Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

Chai Jin knew that the group of people who came to his manor had ulterior motives, but he remained calm and secretly plotted how to lure them into the trap he had set.

Chai Jin led them on a tour of the mansion, seemingly warm and attentive, but in reality, he harbored a hidden agenda. The mansion's pavilions and towers were arranged in a harmonious and orderly manner, with artificial hills and ponds complementing each other, presenting a scene of wealth and luxury.

The group strolled along, stopping frequently to admire the beautiful scenery of the manor and uttering exclamations of praise. Chai Jin, on the other hand, wore a smile and chatted with them, making it impossible for anyone to discern his true thoughts.

After the tour, someone suddenly rushed over and said to Chai Jin, "Master, Li Er has drunk himself into a corner room on the west side."

Upon hearing this, Chai Jin was instantly enraged. His face darkened instantly, and he shouted, "You bastard! That's a forbidden area within the manor! Who dares to go in without my permission! Guards! Guards! Kill him!" His voice boomed like thunder in the courtyard, startling everyone with his sudden outburst of rage.

Soon, several servants dragged Li Er inside. At this moment, Li Er was drunk and staggering, not yet fully understanding what terrible mistake he had made.

Chai Jin glared angrily at Li Er and shouted, "How dare you trespass into my forbidden area? Are you looking for death?"

Li Er mumbled, "Master, I've had too much to drink..."

Chai Jin roared, "You dare to act recklessly while drunk? Is that an excuse? Beat him to death!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the servants swarmed forward, their sticks raining down on Li Er's body. Li Er initially tried to beg for mercy, but as the sticks continued to fall, his voice gradually turned into painful groans.

Before long, Li Er was beaten until his skin was torn and bleeding, his clothes stained red with blood. But the servants showed no sign of stopping, continuing to beat him relentlessly. Finally, Li Er could no longer endure it and fainted.

Seeing this, Chai Jin coldly said, "Drag him out and continue beating him!"

The servants dared not disobey and dragged the unconscious Li Er towards the door.

The leader, who had been watching this terrifying scene unfold, felt a growing unease. He thought to himself, "There must be some unspeakable secret in this house that has angered Chai Jin so much. Could something important be hidden here? Or is it involved in something Chai Jin is up to no good?"

Thinking of this, his gaze unconsciously drifted towards the corner house on the west side, his heart filled with curiosity and doubt. But he dared not show it too obviously, and could only pretend to be calm, continuing to observe Chai Jin's reaction.

Chai Jin seemed to notice his gaze, turned his head, glared at him fiercely, and said, "I apologize for making you all laugh. The servants in this mansion don't know the rules, so they need to be taught a lesson."

The leader quickly smiled apologetically and said, "Master Chai, please calm down. The servants are ignorant and need to be disciplined."

Chai Jin snorted coldly and said, "Let's leave this unpleasant matter here. I'll have someone take you all to the guest rooms to rest."

Everyone thanked them and left with the servants.

On his way to the guest rooms, the leader kept thinking about the secret of the corner room and how to find an opportunity to find out.

Upon arriving at the guest room, the leader sat down in a chair, lost in thought. He felt that Chai Jin's commotion was not simply due to a servant trespassing into forbidden territory. There must be a deeper reason behind it.

He decided to wait until late at night and quietly go to that corner room to take a look.

The entire Chai residence fell silent. The leader, dressed in black night clothes, carefully avoided the patrolling servants and made his way towards the western corner house.

The corner room was quiet and dark. The leader gently pushed the door, only to find it locked from the inside. He went around to the window, moistened his finger with saliva, and gently poked a hole in the paper windowpane to look inside.

The room was dimly lit, and he could vaguely see some boxes and cabinets scattered about. Just as he was about to take a closer look, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.

The leader's heart tightened, and he quickly hid in the shadows. He saw Chai Jin walking towards them with several trusted men, carrying lanterns in their hands.

The leader held his breath, not daring to make a sound.

Chai Jin stopped in front of the corner room and said to his trusted confidant, "No word of today's events must leak out. Find a place to deal with Li Er and don't leave any future trouble."

The confidants all nodded in agreement.

Then Chai Jin was heard outside addressing his servants: "Remember this, Li Er's death today is a warning to others. This house contains my family heirloom; anyone who dares to touch it is crossing my line. Do you understand?"

Chai Jin's voice sounded particularly stern in the quiet night, carrying an unquestionable authority. The servants, under the dim lamplight, all bowed their heads, their bodies trembling slightly, and said meekly, "Master, we've all remembered."

Chai Jin's eyes flashed as he surveyed the group of servants before him. He snorted coldly and said, "All of you, be on your guard! Patrol carefully and don't let any scoundrels get near here. If anything goes wrong, you'll all suffer the same fate as Li Er!"

The servants responded in unison, "Yes, sir!" Their voices echoed in the night air, but sounded somewhat lacking in confidence.

Chai Jin's face remained grim. He emphasized again, "This is no joke. No one is allowed to covet what belongs to me, Chai Jin. Keep your eyes wide open and guard it well!"

At this moment, a bold servant cautiously raised his head and said, "Master, rest assured, we will do our best."

