Chapter 4 Chapter 4
Chapter 4
He died before he could accomplish his mission.
I have never felt such a humiliating feeling even during the war. Now that the world is at peace and I have become a royal relative, I am being played around by a young lady from a treacherous merchant family.
Can you bear it?
He had to endure it, as Prince Song's life was still in the other party's hands. The carriage was shaking under his seat, and in the depressing atmosphere, Shen Che glanced at Prince Song several times.
The young master is like the bright moon, with black eyes as deep as a cold pond, skin like the moon, lips as red as fire, eyebrows and eyes inherited the heroic spirit of the eldest princess, and facial features inherited the handsomeness of Lord Song.
Beyond this, the Song prince possessed a unique sense of dignity and fame. A talented scholar in Kyoto, skilled in both literature and martial arts, his status as a prince of a marquisate and a minister of the Ministry of Revenue made him a highly sought-after figure in Kyoto.
Normally, robbers are only after the two main reasons: "money and sex". They were bullied to this extent just because of their shabby clothes, so they didn't have any "money".
Then the only word left is "color".
Chen Che recalled that the female thief tried every possible means to find out about Prince Song's marriage, and he had already guessed the reason for the robbery. He had said before that with Prince Song's appearance, it would be useless even if he was wearing a sack. Which young lady would not be dazzled by him?
He was so engrossed in watching that he couldn't take his eyes off her. Prince Song looked at him with his dark eyes and a righteous aura, which made the evil thoughts in his heart disappear.
Chen Che hurriedly asked: "Brother Song, do you feel uncomfortable somewhere?"
Prince Song shook his head. The insect had fallen asleep in his body, and the numbness had faded. He was no different from normal. He asked, "Have you concluded this woman's identity?"
Compared to horse racing and cricket fighting, what Chen Che disliked most was using his brain. "No matter who she is, I'll find Lan Zhizhou and force her to hand over the antidote, then kill her."
Song Yunzhi remained silent.
Seeing that he was silent, Shen Che knew that he had spoken out of turn.
At this point, they had become a laughing stock. Using their identities as the emperor's nephew and the queen's nephew to suppress the other party not only alerted the enemy but also showed their incompetence.
In fact, the two were not familiar with each other before coming to Yangzhou. When the eldest princess married Lord Song, the emperor was still in Shuzhou with his straw sandal army. At the same age, Song Yunzhi was sitting in the school listening to the teacher's lecture, while Chen Che was struggling to chase after the horse's butt.
The only time the two of them interact is during the Spring Festival every year.
Every year at the end of the year, the princess would take Song Yunzhi to Shuzhou to visit his uncle. At that time, Chen Che often followed his uncle and loved chatting with this noble young man from Kyoto.
Although he rarely received a response, it did not prevent him from bragging to others that he had a good brother who was a noble in Kyoto.
After the emperor ascended the throne, Chen Che was assigned to the Ministry of Rites, while Song Yunzhi was appointed as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and they did not interact much.
What Chen Che admired most was his calmness. Even the emperor said that as long as Prince Song was around, there was nothing that could not be accomplished.
Chen Che retracted his absurd words. "I know this mission can't afford any mistakes. Let's keep this account here for now. Once we get the antidote and skin her alive, Brother Song, do you know who she is?"
Song Yunzhi had some idea, but was not completely sure.
The Park family, the head of the four major families, has four sons and no daughters.
All the girls in the Lu family are married, and the remaining young people in the family are all children, which does not match the age of today's young lady.
Only the Cui family and the Qian family are left.
The Cui family has the most descendants and the greatest possibility.
The Cui family's residence was located on the west side of Yangzhou. The wharf they arrived at today was the South Wharf. According to the speed of the carriage, they would reach the Cui family's mansion in about half an hour.
However, the carriage only drove for two moments before it stopped.
The maid's familiar voice entered the carriage, "Send the two gentlemen through the back door and bring them to my lady's courtyard."
Shen Che's temper flared up again, "I've never walked through the back door in my life!"
Just as Song Yunzhi pressed her shoulder, she heard the maid outside snort coldly, "Although the lady has taken a fancy to you, I advise you to be more sensible and avoid being arrogant and impatient."
Chen Che had never seen such an arrogant woman before, and his nose was spitting fire. He turned to look at the prince, "Brother Song..."
Prince Song was always calm, with an invisible icy coldness in his eyes. "She's about to die, why would you care about her?"
It’s not the Cui family, it’s the Qian family.
Yangzhou has a family of salt merchants. The current head of the family is Qian Minjiang, who has an only daughter named "Tong".
