At that moment, in the inn, Meng Chengwei was listening to Liu Qilin and the other man pour out their grievances. His face grew darker by the minute, and his servant had already slipped out the door, wishing he could withdraw his entire body outside.

“…We wore through two pairs of shoes, went to several villages, but all those villagers said they had signed contracts with the Ye family—red contracts at that. They refused to change their minds, even when we offered three times the price the Ye family gave. They were afraid of being taken to the government office.”

Liu Qilin also spoke nervously, every facial muscle tense, fearing that Meng Chengwei might throw a teacup or inkstone at him. The former would be bearable, but if the latter hit a vulnerable spot, it could be fatal.

Unexpectedly, although Meng Chengwei’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot, he didn’t resort to violence.

He sat there in silence for quite a while before finally speaking: “Call for Meng Liang.”

Liu Qilin and the other man hurriedly acknowledged and withdrew, wiping sweat from their foreheads before sending someone to find Meng Liang.

Meng Liang had been waiting for days without seeing a single Ye family girl leave the house. Not only did no young ladies emerge, but apart from Ye Jiaxing, who went to the teahouse with guards and attendants each day, no one from the Ye family went out—not even the servants or maids, who all remained inside.

This truly frustrated Meng Liang.

Worried that Meng Chengwei would lose his temper, he had avoided appearing before him these past two days and had personally gone to keep watch, hoping to get some information.

The Ye family’s behavior was natural because the Old Lady had followed Ye Chongming’s instructions, restricting family members from coming and going. Not just the Ye family women and servant girls, but even the daily shopping personnel hadn’t been sent out, for fear that Meng Chengwei might become deranged enough to tamper with the Ye family’s food.

The Ye family owned farmland and estates. Rice, flour, vegetables, pork, and mutton produced on these estates were delivered to the mansion every few days. The Ye residence was large, with a vegetable garden beside the pond, and chickens and ducks raised next to the garden. Even without going out to shop, the Ye family wouldn’t starve.

Thus, the Ye family had essentially placed themselves under self-imposed house arrest.

This situation was impossible to explain to Meng Chengwei, so when Meng Liang received the servant’s message that Meng Chengwei wanted to see him, he was extremely anxious.

Fortunately, when Meng Chengwei heard that the Ye family women hadn’t left the house, he didn’t get angry but instead handed him a note: “Deliver this to Ye Jiaxing.”

Meng Liang was stunned, took the note, and looked at it. Sure enough, Ye Jiaxing’s name was written on it.

“Master, you are…”

When he had returned earlier, he had inquired from the servants and learned that Liu Qilin and the others had failed in their attempt to poach tea growers, as the Ye family had signed contracts with them first.

If so, the Ye family must know of their group’s existence and understand that the Meng family wanted to take their tea growers—Liu Qilin and the others were always with Meng Chengwei, so he didn’t believe the Ye family could be stupid enough not to know that Liu Qilin was Meng Chengwei’s man.

Since both sides had already shown their true colors, why would Meng Chengwei still send a note to Ye Jiaxing? Was he declaring war openly? What was the point?

He deliberated inwardly and then voiced what he had been wanting to say: “Master, since the Ye family is so unappreciative, why must we hang ourselves on that crooked tree? These past few days, hasn’t young master Yang Tai been trying every way to curry favor with you? Why not, Master, associate with the Yang family instead?”

As soon as Meng Chengwei arrived in Lin’an, he spread news that he was the young master of an imperial merchant family and the Elegant Consort’s nephew.

When this news came out, some people in Lin’an came to curry favor. When Meng Chengwei was drinking tea at the teahouse, people would occasionally approach him, introduce themselves, and chat with him.

However, Meng Chengwei was aloof toward these people, maintaining a very dignified bearing.

But the more he acted this way, the more people came to curry favor.

Meng Chengwei wasn’t entirely indifferent to these people. He had Liu Qilin and others investigate them, learning about their status, position, and wealth, to see if there were any potential opportunities for exploitation.

According to Meng Liang’s knowledge, among these people, the Yang family had the highest status and position.

The Yang family was also a tea merchant. Although they were newcomers who had risen only in the previous generation, their fortunes were extremely good, their momentum fierce, and their family business had expanded several times. The current head of the Yang family could stand as an equal to Ye Chongming in the tea industry.

In Meng Liang’s view, rather than spending so much effort on the Ye family only to be ignored, it would be better to directly choose to cooperate with the Yang family.

Of course, he wouldn’t admit that Yang Tai had spent a lot of money flattering him, and that he had also taken a liking to Yang Tai’s sister, Yang Shu.

“How can the Yang family compare to the Ye family?” Meng Chengwei said impatiently.

The reason he had put so much effort into the Ye family was that Ye Chongming was not only the head of the tea industry, but the Ye family also had an excellent reputation and first-class tea-making technology. Such a person had connections, reputation, and technology. By cooperating with him, the Meng family could accomplish much in the tea sector.

As for the Yang family, they had been scrambling up and down in Lin’an for many years, trying unsuccessfully to replace Ye Chongming as the industry head. This showed they were inferior to the Ye family in every aspect. Why would he abandon cooperation with the best to mix with the second-rate? How could he accomplish anything that way?

Meng Liang saw that although Meng Chengwei’s expression wasn’t pleasant, there were no signs of anger. He gathered his courage and continued to persuade him: “If we had time, we could proceed slowly. But the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and it’s almost time to pre-order tea leaves. If we don’t select a partner soon, this year’s tea business…”

Meng Chengwei’s expression suddenly changed: “Stop giving me rotten advice. The Ye family and the Yang family have never gotten along. If I associate with the Yang family, would the Ye family still cooperate with me?”

“Don’t think I don’t know your little schemes. Tell me, how much money did Yang Tai give you to recommend him so strongly? Have you also taken a fancy to Yang Tai’s sister?”

Meng Liang broke out in a cold sweat.

He hadn’t expected that his contact with Yang Tai, so discreet that he had only shared one drink with him behind Meng Chengwei’s back, could be discovered. His cousin knew everything. This young cousin, who could stand on his own at such a young age, was terrifyingly formidable.

“I, I didn’t…” he dared not admit it even if it killed him. “He just invited me for a drink and asked me to put in a few good words for him.”

“I just feel that eagerness doesn’t make for good business. The Ye family ignores us, while the Yang family courts us, and they don’t lack connections or tea-making skills either. We might as well cooperate with the Yang family. This is my honest opinion, not because the Yang family paid me to speak for them. I didn’t take their money.”

Meng Chengwei half-narrowed his eyes and looked at Meng Liang for a while, until Meng Liang was drenched in cold sweat, his face pale, his gaze avoiding direct eye contact. Only then did Meng Chengwei withdraw his gaze.

Water too clear has no fish. Since he needed to use this cousin, as long as Meng Liang’s schemes and tricks didn’t cross his bottom line, he would turn a blind eye.

He said, “Fine, I’ll spare you this time. But if there’s another incident like this, not only will you be sent back home, but I’ll also spread the word in the family so no one will dare to employ you.”

Meng Liang’s face grew even paler: “I won’t dare do it again.”