Chapter 42 Am I not like one who shares wealth and honor?
"Junior Sister knows I'm not that kind of person."
"I don't know anymore."
"Junior Sister doesn't believe me?"
A young woman who foolishly went to the rice shop every day to ask about prices, and was overjoyed for days if the price of rice dropped even slightly, shook her head:
"If I hadn't heard about this in the East Market, I wouldn't have known that you had lifted the food rationing order."
Ouyang Rong said earnestly, "I did not embezzle funds. Money is not important to me; fairness is what matters to me."
"Your idea of fairness is to let grain prices rise arbitrarily?" Xie Lingjiang took a deep breath. "If you do this, you're not even as good as the Liu family who run soup kitchens."
Ouyang Rong frowned. "The soup kitchen run by the Liu family... does Junior Sister really not know about it, or is she pretending not to know?"
"Never mind whether I know or not, I only believe what I see now." Xie Lingjiang turned her head away, pursed her lips, and after a while, said again, "At least other people will put on an act, but Ouyang Lianghan, what about you?"
Ouyang Rong was slightly taken aback. He looked at his junior sister, who seemed to be sulking, for a moment, and asked:
"Junior sister knows that what I did was ultimately for the good of the people of Dragon City... so why did you say such hurtful things?"
"Who said anything in anger? Putting aside what you're trying to do by deregulating grain prices, I... am not as smart as you in this regard, and I can't figure it out right now."
Xie Lingjiang turned around and glared at him angrily:
“But Ouyang Lianghan, you never discuss any plans with anyone beforehand, always acting like you can’t be bothered to say anything. Are we really... partners? Am I still your advisor?”
"Forehead……"
Ouyang Rong had a vague understanding of women's thought processes, but only a little bit. It was like he had six of his seven orifices open, but one was still unclear.
"How about we discuss it now?" he said with a forced smile.
Actually, if his junior sister hadn't mentioned it, he would have completely forgotten that he had an advisor. What? His junior sister was an advisor? Wasn't she the one responsible for physical strength? Advisors are supposed to be the brains...
"No!"
Xie Lingjiang raised her fair chin and refused decisively:
“I’m not stupid enough to tell you. I’ll figure it out myself… But Ouyang Lianghan, have you thought about how many people in Longcheng will be affected by the current rise in grain prices in the short term? This might be the last straw that breaks the camel’s back for some family.”
Ouyang Rong remained silent for a while. This was the question he had been silently avoiding for the past few days, which was why he kept urging himself to act quickly and ruthlessly.
He said earnestly, "The disaster relief camps outside the city have been providing food to those on the brink of starvation."
Xie Lingjiang silently watched the young magistrate, who seemed to suddenly appear somewhat tired, for a while. She sniffed and turned to leave.
Today, she arrived quickly, dressed in red, and left just as quickly.
Just like his temperament.
"Junior Sister".
Ouyang Rong suddenly called out to the fiery red figure.
“Sometimes, justice comes at a price,” he said, looking lost in thought.
Xie Lingjiang stopped in her tracks.
"I...disagree."
The woman stubbornly left.
...
"Is something on your mind, Sister Xie?"
After the banquet at the Su residence, on the flower-lined path back to her quarters, Su Guo'er, carrying a small lantern, asked without turning her head.
Xie Lingjiang glanced at her graceful figure, her long dress trailing on the ground.
"Why is Su-meimei staring at me instead of eating properly?"
"Sister Xie's feelings are written all over her face, so it's naturally noticeable."
Xie Lingjiang asked, "Sister Su, do you know that sometimes what you say can be quite annoying?"
Su Guo'er wasn't annoyed. With her back to Xie Lingjiang's back, she nodded slightly, her hair styled in a cloud-like pattern.
"But I'm telling the truth."
Xie Lingjiang remained silent.
Su Guo'er pressed on, "Is it related to your senior brother?"
Xie Lingjiang and this young lady from the Su family didn't actually get along very well. Perhaps it was because outstanding women naturally had a clash of pride. The two often had disagreements on their ideas. Later, they simply stopped arguing. After all, they lived under the same roof and tried to talk about topics they could agree on.
However, Aunt Su was a very warm and hospitable person. She treated Xie Lingjiang like her own daughter, which warmed Xie Lingjiang's heart, who had lost her mother at a young age. Aunt Su had just told her at dinner that she should spend more time talking to Su Guo'er, who had few friends of the same age, when she had time.
Xie Lingjiang walked quietly for a while, then, still somewhat indignant, briefly recounted how her senior brother had deregulated grain prices.
To her utter surprise, Su Guo'er nodded and asserted after hearing the story:
"This young man possesses exceptional talent and profound knowledge of principles. Sister Xie need not worry about the grain price."
Xie Lingjiang was speechless. "Didn't Sister Su say my senior brother was arrogant just a few days ago?"
