The King of Black Fog

Li Changzhou returned to the Commander Mansion and asked Liu De a question.

"Have you ever seen a monster?"

"No," Liu De shook his head, "Although the martial arts school has records of such things, they're nothing but tales of gods, ghosts, and strange creatures. Nowadays, the whole world is populated by humans, and rumors of monsters can be found everywhere, but to date, no one has actually seen one. Second Master, don't listen to the nonsense of those servants."

Li Changzhou nodded, "You go prepare the peonies, I won't go out this afternoon, so there's no need to follow me."

"Yes."

"By the way," Li Changzhou, who had been deep in thought, remembered something else.

Liu De stopped, waiting for his instructions.

"Go invite five doctors over, pay them well, and have them treat people at the gate for free."

"Yes."

Li Changzhou didn't go to the backyard, as the backyard was too dangerous. Commander Li had taken the fiery third aunt and the seventeen-year-old seventh aunt to the military camp, but there were still a bunch of wives left in the Commander Mansion, including the dancer.

His sister, Li Biwei, had gone to school.

Li Changzhou first had someone call his future father-in-law Lin Ziwen to come over, then he himself went to the Commander Mansion's treasure vault, checking the treasures Commander Li had looted piece by piece, as well as the medicinal materials, ginseng, musk, toad venom, benzoin, and so on.

Deliver them to Miss Yang in the evening, he thought.

Before he had finished inspecting half of it, a servant came to report that Lin Ziwen had arrived.

Entering the living room, Lin Ziwen quickly stood up.

"Please sit," Li Changzhou gestured with his hand, then walked to the head of the room, "Uncle Lin, I've asked you here because there's a business matter I wish to discuss with you."

"A business matter?" Lin Ziwen was startled.

"Yes, originally I had no plans to enter the financial world in the short term, but I realized that without money, nothing can be done," said Li Changzhou.

"Changzhou, are you asking to borrow money from me?"

Borrowing money... Li Changzhou pondered the word—why should he use his own money to pay wages and build dormitories? He could completely borrow from various banks and then rely on the profits from renting houses and canteens to slowly repay the money.

The key question was whether these banks would be willing to lend.

If he had military power himself, naturally there would be no problem, but he didn't. His backer—Commander Li—did, but with one degree of separation, the implications were quite different.

Set that aside for now.

"It's not a loan." Li Changzhou's previous thought was but a fleeting moment, he replied, "I want to find jobs for the workers, and once workers have money, they'll surely want to save it. These small depositors might be modest, but they are nonetheless important."

Lin Ziwen understood and quickly weighed the pros and cons, confirming it as a good thing.

He immediately said, "Changzhou, rest assured, let those people deposit their money in the Lin Clan Bank, and I'll give them the highest interest rates."

"Uncle, you've misunderstood me," Li Changzhou waved his hand, "I'll put up the capital to buy shares of Lin Clan Bank. I don't need much, just enough to make decisions. From now on, Lin Clan Bank will be renamed 'Workers' Bank', and I'll underwrite its profits and losses."

Lin Ziwen's brow furrowed tightly, and he remained silent with his head down.

"I won't force you, Uncle," said Li Changzhou, "If you're unwilling, I can just open my own bank, though it would be quite troublesome, having to start from scratch with personnel and location."

Li Changzhou gave him time to think.

After a while, Lin Ziwen spoke up, "Changzhou, my nephew, Lin Clan Bank is the effort of my lifetime, I'm afraid I cannot agree to your terms."

"No worries, no worries." Li Changzhou stood up smiling, and Lin Ziwen rose as well.

"Uncle, don't worry about this matter. By the way, on May 3rd, I'm going to hold a peony charity ball. Please be sure to come."

"Sure, I definitely will! Then I will take my leave for now."

Li Changzhou made a gesture suggesting he could leave.

After Lin Ziwen left, Li Changzhou pressed the buzzer and called in a listener named Wang Dehai.

"Second Master," Wang Dehai greeted with a bow.

"You take my car, at the busiest time, go to Lin Clan Bank and withdraw my one million, then find a newspaper to report this. Say that—I have already prepared one million in cash, ready to pay the workers' wages and open a bank."

"Yes!" Wang Dehai took the order and left.

Li Changzhou had no time to slowly deal with a bank, so he would have to do something less benevolent. He also didn't know what the historical outcome for Lin Clan Bank was.

