Gu Yuzhi blinked, and it took him a while to realize what Xie Changshi meant. He covered his mouth and whispered, "Xie Changshi, then, the Zhou family's daughter was killed by their own people? It had nothing to do with the Longchang Escort Agency?"
He suddenly stood up, fuming, and said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's hurry up and talk to Prefect Qi and tell him to drive the Zhou family away."
Manager Yu is now his man; he can't let these bad people bully him.
"Your Highness, please calm down." Chief Secretary Xie reassured Gu Yuzhi and continued to explain, "Longchang Escort Agency isn't entirely without fault either, after all, the loss of the goods is a fact. It's just that the matter isn't as serious as the Zhou family claims."
Gu Yuzhi snorted: "Then the Zhou family lied too, they're bad people, and bad people should be thrown in jail!"
By this time, the Zhou family's wailing had gradually subsided. Gu Yuzhi tried to look through the crack in the carriage window, but still couldn't see anything. He pouted and sat back down: "Chief Secretary Xie, now that we know there's something fishy about this, are we just going to ignore it?"
He scratched his head, somewhat puzzled. Wasn't it said that Manager Yu was capable? Why were they just leaving him to his own devices?
Chief Secretary Xie tapped on the carriage and whispered to the guards to investigate the Zhou family. After the guards left, he quietly explained to Gu Yuzhi, "Your Highness, we need to take over the Longchang Escort Agency, and we must do so cleanly. If Manager Yu cannot handle things properly today, the takeover of the Longchang Escort Agency will have to be postponed."
He stared straight at Gu Yuzhi and said rather disrespectfully, "Your Highness, you are no longer the carefree sixth prince in the palace. You are now the Prince Wen, the pillar of the people of Mobei. Your subordinates cannot be useless people who have to let others solve everything."
He peeked out through the crack in the window and saw Qi Wenhan saying something. The Zhou family members were once again excited: "Your Highness's subordinates must be able to stand on their own, make clear judgments on matters of principle, and remain true to themselves in the face of great temptations. Only such people can serve Your Highness."
These words were somewhat convoluted and heavy, and Gu Yuzhi puffed out his cheeks, unable to understand them for a long time.
Seeing this, Manager Wen smiled and explained, "Your Highness, Chief Secretary Xie meant to test Manager Yu's abilities, not that he was really going to let her go. Your Highness's guards are still protecting Manager Yu."
Gu Yuzhi then understood, and his previous impatience naturally subsided. He sat down again, gently widening the gap in the car window, and asked curiously, "I wonder how Prefect Qi will rule."
Just then, a servant of the Zhou family rushed in and knelt down before the eldest young master of the Zhou family before he could even speak: "Young master, young master, please come home quickly, the young lady is gone too..."
The eldest son of the Zhou family, with his mountain-like physique, swayed violently and sat down on the ground with a thud, crying out to the heavens, "Heavens above, please open your eyes and see! Why do we who have done good deeds not receive any reward? And those who have committed wrongdoings can still live so carefree!"
Upon hearing this, the Zhou family's servants could no longer contain themselves and rushed inside, trying to break through the constables' encirclement and drag Manager Yu out to be sentenced.
Qi Wenhan's hard-won composure was shattered once again. With a stern face, he roared, "Let's see who dares to touch my people!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd fell silent. Qi Wenhan took two steps forward and looked down at the eldest son of the Zhou family, who was slumped on the ground: "Zhou Chongshan, stand up and answer!"
Zhou Chongshan burst into laughter: "What, does Prefect Qi want to question me, the victim, about my crime? My sister died, what's wrong with me seeking justice?"
Just as Qi Wenhan was about to speak, Manager Yu stepped out from the constables' protective circle: "Zhou Chongshan, did our Longchang Escort Agency really kill your sister?"
Looking at Manager Yu's ambiguous face, Zhou Chongshan's heart skipped a beat, and he was speechless for a moment.
Shopkeeper Yu, however, was not about to let him off so easily: "Your sister was pregnant for ten months, and your Zhou family bought up eight or nine out of ten ginsengs from the northern desert. Did she really die because of this one hundred-year-old ginseng?"
The crowd of onlookers started whispering and discussing again.
Yes, the Zhou family is buying ginseng in a big way. It is said that they have bought at least several dozen, if not a hundred. Even if the pregnant woman is in poor health, she shouldn't be taking such supplements.
Can someone really die from just one ginseng root?
Zhou Chongshan suddenly jumped up and threw a punch at Manager Yu, but it was blocked by Guard Gu Yuzhi, who shoved him forward heavily. Zhou Chongshan staggered two steps and suddenly sneered, "So you've found a backer." He looked at Qi Wenhan, "Prefect Qi, aren't you going to do anything about this man?"
Qi Wenhan was not sure what Prince Wen meant until the people around Manager Yu took action. He sneered, "Take them all to the yamen! Anyone who dares to cause trouble here, don't blame me for being impolite."
Zhou Chongshan's temples bulged with veins, and after a long while, he took two steps forward, gritting his teeth as he said, "Prefect Qi, you should know, right? This Longchang Escort Agency has been targeted by the Li Family Trading Company, and the owner of the Li Family Trading Company..."
He didn't finish his sentence, after all, there were some things that everyone understood but didn't say aloud.
To his surprise, Qi Wenhan only glanced at him coldly and said, "What are you standing there for? Take them all away!"
The constables obeyed orders and quickly dispersed the surrounding crowd: "Send them away! What are you watching? Every single one of you from the Zhou family, take you away!"
"Prefect Qi," Manager Yu bowed to Qi Wenhan, his voice not loud but just loud enough for everyone around to hear, "Thank you, Prefect Qi, for giving our Longchang Escort Agency a chance to tell the truth. I want to clear our name in front of all our neighbors."
Seeing Qi Wenhan nod, Manager Yu then took out a few sheets of paper from his pocket: "As everyone knows, our Longchang Escort Agency lost two shipments in a row, so we decided to close down. But then the Zhou family patriarch came to our door, begging us to help protect the shipments."
Zhou Chongshan quickly jumped in: "That's because my grandfather was considering our relationship with your Longchang Escort Agency and wanted to give you a hand!"
"Is this really a helping hand, or is it plunging us into dire straits?" Manager Yu stepped forward, his imposing manner no less assertive. "I refused repeatedly, but your old man visited us time and again, so we finally decided to make this last delivery before closing down."
Manager Yu had no intention of giving the Zhou family another chance to speak. He directly handed the papers to Qi Wenhan: "Prefect Qi, this is evidence from our agency's investigation regarding the Zhou family's scheme against our Longchang Escort Agency, attempting to defraud us of our cargo." He straightened his back, his gaze fixed on the carriage not far away, and declared firmly, "Now, on behalf of the Longchang Escort Agency, I sue the Zhou family for defrauding us of our cargo. We demand that Prefect Qi restore the innocence of our Longchang Escort Agency!"
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