Chapter 262 If you can't even eat properly, who can still laugh?
Lin Shiyuan took off his clothes and looked down at the cloth strip wrapped around his chest.
A little blood seeped out.
But this is nothing compared to the injuries he sustained on the battlefield.
However, the criticism he received made him unhappy.
But can Yao Qingling hold on?
The man's brow furrowed even deeper.
The wound medicine was sprinkled on the wound, but the pain was like being scraped by a knife again, and cold sweat beaded on my forehead.
Just as I finished re-wrapping the clean strips of cloth, the door was suddenly pushed open.
"Brother!" Lin Qiao had something to say to Lin Shiyuan, so she forgot to knock and pushed the door open. But when she noticed his injury, her voice changed. "Brother! You're injured!"
Lin Shiyuan calmly put on his clean undergarments without changing his expression: "It's just a minor injury, it's not like I've never been injured before."
Lin Qiao wanted to check his wound, but Lin Shiyuan pushed her back, saying, "You're all grown up now, don't touch me like that."
Lin Qiao pouted, but couldn't help nagging, "Everyone outside says that you'll stop at nothing to get promoted, brother. Tell me, was it worth getting stabbed like that?"
I was wounded on the battlefield before, but it was to defend the southern border and protect the people of the dawn. It was worth the bloodshed.
At that time, General Zhennan enjoyed immense prestige in the southern region. Every time he returned from a campaign, the people would line the streets to welcome him. Even if he was recognized while walking in civilian clothes, the people would still gather around to say a few words.
At that time, Lin Shiyuan was known as the "Butcher General" by his enemies, but as a guardian deity by the people.
But what about now?
His search for court officials must have offended many people.
To save their own lives and preserve their wealth and status, they hated him to the core.
However, the people did not applaud.
Lin Qiao felt that it wasn't worth it for her brother to do this; it would be bad for him in the end.
Lin Shiyuan gently patted her head: "You don't need to worry about these things. Are we not getting enough meat in the manor?"
He assumed Lin Qiao had barged in because she was worried about tomorrow's meals.
"If I go out of the city tomorrow, I'll buy some meat on the way back."
Lin Qiao pushed his large hand away: "Brother, I want to go see Sister Qingling."
Lin Shiyuan fell silent.
How could he not want to see her and ease his longing?
However, he was being watched, and he couldn't go anywhere except to the place where the case was being handled.
He was also unwilling to share the sword fight with Yao Qingling.
At least for now, she is safe in the Marquis's residence.
He was attacked and injured, and officials immediately took the opportunity to recommend him to the emperor, ostensibly to share his burden, but in reality to monitor him at all times.
Now, countless eyes are watching him, more than ever before.
"no."
"Brother, you and Sister Qingling had a falling out, but I didn't. Why can't I go see her? I also want to see Brother Zhao'er." Lin Qiao was angry, and her little face fell.
Lin Shiyuan said, "She survived such a serious illness before, so she'll be fine this time too. Don't worry, she's tough, she won't die."
"Brother!" Lin Qiao was furious. How could he say that so casually, as if he wanted something to happen to Yao Qingling?
Lin Shiyuan glanced at the figure flashing past the window and scolded Lin Qiao: "You're not allowed to go, that's final. You're my sister, after all. Even if you go to the Marquis's mansion, they might not welcome you."
The Lin Mansion that Lin Shiyuan is currently residing in was allocated to him by the Ministry of Revenue at the emperor's request.
He was considered a favorite of the emperor, and this was a reward bestowed upon him by the emperor.
Lin Shiyuan didn't know, and didn't trust, who the masters behind each of the servants in the mansion were.
Lin Qiao pouted angrily and stormed off, leaving the door open behind her.
The cold wind howled into the room, causing the candlelight to flicker and almost go out.
Lin Shiyuan sighed, sat down, and clenched his fists tightly.
Just be patient a little longer, it'll be soon...
Just then, Tianzhu arrived.
He was still dressed in a black cloth robe, which made him look simple and unpretentious, yet also capable. However, others only saw him as gloomy.
Tian Zhu cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Shiyuan: "My lord."
