Undercurrents are surging.

Following Mu Chuan's gaze, Wang Pan'er saw an ordinary oxcart, loaded with pottery jars, its front facing the direction beyond the pass.

When the driver arrived at the teahouse, he got off the cart with his water bag, drank a bowl of strong tea for a penny, refilled his water bag, and without resting, drove the oxcart away.

Wang Pan'er wondered, "Is there something wrong with this oxcart?"

"Wheel tracks".

The official roads were regularly cleared of obstacles and bridges and post stations were built by the government. People generally chose to travel or transport goods via the official roads.

However, in ancient times, manpower was limited. While a small section extending outside the city could be paved with stone slabs, once the obstacles were cleared in the mountains and fields, people had to travel back and forth to maintain the barren yellow earth and mud road.

Vehicles will naturally leave tracks when they drive through muddy areas.

Wang Pan'er was confused.

Another pack animal loaded with rice passed by.

Wang Pan'er squatted down to take a closer look and was shocked to realize the problem; her heart skipped a beat.

No wonder he was being hunted down, and no wonder he was elusive and unpredictable.

She looked at Mu Chuan sitting in the teahouse, her expression complicated.

Not only was he wealthy, she could almost be certain that this young master came from a noble family.

She returned to Mu Chuan's side and whispered in his ear, "Are you investigating a smuggling case?"

Wang Pan'er's words were like a thunderclap, making Mu Chuan feel as if a lightning bolt had struck his entire body. He broke out in a cold sweat, got goosebumps all over his body, and even felt an itch at the roots of his teeth.

He ground his permanent teeth, but it didn't satisfy his craving. Then, he downed a whole cup of scalding hot milk tea, only to find that the enjoyment paled in comparison to the shock the woman in front of him had given him. Finally, he chuckled softly.

Wang Pan'er bristled and jumped back three feet: "What kind of weird expression is that? You're not thinking of killing me to cover it up, are you?!"

"No." Mu Chuan put down his cup. "You guessed right, I just..."

Mu Chuan raised his head slightly, his eyes slightly upturned, as if teasing or scrutinizing.

Wang Pan'er felt uncomfortable under his gaze; "Just what?"

"I underestimated you." Mu Chuan gestured with his chin towards the seat opposite him. "Tell me, how did you deduce that?"

Wang Pan'er sat down and, while observing Mu Chuan's expression, said, "It doesn't make sense for an oxcart loaded with rice to have shallower ruts than the pottery jars. Either the rice was mixed with cotton, or the pottery jars are not what they seem. Judging from your expression just now, there must be a problem with the oxcart that was transporting the pottery jars."

Mu Chuan: "Continue."

"The use of the earthenware cart to switch the goods was most likely to avoid the eyes and ears of the officials. They were heading towards the area beyond the Great Wall, so smuggling was highly probable. In addition, you, a young master from the capital, don't care about eating, drinking, or having fun. If you were from a merchant family, you would be here on a family mission, needing to negotiate business and develop connections. But you two are elusive, operating in secret. Especially you, who know nothing about business, yet are proficient in martial arts and knowledge. This must be the standard for raising children of noble families! All these deductions lead to only one conclusion: you are investigating a smuggling case. However, what you are smuggling, I have no idea."

Mu Chuan replied, "Iron."

Wang Pan'er was shocked: "Who is so audacious! Every household has iron tools, but no matter how ordinary they are, they are still strategic materials. Transporting them to the border is tantamount to handing a knife to the enemy."

“All the suspicious trucks belong to the Liuyun Chamber of Commerce, which means there’s something fishy going on. If it weren’t for the continuous spring rain the other day, which caused several pottery trucks to get stuck, we wouldn’t have noticed anything unusual until now.”

"Didn't the soldiers guarding the city notice anything unusual about the truck?"

Mu Chuan shook his head: "Some of us infiltrated the ranks of the city's guards, and the inspection revealed that there was no ironware stored in the pottery jars. The problem wasn't with the pottery jars, but with the carts. However, the government and the Liuyun Chamber of Commerce are now cooperating closely and have an excellent reputation among the people. We are being blocked at every level and have no way to get started."

