Chapter 445: It’s Uncertain

Liu Yuchang glanced at Lin Dong in surprise, hesitated for a moment, then headed toward the staircase.
Daring to call Fu Tongshan by his name clearly meant this shopkeeper Lin was not just reckless—he was also extremely bold. Liu Yuchang had initially feared Lin Dong might harm him, but then felt reassured, thinking of the six guards behind him—no ordinary inn could handle them.
The private room was on the fifth floor, a height that was undoubtedly too steep for those super-rich families with weaker constitutions. But there was no choice—available land was limited, and extending further back would make the entire lobby look awkward due to the large difference in length and width, so adding more floors was the only option. Placing the room on an intermediate floor would be even more unacceptable psychologically for those super-rich families.
Throughout the climb to the fifth floor, Liu Yuchang remained calm and unhurried, which surprised Lin Dong. It wasn’t until Ma Chun stepped forward to knock that he suddenly remembered—In the Great Han Empire, martial prowess was highly valued. Though there had been no wars for a long time, the princes’ strength still played a significant role in the adulthood assessments. Even if this Ninth Prince neglected cultivation later on, the physical strength he had built since childhood wouldn’t vanish. As long as he didn’t indulge too much in wine and women, climbing five floors at his age wasn’t really a problem.
On the other hand, Liu Yue Dun was slightly out of breath, clearly affected by the stairs.
When they reached the first private room, Lin Dong stopped. Ma Chun stepped forward from behind and knocked on the door.
“Enter!”
A deep voice came from inside.
Pushing the door open, Lin Dong, unusually, ignored any formality and strode in. Ma Chun followed closely behind.
“The Ninth Prince has arrived. This humble servant failed to greet him properly—please forgive me.”
Upon seeing Liu Yuchang enter behind Ma Chun, Fu Tongshan was somewhat surprised but quickly pretended to be flustered and stood up.
Fu Zizhou hurriedly bowed, while Zhang Kun kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, as if he hadn’t noticed anyone enter.
“It’s fine!”
Liu Yuchang waved his hand arrogantly, showing no intention of being polite with Fu Tongshan.
“Your Highness, please take a seat,” Fu Tongshan said, offering his seat. Meanwhile, Fu Zizhou promptly replaced the tableware.
Without saying a word, Liu Yuchang walked to the head seat and plopped down. Then he gestured toward the seat next to it. “President Liu, sit!”
Fu Zizhou froze for a moment before moving the tableware from that seat to the one next to it. He also casually took the glass that had been set aside for Fu Tongshan.

Liu Yuedun hesitated for a moment before sitting in the seat that should have belonged to Fu Tongshan. Fu Tongshan frowned slightly but sat down quietly. The appearance of Liu Yuchang also exceeded his expectations. Compared to Lin Dong, Fu Tongshan had thought more thoroughly after learning that it was Fenglin Restaurant behind the troubles against Lin’s Inn and who its backer was, which brought him even more worries. Like Lin Dong, Fu Tongshan had always believed that if Liu Yuedun showed up for the meeting, it would be Liu Feng, the third prince and the real backer of Fenglin Restaurant, who would accompany him. The reason wasn’t to deal with Lin’s Inn but rather to target him, Fu Tongshan himself. According to Fu Tongshan’s speculation, perhaps at first, Liu Feng would ask the merchant guild to pressure Lin’s Inn for the sake of Fenglin Restaurant’s business. But after learning that Fu Tongshan was the backer of Lin’s Inn, he repeatedly asked the guild to ignore them, aiming to force Fu Tongshan to show up. This matter no longer had much to do with Lin’s Inn. Business matters, no matter how significant, paled in comparison to the struggle for the throne. As Fu Tongshan knew, although Ling Chenyue, the eldest son of Fenglin Restaurant, was known for his extravagance and had a terrible reputation, he privately had some connections with Liu Feng, which was why he agreed to let Fu Zizhou go to Wanxian Tower with Ling Chenyue to drink flower wine. Undoubtedly, Liu Feng must have learned from Ling Chenyue that Fu Tongshan didn’t want things to become too tense. A prince qualified to compete for the throne and whose popularity seemed to surpass that of the crown prince possessed a mind that ordinary people could never understand. With Lin’s Inn joining the merchant guild as if by chance, this third prince, who had been crowned King Shengyu in his early twenties, surely wouldn’t miss the opportunity to establish a connection with the current grand tutor. Even if they couldn’t reach an alliance, at the very least, with mutual interest, they could exchange benefits and reach a consensus of not attacking each other. Such a consensus was absolutely invaluable during a chaotic time when Emperor Qianwei could die at any moment and a sudden appearance of the fifty-sixth prince, Liu Xiu, might occur. Fu Tongshan never expected it to be Liu Yuchang, the ninth prince, who would show up. Liu Yuchang was a man who loved killing, was dissolute and immoral, and was arrogant and violent—famous as one of Liu Feng’s lackeys. Usually, any unsavory tasks were assigned to this ninth prince. When he was involved, there was an 80% chance things would get worse.

Fu Tongshan couldn’t figure out why Liu Feng would send Liu Yuchang to cause trouble. He refused to believe that this so-called “King Sheng Yu” thought he had the throne firmly in hand and could disregard anyone else. If that were the case, not to mention the sudden appearance of 56 princes who could disrupt the struggle for the throne, even without them, Liu Feng would still be doomed. While each family might be weaker than Liu Feng alone, if they united under pressure, they could easily defeat him.