I glanced at the wound on his chest.
Lin Shiyuan remained indifferent and slowly fastened his buttons: "My family only has cold steamed buns and pickled vegetables. If Lord Tian is here to freeload, he has come to the wrong place."
Tian Zhu smiled and said, "I didn't expect Yao Qingling to have such a good reputation among the people, to the point that it's affecting the adults' meals. She used to meet with eight matchmakers a day and keep male lovers, so the people aren't exactly talking about her."
Lin Shiyuan looked at him indifferently: "What the common people care about is how many coins they need for rice and grain each day, and whether they can save more money for New Year's goods to spend next year. If you cut off this path for them, who will care about those romantic stories?"
People need to eat.
When fundamental interests are at stake, everything else is merely fodder for idle conversation and amusement.
For ordinary people, the question was whether a few extra coins would allow them to eat rice or rice with sandy soil.
If the closure of Huibafang only affects the purchase of New Year's goods, the closure of grain and oil shops will have a much greater impact.
If you can't even eat properly, who can still laugh?
Yao Qingling is not only good at business, but she also has an extra layer of thought when doing this most basic business that affects people's livelihoods.
At her shop, you could buy a bag of medium-quality rice for a few coins less, while other shops sold inferior broken rice mixed with sand.
Yao Qingling didn't fight, but she used other methods to win over the hearts of the common people.
Taking action against Yao Qingling is taking action against the interests of the people.
Tian Zhu's smile froze for a moment, and a sinister glint flashed in his eyes.
The purpose of sealing off Yao Qingling's shops under the pretext of receiving a report was to divert Lin Shiyuan's attention and make him focus his energy on these shops, giving other powerful figures time to clean up the mess.
Unexpectedly, Yao Qingling was quite shrewd, and even more unexpectedly, she actually had no connection with corruption.
It makes it impossible for anyone to find any fault with it.
However, even if there is no evidence, we will fabricate evidence to convict Yao Qingling and make sure she is not innocent!
Tian Zhu said, "My lord, during my investigation of Liu Cheng, he confessed that the white peacock in his mansion came from Yao Jianzheng of Shanglin Garden. In addition, he maintained close contact with many local officials, who would send him rare and exotic animals, which he would then send to the mansions of various ministers to raise, from which he would receive a large amount of benefits."
The Marquis of Zhongyong is corrupt and has been abusing his power to embezzle huge sums of money. Now, not only Yao Qingling, but the entire Marquis's mansion will be in trouble!
"My lord, we've been investigating Yao Qingling for so long, thinking that only she had a problem. But in fact, we've all overlooked the Marquis of Zhongyong."
“They are a family. The Marquis of Zhongyong used rare and exotic animals to bribe and win over officials, and then secretly sold the rare and exotic treasures he collected through her shop. No wonder we can’t find any substantial evidence against her.”
Lin Shiyuan narrowed his eyes: "Liu Fang?"
Liu Fang was the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department whom he had arrested ten days earlier.
This old eunuch has been in the palace for so long that not only the empresses try to win him over, but even the court officials send him gifts.
He smuggled treasures from the imperial treasury out of the palace, filled the treasury with fakes, and found three million taels of silver, two large chests of gold ingots, countless rare treasures, and a pair of white peacocks in his mansion.
The old eunuch had no interest in rare and exotic animals. To him, the pair of white peacocks sent from Shanglin Garden were just big birds to decorate his yard, no different from ordinary pheasants.
They were caught without even realizing it, because those two ostentatious white peacocks gave them away.
Tian Zhu looked at Lin Shiyuan with a sinister gaze: "My lord, now that we have witnesses, we'll have to trouble you to go to the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence together."
Lin Shiyuan frowned: "Why the rush? Just send men to surround the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence, and go tomorrow."
"In this freezing weather, even if I had a body of iron, I couldn't withstand the fatigue of these past few days of travel. I need to rest."
Tian Zhu gave a formal bow with his hands clasped: "My lord, time is of the essence. I'm afraid someone might leak the news and ruin things, which would be difficult to explain to the Emperor. I would be grateful if you could make the trouble of going to the Marquis's residence."
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