Chapter 567: Seeking Help

Riding at full speed, despite the crowded streets, Liu’s coachman managed to reach the north of the city before Lin’s Inn closed for the day.
With a wave of his hand, Liu Changman sent a servant disguised as a customer into Lin’s Inn. When he came back, he brought news that made Liu Changman grind his teeth in anger.
Ma Chun was still the manager of Lin’s Inn. Moreover, he completely ignored the servant sent by Liu Changman and never mentioned the silver bills or his agreement to work for Xingrong Restaurant.
No matter how angry Liu Changman was, he realized this was a trap, a scheme to deceive him—aimed at those 30,000 taels of silver and to show loyalty to Lin Dong, the owner of Lin’s Inn.
Liu Changman couldn’t understand what merits Lin Dong had to make Ma Chun, after being suspected by him, choose to give up 30,000 taels of silver to prove his innocence.
Clearly, Liu Changman didn’t realize that Lin Dong had originally planned to deceive all fifteen top restaurants together. But a small stone he picked up by chance changed his mind. Even more unexpectedly, that small stone greatly helped Lin Dong become a peak warrior ahead of time and also contributed significantly to Lin’s Inn’s ability to cultivate more peak warriors in the future.
After smashing around violently in the carriage to vent some of his anger and resentment, Liu Changman waved his hand, and the carriage slowly made its way back the same route.
At this point, it was already too late. Showing up and shouting only served no purpose and only brought shame to himself. To be honest, he was at fault first; it was only right he got deceived. Even if there were no evidence, even with evidence, he would be the one to suffer first.
Since he couldn’t get it back, he had no choice but to swallow his anger. Liu Changman wasn’t stupid—he forced himself to hold back his resentment. Of course, it was only a temporary holdback. He believed that in a few days, he would find a way to get his revenge.
What were 30,000 taels of silver? What was the great disappointment that came from his joy? All of these were temporary. Liu Changman had no doubt that in a few days, everyone at Lin’s Inn would be filled with worry. It might still be possible to back down early, but if they persisted, they would surely go bankrupt.
It wasn’t too late to return that anger with even greater force in a few days.
As the sun set and night fell, two birds roughly the size of horses, with incredible endurance, flapped their wings and slowly landed on an open area in the backyard.
“Your Majesty!” Yang Shun was the first to dismount from the bird and quickly went to the other bird to help Emperor Qianwei down.

With Yang Shun’s assistance, Emperor Qianwei slowly dismounted from the spirit bird. Beside him, two guards in their sixties stepped forward promptly.
“Sigh, I’m too old now; even getting off the spirit bird is difficult. A few years ago, it was easy for me to dismount from my horse.”
Emperor Qianwei gently patted his back, a hint of helplessness appearing on his aged face.
Yang Shun quickly freed one hand and began to tap gently on Emperor Qianwei’s back while supporting him forward. He didn’t stop talking either, saying, “Your Majesty isn’t old at all. As far as I know, your authority in the court is much stronger than before. Every word and action of yours makes all the officials and soldiers tremble with fear.”
“That’s because they’re afraid I’ve grown old and confused, and might execute them over trivial matters,” Emperor Qianwei snorted.
“What audacity! They still dare to think like that. Tomorrow, I’ll find those who have such thoughts and give them a good lesson,” Yang Shun said angrily.
Emperor Qianwei smiled and didn’t scold him. In his view, Yang Shun was trying to use his name to eliminate rivals. This eunuch who had followed him since childhood didn’t have much time left to live anyway; letting him have some fun was also a way to fulfill his role as a master.
The master and servant walked to the front courtyard. Behind them, the two guards moved quietly but always kept a distance of about three meters.
Upon entering the main hall, the night watchman immediately led the four of them to the lodging building. After arranging hot water, he didn’t return to the hall to keep watch but rushed to the front courtyard and knocked on Ma Chun’s room.
Upon hearing that Emperor Qianwei had arrived, Ma Chun immediately headed to the alchemy room and knocked on the door to pass the news to Lin Dong.
In the alchemy room, Yun Lan was still refining the Breakthrough Pill. Hearing that Emperor Qianwei had arrived, Lin Dong stretched and quickly left the alchemy room, heading straight for the lodging building.
Knock, knock, knock!
Just as Emperor Qianwei was about to go to bed, there was a knocking at the door.
“Who is it? Didn’t I say not to disturb me unless it’s urgent?” Yang Shun asked coldly.
“It’s me, Lin Dong. I have something important to discuss with Your Majesty,” Lin Dong explained from outside the door.
“Talk tomorrow. Your Majesty is going to bed,” Yang Shun ordered.
“Come in!” Emperor Qianwei waved to stop Yang Shun.
The door creaked open. Lin Dong glanced around the room: Yang Shun with a dark expression, Emperor Qianwei looking increasingly aged, and two guards who seemed to hide their true intentions. No one else was there.
“Your Majesty, I’m sorry for disturbing you without permission,” Lin Dong bowed.
“Dare you! If you know it’s presumptuous, why still come? That’s a grave crime of defying the emperor!” Yang Shun shouted.

