Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

Cai Jiu, that big bad guy, was in a hurry to get Lu Qian to kill Old Man Jin. Lu Qian, though he had his doubts, had no choice but to bite the bullet and send a bunch of scoundrels to assassinate him.

As it turned out, these foolish thugs were all captured by Zhao Tianming and his men as easily as catching chicks as soon as they arrived at Old Man Jin's place. When this news reached Lu Qian's ears, he was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, running around in circles!

Lu Qian paced back and forth in the room, muttering to himself, "Oh dear, what am I going to do! What am I going to do!" He looked just like a monkey whose banana had been stolen.

He was terrified. If Old Man Jin exposed his involvement in the assassination attempt and document tampering, he wouldn't just be facing a bad outcome; he would be spending the rest of his life in prison!

Lu Qian panicked more and more, breaking out in a cold sweat. He slumped into a chair with a thud, muttering to himself, "It's all over, it's all ruined. Why am I so unlucky!"

At this moment, his subordinate, Xiao Li, ran in and said, "Sir, why don't we run away?" Lu Qian's eyes widened upon hearing this: "Run away? Where to? To the ends of the earth?"

Little Li scratched his head: "Then...then how about we go and beg Lord Cai Jiu to come up with a solution?" Lu Qian raised his hand and flicked Little Li on the head: "Beg him? You'd be lucky if he didn't kick me out!"

Lu Qian was so anxious that he scratched his head and cheeks. Suddenly, he thought of an idea: "How about we threaten Old Man Jin and make him not say anything?" Little Li looked helpless: "Sir, Old Man Jin is being protected by Zhao Tianming and the others. We can't even get close to him!"

Lu Qian deflated like a punctured balloon, plopped back down, and muttered, "God, please save me!"

Lu Qian was extremely anxious, so he quickly gathered a few of the guys he usually regarded as his advisors and had them sit around a large table. These guys looked at each other and sat there in silence for a long time, as if the air had frozen.

Lu Qian's face grew increasingly grim, veins bulging on his forehead, and his eyes practically spitting fire. He glared at the few dumbfounded men, his anger rising ever stronger.

Finally, Lu Qian could no longer restrain himself. He abruptly stood up and slapped the person closest to him hard across the face. The crisp "smack" resounded loudly in the quiet room. A red handprint instantly appeared on the face of the person who was hit. He covered his face in terror but dared not utter a sound.

Lu Qian didn't stop at all, and immediately slapped the person next to him again, delivering another resounding slap. "And you, don't even think about running away!" he roared.

After finishing the beating, Lu Qian, panting heavily, pointed at them and cursed, "I've always fed and clothed you, and given you loads of money to spend. You all patted your chests and promised me you'd go through fire and water for me. And now, at this crucial moment, you have absolutely no idea what to do with yourselves! What use are you good-for-nothings to me? Huh?"

Lu Qian's voice was so loud it could practically lift the roof off; his chest heaved violently, like an enraged lion.

One of the strategists raised his head tremblingly and said cautiously, "Sir, this...this matter is indeed tricky, and we...haven't come up with a good solution for the time being."

"Couldn't you come up with a solution?" Lu Qian roared again. "Do you think I'm keeping you around to do nothing? You can't even handle this simple matter, what use are you to me!"

Another strategist quickly said, "My lord, please calm down. Perhaps... perhaps we can find a breakthrough by looking at Zhao Tianming."

"Breakthrough? You better explain it clearly, how do you plan to break through?" Lu Qian asked, glaring at him.

The strategist stammered, "I...I mean, see if we can send someone to bribe Zhao Tianming, or...or find something on him."

"Hmph!" Lu Qian sneered. "Who is Zhao Tianming? Can he be so easily bribed? What kind of terrible idea is this!"

The men all lowered their heads, not daring to speak again. Lu Qian paced back and forth in the room, cursing incessantly. The atmosphere in the room was extremely tense at this moment. These cunning advisors were all silent, afraid of angering Lu Qian again and incurring another beating and scolding.

At this moment, a cunning strategist approached Lu Qian and said cautiously, "Lord Lu, the one who tied the knot must untie it. Since this matter was caused by the land deed, we can transfer the risk to him."

Lu Qian'er was taken aback upon hearing this, her eyes filled with doubt. She said urgently, "How exactly do you transfer the risk? Tell me in detail."

The cunning strategist cleared his throat and lowered his voice, saying, "My lord, think about it. Isn't Wang Zhiqiang always at odds with Zhao Tianming? Why don't you, Lord Lu, give this land deed to Wang Zhiqiang? That kid is rich but foolish, and he's eager to compete with Zhao Tianming. Let's throw this hot potato to him and let them fight it out. Then we can sit back and watch them fight, and maybe even profit from it."

Lu Qian frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "Will this work? Can that guy Wang Zhiqiang take the bait so easily?"

The strategist quickly said, "Sir, think about it. Wang Zhiqiang is always concerned about his reputation and is very competitive. If we give him the land deed, we can say that Zhao Tianming deliberately made things difficult for you, and you had no choice but to transfer the land deed to him so that he can help you deal with Zhao Tianming. With Wang Zhiqiang's personality, he will definitely think that this is a good opportunity to show off in front of Zhao Tianming, and he won't think much about it."

Lu Qian was still somewhat hesitant, stroking his chin and pacing back and forth: "What if Wang Zhiqiang doesn't fall for it and instead exposes this matter? That would be troublesome."

The strategist quickly said, "Sir, don't worry. Wang Zhiqiang is simple-minded. As long as we speak nicely and offer him some benefits, he will definitely accept the land deed. Besides, even if he realizes it later, we can deny everything and just say that he was greedy and insisted on taking it."

