Chapter 439: Buying Land

The group walked around, taking in their surroundings. Although Cheng Bao, with his grotesque appearance and dragging Qiao Tianhao by one leg, was quite eye-catching, the people of the capital were all well-experienced, so they merely glanced at him briefly without showing much surprise.
At the end of the street, Lin Dong stopped an aunt in her forties and asked. There was indeed an inn called Longzhong on the nearby street.
They then turned onto the adjacent street, which was even busier than the first street they entered. With loud noises and countless carriages, it seemed crowded and packed tightly.
The noisy sounds filled the air, and a dazzling array of stalls lined the street, making people eager to take a look at each one.
“Wanxian Tower—let’s go to Wanxian Tower,” Qiao Tianhao said as he slowly woke up. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw a brothel on the left. Red lanterns, beautiful women, a grand entrance… along with a golden signboard clearly crafted by an expert and a roof over twenty meters high—without Qiao Tianhao needing to explain, everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to it as soon as they stepped onto the street.
“Three floors, over twenty meters high—impressive!”
Lin Dong couldn’t help but praise it. Three floors wasn’t much; two restaurants facing each other down the street also had three floors. What was terrifying was the height of those floors.
A brothel being over twenty meters high was almost unheard of even in towns with looser regulations. In the capital, it certainly wouldn’t be something that could be achieved easily just by spending money. After all, this height far exceeded the regulations set by the Great Han Kingdom for brothel heights, and the chances of Emperor Qianwei or some prince passing by were surprisingly high. If investigated, merely disrespecting the emperor’s authority would be enough to warrant execution for ten or eight people.
Without a powerful patron who could ensure Emperor Qianwei or princes wouldn’t mind seeing it, Wanxian Tower surely wouldn’t dare to be so bold.
And the business at Wanxian Tower’s entrance indirectly proved that its patron was extraordinary.
Even during the day, when brothel business was usually slow, luxurious carriages were brought to the back courtyard one after another by beautiful attendants. Some of these carriages even had spirit bird feathers stuck on their roofs.
Using feathers on carriages was a privilege reserved for officials of rank seven or higher, who also enjoyed various perks such as the right to stop traffic, have city gates opened at night, and avoid punishment for hitting people…

In the Great Han Empire, officials were not allowed to enter or leave brothels. These carriages dared to stop boldly at the entrance of Wanxian Tower. Judging from the colors of their feathers, some of those in them held high official ranks. Undoubtedly, these people had absolute confidence in the backing behind Wanxian Tower. Only if they were convinced that no one would dare challenge Wanxian Tower would they act so openly; otherwise, with a different carriage, as long as they weren’t caught red-handed, nothing would happen.

“By the way, owner, the food and drinks at Wanxian Tower are also among the best in the capital,” Qiao Tianhao said, kicking a few times to free himself from Cheng Bao’s grip before getting up. “Running Lin’s Inn on this street isn’t easy at all.”

Lin Dong smiled but remained silent. He had already learned before coming that there were over a dozen top-tier restaurants in the capital. Since the inner city was inhabited by imperial relatives and officials, ordinary people were not allowed to enter, so these top restaurants were all located in the outer city near the inner city. Geographically, there was little advantage or disadvantage among them—each was a competitor.

If we’re talking about difficulties, Lin’s Inn’s location at the city gate meant it was far less advantageous geographically compared to those dozen top restaurants. That was Lin’s Inn’s biggest weakness. As for Wanxian Tower, no matter how powerful it was, its main business was still a brothel. If it couldn’t even compete with Wanxian Tower, it had no chance of competing with the other top restaurants.

After walking another two hundred meters, Longzhong Inn finally came into sight.

It naturally couldn’t compare to Wanxian Tower, but even among nearby shops, Longzhong Inn was just ordinary—its width was even less than that of some smaller shops.

At first glance, its width was at most five meters, and there were no side alleys nearby. Undoubtedly, to park a carriage, one would have to be led by a staff member around the street to the back yard.

Of course, while the width was limited, the inn’s profits weren’t high. In the capital, it was almost impossible to occupy too much space on the street. As for the back area, Lin Dong believed it surely wasn’t small—after all, it wasn’t like the street. The land price there was at least ten times higher, and near the inner city, it could be a hundred times higher. Otherwise, if an inn’s width were really only five meters, it wouldn’t even qualify as an inn. For accommodation, it would be better to stay at someone’s home—any household would likely have a yard wider than five meters.

When everyone entered the inn, they saw it had only one floor and wasn’t very spacious, covering only about fifty square meters. Aside from the counter, there were eight dining tables. Overall, it gave a feeling of being cramped and stuffy.

