Ming Huan nodded, took a couple of steps, and then suddenly realized that the person beside him didn't seem to be leaving, which puzzled him.
Why isn't Sister Tang leaving yet?
"Waiting for someone."
Tang Nian glanced in the direction of the palace but still couldn't see the carriage. She took out a golden bead from her sleeve.
Compared to its appearance in Muyun County, the merit beads are even more eye-catching.
This time, stopping the Chu Emperor from committing evil deeds is a great merit.
Once she has fulfilled the young prince's instructions, the bead will be almost full, and she can then go to report to the god. Her people will no longer need to remain holed up in the secret realm.
Thinking this, she nodded in satisfaction, completely unaware that Ming Huan was staring at the beads in her hand.
The sound of horses' hooves came from afar. She tucked the beads back into her sleeve and pointed to the approaching carriage road: "Look, here they come."
The carriage slowly came to a stop, and when Ming Huan saw that a woman was already sitting inside, he couldn't help but frown.
"This is Chu Roujia, she's coming with us." Tang Nian introduced them, worried that the two might not be used to the journey. "Roujia, this is Ming Huan, my... partner."
Ming Huan glanced around with a complicated look, nodded to Chu Roujia, and then turned to Tang Nian: "Sister Tang, I'll go scout ahead for you."
As he spoke, he hugged the bag he was carrying to his body without hesitation.
Watching Ming Huan's actions, Tang Nian blinked, her eyes fixed on the luggage with suspicion.
She didn't remember her luggage being this full when she came to the capital.
"this……"
Before Chu Roujia could speak, Tang Nian interrupted her.
"Okay, then you can wait until we leave before you set off."
She nodded, noticing nothing amiss, and thought that since Ming Huan was a Bifang, it would be good for him to go and investigate first.
However, in order not to frighten Chu Roujia, they had no choice but to go ahead first.
As Chu Roujia hesitated to speak, Tang Nian bid farewell to Jing Yao and Ming Huan, boarded the carriage, and leisurely left the imperial city.
Inside the carriage, Tang Nian had intended to take a nap, but she hadn't expected that Chu Roujia would have already compiled the news about Nanyu City in such a short time.
"Sister Tang, take a look at this." She took out a small notebook from a hidden compartment. "But these are all intelligence reports from the past two months. The spies in Nanyu City haven't sent back any more messages since then."
Tang Nian nodded, opened the notebook, which was filled with tiny writing.
Inside the carriage, it was so quiet that only the sound of the wheels turning and Tang Nian turning pages could be heard.
The more Tang Nian looked, the more she realized that her opponent this time was no ordinary person.
The Song family has been in Nanyu City for three generations and has been in the medicinal herb business. The current head of the Song family is Song Shiyan, the owner who brought the Song family pharmacy back to life.
His younger sister, Song Shiyi, was also a renowned beauty. Song Shiyan spread the word that whoever married his sister would inherit the Song family's pharmacy. Proposals poured in, but two years ago, Song Shiyi married a poor scholar in Lancheng and never returned to Nanyu City.
Chu Roujia's intelligence report also mentioned that she had sent someone to inquire about Song Shiyi, but to no avail, and she even made a small mark next to the message.
"Roujia, did you hear from Song Shiyi again?" Tang Nian looked up and asked softly to Chu Roujia, who was taking a nap.
Chu Roujia did not open her eyes, but her voice showed no sign of drowsiness: "I sent people to Lancheng several more times, and all I know is that she opened a Song family pharmacy in Lancheng. The pharmacy is doing well. She is pregnant. I did not see her husband. The neighbors did not want to talk about it, and then it was put aside."
She needed to know a lot, but she only had so many people. After gathering information a few times, and seeing that neither Nanyu City nor Lan City had experienced any major trouble, she put the matter aside.
Tang Nian nodded, then lowered her head to continue reading.
The rest was mostly the history of how Song's Pharmacy got its fortune, nothing particularly useful, except for the last sentence that caught Tang Nian's attention.
"Was Song Shiyan a great philanthropist?"
"That's right, he's very famous locally. I heard that he gives porridge to the poor every week and also provides free medical care for the people. This reputation is unanimously recognized by the local people."
Chu Roujia remembered it clearly; she was very skeptical of this point at the time and even had her subordinates ask her in detail.
A gentleman judges by actions, not intentions. Regardless of what Song Shiyan thought, Chu Roujia still recorded this fact because he continued to do so.
Tang Nian nodded thoughtfully, though she had no way of knowing whether she believed it or not.
Suddenly a commotion came from outside, and then the carriage slowly came to a stop. Tang Nian lifted a corner of the curtain and found that it was a teahouse outside, where a caravan was resting. The atmosphere seemed a bit heavy.
"Don't worry, Sister Tang, An Yi has gone to gather information."
Tang Nian lowered the curtain and leaned back in her chair.
The image of Ming Huan flashed through her mind.
It has to be said that the princess's people are much more reliable than her own, unlike Ming Huan, who always messes things up at crucial moments.
Tang Nian suddenly had a bold guess.
"Are An Yi and the others all your men?"
"It wasn't like that before, but it is now."
Tang Nian nodded gently, and followed Chu Roujia's example by closing her eyes to rest, while her mind was racing.
She thought that a princess living deep in the palace must have a large number of subordinates supporting her if she could have such methods. If An Yi and the others were not the princess's people before, then Chu Roujia's power was much greater than she thought.
Was Chu Roujia really following him because of what she said?
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