Chapter 26 It's Yu'er's good fortune to bully the young man and have him copy scriptures for His Highness...
“My wife, I ate too much and made you spend a lot of money… This meal is a loan from you and me, and I will pay you back when I earn more money.”
Ah Man stammered shyly, a blush rising on her dark face.
Yu Liu reminded her, "You're still calling her 'wife'."
Aman immediately imitated her and changed her address: "Master..."
"Don't worry, this meal is on me, you don't need to pay me back. With my wealth, you won't go bankrupt just by eating. If you really want to repay me, then show me your skills and do a good job," Yuan Yan said.
Aman was immediately moved to tears, "Yes, I will definitely repay my master."
At the same time, the system beeped again.
[Aman's loyalty has increased by 1 point, now at 90.]
Human hearts are fickle. The system's loyalty rating is just a number; she still trusts her own ability to judge people and her judgment more.
Yuan Yan heard it but ignored the voice and returned to the government office with A Man, Yu Liu, and other guards.
Back at the government office, Ah Man was naturally surprised once again.
They had assumed their new master was a high-ranking official. But after hearing from the other guards, they learned that Yuan Yan was actually the Second Princess, the Prince of Yue, personally appointed by the current Emperor!
Aman was utterly astonished. To be honest, the highest official she had ever seen in her life was a minor clerk who came to collect grain from the village.
Now, as soon as she left the village, she was taken in by His Highness the Prince of Yue to serve as a guard... Aman was at a loss and felt extremely fearful.
The guards nearby noticed her anxiety and comforted her, "Don't worry, His Highness is always fair in rewarding and punishing. As long as you serve loyally, His Highness will not mistreat you."
...
Meanwhile, when Yuan Yan returned to the courtyard, she summoned Xue Lang and asked him what Yu'er had done and if she had done anything unusual during the day she was away.
“Your Highness, this young master has kept the courtyard gate closed and stayed in his room without going out,” Xue Lang said.
"Really? How come he's so well-behaved?"
Yuan Yan didn't believe it from the bottom of his heart.
She stopped the servant who was about to announce her arrival and went into the house herself.
At this moment, just as Yuan Yan had predicted, Yu'er was indeed plotting something else. She had already sent all the servants in the house to the courtyard under some pretext, and was hiding in the house alone, writing secret letters in code.
When Yuan Yan pushed open the door, he deliberately walked softly, so Yu'er was a beat slow to react. Upon noticing someone enter, he quickly tucked the letter in his hand into the pages of the book beside him.
"Your Highness, you're back." After hiding her things, Yu'er quickly stood up and went to greet Yuan Yan with a sweet smile.
Did Yu'er see Yuan Yan's movement the moment he pushed the door open? She wasn't sure herself, so she kept a close eye on Yuan Yan's expression.
"What is the beauty doing?" Yuan Yan noticed his little actions but pretended not to know and walked to the table to ask.
Several Buddhist scriptures were placed on the table, one of which contained the letter that Yu'er had hidden.
"Your Highness has been gone for a day, and I really miss you. Since I had nothing to do in this courtyard, I read a few pages of scriptures to calm my mind." Yu'er saw her looking at the Buddhist scriptures, and her eyes lit up as she immediately made up a lie.
Yuan Yan casually picked up the top scroll of Buddhist scriptures, causing Yu'er's heart to leap into her throat.
"Yu'er can read?"
"The captives...the captives are in the building. Father had someone teach them some characters, so they know a little bit of writing," Yu'er replied with a smile, but she was secretly thinking to herself.
Did Yuan Yan see it or not? If he didn't see it, why did they specifically ask him about the scriptures when there were so many things in the room?
"The scriptures are obscure; can Yu'er still understand them?" Under Yu'er's anxious gaze, Yuan Yan casually flipped through a few more pages.
Problems keep piling up, it seems like there's no end to them.
Could her reaction mean she witnessed what had just happened? Yu'er grew increasingly anxious.
"Your Highness is too kind. How could I possibly understand these things... It's just a way to pass the time while waiting for Your Highness to return."
As Yu'er spoke, she secretly pulled out a silver needle with her right hand and hid it behind her back, remaining vigilant. She was prepared to take her down immediately if Yuan Yan discovered her.
Unexpectedly, Yuan Yan stopped what he was doing just before he was about to turn to the letter.
"What a coincidence! Lately, I've been feeling that everything is going wrong and I'm in a difficult situation, as if some villain is watching me from the shadows and causing trouble..."
"Since Yu'er enjoys reading scriptures, why don't you help me copy a few scriptures to alleviate my troubles?" Yuan Yan raised his eyes, his words carrying a hidden meaning, and said with a smile.