After discussing these matters, workers had already begun to carry loads of peonies into the Commander Mansion. Liu De was very meticulous with the task, choosing only peonies that were about to bloom, which by May 3rd would be in full blossom.

Moved by the thought, Li Changzhou instructed the servants to cut all the already blooming peonies in the mansion and to deliver them with the invitations to the guests.

He also specially found a thirteen-year-old girl named Little Ling, telling her not to work but to take the mansion's car to the Pear Garden to deliver a message.

The recipients, including Sun Xiaoyun and the Chun Emperor, needed no explanation...

"Little Ling, listen, when you get to the Pear Garden, secretly find a lady named Yang Qinglan and give her this best peony and the bundle. Don't let others know, understand?"

"Understood, young master."

"Good, go now. If you do well, when you return, I'll give you 20 silver coins."

"Really?" Little Ling's eyes immediately lit up.

Li Changzhou pulled five silver coins out of his pocket, placed them in her small hands, and said with a smile, "I'll give you the remaining fifteen when you come back."

Little Ling's smile instantly made her eyes curve into crescents.

Twenty coins were a lot, and twenty silver coins even more so—this was silver, more valuable than the messy paper money.

"Young master, you can count on me!" Exclaiming with excitement, Little Ling dashed out with a bounce in her step.

◇

Lin Residence.

After returning, Lin Ziwen didn't mention the matter of Li Changzhou wanting to invest in the bank. Such worries were not meant for the family to know.

Currently, the people in Lin Residence were all immersed in the sense of a bright future where Lin Clan Bank would be saved and the young Miss was about to marry Second Master Li.

They were having dinner together in the evening.

"A'Yin, since Second Master Li is busy and doesn't come to see you, you can go to his mansion to play. Aren't you classmates with the third young miss of the Commander Mansion? Don't be shy."

"Hmm, the school is on a break tomorrow, so I will go and visit."

As they were dining, suddenly a messenger hurried in, quickly approaching Lin Ziwen.

"Master Lin, people from Second Master Li are withdrawing money at the bank! They're taking away that one million!"

"What?!" Lin Ziwen stood up.

He didn't care about that million, what concerned him was the reputation!

Second Master Li had just deposited the money two days ago and was now suddenly withdrawing it. What would the other depositors who followed the trend think? Does Lin Clan Bank really have problems? Why else would Second Master Li withdraw his money?

The dinner table, which had been filled with joy and laughter, suddenly became as frosty as ice at the news.

"What happened?" Lin Ziwen glared at the messenger.

"Master, it's said that Li Changzhou plans to pay the workers their wages by opening a bank. Now many people have heard the news and are waiting outside the bank to withdraw money! I also heard that once Li Changzhou opens the bank, they intend to deposit their money there!"

Lin Ziwen's complexion changed repeatedly.

Does Li Changzhou only have this one million? Is he really short of this one million? Does he absolutely have to use this one million?

This was a deliberate force!

"Ziwen," Mrs. Lin looked at her husband with worry.

"Daddy." Lin Yin also stood up.

With a gloomy face, Lin Ziwen suddenly said, "Prepare the carriage. I need to visit the Commander Mansion!"

He didn't explain anything, just wiped his mouth with the napkin and swiftly left the living room.

No sooner had Lin Ziwen left than another servant came in with an invitation.

"An invitation?" Mrs. Lin took the invitation and the bright red peonies.

Upon opening it, the message inside was about holding a peony charity ball at the Commander Mansion on May 3rd. The event aimed to appreciate peonies, raise donations, and familiarize with everyone as newcomers.

"Isn't he supposed to have a bad leg, unable to dance?" Lin Yin frowned as she looked at the message, "His leg's healed?"

"Right!" Mrs. Lin suddenly remembered and said, "Yin, dress beautifully on the third, dance with Li Changzhou, and while dancing, ask him to help your father."

Lin Yin nodded absentmindedly.

She had been pondering a question: Can women only be used to appease anger or to please others?

◇

The Pear Garden.

Xiao Ling, an apprentice as well as a menial worker amongst the female performers, was led to the Chun Emperor's room.

There was only the Chun Emperor in the room, preparing for the evening's benefit performance. She was in costume but hadn't applied makeup yet, seriously reading the script. The light fell on her profile, making Xiao Ling momentarily afraid to approach.