“I heard that Your Highness has recently taken to holding the dragon grandson again. Congratulations!” Fu Tongshan smiled as he took out a brocade box from his robe and handed it to Liu Yuchang, saying, “As a humble minister with many trivial matters to attend to, I only managed to find time these past few days to come and offer my congratulations. I never expected to meet Your Highness here. It’s just a small gift; I hope Your Highness won’t disdain it.”

Liu Yuchang carelessly took the brocade box, opened it, and saw a pure, fiery red jade pendant inside. He closed the box, tossed it to a guard behind him, and forced a smile, saying, “It’s rare to see Grand Tutor Fu carrying such a thing with him.”

“I wonder what brought Your Highness here to Lin’s Inn today?” Fu Tongshan smiled, changing the subject. This jade pendant was something Third Prince Liu Feng, who had great expertise in jade, had brought along under the pretense of lending it to the third prince for appreciation, in order to defuse the tension. Now, in an attempt to figure out why Liu Feng sent Liu Yuchang, he no longer cared about the value of the jade.

“I heard this inn is run by Grand Tutor Fu, so I came to take a look,” Liu Yuchang replied indifferently.

“It’s a serious offense for an official to run a business. How could I have such boldness? This inn is actually run by one of my young friends! I’m here just on the first day of its opening to give it some support,” Fu Tongshan said with a laugh, shaking his head.

“Is that so?” Liu Yuchang said meaningfully.

“Of course!” Fu Tongshan nodded, his gaze shifting to Liu Yue Dun, who was sitting upright nearby. Liu Yuchang’s words were deliberately provocative; continuing this conversation would only encourage him to be even more audacious.

“President Liu, what do you think of the food and drinks at Lin’s Inn?”

“As an inn run by Grand Tutor Fu’s friend, the food and drinks surely can’t be bad,” Liu Yue Dun quickly replied. “Not only the food and drinks, but even the atmosphere and the staff—Lin’s Inn is among the best in the capital.”

These words made Grand Tutor Fu and Liu Yuchang share the same impression for the first time. The atmosphere at Lin’s Inn was indeed excellent. With their experience, they couldn’t help but feel amazed when they entered the private room. It was luxurious yet not vulgar, grand yet elegant—providing a sense of deep satisfaction at first glance.

“I heard that President Liu thinks it’s difficult to determine the cost of the food and drinks at Lin’s Inn?” Fu Tongshan asked.
“That’s true,” Liu Yuedun nodded, pointing at a spirit ingredient in front of him and explaining, “Take this dish, Phoenix Roaring in the Heavens. If I’m not mistaken, its main ingredient should be the third-tier spirit bird, the Nine-Winged Bird. As far as I know, one of these birds costs about two taels of silver in the market. As for the supplementary ingredients—ginger, scallions, and garlic—are quite straightforward; even the best quality will cost only ten wen. Originally, the cost shouldn’t be hard to calculate. Adding the chef’s wages, wood, and various losses, two taels and three wen should be more than enough. But Lin’s Inn includes an ingredient called Wind-Flame Beast Bone Soup in the cost. This ingredient is colorless and tasteless, and it’s said that adding it can prolong one’s life. Whether it really has such effects remains unknown, but it adds over one tael of silver to the cost. That’s why the merchant guild thinks the cost is unverifiable.”
“I see!” Fu Tongshan looked enlightened and turned to Lin Dong, who had remained silent, asking, “Shopkeeper Lin, are you sure this dish really can prolong life, and that its cost is over three taels of silver?”
Lin Dong nodded.
“Shopkeeper Lin has never deceived me before, President Liu…” Fu Tongshan smiled. “I wonder if I can vouch for Shopkeeper Lin—can my reputation prove Lin’s Inn’s cost?”
Liu Yuedun was shocked. He hadn’t expected Fu Tongshan to go this far, almost threatening him with his reputation.
“Grand Tutor Fu, you’re quite bold!” Liu Yuchang suddenly interjected.
“I’m merely confident in my judgment and my years of friendship with Shopkeeper Lin,” Fu Tongshan replied, his gaze fixed on Liu Yuedun.
Seeing Fu Tongshan pressing him hard, Liu Yuedun realized he couldn’t avoid it.
“Grand Tutor, you’re overreacting. With your reputation and judgment, you can certainly prove it. But after all, the merchant guild concerns the interests of all merchants in the capital, and the rules must not be changed lightly.” Liu Yuedun had given up hope. He knew that even his own brother, the Minister of Punishments, wouldn’t dare to side with one party over another. In such a situation, he could only stick firmly to one side.
“Your Highness, I offer you a drink in respect.” Fu Tongshan didn’t insist further and turned his attention to Liu Yuchang.
But Liu Yuchang didn’t raise his cup. He said calmly, “I can’t drink this wine while sitting at the same table as those who despise imperial authority.”

“Disrespecting the emperor’s authority?” Fu Tongshan glanced at Lin Dong calmly, feeling somewhat displeased. The ninth prince’s attitude clearly aimed to challenge him, the Grand Tutor, and might even force him to punish Lin Dong on his own.
“That would have to be asked of Manager Lin,” Liu Yuchang said nonchalantly.
“Manager Lin, what’s going on here?” Fu Tongshan gave Lin Dong a subtle look.
Lin Dong remained unmoved, like a monk in meditation, focused on the wine glass before him as if trying to discover some philosophical truth within it. No one knew that, at that moment, three faint sounds of chopsticks hitting dishes could be heard outside the private room.
These three barely audible sounds went unnoticed by others, but they stirred ripples in Lin Dong’s heart.