"Close cooperation with the government?" Wang Pan'er sensed an unease, seized on the words, and repeated, "If the Chamber of Commerce does something wrong, it is most likely not cooperation with the government, but collusion."

"The matter of collusion between officials and businessmen is no small matter. We do not yet know the full picture, so please be careful with your words, Miss Wang."

It seems that Mu Chuan also suspects collusion, but lacks evidence and cannot draw a conclusion.

Wang Pan'er considered herself an ordinary small business owner, and after Mu Chuan's reminder, she automatically kept quiet in the face of matters of principle.

Mu Chuan, on the other hand, hesitated after she fell silent, clearly showing signs of impatience.

Wang Pan'er: "Say what you want to say. I won't say anything I shouldn't."

After careful consideration, Mu Chuan said slowly, "I am indeed in a difficult situation right now. Although I have some clues, to obtain witnesses and evidence, I need to go deep into the enemy camp. But whether it is to place people in the government or to run a shop in the Chamber of Commerce, it will take time."

"Isn't everything about Tian Chengyuan through your connections?"

Mu Chuan said helplessly, "The main branch of the money exchange goes directly to the capital. The Liuyun Chamber of Commerce is already deliberately avoiding dealings with the money exchange. If we touch Tianchengyuan's connections, it is very likely to alert them."

At this critical juncture, it seems that the one who can provide the most assistance to Mu Chuan is herself.

It turned out that Mu Chuan's hesitation was because he wanted to ask for my help, but he was too embarrassed to ask.

Wang Pan'er understood, and a sly glint appeared in her eyes as she looked at Mu Chuan: "The Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant is growing bigger and bigger. What if someone gets jealous? I'm just a woman, and I'm missing out on a powerful backer. Let me ask you, whose power is greater, yours or the prefect's?"

Faced with the olive branch extended to him, Mu Chuan was full of sincerity and dared not be negligent in the slightest, replying confidently, "It is of course mine."

"Then, are your actions based on the people's interests, and are they fair and just?"

"nature."

Since they are both people who agree with each other and people of justice, the exchange of resources would benefit both parties, so Wang Pan'er had no reason not to accept it.

She shed her nonchalant demeanor and said solemnly, "Since I set up my stall, you have helped me a lot. I will join the Liuyun Chamber of Commerce to gather information for you. Once this case is closed, if anyone bullies me, you cannot refuse. You must deal with them severely for me."

Upon hearing this, Mu Chuan quickly stood up and bowed deeply to her: "When I was teaching Xiao Yao before, Miss Wang granted me a condition. Now that you have helped me so much, I will let the condition go. Miss Wang's noble character is truly admirable. I will offer you a cup of tea instead of wine."

"Sure, sure." Wang Pan'er gestured for Mu Chuan to sit down. "But let me make this clear from the start: I promise to do my best, but I can't guarantee that I'll get what you want. Even if it doesn't work out, we'll still be on good terms, and you'll still be my support."

"I will do my best in the end and let fate decide the outcome. Since Miss Wang is so kind, I cannot refuse."

After returning from the cherry blossom grove, Wang Pan'er took the token given to her by Mu Chuan and went to Tianchengyuan.

Putting aside Mu Chuan's relationship, the lives of Madam You and her third daughter alone are enough for the Jinzhou branch to treat the people of Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant as honored guests.

When the waiter saw that it was Wang Pan'er, he smiled and led her to a private room on the second floor. He also brewed her some fine tea and brought her some fruits that were specially supplied by their medicinal cuisine restaurant and pastry shop: "Please wait a moment, young lady. We have a distinguished guest in the restaurant. The manager will be here soon."

Wang Pan'er nodded, and soon Manager Xu rushed over.

Manager Xu picked up the letter that Wang Pan'er had pushed in front of him and examined it carefully.