Copper coins.
The name suits the person.
——
Qian Tong's carriage stopped at the main gate of the Qian family.
Three steps above the staircase, two black lacquered doors were open, with gilded animal heads holding fine bronze door knockers, emitting a golden and quiet halo in the sunlight.
Upon crossing the threshold, one is greeted by a natural Hetian jade screen wall, carved with a painting of a hundred children. Walking around it, one is greeted by a vibrant world of flowers and trees. Weeping crabapples, magnolias, pomegranates, and golden osmanthus trees are lined up, one every ten steps, each blooming in accordance with the season. Right now, the crabapples and magnolias are in full bloom, and the delicate fragrance of the flowers lingers deep into the mansion.
Housekeeper Cao came to greet them from the red sandalwood veranda on the left. "Madam, the prefect's wife is here. She is talking to you in the courtyard. Would you like to come over?"
Qian Tong asked doubtfully, "Didn't you say you had an appointment for the next Spring Banquet?"
Steward Cao followed her, looking awkward and unable to speak. "Madam had originally agreed to discuss this with the Magistrate's wife next time, but something happened in Young Master Lan's courtyard... As Madam was about to leave, she was stopped by a pregnant woman. After a commotion, she discovered she was a cousin staying at the Magistrate's mansion."
The cousin of the prefectural governor was pregnant and stopped Mrs. Qian from discussing marriage with Young Master Lan.
The same boring things that have been going on in the backyard for a hundred years.
Young Master Lan has been keeping the Cui and Qian families company for several years. He's not young anymore, so it's only natural that he couldn't resist reproducing. However... Qian Tong said, "Mother knows."
Her tone was very light, and it wasn't a question. Steward Cao raised his head nervously, but saw that her face was calm, with no sign of joy or anger. He said hurriedly, "The Magistrate's wife has promised that this girl won't stay in the mansion until you come in."
Is this a question of whether to stay or not? Fu Yin frowned and said, "The marriage hasn't been decided yet. Who said I'm going to marry into the Lan family?"
Steward Cao didn't like this marriage from the bottom of his heart, but it was the only way out for the Qian family at the moment, and the head of the family and his wife obviously didn't want to give up.
Just as he was feeling embarrassed, Qian Tong took over and said, "I'll go take a look."
On the way to the main courtyard, there is a row of moon-shaped gates staggered in between. People passing through them can see the waxing and waning of the moon. At the end of the moon is a nine-curve bridge made of She stone. Under the bridge is a pool of running water, and several koi are clearly visible under the gurgling water.
A noblewoman dressed in Shu brocade stood by the stream, watching the maidservant feeding the fish. Her voice was slow and heavy, "How many people in this world can possess the foresight to foresee the future? When the war broke out, there were still two princes in the palace, each with an army of 50,000. In eight years, they were all wiped out. However, Your Majesty, who was isolated in a corner, gradually broke through the siege and recaptured Kyoto from the Tianlang. Such good fortune was not only unforeseen by your family, but even those veteran ministers of the dynasty could not have predicted it..."
The woman standing beside her was dressed in dazzling attire. She nodded repeatedly and said gratefully, "Yes, yes... Madam, you are very insightful."
"Your Majesty is truly magnanimous, but after all, you were rejected at the most difficult time. Who could possibly swallow this? It's all my fault. My wife has been in Yangzhou for so long, she's developed feelings for it, and now she considers it her home. She risked her life to negotiate, and only just managed to get five years of respite. Now, she can't suppress it anymore. For the sake of our sisterhood, I might as well reveal to you today that among the people sent to Yangzhou to investigate, one is the Queen's nephew, the young master of the Shen family..."
"This boy has accompanied Your Majesty in battle for many years. As a young man with a fiery temper, it's inevitable that he will bring up past scores."
The woman on the other side turned pale.
The noblewoman continued, "Your Qian family has made its fortune mining salt for generations, yet you're also dependent on the imperial court. From what I've heard, your salt permits are expiring this year."
The woman's face turned even paler.
The lady glanced at the sweat on the man's forehead, smiled, and changed her tone, "It's not that there is no way around it..."
The woman hastily promised, "If the prefect can help us through this difficult time, our Qian family..."
"My lady is back." The woman's voice was interrupted by the greeting of a servant not far away. When she looked up, she saw Qian Tong hurrying over on the stone bridge opposite. She felt as if she had seen a savior. Her tense expression gradually relaxed. She just noticed the sweat on her forehead. She took out a silk handkerchief to wipe it and said to the noble lady beside her in a flattering way, "Didn't my lady say that she wanted to see this girl? Look, she's back."
