Life in the world of film and television

In the blink of an eye, several days passed. At night, the Wu family compound was brightly lit. Since becoming the imperial merchant for a month and a half, the Wu family was filled with a joyful atmosphere, and this spirit can still be seen today.

However, the closer you get to the core position, the more you will find something wrong. The real person in power in the Wu family doesn't look happy these days. It seems like a storm is brewing.

Wu Chenghou was flipping through a book in the study when the servant came over to report, "Master, the eldest and second young masters have arrived home. The third, fifth, sixth, shopkeeper Luo, and shopkeeper Nie have also arrived and are waiting for you in the side hall to discuss matters."

Wu Chenghou nodded: "I understand, let's go down."

He put down the book in his hand, sighed, and walked silently towards the side hall. When he reached the corridor, he heard his eldest son's angry voice: "So, there is no way. It's only been a few days. How do you know there is no way? Maybe there is!"

The fifth brother Wu Chengke said, "But... there is really no way. The formula was not developed by us in the first place. We have received it for nearly two months. The master in the family has tried to improve it. But the formula developed by the Su family is too sensitive. The slightest change will cause the color to change drastically."

"I'm not saying there's no hope. It depends on luck. If you're lucky, maybe it can be solved."

"Luck..." Wu Chenghou pushed the door open and walked in, his face somewhat gloomy as he said, "The Su family spent three years researching the recipe, and you still have no idea. Do you rely on luck?"

Wu Chengke was silent for a while, and then he said, "Brother, the recipe is really not something we came up with. In just a few days, we haven't even found the problem, let alone improving the recipe!"

Wu Chenghou said: "Are you sure everything is according to the recipe? There is no problem with our own process."

Wu Chengke said: "Our process is absolutely correct. The problem cannot be on our side."

Wu Chenghou opened his mouth, sat down in his seat in a somewhat decadent manner, and said in a serious tone: "So, we can be sure that it is not us who have the problem, but the recipe. Maybe we... have been tricked by the Su family?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall fell silent. Everyone was unwilling to believe and it was difficult for them to believe such a conclusion. More than a month ago, they thought they had used perfect means to snatch the Royal Merchant from the Su family. They were very proud and high-spirited at that time.

Now they say that all this was a trap set by the Su family and they were tricked. How is that possible!

It is impossible to believe and accept it anyway.

Luo Minzhi quickly shook his head: "Boss, you can't say that, there is something fishy about it. We have also been dealing with the Su family for many years, and this is not like their method. Apart from anything else, if they can really set up such a situation, wouldn't it be better to take down the Royal Merchant directly? How much benefit can they get by setting us up?"

"Besides, Miss Su started planning the Imperial Merchant several years ago. We only decided to take over the Imperial Merchant this year. It is impossible for them to plan ahead for our Wu family. Moreover, because of missing out on the Imperial Merchant, the Su family is now in a mess, and Su Tan'er is also in a mess. They are not worth the loss by doing this. Killing eight hundred enemies and losing one thousand of their own, we are all businessmen, and no one with brains would do this.

Wu Chengyuan, the third son of the Wu family, also said, "Brother, what Shopkeeper Luo said makes sense. We only started thinking about becoming the Royal Merchant this year, but the Su family started it a few years ago. I don't believe that they set up this game specifically to trap us. With our infiltration of the Su family, we couldn't have been unaware of their big move. After we got the recipe, we discussed it several times and used it only when we felt there was no problem."

"I don't think anyone in the Su family has the ability to set up such a complex and flawless plan. Su Tan'er can't do it, and Su Yu, even if he is shrewd, has not gone to this extent..."

Wu Qilong sighed and said, "But... things have indeed come to this. Since we can't find the cause, let's talk about how to deal with it."

"Dad has talked to Master Dong today. There is no problem with delaying the delivery for a while. The trouble is that once we ask the Weaving Bureau to postpone it, Master Dong will not be able to suppress the matter. There will definitely be a formal document issued, and our problem will definitely not be hidden. We don't know what will happen then, and it is inevitable that they will add insult to injury."

Wu Chenghou said: "These are all small matters. The important thing is to solve the problem. Otherwise, even if it is postponed for one or two months, it will be meaningless."

"If the Su family has the real recipe, we can also give it a try... spend money, or give up some other benefits, to get through this hurdle first."