Lin Dong ignored them; the two guards pretended not to hear, and Emperor Qianwei also seemed unaware, waving his hand in the direction of the desk and saying, “Sit!”
“Thank you, Your Majesty, for offering me a seat!” Lin Dong politely replied before sitting down, which made Yang Shun frown in annoyance, unable to vent his frustration.
“There’s no reason to come to the imperial palace unless it’s important. Manager Lin, if you need my help with something, speak up!” Emperor Qianwei said with a calm smile.
Lin Dong smiled again and bowed, saying, “Your Majesty is wise. I indeed have a request.”
Emperor Qianwei nodded, signaling Lin Dong to continue.
Lin Dong briefly explained the plan for the top restaurants to jointly offer stock as a gift, then said with a wry smile, “It’s already extremely difficult for Lin’s Inn to compete at a ratio of one pair for fifteen. Now, with fifteen top restaurants coming up with such an ambitious plan, I have no choice but to ask Your Majesty for your support.”
“No choice?” Emperor Qianwei stroked his long beard and laughed, “If Manager Lin could hide the inscription I gave him for so long, it must be because he’s confident and has many strong cards in hand. How could he remain so patient?”
“I do have some strong cards—spirit stones for heating, scented pipes, perfumes…” Lin Dong spread his hands helplessly. “But they’ve all been used up. Now, the only thing left is Your Majesty’s inscription as my last trump card.”
“Then show it. With Your Majesty’s inscription, even if those fifteen top restaurants open their own banks, no one will dare compete with you.” Yang Shun said unhappily, “Why come here in the middle of the night to disturb Your Majesty? Do you really expect to get his approval? How could someone as crude as you have such delicate thoughts?”
“To be honest with Your Majesty, even if I show the inscription…” Lin Dong said with a wry smile, “I still feel it’s not enough.”
“Dareful!” This remark gave Yang Shun another reason to scold Lin Dong. He glared at him, pointed at him, and his sharp voice rang out again, “How dare you disrespect imperial authority!”
Emperor Qianwei pressed his palm down and said with a smile, “Manager Lin, if you don’t explain clearly, I’ll also think you’re disrespecting imperial authority. Think about it—am I not the supreme ruler of this vast empire? Why should just a dozen or so restaurants dare to compete with my inscription, let alone surpass it?”
“By saying it’s not enough, I don’t mean Your Majesty’s inscription is inferior to the stock gifts offered by those fifteen top restaurants. It’s just that… it’s not sufficient to completely suppress them,” Lin Dong explained.
“Isn’t that the same thing?” Yang Shun snorted. “You think Your Majesty’s inscription can’t even completely suppress a few restaurants? What else is this if not disrespecting imperial authority?”

Emperor Qianwei nodded in deep agreement.
“Your Majesty thinks that as soon as I unveil the inscription, those fifteen top restaurants will immediately close down?” Lin Dong countered.
“It seems that Manager Lin intends to force me to expose my own weaknesses,” Emperor Qianwei said with a smile, shaking his head. “No. In my view, these large restaurants will surely do everything possible to enhance their appeal, using my inscription as a challenge and slowly getting through this period. Though my inscription is good, it’s not omnipotent. Once the wealthy families in the capital have sacrificed their pride and given Lin’s Inn no reason to claim they’re defying imperial authority, that will be the time for the restaurants to overcome the difficulty. By then, they’ll be back to full vigor. Although the inscription still helps Lin’s Inn’s business quite a bit, its effect is certainly not enough to make those restaurants give up their business.”
“Your Majesty is wise!” Lin Dong praised with a smile.
“Moreover…” Emperor Qianwei gave Lin Dong a meaningful look and smiled. “Manager Lin must also be worried that one day, when I pass away, the inscription will become worthless, right?”
Before Lin Dong could respond, Yang Shun exclaimed, “Your Majesty, you are strong and vigorous—surely you’ll live a long life!”
Emperor Qianwei waved his hand to stop Yang Shun and shook his head. “Even the supreme ruler cannot defy the cycle of fate. I’ve long understood that lifespan is the only thing I have no right to interfere with.”
“Your Majesty seems full of energy. This time, Lin Dong agrees with Eunuch Yang,” Lin Dong replied hypocritically.
Yang Shun grunted, surprisingly avoiding any harsh words.
“Do you really think so, Manager Lin?” Emperor Qianwei pressed.
“Of course!” Lin Dong nodded firmly.
“I didn’t expect Manager Lin to be influenced by worldly concerns too,” Emperor Qianwei suddenly burst into laughter.
Lin Dong was speechless, unsure of Emperor Qianwei’s attitude. Was he truly happy, or not?
“Tell me, how do you expect me to help?” Emperor Qianwei smiled for a moment before looking at Lin Dong.
“Lin Dong hopes that Your Majesty will appear at Lin’s Inn at a critical moment and reward one or two people,” Lin Dong replied without hesitation, as he had already thought it through.
“I’m not idle every day,” Emperor Qianwei replied indifferently.
“That critical moment could occur at any time within a month—meaning any day in that month could be the critical moment,” Lin Dong said.
“Approved!” Emperor Qianwei declared authoritatively.
Lin Dong stood up. “Thank you, Your Majesty. Lin Dong takes his leave.”
“I’m also tired. Yang Shun, see Manager Lin out!” Emperor Qianwei waved.

Yang Shunxin glared at Lin Dong reluctantly, waved her hand, and said, “Let’s go!”
Lin Dong turned with a smile and stepped out of the room. As he turned back, Yang Shun suddenly raised an eyebrow and gave him a wink.