Seeing guests arrive, an old man in his sixties wearing a blue robe stood up behind the counter, while the attendant quickly stepped forward.
“Are you here to stay at the inn or eat?”
“Neither!” Lin Dong said with a smile.
“Neither?” The attendant was stunned; it was clearly a situation he hadn’t encountered in a long time.
“Is the owner here?” Lin Dong asked. “I have a business deal to discuss with him.”
“I am the owner,” the old man said from behind the counter.
“I’m Lin Dong. What’s your surname, sir?” Lin Dong stepped up to the counter.
“My surname is Huang. I wonder what business you have to discuss, Young Master Lin?” Owner Huang glanced at Lin Dong and his companions with confusion. They exuded an air of both nobility and menace. If not for their similar clothing, they might have seemed like a nobleman accompanied by guards.
“I want to buy this inn,” Lin Dong said. “I wonder if you’re interested, Owner Huang.”
“Buy my inn?” Owner Huang was slightly surprised.
Lin Dong nodded.
“Well…” Owner Huang hesitated. This was too sudden for him.
Lin Dong smiled. “You can propose a price that suits you. If it works, I’ll buy it; if not, I’ll look for another place nearby.”
“What kind of business do you plan to run?” Owner Huang asked.
“I run inns. Of course, I’ll still run an inn,” Lin Dong said with a smile. “Business is quite good elsewhere, so I came to the capital to give it a try.”
These words alarmed Owner Huang. Another inn owner? That meant more competition!
In fact, he had long considered selling the inn—firstly, because he was too old to handle so many responsibilities, and secondly, because the profits from Longzhong Inn were barely sufficient, only fifty or sixty taels of silver per month. This was already a high income for an ordinary family, but since Owner Huang’s sons were all in business, this amount didn’t make much of a difference for them.
The only thing that made it hard for him to decide was his attachment to the inn. He had run it for thirty or forty years and just couldn’t bring himself to make the decision.

If there’s another business competing nearby, and judging from his tone, he clearly intends to invest heavily in running an inn, Manager Huang can’t bear the thought of Longzhong Inn becoming less busy as a result. Having raised his children for over twenty years, the capital for his sons’ businesses all came from Longzhong Inn. It could be said that Longzhong Inn is already a part of Manager Huang’s life—parting with it would cause pain, and letting it decline would also cause pain.

Lin Dong stood outside the counter, waiting quietly for Manager Huang’s reply. This street met all the conditions he had in mind for opening Linji Inn in the capital. First, it wasn’t far from the city gates. Second, most of the foot traffic on this street headed to Wanshan Tower; it wasn’t too bustling, making it easier to find land for Linji Inn and Linji Gymnasium. Third, when he first entered the city, he noticed that about ten miles outside the city was a forest of moderate size—perfect for building an amusement park.

Longzhong Inn also met Lin Dong’s expectations. Although it was a bit small, it could be used right away. At the very least, the existing shop would need to be demolished, and a framework would have to be built first, similar to what was done in Hualang Commandery, before it could be integrated into Linji Inn. Roughly speaking, this would take at least half a month, meaning he wouldn’t be able to benefit from the cultivation enhancements for that time.

“Young Master Lin, may I ask if we can keep the name of the inn?” Manager Huang suddenly asked. If he could retain the name Longzhong Inn, he was even willing to sell it at a low price. In that way, although he would still have to part with it reluctantly, seeing Longzhong Inn thrive more than before would be some comfort.

Lin Dong shook his head. Without changing the sign, the inn system couldn’t be added.

“Then, how does Young Master Lin plan to run it?” Manager Huang pressed.

“Demolish it and buy the nearby shops and land to rebuild it,” Lin Dong replied without hesitation.

Manager Huang was stunned. “An inn of this size is likely to incur heavy losses.”

“It depends on how it’s run,” Lin Dong replied without further explanation. If he were to explain that Linji Inn would rely equally on accommodation and dining, Manager Huang probably wouldn’t believe it, leading to more questions later.

“Well…” After much hesitation, Manager Huang ultimately chose to let Longzhong Inn decline rather than give in to his reluctance.

“To be honest, I don’t want to sell this inn,” said Master Huang. “If Young Master Lin really wants to buy it… according to the rules for shops in the capital, the front part must be ten meters deep, and the back is considered residential space. Our Longzhong Inn is seventeen chi wide on the street, which is about 7.4 chi of land, with the backyard covering roughly 1.2 mu. Adding the money I spent to build this inn, the total is 50,000 taels of silver. If Young Master Lin agrees to this price, he can send someone to measure the land.”
“Deal!”
Lin Dong didn’t even pay half a copper coin in return. He had a general idea of land prices in the capital, and Master Huang’s price was almost double that.
Compared to the cost Lin’s Inn had to bear in Lingnan City to acquire enough land, doubling the price was already quite generous on Master Huang’s part.