Chai Jin glared at him and said, "That had to be the case! If anything goes wrong, I'll hold you all responsible!"

After saying this, Chai Jin turned and left. His footsteps echoed on the stone path, gradually fading into the distance.

The remaining servants looked at each other in bewilderment. After a moment, they began to disperse as Chai Jin had instructed, intensifying their patrols of this corner room.

One of the servants muttered under his breath, "I really don't know what treasures are in this house that could make the master so angry."

Another servant quickly covered his mouth and said nervously, "Shh, don't talk nonsense. If the master hears us, we'll both be in big trouble."

The servant who had been there earlier nodded, still shaken, and fell silent.

The night deepened, and a gentle breeze brought a touch of coolness. The servants, sticks in hand, vigilantly watched their surroundings.

After a while, one of the servants seemed a little sleepy and couldn't help but yawn. His companion immediately reminded him, "Don't slack off, or you'll be in big trouble if the master finds out."

The weary servant forced himself to stay awake and continue to stand guard at his post.

Meanwhile, the leader, hiding in the shadows, had witnessed everything. He thought to himself, "Chai Jin values ​​the things in this house so much; they must be priceless. But judging from how nervous these servants are, it won't be easy to get them."

Just as he was thinking about his next plan, a stray cat suddenly darted past him, making a noise.

The servants immediately tensed up and rushed towards the direction of the sound.

Seeing that the surroundings had returned to calm, the leader lowered his voice and said to the crowd, "Quickly see what's in that box?" Upon hearing this, the crowd hurriedly went to the jade box in the room and carefully opened it.

Inside the jade box lay a piece of yellow cloth. The cloth was clearly of extraordinary quality, exuding extreme luxury. Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to it, and their faces lit up with delight.

The leader eagerly reached for the yellow cloth, on which was written the words "Beware of Thieves."

But he couldn't read, so he anxiously asked the others, "Do you know what's written on this?" The others looked at each other and shook their heads, indicating they didn't know.

But one of them examined it carefully for a while, and seeing the four characters, he pointed to the exquisite royal box and fabric, and said, "Boss, this must be the imperial edict. Otherwise, why would Chai Jin be so angry?"

Upon hearing this, the leader's eyes lit up, and he nodded, saying, "Yes, this jade box alone is priceless." His voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

Everyone got excited and crowded around to examine the yellow cloth and jade box closely.

"We've really struck it rich this time!" one person couldn't help but exclaim.

"Shh, keep your voice down, don't make a sound!" the leader quickly stopped them. "Leave now, or things might get complicated."

Everyone nodded and carefully placed the yellow cloth back into the jade box.

Just as they were about to leave, they suddenly heard footsteps outside.

"Oh no, someone's coming!" The leader's heart tightened.

Everyone suddenly panicked.

"Don't panic, hide first!" the leader quickly decided.

Everyone quickly found places to hide; some hid behind cabinets, while others hid behind curtains.

The footsteps grew closer, and the leader's heart leaped into his throat.

Fortunately, the person was just passing by and did not enter the house.

Once the footsteps had faded into the distance, the leader let out a long sigh of relief and said, "Let's go, let's hurry!"

The group tiptoed toward the door, each step taken with utmost care, as if afraid of making the slightest sound.

Finally out of the room, they followed the path they had come from, avoiding the patrolling servants, and quietly moved out of the mansion.

Throughout the journey, their hearts were in their throats as they nervously observed their surroundings.

"Faster, faster!" the leader kept urging.

After finally reaching the wall of the mansion, a nimble person climbed up the wall first, lowered a rope, and pulled the others up.

Finally, they successfully left Chai Jin's mansion with the jade box.

After leaving, they dared not linger and ran wildly until they reached a remote place before stopping.

"Haha, this time we've really reaped a lot!" someone exclaimed excitedly.

The leader, however, said with a serious expression, "Don't be too happy yet. We don't know what kind of trouble this thing will bring us. Everyone be careful and don't let the news slip."

Everyone nodded, and carrying the jade box, they disappeared into the night.

After the group left, a servant rushed over to report to Chai Jin, saying, "Master, the thieves have left."

Chai Jin remained calm, nodded slightly, and said, "Very good." He turned and walked to his desk, quickly wrote a letter, and handed it to the servant. "Take this letter to the prefectural government office and have the prefect hold court to investigate the case. Arrest all these thieves. If there is any mishap, I will make sure he loses his official position."

The servant took the letter with both hands and replied, "Yes, sir!"

Chai Jin then instructed, "Also, go and inform Manager Zhao to wait for me at the government office."

After receiving the order, the servant hurried off to carry it out.

Chai Jin stood with his hands behind his back, a faint smile playing on his lips. He thought to himself, "All of this is under my control. Let's see where you can escape to."

He paced back and forth in the room, pondering the possible consequences. A short while later, a servant came to report that Manager Zhao had received the news and was on his way to the government office.

Chai Jin nodded in satisfaction, straightened his clothes, and prepared to head out to the government office. He was confident all the way, as if he could already see the gang of thieves brought to justice.

Upon arriving at the government office, Chai Jin alighted from his carriage and strode inside. The prefect, having already received word of his arrival, was waiting for him.