She was too beautiful, just like a person from a painting.

"What's wrong, little sister?" The Chun Emperor felt someone staring and looked up at her.

Xiao Ling had a delicate appearance and was wearing old clothes given to her by Li Biwei. Although they were seven or eight years out of fashion, they were still far superior to most people's.

"Greetings, Chun Emperor, I am Xiao Ling, a servant girl of the second master," Xiao Ling greeted.

The Chun Emperor put down the script and smiled, taking her hand and pulling her to sit down on the chair.

"What did the second master send you here for?" the Chun Emperor asked softly with a laugh, her breath warm on Xiao Ling's ear.

"The, the second master sent me to deliver an invitation," Xiao Ling said in a daze.

"Just an invitation?" The Chun Emperor lifted Xiao Ling's chin, a gorgeous face moving close to her eyes.

"Mhm." Xiao Ling gazed entranced at the Chun Emperor, "The second master also instructed me to inquire about a lady named Yang Qinglan and secretly hand her a package."

The Chun Emperor's eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of red flashing within them.

"What's in the package?"

"I don't, don't know." Xiao Ling swallowed hard, staring dumbly at the Chun Emperor's exquisitely seductive face. "May I touch your face?"

The Chun Emperor's eyebrows knitted slightly, and without changing her expression, she released her hand and looked away.

Xiao Ling snapped out of her trance, jumping up in alarm.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean that, what I meant was…" she stammered.

"It's okay." The Chun Emperor smiled gracefully, "Thank him for me."

"Alright, I should leave now." Xiao Ling wanted nothing more than to flee, What was she even saying just now!

"Wait a moment." The Chun Emperor searched on her dressing table and found three silver coins, "Take these and buy some candy."

After Xiao Ling left, the Chun Emperor pondered for a moment. Breathing lightly on the mirror, the surface fogged up, and she wrote a line of characters on it.

No sooner had she finished writing than the mist quickly vanished.

She picked up the script again, her gaze falling on it as she murmured like she was reciting a play, "Li Changzhou, who exactly are you, that even the 'Favored Concubine' can't bewitch you."

With striking eyebrows, a captivating flicker in her eyes, crimson lips, a long neck, and a waist as tender as a willow, under the light, she exuded a seductive yet noble aura.

Having left the Chun Emperor's room, Xiao Ling's heart thundered in her chest, feeling as if it was about to burst out.

She swallowed hard, took several deep breaths, and gradually calmed herself down.

After spending some time, she finally found out where Yang Qinglan was and headed in that direction.

Behind a banana tree in the corridor, on a backdrop of black tiles and white walls, a shadow danced like flowing water, resembling a White Snake, or perhaps a Fairy from the Heavenly Palace.

Xiao Ling held her breath; even the mere shadow captivated her soul.

"Who is it?" A classy voice called out, and the shadow landed like a swan, gathering its dance.

"It's, it's me." Xiao Ling said instinctively, hurriedly explaining, "I'm Xiao Ling, the servant girl of the second master. The second master asked me to deliver something to Miss Yang Qinglan."

The figure stepped out from behind the banana tree.

Xiao Ling forgot to breathe.

She was stunningly beautiful.

With elegance and a bone structure that hinted at nobility, her skin was as white as freshly fallen snow, her features ethereally lovely, her demeanor graceful and transcendent. An ordinary dress on her seemed a heavenly garment, giving her the appearance of a fairy from a painting.

As the figure approached, Xiao Ling found it increasingly difficult to breathe; she suddenly placed the package on the corridor, then ran away like the wind.

Yang Qinglan watched Xiao Ling's retreating figure with curiosity, then picked up the package.

First, she glanced at the peony and then unwrapped the package, revealing a box and a letter.

She opened the letter.

It was a note from Li Changzhou, written with flamboyant strokes; the "wood" component of the "Li" character resembled a person meditating.

'Dear Miss Yang,'

'I found some medicinal herbs at home that I thought might be good for your health.'

'Also, on May 3rd, I will be hosting a peony charity ball at the Commander Mansion. Please be sure to attend. Reply with your dress size, and I will send you a dress suitable for the ball.'

'Li Changzhou'

To any onlooker, it would be a plain, unremarkable letter, but Yang Qinglan read between the lines—desire to see Miss Yang dressed like a lady from 1928, desire to hold Miss Yang's waist and dance.