Chapter 508 Undercurrents

The autumn wind is bleak.

With the roadside vegetation dampened by dew, this late autumn morning was rather chilly.

Ouyang Rong put on that white fox fur shawl again.

When he left home in the morning, Zhen Shuyuan and Ye Weilai reminded him of some small things to keep warm, but he was distracted the whole time and didn't hear them.

Ouyang Rong walked along the long corridor covered with fallen autumn leaves, his sleeves tucked behind him.

He had walked this path leading to the Xunyang Prince's study in the Xunyang Prince's Mansion hundreds of times this year; he could reach it with his eyes closed.

"Your Excellency..."

Yan Liulang, who was following closely behind, called out somewhat nervously.

"It's alright, let's go together. We can talk inside."

Ouyang Rong waved his hand without turning his head.

A day and a night have passed since Ouyang Rong and Lin Cheng parted ways on bad terms yesterday, and many things have begun to ferment.

At least that's how Yan Liulang sees it.

Observing people's expressions and familiar with the way the magistrate operates, he noticed that the atmosphere in Xunyang City was not right, and there was a sense of calm before the storm.

Early in the morning, Yan Liulang encountered Ouyang Rong at the Censorate. He was about to report the newly discovered intelligence when Ouyang Rong calmly interrupted him and brought him directly to the Xunyang Prince's Mansion, heading deep into the mansion.

A short while later, Ouyang Rong led Yan Liulang to an ordinary-looking study.

This was Yan Liulang's first time here. He knew that being able to come here meant that he had truly become a trusted confidant of the Xunyang Prince's Mansion.

In a way, he was already half a "longcheng old man". Although he didn't fully get on board when he was in Longcheng, he always followed in the footsteps of the Ming government and never fell behind.

Today, the magistrate led him in without saying a word, even though there was an urgent matter at hand and it was an expedient measure.

But some rules are just like that; once you've done it once, there's bound to be a second and a third time!

Anyway, now, he can definitely be considered a "former resident of Xunyang" in the future prince's residence.

The study of the Prince of Xunyang in front of us has always been a place that scholars from all over the country who came to the Prince of Xunyang’s mansion dreamed of entering.

Yan Liulang knew that even if he had a good relationship with Li Dalang, he would not be qualified to enter. Only if the prefect brought him would the Prince of Xunyang approve and feel at ease.

Yan Liulang's face flushed slightly.

Ouyang Rong seemed lost in thought as he walked forward with his head down. He stopped slowly at the entrance of the study, gently patted Yan Liulang's shoulder, and then turned and went inside.

"My love, you've come!"

"My lord, how is the situation now? I heard some things from Guo'er and my niece. Is Lin Cheng's matter really that serious?"

"Tanlang, that Lin Cheng is truly despicable. The first time I invited him to Yunshui Pavilion for tea, he acted quite honest, but it turns out he was just pretending..."

Inside the study, Li Xian's family, Xie Lingjiang, and Shunbo were all present.

Upon hearing Ouyang Rong's footsteps, everyone except Li Xian, who was constrained by etiquette and unable to go out, stepped forward to greet him.

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Rong waved his hand at the crowd:

"Please be seated, everyone. There's no need for formalities."

Then, he turned to Yan Liulang and said, "Tell me about it."

"Reporting...reporting to Your Highness, this...this humble servant..."

"It's alright, Xiao Yan, speak slowly."

He offered words of comfort and reassurance.

Li Dalang also stood up, poured a cup of tea for his friend, and handed it to him to ease his tension.

Yan Liulang held a cup of hot tea, took a deep breath, and said:

"As instructed by Your Excellency, I investigated and found that Lin Cheng did indeed go to the office of the censor of the Censorate yesterday morning before going to the council meeting, and handed over an urgent memorial with unclear contents."

"I asked an acquaintance at a post station near Jiangzhou to check, and found that a batch of memorials was indeed sent out yesterday morning, and it was sent to Luoyang with the '800-li express' urgency. It seems there's no way to retrieve them now! Besides, obstructing an official messenger is a capital offense..."

"Lin Cheng must have figured this out. Now, there's no sign of him in Xunyang City. We don't know where he's hiding. The last time anyone saw him was after the meeting yesterday morning, when he entered the governor's mansion."

"Wei Shaoqi, Wang Lengran!" Li Guo'er called out the two names in a clear voice when she heard this.

Ouyang Rong and she exchanged a glance.

Seeing that the two had fallen silent, Yan Liulang continued, frowning, "..."

"Furthermore, I also learned something at the post station: Lin Cheng has been sending private letters to the capital these past few days and has been frequently communicating with acquaintances in Luoyang. I don't know what he's plotting... Anyway, based on your speculation, this young man certainly has ambitions and plans all along!"

The study fell silent as everyone exchanged bewildered glances.

