The Plant Quartet
Money isn't everything, but using funds at the right time can certainly solve many problems.
Zhang Xuezhou could imagine the hardship they faced back then when they only had a few hundred or a few thousand yuan. If they had just a little more money, they could have arranged their affairs more smoothly.
He was powerless back then, but now he can achieve his goals in this simple and direct way.
He could return to the North Rehe Research Institute, and when needed, Zhang Xuezhou could come to the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum to check on the project's progress.
The ability to advance or retreat granted Zhang Xuezhou considerable freedom, allowing him ample justification for coming and going without arousing suspicion from Zuo Quan and others.
If they could unearth the Luofu Dynasty's destiny hidden within the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, Zhang Xuezhou felt it would be perfectly suitable whether he disrupted Huang Daoxian's arrangements or simply profited from the opportunity.
Outside, there was singing and dancing, while inside, large-scale contracts were being signed and bidding documents were being distributed and communicated.
"What?"
"I can't control it!"
"I kept trying to confuse and influence him, but he was unconscious and unresponsive. I felt like I hadn't altered his memories, cough cough cough..."
"Damn it, we should have struck while he was still conscious!"
"How could I have known that after he fell into these symptoms, his mind would disappear into who-knows-where!"
I searched carefully, exhausting all my strength, but I still couldn't find it!
"There's no way I could manipulate him into doing something like that!"
"Impossible! My orders were to not damage the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, to properly manage the area and prevent any chaos, and absolutely not to rebuild it!"
"Well... maybe. I can't rule it out!"
During a break, Zuo Quan slipped out of the meeting room and hid in the restroom to communicate with Zuo Luo.
He muttered a few times, followed by Zuo Luo's unwilling explanation and rebuttal.
However, upon further discussion, Zuo Luo could not determine whether he had exerted any adverse influence on Zhang Xuezhou during the manipulation, leading to the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, which should have been protected, being extensively developed.
In particular, Zhang Xuezhou's withdrawal of 300 million yuan in cash, which is almost like betting his entire fortune on the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, does seem to suggest a situation of being secretly manipulated.
But this situation was completely opposite to the result that Zuo Luo and others wanted.
"Go bid now and see if you can win the project to build the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum," Zuo Luo suggested.
"The Zuo Household's industries do not include construction; we only have a small construction team," Zuo Quan said helplessly.
"As long as we're willing to subsidize the project ourselves, I don't believe we can't win the bid," Zuo Luo said. "If we can win the bid and control the construction in part of the area, at least we'll have some peace of mind!"
"Damn it, the sixty-eight imperial tombs have sixty-eight construction teams, and then there are one hundred and twenty-four more teams involved in landscaping and road construction. By their standards, we don't have nearly enough construction teams; we could barely participate in even one!"
"Focus on key bids, get the most important ones!"
"Should I choose Luo Yan's imperial tomb or Luo Zhong's imperial tomb?"
"Luo Zhong, please!"
During their communications, Zuo Quan and Zuo Luo continuously discussed and sought to protect key areas.
This massive project clearly disrupted their plans, even causing Zuo Luo to regret going to North Rehe to control Zhang Xuezhou.
He remembered that Zhang Xuezhou had no intention of developing the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum twelve days ago, but after waking up and participating in the ceremony twelve days later, he immediately made a big decision, even betting all the Lineage's assets on it.
This unfortunate turn of events has left Zuo Luo with a bitter pill to swallow, and all he can do now is try his best to make amends.
"When will you recover? He called me shortly after he woke up and made a point of checking on you," Zuo Quan asked.
"It will take at least six months. Damn it, his brain disease is too troublesome. I really regret choosing him. Now the situation is a complete mess!" Zuo Luo complained.
"Things aren't too bad. Your seed is still working in his mind, so at least for now, he's close to you!"
I still have some regrets!
There's no other choice!
Over the communicator, Zuo Luo's voice was filled with resentment, but Zuo Quan's response silenced him.
Whether Zuo Luo likes it or not, his current talent only allows him to control three subspecies. Unless he can upgrade to a seven-star or eight-star plant to enhance his talent, Zuo Luo can only use Zuo Teng and Zhang Xuezhou.
The individual strength of Zuo Luo, the mother plant, is actually limited; its abilities other than manipulation are not particularly strong.
Even if Zuo Teng is a rebellious son and Zhang Xuezhou is a bad seed, Zuo Luo can only rely on these two subspecies.
Zuo Quan hung up the call and walked out of the restroom.
The person who came to check was Zuo Teng, leading an eight-person team.
"Is Committee Member Zuo alone in the restroom?" Zuo Teng asked coldly.
"It's not appropriate for two people to be in the toilet together," Zuo Quan said, blinking slightly.
"Be cooperative when I ask you questions, don't make my job difficult," Zuo Teng scolded.
"Yes, I'm alone, and I'll be going out right now!"
Zuo Quan let out a muffled sigh, then gestured for Zuo Teng to inspect the area as he pleased.
"Damn it, after becoming a subspecies of Zoro, he started acting all high and mighty just because he's a little higher in status than me!"
As Zuo Teng passed by Zuo Teng, he couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed.
If this were set in a feudal dynasty, the ruler would be the emperor, Zuo Luo would be a prince, Zuo Teng would be a grandson of the emperor, and Zuo Quan would be an important minister of the dynasty.
No matter how important a minister like him was, he was not a direct descendant of the royal family. He was more important than Zuo Teng in terms of ability, but less important than Zuo Teng in terms of status.
This complex situation also led to a slight friction when the two met.
Especially after Zuo Teng became a Zuo Luo subspecies, Zuo Teng began to understand some things more clearly and learned part of Zuo Quan's truth, which further deepened the conflict between them.
Even if outsiders perceive them as father and son, there is no such pivotal connection between them.
For the Zuo Household, these relationships are destined to be a murky mess.
In the future, when everyone has turned into star plants, there will be no need to calculate this messy account anymore.
Zuo Quan thought for a few seconds, but ultimately decided not to argue with Zuo Teng. Instead, he sent instructions to direct the Zuo Household's employees to quickly participate in the bidding for the designated area.
Although the Zuo Household has declined, other Lineage still give them some respect.
Moreover, there are a large number of construction teams this time, so bidders will not get bogged down with any one of them on a single project.
Once they take over at a low price, the deal is done.
"Damn online shopping, develop it quickly! Let the path of seeds extend from Pan'an to Western Capital, so that the Lord can descend upon the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleum. Once we find Luo Zhong and retrieve everything from him, the matter will be settled!"
The very structure of life forms allows them to function differently, and also imposes different constraints on different life forms.
Like the queen ant in an anthill who rarely moves, leaving many tasks to worker ants and soldier ants, Zuo Quan and Zuo Luo can move around, but the master whom Zuo Quan reveres finds it difficult to cross such a long distance.
The backwardness of the Louvre era, coupled with the regional monopolies of the present era, has created a variety of insurmountable difficulties.
But Zuo Quan believed that the light was not far away.
The times are moving forward at breakneck speed, and everything is developing at breakneck speed; they will eventually usher in an era of great explosion.