Following behind the two women, Cai Shou also looked surprised and confused as she looked at her young mistress... Um, didn't you say last time that the new magistrate was a hypocrite?
The young lady of the Xie family is new and may not know this, but Cai Shou knows that her young lady has always liked to comment on people in private and has always been very good at judging people. In the past, when the master and young master had contact with people or events related to the Su family, they would ask the young lady for her comments and opinions at dinner.
So, on the surface, outsiders only know that Miss is the youngest daughter of the Su family who is pampered and spoiled by everyone, but they don't know that Miss has the right to make suggestions and even decisions on many things in the Su family.
Strangely, it happened nonetheless. The patriarch and the eldest son of the Su family seemed to think there was nothing wrong with women interfering in family affairs; on the contrary, they quite believed in it...
Regarding Xie Lingjiang's doubts behind her, Su Guo'er remained calm: "He can indeed be arrogant."
Back in the waterside courtyard, they said goodnight to each other and parted ways.
Su Guo'er returned to her boudoir and did not immediately wash up. Instead, she turned and went to her desk, ground ink and laid out paper. She lifted her long sleeves and a small, fair hand emerged, with pink nails and slender fingers, and pulled out a fine sheep's hair brush.
She tilted her head to gaze at the plum grove outside the window, gently tapping the tip of her pen against the fair chin of her oval face.
“Colorful ribbon”.
She called out.
"Miss, what is it?"
"Please pass on a message to my father and elder brother."
Su Guo'er lowered her eyes and put down her pen, her pink lips parting slightly: "Don't send servants, go to the county government office yourself in the next two days..."
Inside the study, the young lady, head bowed as she wrote, gave detailed instructions. The chubby-faced maid nodded and tried her best to remember them. Then, she scratched her head, which was styled with twin buns, and went out to deliver the message.
The study returned to silence. The young woman with plum blossom makeup on her brows had long since put down her brush and gone back to her room for a spring nap. On the Xuan paper on the desk, where she had casually written in her leisure time, there was still some ink on the brush: "Nine in the fourth place: Perhaps leaping in the abyss, no blame."
This is the fourth line of the first hexagram, Qian, in the *I Ching*. If Ouyang Rong, who "knows a little about everything," happened to be here, he could grasp some of the general meaning:
The dragon may be trapped in the abyss, but its power has been accumulated. It can't go wrong as long as it moves forward or backward according to the situation. It can try... taking a step forward.
It's unclear whether this was written to the young county magistrate or to the Su family mansion.
...
Su Guo'er didn't really believe in fate at first, but later she came to believe in it and even started studying metaphysics and the I Ching.
Tonight, she dreamt again of the warning spoken by the Taoist fortune teller who had performed the spirit writing for her years ago:
"Your Highness has dragon eyes and a phoenix neck, you are of the highest nobility, but you are still missing a destined benefactor before you can soar to great heights."
"Where is my benefactor? How can I find him?"
"This person is a hidden dragon in the abyss, emerging with the bright moon in his mouth. He will serve as an official in this county and then resign, writing an ode to his resignation and retirement. The bright moon and the poem will eventually be presented to Your Highness. At that time, Your Highness will be able to soar to the heavens. But remember, in addition to sharing hardships, this person must also share wealth and honor in order to stabilize Your Highness's destiny."
She frowned and said coldly, "Am I not like one who shares wealth and honor?"
The fortune teller lowered his head and said, "I don't know."
...
A rumor spread throughout the grain shops on every commercial street in Longcheng County:
The county government is running out of grain.
Rumors circulated that Jiangzhou was short of food, and the newly arrived Magistrate Ouyang, in order to curry favor with the Inspector Shen, lent a considerable amount of the disaster relief camp's reserve grain to Jiangzhou. The soldiers of the Zhechong Prefecture who recently left Longcheng were transporting the grain back to report their mission.
Meanwhile, street vendors have discovered that a group of people, suspected to be government officials, are buying up grain at high prices.
Whether the news is true or false is unknown, but the Longcheng County government has not denied it, which is very suspicious. If it is false, you should definitely deny it; if it is true, you should deny it even more. As for not denying it, isn't that admitting to shirking responsibility?
Surely it's not intentional to artificially inflate grain prices? Even if it were intentional, the grain merchants would play along.
In any case, the next day, the price of rice in the East Market of Longcheng County skyrocketed like fireworks. At its most extreme, a rice shop in the East Market had three different price tags inserted into its rice bags in a single day.
The news of soaring grain prices brought joy to some and sorrow to others, but it hadn't yet caused a major upheaval. However, another event was generating great enthusiasm among the city's residents and merchants: the Dragon Boat Festival, which was just a few days away.
The old Penglangdu Wharf, which had been neglected for a long time, was renovated and expanded by more than half its original size with the help of the county government and several wealthy water transport merchants in the city. After its completion, the new county magistrate personally came to celebrate and cut the ribbon.
The newly expanded ferry terminal is now attracting a steady stream of ships from outside the area.
