Soon after Yin Chengyu led his men away from the capital, Emperor Longfeng followed his original schedule and went to the hot spring palace outside the capital to recuperate. Because he had been attending to the emperor for less than a month, Yin Ciguang also followed him.

As the confidant of Emperor Longfeng, Xue Shu was left behind to run the government. Minor matters were decided by him and the other scholars in the inner cabinet. If there were major matters, he would go to the palace to ask Emperor Longfeng for a decision.

The New Year holidays are a time of leisure, with nothing else to do except the snowstorm in Huguang.

When officials in the capital interacted with each other and chatted over wine, they inevitably mentioned the crown prince who went to Huguang to provide disaster relief, and the eldest prince who was brought by Emperor Longfeng and was deeply loved.

No one knows when it started, but there are rumors that Emperor Longfeng actually favors the eldest prince more. The eldest prince previously disguised himself as a woman to hide his identity, not because of some immortal’s dream, but because Emperor Longfeng’s throne was not stable at that time, and he was afraid that the birth of his eldest son would displease the Empress Dowager and the Yu family, so he resorted to this desperate measure.

Now the throne is secure, the eldest prince is about to reach adulthood, and he made great contributions when the plague was rampant, and his ability is not inferior to that of the crown prince. Emperor Longfeng made the eldest prince's identity public and always brought him with him, probably to support the eldest prince to compete with the crown prince.

As we all know, the dispute over the "primogeniture" to the throne has always been an extremely sensitive topic.

Over the years, the prince had supported the Yu family and made countless contributions. But anyone with a discerning eye could see that Emperor Longfeng disliked the prince and the Yu family, so many people in the court tried to figure out the emperor's thoughts and placed their bets on the second and third princes.

I just don’t want the second prince to disappear just like that, and now the eldest prince appears.

The second and third princes are young, and their political achievements cannot surpass the crown prince. But the eldest prince is different. He is favored by the emperor and is the eldest. Although he has no foundation in the court, his chances of winning are greater than the third prince.

For a while, rumors spread throughout Wangjing City that Emperor Longfeng intended to support the eldest prince and "establish the eldest son" were rampant.

Xue Shu was flipping through the booklet handed over by the servants below. It recorded in detail which officials had a conversation over drinks and talked in a certain place on a certain day of a certain year, at a certain time, about whether Emperor Longfeng should establish the heir or the eldest son.

This record was not the only one. After Yin Ciguang followed Emperor Longfeng to the temporary palace outside the capital, similar rumors suddenly increased.

Some of this was of course the result of Emperor Longfeng deliberately letting it go, but more of it was the result of someone fanning the flames from behind.

After putting away the record book, Xue Shu's expression turned slightly gloomy.

He didn't even need to send anyone to investigate, he could guess who was behind the incident.

It was either Concubine Wen or Yin Chengjing.

It doesn’t matter which one it is. Both of them are enemies and must be eliminated sooner or later.

Xue Shu called Wei Xihe over.

Wei Xihe is now the chief of the criminal department of Xichang, and on the surface he is also the governor of Xichang. But in reality, since Xue Shu gave Zhao Youwei a warning last time, Zhao Youwei cherished his life and had honestly given up his power.

Now the West Factory is under the complete control of Wei Xihe and obeys Xue Shu's orders.

"Send someone to spread the news that the Third Prince Dongshou was fundamentally injured and inhumane."

Rumors are the hardest to dispel, and rumors involving the dispute over the "firstborn" are even easier to spread. The person behind the scenes released the news just to alienate Yin Chengyu and Yin Ciguang and provoke a fight between the two.

In that case, he simply suppressed it with another more eye-catching piece of news.

People are always forgetful. As time goes by, when there is something new to talk about, they will naturally forget the old things.

Wei Xihe was surprised for a moment when he heard this, but soon understood his intention: "I will obey your orders."

Two days later, new rumors spread in the capital.

It is said that the third prince fell in love with the Tatar princess at first sight during the winter hunt, but the Tatar princess fell in love with the prince. The third prince was indignant, so he took the opportunity to seize the Tatar princess during the hunting. But the Tatar princess had a very fierce temper, and she was not easy to bully. In a rage, she drugged the third prince and castrated him!

It is said that when the third prince was taken out of the enclosure, his lower body was covered in blood, which was very scary. The Tatar delegation felt that they were wronged, so they had to give the princess to the third prince as a concubine.

The rumor is half true and half false, but it is very eye-catching.

After it was released, the story quickly spread without the need for Western animation to fan the flames. In just two days, there were even several versions, all of which were spread with details and details, as if they were seen with one's own eyes.

The gates of the mansions of the officials who accompanied the Red Rhino in the winter hunt were almost broken down. The rumor was so shocking that whether out of curiosity or for self-interest, officials in the capital were all asking about what happened on that day of the winter hunt.

According to officials who participated in the winter hunt, some details actually matched the rumors!

The third prince was indeed carried out of the enclosure, his lower body covered in blood. It was said that he had injured his thigh while trying to save the Tatar princess.

He broke his thigh, which sounds very obvious.

Even the Third Prince's future father-in-law, the Five Armies Left Commander-in-Chief Yao Zhaoan, could no longer sit still and went to the Third Prince's residence to inquire about the situation.

It is said that the third prince was so angry that he smashed a room.

Everyone's attention turned to whether the Third Prince could be humane, and no one cared about the dispute between the Crown Prince and the Eldest Prince over the title of "prime minister".

Xue Shu looked at the booklet sent by Wei Xihe and sneered: "Let's create some trouble for them first, and then we can deal with them when we get back."

