Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

"Quickly, quickly take down these couplets."

With a sob in his voice, Zhao Yinian hurriedly gave the instructions.

If the prefect were to see this second line, it wouldn't be as simple as slicing the thing raw to eat with wine; he might even cut off the accessories and use them as a ball to kick around.

Four waiters quickly approached the door frame, ready to remove the couplet, but Lin Ping refused. Li Mingxuan and the others stood tall and proud, blocking the doorway.

The four waiters took a few steps back in fear. They dared not fight with the people from the city lord's mansion, especially since there were dozens of people behind them.

"Young Master Lin, please have mercy on me and spare Zhao."

Zhao Yinian crawled on the ground, almost grabbing Lin Ping's thigh and licking it wildly.

"Mr. Zhao, don't worry. I will let you remove the couplets after we finish our business."

Lin Ping chuckled slyly, which sent another chill down Zhao Yinian's spine.

Tracing back to the source, this first line was also given by Lin Ping, which is clearly intended to use Qingfeng Tower to insult the prefect for being shameless.

Therefore, Zhao Yinian was terrified of seeing Lin Ping smile.

"Young Master Lin, I, Zhao Yinian, am so poor that I don't have a single penny on me." Zhao Yinian got up from the ground weakly, quickly untied his waistband, and sure enough, not a single coin fell out.

It's not an exaggeration to say that Zhao Yinian, a penny-pincher who's afraid to even use firewood for hot water, would keep money on him. He would buy land whenever he made a little money.

Lin Ping chuckled and replied, "It's precisely because I know Mr. Zhao has nothing of value that I brought you money!"

Would you really be that kind?

Furthermore, is this what it means to be penniless? How come a perfectly normal phrase sounds so lewd coming from your mouth, Lin Ping?

"I've heard that Mr. Zhao owns a lot of land, and I'd like to buy a few acres from you." Lin Ping finally revealed his purpose in a measured way.

Buying land?

Upon hearing this word, Zhao Yinian became anxious, his face hardening as he resolutely declared, "Not for sale!"

Acquiring land is for the benefit of future generations. Zhao Yinian's only hobby in this life is buying land. Now you, Lin Ping, want to buy land from me? No way!

"Mr. Zhao, please let me finish. I want to buy that inferior plot of land in the north of the city. Besides, with your attitude, there's no way you'll get the couplets down," Lin Ping said, using both threats and inducements.

Although Zhao Yinian loved money, he also valued his life and knew the consequences of not taking down the couplets. Besides, the land outside the city had always been a headache for him.

If crops are planted, they are likely to be submerged by the overflowing lake; if they are not planted, it will be a complete waste.

Although it was only five taels of silver per mu back then, two thousand mu would amount to ten thousand taels of silver. It couldn't be left to waste like this forever. He had long wanted to find a sucker to sell it to, as long as he didn't lose money. Now that Lin Ping had brought up the matter, Zhao Yinian almost burst out laughing.

"That's a whole two thousand acres of land, is Young Master Lin going to devour it all?"

Zhao Yinian countered with a question, his face trembling with excess fat, but he didn't mention the matter of the couplet at all.

Isn't Lin Ping the perfect sucker, one in a million?

If we don't take this opportunity to sell all of these two thousand acres of land, we'll never have another chance like this.

Lin Ping nodded: "That's exactly what we're going to do, buy them all."

“This number!” Zhao Yinian held up three fingers, his eyes gleaming with a sly light.

The brokerage owner, Shen Wanwan, stepped forward and sighed, "Three taels of silver per mu? Zhao Yinian, you're really that kind?"

A brokerage firm is essentially a modern intermediary company. In addition to handling pawnbroking and buying and selling, it also provides appraisals. Transactions like buying and selling land often require the involvement of brokerage firms.

Therefore, Shen Wanwan knew that Zhao Yinian had spent five taels of silver per mu of land back then, and given his money-loving nature, he would never sell it at a lower price.

Zhao Yinian smacked his lips and shook his head, saying, "Boss Shen, you misunderstood. It's thirty taels of silver per mu!"

I'll fuck your big...

Shen Wanwan was almost cursing, thinking to himself: You're ruthless enough to openly swindle the son-in-law of the city lord's mansion.

For a moment, Shen Wanwan felt that he was a conscientious businessman, at least compared to Zhao Yinian, he could only look up to him.

Zhao Yinian glanced sideways at him, thinking to himself: Everyone is equal before money. So what if it's the City Lord's Mansion? They still spent five thousand taels of silver to buy a courtesan from me. The only difference is that the people in the City Lord's Mansion have more money, making them easier to deceive.

Snapped!

Lin Ping slapped Zhao Yinian hard across the face, leaving five clear, bloody finger marks.

It's really unpleasant to be treated like a fool. On the way here, Shen Wanwan had already told him the bottom price of the land. If he didn't teach the other party a lesson, he really wouldn't be able to swallow this anger.

Zhao Yinian felt a burning sensation on her face, and she was almost in tears. She mumbled, "They didn't say we couldn't bargain, why did they hit me..."

Lin Ping was still not satisfied, so he kicked the other man's big belly, feeling as if he had fallen into a mountain of flesh.

Although Zhao Yinian was fat, he was not strong. He staggered back two steps and sat down on the ground with a thud. He stared blankly at Lin Ping and had to reassess his character.

Qingfeng Tower was located in a bustling area, and after hearing the commotion, more and more people gathered around. Some people hated Zhao Yinian's cunning businessman attitude and gave Lin Ping a thumbs up, while others felt that Lin Ping was abusing his power, since Zhao Yinian was a commoner while Lin Ping was practically an official.

"So what if I hit you? I might as well cut you up!"

Lin Ping pointed at Zhao Yinian's nose and cursed, then gasped and said, "Thirty taels of silver per mu? What do you take me for? What do you take the City Lord's Mansion for?"

That makes sense. Even if this piece of land in the flood zone were given away for free, no one would necessarily want it. Yet Zhao Yinian dared to ask for thirty taels of silver. He really thought Lin Ping was a fool, and the city lord's mansion was also a fool. Even if he were beaten to death, he deserved it.

"How about... twenty...twenty-nine taels?" Zhao Yinian said tremblingly, showing no anger at being hit.

"Zhao Yinian must be obsessed with money. It wouldn't be a shame if he were beaten to death."

“That’s right. I heard that this guy is greedy and should have been punished long ago.”

Reducing the price from thirty taels of silver to twenty-nine taels is something only Zhao Yinian could do. Judging from his aggrieved look, it doesn't seem like he's deliberately trying to cheat Lin Ping; it's purely due to his greedy nature.

Shen Wanwan kept shaking his head, knowing that Zhao Yinian was beyond saving and that this time the odds were against him. He was also worried about his own future, since the items the young master was going to sell him for 100,000 taels of silver in a couple of days might just be a pile of scrap metal.

Lin Ping delivered a flying kick, stomping Zhao Yinian to the ground. He roared menacingly, "Zhao Yinian, do you believe I can cut you in half with one stroke!"

As he spoke, a sharp knife appeared out of thin air in Lin Ping's hand, which he stuck into the ground close to Zhao Yinian's crotch.

Zhao Yinian was sweating profusely, his mind blank, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Twenty-eight taels of silver, no less!"

Lin Ping disliked such stubborn people the most, so he increased the pressure on his foot and said sternly, "Twenty-eight taels per mu? Do you think the City Lord's Mansion is a beggar? Do you think the City Lord's Mansion can't afford to pay? Is such a low price meant to belittle the City Lord's Mansion? Forty taels per mu, if you ask for one less coin, I'll cut you off immediately!"