After arriving in the capital these past few days, they inquired around and discovered that the imperial court still had plans to build more trains, so they started looking for people. The quickest way would have been for Lei Nianren to introduce them, but they were afraid the Lei family would find out and steal their opportunity.
However, they were completely clueless in the capital and didn't know anyone. One of them made friends everywhere, and the other delivered fish soup everywhere. By now, they had made a few friends.
This morning, Zhou Jingxian used his connections to find Cheng Gonghuan, the Vice Minister of Works. When Cheng Gonghuan heard that Zhou wanted to invest, he was extremely welcoming, as the Emperor was currently worried about money!
However, after hearing Zhou Jingxian's conditions, he fell silent. Looking at Zhou Jingxian, he cursed inwardly, "He really can't become the richest man in Jiangnan. His courage is far inferior to that of the Lei family."
Although Cheng Gonghuan was very unhappy with Zhou Jingxian's behavior of wanting to gain more benefits with less effort, it was still an investment after all. He still arranged a time with Zhou Jingxian to talk to the relevant officials himself.
The father and daughter were talking when the outside became lively again. A little while later, a servant ran in, carrying a strip of cloth about the length of a finger.
The servant was very excited. "Master and Miss! I found this inside the fish's belly when I was killing it!"
When the Zhou family first arrived in the capital, although they had purchased a residence, they were unfamiliar with the area and did not hire many servants. Most of the servants they used were brought from Jiangnan.
They had traveled a long way through mountains and rivers, and they didn't bring many people with them. After they chased away Liu Ma, the kitchen was too busy, so they sent this servant over to help.
This servant was a short-term laborer they hired in the capital. He was originally illiterate, but he had a younger sister who attended a girls' school, and his sister taught him to recognize a few characters.
He was puzzled when he found the strip of cloth while cleaning the fish, but after squinting and seeing the words "princess" and "descendants" written on it, he became excited. Although he couldn't understand the full meaning of the strip of cloth, the mention of a princess meant it must be something very important!
"What is that?"
Zhou Jingxian and his daughter covered their noses, looking with disgust at the strip of cloth that the servant handed them, which smelled of fish.
"I don't recognize all the characters, but I do recognize the words 'princess' and 'descendants' at the top!"
The servant pushed the strip of cloth forward again. This time, Zhou Jingxian and his daughter didn't back away, and their expressions of disgust were even less. They looked at the servant and asked in confusion, "Princess?"
The servant nodded hastily.
Is it some kind of script?
This was the first thought that popped into Zhou Jingxian's and his daughter's minds, but after looking at the strip of cloth, they dismissed the idea; the script couldn't possibly be that short.
"Found inside a fish's belly?"
Zhou Shuqin asked again, and the servant nodded vigorously once more.
The father and daughter exchanged a glance, and Zhou Jingxian quickly took out a handkerchief from his pocket and carefully examined the strip of cloth that the servant had handed him.
He laughed after reading it, which puzzled Zhou Shuqin. "Father, what does it say?"
Zhou Jingxian looked at his daughter and smiled even more broadly, "What a blessing! What a blessing!"
If he helps the royal family find their descendants who have been lost among the common people, wouldn't that be doing the royal family a favor? Then, in terms of investing in trains, they would have a greater advantage than the Lei family! It would even be just around the corner for them to surpass the Lei family and become the richest family in Jiangnan!
Zhou Jingxian handed the strip of cloth to his daughter. Zhou Shuqin was so excited that her hands trembled after reading it. They had also heard about the story of the famous general who was trapped in the fish's belly. It was a wonderful tale.
However, after a moment of excitement, Zhou Shuqin frowned and said to Zhou Jingxian, "Father, this couldn't be...?"
She was about to say that it couldn't be fake when Zhou Jingxian interrupted her, "Someone found a memorial inside a fish's belly before, and the emperor sent someone to investigate and even gave that person an official position! Now our family has found this letter, and the content of the letter is related to the imperial heir. We must deliver it to the emperor as soon as possible!"
Although Zhou Jingxian didn't say it explicitly, Zhou Shuqin understood. Yes! Whether it's true or false, the emperor believes it! As long as the emperor believes it, even if it's false, it's true!
"I have to go out for a bit!"
Zhou Jing first wrapped the white silk in a handkerchief and put it in his pocket. Then he hurriedly went to find the Vice Minister of Works, hoping to use this to gain credit and thus obtain more profits from the investment.
Zhou Shuqin happily rewarded the servant with several pieces of silver and then waited at home for her father's good news.
The news that the message was delivered through the fish belly spread quickly after Zhou Shuqin instructed the Zhou family to do so. The news spread throughout the streets and alleys, and some people even thought of the previous rumor about a new star appearing near the Ziwei Star. Didn't that correspond perfectly with the contents of the message delivered through the fish belly?
Just as the rumors were spreading, Cheng Gonghuan, the Vice Minister of Works, obtained the strip of cloth. Watching Zhou Jingxian across from him enthusiastically describe it as a miraculous miracle, he merely frowned and remained silent.
Zhou Jingxian didn't know the truth, but he did know what a miracle was! It was all thanks to that feng shui master who studied the I Ching!
Yi He was already punished by the emperor. If he takes this thing to show the emperor, will he also be punished?
However, Yi He's story led to the claim of a famous general, while this white silk was said to be a descendant of Princess Jingmin. If he didn't inform the emperor, and the feng shui master really was a descendant of Princess Jingmin, wouldn't he be delaying the royal family's recognition of their kinship?
Cheng Gonghuan glanced at the excited Zhou Jingxian, his brows relaxed, and he smiled as well. "That's right! I'll just take this guy with me. Anyway, it wasn't him who discovered it; he's just a messenger. Even if the emperor punishes him, the main focus won't be on him."
Zhou Jingxian never imagined that he would one day be able to enter the palace. Although he was just waiting to be summoned at the palace gate, the excitement he felt was much more real than when he was boasting about the miracle.
However, when the emperor in the Ganlu Hall saw the white silk presented by Cheng Gonghuan, his lips twitched. "Is this never going to end?"
"Who discovered it this time?"
The emperor's face was not very good. He was so worried that he was almost bald, and yet he was asked to deal with such a ridiculous matter!
Cheng Gonghuan precisely grasped the word "this time" in the emperor's words, paused for a moment, and wondered, "Who else noticed? I haven't heard of it!"
These past two days, besides handling official business, he's been focusing on skincare at home. Could he have missed some news?
However, Cheng Gonghuan didn't dwell on it too much. Regardless of who discovered it first, he could tell from the emperor's unpleasant tone that he had noticed it. So he cautiously replied, "It was Zhou Jingxian, a wealthy merchant from Jiangnan. He bought a fish to make fish soup, and his servants discovered this white silk when they were cleaning the fish."
The emperor frowned. A wealthy merchant?
Among the wealthy merchants in Jiangnan, he only knows the Lei and Wen families. The Lei family has already participated in the construction of the Great Jin Dynasty, and yesterday he met with the Minister of Justice, implying that the Wen family should also invest.
Who is this wealthy businessman Zhou Jingxian?
Cheng Gonghuan then explained that Zhou Jingxian wanted to invest, but demanded a lot in return. The emperor's face darkened upon hearing this.
When the Lei family invested, they didn't expect anything in return, and they didn't care about the consequences of throwing money around (the emperor didn't know that Lei Nianren was so willing to go all out to win over his wife), but this Zhou Jingxian was considering both the risks and the various benefits.
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