"Feeling distressed..."

Yu Yao's father was truly speechless. Hey, why does Yu Yao think that making money was solely her own achievement? Did their whole family just stand idly by? It couldn't be that a descendant of such a large family made a bit of money, and then this descendant is considered highly capable.

How is that possible?

The important connections, status, relationships, and business channels of the family, these are the intangible assets. To put it bluntly, it's not even about Yu Yao doing business, even if a dog came out and grabbed a couple of silver coins, there would be many scrambling to do business with this dog. It's really not about your own capability, it's the whole family working together that makes it possible to reach the end, with the family backing you up.

So why are you stubbornly believing that the gold and silver you earned are solely through your own efforts? How could this be an individual effort? It is the result of many generations' hard work. And why does the family often can't help but decline, so that the once thriving family gradually plummets to the bottom? Isn't it because the beginning is the hardest?

Take their family, for instance, the first generation of elders were truly formidable, they were a rare presence among millions. They accomplished the hardest beginning, laid the foundation, thus greatly reducing the game difficulty; initially, it was a hellish level requiring professional players, but later, it became easy, even a sweep through level, by then even the eighty-year-old could take charge.

So ask, can the current family juniors be compared to the predecessors? The environment and times are different, today's kids definitely can't compare to the older generation, they just ride on the inertia of the older generation's wisdom, but due to their limited abilities, the family keeps declining.

Not only is the family like this, but the capital city and powerful countries are the same. The founding emperors were something else entirely, they completed the hellish mode, but later on they get more lackluster. Can an emperor, chosen from among millions, be sure that his child is also one in a million?

So nations decline, families decline, businesses decline, it's an inherent rule. That's why a feudal system isn't feasible, because you can't ensure the next emperor is still fought over by armies, just born with a silver spoon, they don't have the capability but have the status.

A dynasty is thus, so is their family's tea business; maintaining the family is already tricky, requiring many people to meet the standard set by their ancestors, if something slips, the family business could be wiped out, the ups and downs are quite real.

"Hey, if you want to become our family's Patriarch in the future, there's still a long way to go. I know I can't stop you now, so fine, two million it is. I'll give you the small savings I've accumulated over the years, don't use the family's money, use mine. If you lose my money, the family won't feel anything, at most, your father may not be able to do business with the Courtesan anymore."

"I'll endure and get through it."

"I hope two million can buy you a lesson, and hope in the future when you do such things, you consider whether it should be done."

The middle-aged man accepted it.

Yu Yao grinned: "Oh, dad, don't look so worried, I didn't expect you to have such a little stash behind mom's back? Two million is no small amount, seems like you've pocketed quite a bit in the family, do the other uncles know?"

Phooey! The middle-aged man immediately signaled Yu Yao to stop talking nonsense: "What do you mean pocketed... all this was for if the business suddenly collapsed, it's our old capital for survival."

He was speaking the truth, not only him, influential people in the family were the same. When all is said and done, when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. If the family were to collapse and you don't have some cash, what would happen to your branch? So everyone leaves some room.

Everyone's the same, having a fallback is what allows collaboration. That's a sense of security, otherwise, truly they'd be penniless, leaving them insecure.

Human nature.

Of course, the Imperial Decree Department is the same, who knows when a big city suddenly falls, if you don't save up, when things turn over, they turn over, who says there's a guaranteed livelihood?

"I think it's risky, very risky!"

Yu Yao gave a side-eye when her father was sweating profusely: "Alright, alright, you give me your silver, I'll head over now, then later bring the two million directly back to you, surely won't leave you without the chance to see the Courtesan, that would be too hard on you."

"Hey, if you can bring back those two million, I'll give you fifty thousand, what do you say."

"..."

Yu Yao ignored it, and while her father's face was filled with agony, she directly took the two million and went away. By the time she returned to the inn, an hour had already passed since she left.