couldn’t understand why Ye Zichen had condescended to speak so much to a commoner.
“Little Dezi, you’ve been by my side for so long. Why can’t you even guess my thoughts?” Duanmu Qing called himself “I”. From this, it could be seen that he treated Wang De differently.
“Young master, I have followed you since I was young. There is only one job these years. It is to take good care of your body and your daily life. Young master has to do big things. Young master doesn’t have that shrewdness and can’t help you. Then you can only do your best in other aspects so that you will have more time and energy to do your own things without worries about the future. “The younger one is Yours Truly’s man. Yours Truly is well, and the younger one has also ascended to fame.”
Duanmu Qing seemed to have no ambition, but it was very useful.
He didn’t need too shrewd people. At least, the people who followed him couldn’t be too shrewd.
It was indeed beneficial to speculate on Master’s thoughts. It could help Master more conveniently, but there were also drawbacks.
No one wished for their thoughts to be guessed too thoroughly, especially those in high positions. They liked to hide their thoughts the most. Even if everyone knew about it, as long as they didn’t break it, it would be good.
“It’s useless,” Duanmu innocently glanced at Wang De and said faintly. “Are you worried that Fourth Qiao knows too much?”
“Master,” Wang De pondered for a moment before saying, “the little one just doesn’t think it’s necessary to talk so much to a mud thief. Although you didn’t say anything important and only gave him a few hints to guess your identity, there’s no need for you to condescend and talk to a mud thief.”
Isn’t it just mud legs?
In his eyes, Old Fourth Qiao’s prestige in Jincheng was no different from mud thieves, just like those from the Qiao Clan. Not to mention Yours Truly, even he didn’t like it.
“Ambition is a good thing, but we have to see what we can do. He doesn’t have a sense of crisis, so how can we go about burning the boat?”
“Yours Truly is shrewd, thinking long-term.”
Duanmu Qing only smiled at his subordinate’s flattery. “Half said, half kept, and the rest he would go and seek for himself. If you really wanted to speak seriously, I didn’t say anything about that.”
“This is what makes me so powerful.” This was what Wang De said from the bottom of his heart.
Senior, the most formidable thing is neither conspiracy nor vision, but persuasion.
Talk, how to say, to what extent, how much to say, can stimulate the listener’s greatest enthusiasm, this is a subject of learning.
There was no need for coercion or temptation, no need to get too close. Let the listener plan for himself. Not only was he willing to plan, he also had to have the spirit of treating death as if he were returning. This was the strength of a superior.
In the future, the one who succeeded would benefit the higher-ups, and the one who failed would also be the listener’s own actions. It had nothing to do with the higher-ups.
Therefore, from the beginning, Qiao Lao Si was just a barking dog in front of him, the kind that didn’t have a master.
What Ye said was merely an analysis of the current situation of the Qiao Clan. It was because Old Four Qiao himself had overthought it.
“This time, I was just exploring the path. I didn’t expect that Gu Jinzhen would arrive as soon as we arrived.” His fingers stroked the edge of the teacup, and his icy touch stimulated Duanmu Qing’s already excited nerves. “So, I believe that the headquarters of the Shen Clan Army is right here.”