After confirming that there was indeed something at the bottom of the lake, Fourth Master was no longer in a hurry. After instructing Thirteen to properly thank the fishermen, Fourth Master returned to the inn.
"Fourth Brother, why don't we just find someone to bring those things up and take a look?" Thirteen asked, puzzled, seeing that Fourth Master didn't seem interested in what was hidden at the bottom of the water.
“We’ve been targeted for a long time. Those few fishermen won’t be able to catch anything,” Fourth Master said with a stern face.
"Fourth Brother, are you saying that the person who meddled in our business back then was the one?" Thirteen reacted quickly when he heard Fourth Master say this.
“Whether it’s him or not, it’s definitely alerted the person who put those things there. Tonight, those things might make a move. Tell me, since someone is helping us retrieve those things, why bother doing it ourselves?” Fourth Master led Thirteen into the inn.
Su Peisheng didn't go with them; he had been extremely worried. Seeing the Fourth Master return, he immediately went to greet him, saying, "Master, you're back! This servant has prepared lunch for you."
"We've used it. Has Li Wei returned?" Fourth Master asked as he climbed the stairs.
"Not yet, that kid went out early this morning, I don't know what he does all day!" Su Peisheng was jealous when he saw that Fourth Master only asked about Li Wei.
"Su Peisheng, call them into my room. You stand guard outside and don't allow anyone to approach." The "they" that the Fourth Prince referred to were several guards. Don't underestimate them just because they are ordinary guards; the Fourth Prince had spent a long time training them, and they were ready to do anything for him at any time.
"Yes, sir!" Su Peisheng saw that Fourth Master's expression was serious and dared not act coy anymore.
Once inside the house, the Thirteenth Master dared to ask, "Fourth Brother, do they have people in this post station too?"
"Better safe than sorry. Walls have ears," said Fourth Master.
In a short while, several guards followed Su Peisheng into the Fourth Master's room. Su Peisheng withdrew as instructed.
"Tonight, I want you all to keep an eye on that place. Then find out where they went, and preferably where they transported those things to!" Fourth Master gave the order directly.
"Yes, sir!" The men responded without hesitation and stood solemnly, awaiting the Fourth Master's instructions.
"Go on, Master and Thirteenth Master have gone back first. You can return to the manor once you've completed your tasks. Now go and collect the silver notes from Thirteenth Master." After giving his instructions, Fourth Master said to Thirteenth Master, "Give each of them one thousand taels."
"One thousand taels?" Thirteen exclaimed, his eyes wide. This amount was equivalent to half a month's expenses for his entire household. One thousand taels for each of these people would be several months' expenses for his entire household.
"Give them everything we brought, and leave us one hundred taels, which will be enough for our return to the capital," Fourth Master said.
Thirteen still wanted to say something, but then he remembered that his fourth brother was not one to squander money, so he kept quiet and went to his room with a few guards to collect the silver notes.
That night, Fourth Master wrote a letter to Han Changzhi, and then, along with Thirteenth Master and Li Weisu, secretly set off back to Beijing. No one knew when they were leaving, and they did not inform anyone.
Under the cover of darkness, the Fourth Prince only had Su Peisheng hire a carriage before leaving, while the guards had already dispersed into individual positions to wait for the strange noises coming from the West Lake.
They were not ordinary guards, but trusted confidants cultivated by the Fourth Prince. Unlike assassins, these men had normal lives and were not used for assassination missions, but rather to help the Fourth Prince handle matters that could not be handled by the government troops.
As soon as they left the post station, they changed their clothes, became ordinary people, and disappeared into the crowd.
At this time, although they all accepted the mission at the same time, they were all acting independently. No one knew where the others were. Once one of them completed the mission, they would inform the others in a special way, then cease operations and immediately return to the capital.
Sure enough, that night, at the Broken Bridge on West Lake, some men in black finally appeared in the darkness. However, instead of retrieving the object, they jumped into the water, cut the ropes, and then untied the ropes binding the bridge piers.
How cunning! Since we've already been exposed, we might as well give up!
Meanwhile, Fourth Prince and Thirteenth Prince sat facing each other inside the carriage. Li Wei and Su Peisheng sat outside the carriage.
"Li Wei, tell me what you heard?" Fourth Master asked Li Wei outside the carriage.
"May this servant come in and report to Master?" Li Wei asked.
"Come in," Fourth Master said.
Li Wei smiled, opened the car door, and climbed inside.
Su Peisheng glared at him, a bitter feeling welling up inside him. This kid surnamed Li, ever since he started serving the Fourth Master, has become increasingly more favored by him than he has ever been.
“Master, Thirteenth Master. These days, I often hang out at the academies where students from various prefectures and counties gather, and I’ve heard some things. They’re talking about how some people leaked the exam questions, and others were selling them. They even said that as long as you have money, you can buy a complete set of questions,” Li Wei said.
"Damn it! The court gave them power, but they used it to profit for their own selfish gain. It's outrageous! I never imagined that the imperial examinations in Jiangnan were so corrupt!" Thirteen couldn't help but say indignantly.
“Forming cliques for personal gain and cheating in the imperial examinations are malignant tumors that corrupt the court. Father Emperor has been too lenient with them all these years,” the Fourth Prince said.
"I wonder who put something at the bottom of West Lake, and what it is that made them go to such lengths," Thirteen added.
"There are only two things: either silver or weapons," Fourth Master said dismissively.
"Silver? Weapons?" the Thirteenth Master said in a panic.
“Indeed, only these two things can make the court uneasy, and only these two things need to be hidden like this. It seems that the person who is mobilizing this grand scheme in Jiangnan is of high status.” Fourth Master looked out the carriage window at the dark sky.
"Li Wei, go tell Su Peisheng to find a place to rest and have some food. We've probably left Hangzhou Prefecture," Fourth Master instructed.
After Li Wei came out, he found Su Peisheng chatting with the uncle who was driving the carriage.
“Brother, I can tell you’re someone who travels around a lot. You must know which inns are good and which restaurants serve the best food along the way, right? I’m counting on you to help me find food and lodging along the way.” Then, Su Peisheng took a silver ingot from his sleeve and stuffed it into the uncle’s arms.
Wow, this old man is really generous. Look at that silver, it's probably five taels. Su Peisheng is really going all out to serve the young master.
The uncle rushing to catch the carriage saw that this customer was so generous with his money, so of course he was willing to go along with it. In addition, he could also enjoy the good things himself, so he would naturally take the good places with him. Moreover, Su Peisheng had given him money, so he became even more attentive.
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