After a long, busy day, Butler looked utterly exhausted, his sorrow still lingering. Seeing that the mourning banquet had not yet ended, Second Young Master came over to ask about the family business, which made him feel even more uncomfortable inside. Still, he answered honestly, “In response to Second Young Master, over these seven days, quite a few of the managers and junior owners from the seven cities and nine prefectures have come to pay their respects to Eldest Young Master. But among those who came, only about half brought silver; the rest all said the time was too short to gather enough cash. Even those who did bring some, it was mostly not enough…”

“Counting it all, it’s only a little over a hundred thousand taels…”

As he said this, his expression was not pleasant.

Given the Fang family’s foundation and businesses spread across the prefectures, if they were to collect all the cash at once, it should never be just this much.

“It’s not bad—enough to last us for a while!”

Unexpectedly, Carter Foster didn’t show any surprise or anger. Instead, he appeared calm and simply said in a soft voice, “Tell the managers of all our shops not to cause any trouble for now. The situation isn’t right—better to close up for a while. If there are suitable shares, sell them. For our own businesses, if anyone tries to seize them by force, don’t try to hold out—put safety first. If you can’t keep it, let it go!”

“This…”

Butler was startled by Carter Foster’s words and looked over in astonishment.

Carter Foster smiled and said, “We must be prepared. I’m afraid the Fang family’s businesses are about to be swarmed by wolves!”

“They wouldn’t dare!”

Upon hearing this, Butler’s face turned angry, showing a bit of authority. He knew how treacherous the world could be, but he had joined the Fang family when he was young and had grown used to the presence of Little Sage. It was actually harder for him than for Carter Foster to accept this reality. He thought, so many people have tried everything just to seek the Fang family’s protection—he’d never heard of anyone daring to target the businesses of the Fang family of Liuhu!

“No need to be angry—it’s only human nature!”

Carter Foster just smiled and said, “The world is like a chessboard, and human nature is like a blade. It’s easy to gain things, so there’s no need to feel pain when letting them go.”

He understood in his heart that the old master of the Fang family was not really a businessman, and the family’s fortune wasn’t built by him.

Now, although the Fang family’s businesses seemed to cover seven cities, nine prefectures, and twelve counties, in reality, many of these businesses had come under the Fang family’s name because others sought its protection and offered a share. When his elder brother was alive, they naturally handed over their profits obediently. But now that Little SageCharles Foster was gone and the great tree had fallen, those seeking protection would naturally scatter.

Now, what Carter Foster wanted to keep were only the shops that truly belonged to the Fang family.

The Fang family was large and wealthy, and countless people were envious of their business. By now, many must be drooling with anticipation.

If he let them snatch things away, there might not even be a drop of oil left in the end.

Originally, in Carter Foster’s plan, these people shouldn’t have made a move so quickly. After all, even a dead tiger is still feared. Even though Charles Foster was gone, his status and reputation remained, and no one knew if, after so many years of cultivation, he still had powerful friends or allies watching over things. So even if others were greedy, they shouldn’t have shown their claws so soon. But then came the incident with the Immortal Hall.

The Immortal Hall’s indifference was already a statement, and it could lead to terrible consequences.

Carter Foster worried that some ruthless people who reacted quickly might have already sensed the change in the wind and couldn’t wait to make their move.

Now, he was still just a mortal and couldn’t stop these things from happening. So he was prepared to let go of the outside businesses—so long as he could keep the Fang family’s businesses in Liuhu City and cover the daily expenses of the Fang residence, that would be enough.

He couldn’t let the old master and madam go hungry!

“Yes…”

Seeing Carter Foster’s calmness, Old Butler hesitated for a moment before quietly agreeing.

He had lived through most of his life and could see through these worldly matters, but it was just hard to accept for a moment. Now, seeing the usually notorious and carefree Second Young Master handling things with more clarity than himself, he couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional.

“Where is Father?”

“In the inner hall, talking with some relatives and junior owners…”

Carter Foster nodded and walked toward the inner hall. Before he even entered, he heard a commotion inside.

“So, brother-in-law doesn’t trust his own family?”

A rough voice was grumbling angrily: “You get to enjoy a comfortable life at home, but all the businesses inside and outside the city are managed by us for you. We’ve never made a fuss, whether it’s fighting for gold or silver every month. Now that Charlie Jr. is gone, shouldn’t we make proper arrangements and plan ahead? If you give me the land deeds and business seals for the twelve linked strongholds outside the city, you can’t go wrong…”

Carter Foster’s heart stirred slightly, and a chill appeared on his face as he stepped inside.

In the inner hall, the old master of the Fang family was holding a bowl of ginger soup, his hands trembling as he drank. The Fang family’s madam, having grieved too much during the day, had already been helped to rest by the maids. After sending off her eldest son to his funeral, she was not only heartbroken but had also spent most of the night shivering in the cold wind and rain. Being only human and already advanced in years, she could hardly bear it. If not for her usual good health, she would probably have already fallen ill.