Wu Chengke said: "Brother, what you said makes sense. If this is not a trap set by the Su family, it would be much easier to get the real formula from the Su family than to try our luck ourselves."

Wu Chengyuan interrupted, "But if this wasn't a trap set by the Su family, it's just a coincidence. If we rashly go there, wouldn't we become a laughing stock if the news gets out? They'll laugh at us for losing more than we gain."

Everyone was silent for a while. Although everyone suspected that they had stolen the Su family's recipe before, after all, it had not been confirmed, so everyone pretended to be confused and no one said it publicly.

If they went to the Su family to ask for the real formula, the Su family would not be able to hide it for them. It would directly prove that they had stolen the Su family's formula, and their reputation would be ruined, and they would not be able to hold their heads up for years.

This...is not an easy choice.

After a while, Wu Qilong said, "I've been following the matter of Jinsuibu recently. I wonder what's going on at the Su family?"

"Internal strife." Wu Chengke said, "The Su family has been in a mess recently, especially after Dafang failed in the competition for the imperial merchant, the second and third branches are about to fall out. Su Tan'er is overwhelmed and can only patch things up and try her best to maintain her original partnership. The Xue family is also taking advantage of every opportunity to secretly erode their market. When the Su family becomes weaker, everyone will see an opportunity and more people will rush in to grab the market."

Wu Qilong frowned: "All families are like this. They become weak because of internal chaos first, and then outsiders take the opportunity to come in and share the spoils, and the family will completely decline. If our family falls into this situation in the future, we will inevitably be spied on, so we must survive the crisis in front of us, otherwise the present of the Su family will be our future."

At this point, he was silent for a moment, and then asked: "Besides these, where is Su Tan'er? Where are Su Boyong's former direct descendants? Where is the entire Su family's main branch? What are they doing?"

"The entire Su family's main branch..." Wu Chengyuan seemed to have thought of something, but found it incredible and difficult to understand.

"The power of the Su family's first branch is now divided into two parts. One part is trying its best to maintain the current business, and the other part is the direct lineage. Their whereabouts are quite secretive and they seem to be targeting our Wu family. But... shouldn't it be? What is there in our family that is worthy of their attention?" Wu Qilong shook his head. "The Su family prepared for three years and invested hundreds of thousands of silver in one go for the Imperial Merchant. Su Tan'er improved the looms under her command and developed new formulas. She has always been determined to win the Imperial Merchant."

"After failing to compete for the imperial merchant, we all thought she would stop, but she didn't. Instead, she frantically replaced the improved looms and built new weaving workshops during this period."

"Everyone outside thinks she's crazy and can't get off the tiger, so she wants to increase production and sell goods at a low price... But what if it's not the case... Dad, uncles, everyone understands that if she sells goods at a low price and ruins the market, we won't be afraid. What we're afraid of is that she won't sell at a low price, but will instead target our Wu family's market share and wait for us to vacate our share."

Wu Chenghou sighed, his voice a little hoarse: "If that's the case, she is almost ready now."

"Now the whole market knows that the Su family is weakening, and they are all staring at the Su family and their shaky markets, waiting to get a piece of the pie. On the contrary, our Wu family has been very powerful since the battle with the Imperial Merchants. No one dares to stare at our market, and they are even on guard against our expansion and encroachment on their market.

"If there really comes a day when our Wu family has problems, all the cloth merchants in Jiangning will be eyeing the Su family's market. Before others can react, the market will be taken over by the Su family."

The faces of everyone present changed drastically. It was hard to imagine what the scene would be like.

Wu Qilong also said, "Dad is right. We have been laughing at the Royal Merchants for a month and a half. We thought the Su family was defeated. But we didn't know that Su Tan'er had upgraded the looms for her subordinates, diverting everyone's vigilance. She was just waiting to take a bite of us, but we were still complacent, thinking that the Su family was in chaos and Su Tan'er had lost her way.

Wu Chengyuan added: "There's no need to get angry with others. This is just the worst possible scenario. The situation was so exaggerated that we didn't sense it at all. I don't believe the Su family has the ability to do this."

"If we assume the worst outcome, and this game is decided by the Su family, does that mean we will definitely lose? Big brother has already made arrangements with the weaving bureau, and we can postpone the delivery. We can always think of some solutions."

"And the Su family! It's in chaos now, with a huge fight over Su Tan'er's position as the heir. The second and third branches are strongly opposed to her taking over the Su family. They are even going to hold a clan meeting in a few days to re-elect a successor. This is a general trend, and even the old man of the Su family can't stop it."