Lu Qian stopped and stared at the strategist, saying, "You make it sound so easy, but if anything goes wrong, I'll hold you responsible!"

The strategist hurriedly nodded and bowed: "Sir, don't you trust me to handle things? Just follow my method, and I guarantee this matter will be resolved."

Lu Qian sighed, "Alright, alright, there's no other way now. Let's try it as you said. However, this matter must be handled discreetly, and we must not let the news leak out."

The strategist patted his chest and assured, "Don't worry, sir, I will handle things perfectly."

Lu Qian waved his hand, instructing his strategist to handle the matter, while he himself sat in his chair, still feeling uneasy, unsure whether this method would actually work.

Wang Zhiqiang was leisurely playing with the caged bird in his mansion when he heard a servant report that Lu Qian had sent someone to deliver the land deed. His face immediately lit up with joy, and his eyes shone brightly.

"Please come in quickly! Please come in quickly!" Wang Zhiqiang hurriedly instructed, while straightening his clothes, preparing to properly welcome the guest.

A moment later, the man Lu Qian sent was brought into the main hall. Wang Zhiqiang greeted him with a big smile, saying, "Oh, please have a seat, please have a seat!"

The man bowed respectfully and said, "Young Master Wang, my master has sent me to deliver this land deed to you. I hope you will accept it."

Wang Zhi eagerly took the land deed, opened it, and his smile widened. "Good, good! Lu Qian is quite sensible."

Wang Zhiqiang waved his hand and ordered his servants, "Go and prepare a table of good wine and food. I want to treat this brother well."

Soon, the table was filled with food and drinks. Wang Zhiqiang pulled the newcomer to sit down, personally poured him a glass of wine, and said, "Brother, come on, let's have a drink!"

The visitor was somewhat flattered and quickly raised his wine cup, saying, "Young Master Wang, I dare not accept such praise."

Wang Zhiqiang tilted his head back, downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, and said, "Don't be shy, let's drink until we drop to our hearts' content today."

After a few rounds of drinks, Wang Zhiqiang started talking. "Brother, tell me, why did Lu Qian suddenly decide to send me the land deed?"

The man hesitated for a moment before saying, "Young Master Wang, to be honest, my master had no choice. This land deed was originally intended to make things difficult for my master by that scoundrel Zhao Tianming. My master had no other option but to give the land deed to you, hoping you could help him deal with Zhao Tianming."

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhiqiang slammed his fist on the table and said, "Hmph! I've disliked Zhao Tianming for a long time. Lu Qian has found the right person this time, and I, Wang Zhiqiang, will definitely not let him down."

The man quickly chimed in, "That's right, that's right. Young Master Wang, you're wealthy and powerful. Dealing with Zhao Tianming is a piece of cake for you. My master said we'll be relying on you from now on."

Wang Zhiqiang laughed smugly: "Don't worry, with me here, Zhao Tianming won't have an easy time."

After a few more drinks, Wang Zhiqiang's face was flushed, and his speech began to slur. "Brother, go back and tell Lu Qian that I, Wang Zhiqiang, will remember this favor. If you ever need anything in the future, just come to me."

The man bowed and scraped, saying, "Yes, yes, I will certainly convey your message."

The banquet lasted until late at night. Wang Zhiqiang got completely drunk and kept talking about how to deal with Zhao Tianming. Meanwhile, the person who came took advantage of Wang Zhiqiang's inattention and quietly left the Wang residence to report back to Lu Qian.

At this moment, the subordinate who had been sent to deliver the land deed to Wang Zhiqiang hurriedly returned to report to him.

"Sir, Wang Zhiqiang has accepted the land deed," the subordinate said respectfully.

Upon hearing this, Lu Qian's lips unconsciously curled up, a sly smile flashing in his eyes. He put down the jade pendant in his hand, stood up, put his hands behind his back, and paced back and forth in the study.

"Haha, good, good!" Lu Qian couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Wang Zhiqiang, that idiot, really took the bait easily."

He stopped and gazed at the scenery outside the window, secretly calculating in his mind. "This is going to be a good show. Wang Zhiqiang and Zhao Tianming have always been at odds. Now that they have this land deed, they will definitely fight tooth and nail over it. As for me, I just need to sit back and watch them fight it out, and wait to see them both get hurt."

Lu Qian's face was full of smugness, as if he could already see the situation he had been hoping for. "Wang Zhiqiang is determined to suppress Zhao Tianming. Now that he has obtained the land deed, he will definitely be eager to provoke him. And Zhao Tianming is no pushover either; how could he tolerate Wang Zhiqiang's arrogance? Their struggle is bound to be fierce."

Thinking of this, Lu Qian's smile widened. "When they're locked in a fierce battle, I'll make my move at the opportune moment. That way, I can not only resolve my own troubles but also potentially gain even greater benefits from it."

Lu Qian sat back down in his chair, picked up a cup of tea, and took a small sip. "This move was brilliant. Let them wear each other down while I reap the benefits."

He closed his eyes, imagining the scene of Wang Zhiqiang and Zhao Tianming fighting, secretly pleased with himself. "Wang Zhiqiang, you'd better be my tool. After I've used you, don't blame me for being ruthless."

After a while, Lu Qian opened his eyes and said to his subordinate, "Keep a close eye on their movements. Report any suspicious activity immediately."

The subordinate acknowledged and withdrew. Lu Qian leaned back in his chair, his smug smile still on his face, anticipating the unfolding of this good show.