Gu Youtian had been doing business in the prosperous southern commercial districts since he was young.

It wasn’t a big business, just a small shop.

When Gu Ruinian was ten, Gu Youtian made some money and moved his family from Qinghe Bay over.

After arriving in the south, Gu Ruinian fell seriously ill with a fever due to the climate difference, which threatened his life but he suddenly recovered.

After recovering, Gu Ruinian underwent a personality change, becoming calm and intelligent, and he mastered reading without a teacher. He passed the child student exam on his first try, instantly becoming a promising figure cherished by his grandparents and parents, and became the most influential person in the family.

Gu Ruinian looked down on the people of this era, considering them ignorant and narrow-minded.

He thought Gu Youtian’s shop was too small and made too little money, so he convinced Gu Youtian to invest in an escort agency.

An ancient escort agency was basically like modern finance; Gu Ruinian studied this at a top-five university in his previous life. Armed with modern knowledge of financial risk hedging, he was sure he could manipulate these ancient people and easily make a fortune.

In his plan, he would use the funds accumulated from the escort agency as a stepping stone to become a figure like Fan Li, managing both business and politics, amassing millions in wealth and commanding significant power, with a harem of beautiful wives and concubines.

From then on, he would live a life of prestige and pleasure, beyond imagination.

This time travel, if anything, suited him perfectly, unlike his previous life where he had to send resumes everywhere to find a job.

Since Gu Ruinian passed the child student exam and his ideas made their shop profitable and distinguished from others, making some money, Gu Youtian listened to him. He mortgaged the shop and borrowed a large sum of silver, even taking the savings of Mr. and Mrs. Gu for investment in the escort agency.

However, the story didn’t go according to Gu Ruinian’s plan. In less than half a year, Gu Youtian lost everything including his underwear.

The maidservants and operators at home were dismissed, the house they procured was sold, all of Mrs. Jia and Mrs. Gu’s jewelry was pawned off, and they were still in debt. Additionally, Gu Youtian lost his credit in the south.

Basically, he became the ancient version of a debtor.

Gu Youtian didn’t even have the capital to make a comeback, so angry he gave Gu Ruinian a severe beating, and for half a year, he never showed Ruinian any kindness.

At Mrs. Jia’s tearful plea, Gu Ruinian suggested they keep this matter hidden from the Gu family’s elders.

But they couldn’t hide it from the eldest son and daughter-in-law, and now both have quite a grudge against the second son.

Gu Ruinian gritted his teeth and said, "Mother, I understand. I don’t blame Father. Eventually, Father will understand, we’re just unlucky with this matter; truly, my initial idea wasn’t wrong."

When he first arrived in this world, he didn’t quite understand the rules here. The investment failure wasn’t because of his incompetence, but simply bad luck.

Gu Youtian, this opportunistic father, was too profit-chasing; he was happy and took pride when he passed the child student exam, taking him everywhere, but turned cold after the investment failed.

Isn’t business all about profits and losses?

Gu Youtian didn’t even understand this basic principle.

Gu Ruinian was fuming inside, secretly determined to find a chance to earn a big fortune himself, break into politics through the imperial exam, and once he achieved high status, he would certainly disown this opportunistic father.

Mrs. Jia nodded, patted Gu Ruinian’s mattress, and said, "I know your ideas aren’t wrong, you’re smarter than Jingzhe, how could you be wrong? You’ve had a tough time these days since returning home, it’s been cold, and your mattress is a bit thin, my heart aches for you. Tomorrow, I’ll borrow some cotton from the Clan Leader to make you a new quilt."

Gu Ruinian originally didn’t want to borrow cotton from the Clan Leader; he wanted the Clan Leader to willingly offer it.

But the sudden cold spell left him with no choice as it was too cold, and they lacked modern comforts like electric blankets. So he didn’t mind if his mother borrowed it.