Young Master Mu and Wang Pan'er were acquainted, so this letter was unlikely to be fake. The letter contained a lot of information, but in short, the young master wanted to do everything he could to support Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant. The bank needed to give the Wang family's daughter the highest level of authority. If she needed money, she could withdraw it at any time within the bank. Furthermore, the bank would use all its connections to make Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant a member of the Liuyun Chamber of Commerce as soon as possible.

Manager Xu went to the storeroom and took out a contract seal from a locked wooden box, handing it to Wang Pan'er: "This is our highest-level contract seal, which cannot be obtained without the master's personal authorization. Each contract seal has a number, and I only have more than ten here. The master said he would exchange it for you when we return to the capital. With this contract seal, you can freely withdraw funds from any Tianchengyuan Money Shop."

So generous!

Wang Pan'er was dumbfounded.

Could this be considered an ancient version of the unlimited spending Supreme Black Card?

Immediately afterwards, Madam You sent invitations to Wang Pan'er and her sister, using the occasion of her daughter's 100-day celebration to bring them into the wealthy merchant circles of the prefecture. The doorman also specifically instructed Wang Pan'er that Madam You would entrust her with the task of preparing gifts for the guests.

Giving a thoughtful gift is undoubtedly an excellent way to build relationships.

Now that she's been given the opportunity, she'll definitely use her reputation to order beautiful food boxes, fill them with those medicinal pastries that are still in high demand even if she opens a separate pastry shop, and give them to wealthy businessmen.

On the day of the banquet, Wang Pan'er specially invited Tao Shuo to go to the Xu family's estate together.

No matter the era, no one would refuse to make connections with a doctor.

Since experiencing Madam You's childbirth, Tao Shuo, like Wang Xiaoyao, has developed other ideas.

At this moment, she no longer wanted to spend her life in a medicinal cuisine restaurant, merely a lowly doctor who could only take pulses and diagnose constitutions. The exhilarating thrill of battling death, and the immense joy and pleasure of saving lives, were things she would never forget.

“I want to specialize in gynecology,” Tao Shuo said. “Even a wealthy family like Madam You had to go through this life-or-death ordeal. I couldn’t imagine how fearful and helpless those pregnant women must have felt when facing life and death during childbirth. Now that I know, I can empathize with them and can no longer stand idly by.”

Wang Pan'er was quite disappointed, but she couldn't let Tao Shuo's wings be broken, so she forced her to stay in the medicinal cuisine restaurant: "Dr. Tao, you are kind and skilled. I expected this day to come sooner or later. It's still quite sudden that you brought it up today. However, the medicinal cuisine restaurant has already established a good reputation. I can find another doctor, and there shouldn't be much of a problem."

"I didn't say I was leaving." Tao Shuo looked puzzled. "I just thought that I have a solid foundation in medical theory, but I lack experience. However, people are gradually starting to trust me, and sooner or later I will need the fruits of my hard work. Since you are planting herbs, why don't I open a class, select a few girls, and start them as apprentice medicine doctors? After a year or two of training, they will be able to diagnose people's constitutions. Once they can go to the medicinal cuisine restaurant, I will retire and devote myself to further research."

Wang Pan'er breathed a sigh of relief and patted her chest: "Dr. Tao, you're quite the scarer!"

“I’m not leaving. If I leave Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant now, who will even look at me? I’m just telling you my thoughts. Pan’er, you have been kind to me, and I would never let you be in an awkward situation because of me.”

“That’s great, I’ll find a place to teach you right away.”

"No need. Just clear out a plot of land on the estate for me. With such a large medicinal herb field, I can bring my apprentices and use the herbs right here!"

Now even the process of preparing medicinal herbs is much easier, and Wang Pan'er is overjoyed.

If she could raise a great physician, that would be an immense merit. She instructed Wang Xiaoyao, "No problem, no problem. When we get back, Xiaoyao, you can help Doctor Yao find some bright children and let Doctor Yao choose carefully."

Wang Xiaoyao, who was standing to the side, immediately patted his chest and said when he heard that he would have a chance to use his skills: "No problem, I'll take care of it!"