As they were talking, the young lady on the opposite side had already crossed the bridge and greeted the new guest warmly, "The Magistrate's wife is here."
The flowers and trees in the garden lost their color against the backdrop of the girl's smile.
It was not the first time that the wife of the prefect had seen her, but every time she saw her, her eyes could not help but linger on her for a while, and she could not help but feel sorry that if she were not a merchant, she would be a perfect match for her son.
If she really wanted to marry a merchant, she would prefer this young lady from the Qian family to the girl from the Cui family. The prefect's wife smiled and replied, "It's spring these days, where did the Seventh Lady go to enjoy the scenery?"
After approaching, Qian Tong knelt down to greet her and replied softly, "Mother likes to eat deep-sea yellow flower. I went to the dock this morning to see if there was any fresh stock."
The Magistrate's wife turned to the woman beside her with envy on her face, "Madam Qian has raised a wonderful daughter. Look, how filial she is."
This finally gave Madam Qian some confidence. She immediately put on the airs of a mother and complained softly, "How could I be so greedy for food? Butler Cao has been looking for you for so long. Why did you just come back?"
Qian Tong didn't look up at Madam Qian's expression and explained, "My daughter met the sixth sister of the Cui family on the way."
Although the Cui and Qian families had an alliance through marriage, their relationship had not been eased, especially recently, the two families had been secretly competing for the youngest son of the prefect, and they were almost turning against each other openly.
Because the prefect's wife was present, Mrs. Qian didn't dare ask if the two had any more disagreements during their meeting.
Qian Tong continued, "I wanted to invite Sister Cui to come with me, but she said she was busy redeeming a saddle for a young master."
The prefect's wife, who had been smiling brightly just a moment ago, suddenly changed her expression.
Her unruly little son lost a saddle to the Pu family in a bet a few days ago, and he was very unwilling to accept it. Today, when Madam Qian came to her house to propose marriage, he also said that as long as the Qian family redeemed the saddle for him, he would immediately accept the marriage.
So he turned around and looked for the Cui family again.
idiot.
How much is a saddle worth?
She negotiated between the Cui and Qian families and helped him to resolve the troubles in the harem, all in order to negotiate the highest bargaining chip. But he sold himself for a saddle.
The Magistrate's wife had no intention of staying any longer. "You two mother and daughter, enjoy your reunion. I won't disturb you."
Mrs. Qian had naturally heard about the saddle, and fearing that the Cui family would snatch it first, she hurriedly tried to persuade him to stay, "Madam, didn't we agree to stay for dinner? I've already had the banquet prepared..."
"Let's do it another day. Are we sisters worried about not having the chance to get together?"
Mrs. Qian was worried and chased after him, "Madam Zhizhou, we have already agreed..."
Qian Tong looked at the two figures chasing each other and gradually walking away. He calmly took the fish feed from the servant beside him and stirred up a few koi in the stream.
When Madam Qian returned after seeing the Magistrate's wife off, she saw her squatting by the stream, chatting and laughing with a group of maids, playing with the fish. She stamped her feet in frustration, "You, you still have the time to feed the fish? Your marriage is about to be snatched away by someone else!"
Qian Tongtou didn't even turn around, "Whoever wants to snatch it away can give it to her. I didn't say I want to marry her."
Mrs. Qian was stunned. "You don't want to marry? What will the Qian family do? Do you know who the court sent this time..."
"Who is it?" Qian Tong suddenly stood up, almost bumping into Madam Qian's head as she leaned forward. Before she could react, he said sternly, "Did the Magistrate's wife come here today to threaten you with the salt permit?"
"Everyone knows that our Qian family's salt permit is about to expire. It's no secret. If the imperial court really wants to make things difficult for the Qian family, how can a mere prefect like him protect it?"
Mrs. Qian also knew these things, but, "Well, what can we do? He is already the highest official in Yangzhou. The wife of the prefect said that the Lan family has some influence in the court..."
Innocent.
Qian Tong punctured her fantasy, "The Lan family is just taking advantage of the downfall of the four major families to make a move. If the Qian family still wants to preserve its family business, it is not to cling to the powerful, but to cut off its own wings and avoid their sharp edge."
Mrs. Qian asked bewilderedly, "How can we avoid it?"
Qian Tong: "I'm getting married."
Sometimes she doesn't want to get married, and sometimes she wants to get married. Mrs. Qian doesn't know what she is doing.
"I'd rather marry a poor man than the prefect." Qian Tong looked at the stunned Madam Qian, "I've already chosen the man. I'll report to my father when he comes back."
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