Mrs. Jia then complained, "Your Aunt is too much, I heard from Honglian that her room is new and spacious, and even in spring, they’re still burning charcoal. She enjoys luxury without caring about our family’s survival, lacking any human warmth. And your grandmother is partial too, you’re her most accomplished grandson, yet she favors Honglian, this useless girl, enthusiastically laying the quilt your Aunt gave you on Honglian’s bed."

Gu Ruinian smiled faintly and said, "Mother, these are minor issues, no need for us to bother. Ultimately, it’s because our family has fallen that Aunt looks down on us. Once we rise again, there’s no fear she won’t come to flatter us."

Mrs. Jia relaxed her brows and said, "That’s exactly right; you must make something of yourself for me."

"Mother, I know, please rest early, I need to study."

Gu Ruinian felt annoyed.

Making something of himself for his mother, for his mother.

What has you provided for me as a mother?

No money, no platform, now we’re reduced to this rundown farmhouse in Qinghe Bay.

If Mrs. Jia had a powerful family or if Gu Youtian was a royal official, standing on a high platform and starting point, he wouldn’t need to work so hard to think of ways to make money and take the exam route.

Hearing her son wanted to study, Mrs. Jia didn’t dare interrupt any further and left with a pleased expression.

The room was left with only Gu Ruinian, and he didn’t study but turned over under the flickering oil lamp, lying on the bed.

Too boring.

In the prosperous south, he could still go out and flirt with women at the brothel.

Now he could only lie in the countryside on a small bed and daydream.

If he could get involved with some official’s daughter or a rich family’s daughter, he wouldn’t mind becoming a live-in son-in-law.

From the next room, he faintly hears the sounds of breathing.

Gu Ruinian ground his teeth in annoyance.

Couldn’t his opportunistic brother and sister-in-law be more considerate?

Did they not know the house has poor soundproofing?

It’s really the fault of this small house, with everyone crowded together, and since he needed a quiet space to study, they had partitioned off a room using a cabinet in Gu Fengnian and Mrs. Wei’s room.

Even so, his sister-in-law wasn’t happy.

"You see, Grandma favors Little Aunt, and your mother favors the second son, there’s no place for us in this family. You’re the eldest, with a family to support, yet it’s not even as good as your first house’s stepdaughter Gu Dahuan and his wife," Mrs. Wei lay in Gu Fengnian’s arms and said, "We should have listened to me and not come back."

Gu Fengnian said, "What can we do, I’m the eldest son."

Mrs. Wei was frustrated, "You’re the eldest son but got nothing from it. Every family values the eldest son, but your family favors the younger son. Gu Ruinian is just a child student, yet your parents praise him to the skies, doing nothing all day but spending and squandering the entire family’s wealth without any guilt."

Mrs. Wei, thinking of how her dowry was all wasted on Gu Ruinian’s escort agency business, felt her chest tighten with pain.

Gu Ruinian, hearing this, felt like jumping up to argue with his sister-in-law, what did a mere woman understand.

Gu Fengnian also harbored dissatisfaction with Gu Ruinian, but family came first, and he defended Ruinian in front of Mrs. Wei, saying, "Second Brother is good at studying and is the family’s hope, he will eventually change our fate. You saw my Aunt and her brood today, if it weren’t for Second Brother, Aunt could use Gu Jingzhe to trample us into the mud. With Second Brother’s potential in the future, the Gu and Yao Families will have a support."

Gu Ruinian’s expression eased slightly; this brother was sensible. Once he succeeded, he would definitely have his brother divorce his wife and find himself a lovely young woman and concubines.

"I really don’t want to live this countryside life anymore, how about you come back south with me, my parents are there. We could borrow some money and start a small business, wouldn’t that be better than here," Mrs. Wei desperately wanted to return.

Gu Fengnian got angry upon hearing this, "Don’t mention it again, do you want people to laugh at me for being a door-to-door son-in-law?"

Mrs. Wei started crying.

Gu Ruinian felt agitated listening to it, wishing his brother would slap Mrs. Wei.