Yu'er was surprised that Yuan Yan would make such a request, and naturally she was unwilling, so she made an excuse.
“This… But Yu’er heard that copying scriptures only works if the sutra master is sincere in doing so.”
"I have important matters to attend to and am unable to spare the time. It would be the same if my beauty came to copy it." Yuan Yan paused, his smile fading. "Or... is it that Yu'er doesn't want to help me with this favor?"
Yu'er forced a smile and said, "How could that be? It is Yu'er's honor to be able to transcribe scriptures for Your Highness."
What a blessing! Who would send a servant to copy scriptures?
And you, a princess who spends all your time feasting and having fun, have no important business to attend to; you only know how to order people around...
Yu'er gritted her teeth inwardly, but had no choice but to agree.
"Then my beauty, please stay here and quietly copy the scriptures. I will send someone to collect them in a couple of days." After saying this, Yuan Yan put down the Buddhist scriptures and left.
Yu'er had no choice; he had to stay by Yuan Yan's side these next few days and coax him, so he had to do as she said.
"Yuan Yan, you lecherous lazybones, all you do is bully a young man like me..."
"Once I get what I want, I'll see how I deal with you."
Right now, he could only copy it by lamplight, bit by bit. As he copied, he rubbed his aching wrists and cursed under his breath, cursing Yuan Yan's ancestors for eighteen generations.
...
After Yuan Yan returned to the courtyard, he silently memorized all the coded messages he had seen from Yu'er.
Although she had only glanced at them briefly while flipping through the pages, Yuan Yan's exceptional memory allowed him to quickly imprint those characters into his mind.
"Host, we don't even know the meaning of these codes, so why are you memorizing them?" the system asked.
"Write this down first, you never know when it might come in handy." Yuan Yan wrote while looking at the words on the paper and thinking.
"Your Highness, the matter at the Prefectural Governor's Office has been thoroughly investigated," Yu Liu reported.
Yuan Yan continued writing without looking up, "How so?"
"Your Highness, how did you know that the servant's identity was unusual? It's truly amazing!" Yu Liu said with a hint of excitement.
"What the governor's office said to the outside world was false... That young servant was indeed not the son of an ordinary wealthy merchant, but the son of Liu Jiangyang, the leader of the Grand Canal Gang!"
The so-called "Grain Transport Gangs" were folk groups that arose in response to the grain transport system. Each time grain was transported, the imperial court needed a large number of people, recruiting soldiers, sailors, and boatmen. These people often spent eight or nine months a year traveling and living together for extended periods. Over time, they gradually banded together and spontaneously formed the Grain Transport Gangs.
And this Grand Master is the most powerful person in the Canal Gang.
Despite being ordinary people and outlaws, the members of the Grand Canal Gang wielded considerable influence in the Grand Canal transport system.
By colluding with government officials, smuggling goods, and stealing from those in charge, the grain transport gangs often made huge profits from transporting grain. After giving the government the lion's share, they were still able to feed the gang leaders, big and small, making them extremely wealthy.
"How did I find out? Look at Governor Wang, who values etiquette and social standing so much. How could such a person randomly take a wealthy merchant of low status as a servant for his second daughter?" Yuan Yan put down his pen.
“Something is amiss; there must be something fishy going on.” She finally raised her eyes when she said this.
Yu Liu became increasingly alarmed as she thought about it. "Does Your Highness suspect that Governor Wang is colluding with the grain transport gang... and that she is also involved in the embezzlement of grain?"
Yuan Yan's expression showed no sign of surprise, as if he had expected this all along.
"That's probably the case most likely."
"Even without what we've witnessed today, I would have suspected Wang Li. How could Cao Shiguan and her ilk have dared to embezzle grain without the tacit approval of the local governor? I doubt many officials in Chuzhou have clean hands."
Yu Liu recalled the Governor Wang she had met that day; he was upright and acted with maturity and thoroughness. She couldn't help but shake her head and murmur to herself.
"This Lord Wang doesn't seem like the kind of person he is. You really can't judge a book by its cover..."
The system listened attentively: [Host, now that you've found the officials who embezzled the grain transport funds, shouldn't your next step be to report this to the Emperor?]
"I ask you, what will you report to the Empress Dowager? Just what you've seen and heard on the road these past few days?" Yuan Yan laughed.
"Don't forget, our goal is to uproot these corrupt officials. Now that everything is clear, it's time to find the real ledger."
Where are the ledgers? Yuan Yan didn't know either, so she set her sights on those who did.
A note from the author:
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