Xie Lingjiang gazed at Ouyang Rong's tired dark circles, as if he hadn't slept all night, and said with some heartache:

"Senior Brother, this person does seem two-faced, but based on just one memorial from him... perhaps the situation isn't as bad as we think?"

"That makes sense."

"That's right."

Li Xian and the others nodded in agreement.

Li Xian comforted him, saying:

"Don't worry too much, my love. It's too much to worry about. Right now, he's submitted a memorial that speaks ill of us, and there's nothing we can do about it. Such slanderous words from petty people are always unavoidable. We are upright and have nothing to fear."

"However, just in case, I have already written to the capital and asked someone to inform Prince Xiang and Chang Le, asking them to keep an eye on things to prevent any villains from slandering Tan Lang in front of the Emperor and affecting the statue-making process."

Wei Mei also comforted him:

"Don't worry, Tanlang. With Master Fu and Lord Shen in the court, right and wrong won't be reversed. We've seen all the efforts you've made in Jiangzhou, and the court won't ignore them."

"That's not how it is." Li Guo'er shook her head, her pretty face somewhat serious.

"That's never what we should be worried about. We're not afraid of Lin Cheng attacking Ouyang Lianghan. In fact, the opposite is true. He might even speak well of Ouyang Lianghan."

"Then what should we be most worried about?" Wei Mei asked curiously.

Li Guo'er pursed her lips:

"He bypassed Ouyang Lianghan and provided His Majesty with the best option to relocate the Buddha statue. This move was the real solution, allowing for both offense and defense."

"His retreat is easy to understand. He's waiting for us to nod in agreement, to make peace with him, to compromise and relocate... He's actually got a good grasp of Ouyang Lianghan's personality, knowing that he would never compromise. That's the crux of the matter. In short, he can't let Ouyang Lianghan have an easy time. He has to make him give up something. For him, the best outcome... is to make Ouyang Lianghan clash with the court and ruin his own future."

Li Xian shivered and whispered:

"My love, how about we..."

Wei Mei frowned: "Tanlang, what exactly did Lin Cheng's proposal to relocate to Xingzifang yesterday mention that you are so opposed to it?"

"If we follow his method, all the houses around Chengtian Temple in Xingzifang would be demolished. Although it doesn't sound like a lot, just a small part of the many houses in Xingzifang, the calculation is not like that. Even without mentioning the trouble of building Buddha statues in the city, the noise and pollution generated by demolishing these houses, as well as the impact of construction, would affect Xingzifang for several months. A large part of the residents of Xingzifang would be affected, not to mention the Xingzifang residents who have just lost their homes and have to rush to find new places to live before the dead of winter... In the end, the Buddha statues are erected, but a mess is left behind."

Xie Lingjiang interjected, "According to our senior brother, the most troublesome thing now is that Lin Cheng's plan is feasible on paper, the cost to the court is not high, and the cycle is very short. It is not only faster than ours, but also does not need to be delayed. It can be completed on time, which is very attractive to Empress Wei and the court."

Ouyang Rong closed his eyes and said, "He's just making empty promises, not only fooling us, but also His Majesty."

Li Guo'er said softly, "I'm afraid that even if Grandmother finds out, she won't care."

The study fell silent immediately.

Ouyang Rong was silent for a moment, then turned to ask Yan Liulang again:

"There's another thing I've asked you to keep an eye on."

Yan Liulang, who was catching his breath while drinking tea, immediately realized that some tea had leaked from his cup due to the jostling.

"Oh, and Pei Shisan Niang and the others too. This group of unscrupulous merchants from Yangzhou is still in the city, but something's strange. I heard yesterday that they were going to leave in the next couple of days, far away from Jiangzhou, but today I went to Xunyang Ferry to ask my colleagues, and it seems they don't have any passenger ships preparing to return to Yangzhou... Your Excellency, I'll go check again in the next day or two to see what these unscrupulous merchants are up to..."

Ouyang Rong let out a long breath and waved his hand, giving instructions:

"No need to go through the trouble of checking the docks and ships. Go to Xingzifang and find out if they've stopped selling houses. Also, see if they've turned around and are continuing to acquire old houses in Xingzifang. If so, report it to us immediately."

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Yan Liulang nodded emphatically.

Xie Lingjiang seemed to understand something, and gritted her teeth:

"There must have been some behind-the-scenes contact! These unscrupulous businessmen are in cahoots, colluding with each other in their evil deeds!"

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips, turned to the crowd and said:

"The statue in Xingzifang is absolutely unacceptable. This matter cannot be allowed, either publicly or privately. We must stop it. We don't care what Lin Cheng's schemes are. We must do our own thing well. Only in this way can we remain invincible. Otherwise, no matter how much we say or how many people we ask for our praise, it will be useless. The current emperor will not buy into that."

"good."

"I'll listen to my lover."