News of the Dragon Boat Festival in Longcheng County has spread to many counties and prefectures in the upstream Yunmengze and downstream Yangtze River. Many wealthy officials and businessmen have brought their wives and children to visit and participate in this unique Dragon Boat Festival event in the Jiangzhou area.
However, not all the tourists disembarking from these tall and luxurious ships at the dock were from Jiangzhou, whose hometown had been flooded and unable to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival. Some were wealthy merchants from other states as well.
Under the midday sun, a strange merchant ship with the character "王" (Wang) written on its hull slowly docked at Penglangdu. Strangely, the merchant ship only stayed ashore for a short while, disembarked a few people, and then sailed away.
Among the people who were lowered from the boat, the one walking in front was a short young man, followed by several servants who seemed to be guards and attendants.
"I like this place."
The short young man, wearing a soft-brimmed turban, a narrow-sleeved round-necked robe, a black leather belt, and black boots, stood at the bustling, commercially vibrant ferry crossing. He placed his hands on his hips, took a deep breath, and smiled as he spoke:
"The ferry crossing is convenient, water transport is well-developed, and city taxes are cheap... Just smell it, it's all the smell of money."
One of the followers behind him couldn't help but ask, "Young Master, aren't we going to Hongzhou? Why are we stopping here in Jiangzhou?"
Shopkeeper Wang laughed and said, "I'll go wherever I can make money. Let's go to the street and see if it's really as rumored."
The followers were puzzled, but after Young Master Wang led them on a tour of the grain shops in the East Market and they returned, they were all astonished:
"Holy crap, what kind of heavenly king lives in Longcheng County? Grain is so expensive! Nineteen coins a dou? Are all the people living here so rich? There are even more nobles than in Hongzhou City?"
"That's normal. The flooding in Jiangzhou has been making headlines in Jiangnan Circuit recently. Haven't you heard? It's normal for grain prices to be higher during disasters."
"Even if it's a bit more expensive, it shouldn't be this outrageous. Compared to the grain prices of our company, it's doubled. Compared to our counterparts in Longcheng County, our company is practically doing charity and losing money. It's such a loss."
Manager Wang listened to the discussions of his followers with a smile, without saying a word, but he did agree with the saying, "To not make a big profit is to lose money."
As a member of a collateral branch of the family, although he was not good at studying in the private school, he liked to wander around outside from a young age and had some business acumen. Later, he followed the managers of the family business to travel all over the country, which honed his keen sense of information.
The decision to disembark at Lung Shing today was made after gathering some information yesterday.
After strolling around for a while, the young shopkeeper Wang said slowly, "And look, this county town is so lively, it doesn't look like it just recovered from the flood at all. There are no refugees on the streets, and you can hardly see any beggars. Moreover, it looks like they're going to hold a Dragon Boat Festival in a few days."
One of the lackeys, eager to try, asked, "Young manager, shall we go back immediately and bring back grain to sell?"
"Something feels off... No rush, let's take another look."
Manager Wang pondered for a moment, then shook his head.
After wandering around for a while and inquiring about the local officials and wealthy merchants, the group decided to find an inn to rest and have a meal. They arrived at a bustling restaurant in the city center.
Shopkeeper Wang, with his sharp eyes, caught sight of a rather familiar profile. He paused for a moment, then blurted out, "Sister Xie?"
At the entrance of Yuanming Tower, Xie Lingjiang, who was about to enter, paused and turned around, only to see a group of short young men.
"You know me? Wait, you are..." She frowned and thought, vaguely recalling a brief encounter at a gathering of the Wang and Xie families in Wuyi Lane, Jinling. However, she still couldn't remember the name. There were just a few outstanding members from both families, such as herself. If she were to be called by her birth order, she should be Xie Shiqi Niang.
Xie Lingjiang looked apologetic and politely asked, "Excuse me, younger brother, what is your name...?"
Manager Wang, very outgoing, stepped forward and introduced himself:
"Sister Xie, this is your younger brother Wang Caozhi. You probably don't remember me, but I know Sister Xie very well. The elders in the family talk about it every day, often saying that none of us Wang family men are as good at studying as a Xie family girl, which makes us young men feel ashamed. I'm fine, but I mainly enjoy seeing those older brothers who are good at studying look sour, hahaha."
Xie Lingjiang remained expressionless, seemingly in a bad mood, and wasn't amused. Wang Caozhi coughed twice, momentarily embarrassed, but thick-skinned as ever, he casually changed the subject:
"What are you doing here, Sister Xie?"
"Yes, how did I get here?" Xie Lingjiang nodded and asked herself.
Since that "argument," her senior brother hasn't contacted her for seven days. She doesn't go to him, and he doesn't come to her either. She doesn't know what he's been busy with lately. It seems like he's really forgotten about his advisor... Well done, Ouyang Lianghan.
A junior sister thought to herself.
(End of this chapter)
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