Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master investigated several rivers that irrigated farmland, and they discovered that the water in the rivers also had a slightly reddish color.
"Could it be that the water quality itself has changed in some way?" Thirteen, Fourth Master, Cui Da and Cui Er, and several of Fourth Master's guards stood on the riverbank. They used buckets to fetch a bucket of water to examine it.
“Go ask the fishermen here. The water quality has changed, but are the fish unaffected?” Fourth Master, dressed in a royal blue robe, stood on a protruding river rock.
Cui Dahu stepped forward and said, "This servant will go and ask the fishermen over there."
Fourth Master nodded to him, and Cui Da turned and walked in the direction of the fisherman he had seen, with Cui Er following closely behind.
Thirteen, dressed in a dark blue robe, stood beside Fourth Master, watching several white birds skim across the vast river, occasionally using their sharp beaks to catch fish and shrimp from the water.
"Fourth Brother, I heard that Father Emperor is going to reward the Crown Prince for raising grain. Why? It was clearly Fourth Brother who raised the grain, but in the end, it all went to someone else. It's so unfair." Thirteenth Brother stood with his hands behind his back and said, "If Fourth Brother finds out the reason for the large-scale crop failure in the Jianghuai area this time, will the Crown Prince tell Father Emperor that it was his achievement again?"
The Fourth Prince stood like a stone statue on the river stone, silent for a moment, and then said calmly, "The Crown Prince is the heir apparent, our master, and in the future, our emperor. Thirteen, do you remember this? This time, Father Emperor ordered me to stay and assist the Crown Prince in overseeing the country. He is the master, and I am the second. So no matter how many things are done well, it is all the Crown Prince's credit, and if they are not done well, it is because we have not assisted him well."
Fourth Master's face was turned towards the river, so Thirteenth Master couldn't see him. When he said those words, his face showed such resentment and desolation.
Thirteen looked at Fourth Master's profile and said excitedly, "In Thirteen's heart, only Fourth Brother deserves that position, only Fourth Brother is Thirteen's master!!"
Fourth Master turned around leisurely and stared at Thirteen, as if he had a thousand words to say and wanted to tell Thirteen his truest thoughts, to tell him that he had never been resigned to his fate.
Seeing that Fourth Master looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated, Thirteen said anxiously, "Fourth Brother, tell Thirteen that as long as you dare to fight, Thirteen will follow you to the death and do anything for you."
Fourth Master frowned slightly, the rustling of the wind and the flowing of the river filling his ears. He stared at Thirteen's handsome features and the all-too-familiar face, his innermost thoughts almost bursting forth, but in the end, he didn't reveal his most secret. He simply smiled and said, "Fourth Brother knows, Fourth Brother has always considered you his most important brother. If one day the opportunity comes, Fourth Brother will definitely seize it. Now, finding out why the fertile fields have yielded a poor harvest is our top priority."
Upon hearing the Fourth Prince finally speak these words, Thirteen felt a surge of pride. He could sense the Fourth Prince's ambition, but he had never heard him express his desire for that position directly. Thirteen himself had no interest in vying for the position; he knew he lacked the qualifications and ability. However, he only wished that his Fourth Brother would give it a shot. Even the Eighth and Ninth Princes were coveting it. His Fourth Brother was the only prince besides the Crown Prince, having been raised by the Empress and cared for by their father for two years. Therefore, he was the one truly qualified to claim that position.
A moment later, Cui Da and Cui Er arrived with a fellow villager dressed as a fisherman. Cui Da chatted and laughed with the fisherman, appearing to be very familiar with him.
“Master, this old man has been fishing in this area for almost ten years. I asked him about his fishing situation in the last year or two, and he said there are often dead fish in the water,” Cui Da said as he walked up to Fourth Master.
The old man looked at the two young men in brocade robes in front of him, and immediately felt no closer to them than he had to Cui Da. He felt an invisible pressure emanating from the man in the sapphire blue robe.
The old fisherman stammered, becoming somewhat incoherent.
"Sir, just repeat what you just told me to our master. Don't be afraid." Seeing that Fourth Master looked serious and somewhat frightening, Cui Da had no choice but to comfort him.
Well, you can't blame Si Si for that. Apart from lacking a bit of friendliness, he's practically perfect in every other way!
"Yes. I've been fishing in this area for over ten years. Before, there was plenty of water and fish, and life was good. But these past two years, I don't know what's wrong. There are fewer fish in the water, and we often catch dead ones. Sigh, is there some kind of disease in the water?" The old man finally spoke clearly.
"Does this river have any tributaries? And is anyone dumping anything into it?" Fourth Master's eyes flashed. He couldn't figure out why the river had become dirty and the fish were dying. Had someone poisoned the river?
"This river has no tributaries; it's the only river that irrigates our fields. Alas. If the river continues like this, I, an old man, don't know if I'll be able to catch fish again," the old man said to himself.
"Has anything happened in the last year or two? Or something you find strange?" Fourth Master asked again.
The old man pondered Fourth Master's question for a moment, then seemed to remember something and said, "The strange thing is that we haven't seen many young and middle-aged men in our village these past two years. Is that considered strange?"
Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master exchanged a glance, then Thirteenth Master took out a money pouch from his sleeve and handed it to the old man, saying, "Old man, take this money."
The old man was overjoyed to receive a reward for saying just a few words. He bowed repeatedly before happily leaving.
Fourth Master thought about what the old man had just said and suddenly said, "Thirteenth Master, I remembered what happened in Yangzhou last year. Do you remember that Miss Ding and Li Wei's younger brother? They have both been missing for a long time and have not reappeared."
Thirteen looked bewildered and said, "Where did these people go? Were they conscripted into the army?"
The Fourth Prince shook his head and said, "I have already asked the Princess's cousin. He is the commander of Yangzhou. If the army needs men, they would not use this method to conscript them. This is not allowed by the imperial court."
"Master, has he been kidnapped by someone to be forced into hard labor?" Cui Da suddenly asked.
These words were like a bolt of lightning streaking across the night sky, suddenly igniting the eyes of the Fourth Prince and the Thirteenth Prince.
"Let's go to the county government office and investigate the missing persons cases of the past two years. Let's see how many people have gone missing," Fourth Master said.
They rode their horses across the fields, but among the vast stretches of fertile land, there were only a few elderly, weak, women, and children; young and strong people were rarely seen.
Fourth Master, along with Thirteen, Cui Da, and Cui Er, rushed into the city and headed straight for the county government office.
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