"Will the Governor leave tomorrow?" Wei Xihe asked.

"We will set out tonight. The capital will be left to you and Cui Ci. Find more things for them to do and don't let them have too much free time."

Just after Yin Chengyu rushed to Huguang, Xue Shu ordered people to spread the word that there was an old immortal in Wudang Mountain who was highly skilled in Taoism, knew about past and present lives, and understood the way of reincarnation.

The news finally reached the ears of Emperor Longfeng in the past two days. After his illness, he became more and more frail and unable to handle many things. He became more and more devoted to gods and Buddhas. As soon as he got the news, he sent a letter to Xue Shu, asking him to go to Mount Wudang to invite the old immortal to the capital.

Xue Shu naturally felt obliged to do so.

His Highness has been away from Beijing for six or seven days, and he can't wait to see him.

Yin Chengyu, along with four officials from the Ministry of Revenue and several local officials, spent five or six days surveying the entire disaster-stricken prefecture in Huguang.

After confirming the disaster situation was true, he ordered the local government to register the household registration and loss situation of the people affected by the disaster. After returning to Beijing and reporting to the Ministry of Revenue, the disaster-stricken areas would be exempted from taxes for three years.

But tax exemption is a long-term strategy. In the current disaster situation, tax exemption alone is not enough. We have to find a way to obtain disaster relief supplies.

The weather was freezing cold and the roads were difficult to travel on. The disaster relief rations borrowed from surrounding granaries would take at least half a month to arrive.

Far water cannot quench near thirst.

"Huguang is a land of plenty, with many wealthy families. Now that the people are suffering, we can propose that the wealthy donate more money and grain to help the victims." Yin Chengyu said thoughtfully.

These wealthy families owned large tracts of land and must have had sufficient food.

In the past, apart from the imperial court, local wealthy families and gentry would also donate money and materials to disaster relief. In return, the imperial court would erect a monument to commend their merits.

"Your Highness, you may not know that before the snow disaster was reported, some wealthy families in the countryside had already donated food to help the disaster relief. However, Prefect Yu showed a somewhat embarrassed look, and after a long pause, he gritted his teeth and said, "But later, these merchants who were willing to donate food and goods, and even not raise prices, were secretly warned by the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce. After that, no one dared to donate anymore."

The Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce was the largest chamber of commerce in Huguang, covering many trading transactions such as grain, cloth, grain transport, salt, wine and tea. The merchants in the chamber of commerce were spread across the two capitals and thirteen provinces. All merchants of some scale in Huguang joined the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce.

Individual merchants can buy and sell goods through the Chamber of Commerce's connections, but at the same time they must also pay 20% of the profits to the Chamber of Commerce as a reward.

The Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce was located in Wuchang Prefecture. Its president, Zhou Zhiling, was born in a noble family. His wife, Ms. Shao, was a distant relative of the Shao family in Beijing. With this relationship, Zhou Zhiling developed the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce. In recent years, he has become a person of great influence in the Huguang area. Even local officials occasionally rely on his support.

The previous governor of Huguang had a close relationship with Zhou Zhiling, so whenever there was a disaster, the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce would provide support.

But the current governor, Jiang Zheng, who has only been in office for two years, is an upright person who hates the intrigues between officials and businessmen. In the past two years, he has rejected Zhou Zhiling's invitations several times and strictly disciplined his subordinates, never allowing them to take bribes for personal gain.

Just last year, a young man from the Zhou family broke the law. The Zhou family came to Jiang Zheng for help, but not only was he turned away by Jiang Zheng, but he was also exiled to a remote place according to the law.

So during this winter's snowstorm, the Zhou family not only refused to donate, but also forbade other merchants to donate. Worse still, they ordered the merchants under the Chamber of Commerce to hoard food, cloth, and charcoal, taking the opportunity to raise prices.

Not to mention ordinary poor people, even some wealthy families can hardly afford to buy winter supplies.

After Jiang Zheng learned the news, he also sent Prefect Yu to negotiate.

But Zhou Zhiling was cunning. He said that it was freezing cold and the journey was difficult, so it was not easy for the merchants to transport the goods back. There were only a few goods left in the warehouse. If they did not raise the price, they might not even make back their investment. So they just refused to lower the price.

Although there is an old tradition of wealthy people donating, people are unwilling to donate now, and Jiang Zheng cannot persuade people to donate. He is also unable to control merchants from raising prices, so he can only find other ways.

"Are they distant relatives of the Shao family in the capital?" Yin Chengyu clicked his tongue and finally understood Shao Tian's sudden proposal to send the prince to Huguang to provide disaster relief.

"Have the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce and the Zhou family committed any crimes in the past?"

"No." Prefect Yu said, "Both the Zhou family and the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce have a very good reputation in Huguang. Zhou Zhiling is even more famous as a great philanthropist."

"If he is really a kind-hearted person, why would he hoard goods during a snowstorm?" Yin Chengyu tapped the table with his fingers, thinking about how to start with the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce.

If the Sanjiang Chamber of Commerce and the Zhou family had committed any crime, he could simply investigate and confiscate their property, and the seized grain and silver would be just the right amount for disaster relief.

But if the other party is good at pretending, it may be difficult to take action in a short time.

Just as he was frowning and thinking, he suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from the door: "The East Factory guards are good at sleuthing. No matter how cunning a fox is, it cannot escape the eyes and ears of the East Factory. Your Highness, why don't you hand this matter over to me."

Yin Chengyu looked in the direction of the sound and saw Xue Shu, covered in snow, pushing the door open.

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