Xie Lingjiang tugged at Ouyang Rong's sleeve next to her:

"Eldest brother, I have already sent a letter to Father, asking him to make some arrangements in Luoyang..."

"Thank you for your hard work, junior sister."

Wei Mei whispered, "My lord, I've been corresponding with my family in the capital recently. Although we haven't been in touch for many years, it seems some of our friendship still exists. Several of my cousins ​​are high-ranking officials in the court, so we can exchange a few words..."

Ouyang Rong looked around, then at Wei Mei and the others, and nodded somewhat forcefully:

"Thank you, Your Highness, Your Highness, and everyone else."

After a brief silence, he changed the subject:

"However, last night, I revised the plan for the Xunyang Grottoes and prepared to submit a new memorial. Your Highness, please help me and we can jointly submit a memorial. This time, the delay should be shortened to one and a half months. We should stop repairing some minor details and expedite the completion of the Xunyang Grottoes project to try to appease His Majesty's mind."

"In addition, I also consulted Master Shandao and asked him to speak on the grounds that Buddhist feng shui is not suitable for being built in a bustling city. Let's write a letter immediately and try again before Lin Cheng's memorial takes effect."

"Everyone, remember this: we must not back down on this issue. Otherwise, not only will the Xunyang Grottoes be ruined, but the Wei family will also take the opportunity of relocating to interfere in the affairs of Xunyang City, and we will all be at their mercy."

Seeing this, everyone nodded in agreement.

Xie Lingjiang then turned her head and asked:

"Senior Brother, what did Rong Zhen say? She is His Majesty's personal envoy, so His Majesty will definitely consult her."

Yan Liulang couldn't help but glance sideways. It seemed that Miss Xie knew that Ouyang Rong had gone to the Supervisory Council to see Rong Zhen in the morning, but she wasn't jealous. Miss Xie was indeed a lady from a prominent family. When it came to important matters, she never fussed over petty emotions.

Ouyang Rong looked around and said softly:

"Rongzhen said that as long as my public-spiritedness outweighs my personal interests and I have a clear conscience regarding the Xunyang Grottoes matter, she will report the truth to me..."

He paused, then sighed:

"It's like they're speaking up for us."

"At least she has a conscience," Xie Lingjiang said with a light snort, tilting her head.

Li Xian and the others didn't interrupt, pretending not to hear.

On the other side, although the situation was not optimistic, Li Guo'er still pricked up her ears and listened with great interest, observing the little expressions of Xie's older sister.

Li Dalang looked at Ouyang Rong with admiration, secretly giving him a thumbs-up under his sleeve.

Ouyang Rong was too busy to pay attention to his friends.

At this moment, Li Xian seemed to remember something, slapped his forehead and said:

"By the way, why don't we try to get in touch with General Qin? Hmm, or maybe we could have Dalang ask the young lady for help. We were too embarrassed to ask her for the extension last time, but we can use that favor now. General Qin still has a lot of prestige and his words carry weight..."

"My husband is right!"

Apart from Wei Mei, who nodded in agreement,

Ouyang Rong, Li Guo'er, Xie Lingjiang, and even Yan Liulang all fell silent.

"What's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything?"

Li Xian and Wei Mei looked around curiously.

Both Li Guo'er and Xie Lingjiang had cold faces and lowered their eyes.

Ouyang Rong and Yan Liulang seemed to have caught a cold and started coughing.

There was an awkward silence for a moment.

Li Xian couldn't help but doubt himself:

"Did I make an inappropriate suggestion... Oh, I see. Is it possible that the Wei family and Lin Cheng will also share the profits from the Xingzifang statues, just like we shared the profits from the Xunyang Grottoes, to win over the Qin family? So General Qin might not speak up for us? That makes sense. Besides, he is a general in charge of troops. Intervening in this matter might be useful, but it could also damage His Majesty's image and arouse suspicion, which would be a loss?"

“My father’s analysis makes sense, so that’s one point.”

Li Guo'er nodded and said.

"Firstly, what other reasons could there be?" Li Xian asked, confused.

Wei Mei, who was also frowning in thought, noticed out of the corner of her eye that her eldest son had somehow shrunk into a corner. She suddenly asked:

Why isn't Dalang saying anything?

Li Dalang shivered and immediately nodded like a chick pecking at rice:

"Father is right!"

Wei Mei squinted and asked, "How are things between you and Miss Qin lately?"

Li Dalang stood frozen in place...

Li Guo'er pouted and began to complain.

Having no time to rescue his eldest son, Ouyang Rong hurriedly left the study.

After the meeting in the study concluded, on the same day, Prince Xunyang Li Xian, Prince Xunyang's heir Li Dalang, and Jiangzhou Prefect Ouyang Lianghan jointly submitted a memorial to the capital.

Several days later, in the Great Zhou Dynasty court in Luoyang, a strange atmosphere arose due to several memorials...

(End of this chapter)