"Under this situation, even if it was Su Tan'er who set up the plan, how long can she last? Can she last as long as we can? In the Su family's clan meeting in a few days, she might be stripped of her power. If those idiots from the second and third branches of the Su family take power instead, do we still need to worry?"

"If we just keep dragging it out, we'll kill her."

Wu Chengyuan's words made many people nod their heads. They didn't believe that the Wu family had fallen into the Su family's trap, and they didn't want to bow to the Su family. If they could fight back, they would naturally do so.

Wu Qilong smiled bitterly and said, "Uncle San, what you said makes sense. It's not certain whether they will compete with us in patience or wait for us to fall without taking any action."

"These past two days, I've been running around outside and have heard some rumors about our family, saying that our royal business has made some mistakes, and that there are problems with our fabrics. Although it's normal to have groundless rumors in the business world, there weren't any a few days ago, but suddenly there have been these two days. Isn't it too fast? We have been keeping it strictly confidential, and the fading of the fabric has not been leaked at all. It's clear who spread these rumors. They won't waste time with us, and will take action directly when they see an opportunity.

Before anyone else could say anything else, Wu Qihao, who was sitting next to him, took out a piece of rice paper from his arms, handed it to Wu Qilong and said, "Brother, a few days ago you asked me to check Su Tan'er's whereabouts. I mobilized my insiders in the Su family and deployed a lot of people to get information. Finally, I found out Su Tan'er's approximate movements in the past one or two months, and wrote them all down on this piece of paper."

"All uncles can take a look. Before the battle between the imperial merchants and after Su Boyong was assassinated, Su Tan'er had already started to make plans. After that, all the adjustments and expenditures of the first house were basically aimed at our Wu family. It is no exaggeration to say that it was a deliberate plan."

"Think about it, two months ago, when we were still discussing whether to use the Su family's formula, they had already set up traps and prepared swords and guns, waiting for us to fall into the trap."

"They have set up such a complicated scheme, and they don't even want the imperial merchant. If they say they are just trying to waste time with us and won't gain any benefits, I don't believe it. They must have a deeper plan to gain greater benefits. To imagine that they are stupid enough not to make any moves and waste time with us is just deceiving ourselves."

The rice paper was circulated in the hall. Everyone was serious and silent. They couldn't believe that the Wu family would fall into the trap set by the Su family. They were all old people who had been in the business world for decades. They were the business elites of this era and were always confident in business. It was hard to believe that so many people would fall into the trap together.

However, looking at the layout of the Wu family that Su Tan'er had made in the past two months on that piece of paper, I didn't think it was anything and didn't bother to pay attention to it. Even if I heard about it, I just smiled contemptuously, thinking that Su Tan'er was childish and reckless. After the failure of the imperial merchant, in order to fight for her dignity, she made all kinds of radical layouts and boring adjustments to the Wu family's industry, which was useless except for wasting money and consuming the Su family's foundation.

Now, considering the situation of the Wu family, we find that those radical layouts and boring adjustments are targeting the Wu family everywhere. If something happens to the Wu family one day, the market will almost be handed over to others.

If this is true, many people even felt a chill down their spines... and even secretly suspected: "Is the Su family so powerful?"

Wu Chengyuan said this, waving the rice paper in his hand: "I don't think they have the ability to do this. They started planning two months ago or even earlier to lure us into their trap. The whole thing was done deliberately, and everyone could tell something was wrong. No one could set up such a trap!"

"Everyone can see how difficult the process is and how many unexpected things there are. Take the dye formula for example. If it's too strict, we won't get it. If it's too easy, we won't believe it. How many people are needed to perform to this level? Are we overestimating them?"

Wu Qilong sighed: "Uncle San, I know this is really hard to believe, but they have already started, and they may confront us soon. I hope my premonition is false!"

"Besides, don't just focus on the Su family. Just because the Su family can't set up this kind of situation doesn't mean no one else can."

Wu Chengke said: "You are talking about the Su family's son-in-law, Ning Yi and Ning Liheng!"

Wu Qilong nodded: "With this person's talent, it is possible."

Everyone was silent for a moment, still somewhat in awe of this talented man who created two fonts, was destined to go down in history, and had a certain reputation in the literary world of Wu State.

But, how can I give up without the sword on my neck? (End of this chapter)